Garrett AT MAX Metal Detector

Old homesites hide their best coins under a blanket of nails, and a detector that only knows one way to listen walks right past them. The Garrett AT Max gives you two ways: a true All Metal mode that runs at full depth and hears everything, and Iron Audio that lets you check any one of those signals for iron by ear before you dig. Add built-in Z-Lynk wireless audio and a control box rated to 10 ft (3 m), and you have the top machine in Garrett's All Terrain series.

Why This Model

The AT Max is a 13.6 kHz single-frequency VLF, and Garrett built it for the detectorist who hunts relics, coins and jewelry across farm fields, creeks and freshwater beaches with one machine. Three things separate it from the rest of the AT family. First, the true All Metal mode: continuous threshold audio with no discrimination, which is where the deepest targets live. Second, Iron Audio works inside that All Metal mode, something Garrett calls a Garrett exclusive, so you keep full depth and still get an iron warning on a questionable signal. Third, the built-in Z-Lynk transmitter with wireless headphones in the box: no cable to snag on brush, and audio that keeps up with your swing.

Two other Garrett engineering choices matter more in the field than on a spec sheet. The volume control is a limiter, not a gain, so turning it down against loud shallow targets never costs you faint deep ones. And the 175-point ground balance, with quarter-point steps above 75 and the Automatic Ground Balance Window, balances to a range of ground rather than a single point, which is why the AT Max runs quieter in red clay and hot rock than machines that ground balance once and hope.

Other dealers sell the AT Max as "wireless and waterproof" and stop there. Those are real, and both have limits Garrett prints in the manual: the wireless link works for land and wading but not once the control box is submerged, and 10 ft (3 m) is the maximum depth. We would rather you know that before you buy than after.

Technical Specs and Benefits

AT Max vs AT Pro vs AT Gold: Which One Do You Need?

All three share the AT body, the 10 ft (3 m) rating and the AT coil range. They differ in frequency, audio and modes.

Choose the AT Max if you want the deepest All Metal audio in the family, wireless out of the box and a backlight. The Garrett AT Pro is the value pick for parks and fields. The Garrett AT Gold is the one to buy if nuggets are the goal. Everything that fits all three is on our Garrett AT series accessories page.

Who It's For

The AT Max belongs with the relic hunter working old farmhouses and Civil War camps, the coin shooter who wants depth without a cable, and the creek and lake hunter who wades with the box under water. It is an intermediate to advanced machine that a first-time buyer can still learn quickly, because Coins mode is ready to swing as soon as the batteries are in.

Honest limits: it is a single-frequency detector, so the frequency shift is for interference, not a performance change. Garrett says it is not specifically designed for saltwater, though it can be used there with the ground balance procedure in the manual (saltwater balances at 0 to 20, reduce sensitivity, keep the swings flat). It has no dedicated gold mode; prospectors hunt by ear in All Metal, and for real nugget country Garrett's answer is the AT Gold or the Goldmaster 24K.

What Comes Standard in the Factory Box

• Garrett AT Max control housing with S-stem, upper and lower stems, and hardware
• 8.5 x 11 in (21.6 x 28 cm) DD PROformance submersible search coil with coil cover installed
• Garrett Z-Lynk wireless headphones with USB charging cable
• 4 AA batteries, installed
• Owner's manual and warranty card
• 3-year limited parts and labor warranty from Garrett

Garrett's manual is free to download: Garrett AT Max owner's manual (PDF). The saltwater procedure, the pinpointing methods and the Iron Audio tones are all in it.

Garrett Military Discount

Garrett offers a military discount on Garrett detectors, and the AT Max qualifies. Contact us directly at 256-284-2247 for details and to order with the discount. Not combinable with other promotions or discounts.

See it in the field

History Seekers hunts run on YouTube and Facebook, where over 1.1 million followers watch us dig relics, coins, and gold across the Southeast and beyond. We rotate machines depending on the site and the ground conditions, and every find you see was made with gear we sell and use ourselves.

One more thing worth knowing about who you are buying from. History Seekers is a small American business, not a big box retailer where nobody on staff has ever swung a detector, and not a warehouse that just moves boxes. Everyone here detects, from the top down: gold, relics, coins, jewelry, even float copper. Years of field experience before hire is not a coincidence, it is a requirement. The person who answers your questions may be the same one who packs your order and drives it to the UPS drop-off, and every purchase keeps everyday Americans working.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the Garrett AT Max waterproof?

Yes. The control box, coil and stem are submersible to a maximum of 10 ft (3 m). Going deeper can cause leaks and voids the warranty. The wireless headphones are for land and wading only; once the control box is under water the wireless link stops, so fully submerged hunting needs wired waterproof headphones through the AT connector.

Do wireless headphones come with the AT Max?

Yes. The AT Max has Garrett's Z-Lynk transmitter built in and ships with Garrett Z-Lynk wireless headphones. They pair in about two seconds by holding Iron Audio and Freq together, and the transmitter turns itself off after 30 seconds without a receiver to save battery. Any other headphones work wired through the AT connector or wirelessly with a separate Z-Lynk receiver.

AT Max vs AT Pro: which one should I buy?

The AT Max adds built-in Z-Lynk wireless with headphones in the box, a true All Metal mode, a backlit display, an adjustable threshold, 44 iron discrimination levels instead of 40 and the Automatic Ground Balance Window. The AT Pro keeps Garrett's Standard audio modes that the Max does not have and costs less. For deep relic work and wireless audio, choose the AT Max; for a proven all-rounder on a tighter budget, the AT Pro.

Can the AT Max find gold?

Gold rings and jewelry, yes; the true All Metal mode and 13.6 kHz frequency make it a strong jewelry hunter on land and in fresh water. It has no gold prospecting mode. For nuggets, Garrett's answers are the AT Gold at 18 kHz and the Goldmaster 24K at 48 kHz.

Does the AT Max work on saltwater beaches?

It can be used there, but Garrett says it was not specifically designed for saltwater. The manual's procedure: ground balance automatically (wet salt sand reads 0 to 20), reduce sensitivity, keep the coil flat and parallel to the sand, and in breaking surf bias the ground balance a few points negative. Notching out the first Foil segment quiets it further at the cost of some small jewelry.

How long do the batteries last?

Four AA batteries run 15 to 25 hours with wired headphones or none, and 10 to 20 hours when the wireless headphones are in use. NiMH rechargeables and 1.5 V lithium AAs are fine; 3.7 V lithium cells will damage the detector. Remove the batteries if the detector will sit for more than 30 days.

Are there firmware updates for the AT Max?

Garrett has not published any firmware or software update for the AT Max (checked September 2026); there is no update section in the manual and no AT Max entry on Garrett's updates page. The USB cable in the box charges the headphones only.

History Seekers Metal Detectors is an Authorized Garrett Dealer. Every AT Max we sell ships new from Garrett's authorized US distributor with the full 3-year Garrett warranty, and your setup questions get answered by detectorists who run these machines on real permissions. We will help you pick a second coil, set your first ground balance and get you digging keepers instead of nails. Because at History Seekers, the story is more important than the artifact.