Minelab Vanquish Metal Detector Tips and Questions Answered! 

Oh yay! I’m so happy to hear that! I tried to cover the most asked questions on the Vanquish. Hearing how much it helped means a lot to me. Thank you!

Oh and I should have mentioned in my video but forgot. If you’re in high trash and it’s falsifying too much, just decrease the sensitivity slightly and the signals will start to disappear. True signals will jump out at you a lot more. ☺️👍

Great little detector. I love my 540

@@darbysdownhomedetecting it's a great detector

Me too!!

Thank you so much ☺️

Well said. I concur.

You’re welcome! Happy 60th! Wishing lots of luck and fun!

Thank you so much ☺️

Welcome to the hobby! Wishing you a lot of fun and exciting finds! I really appreciate you letting me know this helped ☺️

Ah thank you so much! If you have any questions ask away! The Vanquish is a deep machine so it really helps to know just how deep you need to dig ☺️👍 Wishing you a lot of fun! Now if my snow can go away I would love to get out digging again lol..

You’re very welcome! ☺️

See you got the 440 as I do. Did you get out yet with it and did you find anything?

Thank you, it is a simplified version of the more complicated equinox. Great presets and I would agree it’s suited for beginners and the more experienced detectorist ☺️

You are welcome!

It’s a great choice, hope you find many awesome treasures with it 😊👍

Happy to hear they helped.

Thank you so much, I will put some thought on more helpful videos 😊👍

Wonderful! I’m so happy you found this helpful ☺️ congratulations on you new 540! It’s a great machine!

Thank you so much Jack! ☺️

Since watching I'm finding ring pulls in way better condition 🤣 Thanks guys❤

Wonderful! Thank you so much for letting me know ☺️

You’re welcome ☺️ I’m so happy you enjoyed it.

Thank you so much ☺️

I’m so happy my video helped ☺️ thanks for letting me know ☺️

Congratulations on your new machine and welcome back to the hobby.. ☺️ if I can help with any questions let me know 👍

You’re welcome! Great choice! Fantastic detector ☺️👍

You’re welcome! Good luck tomorrow and if you have any questions please let me know ☺️

Thanks, Ha ha! I want one doing the happy dance lol.. This video had a lot of great tips you can use with your detector to :)

Thank you so much! 😊

You’re very welcome ☺️

You’re welcome!

Thank you so much ☺️ If you have any struggles just leave me a comment and I’ll try to help you out ☺️

@@RelicDirtyhands well it's not about struggling but sharing knowledge through experience. Many RU-vidrs just upload videos of digging the ground or talking basic stuff about a machine. In your video, you actually teach something. Something, you can't read from the manual.

@@RelicDirtyhands but speaking of struggling :D Last time I was getting IDs of a wide spectrum for aluminum (between 12 and 34). Any idea why is that? Was it perhaps because of the size of the relic?

@@papaiatis you got it! Size, shape, composition and placement in the ground play a role. The smaller the foil the lower the number. An odd chunky shaped foil will jump in multiple numbers. In most cases a stable ID will mean it’s composed of mostly one metal like a copper, silver, brass, lead, and gold. Also the round, flat placed circular items also give a more stable ID compared to A non circular shape. It’s how the eddy currents moves in the metal object. This and a lot more information is sent back to the machine and gives you an ID number. There is an acceptation of this rule, as someone learns this machine I tell them focus on the more stable ID’s at first. For example something that only jumps 2 to 3 numbers like 22,23,24,22,24 As you start understanding it’s language then you can move onto the more iffy tones.. you see when a coin is on edge it will read as a high,mid,high,mid tone. If you are in a high trash area it can start to be overwhelming, to quiet it down and hear clearer signals just drop down your sensitivity. This will also help reduce the amplification of false signals.. it will sound a lot more stable!. Using all metal really helps to make a choice to dig or not. As an example it can help discriminate a bottle cap. The shape is similar to a coin but the steel used can be heard. Having the iron on you can hear the iron grunt following the tone. This helps telling you it’s not the nicest signal and something is off.. the machine really talks to you but can take over a 100 hours to learn. A lot of the gold rings we dug don’t jump much in the lower numbers but a nice round ball of foil may sound similar. We all dig garbage especially as we learn the machine.. as an advanced digger, I dig a lot of target tones and numbers.. this is how you start recognizing it’s language. Once that learning curve is passed it’s all fun! The last thing I want to do is overwhelm you with information but if you understand how it works, it’s so much easier to understand what it’s telling you. When Minelab released this machine as a beginner machine I found it completely underrated. Simple enough to learn but powerful and accurate enough for the more advanced user.. incredible machine! By the way, what model of the Vanquish are you using?

