Minelab Equinox 800 vs 600

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Iv got the 800 and SDC and they are both great machines. The 800 was my first detector and it works great out on the beaches and in the parks. There is actually quite a lot of tricks you can use with the machine which make it really fun. Only thing i would suggest is if you are looking to for gold with it i highly recommend buying the 6" coil. It reduces the interference(chatter) a heap over the heavy mineralized ground and it picks up a lot smaller gold. You can also get a bit of extra depth due to the reduced interference(chatter) by bumping up the sensitivity.

Happy Hunting :Y:
 
I will be in the market to buy an Equinox very soon and was wondering if anyone had purchased a 600 and now wishes they bought an 800.There doesnt seem to be too much difference between the two except for the Gold mode and the extras (WM 08 and headphones)with the 800.Are these extras worth the extra cost?Also what are the benefits of the WM 08 unit,what is its purpose? I have also heard of the problem of shaft wobble,is this a common problem because to have to buy the custom Detect-Ed shafts would add considerable cost to the detector.
 
I have a 600, the extra money for some extra features on the 800 wasn't worth it for me, I can buy an extra coil with the money I saved, meant more to me.
If I want to look for gold I'd buy an sdc or some other pi detector.
600 works well for me, it will keep up with any 800
 
I too purchased the 600 from Anaconda at the club price ($899), which is a bit less than what Minersden currently have it advertised for. Mainly wanting it for coin/relic/beach detecting to compliment my Deus, no real need for prospecting. I hated the wired headphones that came with it and ended up purchasing the wireless ones separately. That's pretty much all my budget allowed, and should be fine for what I need it for.

Can't say I have any issues with shaft wobble as yet, though the Detect-Ed setup does shave some weight off, has a better clamping mechanism for the shaft sections, and also helps prevent breakage of the coil ears (known weak point). In the scheme of things, the Detect-Ed option isn't that expensive, I may consider it down the track.
 
I bought a 600 and have no regrets. Have upgraded to Tony Eisenhower waterproof headphones because I use it in the water a bit. Also found after a while the stock shaft was deteriorating so got the Detect-Ed shaft which is excellent. Have also bought coil ear stiffeners as insurance against the coil ears snapping. Like Kai, if I ever get serious about gold hunting, I'll buy a proper gold machine. There are some features on the 800 that I'd like to have like the button that swaps you to a different profile. Otherwise, I've never been out in the field/water and thought I could have done with an 800.
 
I bough the 600 and I probably wish I got the 800 after really enjoying the equinox.
I bought it for coins but ended up buying the 6" inch coil and turning it into a lazy gold machine. I had a gm1000 at the same time and sold the GM and kept the nox 600 for gold. The 800 has more adjustment levels and I'm the sort of user that loves to understand every little setting and tweak them, probably the only reason I would have preferred the 800.
It doesnt go deep on gold but I've set it up as a beep and dig machine, nothing until a real target.
My serious machine is a gpx but the nox can just be fun when I'm feeling lazy.
 
Clodmaster said:
I bought a 600 and have no regrets. Have upgraded to Tony Eisenhower waterproof headphones because I use it in the water a bit. Also found after a while the stock shaft was deteriorating so got the Detect-Ed shaft which is excellent. Have also bought coil ear stiffeners as insurance against the coil ears snapping. Like Kai, if I ever get serious about gold hunting, I'll buy a proper gold machine. There are some features on the 800 that I'd like to have like the button that swaps you to a different profile. Otherwise, I've never been out in the field/water and thought I could have done with an 800.

My only real criticism of the 600 is those presets are missing from it. Was a pain changing from default every time, especially when you drive only 10 or 20 mins down the road to a new spot and have to go back through the menus.

Would have kept the 800 if not for the target ids on goldies, dollar for dollar it was the best value detector. Very capable and versatile.

Might buy another post Covid, pointless owning one right now without acess to the beach.

I would advise to buy the 800, but you wont be dissapointed if you settle on the 600, the differences between them is not huge. With good hunts either will pay themselves off in finds.
 
I'm currently Set on getting a Nox 800 myself, unfortunately I have to sell my Gm1000 to fund it as the Better half won't allow me to have two machines!
 
Twitch909 said:
I'm currently Set on getting a Nox 800 myself, unfortunately I have to sell my Gm1000 to fund it as the Better half won't allow me to have two machines!

Mrs GT was the same way back in the beginning, eventually I got to 5 before scaling back again. She'll be right mate :Y:
 
Goldpick said:
I too purchased the 600 from Anaconda at the club price ($899), which is a bit less than what Minersden currently have it advertised for. Mainly wanting it for coin/relic/beach detecting to compliment my Deus, no real need for prospecting. I hated the wired headphones that came with it and ended up purchasing the wireless ones separately. That's pretty much all my budget allowed, and should be fine for what I need it for.

Can't say I have any issues with shaft wobble as yet, though the Detect-Ed setup does shave some weight off, has a better clamping mechanism for the shaft sections, and also helps prevent breakage of the coil ears (known weak point). In the scheme of things, the Detect-Ed option isn't that expensive, I may consider it down the track.
I didnt realise the 600 came with headphones.I would probably end up buying the Detect-Ed shaft kit eventually for whichever model I buy.
 
I recently bought a 800 and I am very happy with it . It goes a lot deeper than my old Explorer . The i.d. numbers are nice and steady . I have only been out with it a few times but I have found that I can use it on the beach without the head phones . I have wound the vol. up to max . I bought it at Anaconda for $1,039 when the sale was on .

I bought my Minelab Explorer new 20 years ago , I am pretty sure it cost me around $1,200 at that time . In to days money that would be $4,800 give or take ! So the NOX 800 is a cheap buy .
 
So I went with the 600 and very happy with it.Got it from Anaconda at the club price of $899.Asked if they could order in an 800 but was told by a young assistant no, sorry we are trying to open the lines of communication but not getting anywhere.I dont understand that because as you all know they sell all models of the Vanquish,the 600,Go finds and the Xterra 705,which are all Minelab.
 
I bought my Nox 800 from Anaconda . He told me that he could not order one in but could get one from another store . He looked on the computer and had one sent from Port Mac. to Sydney . No problem , no extra cost , was there in a couple of days . Paid $1,039 . Very happy with the service from Anaconda .
 
Eldorado said:
I will be in the market to buy an Equinox very soon and was wondering if anyone had purchased a 600 and now wishes they bought an 800.There doesnt seem to be too much difference between the two except for the Gold mode and the extras (WM 08 and headphones)with the 800.Are these extras worth the extra cost?Also what are the benefits of the WM 08 unit,what is its purpose? I have also heard of the problem of shaft wobble,is this a common problem because to have to buy the custom Detect-Ed shafts would add considerable cost to the detector.
their is a few differances 800 works on 5 10 15 20 40 khz the 600 5 10 15 khz 800 has 3 light settings the 600 on or off 800 gold mode 600 none
 

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