Nokta Legend Or XP Orx For Fresh Water Gold Finds?

[Trench1]

I bought a new Legend when it first released, but never tried the 6" coil or the last 3 firmware updates. At the time, I felt the Impact was just as good or better, so I sold the Legend. I really gel with the Impact and the menu settings for checking iffy targets. It has been really good to me and I believe Nokta hasn't discontinued the Impact yet for a reason. The All-Metal modes are pretty sweet. If it was waterproof and had the ability to switch to 40 khz I would be completely satisfied.

I was having a hard time with the Legend in iron and didn't see a depth increase compared to the Impact. I even preferred using my modified Whites IDX over the Legend at the time. I know that I probably did not give the Legend enough time, but I really felt like I had a weak unit, so I parted ways with it. 

I want to do more water hunting and increase my gold/ring finds this year. I may eventually like to target micro jewelry, but it is not a priority. I will mainly hunt fresh water lakes with the occasional trip to a saltwater beach. My soil is mild. I know the Orx is not waterproof, but the detachable remote can be placed in a waterproof bag. I like this concept, and the hidden cord from the coil reminds me of the Impact. I have zero experience with XP or Deus products, so I'm definitely concerned. 

Should I try the Legend again or take a chance on the Orx? I'm obviously a fan of Nokta because of the Impact, and the Legend is already completely waterproof and capable of hitting small gold. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I would also consider other detectors that would fit my needs. However, I only want to spend about $600, and so far I have had good luck buying used detectors. Thanks in advanced.

[Rick N. MI]

I don't know how well the Orx it is on an ocean beach. The Legend will work great on an ocean. They are both great on tiny gold and go deep on gold rings.

The Orx is very light. The 9" hf coil sweeps thru the water nice. I tested it on a small 14k gold ring buried in the sand and it was hitting at 14". I didn't try deeper. I haven't noticed false hits in iron areas with it either.

The Legend 11" coil will be harder to sweep in the water but there is the 6x9.5 and 9x11 coils that will sweep better in the water. I haven't tested this one on a gold ring in the sand. I will test it this spring. I expect it to hit deep on gold rings too.

They will both work very well water hunting.

[Chase Goldman]

Since you are talking fresh water hunting, then Orx should be as stable as Legend in the water so Orx's limited stability in salt water vs. the Legend shouldn't be a concern.

However, Legend has several advantages over Orx for what you are looking for. 

Orx is primarily designed for natural gold detecting with limited "coin" modes added almost as an afterthought to slightly broaden it's appeal as an alternative to its more expensive sibling, the XP Deus.  That technology is basically more than a decade old, and while it still works well it was surpassed by the multifrequency XP Deus 2 (although the Orx probably still has an advantage over Deus 2 for Micro Gold, for now,  based on its higher maximum operating frequency of 80+ khz using the small elliptical coil, for now).  But I am not recommending that you get the Deus 2, because the cost is signficant.  I am also not recommending the Orx either - despite its sensitivity on micro gold, that doesn't naturally translate into it being a superior gold jewelry detector., performance wise.  Furthermore, making Orx work submerged involves more than just putting the remote in a sealed bag.  You also need to run an antenna from the coil up the shaft and make sure that it terminates above the waterline in order to get the "wireless" signal from the coil to the remote.  I consider that claptrap (antenna PLUS waterproof bag) an added hassle vs. a purpose built submersible detector.  The Orx is a great micro gold detector, but would not be my first, second, or even third choice for submerged jewelry detecting or even coin shooting.

Legend is much more versatile as an excellent jewelry detector, coin shooter, relic detector, and prospecting detector all rolled into one and it is purpose built to be operated submerged and it has excellent salt stability as a result of its simultaneous multifrequency functionality, should you ever decide to take it to a salt beach or salt lake.  I would recommend getting the LG24 elliptical accessory coil for submerged detecting as it gives you less hydrodynamic drag vs. the stock 11" round coil and more swing coverage vs. the 6-inch round.  As a result of its versatility and cost, is a much greater value overall (than Orx or even Equinox).  You may want to invest in wired waterproof phones should you be going deep enough to submerge the control head as wireless audio will not work with the control head submerged.  If you are primarily going to be using it for freshwater work, I would not bother with the Pro Pack because I think the LG24 is a much more versatile coil than the 6" round included in the pro pack.  And the Pro Pack's extended use battery is pretty much an unnecessary accessory as it is not waterproof and occupies the multipurpose headphone/charging/updating plug when in use.  Save your money and get the wireless package and see if you can swing a deal with your dealer to throw in the LG24 coil and/or a pair of Nokta waterproof wired phones, instead.

