Minelab Vanquish 340 Review

You’ve found the definitive Minelab Vanquish 340 review.

The Vanquish 340 differs from the other Minelab’s detectors, like the uber-expensive and all-purpose CTX 3030, but it is the perfect beginner metal detector to ignite that detectorist passion. 

You get the powerful Multi-IQ feature that blows many other metal detectors in this price range cleanly out of the water and realm of competition. The 340 also has complementary features, that keep the Multi-IQ from picking up many major interferences in the field.

This review will serve as your one-stop shop in your search for the perfect metal detector for adults and kids that perfectly balances simplicity and functionality. 

If you’re eager to learn…

What features make Vanquish 340 excel

The pros and cons of Minelab’s detector

Where Minelab 340 falls short

How it compares to other popular models of Minelab

and much more…

Then definitely don’t miss this Vanquish 340 metal detector review.

Then you’re in the right place.

The simple and solidly crafted Minelab Vanquish 340 is the perfect metal detector companion for new hobbyists. 

Design and Appearance

You can get this 2.6-pound Vanquish 340 with a monochrome LCD without a backlight, unlike the 3.2-ounce heavier 540 with a red backlight. 

You get full adjustability for many features you can control on the 4-button display. (By the way, those button stubs have a great feel.)

It’s nothing special to write home about if you’ve been around the block for some time, but the red control box with matching armrest and the matte black finish on the stretch rod and search coil can be a conversation starter for some.

Minelab has made the Vanquish 340 easily extendable to 57 inches and collapsible to 30 inches with a snap-lock system that makes being on the go a cinch. You can also convert it to a straight shaft in a jiffy.

You can go treasure hunting come rain or shine with the supplied V10 10″ x7″ Double-D coil that’s waterproof up to 3.3 feet and the water-resistant control box with an attached Rain Cover. 

All detectorists will be well-pleased with the incredible 8-hour charge-time of the Minelab AA Alkaline quartet batteries, but less so with their 11-hour runtime, especially since the batteries need to be rechargeable. 

You might get the typical 20-hour ballpark estimate of power familiar to other metal detectors if you get AA batteries with higher-quality cells, preferably the AA types recommended by Minelab.

You can also use rechargeable batteries to help you avoid the cost of regularly buying new batteries. 

Features

You’ll be pleased to hear that the Vanquish 340 detector is the perfect detectorist starter pack. This small detector has all the necessary features to set you off on the right foot. 

Search Mode Features

Navigating the three Search Modes with their unique Discrimination Patterns on the Vanquish 340 is intuitive. 

Press the Search Mode button with the magnifying glass icon to to toggle through the Coin, Jewelry, and All-Metal mode. You must cycle through the options to return to a missed choice. 

The Discrimination Pattern for Coin mode rejects small ferrous (iron) items and small non-ferrous ones that could give a false read, like foil. Only ferrous targets are rejected in the Jewelry mode, while the All-Metal mode picks up all ferrous and non-ferrous targets.

Target Identification Features

The three target tones (Low, Mid, and High) automatically adjust and change pitch to point to where your potential find might lie on the Target ID without stopping and looking as you’d think to expect on an entry-level metal detector. 

Sensitivity Features

You get four Sensitivity Levels on the 340, six less than the 440 and 540. But chances are you’ll be pleased with how well you can adjust the device’s sensitivity for many conditions in which you seek your action. 

Adjustments to the Sensitivity Level are made with the middle button, between the Volume and Search Mode buttons. The 340’s display shows you the Sensitivity Level indicator as you toggle through to find the highest stable sensitivity level.  

There’s a fixed iron volume and a 3-level Volume level indicator that you can adjust for the target signals. 

You can’t adjust the Iron Bias as it is preset to High. It’s nothing to gripe about because you’re better off with a high Iron Bias than a low one to help you tackle those areas with a high density of iron trash. 

You have an in-built loudspeaker for the audio output and wired 3.5 mm (1/8″) headphones for those volume controls. 

Coil Features

Despite not having an onboard pinpointer, you shouldn’t pine for it too much if you use the manual pinpointing technique of making a line where you read the strongest signal and another line at the right angle to that first direction. 

Having to revert to using basic metal-detecting techniques is another charm that you might find oddly endearing about the 340.

The V10 search coil should serve you well in moderate to high mineralization even without you having to max out the Sensitivity Level. 

Operating Frequency Features

You know it would only be a Minelab with the Multi-IQ technology. This multi-frequency feature outperforms many metal detectors with a single search frequency and is the ideal budget metal detector.

The operating frequency of the Multi-IQ on the Vanquish 340 simultaneously searches frequencies ranging from 5 to 40 kHz.

The high and low frequencies may be as low as 1.5 kHz or as high as 100 kHz as some monstrous metal detecting performers claim.

Still, it trumps the 5 to 25 kHz you’d expect to find on a device with such a welcoming interface, price tag, and potentially off-putting black and red color palette. 

Performance

All aspects of this multi-frequency detector will show admirable performance that you can confidently take to the streets. 

Coil Performance

You shouldn’t have any performance issues with the Vanquish 340. The auto Noise Cancel feature using 19 channels, and auto ground balance are superb functionalities. 

