Minelab Explorer II
Approximate price: $1200
Number of Reviews: 84
on 9 pages.
Also in this price range:
Minelab Explorer SE
Spectra VX3
Not what its hyped up to be
Peter in Australia -
First up, I've been metal detecting for a lot of years and used a lot of different detectors. I have used the Explorer on the beach and inland and will say this about it.
If you want a machine to use on the beach that will go deep and handle salt conditions, then buy the Explorer. It is a great beach machine with a reasonable learning curve, take your time with it.
However, If you want a machine to use on old house sites and parks etc, I would not recommend the Explorer. It does not perform well in high trash areas. The response of this detector is too slow, even with the fast recovery switched on. Also, It does not handle all ground conditions well. Another problem with the Explorer is the weight, too heavy on the coil end.
In my opinion there are better detectors out there. Maybe Minelab should spent more money on R&D and less on advertising. Has the potential to be a good detector.
Aug 11, 2007
31 Yes
8 No
Explorer Detectors are good - over priced though.
Silver hunter uk. in uk -
The explorer detectors are probably the worlds most over hyped metal detectors in living history. No question about this. They are good detectors yes but are not as good as the hype makes you believe. My deepest coin so far has come from 6 -7 inches , no 14 inch deep coins as yet , some have claimed 14 inches is possible on deep coins but i have to say i have not got past 7 or 8 inches on a coin as yet with either explorer 2 or the se. The discrimination abilities of the explorer detector are fantastic though if set right, you can teach the detector to detect only certain coins , if set proper this feature is honestly deadly accurate and you can detect and dig virtually just the coins you have programmed in and dig no virtually no junk at all. This is a feature that i love on trashy sites and gives me the abilty to cherry pick coins out from trashy sites or any other coin shooting site- speeding up finding lost coinage. The explorers are nice detectors but are over priced . Minelab must be rich from just selling this detector range alone!.. All in all its a great coin shooter but is massively over priced which is a shame. The batteries soon get flattened too - no matter how powerful your batteries are - these detectors are very thirsty for battery power (and that incluseds the se).Always fully charge your battery pack before going out detecting because the battery voltage will drop off very fast once your battery level indicator gets to 50% down. Good points :- The explorers will find coins on sites you thought you had worked out with your old xlt or dfx or other detector, especally silver coins , the explorers are superb on silver coins - really good. Watch out for bad SE coils , they go faulty quite often. The se is not quite as deep as the explorer 2 and lacks about an inch depth on coins compared to the explorer 2. On smaller targets the se will beat the explorer xs and explorer 2. Iron rejection on the explorer xs and 2 is excellent but not as good on the se. Heavy on your elbow so don't say i did't warn you, you get arm ache from the elbow with these detectors which makes detecting for more than an hour really uncomfortable. I have arm muscles like a gorilla but i still get aches pretty quick honestly..
Jul 21, 2007
34 Yes
4 No
Now we are talking
paul in linc uk -Fabulous whatever way you look at it, loads of programmes to choose from. ok its heavy for some.but what you gain in performance more than makes up for...i run iron mask at -6 just becoz i havent got time digging iron,and this baby still hits the hammereds..just swing slow its a thoroughbred pure and simple..and its deeeeeeeeeeep.loads of programmes you can use or mess around with,or just stick the one you want in and leave it alone,then its just switch on and go,remember this always press noise cancel now and again as soil conditions change in all a world beater.
Jun 22, 2007
15 Yes
4 No
Explorer SE is a piece of junk
John in portland, OR -
The reason that this a a piece of junk because, my ace 250 works better is more accurate and goes deeper. I regret spending moneyof Explorer SE. i could have bought 6 ace 250s instead for entire family. SE is a very slow machine does not work on all soil condition and it is only ok for beach that is it, do NOT buy it I REGRET OVERPRICED
May 30, 2007
27 Yes
34 No
Don't give up
DWH in Panama -At first I was going to throw ExII in the trash, due to I've been using all major brands of metal detectors since 1989, and this machine was totaly a diffrent machine. Even from the Pluse Star II I own ($2500 machine). But I worked with it until I finnally got the trick, forget about all you have learned with any other metal detector. Start as a beginer and keep at it.
Get a harness, 8" DD coil for trashy areas and a 12" for open deep areas from Sunray, also a good set of headphones from Sunray. "GROUND BALANCE" AND GO PRACTICE, PRACTICE and more PRACTICE. Those Spanish reals will be coming out of the ground sooner than you think. White's you better wake up, Minelab is sinking it deep in to you.
Apr 02, 2007
15 Yes
3 No
Big Profit Margin for Minelab
Mike in West Central, Indiana -Amazing that Minelab can take a piece of low quality composite Plastic and charge $1200.00 for it. I bought it based on the hype of all the different freqencies that it was putting into the ground. Sad part was that after 15 minutes of swinging this thing, my back and shoulders were killing me.
The learning curve is a nightmare and the quality is simply terrible. The Lower shaft would actually wobble when you were swinging it and the lower shaft that connects to the upper shaft started getting hairline cracks in it!
