Howdy Folks!
Sorry I haven't posted over here in awhile, but I've been busier than a worker at the Alka Seltzer factory when a flood hits the plant!
When the V3 came out, I got the very first one that was sold in the state of Colorado.
Then, when I had a problem with it, I sent it back to Sweet Home just as word was
beginning to leak out about the V3i upgrade. Since mine was already there, I spoke
with a tech and he said they were not yet doing the upgrade, but rather than have
my machine come back to me only to turn it around a week later and send it back, he'd
go ahead and give me the upgrade while my machine was already there.
Ergo, I got the very first V3i released to a customer anywhere in the world. Yes, there
were V3i units out there in the hands of testers, program developers and so forth, but
I was the first civilian on this planet to get the upgrade.
My experience is that it is like having an entirely new machine. They could easily have
released a new V3i machine, and you would have to buy an entire machine, but White's
decided they could upgrade the V3 for a low cost that shouldn't be too troublesome to
most V3 owners. And in doing so, much more cheaply than buying the next machine in
the White's line.
Now for the observations I'll share on the V3i.
It is quieter and much more stable than the v3 was. Since the upgrade wipes out any
custom programs you may have installed, you'll need to restore them, assuming you
kept a record of what custom programs you had and what settings were for them.
Not only is it quieter, it is rock solid stable. I have yet to experience any interference
from any other machine of any other make. At a competition hunt in Sapulpa Oklahoma,
it was stone quiet until finding a target. Plenty of other machines around, including other
models of White's, but nothing bothered my V3i. It should be noted, however, there were
no other V3 machines there.
I have Polar Plot Analyze screen instead of the three hump mode that we have become
familiar with. I prefer it, but others will prefer the original analyze screen. It will be a matter
of taste for individual users what they decide to use.
I've also hunted in Stereo Mixed mode and like it. You get your regular discrimination channel
in one ear, with the all metal channel in the other. I believe this is unique in the industry. When
those two channels both sound off together, you have a target that merits visual examination.
If you get a target in the discrimination channel, you really can expect a good target to come up!
The one thing that stuck me for awhile is that the machine comes back upgraded with the VCO
turned off. This made pinpointing difficult until I figured out what was happening. Once you turn
VCO back on, pinpointing is far more pleasant and accurate.
I'm toying with the notion of going up to Fort Collins on Monday to try the parks up that way, and see how it works out up there. I'm also thinking to try Jack's programs because others out there aren't very well suited for our mineralized soil here on the front range of the Colorado Rocky Mountains!
Anyhow, if anybody has any particular questions about the upgrade, I'd be happy to answer to the best of my ability.
Blessings,
M-Taliesin
Who knows Carl, I may even make an effort to call White's and return that dead coil, or I just may scrap it. :-\
