Ears first, eyes second.

I always trust my ears when treasure hunting, even though one of my favorite metal detectors has a screen that allows me to get visual target IDs. 
Some of my recent jewelry has been recovered from decent depths,  and more than a few pieces of gold and platinum jewelry recovered last month were pleasant surprises in my scoop.
Heavy gold bands, like this pair recovered over the weekend are not surface finds! 

That is the problem with searching for dense heavy metals like platinum and gold, they normally sink deeper and respond with broken signals. 
The reason for this is simple, target IDS when using a  discrimination search mode are only good to a certain depth.
When a discriminating VLF metal detector gets to the point where it cannot correctly identify a target, it often classifies the target as trash and rejects it. 
Once you have spent some time with your metal detector, you will learn how deep targets sound, and be less inclined to automatically reject "Iffy"sounding signals when searching in a discrimination mode. 
Targets on the edge of detection range respond with soft whisper signals, sometimes broken signals. 
If you have a screen, use your depth indicator to help you figure out if it is a trash target close to the surface being correctly rejected, or a deep target your metal detector cannot correctly identify.
All targets giving mixed signals with maxed out depth indicator readings should be further investigated.
When you start to scoop what you suspect to be a deep target, never walk away if the signal disappears. 
You may have pushed the target on edge or pushed the target deeper into the sand. 
A few scoops of sand removed from the area, will often cause the target signal to increase in volume.
I have spent so much time using my Minelab CTX 3030 that I can tell the difference between a quarter, a penny and a dime, searching in the Beach Mode when they are too deep to correctly identify on my screen.
I can now tell a pull tab from a gold ring on my CTX 3030 audio,  just like I could using a Minelab Excalibur. 
The point of todays blog is to get beach and water hunters to understand how discrimination only works up to a certain depth. 
I know some of the gold and platinum bands I found last month here on heavily hunted south Florida beaches, were probably left behind by people covering the beach, instead of covering the ground. 
Every inch your search coil is swept above the sand, every step you walk faster, increases your chances of not going home with gold or platinum. 
A double whammy, you cannot hear whisper signals, or see suspected deep targets if you use a screen, when your beach or water hunting technique is flawed.