Steve Herschbach

Searcher Magazine Facebook Page Minelab tester Gordon Heritage is on the cover so I assume he does the review?

Yes, any 1/8” to 1/4” stereo adapter should work as long as the 1/8” end is small enough to fit down into the hole and seat properly - again, note that o-ring at the bottom of the 10 mm hole. It could push an overlarge end up and out just enough to keep some jacks from fully clicking in and seating properly. The Minelab adapter creates a waterproof junction and is a good option for people who wade and submerge the detector pod. Just keep the 1/4” end high and dry (shoulder mount?) and any headphones can be plugged in.

People want to know what they are buying into, and coils are part of the ecosystem. Equinox will look like less of a bargain if the coils are priced like CTX coils. X-Terra type coil pricing fits more with the retail price of the detectors, but nothing says that is what Minelab is going to do. I therefore understand why this is a question that is tops on many peoples minds.

Nails are not much problem for me. I hate flat tin type steel - old rusted cans, flattened cans, round ends of cans, can fragments, parts of old steel roofing, etc. Some of that stuff sounds great on most any detector. BBS does well on rejecting it and FBS also to a lesser extent but at the cost of serious masking. Equinox opens it back up as far as the masking goes but then flat steel becomes more an issue again. There is quite the balancing act trying to reject ferrous while not masking everything. I wish I could say Equinox magically shuts it all up while masking nothing, but I don’t think that’s possible. It’s still a balancing act.

The rubber dongle that attaches the plug when not in use is also a soft plastic that acts as a wide sealing washer against the large shiny flat metal surface. Along with the o ring at the bottom it actually is a double seal. And as I noted even if water got past, it can’t get into the guts of the detector.

vfp7 is basically repeating what Monte says in his Setup Sheet for the Nail Board Test. If anyone does not do it exactly as described it would invalidate the test. Here is my version of the test, includes hot rocks, flat steel, etc....

Tom nailed it - you can use any mode you want for freshwater hunting. Beach Mode negates saltwater but loses some small gold sensitivity in the process. Beach Mode is also worth consideration as a “last resort” mode to deal with extremely mineralized ground.

Note the o-ring in the bottom of the headphone attachment “hole”...

I need to dig into these more because I am told they can easily pair with cell phones and music players. Makes sense if it's all standard aptX and one of the advantages of being on that format, even if it is a hair slower.

I will always wonder how many feet I missed that one by - not many. I have never found a pound plus nugget myself but I have been lucky enough to be around when several were found. Steve's lunker I would have passed by on my first detecting trip to Ganes because it was where a lot of the large gold was found sitting on top in earlier decades. I have a picture of me proudly displaying a 3/4 oz nugget (or something like that) when that three pounder was somewhere a stone's throw nearby.

It is going to be fun to watch. Despite what people think I don't have a horse in the race. Once the Equinox ships I plan on sitting back and the chips can land where they may. Lots of great detectors out there and whatever people decide is best for them sure does not bother me at all. I'm just looking forward to being able to go detecting for no other reason than to find stuff again.

Yeah, that is an excellent test. It shows one way the Equinox will excel over the BBS and FBS detectors. The real grudge match will of course be Equinox and Deus.

No, the WM08 has a recessed waterproof 1/8” jack identical to that on the detector itself. A special adapter is needed to connect either the detector or the WM08 to 1/4" headphones. Aftermarket adapters may also work but will not be waterproof at the junction.

Yeah, they don’t make those anymore. The new ones are black

Oops, duh, ignore that confused old guy post . The Equinox 800 carton contents photo the I POSTED MYSELF does show the Equinox 800 comes with two cables - problem solved! However, the 1/8” To 1/4” headphone adapter is not included, the source of my confusion. Now you Equinox 600 owners, the very first accessory you buy had better be a spare charger cable. Since I am an Alaskan I could probably make one with enough baling wire and duct tape but it would be really ugly and take some time. Better to just have a spare.

I am sure there is a small army of YouTube folks just waiting for the opportunity to boost their viewer numbers by posting videos about the hottest detector of the year. The nail board test will probably figure prominently. Since any knowledgeable person can manipulate the test to show whatever they want and many others don’t know how to tune the detectors they test you will have the opportunity to choose whatever end result pleases you most from the wide range that will be available. See, even I am cynical about detector testers! My Testing Methodology

Absolutely, thank you! I do need to double check something however. The Equinox 800 may come with two charging cables, one for the detector, and one for the WM08. It is the same cable, and it would be crazy to not be able to charge the WM08 while you are charging your detector. Time for an email to clarify.

I agree.... My Testing Methodology

I can’t honestly say. I have not used Makro wireless except in earlier prototype versions. The last ones I used seemed nice and I was happy with them. I don’t recall them as being any better or worse than the Minelab units per se. Not having used the final product it probably is not fair to say more than that. My impression of the Makro phones was favorable, and I am quite happy with the Minelab version also. Neither is as “bright” as wired phones but I find them perfectly fine for me.

