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Did my choirs all morning and by noon time thought I'd go out for a quick hunt. The days have been nice and cool, ground soft after a few days rain so I went to the usual spots I have been clearing up of iron trash and nuggets. After about 2 hours of wandering, paying attention to my swing speed and listening very carefully I got this sweet mellow tone...along the bank of a small creek, digging down about 7 inches I found this sweet little nugget 1.47 grams.

Scored some nice ones form this spot over the 2 years I'v been hunting the area...So far I have hit it with coils sized 14" to the sadie...lots of cleared ground. Looking forward to my new 18" Elite Thanks Luke ! coil that is arriving on Friday to go over the area and see whats deeper. I had a nice deep signal today also, after digging down to about 16 inches....heart pounding and anticipating a large nugget I dug an eagle belt buckle piece. Once a blue moon I find a piece to a buckle. The sweet thing about this eagle is a about a year ago I found the tongue holder part of the two piece belt buckle just 15 yards away. Don't think its military as its very light in weight..but still a cool find!

The averaging is happening on two fronts, since the release of the GPZ 7000 there has been a number of updates so the software has changed a few times, subsequently the averaging is not quiet so important with the ferrite balance any more and basically redundant in Semi Auto mode (I highly recommend users operate in Semi Auto mode at all times). If you are in doubt about your ground balance then its not hard to power cycle the unit (turn off then on again) which flushes the algorithm except for the last known fixed point. Best bet is to pass the coil over the ferrite with the Quick Trak button held in till there is no noise, then pump the coil nearby till there is no noise in either direction (Up or down) then pass over the ferrite again. Keep doing this process till there is no noise heard on the ferrite after the GB has been normalized nearby. You can use the sweep method of ground balance too but I've found there is more accuracy if the coil is pumped once the Quick Trak button is released. The accuracy I seek is down to the auto GB being very slow due to the nature of DOD coils to prevent tracking out deep targets, sweeping gives an averaging, pumping givings accuracy immediately under the coil, I use the pumping method to bring the detector back to a defined point then let the averaging go from there as I sweep the coil looking for gold. DO NOT PUMP THE COIL OVER THE FERRITE, always sweep the coil over the ferrite. There is no advantage in having the ferrite near the coil whilst detecting. JP

This topic split from a previous thread. Hi Brian, nice to see you back. I follow a lot of your posts elsewhere - great stuff! The reality is I have been and am part of the Equinox development team in my own small way. I therefore have access to information and knowledge that few do. Yes, I do have an Equinox 800. I have to tread carefully but my goal is to bury you guys with Equinox info to the best of my ability. I have a pretty good idea of what I can and can’t say yet, and I am sure Minelab will pull me quickly within bounds if I stray. That is one reason why I only post on this forum now - the original content must remain under my control. Please do not copy and paste elsewhere! Other testers to watch... There is Brandon Neice, who appeared in the Detectival announcement videos, and who is based in Idaho. Brandon goes by Dr. Tones on YouTube There are Derek & Sharon McLennan plus Neil Jones of the DUG THAT OFFICIAL MINELAB EQUINOX 800-600 GROUP who are based in the U.K. At Minelabowners.com, the gentleman posting as ironhearted_gog is Gordon Heritage, one of the members of the U.K. Equinox Test Team.

Thank you for that tip JP. I have had no idea whether we should be using semi auto or not. Dave

Greeting from Leicestershire in the UK. Bit of a Minelab buff, got a GPX5000, CTX3030 & Explorer SE . Just bobbing around looking for info on the Equinox & this place popped up. Will post some pics of proper old stuff if you like!! lol

Minelab usually wire audio positive to tip & negative to ring. They use the shield wire/connection for various things like sensing headphones in the CTX to shut the speaker off or on the GPX where there is no shield connection trip on the inbuilt amp for external speaker use (if correctly wired). A true 1/4" TRS to 1/8" TRS cable should work? Are you sure it's wired TRS on both ends? Check that first if you don't want to modify the headphones - easier to check & modify the cable if needed.

