Cabo Chris
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Posts posted by Cabo Chris
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9 hours ago, dewcon4414 said:
It obviously has nothing to do with the processing speed or target ID......or it should have a better rating. Im guess most of you are right, but id also say it has to do with the ability to get very specific when designing dis patterns and tones. Cal...... im with you. What the testers use may not be what we get...... a lot of times it aint. Its going to depend on what the designers vision is for where he wants it to shine. Right now it seems the high conductors. So........will ML give us a somewhat watered down version this time so it can be upgraded down the road? Steve may be able to tell us once they come out and he can compare it to what he tested.
13 hours ago, Cal_Cobra said:Yes that "star chart" has changed more then you can shake a stick at. As TS posted, the Equinox has 4 stars originally, then went to 2, and now it's at 3. It's a marketing slide, as such, I'd take it with a major grain of salt.
My largest fear on the Equinox, is that it'll be too good, Minelab may opt to dumb it down, or throttle down it's maximum capabilities so it does fit into that 3 star slot, not the 4 star slot as originally noted. It wouldn't be the first time such an occurrence has occurred.
After the way ML has promoted the Equinox, I would be very surprised if they didn't release the best machine possible. I simply refuse to believe a company such as ML would play games. The Equinox practically sells itself! For my detecting interests and needs ML has produced the best detectors and I credit ML with my success.
I obviously do not know the ML sales pie chart, but am thankful ML even continues producing hobby machines. I've often wondered if their Military Division might eclipse sales of the Hobby Division to the point of shutdown? In a way I have taken my BBS machines for granted and if they went away, I sure would miss them!
I hope ML sells thousands of Equinox!
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15 hours ago, Gerry in Idaho said:
I feel the 3 Star Rating on the DISCRIMINATION is because the $1550 E-Trac and $2500 CTX 3030 have way more intel.
At the price point of $900 for the EQ-800, there are going to be things on it that are not as good as their upper end Coin/Relic/Beach machines. We can't have it all for $900 or they would not make enough money and then we'd be swinging the old brands again.
They rate the Excalibur one star for discrimination. So it must be a ranking of the machines ability to discriminate out certain targets, and/or for the user to interpret responses as mentioned. But I guess that's relying on the machines ability for the ranking. Another way to look at this is... I personally think an Excalibur has great discrimination. I always leave the discrimination set to 0 when looking for shallow water gold, rely on Iron Mask and discriminate by ear. That sort of discrimination is why I love Excaliburs.
Now I can see why discrimination would be very important for a dirt hunter and hence the ML rankings. As a small business owner I have an idea on pricing products and have not thought of the Equinox a lesser model because of it's price point. I kind of thought perhaps technology has become affordable? Remember when the early Texas Instruments calculators cost hundreds of Dollars? Obviously ML believes the Equinox technology a breakthrough and I sure want to appreciate that for what it is- a better metal detector for my detecting needs. I for one do not like to see ranking charts, because were I a beginner, most likely would pass on an Excalibur seeing the 1 star. I'm making more of this than I should, but remember how this machine has been promoted thus far.
OK, so it looks like the NOX can't report Conductive/Inductive values. But I can't wait to find out about tonal quality. Are the tones just beeps or do they have more target resolution, especially in 50 Tone. With an Excalibur one can hear metal make-up by tone variance quite often. Like the smooth spongy sound of a gold ring compared to the scratchy honk of a pull tab. I can tell platinum by tone. Obviously not all the time, but it's one reason an Excalibur can be so efficient in shallow saltwater.
Should this not be the case with the Equinox, then I hope the discrimination resolution is 5 stars! It sure would be nice to see a difference between pull tabs and gold jewelry targets.
It's always interesting to see the opposite detecting techniques of the Pros. Drayton hunts slow and covers smaller productive areas. He finds lots of gold! Dankowski, well when I watched his beach DVD was surprised by his methodical and speedy techniques. He finds gold too! I'm torn between the 2. At times I hunt slow and methodical in shallow water and find gold. Other times I just randomly cover lots of ground and find gold too. Oddly I find about the same using an Excal 800 or 1000. I attribute my success mostly to the efficiency of BBS. I so very much hope the Equinox is efficient too!
