Jeff McClendon

41.7% gold, 58.3% something else like silver and/or copper. Great find for sure.

I didn’t mind the actual Mi-6 depth and sensitivity. It just isn’t as deep as the Tek-Point PI. I did mind all of the pairing problems my Mi-6 had and just got tired of dealing with it. If XP updates the pairing software I might consider owning one again if I keep my Deus 2.

It matters to people like me too that recover targets in high iron mineralization on turf. 12 kHz pinpointers are great, but they don’t go as deep as the F-Pulse/Tek-Point in that mineralization. I can regularly count on 4+” depth on coin sized target with my Tek-Points. My Garrett Carrot and former Mi-6 struggled to do 3”

I'm definitely keeping my mouth shut and my fingers off the keyboard. I have said more than enough about that Deus 2 subject.

All of these detectors false in iron using their SMF technology which is why some form of adjustable iron bias is important. They will also all find targets in thick iron trash. Deus 2, Deus 1 and the ORX are marginally better at it sometimes from my experience. That is all I'm going to say. Looking for videos demonstrating any of this is fraught with peril as Loren clearly stated in the video you posted. So, if you are looking for and depending totally on video proof to satisfy you quest for knowledge......good luck.

I want to clarify what I wrote earlier in the first post. I said that the Equinox 900 in Park 1 found 16 coin targets that I had missed with the Legend using Park M3. Two of those targets were near surface targets that were totally my fault. I just missed them due to poor swing overlap or I didn't get close enough to a tree trunk. I am confident that the Legend hit those other "missed" targets. Three of my hunt parameters were 4 way directional swing repeatable IDs and audio, I was concentrating on the small gold jewelry to US nickel target ID range and also the US zinc penny to the highest target ID range. Any targets that did not meet those parameters were passed over and left in the ground. There were hundreds. I am certain that for whatever reason, those 14 US coins were not detected by the Legend within those preset parameters. I don't want to get into what those reasons were. That was not the point of this hunt or report. I was just trying out some settings and modes on these detectors that I hadn't previously been able to explore. Hopefully some of you get something out of this report.

I know that the Equinox 600/800, Equinox 700/900 and the Legend are very similar "under the hood." Deus 2 however, takes a different approach to iron discrimination and iron audio from the others as does Deus 1 and the ORX. Somebody with a lot more knowledge and clear thinking than me can explain it hopefully. I just know there is something fundamentally different going on inside those XP models when it comes to iron target handling.

I think Loren was generalizing a bit on the number of targets in his 1000 hit and 0 not hit statement. It could be more or less but the 0 not hit statement....I trust him on that. I did a bit of a comparison recently between the Legend and Equinox 900 where I said the Equinox 900 found 16 US coin targets that I had missed with the Legend hunting the exact same area in thick modern trash during the same day's hunt and ground conditions. By missing, I mean that I did not get enough clear information to dig 14 of those 16 coins when the Legend was swung over them. I am fairly certain that the Legend "hit" those "missed" coins. Two of them I just flat missed myself due to poor swing overlap or not getting close enough to a tree trunk. As far as his "Finally Answered" title statement, I agree with Digalicious that Loren gets exasperated by having to constantly address that question even on his small YouTube site. Most forums get a question like that daily concerning the newer SMF detectors. His answer was basically that these detectors are close enough in performance that for general use a person can't go wrong with any of them. He knows there are too many variables to list as far as what might make one of these detectors do a little better on a certain target than another. The same goes for which detector a person may just like more than another in a subjective way. My choice of which detector I am going to use for a hunt each day between Deus 2, Legend and Equinox 900 basically comes down to what I'm hunting, where I'm hunting and how I'm feeling (lightweight Deus 2 or heavier Legend/Equinox). Sometimes I just grab one without even caring which one it is and go have fun.

I wake up and just about every day, the first thing I do is check this forum to see if a new Deus 2 software update has been released……………

I don't know anybody that currently owns or has extensively used both the 900 and 24K except for Gerry (Gerry's Detectors) and his assistants. I used to own a Whites and Garrett 24K. I do own the Equinox 800 and 900. So any comparison I make would be anecdotal and based on records that I keep from testing. I have not been able to do any prospecting yet with my 900. I have taken an 800 and 24K to several sites where I had to turn down the sensitivity to lower than half of maximum on the 24K in order for it to stop overloading due to very high magnetite mineralization. I have never had to do that with the 800 yet. I can usually run it at least at 20 of 25 with no issues. Also, I am not just a small gold nugget prospector. So having a dedicated single frequency gold prospecting VLF is not necessary for me. I prefer to have more versatile detectors that also do really well gold prospecting when needed. If I was just using a VLF for gold prospecting, single frequency is all I needed, I didn't need waterproofing and I wanted the best detector for my dollar, I wouldn't hesitate to buy the 24K.