I have been dealing with my own "wall" at about 6" due the the heavy magnetite content of the ground here. Nothing except a PI seemed to get me past it. I do know exactly what you are talking about. Since I got the EQX800 I am for the first time in ages finding silver on almost every outing, sometimes multiples. (Show and tell down the road one of these days). That has not happened to me in a long time. So yes, I do feel there is an edge but it is not strictly due to outright depth but the combination of a new multifrequency method and high speed. The problem, and people are going to hear this a lot, is that the world is a big place and I only have access to a tiny bit of it. I can't and will not make any blanket statements or promises regarding how the Equinox everywhere because I just do not know. The last thing I want you doing is getting one because I said it will give you that extra inch in Alabama only to find out it does not. In my own way I am out on a limb because more than most people I realize the vast disparity of hunting conditions we all face and I am not so arrogant as to think I can know better than the people actually on site. This is all complicated by the fact that Multi-IQ really is new, and so I can't project anything I have learned from other detectors over the years onto it. It really is a new ballgame. It is a bit frustrating however as I do currently have what appears to be a secret weapon as regards local "hunted out" parks, but I am facing imminent winter and a week long trip to Alaska soon that puts a hole in what tiny amount of time I have left, unless I get real lucky and the weather stays mild. Even that won't stop me but the drives will get longer. Long story short I would like to put this thing over every bit of dirt within 100 miles before anyone else gets one but right now I am fighting just to get a few hours here and a few hours there. The best way to do these things is treat me as a single data point. You can trust what I say but at the same time everything has to be taken with a grain of salt. The other testers should get more active soon, and you can add their data points. Sooner or later regular folks will start adding their own information. Right now you have a fuzzy picture but it will just keep getting sharper. All the machines you all have are still working and this is not an emergency. It is just a matter of following along until you are comfortable about pulling the trigger - or not

Late this afternoon and into the evening (about 4 hours on the beach) I searched some of my normal spots. It was awful. I found next to nothing. Why? These are beaches and sub-beaches where I have found dozens of rings and thousands of coins. Sometimes the signals are so dense you just have to stop and come back the next day. Why the difference? Energy I would say. Tonight the few targets I found were very light (3-4 pull tabs, aluminum, partial pieces) and very few coins (less than 10). There were no rings, earrings or partial pieces of heavy metals. There was nothing down in the very low tide area and nothing at the high tide mark (such that it is) and no cut. The waves are less than 1 foot and the intervals are 13-15 seconds. Nothing is moving, collecting and washing up! The energy of the waves has created great pockets for me in the past. A couple of years ago during the El Niño you could go out on the beach at almost any time, any where and find targets that were worth keeping. There was a lot of energy in the water and in the waves. You had many days when waves deposited objects onto the wet sand beaches. The sand didn't build up. There were cuts. I'm using the same 3030, the same 17" coil and the same settings. I read the wave and tide reports. I knew this would be tough. Tonight made nugget hunting look easy! There is a reason why objects are and aren't there on the beach. Keep track of your energy. Mitchel

Here it is we talking Detectors and my wife is asking me what I want for Christmas. I told her already I want that small coil for the Equinox. She’s wanting to know when where and how much it is. I dislike saying I don’t know but right now that’s all I can do. Minelab if you read this please post the price of both coils. That way I can get her to send Rob’s Detector Saled a check. I still may have to wait on the Equinox 800 Pinpointer 35 and the coil but I can live with that. You know over the years I’ve put out enough money on Minelab Detectors I could have had more than one 7000. Oh well it has been fun and it’s not over yet. Chuck

I got one on order but told Rob send it with my Equinox. Thanks for the show and tell. I’ll be right here waiting to hear more when you got the time to post. Chuck

Yeah, I very bother rarely with the manuals GB procedure or ferrite, just go with the Z as is same as any other auto gb detector, but I concur with JP and have found the semi-auto gb seems to be the go, I say seems to be, as nothing is written in concrete in this game. Right or wrong pffff.......... it just gets the weight for me.

Got out to hunt coins today, I used my PRO FINDER 35 to pin point, sure made finding my targets in the sand a lot easier. All my targets was non-magnetic so no report on the ID mode.

