Summary of Contents for White Spectra VX3
- Page 1 White’s Electronics, Inc. Sweet Home, Oregon USA Building the World’s Finest metal detectors for over 60 years.
- Page 2 I am proud of the Spectra VX , and the people here at White’s who designed and built it for you. We’ve been designing, build- ing, and distributing world-wide for over 60 years from our fac- tory in Sweet Home, Oregon, USA.
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Page 3: Customer Support
? There are three ways to con- tact us: Internet: http://whiteselectronics.com/support.html Phone: 1-800-547-6911 (US) (0044) 1463 223456 (UK) Or mail us: White's Electronics White's Electronics 1011 Pleasant Valley Road 35 Harbour Road Sweet Home, OR 97386 Inverness, Scotland IV1 1UA 1. -
Page 4: Table Of Contents
Spectra VX User’s Guide Table of Contents 1 Introduction Conventions ......1-2 Layout . - Page 5 Spectra VX User’s Guide 4 Operating Modes Frequency....... . 4-1 Three Frequency .
- Page 6 Spectra VX User’s Guide 7 Programs Memory Structure..... . 7-1 Saving Programs ......7-2 Restoring Programs .
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Page 7: Introduction
Introduction White’s VX represents the latest technology in metal detecting. The heart of VX is a high-performance ARM-9 RISC microprocessor which simultaneously analyzes signals from 3 transmitted frequencies. Those frequencies — 2.5kHz, 7.5kHz, and 22.5kHz — were chosen for their diverse responses to a variety of metal targets, resulting in a superior system of target analysis and identification. -
Page 8: Conventions
There is no need to master all the features to get excellent performance. If you need help, White's Electronics is a phone call or mouse click away. Your dealer is an excellent resource, and the White’s web site has a VX help forum for questions &... -
Page 9: Layout
Spectra VX User’s Guide Two keypad buttons have dual names. is used MENU/TAB both as an entry button into the menu system, and to “tab” from one screen area to the next. This tab method is identical to how a PC interface uses it. So in some cases we will tell you to press , in other cases press . - Page 10 Spectra VX User’s Guide Icons Target VDI Target Depth Spectra Graph Disc. Mask Live Control Status Navigation Keypad Toggle Switch (front of handle) signal strength versus VDI and gives a detailed look at the VDI response. The status bar shows a few operational pieces of information, and the Live Control Bar provides quick on-the-fly access to operating modes and adjustment parameters.
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Page 11: Assembly
Spectra VX User’s Guide Assembly 1. Remove all parts from the shipping carton. Check the assembly page to ensure all parts are present. 2. Insert the 2 rubber washers (b) into the recesses of the lower rod clevis and use the fiber bolt and thumb nut to secure the search loop to the lower rod. -
Page 12: Batteries
8-cell AA battery pack. For best results, use either alkaline batteries or high-capacity recharge- able (such as NiMH) batteries. Also available from White’s is a NiMH rechargeable pack plus recharging station; contact your dealer or White’s directly for details. -
Page 13: The Basics Of Vlf Operation
Spectra VX User’s Guide To replace the batteries, slide open the battery holder lid by gen- tly lifting the tab. A fresh set of alkalines will operate VX for about 7-8 hours with no backlight. Use of the backlight will reduce battery life. When you first power-up VX a start-up screen will display briefly with the battery voltage at the bottom. - Page 14 To keep users from having to learn all these different phase response scales, White’s has chosen to normalize them all to a standard “VDI” scale. VDI stands for Visual Discrimination Indicator and is simply a consistent numerical value assigned to targets regardless of the frequency being used.
- Page 15 Spectra VX User’s Guide Ferrous Non-Ferrous ness. This means you need to apply your own discriminator — your brain — in deciding what the VDI responses are telling you. Ground Response Unfortunately, buried metal is not the only thing the detec- tor sees.
- Page 16 Spectra VX User’s Guide response, so that a strong ground and weak quarter response would look like: The detector will see both signals at the same time, and the combination of the two can be represented with a third vector as follows: The resulting signal appears to be a fairly strong ferrous tar- get instead of a quarter.
