My First Impression Of The Minelab Gold Monster 1000

[Steve Herschbach]

"I am fortunate to have been involved in the testing of the new Minelab GOLD MONSTER 1000 prior to its release. One benefit is that I have seen the questions that others have posed about the detector, and now I can answer a few of them.

When I use new detectors I always have a goal in mind. I am not trying to pick the detector apart for what it cannot do. Instead, I believe most well designed detectors have something they excel at. My goal is to determine how to use a new detector for maximum benefit. The best way to make that happen is to use the detector in the way it was intended to be used, instead of trying to force it to be something it is not. The key is to be realistic. The GOLD MONSTER 1000 is sold as an entry level single frequency metal detector. Expecting it to outperform detectors costing many times its price is unrealistic.

Engineers face a very important choice when designing a single frequency metal detector, especially as regards gold prospecting. What frequency should the detector run at? That choice determines nearly everything else about the detector. In general, low frequencies below 20 kHz handle mineralized ground better, and offer good performance on larger gold nuggets. Higher frequencies over 20 kHz enhance the sensitivity to small gold nuggets, but unfortunately ground handling suffers.

The number one question I see asked on the internet is how the  GOLD MONSTER stacks up as compared to this detector or that detector."

Read the rest of the report on Minelab's Treasure Talk 

Minelab Gold Monster 1000 in Nevada

Eleven small nuggets found by Steve with GM1000 - Click for larger version
14.9 grains total, largest 4.4 grains Smallest at bottom 0.6 grain and 0.3 grain

[Au4Gold2]

A fair and balanced review, well done. 

[Ridge Runner]

Thanks Steve for a well written report on the Gold Monster 1000. Looking forward on getting my GM 1000.

Chuck

[delnorter]

Very nice review Steve. This sounds like a great all-around VLF gold machine.

Thanks,

Mike

[Norvic]

Love the review, but what the heck do I want a VLF gold machine for, got over em years ago but then again............can tell the treasurer Steve talked me into one..........yeah that`s the go................

[Northeast]

Very nice review Steve.  

Norvic, can you let me know if the "Steve said I should buy it" line works with the treasurer?  

I want one, I'm not sure if I need one and I'm almost positive I will be in all sorts of trouble if I buy one 

[Mike C...]

Good review-Ive always trusted minelabs auto tracking on all of their gold beepers-as it wont track out gold when on-But I still use fixed on my 5k  Mike C...

[goldwright]

Nice report Steve one question, did you use headphones or was the speaker good enough? wonder why Minelab didnt go wireless.

[Steve Herschbach]

Forum members of course get extra tidbits!

Physically I have to admire the sheer chutzpah of Minelab, the high tech guys, making a metal detector designed to mount on a broom handle - how cool is that! Technically all you need is the control box section with AA battery holder and a coil and you have all the makings of a functional metal detector.

However, there are a few things I want you to know about in particular. They are not secrets but might go unnoticed. The Minelab Gold Monster 1000 is going to be sold worldwide in exactly one configuration - see the picture below for box contents.

First off, the three piece collapsible shaft assembly. This is not a telescoping shaft assembly. It is three rod sections that screw together, and then the control box and armrest slide around and clamp down where you feel most comfortable with them. This works fine but for people like me used to a quick telescoping rod, this is first thing I might replace. No worries if you just toss your detector in your truck fully assembled. But if you want to collapse and extend the unit quickly to stow away, or easily accommodate the height of two different people, you may want a different rod assembly. All you need is a lower rod and one or two straight upper sections depending on how short you want it to telescope down - you already have the grip and armrest and mounting hardware. I will play around with shaft assemblies I have sitting around and report back on possible part numbers later. A GPX upper shaft and lower rod will work fine for you GPX owners.

The other thing is car charging. Yes, you can use the included 12V charger clips, but how convenient is that really? The good news is most of you probably already have a standard 12V cigarette plug car charger adapter around someplace - the one from the GPZ 7000 for instance works just fine. If not you will probably want to round one up if you are wanting to charge in your vehicle while driving around. The rechargeable battery has a little led on the end that flashes green when it is charging properly. If you try a charger and only get a red light, something is wrong.

OK, what about the Minelab Gold Monster 1000 versus Fisher Gold Bug 2?

