Garrett AT Gold 18 kHz Metal Detector for Gold Prospecting

The Garrett AT Gold is a specialized VLF metal detector engineered for small, low-conductive gold nuggets that general coin and relic machines struggle to detect. For prospectors stepping up from basic, lower-frequency platforms, this machine turns hot ground, ironstone-laced washes, and shallow creeks into productive hunting territory. True All-Metal Mode runs deep with a stable threshold, two Discrimination Modes deliver sharp tone separation in iron-heavy ground, and the fully waterproof control box lets us wade into streams up to 10 feet without swapping machines. The Garrett AT series all-terrain waterproof detectors share this rugged, submersible build, but the AT Gold's processing speed and high-frequency engineering deliver critical sensitivity on sub-gram flakes.

What's Included with the Garrett AT Gold

• Garrett AT Gold control unit with adjustable shaft
• 5" x 8" PROformance DD submersible search coil
• Coil cover for the 5" x 8" coil
• Garrett MS-2 land headphones
• 4 AA batteries (installed)
• Battery holder (installed)
• Access to Garrett online training videos
• Garrett AT Gold owner's manual (digital)
• Garrett 3-year limited warranty

18 kHz Gold Sensitivity in Mineralized Ground and Creeks

Dry-Wash and Goldfield Prospecting

Hot rocks and high iron mineralization are where most standard coin-and-relic machines go silent or collapse into chatter. The AT Gold's specialized signal and Ground Balance Window let us tune to the soil instead of fighting it, delivering the deepest response on elusive sub-gram nuggets. We run All-Metal with Sensitivity adjusted down slightly in heavy mineralization, raising it to maximum levels only on quiet ground. Manual Ground Balance is set to the floor of the window over a clean patch of dirt, Iron Audio stays active to identify true iron junk while keeping maximum operational depth, and the Threshold is dialed to a soft, steady hum just above silent. The compact DD search coil slips easily into tight rocky pockets and keeps overall mass low enough to swing all day without fatiguing the operator.

Shallow Creek and Stream Hunting

The fully waterproof control box, sealed coil, and compact 5" x 8" DD coil make working a creek straightforward. We can wade past the coil up to 10 feet without changing detectors and keep the gold-tuned response we want for placer hunting. For quick recovery in the water, our team pairs the AT Gold with the Garrett Pro-Pointer AT. We run All-Metal with Sensitivity at 7 to 9, dropping if the bank's mineralization climbs, and re-balance manually after each move into wetter ground. Iron Audio stays on, and Discrimination is set to 0 to accept everything at the recovery stage.

Coin and Relic Sites with Heavy Iron Trash

The AT Gold is built for gold first, but on iron-heavy old home sites and military camps, DISC 2 with Iron Audio gives us a usable two-tone separation between iron and the lower-conductive non-ferrous targets that the AT Pro and AT Max hit at coin frequencies but a 5 to 8 kHz machine washes out. Recovery speed stays fast enough to break apart adjacent targets in trashy ground. We run DISC 2 mode with Sensitivity at 6 to 8 depending on EMI, Iron Discrimination at 35 to 40 to notch out shallow nails while keeping marginal targets audible, Iron Audio on and set to the lowest level that still flags large iron, and Ground Balance in Auto for fast moves between iron piles. Detectorists who hunt primarily coins may prefer our coin-shooting picks at lower frequencies.

Ground Balance Window and Iron Audio for Hot Soil

• Sub-gram nugget sensitivity from the 18 kHz operating frequency: small gold our old 8 to 14 kHz detector wrote off as static comes through clearly.
• True All-Metal Mode with adjustable threshold: faint nugget responses come through cleanly instead of being buried under auto-tracking smoothing.
• Ground Balance Window that spreads the GB setting across a range: cuts the chatter we get from variable mineralization without us pumping the coil between every line.
• Iron Audio in All-Metal: a Garrett feature that lets us hear discriminated iron while staying in the deepest mode, so we stop chasing flat steel without losing depth.
• Fully waterproof to 10 feet: creek beds, low-water river bars, and tailing piles stop being a separate trip with a separate machine.

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Specifications

• Operating Frequency: 18 kHz
• Coil: 5" x 8" PROformance DD submersible search coil
• Waterproof Rating: 10 feet (control box and coil)
• Weight: 3.03 lbs assembled
• Shaft Length: 43 inches collapsed to 56 inches extended
• Battery Type: 4 AA alkaline batteries
• Target ID: 0 to 99 numeric scale
• Iron Discrimination: 44 levels
• Audio Output: 1/4-inch jack, MS-2 headphones included
• Ground Balance: Manual and Fast Track automatic
• Warranty: 3-year limited parts and labor

Why Buy from Serious Detecting

We are an authorized Garrett dealer, so your AT Gold ships with the full 3-year manufacturer warranty and direct support from Garrett. Our team has run the gold detectors in our catalog on Arizona caliche, Nevada dry washes, and California river bars, and we know the ground conditions where 18 kHz makes the difference. Free ground shipping on orders over $100, 30-day returns, and price-match guarantee mean you can buy with confidence. If you need help choosing between the AT Gold and other VLF metal detectors in our lineup, reach out.