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Page 17: Ground Tracking
In order to better handle variations in ground mineraliza- tion, many detectors now incorporate automatic ground track- ® ing (White’s uses the term AutoTrac ). The detector attempts to determine what part of the signal is due to ground and continu- ously track the phase and strength of that signal, and eliminate it. - Page 18 Spectra VX User’s Guide composite VDI that can land anywhere between pure ferrite (VDI = -95) and pure salt. Other areas, like fertilized fields with residual salt ions, can also have a composite ground response. Many deserts have a layer of surface salts that have been leached from the soil;...
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Page 19: Quickstart
QuickStart Turn On & Go is highly programmable and includes several factory preset programs which provide good overall performance and allow a new user to quickly start hunting. 1. Press : VX briefly displays a start-up screen, and ON/OFF after 2 or 3 seconds goes straight to the search screen: 2. -
Page 20: Programs And Memory
Spectra VX User’s Guide Select a desired program, pull the Trigger, and VX is ready to start hunting. Programs and Memory has 8 preset factory programs: - Accepts most common US coins, including nickels. • Coin Most other VDI regions, including where most jewelry is found, are rejected. -
Page 21: Ground Balance
Spectra VX User’s Guide saved to memory and recalled each time VX is powered on. Restoring factory settings is covered in Chapter 7. Ground Balance ’s automatic ground balance system has a fast-track mode that attempts to balance the system to soil conditions within 20 seconds of turn-on. -
Page 22: Electromagnetic Interference (Emi)
Spectra VX User’s Guide Tip: If seems to have an erratic audio only when sweeping the search coil on the ground, check the ground balance. Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) EMI can be a problem with any wide-band metal detector, whether a multi-frequency VLF or a pulse induction design. includes a frequency offset to help deal with this. -
Page 23: Live Control Bar
Spectra VX User’s Guide Tip: Press to change the font size of the menus. ZOOM Live Control Bar You may want to quickly change settings while searching. The Live Control Bar is displayed at the bottom of the Search screen and its items are accessible via the left/right arrow but- tons. -
Page 24: Controls
Spectra VX User’s Guide Tip: Press to quickly collapse levels of the menu MENU+ tree. Controls uses a variety of different interface controls such as sliders and radio buttons. Most of them are very similar to those found in computer graphical interfaces so they will be familiar to many users. -
Page 25: Pinpoint Mode
Spectra VX User’s Guide Along the top of the screen are the VDI number, icons, and depth. The majority of the screen consists of the SpectraGraph display, which provides real-time information on the target’s VDI. See Chapter 5 for more information on how to read this display. -
Page 26: Vx 3 Audio
Audio supports a built-in speaker, plug-in headphones, and White’s proprietary wireless headphones. Headphones are highly recommended as they help block out ambient noise, making it much easier to discern the deeper target responses. If you purchase the optional wireless headphones for your VX see Chapter 8 for connect instructions. - Page 27 Spectra VX User’s Guide Permission This is CRITICALLY IMPORTANT! Over the years, a small minority of inconsiderate detectorists have, in some places, cre- ated a negative image for the hobby (see the Treasure Hunter’s Code of Ethics on the back cover of this manual). Do your part to maintain a positive image: ask permission.
- Page 28 Spectra VX User’s Guide Sweep the coil from side-to-side, with a ~3-4 foot swath, at a rate of 1-2 seconds per sweep. Keep the coil parallel with and close to the ground during the entire sweep; if you sweep with a “pendulum arc”...
- Page 29 Basic Settings This chapter covers some of the basic settings of VX including sensitivity, discrimination, audio, and ground balance. It does not cover any settings which alter the fundamental oper- ating mode of the detector. See Chapter 4 for operating modes. The settings covered here are all accessed from the Live Control Bar, by highlighting the item of interest and pressing ENTER...
