Whites Spectra V3/V3i Coil Problems - Progress Reports And Experiences

[rcasio44]

The D2 works great on the MXT. I used and tested the Excelerator 10&quotcheesysmile: and for me the Excelerator had o advantage over the D2. Even a D2 that is out of null will work fine with an MXT since the V null is just to work with the 22.5 frequency. Rob

[Lowjiber]

I just sent my Vision (serial #16) back to Sweet Home this morning for the V3i modifications and put the coil in the box with a letter similar to the one you originally wrote. I described the intermittent nature of the beast and told them to simply throw it in the trash if they decided that it was okay because it is of no value at all to me as it is.

I'll report back what they say.

I got the modified Vision back yesterday and White's replaced the 10D2 coil...no questions asked. Hopefully, this one (my third) will work out.

[CyberSage]

I got in a couple of hours today with the D2 coil down at the old park by my house. I was running hotter than I usually do and things were really stable with the new D2. I was using a DS of 95 and an RX of 12. I managed a couple of Wheats. One was on edge at 7.5 inches the other was a good 8.5 to 9 inches deep. They hit nicely. May be it is my imagination but, this coil seems much more stable than any of the previous 3 I have used. So far so good.

Jack

[Kenova]

It appears to me this problem is still occurring. I purchased a brand new Spectra V3i last week and I am having problems with it. Seems to me to be a bad coil. I took a couple videos to show what I am experiencing. Falsing like crazy, could be EMI but my other detector works just fine. Today I noticed that if I barely touch the coil it falses. This is not good as I am sure the coil will get bumped a little in the field causing falsing. And when barely touched it give a nice high VDI false, even worse.

Bad coil? Sure seems that way to me.

What do you think? Bad coil?


http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v1...t=VID00004.mp4


http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v1...t=VID00009.mp4

[30U Plymouth]

After watching the first video, it looks like your wire coming out of your coil is close to the coil.
I run the wire straight up the shaft for about 6 and then start coiling it around the shaft.
If the wire is very close or possibly touching the top of the coil, it could cause some falsing.

Just a thought.......

[Kenova]

After watching the first video, it looks like your wire coming out of your coil is close to the coil.
I run the wire straight up the shaft for about 6 and then start coiling it around the shaft.
If the wire is very close or possibly touching the top of the coil, it could cause some falsing.

Just a thought.......

Good eye Plymouth! I will see if that helps, although I dont understand why it is falsing if I barely touch the coil.

The manual states unravel loop cable and wind the cable around the clevis and rod assembly, first revolution over the top of the rod. Wind cable all the way to the top of the curved S rod, about 5 revolutions.


This is exactly what I did when I installed the loop. I will try to redo the cable and see if this helps. But it isnt going to help with the falsing from a bump.

[BHNugget]

My guess would be crapped out coil.Run your RX up to 15 in the air,does it overload?

[CyberSage]

This looks like a bad coil. This is reminiscent of how the early coils failed, not just the null shifting. Bump that RX up as Nugget has suggested and see if it overloads. Thanks for posting the video examples.

Jack

[Kenova]

I just took the V3i outside and turned it on and no fasling with the coil in the air. Turned Rx gain up to 15 and no overload. But if you barely and I mean barely touch the coil if falses every time you touch it.

I am not pleased to say the least. $1700 detector that is no good right out of the box. :bangahead01: :bangahead01: :bangahead01:
I realize Whites has great costumer service and will take care of the problem but I am not going to pay almost 2 grand for something and then have to send it back to the factory, pay for the shipping, wait weeks to get it back, and then it just do it again like many have stated in this thread.
I will be implementing my one and done policy. They get one shot with me on the V3i, thats it. If Whites cant offer me a unit that works correctly right out of the box then IMO it could only get worse from here. So I will be taking the V3i back today for a refund. We will see how the return to my local store goes.

[Lowjiber]

I just took the V3i outside and turned it on and no falsing with the coil in the air. Turned Rx gain up to 15 and no overload. But if you barely and I mean barely touch the coil if falses every time you touch it.

I understand your frustration. However, give me a minute to cover a few things about the Vision regarding falsing. I currently own seven detectors and have many hours swinging a V...my original was serial #16.

The fact that you get no overload with Rx at 15 in the air tells me that the detector and the 10D2 coil are fine.

Unlike other detectors which need to be cranked up beyond the factory settings to get good depth, the Vision comes hot right outta the box. I'm an old MXT'er. That machine is good with the factory presets. However, to get the most out of it one needs to run it on the edge of insanity...as close to maximum gain as possible.

When I got my first Vision, I naturally assumed that the answer to everything was to run the Rx Gain on 15 to get the depth that the machine was touted to have. Wrong.

Without getting into filter settings, let me pass along the best advice I ever got when first using the Vision...

1. Start with the Rx Gain around 7 and the Disc Sensitivity around 78...then perform a ground balance. Once you've done this, you are ready to adjust BOTH the Disc Sens and the Rx Gain to obtain optimum settings for the ground under the coil.

2. Unlike most detectors (DFX excepted), there is not a single control (usually labeled Sensitivity) that adjusts both the returned signal that enters the box (Rx gain) and the algorithm in the firmware that decodes the returned signal (Disc Sens). A Vision works best (no falsing, but deep) when the user has balanced the two variables. I've found over time the more important one is Disc Sens.

3. Start adjusting both upwards until the machine falses when you bump the coil. Once it begins falsing because it's just too powerful for your ground conditions, it's time to start backing the two controls downward. Here's the rule-of-thumb: Sacrifice Rx Gain for Disc Sensitivity.