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Good news Gerry, but I did not realize the Equinox was that complex? It must have many sub menus for tweaking. Looking forward to your reports!
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From the second ML email on the above link, ML said shortly after Christmas.
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Wonder why they only rate Equinox discrimination 3 stars? Perhaps not that important?
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Found this: Link deleted since Findmall Forum update broke all old links
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2 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:
That's this week - I will do that!
Time to break out the Popcorn again!!!
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I'm looking forward to comparing the Equinox side-by-side to the used Explorer SE I just purchased in wet salt sand on larger gold rings. It will be interesting to see how these 2 machines handle Pacific Beaches, where there is a rich mix of iron. It will also be interesting how the Equinox ID numbers and tones classify similar targets such as a gold ring and a pull tab compared to FBS. My ears are BBS trained and am hoping the new NOX technology surpasses both FBS/BBS for my detecting needs. I prefer simple and if it does might then make sense to sell my FBS/BBS detectors, because 1, the NOX is better and 2, familiarization of 1 machine makes sense over memorization of multiple platforms? As an example- traveling to say Barbados... with an Equinox it would be easy to hit the old sugar mill/plantation for old coins, then take a dunk in the sea at Miami Beach for gold jewelry and later that night hit the dry sand for micro gold... all with the same machine. Well at least that's what I'm hoping for.
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Guys... I couldn't take it anymore. Pulled the trigger on a used SE and a used PRO coil. Something to play with until my Equinox arrives. I may sell SEF, Slimline and small Excellerator coils that come with it to recoup some $.
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2 hours ago, steveg said:
Chris --
I am probably the former owner of that "under $400 newer FBS detector" you saw sold! It was not sold because FBS detectors are not very capable. I LOVE the Explorer line, and I found plenty of deep/old coins with Explorers. But for my purposes (deep old coin hunter in turf), I like the CTX a little more.
Yes, the older FBS units are great on the beach, in terms of depth and stability, dry OR wet salt. They do just fine on gold too -- with the exception of VERY SMALL gold, particularly chains/bracelets -- which in some cases they are "dead" to. But rings, pendants, etc. -- they do just fine, and will get better depth on those targets in the "wet salt" than most (if not all) single-frequency VLF units.
With that said though, with you already being a CTX user, not sure why you'd want an older FBS unit for the beach, unless just looking for a good backup machine -- in which case, YES, it would be a great deal at $400 for you.
More particularly though, I see these $400 FBS units more suited to someone who is either swinging a single-frequency VLF in the wet salt and is looking for something that will perform better, OR someone who is a turf coin hunter who wants to "move up" in performance, but doesn't want to spend what a CTX costs. For this person, YES -- a $400 FBS unit is a VERY good deal.
For SMALL gold, I think the Equinox will do a better job, particularly since you can choose single-frequency 20 kHz or 40 kHz in the "dry." Not sure obviously (until they are available for us to swing) how it will compare to an FBS unit in the "wet salt," on a target like a gold ring, but I have to believe it will do just as well.
Again though, I'm not sure why you are thinking about older FBS technology, as a CTX user. If you didn't have a CTX, I would understand your interest in an older FBS machine. But, IF you are looking for something that will perform BETTER than your CTX as a gold ring/gold coin hunter at beaches (which it kind of sounds like you are), my opinion is that FBS might "equal" the performance of the CTX, but won't "surpass it;" however, the Equinox MIGHT...
Just my two cents, as a 7-year Explorer user now swinging the CTX.
Steve
Steve, thanks for the great info. My water hunting experience mostly lies with BBS. The CTX is wonderful, but I find more in the water with Excaliburs... Not to mention the 3030 does not travel well... Short battery, leak potential, babied more... As a result of so many trips with BBS, I hunt by ear/tone. I've used the CTX on 4 trips and was swayed into Combined and fewer tones by CTX gurus. I found gold and Target Trace is fantastic! Personally I've concluded simple in the water is better and a reason I have high expectations for the Nox as a travel detector. Excaliburs are simple. But still need aftermarket accessories. I could seriously cut my weight with 2 Equinox! But that's still to be seen.
I'm also interested in local hunting for gold coins, jewelry. Stories of coins washing ashore on my beaches/along Columbia River. Also thousands of razor clam diggers for the past 50 years, must have lost rings!