Thank you! Welcome to my channel!

Hope you enjoy it! It's a great machine, if you have any questions let me know :)

I did too! Can't wait.

Thank you so much! My pleasure :)

Thank you so much 😊

Thanks Darcy! ☺️

Hello! We are from the Gatineau area! So happy to hear you love our channel, thank you so much ☺️

Ha ha you’re welcome! Fantastic choice of detector, I’m happy to hear you enjoyed the video ☺️👍

I believe the more you dig the more you learn. ☺️👍

@@RelicDirtyhands absolutely true!!

Thank you ☺️ agreed 👍

@@RelicDirtyhands that was great I really liked it you told it is simple terms and you showed us each process

@@robertwoods8695 I really like to simplify stuff as much as possible, as I’m personally someone that can over complicate everything new I try to learn. So I understand the importance of simplicity and I try to reflect that in my video’s ☺️👍 thank you so much!

You’re very welcome ☺️

Thank you so much, out of all the beginner units to choose from you purchased a great unit. We have kids and the Vanquish is perfect for them. For kids I’d recommend practicing in the sand first. Some kids find digging in the grass difficult and can get discouraged easily. We would often open the plugs for them. Unsure if you purchased a hand held pinpointing tool. It finds the target inside the hole. If not a good technique is to dig, sweep the coil over the hole. Once you dig out the target you take a handful of dirt and swing it over the coil until you find it. Items in the ground are dirty and difficult to see sometimes. We metal detected with one detector and took turns with the kids. It gave us years of quality time together. If she metal detect in parks make sure to learn how to make a proper hole without damaging the grass, all garbage found should always be disposed of in the garbage and not left around. There is a code of ethics to protect the hobby being band in parks.. try to leave no trace behind ☺️. If you have any questions leave me a comment and I can help you get through the learning curve. It can be a really exciting hobby. Merry Christmas to you and your family.

Upgrade ? Why would you need to upgrade ? 😂😂😂

Awesome detector, great choice! 👋☺️

Hey Jayson! Ha ha I remember you very well! I still need to work on that video to get it out ha ha! That was a good day ☺️. Congratulations on the Vanquish it’s an awesome detector! If you have any questions at all let me know, I can help you through it! Welcome to the hobby!

@@RelicDirtyhands thank you I probably will! Very much appreciated!

A great Dane and a parrot. Fair enough haha

Hi Jayson, I just released the video when we met up ☺️ Thanks so much for introducing Morgan!

@@RelicDirtyhands thanks. I will look at it. I had a good summer metal detecting! Found a 1905 penny and a really old bullet. A Wheatie and a 1910 dime!

You’re welcome, I personally feel it’s the best choice out there for a new detectorist. It’s the only entry level detector that uses Multi frequencies. ☺️👍 Wishing you a lot of fun and luck!

Awesome! Thank you so much, I'm happy you enjoy them :)

Greetings from Canada ☺️ I’m so happy my video helped, welcome to a great hobby!

