Whites Prizm IV
Price: $450
Avg. Score: 
4.14
Based on 21 reviews
4.14Based on 21 reviews
Avg. Durability:
3.00
Avg. Ease of use:
4.75
3 years just purchased 2nd Prizm IV
September 10, 2008
I love my Prizm, and I have lots of detectors. Just purchased a new one
with the 9" spider coil. These are good, solid, reliable detectors. Easy
for a novice to operate. If its not working for you its broke or your not
using it correctly. Been detecting since 1968. I think its the best in it's
price range.
Overall Rating
Bill from
Tampa, Fl.
423
Prizm IV - Negative
August 31, 2008
Not having the same kind of success these other people have been having.
For me, I call it my clad machine because that's all I've found. I've
never found anything beyond 4 inches except for beer cans that give a false
signal of a .50 cents and won't give you a bad tone until you're about a
half inch over it. Never got a solid hit on anything beyond 3 inches so I
figured uping my coil to a 9.5 was the solution - now I can't get a solid
hit on anything beyond 2 inches. Also, I was curious as to why I wasn't find any nickles so I tested one - the only way my machine will beep at one is if I make a super slow mo pass at it about an inch away. Also, it does give some phantom signals in the ring range on wet sand that will send my wife digging for hours with no result.
Overall Rating
Casey from
Piti, Guam USA
3037
Prism iv
September 04, 2007
To Bill in Tampa Florida. Don't carry your metal detector in a hot car
trunk, you will ruin the electronics and void the warranty.
Overall Rating
Glenn e from
Tennessee usa
614
Still unsure
January 23, 2007
I bought my Prizm IV about 3 weeks ago after having been away from the
hobby for several years. My last detector was a Whites Eagle II. I wasn't
looking to spend that much money right off the bat this time so I went with
the Prizm IV. I have hunted with it and done pretty well in the coin
finding arena. Not having the best weather lately I have been limited in my
ability to get out and spend a full day hunting. I find the pin pointing
ability of this machine to be a bit eratic. In other words for me, it has
been hard to find the center point in which to dig my target. I find myself
wishing that I had sprung for one of the more expensive Whites models.
Something comparible to the Eagle II that I had. I would love to hear some
feedback from those of you that have experience with the various Whites
machines and tell me your thoughts.
Overall Rating
Raymond O. from
Nashville, TN
2512
Composition Correction
July 31, 2006
I would love to see a metal detector employ the ability to determine
metalurgical property and display that information accurately. However, to
the best of my knowledge, that feature only exists on paper. Today's metal
detectors, just like their original ancestors, depend on the laws of
electromagnetic induction. That means that they measure conductivity or
how "excited" the object in the ground becomes when subjected to eddy
currents. There is a big difference between composition and conductivity.
I scratch my head and wonder how a person can give an objective review when
the basic fundemental operating parameters of ANY metal detector is grossly
misinterpreted.
Overall Rating
Seasoned_Pro from
Washington State USA
1747
New to detecting but learning
July 13, 2006
I purchased a Whites Prizm 4 on Ebay used. I have had it about 3 weeks now.
I have searched in my back yard, a little bit at the local park and at the
beach. Sense I have never detected before I can not compare it to others
but I can say this works great. I find everything. Once I learn to tell the
different tones and get the pinpoint down so I dig less I will be deadly
with this. I have found about two dozen coins and a gold wedding band
already at the beach. This detector finds coins in the sand and dirt 8 plus
inches deep. I say it?s better than some of the other brands because there
are others that search the same beach I am and I am finding coins over
places I am sure they have covered. Two nights ago I found a nickel buried
9 inches deep in the sand and clay. I do find a lot of soda can pull tabs
but once I figure the toning out hopefully I will be able to skip them. It
even hit on a copper line In my back yard I did not know was there that was
buried a foot deep.
Overall Rating
Bill S. from
Arkansas USA
544
GREAT PRIZM IV !
June 05, 2006
I have been metal detecting since 1970 when I entered my first Treasure
Hunt. I was using a Gardiner discriminator detector at that time. Little
did I know about the advanced technology that goes into todays detectors.
The Prizm IV is the greatest. I purchased it new on ebay for a mere
$300.00 what a deal, I then purchased the 9.5" coil for it and WOW, what a
difference from the standard 8" coil. I have been in Panama City now for
three days and have hunted the beach every morning. So far have found a
gold ear ring, silver necklace pendent, umteen amount of coins, lots of
nickels, I might add, and my favorite, old style pull tabs. Ya got to
take the bad with the good, the three tones really make it nice as well as
the easy pinpoint mode and the super easy to use controls. Best investment
I ever made for a detector. I purchased a White's Classic 5 and immediately
sold it to purchase this one. A very wise decision on my part. You don't
have to learn hardly anything to use this one. Has similar features of the
XLT and other high priced machines. Surely the last one I will ever buy.
Can't speek highly enough of this one. email me and I will tell you more
about this fine machine.
Overall Rating
Ted Brown, rtb3@sbcglobal.net from
Greenwood, In
592
Prizm IV...excellent detector
May 25, 2006
I have used my Prizm IV on heavy farmland,and I am really pleased with its
performance.I have found Roman and Medieval coins and artefacts, with depth
and signal being clear and accurate.I do sometimes get a ghost
signal....but no more than with any other machine.The LCD is clear and understandable and the lightness of the detector is a major plus.
Overall Rating
Kev J from
Suffolk,England
252
First metal detector
April 14, 2006
The first metal detector I bought was a Prizm IV. I purchased it with the
supplied 8 inch coil and I purchased the 950 coil as well. The Prizm is
very accurate on target ID, pinpointing, and depth. If it tells you that a
quarter is 5 inches underground, and you then use the pinpointing option
you will find the quarter 5 inches under the ground in the center of the
coil. I also love the three tone target ID option, I always use it. The
smart notch funtion is ok, but I never use it. I have some other detectors
that seem to be more sensitive to small metal objects at greater depths
than the Prizm IV, but they are not always accurate. I have had good depth
results with the Prizm IV, I found a button at nine inches. I have had
some "ghost signals" and that is bothersome.
By that I mean you get a good target signal and you start to dig. You cut
your plug start to look for the item; you can't find the item, and you run
the detector over the area again and it reads nothing. It runs very silent
and sometimes you may want to check to make sure it is still on. It is
very light and you can detect all day.
The LCD screen is very easy to see in the bright sunlight and with
sunglasses on! There is a lack of accesories for the detector though. IT
would be nice to have a smaller coil for the trashy areas rather than a 950
or eight inch coil. Earlier I said that if it says a coin it is, for you
new people to metal detecting don't let that fool you. It is accurate 95%
of the time, but what it is doing is reading metal composition. I have had
toy cars read in as a nickel. I would not hesitate to recommend this
detector to anyone new. It does not have a big learing curve, and I found
coins out my first time not knowing anything about detecting other than
watching the video and reading the manual.
Overall Rating
Detector enthusiast from
New England USA
621
Nice detector
February 11, 2005
I purchased the Prizm IV as a back up to my XLT. I carry the Prizm in the
trunk while working in case I spot a target of opportunity. I really like
this detector. Also fine on the beach with the 950 coil. I have found
pennies at 6 inches in wet salt sand. Standard coil don't really work in
the wet sand.
Overall Rating
Bill from
Tampa Florida
602