My sudden interest in FBS, in particular an SE is because I have read mixed reviews... But a theme that repeats is that Explorers have sweet gold tones and something I'm used to with my older early model Blue Tube, which has the best Excalibur tones- smooth! I also read several SE users say they sold their 3030s and returned to Explorers because of better tones. True? So when I see an FBS machine under $500, well that seems tempting. But not if the Equinox Technologies blow FBS away as a do-all treasure hunter? My feeling is the Nox will be very good but on larger gold jewelry FBS/BBS could still rule. Max depth and speed are good, but not everything! A good source tells me the older Whites TDI PRO is a Depth Monster on gold jewelry at salt beaches. Still I've found 30 times more gold jewelry/coins with BBS than any PI! I would have bought your SE had I seen it sooner! I have my sights on one and why I'm seeking advice here.
I do not like swinging an Excalibur on beach/land and may also just return to a used Sovereign! The few I tried a while back had great tones (XS) and seemed to like gold range targets.
But who knows... The Equinox might become my go-to machine?
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Other than a CTX 3030 I've not used FBS machines much buttold FBS loves gold range targets. I'm mostly interested in beach/river detecting and searching for gold jewelry and gold coins. I see so many FBS machines up for sale now and one under $400 that looks like it sold. Really, $400 for a newer FBS detector? Why 1 gold ring find could pay for that! I will be getting an Equinox, but dang... it's hard to pass on these FBS deals! While I do not want to buy an obsolete machine, is it the consensus here that the Equinox may be better for finding gold jewelry than FBS? If that's the case, then obviously buying a used FBS might be a waste of $? I read mixed opinions. One tester said the Equinox seems deeper than FBS in his ground, but ML states the Equinox will not handle saltwater as well as FBS. So, should I steer clear of a used FBS deal or not?
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Now that the Minelab site is back up who notices any Equinox changes? I did not see an Equinox manual I was hoping for and another here mentioned the 600 page was missing. Anything else? Still says "coming soon".
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I do not see an 800 manual?
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Break out the popcorn!!!
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Wow, that's quite a bit to digest! So I guess frequency, target conductivity and ID tone are not related after all, other than by machine processing. Obviously there's quite a bit of processing going on inside my Excalibur. I find the older Blue-Tube Excals with blue headphones to produce the best gold jewelry tones. One can learn to differentiate gold from pull tabs by tonal response. Well 90% of the time one can predict correctly. That goes for the sweet spongy mellow tones of gold/platinum rings too. I always try to guess my target prior to scooping... part of the fun and constant learning process.
Are the Multi tonal responses of the Equinox similar to BBS where one can hear metallic/alloy nuances, or are they more filtered/solid? In 50 tones with the Equinox will an average 14K gold wedding band sound different than a pull tab? Or just the same solid similar conductivity beep?
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Ja the Website ist still kaput! Many years ago in one of the Treasure Rags I read a full length article about this new amazing metal detector and ran to my dad declaring... "it's here... it's finally here... the perfect machine that will change everything!" I just had to have one as this new handy electronics wonder could actually see into the ground and show a screened X-Ray image of what lies beneath! One photo of the detector screen showed a clear image of a house key several inches down! I just knew how much treasure I was going to find with this new breakthrough, as soon as I could finally get my paws on one!
Then my father smirking pointed out the last line in the article, which for some reason I had missed. It said "April Fools"! This entire article was an April Fools joke on me and all their readers... there was no such miracle machine at all! I was very disappointed and a bit angry having to stick with my trusty Compass machine!
Say..... it's not April yet, is it?
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2 minutes ago, mn90403 said:
I know a dealer who I gave a verbal order to months ago. I went on to Bill's website a month ago and they were taking deposits. He told me I didn't need to pre-order as I would be one of the first but I gave him my deposit anyway. Will any of that help me get an Equinox sooner? I don't know. I just know I need a replacement for my SE Pro.
It will be good to get in a pre-order with a dealer because it is said that the pre-orders will be filled first. Who knows what that means. By some accounts this detector has a 'pent up' demand that will take it much longer than the time needed for the 7000. If they have made it simple and things are ready to go in Malaysia (or where ever) then world logistics will be at play delivering an adequate number to each continent.
Mitchel
Mitchel, how did you like your SE?