I am not going to tell anyone that has a Fisher Gold Bug 2 with 6" coil and knows it inside out that they have to run out and get a GM1000. I have owned a Gold Bug 2 since day one and it is a sweet little rig, especially in milder ground where you can run it jacked to the max. In low mineral ground I expect there will continue to be plenty of Gold Bug 2 fans. Mine is not going anyplace.

However, for anyone who is in the market for a gold nugget detector with a couple coils for under US$1000 the Minelab Gold Monster 1000 is a hot rig. I really hate air tests. To me what matters most with prospecting detectors is how they handle the ground. Machines can air test great and fail on the ground. But for those who like air tests I can tell you that my GM1000 with 5" round DD coil matches my Gold Bug 2 with 6" coil on a 0.1 grain (1/4800th ounce) spec of gold. GM1000 on max manual sensitivity, and Gold Bug 2 in Low Mineral (the hot setting) at max sensitivity and audio boost on. In fact, the GM1000 actually appears hotter in all metal mode by having a tremendously boosted audio. Where the Gold Bug 2 has that nice little zip zip thing going on a 0.1 grain the GM1000 fairly audio fairly explodes at full audio. Zip zip versus Bam! I am not saying more depth here, but easier to hear tiny targets which ends up giving the impression of more depth.

Yes the GM1000 lacks a threshold, but as I note in the review if you push the manual sensitivity high on most mineralized ground you will get light ground feedback that makes me feel just as good. That may go lacking entirely in real mild ground however. All I can say is it works if you give it a chance and maybe learn to enjoy the quiet of the great outdoors instead. That loud audio pop I just mentioned above will stop you cold.

I wish I had a lot more time on the Gold Monster 1000 to be able to be more definitive on the this versus that thing. The reality is I have been very busy and the weather around here just sucked this winter. When I had time it was snowing or raining and when it quit doing that I was busy. The time I have on it however I would not have any problem going up against somebody with a Gold Bug 2 and 6" coil with the Gold Monster 1000 and 5" coil - no way I would be feeling at a serious disadvantage in any ground. And 10" coil to 10" coil in bad ground/nasty hot rocks, I would rather be running the Gold Monster 1000. The White's GMT is probably a better matchup versus the GM1000 for 10" DD coils and bad ground but I have not had a GMT for some time. The GMT runs great in fixed ground balance mode. However, I will bet on the Minelab ground tracking over the GMT ground tracking in the worst of conditions.

Makro Gold Racer and Minelab Gold Monster 1000? For just gold prospecting and nothing else, GM1000 is the easy answer. The Gold Racer is still unique in offering target VDI capability in a high frequency detector however, and again, mine is not going anywhere.

Early days, and really, please do not do things just based on the reporting of any one person. It is all the rage to diss us official testers these days so do wait to hear more from actual purchasers of the Gold Monster 1000 if you have any doubts at all. One thing I wanted to make very clear in my report on the Minelab website is that at the end of the day no matter how good a single frequency detector this is it is still just a single frequency metal detector. There are plenty of reasons still to own a SDC or GPX or GPZ.

Here is my final thought on all that. The GPX series culminated in the GPX 5000 with a wealth of settings and timings. The GPX can run a huge number of coils and a large number of settings that allow it to be customized for nearly any scenario. I still think there is ground and gold where a GPX may have an edge over the GPZ 7000 on large nuggets. Can't swear to that, no real evidence, just my opinion. I also think the SDC 2300 has an edge on the tiny gold versus my GPZ 7000. Yet I sold my GPX 5000 and SDC 2300. Why? Because in my opinion for my ground and my gold I have to choose what to swing and for me the GPZ 7000 represents my best chance of getting whatever gold goes under that 14" coil as can be had versus any other single machine and coil combination. It was obvious to me the other units were just not going to get any real use as I would grab the GPZ 7000 nearly every time.

The Minelab Gold Monster 1000 is 100% intended to replace the Minelab Eureka Gold. The Eureka can be run at 6.4 kHz or 20 khz or 60 khz and with various coils that means it might have an edge here or there over the GM 1000. However, you have to know what frequency to be in or make multiple passes over the ground, and you had better really know your machine. The Gold Monster 1000 again represents a better choice running one coil and one choice of settings in a single frequency continuous wave (commonly referred to as VLF) detector and getting the bulk of the gold in the one and possibly only pass over the ground.

Power AND simplicity - that was a design goal with the SDC 2300, GPZ 7000, and now Gold Monster 1000. So far I would say that is a winning formula for Minelab. And for once we get a featherweight Minelab!!