GB, That piece was part of a two piece belt plate that clips into what they call tongue holder part of the belt buckle. I have found military issue ones but they are made (cast) from brass and are solid and heavier compared to the ones mass produced. Many of these found today in the goldfields are bought by gold seekers headed to the goldfields from for example San Francisco or their local merchants they bought other provisions before they set out on their quest. As far as buttons, i have also found eagle D's , and A's center of eagles chest. Those are cavalry ..D stood for the Dragoons. I am no expert, just research I have done after a find..always curious as to what it is and where it came from. Don't throw any of those away....they are valuable to collectors.

Minelab would be wise not to impede aftermarket coils in any way. Actively helping and encouraging them would be best. As Ringmoney illustrates coil selection is a very important factor with any new detector, and expanding the selection as rapidly as possible can do nothing but help Minelab sell more Equinox detectors.

Steve Thanks for mentioning hunting that particular park with the EQ. Saved me the trouble of PM'ing you. Tom

Nice piece AU. Surprised it's only 1.47 grams - looks to be a little heavier. Well done

My Minelab phones that came with my new GM wouldn't even work...bad connection! So I dug out my Seinnhauser 280(?) pro's that I've used for my Etrac and also my drumming for over 7 yrs now and they worked fine on the GM. They are noise cancelling audiophile phones with a LONG cord and come with a 1/4" jack and you unscrew that jack and underneath is the 1/8" jack. Think I paid $70 for them 7 yrs ago....???? Also stopped the external speaker sound. Love em.

I had to rewire my good Nugget Buster head phone cord so it will work with my GM 1000. I put a 1/8" plug on the end that had a 1/4 ' plug. They work fine now.

Steve don't tell Tom, but he's my gold coin hero too - lol I've been with him when 3 of those 15 gold coins were found, and a lot of it is location. I believe that one of these days, my coil will get over one too, maybe it'll be the Equinox 800 :) We actually have a new (for us) site that's been producing mid 1800's silver, and oddly various early 1900's coins (with a 1870's - 1900 gap, odd eh?). We feel that this site will (eventually) produce one, or more gold coins as we continue to pick away at it. It has, like many desert sites, intense alkali soils, which not only tend to destroy most silver coins (although not gold), but it also handicaps my VLF detectors. The Impact was a game changer when running at 20kHz, but even then, Tom's Explorer 2 had no challenges. I believe the Equinox will solve this challenge. With Tom and I both getting the Equinox 800, it'll be really interesting to see how things play out when we're detecting the same sites. Perhaps his 40 years of experience will trump my 11 or so, perhaps the Equinox will equalize things. HH, Brian

The ground balance is always averaging (unless you have it set to manual GB mode). If I set it next to my pick for a while or on one patch of hotter ground, it will add this data into the averaging. Remember, if you run the GPZ for 2 hrs, it is not going to keep all of that data. It will record a certain time period or algorithm and scrap the rest. Your goal is to ensure it has the best data in that loop. That is why I put my detector in manual mode when I set it off to the side. But if your ground mineralization does not vary much, you will likely not notice a difference by setting it off to the side and keeping it in automatic GB mode. You can read a lot about the ground balance procedure by doing some searches on here. There is much to read. Some of the information was moved to another link, however. I only use the button when I am in areas with different mineralization (for example if the new area has more black sand or red rock ..etc.) Hope that helps. There are many who will have explained this far better than me in past threads.

Anton, if you need advice, you just have to ask me mate. Scott

Very nice piece mate, well done.

Beauty!

Nuggets like that are perfect! I honestly would rather have 10 ounces of those than a 10 ounce nugget - great find!