I realize (cause I've been there) that many first time users think Rx has to be at 15 to get the results that you've read about. Not true. A Vision that has been stabilized with good ground balance and an Rx gain of 5 will be incredibly deep when it's stabilized by an appropriate Disc Sens setting.

I'll be glad to discuss it with you further if you're interested. Drop me a PM and we'll talk.

[Kenova]

Lowjiber

I sent you a PM

Thanks

[Lowjiber]

Got it!!! Good talking with you. Please keep us informed. We're all just a big family here.

[Kenova]

Got it!!! Good talking with you. Please keep us informed. We're all just a big family here.

Thanks for taking the time to call me and give me some advice. I really appreciate it!
I will keep everyone updated on what becomes of my V3i.


Lowjiber had me try a couple things and we have decided that something is probably wrong with it.
We tried running the V3i in 7.5 freq only and it still falsed in the air and when I touched it even when I lowered the Rx gain to 3 or 4. This was done with the factory default setting in C & J which has a Disc. Sen. of 75.

[xzlr8n]

With all that is going on with the ever evolving Spectra story I just want to add some water to fire with my experience. Just rec'd my V3 back with the V3i update today. Also sent in my D2 and 4x6 Shooter coils to get checked out. Took about 2 weeks to get everything back, one week at White's and one week traveling from NY to Oregon and back to NY. Not too bad on the shipping, my withdrawal symptoms weren't too bad either. White's replaced: POD assembly, V3 PCB processor, LCD window, Keypad, and wireless head phone cushion covers (I haven't tried the mixed mode split ear mode yet). White's also swapped out my 4x6 Shooter coil for a new one and I guess my D2 was AOK (no new one sent). After re-assembling my new V3i upgrade w/ the D2 and DX-1, I took her out for test run tonight at my local Fair Ground. My first observation was the change in the look of the display software, very different and new from the old. I guess all that is new is the lettering font, but still very different from the old. I quickly clicked to search mode and found the machine in C&J (good), ground balanced and started sweeping after boosting the RX gain to 10, Disc Sens to 80, and All-Metal Sens to 70. First thing I noticed was the machine was very quiet, no chattering or random false signals I had to to double check before with the V3 . Targets sounded off clear and solid. Picked up 4 quarters, 2 dimes, 1 nickel and 3 pre '82 pennies (ignored a bunch of Zincoln signals as I knew exactly what they were after digging the first one). After pin-pointing the first target I had to turn on the VCO audio setting to help get a better pin-point!!! All and all I was very impressed with the quietness and also the crisp sound of targets thumbsup01. Highlight for the night was being able to separate a quarter from a piece of 3/8 x 6 length of copper pipe within 6 of one another. I only dug the pipe because the quarter popped out of the ground and I thought what was to be the pipe was a coin spill.

[CyberSage]

Great feed back information. Thank you for taking the time to share it with the forum. I am having really good results with the replacement D2 I got back. I spoke with Lowjiber on the phone today and we both agree that the new D2 coils have a slightly different physical build. I am going to my local deal this week and compare with what he has in stock. This D2 is much improved in my opinoin.

[Brooklyn Hunter]

I came across this thread while looking for info on my DD COIL FOR MY 3vi. I too started having problems and did the air test as detailed and my coil overloaded. I was a bit disappointed as I bought the machine in 2010 and used it considerably that year w no problems. Family and work got pretty busy and I didn't use the machine in 2011 or 2012. So I really only had about 4 months of weekend detecting on it however when I got it out this spring, the coil was producing a lot of unstable results and false hits, this lead to my testing and the bad coil result.
However this has a happy ending.

When I called Whites and explained the issue and the fact my rechargeable battery was DOA ( totally. My fault I left it uncharged for 2 years) the nWhites rep informed they would replace both I can not express how impressed I am with their customer service . The detector has , other than the coil held up well, and the issue I had with the DD coiled is being taken care of free of charge . I have heard horror stories about Mine Lab. Customer service and repair turnaround. I wanted share how impressed I was with how Whites treated me!

[Boulder]

I have enjoyed reading this subjects pro's and con's immensely.
I have been following the auction sites the past few weeks for a 10 DD, and was wondering why there were so many V-rated coils up for bid.
I'm grateful now, that my low bidding was unsuccessful.
Is there any way of telling the difference of the newer updated coil?
Thanks, John.

[johnedoe]

The Vis an incredible machine and I am still learning mine, I just got it about 3 weeks ago.
The coil issues are something I am not sure of yet but I also experience quite a lot of noise even compared to my MXT.
But like I said I am still learning how to tune it to my varying conditions so the jury is still out regarding the coil.

[Lowjiber]

Is there any way of telling the difference of the newer updated coil?

All of mine have a V stamped into the tang where the shaft attaches to the coil.

I don't think there has ever been a 10 DD that wasn't V-rated though.

The V-rated problem has long been solved.

[CyberSage]

Well, this is certainly an old thread! lol I would report that almost 3 years later the last replacement D2 coil I received that was mentioned in the above post is still working great. I had a hunting buddy that had the null shift on his D2 last year, but I generally don't hear much about bad D2 coils these days.
In answer to your question on telling the old coils from the new ones... Both Lowjiber, and myself noticed a slightly thicker build on the new coils. I know that originally there were two distinct D2 coils manufactured. They even had diferent colored labels on them. (I believe one was white, and the other orange/red). The one that came with the V3/V3i, and the one you could purchase separately. If I remember correctly they were slightly different sized as well. So, it could be confusing to identify them using the size comparison. I would imagine if you knew the serial number schema that Whites used, you could figure it out. Might be a good question for someone at Whites.

Jack