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Page 30: Programs
Spectra VX User’s Guide [press VIEW Tip: The is the collection of buttons across Live Control Bar the bottom of the screen. Each button is called a Live Con- . Each item consists of one or more settings. Press trol Item for any to access a for that... -
Page 31: Backlight
Spectra VX User’s Guide - Accepts most common US coins, including nickels. • Coin Most other VDI regions, including where most jewelry is found, are rejected. • - Accepts most common coins, along with Coin & Jewelry rings and jewelry. •... -
Page 32: Sensitivity
Spectra VX User’s Guide more power, so for maximum battery life try to keep the back- light to a minimum. Tip: Press/hold the button for ~3 seconds to quickly ON/OFF set the backlight level to 20. VX will not turn off. Sensitivity Once you select a basic program you may need to adjust the sensitivity settings. -
Page 33: All-Metal Sensitivity
Finally, the quality of the loop null can also push the input amplifier toward overload. White’s V-compatible loops are designed to minimize null limitations, but third-party loops typically have wide variances in the quality of the null which can require a lower Rx Gain. -
Page 34: Discrimination Sensitivity
Spectra VX User’s Guide Discrimination Sensitivity Discrimination Sensitivity (sometimes called AC sensitiv- ity) determines the responsiveness of the discrimination chan- nel. This is a threshold level, so only target signals above the threshold cause a discrimination response. Setting this too high will cause noise and falsing in the discrimination audio. -
Page 35: Frequency
Spectra VX User’s Guide +95, each with a selection box. A box that has an ‘×’ enables that VDI response, an empty box disables that VDI. Tip: Setting the disc mask for 191 VDI’s can be tedious. If you want to set a range of VDI’s to the same state select ... -
Page 36: Ground Tracking
Spectra VX User’s Guide While continuing to hold the trigger, select Transmit Frequency and highlight the box. Adjust the to find the quiet- Offset Offset est setting. The pinpoint bars should be minimal and steady: Release the trigger and you’re set. Tip: Be mindful of personal electronics you are carrying. -
Page 37: Filters
Spectra VX User’s Guide Filters As presented in Chapter 1, modern VLF detectors use filters to separate the target responses from the ground response. Fil- ters are also used to minimize EMI noise. The best filter to use depends on the strength of ground mineralization plus other fac- tors. -
Page 38: Operating Modes
Operating Modes Chapter 3 covered some of the basic settings of VX , such as sensitivity and audio volume. These were adjustment con- trols which are used to alter the performance or user prefer- ences. There are other settings which fundamentally alter the operation of VX . -
Page 39: Three Frequency
Spectra VX User’s Guide One reason for using multiple frequencies is that some tar- gets respond better to certain frequencies than others. Targets that are thin and made of low-conductive metal — typical of most jewelry — respond better to higher frequencies, which is why many gold nugget detectors are designed to run at much higher frequencies than most other detectors. -
Page 40: Single Frequency
Trivia: The single frequency modes in White’s DFX do not use optimized transmit waveforms. Usually the VDI responses for targets vary with frequency, which means that a particular target will have completely differ- ent VDI numbers at each of the three frequencies. -
Page 41: Frequency Offset
Spectra VX User’s Guide However, VX normalizes all VDI’s to a common frequency. That common frequency is, for historical reasons, 6.592kHz, meaning the US silver quarter will have a normalized VDI response of 83 regardless of which frequency you choose. The Deep Silver program uses the 2.5kHz single frequency mode, which responds best to silver coins and tends to penetrate mineralized soil better. -
Page 42: Ground Balance
Spectra VX User’s Guide Along with the audio, the pinpoint bars will help you find the quietest offset. In some situations, you may not be able to find a quiet offset for all three frequencies at the same time. Pay atten- tion to the pinpoint bars and see if one of the frequencies tends to run quieter than the others. -
Page 43: Locktrac
Spectra VX User’s Guide LockTrac There are some uncommon situations where AutoTrac does not work well. In extreme ground that has a lot of variability, or when a lot of trash targets are present, automatic tracking may result in excessive noise and tracking errors. High levels of EMI can also cause problems with automatic tracking. -
Page 44: All-Metal Audio
Spectra VX User’s Guide AM Tone AM Sens. All-Metal Channel & VCO Volume Speaker Threshold Mixed Headphones Tone Modulation Wireless Rx Coil Headphones Rx Gain Disc Discrimination Channel Audio Tone Disc. Target/Threshold Mode Sens. Volume the raw input signal from the coil. The signal is then split into two processing channels, one for all-metal and one for discrimi- nation, and these channels have their own audio responses. - Page 45 Spectra VX User’s Guide Tip: In the normal all-metal mode, SAT (self-adjusting threshold) is applied so if you hold the search coil steady over a target, the audio response will fade away on its own. In pinpoint mode, SAT is not applied so you can hold the search coil steady over a target and the response will remain steady.
