TedinVT

Interesting thought, Rich. You can bet someone with a spectrum analyzer and time to kill will be looking at that. The first month or two after commercial release will be filled with reports and we'll all (in the north) have some fun winter reading and watching.

You nailed it!

Probably more important than ever to turn your cell phone off when detecting to prevent it from exploding into a massive fireball.

Yeah, the shape rendering of pull tabs will help sales!😁 Coming from the ATPro to the Nox in 2018 I really missed the 0-99 VDI range. Glad Minelab is adding that. Put some distance between copper pennies and dimes, etc. I hope. Based on the latest 47 minute YouTube video I'm not seeing any reason to shelve my Nox though the leaking issue stays on my mind. The real test will be when folks start doing comparisons of the Beast, D2 and Nox head to head on land and in saltwater.

I prefer Park 1 multi in fresh water.

Excellent write-up GB. The described technique is the one I use regularly. In pinpoint mode, I locate the center of the target (peak segments and sound) then rotate the coil in place on the ground 90 degrees and finesse the pinpoint readings to peak again. For coins, a golf ball to baseball diameter plug (depending on target depth and the size of your hand or digger) is all that is required. A word of caution, if you haven't reinforced your coil ears, be careful when rotating the 90 degrees on the ground so you don't twist so hard that you risk breaking a coil ear(s).

My 800 is well past the 3 year warranty. The stock coil ears broke in April 2020 hunting dry land and with a coil ear support gizmo attached. The support gizmo didn't prevent the breakage. I would not recommend one of those 3D printed devices. I use the Nox in fresh and saltwater, often completely submerged, as well as dry land in every type of terrain. Gigmaster put up a YouTube video showing his coil ear reinforcement: I did this reinforcement using the same materials and it came out great and feels solid as a rock and is holding up perfectly.

Interesting test. Results were not what I would expect.

Credit to Gigmaster for his latest video identifying a good bet for the source of the control pod leaks. Very interesting. While I'm at it, Gigmaster recently did a video on how he is repairing and reinforcing the Nox coil ears. I had both coil ears fail last year and had the coil replaced under warranty. Now that my warranty expired in Feb. I figured I'd give Gig's ABS plastic reinforcing mod a try. I used 1/8” ABS (I wouldn't recommend anything thicker) and Gorilla Weld 2 part epoxy like Gig used. It went very well and is rock solid.

The LEDs are very small. They light if the headphones are taking a charge and go out when the headphones are fully charged. My ML80 headphones usually charge in less than an hour.

One other consideration... were all of you swinging over the target in the same direction? If one coil crosses over the target in one direction and another coil crosses over the target at 90 degrees from the first coil direction you may get different results, much the same as if you “tested” the target from those two different directions with your detector. Think of a coin on edge example. I'm also assuming all your coils were passing over the ground at the same height.

I agree with NCtoad. You really have to go through all the settings and make sure all the machines are set up identically in order to make any 1:1 comparisons.

I use the ML Bluetooth headphones for most of my field, woods, playground, etc. detecting. I use my Pelso waterproof headphones for fresh and saltwater beach and water detecting. I use the WM08 wireless module with wired earbuds in the very hot weather and when I wear a wide brimmed hat for sun protection that doesn't work well with regular headphones.

F2 = 4 all detect modes

Nice job! Looks like it could take a direct hit and keep on truckin'.

Pelsos all the way. Chase & Midalake advice is right on. Love my Pelsos. Even though you plan on wading you still have to contend with waves and splashing so waterproof headphones are still the smart choice.

I'd say if your only use will be to hunt beaches, go for the 600 and put the money you'll save from not going for the 800 toward a decent set of waterproof headphones. If you hunt the wet sand and in the water you'll want waterproof headphones. I have the 800 and hunt everywhere. I bought the LS Pelso waterproof headphones for the saltwater and freshwater beaches. They've worked well. Also, consider buying a carbon fiber shaft if you'll be in the salt water.

Sure, the coil can be a source, but unshielded electronics can act like a receiver to pick up external signals if they are strong enough. The “cell phone too close to the control pad” causing noise is a prime example of this. Electronic junctions (a diode, for example) can act like the old crystal set radios did to detect signals.

Sounds like you are just hunting in trashy areas. Not much you can do beyond what the first two posters have suggested. Good suggestions by the way. If I'm coin shooting I turn all metal off and notch out 15 through 19. Have you tried detecting in areas known to be “clean” just to be sure and check that the abundance of target sounds decreases? The pinpoint issue you mentioned is a known problem that has persisted since day 1. Try pausing a few seconds after locating a target and raise your coil before initiating the pinpoint function. It almost seems like the detector needs to settle out before pin pointing. I've had days where the need to reset the pinpointer is less than others days. Also, the “need to exit pinpoint and restart pinpoint” seems less frequent in colder weather, as in the 30s and 40s here in VT.

When my coil with both ears broken was replaced this summer it came with a new coil bolt and new coil cover all attached to the coil. Nice. Replacement was very quick. The guys at Ft Bedford are doing a great job.

Anyone who doesn't rinse the saltwater off their metal detector, fishing equipment, etc. with fresh water after using is asking for corrosion problems. If you are using the stock aluminum shaft in saltwater, take it apart and rinse it, let it dry before putting it back together. Better yet, invest in one of the carbon fiber shafts. Besides rinsing the headphone connector, remove the 4 screws that hold the control pod onto the shaft and check that for corrosion periodically - the screw bosses in the control pod handle are brass. The anti-corrosion sprays, as mentioned by others, are worth the investment - apply after rinsing and drying.

I'd go for the 800. It gives you room to grow as you learn its capabilities yet, as many have already said, it can be a “take it out of the box and go” machine. The wireless headphones are a blessing and worth the extra bucks in my opinion (coming from a machine with wired headphones). Still, any detector is only as good as the person using it. To get proficient with any detector, you need to put in the time with it. Learn to really listen to the sounds and what the machine is telling you. Learn good swinging technique. And learn patience, go slow and low.

Both of my coil ears broke in April and I'd been using a coil ear stiffener. Didn't help in my case. Sent the coil in for warranty replacement and received a new coil in a week. I asked the guy at the PA repair facility why the ears break and he said over tightening the coil bolt seems to be the biggest problem. I no longer use the ear stiffener and don't over tighten the coil bolt - so far, so good. If you opt to use a stiffener make sure the coil bolt goes through the stiffener and ears easily and the whole assembly fits together freely on the lower shaft without needing force to get it all put together Avoid any strain on the coil ears.

I wrecked my AT Pro coil by detecting without a coil cover. Learned that lesson the hard way. And the AT Pro coil was, IMHO, much more robust than the ML coil. I always use a coil cover now, especially with the replacement cost of a ML coil.

GB_A - Doing a quick switch between the personal mode and the regular detect mode allows me flexibility as I work an area. Not much different than setting up a personal mode with a frequency to test for bottle caps or small aluminum as you work an area. Simple button push to quickly switch.