Jeff McClendon

I still want an Axiom someday. I also need a new car......

Posting photos of hunt results is no longer valid for many people. So is posting anything that is not video verifiable......give me a break. I trust most of you guys and girls on here. The ones I don't trust have the biggest mouths, demand video proof and have it all figured out.

Not Axiom related but..... This tendency you mentioned is annoying to say the least. People spouting opinions about detectors they have never used or owned and never will while appearing to be experts is amazing. Then again, I don't type a letter of text unless it is something I have experienced which for some is definitely not exciting, controversial or eye catching. I guess gratification comes in many different forms.

Here are a couple of things I do. I have two main turf coin/jewelry hunting strategies depending on how bad modern aluminum and iron/steel trash amounts are and just as important, where it is as in if it is mostly near the surface or scattered throughout the possible target depths. Mostly, I like to hunt a "normal" modern trashed park with targets at various depths by hunting mostly with my ears. I set up a 6 tone custom audio program that is easy for me to remember tone wise (I am a professional musician.....) that corresponds to the Legends target IDs for Tone 1 (target IDs 3 to 10) - iron, T2 (target IDs 11 to 22) - small gold jewelry, T3 (target IDs 23-27)- modern nickels and medium sized gold jewelry, T4 (target IDs 28 to 42) - most pull tabs, aluminum screw caps, zinc pennies, huge gold rings, small silver jewelry, T5 (target IDs 43 to 47)- Indian Head pennies, Wheat pennies, Memorial pennies, clad dimes, Mercury dimes, Roosevelt dimes, medium sized silver jewelry, big pieces of aluminum, T6 ( target IDs 48 to 60)- quarters and anything bigger coin wise or aluminum wise. This can be used with Park, Field or Beach along any frequency setting. However, at least where I detect in moderate to high mineralization, the Legend single frequency choices quickly lose all semblance of target ID accuracy on targets deeper than 3". Your results may definitely be different. If the surface is totally trashed with aluminum and iron/steel trash I go nuclear with a 2 tone Pitch tones setup that accepts a little of the iron target ID range (IDs 5 to 10), the small gold and nickel range (IDs 14 to 27) and the zinc penny and up range (39 to 60). Sometimes I just want the copper penny and up range so I only accept 43 to 60. I am not after a lot of depth with this setup. I just want to find some decent targets amidst a ton of shallow trash so turning down sensitivity to a very comfortable 20 or less works just fine where I detect and causes less audio wackiness on surface targets since the Legend only uses DD coils. Here is a photo of some of the gold targets that I have found in the last 2 years placed below their Legend target IDs along with the regularly occurring types of aluminum and steel trash. Random trash targets like the infinite variations of foil and can slaw are not included since they can appear anywhere due to size and depth. Both of the setups I detailed above are based on the tendencies shown in the photo. Due to the Legend's excellent multi frequency technology, the target IDs shown in the photo have been highly repeatable and consistent. They aren't perfect but they are good enough for me down to about 10" depth using the 11" coil which I use a lot. When I look at a park, I think about what types of things are done in the park now and in the past. The number one thing I think about is where would people congregate the most, like where would people get drunk or stoned, where would people go for shade when its really hot and where would lost items be found during a game, etc. At least here in the Denver area, the park maintenance crews regularly use blowers to clear off the sidewalks. Dropping something on a sidewalk like a coin or ring will usually result in that object bouncing and maybe even rolling. Same with concrete courts. So I always hunt very carefully around sidewalks and basketball/tennis courts. Tot lots are also a great place to hunt. I have something like five accessible freshwater beaches near me and hundreds of parks. I am a fairly practical person so I just do whatever is in front of me or easy to get to and don't fret about it. Since the Equinox 600/800 was released, I have been finding enough clad to pay for a new Equinox 800 or a Deus 2 Lite setup each year. I easily do the same or more in jewelry finds. I also have a 5 gallon bucket that is half full of pull tabs found in the last four years! Just a few ideas.