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We've got several on Pre-Order already here in The States. Looks like our Aussie brethren will wait????
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Why ML must be uploading the new 1,000 page Equinox Manual!
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One reason why when getting a Null in shallow water with an Excalibur one should slow down and examine the target from several angles/wiggle, as it could be a deep good target or a bad target masking gold nearby. Or it's just an iron/steel target or a bad section of ground with too fast a sweep or too high sensitivity setting. Since the Excalibur is slow to respond, one can easily miss good targets near bad.... unless one makes multiple passes which can eventually mask out the iron.
8 speed adjustments on the Equinox seems like a lot. When one watches the Equinox speed test online, I'm impressed the way it handled that hunk of iron thrown in. Good targets still came in. It will be interesting to see how the speed settings of the 800 effect target tone/depth/VDI response in saltwater. There could be several variables, such as sand density, slope, trash, mineralization... when selecting a speed. I guess a good test would be to burry a gold ring once one reaches a specific site and test speed responses? I'm hoping the faster responding Equinox can pull a few more gold pieces out of the sea!
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1 hour ago, broadsmaster said:
think this link may be of some interest to you :
Thanks for the link. Well it sounds like many say they will not sell their 3030s for an Equinox. These same people seem to view an Equinox as stepping down and should not even have an interest in one at all- Right? There seems to be 2 camps forming... those who make fun of the Equinox and those whom are practically experts on them and down. I still think there will be a machine dump and the complainers will be swinging an 800! Funny, one of my hunting buddies in NH just called me and asked if I wanted to buy his older CTX. I did not ask why and he did not say either. I suspect the 3030 is too involved for him, or he has his eye on an Equinox? He knows I'm a 3030 fan, only a 3030 is not the best travel machine (I can list several reasons why). His offer is tempting despite his not being of the newer sand seal/arm lock design. I lost 2 3030s to battery seal leaks and one reason the 3030 is not great for shallow water hunting/travel- where one skips from beach to beach, spending many hours a day in the surf 7-10 days. I pretty much have this leak thing figured out (one has to clean the older style gasket every time one leaves the water and prior to going back in) and the new sand seal design does help, but sure do not like to randomly ruin a WP detector with a few drops of salt! The more I think about his offer though, perhaps I should travel with 2 3030s? (always travel with a back-up). I use a Force-Protector rolling duffle in which one could fit 2 3030s. While more complex than an Excal, the 3030 does see some chains the Excal can't.
Yet ever since the TSA and airlines have made traveling more difficult, with each trip I promise myself to travel lighter next time. Taking 2 Excaliburs and 1 3030 with all related gear is a feat in 1 50lb max bag! (Our group limits 1 checked bag ea, so as to fit group luggage in rental van) Again why I'm excited about the Equinox hopefully giving the Excal a run for the money. ML stated the Equinox was almost as good as BBS dealing with salt and I hope the new technology like faster recovery and ability to deal with iron might make up the difference? Who knows... the Equinox may not meet my needs? I'm optimistic though and if it does and as soon as I make that determination, will be selling several of my machines. There are other reasons I'm cheering for the Equinox. On our trips we hunt in the water, but more than once I've been called to find a lost ring in the dry sand, one of which found turned out to be a $75,000 set! Had I not happened along and summoned, that ring set might still be there today and got me wondering what riches lie in the dry sand? Best time to find out would be at night when all are gone and chairs put away. Perhaps using the gold mode of the Equinox might find gold in the dry sand and better than what an Excal can do- especially on chains/diamond earrings?
I still wonder if the Equinox response settings are compromised? Faster recovery might results in more masked shallow water finds?
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Perhaps this has been discussed previously... and correct me if wrong, but the Equinox has adjustable recovery settings, which could be set depending on the density and type of targets encountered? But what might be the trade-offs when using fast vs slower recovery speed? Target ID? Depth? Perhaps with the new Equinox technology it does not matter- Oh and do the recovery settings function with single and multi-frequency modes?
Minelab Equinox Training Class Next Month
in Minelab Equinox Forum
Posted
Good! I'm hoping the Equinox is efficient like BBS and simple to use. I also hope it works in shallow saltwater as an Equinox size machine would make for an excellent travel machine! It sure would be nice to get my hands on one for my Caribbean trip next month!