@@RelicDirtyhands so, your in Canada, beautiful place, One of my son's married a Canadian girl and they are moving to Canada in a couple of months. Do you have any more videos that I could watch ?? I want to get as much information as I can regarding metal detecting, so far it's got me hooked, thanks a lot for your help and your videos 👍🇦🇺👌

@@aussiecoop.5399 I only created three tutorials for the Vanquish but here is the playlist. Minelab Vanquish Metal Detector ru-vid.com/group/PLpymZHu8sv5m55r9f3xjdJZkahSnOJuk8 We also have a few videos of hunting with it. This one Eric kicked my butt on the field lol.. The vanquish was on fire! ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-d1RAfrc8TV8.html

@@RelicDirtyhands thanks for that, I'll check them out 👍

You’re very welcome ☺️

@@RelicDirtyhands Ok young lady, took the 540 out tonight into a farmer's field in all metal mode, low iron bias, relic mode, looking for something cool like an old horseshoe or whatever. It was cold so we only dug four holes, but came up with the tiniest pieces of metal in every spot. What settings do I need to be on to pass on these items to find something a little more desirable?? Thanks.

@@scottzugelder4091 coin mode will find coin size objects, relic mode has the largest target size range. If you don’t have a lot of time, try coin mode and see what happens ☺️👍

Ha ha, it has a bit of a learning curve but once you understand it’s language, it will definitely help the treasure to trash ratio found. Even after many years in the hobby, I still dig trash but when the good stuff pops out, what a rush lol

You’re welcome, I’m happy it was helpful 😊

Thank you so much, glad you enjoyed it!

You’re welcome! 😊👍

Thank you so much ☺️

That’s awesome, it’s a great detector!

I love hearing this feedback! Thank you so much for sharing, the Vanquish 340 is an amazing machine! You’re absolutely right about a handheld pointer, it really reduces the amount of time looking for your target! Some small bits covered in dirt can look like a small stone lol..

You’re welcome! Awesome choice of detector ☺️👍

You’re welcome ☺️

Thank you so much for the feedback ☺️

You’re welcome ☺️

Thank you ☺️

You are very welcome ☺️

You’re welcome, I’m happy you found it helpful ☺️👍

You’re welcome ☺️

Thank you so much ☺️

Thank you so much!

I hope you get out there detecting soon! I know the Vanquish and Equinox really well. Any questions you may have please let me know ☺️ I’ll be happy to help 👍. I have a full tutorial playlist on the Equinox, if you go to my channel page there is a section for playlist. Wishing you a speedy recovery!

Thank you so much ☺️

I noticed a lot of videos on settings already but do you think I should cover more settings in one video or split them up like I did for the tutorials on the equinox? ☺️ I have a partial draft written up already but wasn’t sure how to construct it 😁

I really like the way you did the Equinox tutorials they were full of knowledge easy to pause and repeat and I could search out exactly which one I wanted to learn about .

@@charlesherring9323 thank you so much for the feedback! It really helps ☺️ okay draft one scrapped and draft 2 started ☺️. Thanks again!

I wouldn't scrap it that's just the way I learned I'm very technical I like both versions I just leaned more towards a technical chalkboard Style

@@charlesherring9323 It’s not fully scrapped ☺️.. I’ll just present it a little more like the EQ tutorials but at the same time elaborating a little more for those just starting out. I’m just building it differently ☺️

You’re welcome 😊

If it's a steel rebar, it will be a low iron tone. Just checked mine and is a solid -2 in relic mode. Make sure to hit the horse shoe button to hear the iron. Hope this helps. Eric

You’re very welcome 😊

You’re welcome 😊 Wishing you lots of luck 👍

Thank you 😊

When you say it seemed to give you random signals, was this when your swinging or when the detector is not moving?