I really like my Deus 2. No, it's not perfect. I hope XP can fix the small gold nugget AND small lead targets of similar size weakess without screwing up the otherwise excellent performance of Deus 2 with the next software update. I will shut up now.

As a former X-Terra owner that transitioned over to the Equinox 800/900, Legend and Deus 2 which all have excellent selectable single frequency choices, I will just speak for myself. I have absolutely no use for a detector with selectable single frequencies of 5, 10 and 15 kHz. Add 20 kHz to that list and I might think about it for a couple of seconds........heck no.

Your Deus 2 must have the hottest Goldfield FMF mode on the planet. I have had 2 different Deus 2 9" coils to test. They both had the same results. Let me put it this way. Instead of a hair's breadth at least on the same seven small gold nugget targets I've tested from .03 grams to .89 grams, its more like a 2" hair's length between Deus 2 and the Legend, Equinox 800, Equinox 900, Gold Kruzer and Garrett 24K. Even my 8 year old 19 kHz Teknetics G2+ on 90 sensitivity and Deus 2's 40 kHz Mono program beats my Deus 2 9" coil in FMF Goldfield by an inch on every target whether its in an air test or an in the ground test. I hope nobody is currently taking a Deus 2 to the Western USA gold fields looking for smaller gold without another, better VLF backup.

Some who have contributed to this topic have criticized the video maker for 1. being a dealer 2. not knowing how to operate a metal detector 3. not doing a fair test. For me, the entire point of the video was to show that an Equinox 900 set on the same numerical value settings as an Equinox 800, totally outperforms the 800 in iron handling and ferrous/non ferrous target unmasking. The purpose of the video was not to show how to setup the Equinox 800 so it will perform at least the same as the Equinox 900 in iron handling and ferrous/non ferrous target unmasking since at least from my testing and from actual side by side hunting......that is not going to happen.

I retested the Equinox 800 with the same mode and settings as Mr. Irvine did in his video with exactly the same results using Fe at 4 and F2 at 4 which is, there was absolute silence with the iron range target IDs rejected and iron audio responses plus three high tone blips during ten sweeps with the iron range target IDs accepted. As I said yesterday, the only way to get my Nox 800 to give somewhat consistent non ferrous tones on this test was to lower Fe and F2 to 0 and raise recovery speed to 8. I hunt with Fe and F2 on 0 most of the time. I never hunt with recovery speed on 8. At recovery speed 8 on the Nox 800 all of the audio is so clipped that I am likely to miss targets unless I have a perfect swing. At recovery speed 8, lack of depth is an issue. I tested the Nokta Legend in Park M1, discrimination on A and F, recovery speed 4, iron filter 4, iron stability 1, bottle cap 0, GS 0, 2 tones and Pitch tones, sensitivity on 20. It performed almost exactly like the Equinox 900 in the video and in my previous testing, which is extremely well. I tested the Xp Deus 2 in Park, discrimination on 25, sensitivity 90, recovery speed 2, silencer 1, notch Off, bottle cap Off, iron volume Off, 2 tones and Pitch tones. It performed very similar to the Equinox 900 and the Nokta Legend, which is extremely well.

Some of these "dead coil" episodes have happened with just the WS6 module acting as master. There has been a handshake glitch reported that doesn't always fully shut down the coil. Hopefully the next software update will fix this issue.

