Some links below are affiliate links to High Plains Prospectors: if you buy through them we earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It does not change what we recommend, and we say when a model is not sold by them. Details.
On Garrett’s own pages the AT Max costs $90 more than the AT Pro ($549.99 against $459.99), comes with wireless headphones instead of wired ones, and adds a true all-metal mode and an iron audio button; both are listed as submersible to 10 feet (3 m). Whether the Max is also deeper is disputed by the owners who discussed it: one said about 50 % deeper, another said the gain was mostly extra gain and chatter. That thread is from 2019. We have not tested either detector; this comparison uses Garrett’s product pages, dated prices and what owners wrote in public threads.
Side by side
Specifications are from Garrett’s pages for the AT Pro and the AT Max. Prices checked on 8 October 2026.
| Garrett AT Pro | Garrett AT Max | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | All-terrain, single frequency | All-terrain, single frequency (“Garrett’s most powerful”, per its page) |
| Water resistance | Control box fully waterproof to 10 feet (3 m); submersible to 3 m | Fully waterproof to 10 feet (3 m) |
| Search coil | 8.5″ x 11″ PROformance double-D | Not stated on the page we read |
| Headphones in the box | Wired MS-2 | Wireless CS-3 |
| All-metal mode | Not listed on the page we read | “True All Metal Mode” listed |
| Iron audio | Not listed on the page we read; 40 levels of iron discrimination are listed | Iron audio with a dedicated button, plus iron audio in all-metal mode |
| Batteries | Four AA included | Four AA included |
| Warranty | 3 years (Garrett says its detectors now carry 3 years) | The same |
| Price (Garrett, 8 Oct 2026) | $459.99 at Garrett (no commission for us) | $549.99 at Garrett (no commission for us) |
| Price (High Plains Prospectors, 8 Oct 2026) | No standard AT Pro listing found | $759.95 at High Plains Prospectors |
On the same day the Max costs $210 more at High Plains Prospectors than at Garrett’s own store. We link both, because the affiliate listing is not the cheapest route to this detector. Garrett’s pages we read give no weight and no operating frequency for either detector.
What changes in practice
Water
The two are listed the same: 10 feet (3 m). Garrett’s AT Pro page words it as a fully waterproof control box and a submersible detector; the AT Max page says the whole detector is fully waterproof. For wading and shallow water that is the main thing to check, and both pass on paper.
All-metal mode and iron audio
The AT Max page lists a true all-metal mode and an iron audio button, which let you hear iron that is normally silenced so you can avoid flat iron such as bottle caps and washers. The AT Pro’s page does not list an all-metal mode. This is the most concrete feature gap on the pages.
Headphones
The AT Max includes wireless CS-3 headphones; the AT Pro includes wired MS-2 headphones. Garrett’s page for the Pro also says its headphone connection is submersible.
What owners report
The main public discussion we found is a Detector Prospector thread from April to August 2019, written soon after the Max came out. These are old posts: check anything you rely on against a current source.
- Depth. An AT Pro owner said the Max goes about 50 % deeper than the Pro with the same coil size and that the Max’s target ID is stable at depth. Another poster doubted the 50 % claim, saying it lacked specifics and that the gain came mainly from a higher gain setting.
- Chatter. The Pro owner said the Max is chattery at full power in many cases. The skeptic said the higher gain made the Max chattier rather than deeper, and that he had to lower the gain back to Pro levels.
- Frequency. The skeptic called the shift from 15 kHz on the Pro to 13.6 kHz on the Max insignificant for performance. We could not confirm either figure on Garrett’s pages, so treat them as owner statements.
- Audio and iron. Owners disagreed about whether the Pro’s iron audio can be adjusted: one said it runs from on to off through zero; another said all three Garrett detectors he named only switch iron audio on or off. A poster who had owned the Pro and the AT Gold and tested the Max said the audio features were lacking for the price compared with competitors.
- Interface. One poster said the Max’s display is backlit and the Pro’s is not, and that the Max has an all-metal mode the Pro lacks. The skeptic said Garrett improved the Max’s visual interface but called the other improvements modest.
- Build. The Pro owner described the Pro as rugged and his first choice for camping and hiking.
The disagreements are real: one owner accepts the depth claim and another does not, and neither side tested with a controlled method. We do not own either detector and have not field-tested them.
Who each model is not for
- AT Pro: not for anyone who wants a true all-metal mode or a dedicated iron audio button (the Max’s page lists them and the Pro’s does not), and not for anyone who wants wireless headphones in the box.
- AT Max: not for anyone who expects a 50 % depth gain on the strength of the 2019 claim, because one owner in the same thread doubted it and said the extra gain mostly added chatter; and not for anyone buying through High Plains Prospectors for the price, at a price $210 above Garrett’s own on the date we checked.
Where to buy, and how to read the price
Prices are the selling prices on each store’s own listing on 8 October 2026. Garrett’s page also shows a higher struck-through price for each model; we ignore those figures. High Plains Prospectors is an affiliate partner: if you buy through the link marked as an affiliate link we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. We say plainly when the manufacturer’s own store is cheaper, as it was here. Stock and prices change daily.
FAQ
Is the Garrett AT Pro waterproof?
Garrett lists the control box as fully waterproof to 10 feet (3 m) and the detector as submersible to 3 m.
Does the AT Max have wireless headphones?
Yes. Garrett’s page lists wireless CS-3 headphones with the AT Max.
Is the AT Max deeper than the AT Pro?
Garrett’s pages we read do not give a depth figure. In the 2019 thread one owner said about 50 % and another doubted it. We found no controlled test.
Which is better for the beach?
Both are listed submersible to 3 m. Single-frequency detectors can struggle in salt; see our guide to VLF and PI for what Garrett says about salt and mineralization.
Where can I use one?
See our guide to metal detecting rules on U.S. federal land.
Keep reading
- Minelab X-Terra Pro vs X-Terra Elite
- Which metal detectors are really waterproof
- Metal detectors by budget: what each price level buys
How we put this comparison together
Specifications come from Garrett’s pages linked above, prices from each store’s listing on the date shown, and owner comments are paraphrased from the cited thread, with its dates. We do not own or field-test these detectors. When a source is old or owners disagree, we say so. Full method.