Good picture of hard working hands holding a nice nugget. I'd let a few of the chores wait unless it is cutting firewood and go get more gold. At least you got one after 2 hours but I hope you didn't stop then! We should always say something like I looked for an hour and found one and then I searched for an hour more! Mitchel

well, I'd be hitting that stretch slow and hard. nice

Hi Brian, You and Tom are awesome. He especially being my gold coin hero - I have yet to find one and he has dozens? Amazing! I have been detecting since 1972 and basically hunt precious metals - gold, silver, platinum - in any form they come in. Coins, jewelry, nuggets. My relic detecting has therefore been more accidental, stuff found while looking for gold nuggets or old coins. My detecting is usually “dig everything” or “dig all non-ferrous”. So yeah I have done the dense trash stuff but not as much as you guys. I think you guys will be happy with what develops, and for once nobody need take out a mortgage to find out! It has been said many times that the CTX and Deus are an excellent complimentary pair, each one strongest where the other is weakest. Well, this burly Australian snuck into the XP camp and had his way with a cute little French gal. The Equinox is like the kid they had who has all the best features of both. Nothing is perfect but there truly is nothing else like Multi-IQ, and in my opinion by just being different (think FAST multifrequency) it does things other machines do not do. Some of the finds I am making are real head shakers but that will have to wait a bit. I guess the good news is the Equinox has finally got me seriously interested in coin detecting again. It’s nice to find silver almost every time I head out to the parks for a few hours. It’s been a long time since a detector did that for me. My best coin and relic hunt ever

Just a picture or two showing some gold from the Redding area....I moved on south a ways and will try again tomorrow. Too much rain up there!!!!

as always causing trouble paul

Thanks for taking the time to reply, and share your cat out of the bag testimonial You testing the Equinox is a confidence booster, as is Brandon. As you likely know, I mostly detect ghost towns, stage stops, old home sites, Spanish outpost type spots, and similar early types of sites, primarily in California and Nevada. Most of them have been detected since the dawn of detecting, yet they continue to yield finds for those patient enough, and willing to dig in some of the worst possible conditions (thick iron and being that many of them are in gold and silver bearing areas, they can also be highly mineralized). I have high hopes for the Equinox 800, and you and Brandon are sharing similar thoughts. I know that Brandon also frequents the same type of sites I enjoy detecting (heck even some of the same ones), honestly I don't know if you only detect for gold, or also are a relic hunter? As I mentioned before I've never gotten into prospecting, mainly due to having my hands full detecting the type of sites mentioned above. Now with a detector that's fully capable of being a solid VLF gold machine, and multi-freq beach, park, relic machine, it really opens up options for someone that's arsenal is mainly VLF relic detectors, along with an old multi-freq CZ70 that gets used once a year at the beach when a good erosion event occurs. I think it's time to thin out the heard, and follow your lead Thanks, Brian

From the Teknetics Facebook page... Some more information on the T2+. What we know so far: - The T2+ has BOOST MODE - Waterproof 11-inch Open Frame Bi-Axial™ Searchcoil - Operating Frequency 13 kHz - Double Filter Discrimination Modes For Searching In Trashy Areas - Trigger Actuated FASTGRAB™ Instant Ground Canceling with manual override -The T2+ has a transferable warranty We're also throwing in a Digger with every T2+ https://www.tekneticsdirect.com/accessories/digger Digger Features - Tough carbon steel blade 7.5" L x 2" W - Total tool length 12" - Double-edged blade with 32 sharp cutting teeth to rip through - roots and dirt - No-slip blade guard - Comfortable rubber handle - Tough Cordura carry sheath for belt mount use

All my comments are well deserved. And the above quote begs the question/suggestion.... "Steve Herschbach Detecting Bootcamp". Just putting it out there. and sign me up for every session. Tim.

Thanks Tim - that was kind of you! The only inane questions are the ones that don't get asked. I love answering questions and explaining stuff - should have been a teacher I guess. Discussing detecting and helping people makes me happy, so thanks in more ways than one!

Involved or not involved... I, for one, will never accuse you of being biased. You have addressed all the questions I have had on various makes and models of machines with honesty, tact and professionalism. You may point out the limitations of a machine in your experiences, but you also point out the advantages. I appreciate that, I know others do as well. I also know that successful detecting is your priority, no matter what machine gives you that edge, and you wouldn't be selling your other machines if you thought there was slightest advantage to you while hunting by keeping them. I am sure you weren't looking for accolades, or an amateur detector such as myself to step up and defend your honor... but here I am anyway. Your insights on the forum and detailed responses to even my most inane questions make my detecting experience better... everyday. so thanks Steve. Tim.