I have experienced four episodes where I arrived at a hunt site with a dead coil battery after checking battery life the day before and there was at least a half charge showing on the remote's or WS6's coil charge icon. My hunts usually last 4 hours, sometimes a little less. I always use wireless audio from the WS6 module and I have never used Deep HC or Diving modes. When I use a selectable single frequency it is 40 kHz which uses the least amount of battery power. I am definitely not getting the optimal 12 hours of runtime of coil battery life suggested in the manual. Also, I hunt in a wide variety of ground conditions including turf, woods, prairie, desert, mountains and occasionally fresh and saltwater beaches. I keep my coil cover on. I have sanded down the area on the lip of the coil cover where the butterfly charging clip attaches to make it easier to install and remove. It still takes a while to get it fully seated. I have knocked my remote off the stem too many times to count. I never had this issue with Deus 1 or the ORX. Thank heavens the Deus 2 remote is well protected by its robust housing. I am not complaining or whining. These issues are real for me and I deal with them. I just report things that seem relevant. Wireless modularity and the many ways of using Deus 2 is something I really like about it. However being modular and wireless is also not a piece of cake for me when it comes to maintaining Deus 2. Steve has said more than once in this topic and the Manticore vs Deus 2 topic that the Deus has always been famous for its outstanding handling of trashy sites. For me, to be specific, Deus and ORX have been outstanding at iron trashed sites while being just "fair" at aluminum trashed sites from my experience. Now Deus 2 with FMF technology has added aluminum trashed sites to its list of places where its performance is outstanding and best in class from my experience so far. So, I just tell it like I experience it. If that upsets other people's XP Deus 2 rosy reverie......sorry.

Thanks for posting the video. I was skeptical at first when I watched it but I figured it can’t hurt to try that test myself. Now I need to do more work with multiple nonferrous target separation and see how that goes. Most of my nearby hunt areas are covered with nonferrous and steel alloy trash.

Park 1 Multi

Like I reported, the Scottish dealer's video and what I experienced were virtually the same using the same detectors, the same settings and slightly different targets. So, it seems that either that dealer and I are both lying or we have very similar performing Nox 800 and Nox 900 detectors for some reason. I will try to do the same test with the Legend and Deus 2 using similar setups soon.

It's great to have both the 800 and 900 to do a similar test to see what this is all about. I used a slightly smaller but very gnarly, rusty 5" square nail, a US nickel and a US silver Rosie dime. The coins were just a bit wider than the nail. Everything that the video showed was repeatable by me using exactly the same settings. I even put the Nox 900 in 2 tones instead of DP tones and still got the same results. So I tried to find a recovery speed and iron bias setting on the 800 that would simulate what the 900 was doing at recovery speed 4 and iron bias 4. Basically, I needed to set the 800 on recovery speed 7 or 8 and iron bias Fe or F2 on 0 (which isn't actually zero or no iron bias) to start to come close to the 900's 4/4 performance. I then tried to find a recovery speed and iron bias setting on the 900 that would simulate what the 800 was doing at recovery speed 4 and iron bias 4. I had to put the recovery speed on 1 and iron bias on 8 or 9 to sort of mimic the 800 at 4/4. Just like with any test, changing the approach angle of the nail with coin behind it away from as parallel to the coil as possible or rotating the nail and coin 90 degrees slightly changed the responses but all in all, the Nox 900 out performed the 800 in this test, PERIOD. I am definitely not a Minelab dealer or any kind of dealer.

NO.

I have owned the ORX, Deus 1 and now Deus 2. Personally, I didn't buy them because they were specifically wireless. Sure, the lower weight that some on here keep reminding everyone about is certainly a good thing the older I get, but I bought these detectors for their iron handling, speed, selectable frequencies and customization features. Now that Deus 2 is both selectable and SMF, I couldn't be happier. If Deus 2 weighed 3 lbs instead of just under 2 lbs, I would have still bought it. Charging three different components that don't have the same amount of battery life is a pain in the ass. So is remembering to bring the antenna and attaching it securely when I happen to want to get wet. Otherwise, Deus 2 is a fabulous improvement over previous Deus and ORX models even though it still sucks for gold prospecting.......

That’s why white gold and platinum/ silver alloy are much more common now. Yellow gold jewelry and natural diamonds have some bad connotations for many people. So the jewelry industry created a new, very lucrative market for cubic zirconia and moissanite back in the 1980s and the non yellow gold settings industry joined in for the fun and big profits. Lab grown diamonds of gem quality came out in the early 2000s. All of those people who complained about blood diamonds created a new market!!!!!