I don’t think it’s soil conditions, multi IQ is stable in most ground. Since you are close to houses it could be EMI electromagnetic interference. I have some sites I have to lower my sensitivity a lot. You can tell because it happens when you don’t even move the coil. All sorts of random tones and signals appear. If you power it off then back on, it will do an automatic noise cancel. Reduce sensitivity until it’s no longer chatty. Another thing that can cause this is a loose connector. Just make sure the coil cord is well connected. Last thing I can think of is the cable dangling too close to the coil. Make sure you twist it around the shaft so it does hang over the coil. Don’t twist it so much that there is too much tension when you move the coil up and down but just enough that it doesn’t interfere with your coil. I hope some of this helps ☺️👍

@@RelicDirtyhands Hello and thank you for your reply!! The random signal readings are while I am swinging the coil. I tried it last night with a smashed aluminum can and while I was swinging the coil directly over top of the can, I would get two hits as the coil passed over it, is that normal? (because the coil is a double 'D'?) Thanks again, I appreciate your help.

@@RelicDirtyhands There are power lines near by, maybe 30yds from where I was trying it out. So basically if it is EMI I will just have to lower my sensitivity until I can swing the coil with out random readings? Thanks again, I am sure 90% of it is just me being a newbie. Does the headphones help in learning the different tones while I am trying to figure things out? Thanks again for all your help!!

@@RelicDirtyhands Sorry forgot to reply about the cable. Yes it is wrapped fairly tight to the shaft with out being too much. The cable comes out of the coil and goes straight to the shaft. I have to cable side of the coil to the left of the shaft, does it matter which way the coil is mounted?

Thanks Perry!

Thank you, I hope to find more questions to be answered ☺️

Usually Eric used Jewelry mode in high trash and relic mode for quieter areas on the farm field. A low iron bias is the preferred setting but there might be some areas that it might feel overwhelming and even a reduced sensitivity may not help. In extreme iron if it drives you crazy using the default of low iron bias being “off” can make a difference on stabilizing it. Play and try out the different settings and see if it feels and reacts better for the site conditions you are working. Coin mode, great for cherry picking coins in moderate trash but may not be well suited for relics. Jewelry mode recovers the fastest. Great for high trash situations but it doesn’t get as deep as relic mode. Jewelry mode will pick up targets of different sizes like relic mode. Relic mode is the deepest but doesn’t recover as fast. In high trash it could skip over good targets close to a trash target. It’s all about balance with the site conditions and finds. We can change our settings a few times on the same site ☺️

Thank you so much for sharing what you and Eric learned about the machine's performance. It is all great advice. I managed to get out and detect with the Vanquish for a couple of hours today and detected in relic mode with low iron bias. Although I did not find any older coins, I found a large quantity of clad at a site I previously thoroughly detected with my Simplex. I did however find some very deep early to mid 1800s 69 caliber muskit ball drops. I love the machine already... it is so well designed!

Awesome feedback thank you so much letting me know. Learning the machine with a low iron bias can really help squeak more out if a site ☺️

Thank you so much ☺️ I’m happy my video was helpful to you, wishing you lots of luck on your metal detecting adventures!

You’re welcome ☺️

@@RelicDirtyhands I couldn't get mine to update the updater just says to plug in the detector....I plug it all in to the detector and the computer and the detector turns on but nothing happens

@@rockitguitar1918 first check you system requirements Minimum System Requirements, USB 2.0 port, Low Profile Micro USB Cable, Windows 10, 50 MB of hard drive space, 20 MB of RAM, if it’s a MAC OS, Greater than 10.13 High Sierra, 59 MB of hard drive space, 30 MB of RAM. It’s important to follow these steps, Batteries must be in place, and charged, to perform the update. Your VANQUISH coil must be connected to perform the update. Many Micro-USB cables that are supplied with electronics (including those supplied with the battery charger and headphones in the VANQUISH 540 Pro Pack) are "power only". To update your VANQUISH, you will need to ensure your Micro-USB cable supports data as well. Only one VANQUISH can be connected to your computer during the update operation. VANQUISH will turn on automatically when plugged into your computer. Any custom detector settings will be preserved while performing the update. An Internet connection is required to download the Minelab Update Utility to the computer, however, an Internet connection is not required to update VANQUISH and this can be done offline. Important: Do not turn off or disconnect the detector during the update process. It’s really important to check the usb cable you are using, many are just to transfer data, you need a cable that can download and transfer data. Hope this helps.