Thanks JCR and thank you for reporting your experiences with Park M3. I will definitely be experimenting with it when I go to areas that aren't effected by lots of magnetite mineralization. I agree with you about using Park M3 for very wet ground which is one reason I was excited to finally try it out here with the ground semi frozen at the 6" deep or so level and very wet above that. I wasn't wanting to go deep since that was impossible and I was mostly concentrating on high conductors, modern trash separation and trying out the LG24 coil. Overall, I was very impressed by the Legend's performance. In the past before Version 1.10, using Park M1 or Park M2 on semi moist, moderate to high iron mineralized ground out here would result in lots of spurious 10 and 11 target ID and audio responses which were ground noise and annoying. I did not experience any of that with Park M3. The surprise for me was with the Equinox 900. Testing it against the 800 a bit on frozen ground and in the static tests I use, I already had noticed an improvement in target separation and recovery speed. I know how the Equinox 800 detects in my area for modern trash detecting. My amount of experience with it is way past the "muscle memory" stage. The Equinox 900 is definitely faster than the 800/600 for this type of hunting.

Most of this post I quoted above, written by me regarding the Manticore shows that I really do know nothing about it and should not have commented. Thanks to those who did comment that own a Manticore and who gave great answers that are actually factual and taught me something. Please disregard the malarkey I wrote. Special thank you to Daniel for the great reports.

I have been over this area many times with the Equinox 800 and Deus 2. It is in one of Denver's oldest public parks that is named after P.T. Barnum who owned much of the original park land and had a mistress living nearby that he would visit when he was in town. The World War 1 era military coat button and 1918 thoroughly beat up Mercury silver dime were found about 8" from each other down about 6" deep. I also found a couple of Wheat pennies and a dozen or so copper Memorial pennies from the early 1960s nearby scattered in a continuous carpet of aluminum and rusted iron trash. Yes, the Equinox 900 was falsing on the many rusty bent nails that are 6"+ deep in this park. I dug a few just to learn what they sound like. I didn't detect a large area but wow did I hear hundreds and hundreds of trash targets. These finds are old for the Denver area and I am very lucky and happy to find them with the Equinox 900.

I like to detect as deep as possible with the detectors I have on hand. However, the most recent stuff is definitely near the surface in most of the parks I detect in. I actually find some of my best finds near sidewalk and path tear outs and anywhere that the ground has been cultivated for flower and shrub beds. Anyway, right now in the Denver area, being able to dig 6" deep is a miracle due to the layer of perma frost just below that level.

What a beautiful facility. Congratulations!!!!!

When I right a report like this, I'm am just sharing information. I am not trying to stir up trouble, start a detector war, issue a proclamation of which detector beat out another or make any claims that I can't backup with at least some actual experience. I welcome constructive comments and questions. I don't welcome backseat driver comments very warmly, at least not at the moment. Sorry to be that way but I have done it myself and I need to stop doing that too. Otherwise, these kinds of reports (they aren't anything but one persons view from their penthouse) may start drying up, at least from me.

Out here the frequency is 15 to 20 kHz. The mineralization here is caused by heavy iron concentrations of magnetite. Some places have much smaller decaying iron particles mixed in with clay. Salt mineralization definitely needs a lower frequency weighting…….. There are lots of variables and lots of trial and error needed.

I’m 67 years old with two bad ankles and I needed to go to the bathroom after a 3 hour hunt and after digging over 100 targets with a screwdriver in semi frozen muck. My longtime hunting partner died last month and I am doing the best I can. I can’t walk around with two detectors at the moment for head to head testing in a public park. One has to stay safe in my car while I use the other one. I had several people walk up to me without my knowledge today. That would have not happened in the past since my dog would have alerted me for sure. Let’s play the assumption game. Let’s assume that both XP and Nokta based their modern trash target separation and recovery speed goals on bettering the top dog at the time, the Equinox 800. In my opinion from using the Legend and Deus 2 for almost a year, both companies achieved that goal. Unfortunately and seemingly out of nowhere, the Equinox 700 and 900 were suddenly released in December. The 900’s target separation abilities and recovery speed have been improved whether you, XP or Nokta, along with all of the current 600 and 800 owners like it or not. I don’t expect you or anyone to trust me. I am just reporting what I experience. I needed to give Park M3 a thorough version 1.10 Beta test since I promised I would do so. I will probably test it some more. So far for my soil conditions, Park M1 is definitely a better choice for basic park hunting here in my area.