- Page 46 Spectra VX User’s Guide If VCO audio is disabled then the all-metal audio response will be a fixed tone, and an increasing signal level creates an increase in its loudness: Fixed Threshold Tone In other words, as the search coil is passed over a target, the all- metal audio will begin at a low volume and progressively rise in loudness as the target signal gets stronger, peaking when the search coil is directly over the target.
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Page 47: Discrimination Audio
Spectra VX User’s Guide Discrimination Audio Unlike the all-metal channel, the discrimination channel does not treat all targets alike. Discrimination uses the VDI (phase) response of the target to determine how to respond. It is possible to assign different tones to different VDI responses, or to completely ignore targets with certain VDI responses. - Page 48 Spectra VX User’s Guide Target Volume setting cannot be less than or equal to the Audio Threshold setting or targets will not be heard. VX attempts to maintain a minimum 8dB loudness separation between them. That is, if you try to increase the Audio Threshold setting too close to a corresponding Target Volume setting, the Target Vol- ume will automatically increase in order to maintain an 8dB loudness difference.
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Page 49: Mixed-Mode Audio
Spectra VX User’s Guide Tone ID Any modern discriminating detector has at least a rudimen- tary audio method of distinguishing accepted targets from rejected ones. This may be as simple as an audio response for accepted targets and no audio response for rejected targets. More advanced detectors have a tonal identification system where different tones represent different target ranges (phase responses). -
Page 50: Pinpoint Mode
Spectra VX User’s Guide that are below the discrimination threshold. This can help in tar- get separation, especially in trashy areas, and can also help in pinpointing targets. On the other hand, the increased target responses can be overwhelming and create audio fatigue, espe- cially for new users. -
Page 51: Discrimination
Spectra VX User’s Guide pull and hold the pinpoint trigger switch or flip it to the forward position. Pinpoint audio is identical to all-metal audio with one exception: normal all-metal mode has SAT applied to it, and pinpoint does not. That means the all-metal channel requires loop motion or the target will get “tuned out,”... -
Page 52: Speaker And Headphones
Spectra VX User’s Guide easier to see what kinds of targets you are accepting and reject- ing. Keep in mind that these are only potential target types, and that many targets (especially jewelry) can have broad ranges. Tip: There are 191 VDI numbers, and setting each one indi- vidually can take a long time. -
Page 53: Preset Icon Tables
Spectra VX User’s Guide Preset Icon Tables Park Relic Prospecting -97 to -57 -97 to -57 -97 to -57 -56 to -27 -56 to -27 -56 to -27 -26 to -1 -26 to -1 -26 to -21 +0 to +12 0 to +17 -20 to -1 +13 to +16... -
Page 54: Display Screens
Display Screens has two display screens which depend on the position of the trigger switch: Search screen: Trigger neutral Pinpoint screen: Trigger pulled or forward Search screen SpectraGraph Icons Depth Disc. Status Mask Live Control Bar The Search screen has several regions as labeled above. The central part of the screen is the SpectraGraph which plots the target response in terms of signal strength versus VDI. -
Page 55: Vdi
Spectra VX User’s Guide As the loop sweeps over a target the received target signal rises, peaks, and then falls. Ideally the VDI of a “well- behaved ” target is independent of signal strength, but in reality weak signals will show errors in the VDI. For that reason, the most accurate VDI will occur at the peak of the target signal response. -
Page 56: Icons
SpectraGraph ® The SpectraGraph display is a progression of White’s Sig- ® naGraph which was used in XLT and DFX. Besides the addi- tion of color, SpectraGraph plots the response of each frequency separately, so you can see individual variations in the VDI responses, amplitudes, and decays. - Page 57 Spectra VX User’s Guide 22.5kHz 7.5kHz Scale 2.5kHz because we are mostly interested in what goes on in the positive half, where the majority of good targets respond. The negative half is mostly where iron falls. Also note that each response bar is 7 VDI points wide. This means that the bars don’t represent a precise VDI number, but rather a small range of numbers.