@@RelicDirtyhands thanks I'll try another cable

The Vanquish uses Simultaneously Multiple frequencies, the 400 only uses a single frequency. I would say the Vanquish 440 would be my choice. ☺️👍

Thank you 😊

Depending on the position of nails some may still sound pretty solid. Reducing your sensitivity can help this. Some items for example thin foil can trick detectors when in comes to the depth gauge. When a get a weaker signal that jumps to 2-4” in depth, I usually run my pinpointer on the surface first. The depth gauge is an approximate but it’s often accurate.

If you use the pinpoint mode it will be in the centre of your coil. (Where the shaft meets the coil) Just make sure to do the x pattern when you are using pinpoint mode as well. Are you finding nail tips on the side of your plug?

@@RelicDirtyhands thanks, no nails. Tried your tips today in a very trashy area, and it works :) iffy x patterns, all trash. Not iffy x patterns, coin :) will try the pinpoint next time.

You’re welcome ☺️

Using a low iron bias you might dig more iron but find more in high trash. If digging nails is a problem, a lower sensitivity should help reduce finding them.

@@RelicDirtyhands , Tnx for the tip!

@@Deus-Too you’re welcome 👍

Yes, the Vanquish hits deep but when a target is at maximum depth the information can be less accurate. When you did dig the 20 what was it?

Hello, it’s a really sensitive machine and can pick up nuggets but the exact size I’m unsure. Do you have any sample pieces to try? For gold prospecting I would have gone with a gold detector like the Monster 1000. The Vanquish 340 is a great multi purpose machine.

No, it may not help much. The reason being, those iffy scratchy sounding targets is because of the position of the item or if it’s partially mask by other targets in close proximity. If it’s there, not there, there again. This is a good sign of targets too close together and can’t recover fast enough. A repeatable jumpy target is more like a coin slightly tilted or an item of mix metals. When in high trash it’s best to dig the iffy scratchy signals, when you make a plug, you disturb the position or other targets close. After I make a plug, I swing the detector over my plug, then the hole. Usually if there is a good target, it should clean up. Poking a screw driver in the ground may scratch or damage a target, you risk pushing it down further, maybe even past the detectors depth. The frequencies are great at getting down into even mineralized soils. ☺️👍 Hope this helps!

@@RelicDirtyhands PROMISE: I won't bother you anymore :) To find the deeper silver more accurately, would you get the Teknetics Patriot (7.8khz) or the Nokta Simplex (12khz) as a second machine?

@@spacefury65 No bother at all! I Love talking detectors. I’ve never used those two detectors, but if you want a single frequency waterproof detector. I would recommend the new X-Terra pro by Minelab. I believe the price will be competitive compared to those two. The Vanquish being a Minelab, it might be an easy transition from one to the other.

@@RelicDirtyhands I found a Simplex for $150 used 3x from someone that got as a gift and couldn't get the gist of it. I went with that only because the X-Terra Pro isn't available yet. I like the fact that the Simplex has new firmware that basically turns it into a different machine than when first marketed. We'll see how this goes. THANK YOU for your replies, they are deeply appreciated.

Small coils work really well when you have a lot of targets close together. They don’t go as deep but that extra separation between targets are needed at times. The large coils go deeper but can be overwhelming in areas with a lot of targets. Hope this helps 👍

@@RelicDirtyhands thanks, very helpful

@@micksmith6545 awesome ☺️👍 Have fun! it’s a great detector.