Unlike the Whites Detectors, the ONLY Metal on this thing is the battery pack in it. It's made of a composite of some type, yet again, the balance and weight are awful. After 2 weeks of use, the display went out. I contacted Kellyco and they were great at replacing it within a week after I sent it back. My new one lasted 1 day and the same thing happened again! "I'm not Kidding"....I was so disappointed. I returned it again and they gave me credit towards a Whites DFX. At $300.00 less, it's made so much better..Whites actually uses Metal for it's case and shaft and it's so much more Balanced and lighter than the Explorer.
I hate to bash something this severely, but this machine was such a waste of my Money and time trying to use it. It can however build muscles and find any and all pieces of worthless Junk that was ever swallowed up by the ground. The time I was able to use it was spent digging so much trash that read out as being good targets? I prefer digging coins and such....Buy The DFX, you won't have ANY Regrets.
Jan 07, 2007
46 Yes
22 No
Minelab ex II review
james montgomery in warrenton ga -I have now owned my ex II for the past two years. I can tell you that after really learning how to use it I have increased my finds greatly. I find coins and rings in areas I used to go over with my whites spectrum xlt. I was thinking about keeping my xlt, but I went ahead and sold it as much as I hated to. The way this detector hones in on silver targets is nothing short of amazing to me. The things this detector can do absoulutely amaze me everytime I use it.
In year and half that I have owned it, definately payed for itself. In one year alone I found over 900 bucks in change, and that is not from everyday use. Not to mention the silver and jewelry that was found. There is a learning curve issue with the machine, all it took was a little time to learn it really is not that hard. This detector has a been a pleasure to learn and use. I like it very well. I see myself purchasing another minelab product very soon. Good detector in my opinion.
Jan 03, 2007
15 Yes
2 No
explorer two , make your own search patterns
Peter in ENGLAND -If you use an explorer, get a sunray probe, and you can make search patterns by running the prob over the item a few times, like In have one screen for pound coins only, will all so give signal for other coins same size.
Plus you can use the same system for canceling out , pull rings , screw tops ect, more accurately , than useing sellect, makes the best machine better
Dec 08, 2006
8 Yes
0 No
Two years already with increased hunger for more finds...
Aurelius in Seattle, WA USA -Two years ago I wrote a review for Minelab Explorer II and scored it right away with the maximum of 5 stars even not knowing its full capabilities . And I was right like I found later through the time. I?ve been using this detector in any weather conditions-in the parks, on the beach or in the woods on ancient sites in Europe? Recently bought Sun Ray X-1 Target Probe premounted to the upper shaft and now have extended range and convenience and security in my judgment about the target?s location and quality before digging. I am keeping my Garrett GTI2500-one very good detector in the closet for this all period since owning the Explorer because always have more enjoyment, pleasure, fun and challenge with the EX2. And deeper finds too! Some favorite settings I use are:
1.Advanced ?smart
2. Audio:
-Max limit-7
-Gain-8
3.Tone:
-Th.tone-5
-Variability;10
-Limits:10
4.Sounds: FERROUS
5. Options:
- response: Audio1 or NORMAL, depends?
- recovery: DEEP ( or FAST-in trashy areas)
6.Select: reject NAILS
7. Iron Mask-OFF
Here is an option: SELECT:CLEAR and Iron Mask: -15 (ON of course)
8. Sensitivity: MANUAL 30 or as high as possible.
Note: Use SEMI-AUTO setting for trashy areas.
Always use NOISE CANCEL with the coil on the ground and no metal under it, of course!
Always ware harness with a bungee cord to neutralize the weight. Could be made from an old military harness( surplus store around you will carry some things I hope..) and a bungee cord bought at the nearest dollar store?.
Every single setting for this amazing detector is individually suited and depends of the operator?s experience and understanding. I will refer www.minelabowners.com like the best place to learn and share information with the others about this extraordinary detector.
Good luck and happy hunting to all of you!!!
Aurelius in Seattle, WA, USA
p.s. If this is possible I would score this metal detector with more then 5 stars!
Dec 05, 2006
20 Yes
0 No
Explorer II owner for 1 1/2 years
WThesing in Pennsylvania - USA -I now own two of these machines.
What I like:
Open ended programmability and exceptional performance in almost any conditions.
What I don't like:
Pinpointing could be better even considering the double "D" coil type. There is a trade off for wider sweep area vs. smaller pinpoint.
Looseness of lower cam lock. The cam locks should have a tension adjustment.
Rubber battery compartment door needs a better screw / fastner. I added a washer.
Unit chirps / pops when coil is bumped even slightly. I have mentally tuned it out, but it's still annoying when hunting any brush or stubble fields.
Depth indicator should be larger.
Recovery in trashy areas can sometimes be a little slow. I hear it has improved slightly with the faster processor in the new Explorer SE.
THE HYPED COMPLAINTS That were a NON ISSUE with me.
Weight & Balance - yes could be improved, but it is designed for the coil to be ON THE GROUND, thus alleviating the weight.
Steep learning curve - It is an excellent turn on and go machine when used in the "quickstart" mode. Once you have used it for a while and go into "advanced programming" it is not bad at all. What takes the time is having enough experience with the machine to make programming changes according to the hunt conditions. It is still a turn on and go machine even after it is programmed. There is so much "variety" that some people tend to get a little "lost".
Best Accessories (Aftermarket)
SUN RAY X-1 probe (Buy this if nothing else !!!)
Control box cover
Sunray 5" & 12" coils.
Nov 30, 2006
9 Yes
0 No
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