Natural diamonds are not usually set in .925 silver rings. It’s all about the mark-up/money. Spot price for 1 gram of .925 silver right now is $0.70 US. 1 gram of 10K gold is $25. 1 gram of 24K is $60 US. Most engagement style rings like Ken found, weigh in the 2 to 5 gram range without the gemstones and jewelry makers are going to mark up the setting by a minimum 3 times that price or a lot more depending on who made the setting and how. Lab grown diamonds and moissanite which is lab grown silicon carbide can be found in .925 silver like Ken found out and you can find them in gold, white gold, platinum and plated silver. Moissanite does not have a natural cleavage plane like diamonds. It breaks like glass in rounded fractures. That is good for faceting and makes it easier to make a shiny, smooth girdle which also helps with brilliance. Cubic zirconia has the same property. If you see a shiny, highly polished, continuous girdle on a faceted gemstone that appears to be a diamond……….probably isn’t. Cubic zirconia can also be set in .925 silver and in bling pot metal/brass settings. Anytime I see .925 stamped on jewerly it goes in the “good” container instead of the junk/bling container and deserves a close look. A faceted 1 carat low to medium grade natural diamond can start at $1000 and up. A moissanite of the same size and grade starts at around $199 retail. Lots of people like flashy jewerly and lots of people can’t afford natural or lab grown diamonds. Moissanite is a good alternative both for price and quality. Cubic Zirconia is bling quality. So valuable meaning stones worth thousands of dollars retail are not usually found in .925 silver alone settings unless it’s custom made.

Hopefully you have watched the YouTube Channel The Dutch Metal Hunters-Metaaldetector

Some of the Whites 24K coils (at least two of the three I owned previously) were bump sensitive. The Garrett 10X5 I owned was rock solid with no issues.

So So you have a Garrett 24k with a Garrett 10X5 and a Whites 6" or do you have a Whites 24K with a Whites 10X5 and Whites 6"?

After learning more about the Manticore from this excellent topic started by Daniel, I realize now that what I wrote below about how I setup an Equinox in relation to the Manticore is pure drivel. I would just skip right over this entire post. I am learning that in some situations the Manticore is a lot like the Equinox. In some others it seems to be very different. Reading your account of this accidental head to head hunt made me wonder a few things. So, when I am hunting for small sub gram nuggets in 4 to 5 bar F75 dirt with Deus 1/ORX Goldfield or with an Equinox using Gold 1 or Gold 2, I am setup wide open, all targets accepted, 1 tone VCO audio and reactivity somewhere in the middle like 2.5 on Deus and 5 on the Equinox so I can get less of a look at the ground and more of a look at tiny ferrous and non ferrous targets in the surface to 4" or so depth range. Most of these gold targets will read like they are mostly iron unless they are on or near the surface. You instead, are hunting for 3/4 to to 1 ounce targets at 4" or deeper in 4 to 5 bar F75 dirt. I don't know much about the Manticore at all. I just look at the features and the default settings in the manual. I know plenty about Deus 2, especially its Relic and Goldfield modes. Manticore All Terrain General default disc pattern is +5 to 99 with the entire iron target range and the borderline ferrous/non ferrous IDs 0 to 4 rejected, 5 tone Normal audio and recovery speed 5. If I used those settings at my 4 to 5 bar F75 gold prospecting sites I would not hear a peep on sub gram gold or anything else unless it was big and near the surface. Deus 2 Relic mode even with disc set at 4 (still have 4 to 25 which are all iron IDs and the borderline ferrous non ferrous IDs 25 to 30 accepted) is already a big improvement over Manticore's All Terrain General defaults, and reactivity is 1, audio response 5 and audio is one tone VCO. With those settings, I would hear larger targets easily at my 4 to 5 bar F75 gold prospecting sites and might even hear one gram to multi gram nuggets. Bullets for sure would be easy to detect unless they were way deeper than 4 to 6". I did a little testing using some target free dirt that shows 10 of 12 bars on Deus 2 so really bad dirt iron wise. Deus 2, 9" coil in default Relic mode and Equinox 900, 10X5" Coiltek coil in Field 2, all targets accepted, depth tone audio (2 tone VCO) and recovery speed 2 had almost identical results on a 3/4 ounce Maxi Ball at 7" depth. There were plenty of 4 way iron audio and target ID responses with intermittent non ferrous audio responses with jumpy target IDs between 50 and 99. When I bumped up Equinox Field 2's recovery speed to 5, the audio was much weaker, really choppy and sporadic. Equinox 900 in Gold 1 with all targets accepted, 1 tone VCO audio and recovery speed 2 or 3 had similar results to Deus 2 default Relic mode. I also tried Deus 2 in default General and got next to nothing over the Maxi Ball until I opened up the discrimination pattern to add all of the iron target IDs and lowered reactivity to 1. I hope you will try the Manticore again at that site with settings that are more similar to Deus 2 Relic mode just to see if there is any hope of improvement. I never had many good results with a CTX 3030 at highly iron mineralized sites. Maybe I was just not adept at using it correctly. Anyway, I have had very little interest in the Manticore based on my CTX experiences, so I am definitely not being an apologist for Minelab's Manticore by writing all this. I am very happy with my Deus 2 and my Equinox 800 and 900.

