Metal Detecting- The Sounds Is King

The most important sense you will need when doing metal detecting are your ears.
The sounds from a metal detector will be the best feature to tell you whats down there. Often it is very hard to separate the sounds from each other but a trained ear will after some time hear the small nuances and know with a high degree of certainty what type and shape the target has.
But be aware of that the cheapest and simpler types of metal detectors do not have much variety in their sound pattern so if you are serious about metal detecting buy a model that has a good variety in sounds and setting to adjust the pitch and treshhold level.
Expensive detectors as Minelabs E-trac has advanced setting to its sound features and demands a trained ear to know them.
Too many beginners put too much weight on the target id on the display. Be fully aware of that this is often misleading beacuase it is difficult for any detector to determine exactly what deep buried targets really are. I have seen many beginners disregard deep targets because the display tells them that it is trash when it in fact is a silver coin or another valueable item.
On the surface or a couple of inches down it is relatively easy for a detector to determine what type of metal we have, but for every inch deeper it will become harder and harder for the machine because mineralization, soil type and many other factors will disturb the radiosignals that penetrates the ground.
The display with target id will only be a wage guide when it comes to deep targets. You can see it when you have one and sweep the coil back and forth over it. The id will jump around and show many different id`s.
If you have been doing metal detecting for a long time and trained you ears, you can in this situation determine what the target is based on the sound pattern.
To come this far one have to train a lot over time and learn what the detector is telling you. In the beginning it is smart to put various object on a plate on the ground and just scan them. Listen to the variuos tones and burn them into your brains. Try out the sound settings and find out which settings that suits you best. Stick with those and concentrate on the sound nuances when being out in the field.
Now you have to dig up most targets just to see what the actual sounds told you. This will have to include piles of junk but slowly you will recognize most of the nuances and determine with more and more certainty whats down there. A good tip is to bring a notebook and write down with your own words what the sounds was and what the target was.
After a while your ears will be fine tuned and your skills as a metal detectorist will be high. It takes time and errors in the beginning, but who remembers that when the goodies begins to fill your drawers?