Minelab GP Extreme tips, settings, questions

[Tictac]

Hey Paul, no i havent has it out since. I am going to nundle at easter so i will be giving it a good whirl then.

Tictac

 

[Guest]

Ok no worries can you Please let me know how it goes. Is your extreme an older model or a newer model?
Cheers,
Paul

 

[Tictac]

A newer one i believe Paul. I will check next time i have it out.

 

[Guest]

Thank you

 

[10fp]

Hey Guy`s is 66000 older or newer Extreme ??

Dave

 

[Guest]

Older, mine starts with 67 and it has a v1.2 board inside it, the later ones had a v1.5 board.

hope this helps

 

[10fp]

Thanks for that info ,
How high do the V1.5 serial no's go
I reckon I saw a SD2200V2 that was 73000. So that was Probly younger than my Extreme. ??

 

[Guest]

Best to drop minelab an email, they are helpful

 

[Guest]

Mine is a 2000 model with serial 67.... got that info from m/l.

 

[Tictac]

Well i used the camo at Nundle on the weekend for a morning. Didnt find any gold but found and few nails for my efforts. Hope to get some gold soon.

 

[Rejy]

I have both a 12v and a 6v battery both the same physical size just one has more volts. Can I still use the bigger one. TIA cheers. Gp extreme detector fyi.

 

[Jaros]

NO!! The 12 volt will "melt" the 6v items and the 6 volt will not do any thing to 12 volt items but will make 6v items work.

 

[Rejy]

Oh, gee I wonder what the previous owner was thinking. I hope nothing is damaged. So I'll use the 6v battery.

 

[mbasko]

He more than likely would have been using a regulator - most likely 6.8v. If you stick the 12v battery on the GP would/should shutdown as it has a 8.5v approx. protection circuit I believe. I don't recommend trying it.
From memory most found that the GP's ran better regulated at around 6.8v while the SD's were better at around 7.2v although some people have run the GP's a bit higher too.
In short you can use your 12v battery as long as it's regulated to a suitable voltage.

 

[blisters]

I wouldn't be using the 12v battery in your detector even if it's regulated. Capacity wise a 6v will be greater and more robust for the same size plus you'd also get large power losses converting 12v to 6v. I'd buy a second 6v battery of the correct size instead.
Jon

Edit: plus with anything you buy if someone has modified it then you really should understand what and why they've done the mod and go through it thoroughly to make sure it's done properly. The last thing you want to see is smoke 8.(

 

[condor22]

Have a look at Page 14 of the manual it CAUTIONs against the use of a 12V battery.

https://www.minelab.com/__files/f/4119/Inst Manual GP Extreme Website.pdf

It also states that the 6V battery is a 10AH.

You definitely can use a 12 volt battery, BUT only if you use a voltage reducing circuit which regulates the output DOWN to 6V before it connects to the detector.

The next consideration is the chosen 12V battery's AH rating. If it is similar to the Minelab 6V - 10AH, then there is absolutely no advantage. However if it is double or more in AH then you will get a longer detecting time between charges and regulated to 6V much longer without dropping off in voltage.

Invariably, a bigger AH battery will come with extra weight you will need to carry.

Given that the Minelab specs are 10-12 hours from the 6V which is a similar time to the GPX series 8V battery, there is not much benefit going to a larger battery.

A 12V regulated charger is available for this detectors 6V battery. Put it on charge when driving out in the morning, give it a boost at lunch time and more when you drive home, you should never run out of battery if you do this every day. Then there's the 240V charger it also comes with......

 

[Rejy]

Thanks Condor22, It turns out there is a silver box placed on the back pack, this is the voltage regulator. the 12v battery is a 7AH battery. I also have what I believe is the original or commonly used 6v (BB Battery BP10-6v, 10AH/20HR) this doesn't seem to be working. I'm guessing I can test it with a meter, but not sure what prongs (Just checked 2.8v). I believe the battery mod was done to save money as the 12v is around $35 compared to the 6v $90
P.s so overwhelmed with all the knobs, I only received it today. Tried to use it outside and all I got was lots of noise it does detect metal but with lots of other noise. I'm very close to power lines so hopefully its because of that.

 

[GaryO]

12 v at 10 AH running 6 volts will outlast a 6 volt 10AH battery at 6 volts.
Plus the the 6 volt system starts dropping voltage and performance from the moment its turned on ..
A regulated 12v system voltage stays at the set voltage until the 12 volt battery drops below the set limit.

Gaz

 

[Rejy]

12 v at 10 AH running 6 volts will outlast a 6 volt 10AH battery at 6 volts.
Plus the the 6 volt system starts dropping voltage and performance from the moment its turned on ..
A regulated 12v system voltage stays at the set voltage until the 12 volt battery drops below the set limit.

Gaz

I know exactly what your saying Gary0, its a shame my regulator doesn't have a voltage read out so I can check and make sure the volts don't exceed the sweet spot. I can check the voltage though coming out of regulator so I suppose if that's pumping out the required amount then a read out is not needed. I don't mind carrying a bit of weight so the 12v as long as its not damaging anything will be my choice and use the original 6v as a back up.

 

[Rejy]

Really sorry for potentially a silly question, but I ask only because in the manual it sais " To use the salty setting, you will have to use the specially designed GP Extreme range of coils"
I currently have a 1100 Dd coil (the original)