A, G, and F are quick and really easy ways to change the iron discrimination pattern. C is for setting up your own custom discrimination pattern. Sure, you can also take the long route and adjust the volume levels and do something similar by setting up a custom pattern Using A, G or F is instantaneous. Using C and setting it up like you want it will take some time and user knowledge. Even if you only use User Profile 1 and don't actually save anything, the Legend will remember your last setup and will go right to it on startup.

I won't discuss the Manticore, since I don't own one and have never used one. For me, the easiest to read display on a bright, sunny beach are the Equinox models, followed by the Legend and then Deus 2. Deus 2 can have its target ID numbers enlarged but at the expense of the other important display features. Also, if you happen to detect a tidal pool of just want to barely submerge the coil in gentle, shallow surf, no additional alterations are necessary with the Legend or Equinox models. Deus 2 would need to have its antenna wire attached even in water that is 5 cm deep. Deus 2 has many fantastic features as do the newer Equinox models and the Legend. As Steve H. said in his post, the differences in performance are not worth even discussing comparing Deus 2, Legend and the newer Equinox 700 and 900. Most casual users will not notice much difference. I own all three and the performance differences even for an obsessed metal detector junkie like me really are minimal between these detectors. I used a Deus 2 Lite setup for awhile. I really liked its light weight. However, using it for saltwater beach hunting on a regular basis is not something I would want to do since the WS6 is not waterproof, the display does not have a backlight and glare from sunlight is a real issue. I recently added the full remote. Even it is hard for me to see sometimes. Using any of these detectors regularly with their wireless headphones on a noisy beach and considering salt degradation and possible accidents........ I would want to use over the ear, wired, waterproof headphones. Those are readily available for all three brands but you may need to purchase a wired headphone adapter or headphones with the brand specific waterproof connector. Using the Deus 2 on the ear back phones at a noisy beach is a joke as is just using the external speakers on these detectors on a regular basis. The Legend and the newer Equinox 700 and 900 (Manticore also?) have a handle vibration feature that alerts the user that a target has been detected so at least with those detectors turning off the external speaker and just using the vibration feature is an alternative to using headphones. Weight is definitely an issue when coils get covered with dry or especially wet sand. So is lower shaft torque with a sand coated coil attached. Deus 2 can become very nose heavy with a sanded coil, so the lightest initial weight does not always mean the best ergonomics for sandy beach detecting. Deus 2 lower shaft torque has definitely been reported by beach/water hunters. I personally would not buy a new Equinox 600 or 800. Their many issues with flooding, broken coil ears and broken arm rests are well documented by beach hunters. The newer Equinox models have been designed to fix those issues. I would buy a new Equinox 700 or 900, a Legend WHP or a full Deus 2. Since you specifically mentioned High End detectors I won't recommend the Minelab Vanquish models which are not waterproof. Even minor rogue waves do happen.