Equinox 800 Vs 700

[Minton]

Hello everyone, equinox 800 vs 700 which one would you choose and why?

[midalake]

1 hour ago, Minton said:

Hello everyone, equinox 800 vs 700 which one would you choose and why?

It really comes down to what your use will be? 
If you have no interest in the gold modes that come with the Equinox 800, then I would say the 700 would be just fine! 

[F350Platinum]

I ended up buying the 600 instead of the 800 at first on the recommendation of a shop owner who is also a hardcore relic hunter. He knew my area and told me I wouldn't need a more expensive machine for what I was looking for.

I have since bought a much more expensive machine, the Deus 2, and he was right, but it has given me much more versatility, stability and information when relic and beach hunting. In Virginia the Deus is the relic king, some may disagree.

The 600 still often comes along and I end up with great results either way. 👍 Best bet is to not only get the best detector you can afford, but also the one that makes the most sense where you look. The 700 will be great, but if you go everywhere (beach, relic hunting, gold prospecting) it may not be enough.

[Jeff McClendon]

Many times when I read responses to this question, people refer to the need or no need for gold prospecting as a reason to pick say an Equinox 600 vs an Equinox 800. To me that was and is taking away from the other great features that you don't get comparing the 600 to the 800. Most of them are audio related like wireless headphones, the WM08 module, being able to custom fit the tone breaks and actual audio tones to ones particular targets and hearing, along with having the option to use 20 or 40 kHz single frequency in a high EMI situation where the max 15 kHz on the Nox 600 might not get far enough away from the offending EMI's frequencies.

Comparing the Equinox 700 vs the 800.......wow, that just got a whole lot more complicated in my opinion. The 700 comes with the awesome collapsible shaft system, much nicer arm cuff, beefed up 11" coil ears and the clincher for me anyway......DP tones in all six search modes and the ML85 wireless headphones are included with the 700. The shaft system and nicer arm cuff already saves around $150 for after market shafts for the 800. Not having to buy wireless headphones (you did with the 600) saves some more money, DP tones are something else and hopefully the 700 really is waterproof since it has an actual IP68 rating compared to the many flooded Equinox 600s and 800s.

Back to the gold prospecting point that people often make. That reason is no longer a reason in my opinion. The Nox 700 due to DP tones, just became a really good gold prospecting detector compared to the Nox 600 being just OK. 

I did a little comparison air testing and in the ground testing with my Nox 900 using Gold 1 and Field 2 with Field 2 setup to match the settings of Gold 1. Other than the frequency weighting possibly being a little different between Gold 1 and Field 2 (impossible to know for sure) the only other big differences are the true threshold in the Gold modes vs the reference threshold of the other modes, Gold modes have VCO audio for all target IDs with no iron tone and no nulling threshold, versus Field 2 using DP tones the VCO audio is 2 tones with a moveable ferrous break point and nulling threshold.

So I changed the ferrous tone break of DP tones using Field 2 multi down to -18 which meant -18 to +99 would give a non-ferrous higher VCO tone and -19 would give an iron grunt VCO tone versus Gold 1 VCO giving a higher VCO tone for all target IDs. The results on a 0.15 gram nugget and a 0.05 gram flake were virtually identical with a 1 to 2 millimeter difference at most in favor of Gold 1. Equinox 900 using basically the same settings but putting Field 2 in 1 or 2 tones like on the Nox 600, the results were between 1 and 2 centimeters of difference in favor of Gold 1.

So, the excuse that the 800 or 900 has gold prospecting modes.........at least where the 700 is concerned, basically no longer applies in my opinion.

PLUS, the Nox 700 and 900, due to DP tones, just got a lot hotter on micro gold/platinum/silver jewelry too in their Park, Field and Beach modes....... compared to the 600 and 800.

I would get the 700 everyday over the Nox 800 and I would strongly consider the Nokta Legend over the Nox 800 too.

[BigSkyGuy]

If you want to detect in water, the 700 may have a big advantage over the 800. The depth rating is IP-68 16 feet compared to non-rated 10 ft for the Nox 800. The difference in build quality between the 700 and 800 is obvious by inspecting the control head. On the 800 there is a seam large enough to put my fingernail into and I have had one 800 unit leak from this area. On the 700 the seam is absolutely tight. I probably could not even get the edge of a piece of paper in there. I have not tried it in the water yet, but it appears to be improved over the 800 in terms of build quality. There is also the -19 to +99 tones on the 700. It is possible to distinguish a clad dime from a silver dime if shallow enough and in low mineral ground. I also love the collapsible shaft. I think it will be great for travelling. These are all thing that I factored in when selling my 800 and buying the 700.

[kac]

I'd consider the Legend in that category.

[Joe D.]

   Gotta wait and see for me! Although I like my 800, ML's irksome behavior and design issues/choices, over the years still bother me, and has me second guessing a future purchase!!

   One thing I would really miss is the WM08 if I upgraded! I use it most days with my waterproof earbuds, as headphones are too hot and slippery most of the year, and I like my big sun hats on the beach! Plus I pretty much like the "used detector category" mostly these days anyway!

   I'll give it more consideration, when you all dump your "new" detectors for the next big release!!🤣👍👍