Minelab Equinox tips and questions

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roy cobb said:
rockdev said:
Was looking at buying one and it kind of fell into my hands... right place at the right time. But wow I love it, it has so far been a revolution for me its separation ability alone with ease of usage is incredible. I bought a 600 as well for family to come with me on occasions, now I can say I have found it every bit as good as the 800 but it does not have some of the extra settings which is not a problem for us.

If your where going to get one and budget was tight is there 800 that much better than the 600
Roy

Hi Roy, mate I would buy another 600 any-day. In fact I have even thought (still thinking) about selling the 800 and getting another 600 as that's all I really need for what I do, (coin shooting and beach). The one thing I do really like on the 800 is the extra audio options and being able to set different tones to region's...In saying that I have a 2 tone setup for the 600 and the 800 for 1 and 2 dollar coins by using the ferrous audio tone set right up to 19 and the other tone for 20 and above which works well for me. :Y:
 
Hit up the sly grog site today. Its in a paddock so the grass was a bit long. Anyway stuck to just the more repeatable targets and no coins but managed an old pocket knife and half an old spoon so its got potential. The sites only just down the road so I might have to take the mower down there. One thing I found odd is its right next to a small dam and the water levels quite low so tried below the high water mark and for some reason the ground was noisy as hell. Struggled to get a good ground balance. Anyway the lurking curve continues. :Y:
 
ROY ..If you only want it for coins go for it mate you will love it..But if prospecting is on the cards in the future..Consider the 800... cause you do it a bit more for your extra $400 :Y:
 
What sort of base at the dam Bjay? If it is clay that is still wet that might be the issue. Did you try Beach or Prospecting Modes to see if that helped? Sensitivity down?
 
Base is the same red volcanic dirt which is the same as in the paddock. Was damp down around 6 to 8 inches so was thinking that could have been the problem. Backed off sensitivity not much difference. Tried gold mode 1 and 2 and was still the same. Think it may just the dry top damp underneath.
 
Just went for a quick swing for an hour and was thinking about what I posted above about selling the 800. I got to say that the wireless module wm-08 is pretty darn good and the wireless headphones are not bad either. Now coupled with the extra settings and gold mode the 800 does have a lot of things going for it...Its a keeper lol:Y:

I got to say that I have found the Equinox much more user friendly than my 705, I seem to be able to find things much more consistently with the Equinox and its pretty much a turn on and go detector.

cheers
 
Hey Rockdev
, that is exactly what I wanted to hear" I seem to be able to find things much more consistently".
I am considering buying one for my wife " ;) ;) ;) :p "
Maybe a Mothers Day present ?
Honestly, I am not that mean.
Mackka
 
Hey Mackka she will love it mate haha, I think I have stumbled across a place that has many 1 and 2 dollar coins. They have been there a little while but only down 2 - 4 inches max.The nox just loves them and so do I lol. Anyway it just seems so easy to find them now I have swapped to this detector.

cheers mate
 
I ordered an EQ600 as an upgrade to my 705. I'm very happy about it. But IMHO there is still loads of distortion around the NOX. More than the Super League war of the 90's!! Haha. So I'll make up my own mind. GL & HH
 
Just a graph..The 600 is not capable to run in 20 or 40 kHz because it doset have the circuitry.Yes you may find gold with the 600 but it's maxim kHz is only 15khz..But it would still be an awesome detector :Y:
 
rockdev said:
Just been reading a post by Steve Herschbach, its seems that the E600 is identical in multi frequencies as the E800 and can in fact be used to hunt gold successfully....very interesting indeed.

http://www.detectorprospector.com/f...e-equinox-600-800/?tab=comments#comment-63704

No one knows exactly but Minelab the weighting in MULIT-IQ. And MULTI-IQ in Gold Mode is different to MULTI-IQ say in Park Mode or Beach Mode. Each mode is different in the way the MULTI-IQ works.

The keyword Identical does not mean exactly identical. Eg. 2 people can have identical cars, but they can have 2 different engines. The model is identical.

I would rather have the extra features there if I do need them then not have them at all.
That way there is never any "What ifs"
 
Multi-IQ operates no differently regardless of which single frequency options are available. I.e. Multi-IQ is it's own beast.
Here's one way of explaining it - hopefully it makes sense:

A: Multi IQ in Field Mode 1 on the Nox 600 and 800 is the same

B: Multi IQ in Beach Mode 2 on the Nox 600 and 800 is the same

But, Multi IQ in A & B are different. We are told there is different "weighting" which I think is a fancy name for processing, but only Minelab knows.