Combined with the Multi-IQ, these two features will show you that they can hold their own in highly mineralized soil and spaces with pesky Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) pollution. 

You only need to follow the steps in the Vanquish 340’s Getting Started Guide when you get excessive talk-back or erratic noise when using the “All-Metal” target ID. 

Like your own miracle, turning the device off, moving away from the area bombarded by EMI, restarting the device, and waiting for Automatic Noise Cancel should help remove the chatter. 

You’ll often find that the Vanquish 340 offers more stability than other single-frequency detectors because of its Multi-IQ frequency feature. 

Target Performance

Although you’ll find yourself happiest and potentially yielding the most fruit on wet and saltwater beaches, the Vanquish 340 can hold its own on many other terrains, like bark playgrounds and tot lots. 

You shouldn’t have issues detecting coins near large metal structures, even five inches from your spot. 

Some people have also said they could get their Vanquish 340 to sound off staples by detecting the moisture barrier 8 to 12 inches below the woodchip surface, even at half sensitivity. 

Even though the three Search Modes have their own discrimination mandate and are made to be good at ignoring trash, you won’t always be safe from those rusty crown bottle caps.

Fortunately, you can keep your cool and save a dig because the 340 simultaneously gives a high and medium tone with jumpy numbers. Some members of the 340 community have pointed out that this mash-up tone might be an audio key as these tones primarily sound broken and unsteady. 

Unlike the steady and repeatable tones, you should get them when you hit something like a US coin on the surface or within 6 feet. In this regard, you might soon join the club by growing to appreciate the simplicity of only having three target tones.

Depth Performance

So far, the detector’s sensitivity has lived up to expectations, as you can find 0.2 grams of gold at 3″ depth. But hitting a small 2 ounce gold nugget on the 10″ x7″ search coil at 3″ deep can be hit or miss.

You can sometimes hit it with no problem without maxing out the sensitivity, but other times you won’t, especially when there’s high mineralization or EMI. 

Vanquish Series Comparison

The Vanquish 340 might be the “runt of the litter” in the Vanquish series as the device meant to ease new detectorists into this hobby, but you won’t be disappointed as it does an excellent job of holding a mirror to the 440 and 540 in comparisons.

340 Vs. 440

As the immediate step-up from the 340, the Vanquish 440 is an improvement on all fronts, and you can find it for less than $100 more than the 340.  

The 340 is limited to three search modes, while the 440 has four. It shares Coin and Jewelry with the 340, but it has a Relic Search Mode with the deepest search depth out of all the loads, compromising its target separation ability. 

For those not a fan of the iffy All-Metal option on the 340, the 440 replaces it with a Custom one. The Custom choice lets you save your favorite Search Mode and the discrimination pattern you’ve tried and tested.

You won’t lose your settings in Custom search when you power off the 440 or when it runs out of power while you’re using it.

These two have three Target Tones, the same weight, display, stock search coil, batteries, and an Iron Bias set to “High.” 

You also get much more functionality with the 440, as evident from the larger working area on the control box, which accommodates more buttons for improved usability and control. 

Similarly, the Discrimination Segments at the top of the screen on the 440 are more segmented for more precision.

340 Vs. 540

Vanquish 540 (full review here) is almost double the price of the 340. Minelab has stuffed and enabled all the features possible on the Vanquish series to entice intermediate buyers.

Bluetooth audio is enabled only on the 540 with apt-X Low Latency technology to help you experience less delay on wireless audio. You shouldn’t feel too much weight difference between the 540 and 340, as the 540 weighs 2.8 pounds and the 340 weighs 2.6 pounds. 

Unlike the 340, the 540 isn’t limited to its high Iron Bias default. You can change the Iron Bias setting to “Low.” 

The Monochrome LCD of the Vanquish 540 should also serve you better in low-light situations as it has a red backlight. 

At a glance, you should notice that everything on the 540’s control box has more detail. There are more buttons to play around with and get to the settings you need without spending time toggling through options on one button. 

Most noticeably, the Discrimination Segments provide narrower and more precise visual feedback than what you get on that wide-range situation on the 340. 

Ten sensitivity levels are another example of why the 540 is the top dog in the Vanquish series, as the 340 only has four sensitivity levels.  

Pros and Cons

Here are some pros and cons of the Minelab 340 metal detector:

FAQs

Conclusion 

You will be satisfied with gifting yourself or newbie detectorists the Minelab Vanquish 340. This metal detector is cheap, but Minelab has done its homework on which features the device can do to shave something off the top.  

You’ll find that the simple design achieves its 2.6-pound lightweight while being adequately sturdy. Yes, the red/black color scheme and the lack of a pinpoint mode can remind you that this is a beginner metal detector, but you won’t hold that thought for long once you get working.

Is the terrain I can use for the Vanquish 340 limited? Minelab made the Vanquish 340 a high performer on wet and saltwater beaches, but it’ll work just as hard on many other types of terrain: mud, wet sand, rain, or spray.

Gilded and forgotten treasure calls to you; it’s time to answer with your new Vanquish 340, a click away on Amazon.

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