Yup, I agree an 8" would be great and many others agree also. Believe me, I always lobby hard for coils but you have to start somewhere. Three coils at launch is just a start. If Equinox is as popular as I think it will be there will be an entire cottage industry spring up making accessory items for it, including coils. If that's an issue just stick with what you have until the coil you want appears on the scene. Besides, you have Minelab's ear. I keep telling people these forums are closely watched and it matters what you say and how you present yourself. The Equinox did not pop out of thin air.

I went out a couple of nights ago and I got lucky. I found a $1 coin. That brought my grand total to around $3 for the 3 miles that I walked on Prime Santa Monica beaches. Go find a Spanish coin Swamp. Mitchel

It seems I have spent half my life detecting tailing piles - there are many stories at my Steve's Mining Journal on the subject. Ganes Creek and Moore Creek in particular. I have chased targets in cobbles like you describe for too many hours - but they can be gold. As a rough generality over the year I have found two hot spots in unhunted tailing piles (good luck finding those now). The very top of the pile came off the bottom of the workings and I have found some nice nugget mini-patches on the top of some tailing piles. The other spot is the lowest areas around tailing piles. Once nuggets start rolling they usually keep rolling all the way to the bottom. And then yes, you can find a nugget also just about anywhere else so nothing is off limits. Dragline operations in particular can be a real mess. Do keep an eye out for clay lumps, often covered with moss. If the gold is on a clay bottom a lot of gold gets caught up with clay chucks and discarded. Detect any areas with clay in the tailings very carefully. Another clue is ripped shards of bedrock on tops of tailing piles letting you know they really were at the bottom. Do check the records also. In Alaska many bucket line dredges worked areas where there was nothing but fine gold. I do not hunt tailing piles unless I have some sort of evidence nuggets were recovered in the area. Even then the patience and effort required can be daunting, but at least you know the chance of big gold really does exist, making it worth the effort. Aerial view of tiny portion of Ganes Creek tailings in 2002. The old machine shop shown in the photo was unfortunately destroyed in floods a few years ago.

Dredge piles by design tend to be seperated into size according to the design of the machine. Usually the first to be discarded from the tromell are the largest rocks and boulders that are moved by conveyor some distance as to not impede the operation of the plant ( usually already worked ground ) these tailings are washed by high pressure water jets leaving what are just very clean rocks , you are not likely to find much at all in these piles and as you have already found there's a lot of air between this material , much better to find where the separation tables where located to see if anything was missed , sometimes Gold is lost when tables are opened and cleaned .although it would be a poor operator that doesn't double treat these areas themselves. If the dredges are small portable units look for signs of where the machine stood and the look for run off areas with fines nearby , If the dredges are the large floating pontoon types your up against it because these dredges are usually floated and moved in artificial ponds and tailings end up on the floor of these ponds. Your certainly setting yourself a big challenge.You may have more luck if you can find bedrock scraped by the buckets on Higher bank terraces . In some areas near me large dredges where floated up to a mile away from the present day river bed to work the ancient river course.The trouble with dredged areas is usually the enormous amount of overburden that washes back every time there's a flood . if you read most of the articles here you will find that high frequency vlf detectors are being used to pinpoint finds from PI detectors or for small nugget shooting on exposed shale bedrock where the limited range can be used to advantage , there's just no getting away from the fact that gold drops to bedrock and then forces its way down into any microscopic cracks available, the old timers cleaned these areas well but couldn't clean it all and it's these deposits that can be targeted with super sensitive detectors like the Gold Monster . Good luck with it. P M.

Ken, not trying to speak for JP here, he does that perfectly - But I think the effort required to research, film and edit these amazing DVDs may be outweighed by the fact that the profits may not be enough to justify the effort. Also, the months and months it takes to photograph and do all the post production single-handedly only to have your DVD duplicated by counterfeiters is enough to give anyone pause.

nice....!!!!!