Don't expect any clear answers, as Minelab still haven't explained publicly how BBS works, which was developed in the late 80s! And why would they. Having a clear understanding of how it works isn't going to make us find more coins - but it will give the competitors a bit of a heads up.

I think Steve's blog really summed things up perfectly, as to the differences between the two models. In regards to Multi-IQ, if both units are set up the same in the same mode, with equivalent settings - there is no difference in raw grunt between them.
 
I would dare say the 800 has more processing power.

How that equates to real word translations only time will tell. And how it handles ground balancing processing in GOLD mode is also a bit of a mystery.
There is definitely some extra work going on there.

Why the 800 has higher increments in a couple settings than the 800 is also interesting. Software or hardware? I would once again say it comes down to maybe different processor units used.

This is pure speculation as I have had no confirmations other than the "hardware is different".

Regardless, they are both very capable units. :Y:
 
Hi Guys, This will be my first post on PA, So first off Ill say a Gday to you guys and a Thank you for the forum. Id like to share my experience with the 800. (A novice story).

I purchased a Nox 800 a few weeks ago as a complete novice. I had swung a fellow member heres Garrett 300i for no more than 10min. Thats my detecting experience before making the purchase.

I purchased this machine as I thought I will want to go camping and try my luck at prospecting for gold. But after a venture to the beach with the 300i I realised our location better suited for a beach detector.

I didnt even know of the Equinox 800 that day, but that night found it online looking for something that could be used on beach and possibly submersible that was in or around the $800- $1000 price.

My mind was made up after a quick search and reading about its ability to do all and more than I first would have liked in a detector if I was to buy something, therfore I wasnt really worried about the price as I gathered it will last years without needing to upgrade.

The first thing I actually dug after swinging it around the yard to familiarise myself with the tones was a $1 coin in Park Mode 1. Unbelievable :lol: . A $1 on my first ever dig with it. I was hyped.

Ive since retrieved about $75 in coins and a 9ct Gold Ring in about 2 weeks. I think thats bloody good for a complete novice and in that time frame.
(The Ring was a triple bip 17 TID, 5-10cm range? Maybe I dug because I was curious, but it payed off).

I have since been going with the mate who owns the 300i more so in trashy parks but dry sand beach also. Let me be honest, the 300i picked 25+ coins out to my 3 coins one outing. And its smashing the Nox on each outing we go. (Is it because of the user or coil size or one detector better than the other? Who knows, but his clicked with the 300i and knocking it out the park literally now). :Y:

I love settings on anything I buy, it means I can adjust/modify it to suit me. BUT, I think the reason why I went well the first few weeks was because I read the manual and followed it using Park Mode , along with digging clean tones. As soon as I got curious and dug the bad signals, I believe Ive trained my brain to now dig them a lot , Hense not be doing well like I first experienced.
So it might just be the case of going back to the manuals basics and starting again for me.

One thing I will add, is that since buying it and following the forum posts abit, Ive noticed everyone talking depth. Is it a lucky Fault with mine that Im digging 2ft (longer than my arm can reach) down in sand? 1 bottle cap with a clean TID 22-Sensitivity 25 beach mode 2, and a fence stake 2ft+ down? I wonder if Im ever going to find whats down there.
(The otherday at the beach a beachgoer walked past and said Jeeez, What, Are you digging to China). :)
So why do I seem to be the only one digging 24 inch + deep holes down in sand?

Am I happy I bought it? YES.
Have I found coins and valuables? YES
Is it easy to use being a complete novice? YES

My novice advise if Im qualified to give though is to learn it as the manual suggests before changing too many settings. Because since playing around with it Ive lost my way abit. And maybe others have/feel like this too if being 100% honest.

One thing I would like to see though especially as a novice is a book like that of the 705. Is it Understanding your 705?, But I guess that will/would come with time.

If I could ask Minelab for anything it would be to release the pc software and hope it allows user to assign tone pitch in any mode to any of the 50 blocks. And if the wifi connection does read/write to the programs settings, then a smart device app made so we dont have to plug it into a pc when out hunting. (Maybe that could be done also with a USB to smart device).

So, thats my novice experience owning it for about 3wks. Im addicted, and need a fix :lol:

PeZ0 :Y:
 
Welcome to the forum PeZ0. Your doing very well for someone just starting out.
If you get into too much trouble with your settings, try a factory reset to get you back to square one again.
 

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