Thank you so much ☺️

Horse shoe, nail, small earrings, foil, small coins, pull ring or pull tab, ring, aluminium bottle cap, coin, big coin. A few asked me about the bottle cap, they said it looks like a hamburger ha ha! These images are just a guide but gives you an idea where things turn up.

Thank you nobody else could answer that question, you really know your stuff and ye i dont look anything like a bottle cap to me i would of daid a big mac also lol

@@eddieryan7639 ha ha agree, it does look like a big mac 😂

You’re welcome, I’m happy to hear. The V12 will hit deeper than the 10 and should help the quality of sound on deeper targets. Relic mode would be the mode I would run by the sounds of the location. It’s the deepest mode. Great for low trash, it has a slower recovery speed giving you more depth and a more accurate target ID. In areas you hear more trash, using a mode with a slow recovery could be counterproductive, you see when targets are close together, it won’t recover fast enough, the target beside it could become choppy. In area’s of high trash, jewelry mode has a fast recovery speed. Here is a video explaining different shapes and sizes of coils. The coils are not the ones from the vanquish but the way they work is the same. It can help give you a good base of information ☺️👍 Coiltek Coils For The Minelab Equinox Metal Detector ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-MD3BvhEMuCk.html

@@RelicDirtyhands Awesome, awesome, awesome... Great info... I watched the video on coils you sent and it makes total sense... Heading out with my son in an hour.. Let's see what happens next...

@@spacefury65 good luck to you both!

Centre, where the shaft meets the coil 👍

Congratulations on your new machine ☺️

It’s the best way to learn ☺️👍

You’re welcome ☺️

Most likely a soil sample could determine the minerals but the vanquish is really stable in most conditions. If the machine is chatty it might be electromagnetic interference. By reducing the sensitivity, it should reduce ground noise.

It really depends on the size and thickness, the one we found was a mens wedding band, it rang in around 14. I would suggest reducing your sensitivity to focus on surface finds, only if it was lost recently. 👍. The tone should be a loud, repeatable if it was recently lost. It can jump a number or two but it’s a good hit like the vanquish does on coins. It hits sharp and good but as a mid tone.

You’re welcome ☺️

Pro, it’s multi frequency and handles salt really well. Con, its not waterproof so one slip and it’s soaked. Pro, it can find the smallest gold. Pro it’s simple to use and will be a lot of fun. ☺️ It’s a great detector and I’m sure you will enjoy.

Sensitivity is an amplifier, or helps amplify week faint targets. Target ID’s should be the same, with the exemption of targets at maximum depth. When targets are really deep, the target ID is not as accurate. Example a small cent, max depth depending on soil conditions is 10” on a coin that size, usually it rings up as a 20/21. When it’s max depth, the target ID might go lower to 15. At this time I will increase my sensitivity to try to hear the target better. Using a detector always on a chatty high sensitivity is not good. Why using a stable sensitivity is best.

@@RelicDirtyhands Thank you again for clarifying the sensitivity question...

@@spacefury65 you’re welcome

Great question, there are differences between both modes in regards to depth and separation capabilities. Coin has the highest target separation but less depth than jewelry, Jewelry will have a little more depth than coin mode but has less separation. Relic has the most depth but the least separation. ☺️👍

Small coils have better separation between targets. So high trash, small coil. Which usually covers parks. Here our beaches are pretty hard hit and quiet. I need more depth and coverage than separation, therefore the larger coil is what’s needed. High trash, small coil. Less trash large coil. Small coils have high separation but less depth and is also more sensitive to smaller targets. Larger the coil is the deeper it goes but less sensitive to smaller targets and can struggle in high trash. ☺️👍 hope this helps

Ahhh ok got it makes sense now then I am doing it right 😌 thank you this info is good knowledge to know

@@Mndza1 you’re welcome ☺️

Ha ha it’s a hamburger lol, just joking it’s actually an aluminium bottle cap. The images at the top are just an example of what can come up at those numbers. ☺️