The Legend’s Park M3 having very effective simultaneous multi frequency technology had no problem with accurate target IDs. If there had been a problem with IDs, I would not have decided to dig 41 coins in a small very trashed area based on Park M3’s information. It having lower frequency weighting could definitely cause problems in higher iron mineralization as far as depth. However, all of the coins on edge that were found by the Equinox 900 were high conductive coins apart from one US nickel. A few of the coins found by the Legend using Park M3 were also on edge or poorly oriented. So, if the Legend actually missed those 16 coins that the Equinox 900 found behind it, I would look towards the Equinox 900 and its very much improved target separation compared to the original Equinox as being more of a factor than just laying the cause solely on the Legend’s Park M3 frequency weighting being the wrong choice for the soil conditions here.

I really like both of these detectors. The ground thawed out enough to get in some head to head testing on surface to 7" deep wild targets today (it will freeze over again in two days with 3 to 6" of new snow so boo hoo.) I literally have not been able to wild target test the Legend's new Park M3 mode for both target separation in modern trash and effective depth since downloading the Version 1.10 Beta software a few weeks ago. I have been able to do quite a bit of staged test target comparisons but nothing else. Today was also the first day I have been able to do the same with my new Equinox 900 as far as wild targets at medium depth and wild target separation. So I just randomly picked the Legend to go first on a 40 X 15 yard patch of heavily used and modern trashed West Denver park that has yielded several silver dimes and quarters along with many junk rings and a few silver and gold rings too. This park has given up over 50 wheat pennies and two war nickels for me too. I carefully gridded the 40X15 yard area I chose in the park with overlapping sweeps. This is a park that ate the F75 for lunch due to EMI and 5 to 7 bar dirt (no accurate target IDs unless the targets were within 2" of the surface) along with any other decent single or selectable single frequency VLF detector. Same for the Garrett APEX. The Vanquish models can hunt this park but every non-surface target has an iron halo and it was impossible for them to ground balance. I have hunted this park and the test area recently with Deus 2 and the Equinox 800 with no EMI issues and very stable target IDs even near the edge of detection. It is a west facing sloped park with only a few trees that thaws out before most flat parks here in the Denver area. It is trashed big time with multiple targets under every swing so masking of good targets by foil, canslaw, pull tabs, aluminum screw caps and steel crown bottle caps is a real problem at this park. That trash goes deep in this park too so its not just on the surface. There are bent rusty nails too starting at about the 4" deep level and going way deeper. I had the Legend with its LG24 coil (the coil cover measures 9.75X6") in Park M3, 23 sensitivity, ground balanced at 6, G discrimination pattern, recovery speed was 5, iron filter was 1, iron stability 1, bottle cap reject 1, ground stability 0, 6 tones. Iron mineralization meter showed 5 to 8 bars out of 10 consistently. I was mostly concentrating on coin and jewelry targets in the 15 to 26 ID area and anything above 40 that seemed to be coin sized and had enough 4 way consistent responses to warrant digging. I ended up digging lots of small can slaw, a couple of pull tabs and 41 USA modern coins from surface to 7" deep. There were three targets that I did not dig that were very iffy but potentially were deeper silver. Basically, at the time I thought I had covered the test area really well and that the Legend had also done very well with slightly jumpy but solid enough target IDs and tones. I fired up the Equinox 900 with its Coiltek 9.5X5.5" coil, Park 1 Multi, sensitivity 20, ground balanced at 5, -9 to +99 accepted, recovery speed 5, Fe 1, 5 tones and hunted the exact same area with the same speed and length of swings. I don't swing fast unless I am trying to isolate a target so swing speed was 1 second to the left and 1 second to the right with a flat, close to the ground, three to four foot arc. I was concentrating on targets in the 15 to 27 and above 60 target ID ranges. I immediately noticed the ground come alive with way more targets than I had heard with the Legend. I had the volume levels about the same for both detectors. There were just a ton of targets going off. Most were tiny foil, tiny aluminum or iron falsing with stuttering, incomplete blips which I am very used to hearing on this ground with the Equinox 800. However, I also pulled out 16 more USA modern coins that were in the 4 to 6" depth range from the testing area. Most of these were standing straight up on edge............. There were also a couple of coins near the surface that I somehow just missed. It happens. I also dug several more good sounding pieces of small can slaw that could have been smaller gold rings along with a couple of pull tabs that were screaming at me. The three targets that I had marked with the Legend were also easily hit by the Equinox 900. One turned out to be a 7" deep US clad dime, one was a 6" deep 1957 Wheat penny on edge and one was a 7" deep bent rusty nail (only one of the day). I also only dug one steel crown bottle cap and that was detected with a ton of high tones by the Equinox 900. I was pretty sure it was a steel crown bottle cap but it also sounded a lot like a coin spill. Gotta check those. No jewelry. Very impressed with the Equinox 900s target separation even in Park 1 Multi. The 900 was an absolute live wire even with the settings I was using. Most of those sixteen extra coin targets it found were no doubters even with most being on edge and with the more unstable 900 target IDs. I am still not much of a fan of the Legend's Park M3 recent add on, especially after this hunt. I don't know if this was a separation issue, a depth issue or both. However, just to be clear, I have hunted this exact spot with both the Equinox 800 and Deus 2 and pulled out many coins. Somehow, the 61 coins I dug today were missed by me using those detectors. Or, more realistically, every time I remove a target from a trashed park like this one, a different undug target becomes slightly more unmasked nearby. That could somewhat explain the Equinox 900 finding quite a few targets behind the Legend. However, most of those coins found by the 900 were not near previous disturbed dirt from Legend recoveries.