- Page 58 Spectra VX User’s Guide Ideally all targets would have tight responses that are repeatable. The closest you can get to that is to air test targets 3- 4” from the coil, and that is not a bad start to learn how different targets respond.
- Page 59 Spectra VX User’s Guide Quarter Now the signal response starts at zero and still reaches approxi- mately the same peak point (perhaps resulting in the same final VDI), but shows some curvature on the way up and on the way back.
- Page 60 Spectra VX User’s Guide As the loop is swept over the bottle cap, the phase response var- ies wildly. This will not only result in smearing of the Spectra- Graph plot, but will also cause it to jump around significantly before it locks on to a final reading.
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Page 61: Status Bar
Spectra VX User’s Guide Mixed response Sometimes you will see response bars that include both green and red: This simply means that the target is on the edge of the rejec- tion/acceptance point. Because each bar is 7 VDI points wide a target that is accepted can still show some red in the response bar. -
Page 62: Pinpoint Screen
Spectra VX User’s Guide The status bar also displays the currently loaded program. If Autotrac is enabled, the program name may occasionally get overwritten by a “tracking” message, indicating that VX adjusting its tracking point. Pinpoint Screen 22.5kHz 7.5kHz 2.5kHz The Pinpoint screen has regions similar to the Search screen, and is accessed by pulling the trigger switch. -
Page 63: Salt Mode Anomaly
Spectra VX User’s Guide Salt Mode Anomaly Normally in Pinpoint mode all targets will produce an audio response as well as the screen response. However, targets that are below the ground balance point will produce nulled audio response. In normal ground, this is not a problem as targets are never below the ground balance point . -
Page 64: Advanced Features
Advanced Features Main Menu So far, we’ve mostly used the Live Control Bar and its asso- ciated menus (by pressing ) for making changes to VX VIEW All controls and settings (except for Backlight) are available in one place called the Main Menu. It is accessed from the search screen by pressing MENU The top-level contents of the Main Menu mirror the con-... -
Page 65: Filters & Speed
Spectra VX User’s Guide Most selections available in the menus consist of slider con- trols, radio buttons, or check boxes. Sliders are changed with the and buttons. Note that a control has a “” in front of its name when the control is set to the default value. The name is preceded with a “”... -
Page 66: Ground Filter
Spectra VX User’s Guide Ground Filter Modern VLF metal detectors use electronic filters both to remove unwanted noise — such as electromagnetic interference (EMI) from radio signals and power lines — and to remove the portion of the received signal due to ground mineralization (see Chapter 1). -
Page 67: Recovery Delay
Spectra VX User’s Guide Recovery Delay A detected target creates an audio response in the all-metal channel which exactly follows the target’s received signal. In the discrimination channel, an accepted target creates an audio response which is generated near the peak of the received signal where the VDI is likely to be most accurate, especially neces- sary for generating a proper tone ID. -
Page 68: Sat
Spectra VX User’s Guide S.A.T. SAT stands for self-adjusting threshold and is a property of the all-metal channel. In normal all-metal mode, the SAT con- tinuously works to return the all-metal signal to a threshold point, even in the presence of ground or target signals. There- fore, when the loop is held steady over a target, the target response will eventually fade away. -
Page 69: Ground Probe
Spectra VX User’s Guide “residual” signal is being seen. Ideally, if you hold the loop in the air away from metal targets, this number should be zero. However, it is impossible to make a perfect loop null so this number is usually at least a few percent. Ground mineralization also creates a residual signal, so as you lower the loop to the ground you may see an increase in the Signal percentage. - Page 70 Spectra VX User’s Guide The right side of the screen reports the phase and strength of the residual signal , and does so for each individual frequency This is useful for analyzing the characteristics of the ground, but only if the residual signal consists purely of ground signal. This will be true if (1) we can get rid of other residual signals like an imperfect loop null, and (2) if we put the loop over tar- get-free ground.
- Page 71 Spectra VX User’s Guide You can also use the Ground Probe to analyze target signals, and can see exactly how signal phase and strength vary with frequency. This may be of limited use in the field, however, because a buried target also has ground above it so the Ground Probe will give you the total response of the two.