Ambiguity exists because ambiguity is real. It is not a matter of saying “CTX is our flagship, therefore there is NOTHING that any detector can possibly do better” or “Equinox is our flagship, therefore there is NOTHING that any detector can possibly do better”. Equinox was made to compete with the Garrett AT and XP Deus, not the CTX. Now think about Deus versus CTX. Which is better? Most reasonable people would say there are things each excels at, and that a CTX and Deus complement each other well. Only partisans insist on going further and making one out to be “better” than the other. One is not better than the other per se, they are just different. Which is “better” depends on the task at hand. The same story is true with CTX versus Equinox. Seeking clear, pat answers smothers the reality that one is not better than the other. There are targets a CTX might do better on and targets a Equinox might do better on. The CTX in some ground will have an edge for depth on some silver. In other ground the machines will be a match. Equinox has the clear edge in trash, and can easily find coins that the CTX can’t find due to masking. CTX is likely to be more stable in saltwater, Equinox a little less so due to being the “hotter” machine. Trying to force detectors into a “lineup” is something done for marketing purposes, and they always line them up by price. Does that mean more expensive detectors are always better? Of course not. I would love to be the provider of easy pat answers but that would be misleading people and is not true. Anyone that clearly states that a CTX is a better machine under all circumstances than an Equinox or that an Equinox is clearly better than a CTX under all circumstances is either ignorant or a liar. It just does not work that way in real life. I am therefore planting my feet firmly on ambiguous ground because that is where reality is. Those seeking to pigeon hole one detector as “best” are closing their minds to the concept that all machines excel in some ways for some people. My advice is keep an open mind and realize no detector has a corner on “best”. The goal for me is to figure out how to get any one detector to do the best job it can, but I don’t insist the detector must be perfect at everything.

I am actually surprised NokMak did not tackle the Bigfoot or at least a Cleansweep knockoff. I figured if anyone would it would be them, but despite some lobbying on my part no hint of it being in the works. Too bad because I would get a Racer 2 with a Bigfoot type coil in a heartbeat. As it is the Bigfoot is giving me a reason to keep one of the few VLFs that stayed put once Equinox arrived on my doorstep. Right now it has a shiny new V3i hooked up to it, but I don't have about an hour on the machine since Equinox takes every available minute I have and then some.

I hear you FollowTheBeep. The good news is I would think that a metal detector is like the ultimate non-essential item in most people's lives. Almost nobody "needs" a metal detector and there should be no hurry or pressure to buy one.

Hi goldrat, Too hot for me! As an old Alaskan I was worried how I would handle the heat, but I found I am good up to 100F with care. Anything above that and I am hugging the air conditioner! All the modes have a multifrequency (MF) option now, and it is my understanding that all the modes on both the Equinox 600 and Equinox 800 are employing all the frequencies. It is what is done with the data after it is received and how it is processed that makes all the difference in the world. This is the "weighting" Minelab refers to. In other words, certain frequencies are emphasized and other less so depending on the task at hand. Maybe a certain frequency gets ignored entirely in post processing. I expect Minelab will reveal a little more about all this but at the end of the day nobody should ever expect much more than some generalities. I am sure the exact processing methodology is one of the closest kept secrets at Minelab. All I know is that multifrequency is where the real power resides in Equinox. The signal frequency modes all act like a lesser subset of the full power of Multi-IQ. That is not a bad thing as sometimes less is more when dealing with certain pesky ground conditions or electrical interference. For instance, it may be that Gold Mode in MF mode is too powerful for a certain patch of mineralized ground and hot rocks. 20 khz is a milder subset that may very well give smoother operation on that ground. Or perhaps there is salt/alkali ground to deal with. Gold Mode may not be the ticket there. Park Mode may work better or in extreme cases Beach Mode. The base mode chosen has an underlying set of parameters locked in that you start from, but then you have frequency options, sensitivity, and even recovery speed all acting in conjunction to modify each mode. What you end up with is a detector that is deceptively simple out of the box for those who just want to get going fast, yet has so much detail to explore in setting combinations that somebody like me is in detector heaven. Those that are fearless and willing to take the time to learn all the options of Equinox inside and out are going to be in for a fun ride! Thanks for the thanks!

Excellent and thoughtful post Gerry - thanks! Like many people I used to hold off on new detectors. It is the Minelab PI detectors that changed that for me. From the SD2200D on I realized the waiting game was hurting me more than helping me. A pattern developed where each new Minelab was met by either skepticism or outright hostility. Then, one year after they hit the streets, the hostility subsided and the new model would be recognized as a new standard for performance. A similar pattern played out with BBS and FBS machines. I realized waiting a year would not only cost me time with what history has proven are pretty safe bets, but get me closer also to the next introduction. I have seen people wait a year and a half to buy what is no longer a new model, only to get bent out of shape when a new improved version shows up 6 months later. The longer you wait, the better your chances of being caught in this situation. Long story short I just started jumping on each new Minelab the moment it was released. I have not regretted that yet. What we are observing is not new however. It is normal in all sales channels that there will be early adopters, and those that wait for various reasons. Being an early adopter is not without risks, and waiting is not unwise for those with concerns. It really is more a personality type thing as people are sensitive to different levels of risk. There is a thread on the forum that discusses it, New Detectors & Early Adopters, that is an interesting read.

CTX Prospector - Published on Jan 16, 2018 Here I show you how to replace the batteries inside the Minelab CTX-3030's battery pack with new cells from Japan purchased on eBay for $15 bucks! Takes about an hour to carefully remove and replace the 4 cells. Works like the original $150 battery pack! Minelab CTX-3030 Battery Pack Part No. 3011-0299 Panasonic CGR18650CG 2250mAh Lithium-Ion Li-Ion Rechargeable Battery Cells Perform at your own RISK! Happy Hunting! - Jason CTX Prospector