Thanks for the fantastic write-up Daniel. Thanks to the others that regularly hunt in moderate to high iron mineralization for adding your comments. It looks like the Manticore can't be setup like an Equinox or Deus 2 with every target accepted with a few other tweaks and excel at high iron mineralization sites like yours compared to detectors with all metal or hybrid all metal modes. That is important information to know for people like me and the places I hunt most often. That long post I wrote earlier with Equinox related strategies can be disregarded completely. I agree with Chase, I would have tried Deus 2 wide open discrimination Sensitive (recommended by XP for higher iron mineralization by the way in the manual) using Pitch tones and using PWM audio. I am a big fan of Deus 2's Relic mode but not with the default settings. Reactivity 1, Audio Response 6 will absolutely not work where I detect for similar reasons to what you noted Daniel. For maximum depth and slightly better target separation, I have to raise reactivity to at least 2, lower Audio Response to 5 or below and switch Relic Mode's VCO audio to PWM. Not saying you should have done any of this stuff Daniel. It's just what I have found out for my sites and might help somebody else get an extra 1/2".

I really appreciate all of these tips and tricks for running the Manticore in iron mineralization above moderate by all of you Manticore owners like Strick, Daniel TN, bamajoe and abenson. It confirms what I had previously suspected after owning an Explorer and CTX 3030. They are not the best choice for where I detect in 4 to 6 bar F75/Tek G2+ dirt. Looks like I will be skipping the Manticore experience unless I move out of this area.

I used the exact same commonly occurring trash targets and the same gold targets for those two photos. The good news for the Equinox models and the Legend is that nice clump of smaller gold items that have no regularly occurring trash targets mixed in with them on the top row of both photos. Sure, wadded up foil and small can slaw can share those same target IDs but that stuff is usually not nearly as invasive as all of the varieties of pull tabs and steel crown bottle caps. The second good news at least for USA Legend users is that the only common trash targets that happen really close to US nickels and many medium sized gold rings with similar 22 to 27 IDs are the older small "square" tabs, the beaver tail off of ring pull tabs and the freshness seals from the same cans that oval pull tabs come from. That is way better than the mash-up of targets in the 11 to 16 range using the Equinox 600/800. So, some good strategies can be employed by Legend users to really concentrate on small and medium sized gold jewelry and rings that have target IDs below 28 where the most common US pull tabs start to be detected if those oval pull tabs aren't damaged.

Minelab must have an unlimited supply of those side buttons or some other overwhelming economic reason to keep using them on the new X Terra, Equinox, Manticore and GPX 6000.

I also added Deus 2 9" coil with full remote and another Equinox 800 weight.