BTW I love my XP Deus 2 and have owned the Deus, Orx, and Nox (as well as the Legend), so, if anything, I would be biased to XP.  But of the two detectors you are considering, pretty much think Legend is a no brainer, despite your lackluster first go round with it.  It definitely performs, and you need to give it a chance to prove itself.  I would suggest simply using it in all the situations where you would normally use the Impact to learn it then take it into the water when you have gained enough confidence in its abilities.

You didn't mention this but Quest is also coming out with a submersible multifrequency detector the V60/V80 series.  This interesting as it appears to have a higher upper frequency range than Legend, Nox, Deus 2 or Manticore in multifrequency (80khz) and the V80 has a 60 khz single frequency setting which is higher than the typical 40 khz on Legend, Deus 2, Nox, and Manticore.  FWIW.

 

 

[Trench1]

This is exactly why I love this forum. Thanks for the solid responses. I was unaware about the needed antenna for the Orx while hunting in the water. That is definitely not ideal. I will research the recommended Quest detectors and if a decent deal comes through with the Legend, I will definitely give it another go. Thanks again.

[Steve Herschbach]

Yeah hard to go wrong with Legend. Jury is out on the latest Quest, but worth a look. I’d also be checking out the new X-Terra Pro, could be a great freshwater machine for $269

[Jeff McClendon]

17 hours ago, Trench1 said:

This is exactly why I love this forum. Thanks for the solid responses. I was unaware about the needed antenna for the Orx while hunting in the water. That is definitely not ideal. I will research the recommended Quest detectors and if a decent deal comes through with the Legend, I will definitely give it another go. Thanks again.

You have to attach an antenna wire for the ORX to have its coil submerged. You also have to find some waterproof wired headphones. The last and for me the most important is to take into account that the white High Frequency ORX coils also have an external, wired battery that lives inside the lower shaft which will also be submerged. That shaft is not sealed so even though the HF coils are supposed to be waterproof, I personally never dunked mine due to that external battery. If you do get an ORX specifically for underwater use, I would seriously consider one of the X-35 coils that have a battery that is waterproof sealed within the coil itself.

The Legend is one of my most trusted detectors for build quality and waterproof integrity. It can also be setup so many ways both for audio variations, target recovery speed variations and for hunting condition variations. Give it some more time if you pick up another one and don’t compare it to the Impact. They are two extremely different detectors. Comparing the Impact to the newer, waterproof Anfibio is more apples to apples.

[palzynski]

From my experience , of course other's opinions are important and always very interesting but there is no better way to assess a detector than to try it , as detecting is a very personal thing especially the detectors's audio ..

If you dont know XP I would suggest to get a second hand Orx or Deus ( to reduce the costs ) and spend a few hours with it .  

May be you will like it or may be not . But at the end at least you know ... And at the end just keep the one that you prefer ... 

 

[Trench1]

Thanks again for the added information. The Quest V80 looks to be a great detector, but I'm reluctant to buy it due to the lack of support from the company and dealers in the USA. At least that is what I've been reading. It could be old information. I'm pretty set on trying the Legend again. If I were to buy a used Legend that was recently purchased, is the warranty transferable to the next owner? I'm guessing it would not be. Thanks for the responses.

[Trench1]

Well I finally picked up a barely used Legend with the 1.11 update. It also came with the additional LG24 and LG30 coils. I must say that the update and coils make a huge difference compared to the first Legend I had. I felt like my first Legend had issues with the speaker. I had sound, but it was very muffled and inconsistent. It would cut in and out and seemed laggy sometimes going over a target. This one has super clean tones. Do you think Nokta will eventually make a concentric coil for the Legend? Anyway... I'm glad I took another chance on the Legend. I'm really happy with the performance of the LG24 coil. Thanks for the advice.

[Sirius]

It really is a great machine! Do give us updates on how it runs on the field!