Need help with a Garrett GTAX-550!!??...

[Northerntrowel]

Hello! all of you !

I want to know if one of you can help for a friend .
He bought a GTAX-550 NIB and he have a big problem since bought it ,he told me. my face--:confused: and the face of my friend--:mad:

The problem is that ,when he use the pinpoint mode ,the detector responde very much to de ground in the negative way.I mean if the the coil is on the ground and you push the pinpoint buttun,and you lift the coil only by 1 inch,tha audio begin to sound on.That's mean if he (my friend)dig an hole and he try to recheck the target,the detector see the hole not the target.
And i can tell you that most of the time(70-80% of the time) the target is beside the hole when i check myself with my MXT.

I want to know if it's possible to readjust the ground balance for the pinpoint mode,by a trimmer(I hope yes!) or if it existe a modification to fix this problem.??!!!
:confused:
What do think about that and can you help me!??

Thanks! very much!
JF

[Carl-NC]

If it's NIB then he should return it to Garrett. They'll repair it quickly, and the warranty won't get voided.

[sony]

Not clear...

Some mess up with coil connection.....
Check connectors..

[Northerntrowel]

I forget this!...

Thanks ! Carl and sony for your responses.

I forget to mention that his warranty is finish.because he own it for 2 years+ now!

And for the coil connector and the cable, i checked both few time and dont seem to be wrong. And no effect on the disc mode too (regular silence search mode) when i move or press the cable/connector.

I writed an email today to Garrett for asking help about this problem.
Now,I waiting for a reply.

The guy he own this detector are a recent friend for treasure hunting and
he never try another detector before that!!

So ! what will be the cost that run to Texas if we send the machine???GURP! But we will wait for reply!!!

I think that is not a big deal!
Thanks!
JF

[sony]

Second...


If frequency is slightly drifting or offset it may affect disc. to much, also pinpoint mode too...There must be small trimmer to adjust it. But take care..
....

[Northerntrowel]

Ho! Yes I take a note on this!Thanks

Probabely i will have to wait several days before receving a response for Garrett.So! I will waiting before to do anything on this unit .

But all comment can help me!!
Thanks! Again Sony

JF

Ps.: I love this forum,I watch it since 2 or 3 years now! and i learned a lot!
Thanks to all of you passionate guys.

[Reg]

Hi JF,

If you look at the back of the GTA you will see two small black button type plugs in the lower corner. I believe one of those two hides the ground balance control which can be adjusted with a small screwdriver. unfortunately, I don't remember which one now is the GB, nor do I remember what the other adjusts.

If you decide to adjust them, make sure to mark where they are set now so they can be put back if necessary.

If I had to guess, I would say the one closest to the coil lead is the GB, but that is only a guess at this point.

Reg

[Lost in NC]

Northerntrowel, i sold a 550 to a guy on line as a favor for my moms next door nieghbor. i tried it it seemed to work fine. i however did not run it in all modes. this guy was a little mad that it did not work as i advertised it. so he sent it to garrett they put a new coil on it and fixxed his pinpoint button . (same problem i think you are having) it cost 48 dollars counting the shipping. the nieghbor made it right with the guy by reimbursing him.

[Northerntrowel]

Hi! Guys

I dont had the time to recheck the detector for now but yes i saw these 2 caps for the trimmer.i will check that at weekend.Also,i will check the frequency like Sony told me.With an oscilloscope and a little coil to the probe.In this case if the Tx frequency is wrong,it could be the coil itself(mistuned with the machine).For the pinpoint buttun itself,it seem to be correct .Just too much response to ground.

I will give you some news in couple of days! O.K.

Thanks you very much !

No response yet from Garrett and my friend decided to buy an MXT like mine.
Maybe i will try to call Garrett but connot talk english very well,Maybe i will try.!!!

[reis_43]

http://<a href="http://hizliresim.co...&#91;/img]</a>hi guys
thats garret gtax550 on coil connector board.. whats that part value?
http://i.hizliresim.com/vo6PJD.jpg

[Merc]

It looks to be a blown surface mount tantalum capacitor. Note the + sign near one end like the other capacitor nearby. Value? Maybe be the top of the cap was still inside and you can get the value off of it. Otherwise, perhaps another member of the forum can open up their GTAx550 and give you the value. I was unable to find any pics of it's PCB online.

Merc