Minelab GPZ 7000 Really Any Good?


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Hello All,

   Was going through some of my pictures and found some of the first nuggets I found with my Minelab GPZ 7000.  These three nuggets were found on one of the first couple of hunts with the new detector.  I picked a handful of old nugget patches that were hammered, but also had potential for some deeper nuggets.  I remember the first month or so since I was learning the detector, I was hunting in High Yield-Difficult.  

This particular patch was hunted pretty hard with the GPX series with coils up to around 14-inch round and 17-inch elliptical.  The three nuggets found were faint, but missed as they were right out in the open and between other older nugget digs.  

Total weight of the three nuggets was 9.5 Dwt's.  The largest was 4.4 Dwt's in weight.  I didn't pay for the detector the first day, week or month, but I added $500-600 towards the purchase of this expensive detector in a single day due to it's depth ability.  

I find the GPZ 7000 to be a bit less ergonomic then the GPX series for me, but it's hard to not use it due to it's ability to find very tiny and large gold at depth.  

Since I have owned the Minelab GPZ 7000 metal detector (mid 2015 - current) I personally have found hundreds of nuggets ranging from just a grain in weight to the largest being a 6.8 ounce gold-quartz specimen in the Youtube video below.  This piece was pushing 3 foot in depth and took my partner and I well over an hour double teaming with picks to get down through the hardpack to extract the piece.  The response was just a faint signal with the 14x13" coil from the surface.  

 

GPZNuggets.jpg

 

 

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I wish I had some old pics of my past hunts. I was lucky though. I used my GP 3000 for the first six months and was blest with great ground to hunt. I found enough to pay cash for my 7000 in one day. Now I can't remember how to use the GP anymore. I just love my 7000. 

 Nice pictures Rob. I love to see good from others and other areas. Still, a job well done!

Cheers

John

 

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Hey Whitebutler,

   If you ever dig up any pictures, would love to see them.  Some of my best days with the GPZ were over an ounce per day on old patches with no biggies found.  I only had the opportunity to pay for a detector with one single find back when the Minelab GP Extreme was released.  It was a solid 9.1 ounce beauty at around 28-inch deep with a Coiltek 14-inch Mono Round (Old Orange Original one).  

Most days on old patches were similar to this picture below.  Hunting all day on old patches for anywhere from a few nuggets to maybe an ounce on a really good spot. 

2015GPZfinds.jpg

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Love the videos, I always get gold fever all over again whenever I watch them.

Some of those little guys look familiar in that second pic! :)

Hope you can get out and detect again soon, I know motivation is hard to find and the oncoming heat doesn't help anything.

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Rob

I always said i'd never bad mouth Minelab but i'm going to this time.

No I don't like the GPZ 7000 because I don't think it's worth the money.

Now to hear the other side of what I think here it is.

If I'd stop buying these low end detectors like the Gold Monster 1000 that is not out yet I'd have the money. Minelab is the only detector company this gives X Military a discount. My trouble is I can't find enough discounts Minelab could give me so I could get it in my price range. Now my Birthday is coming in May and i'd be willing to eat humble pie to get one.

Oh yes Minelab is high dollar but they always if you get out and use it you get your money worth in gold.

I Thank You Minelab for making a detector better than the last one you came out with. You have added so much to our hobby of nugget hunting and I look forward hunting with the Gold Monster 1000.

Thanks Again.

Chuck 

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Hey Chuck,

   I have always respected your opinion, as I do this one.  No question the Minelab GPZ 7000 is high priced.  There is still a lot of grumble over when it was first released as a "Flagship" metal detector at the price of $10,000 MAP (minimum advertised price).  Somewhere about a year later, could be more, the price was reduced down to $8000 MAP.  I'm sure there were many customers that purchased several months prior to the price change and freaked out.  I can't speak for Minelab, nor will I, but many customers questioned that.  Many believed they should have gotten a FREE 19" GPZ coil when they were released, or at least a huge savings on this coil.  

That all being said, I have been impressed with the GPZ's performance in many Arizona goldfield on "non" typical gold nuggets and specimens.  I have found many ounces of spongy and very porous nuggets along with specimens I missed at various depths I should have gotten with the GPX.  The ZVT technology of the GPZ allows you to find a lot of stuff overlooked, even the more solid stuff.  I think the new 19" GPZ coil will open up even more ground for the very methodical nugget shooter on the same ground.  

The debate to date is the GPX series with the Nugget Finder Evolution (EVO's) or the Coiltek Elite's of similar size as the GPZ's 14x13.  Many believe they can get the same, if not more depth on the more solid pieces of gold with the GPX and newer technology searchcoils.  

Another discussion could be - "Will there continue to be more firmware updates" that allow the GPZ to add more and more functions and performance down the road?  If this is the case in the future, then this might somewhat justify the price of not having to purchase a new high end detector every 2-3 years to have the latest and greatest.  

I have had great success with the GPX series along with the new GPZ 7000.  

I have always told customers, in my opinion, the GPZ 7000 is more for a person that has some experience detecting along with a handful of gold locations where they have found nuggets before.  This allows the new GPZ 7000 user to revisit some of their old patches and potentially find gold that is missed.   This seems to offset some of the cost of the unit the more places you have to revisit and find missed gold.  Trust me, we have sold plenty of GPZ's to new users that insisted they have the best detector around! 

Just my quick thoughts. :D

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There's an advantage of having new technology first in the field. The 7000 on old patches was deadly. I am on my 7th pound. And this is in Arizona's hammered gold fields.The price drop doesn't bother me because I saw the advantage. I can understand why some don't like it though.

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Rob

 I can assure you if I lived in the middle of what we call gold country I'd have the GPZ 7000. The price of it would never come up even when it first came out are now.

Texas has some gold but all is on pvt. land and the nuggets is just about none. My trouble is the long drive to get to gold.

Maybe in another life I'll live in gold country but it would be my luck as a Jack Rabbit.

Chuck

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I have been using most of all the other Minelab models in these same areas for many years, so it wasn't only the other machines missing gold, it was me also. But guess what, I know I am missing some with the 7000 so... on it goes.

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Hello Walker,  I was just looking at some of your "Impressive Gold" that you photo'd.   Nice looking stuff!!!  I am curious, your name Walker,...Do you hunt the Walker area up around Prescott (south of Lynx Lake)???  I hunt the Lynx Creek area, and those nuggets look almost like some of the ones I find along the Lynx (although most of yours are much bigger).  Gary

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Hey Tortuga,

   Rumors of another firmware update coming.  Not sure what it might include, but it's nice you have the firmware/software update ability on the GPZ 7000.

Something on the GPZ 7000 vs. GPX 5000.  Some time ago I was spending more time with the GPX 5000 with the Coiltek 14-inch Elite searchcoil.  I worked the area pretty well, figuring I didn't miss much.  I revisited this location with the GPZ 7000 with the 13x14 Super D and found 2 small nuggets around 1/2 Gram each at a great depth and they sounded really well.  Due to the response, it really thought they were trash that might have fell off my pick.  

I was using these settings on the GPX 5000 (Special-Sensitive Extra) & (High Yield-Normal) on the GPZ 7000. 

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