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Page 72: Programs
Programs As covered in Chapters 2 and 3, VX comes with 8 preset factory programs. Any of these programs can be modified, and they can easily be restored to original factory settings at any time. To better understand programs, let’s take a look at how stores programs. -
Page 73: Saving Programs
Spectra VX User’s Guide Tip: If you make changes and decide you don’t want them automatically saved, instead of using the button to ON/OFF power down, simply remove the battery pack. When modifications are made to any program so that it no longer matches the Library copy, the program name will be pre- ceded by a “”... -
Page 74: Rearranging Programs
Spectra VX User’s Guide Tip: You can also restore a program to factory defaults from the Live Con- trol Bar. Highlight Program Select highlight the program you want to restore, and press ENTER+MENU small pop-up box will appear; select the option to Restore Defaults press ENTER... -
Page 75: Wireless Headphones
Wireless Headphones Wireless Headphones supports optional wireless headphones (WHPs) which are designed to use a world-wide available 2.4GHz ISM band. To enable and connect WHPs, access the WHP menu at . Once you enable WHPs, MENU Audio Wireless Headphones the menu will expand to include a number of options: Below the menu of options are two buttons for Connect... - Page 76 Spectra VX User’s Guide When you follow this procedure, the WHPs will produce a “ta- DA” jingle which signifies proper connection. Upon connec- tion, VX will pop up another balloon signifying that: Once WHPs are properly connected, you should see the header bar report “Working.”...
- Page 77 Spectra VX User’s Guide Why is there a “connect” ritual? It’s because the WHPs may need to search for and find the right channel to operate on. With control, VX lets you select one of 76 channels (4- Channel 79), allowing multiple V-users to operate in close proximity. By default, channel 4 is preselected in the factory, both in VX in the WHPs.
- Page 78 Spectra VX User’s Guide to be picking up audio from another VX , try a different chan- nel. Pay attention to the reception bar when selecting a channel; choose a channel that has a maximum green and minimal red response. Tip: If you run the connect sequence at the same time as another nearby V-user, you may inadvertently connect your WHPs to the wrong detector.
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Page 79: Troubleshooting
Trouble- shooting Murphy’s Law applies every bit as well to metal detecting as anything else, so there is always something to go wrong. This chapter will cover the more common problems that people run into. • VX is excessively noisy or chattery even when the loop is held in the air. - Page 80 Spectra VX User’s Guide 3. Unusually variable ground can cause problems for Autotrac; try Locktrac. 4. Slow down your sweep speed. 5. Make sure your loop is tight, and that the cable is wrapped tightly around the rod. 6. Reduce the RxGain. •...
- Page 81 Spectra VX User’s Guide • I get a target response in Disc mode but it is weak (or disappears) in Pinpoint mode. See Chapter 5, “Salt Mode Anomaly.” While this phenome- non is more prevalent in salt mode, it can occur in normal (non- salt) mode as well.
- Page 82 • My display cover has a dent in it. The cover over the display is replaceable, and new covers are available from White’s. Simply peel off the old one, and stick on the new one. • The display is very dim.
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Page 83: Shortcuts
Shortcuts has a number of keypad shortcuts that make certain tasks easier. They have all been mentioned throughout the manual (often in Tip boxes) and this chapter pulls them all together for quick-reference. How to quickly ground balance Probably the most important short-cut: •... - Page 84 Spectra VX User’s Guide How to organize your Program list comes with 8 preset programs. You can change their order in the listing: • Go to MENU Program Select • Scroll down to highlight a desired program (or ) to move the program •...
- Page 85 Spectra VX User’s Guide How to quickly jump through ranges Some settings have a large range of values, such as volume. or (or or You can press ENTER+ ENTER+ ENTER+ if you are in the Menus) to quickly jump to the ENTER+ extremes of the range, and to also get back to the default setting.
- Page 87 If within two years (24 months) from the original date of purchase, your White’s detector fails due to defects in either material or workmanship, White’s will repair or replace at its option, all necessary parts without charge for parts or labor.
- Page 88 8. Act as an ambassador for the hobby; be thoughtful, considerate, and courteous at all times. White’s metal detectors are proudly designed, built, and tested in Sweet Home, Oregon USA by the employees of White’s Electronics.