Jeff McClendon

That is not the ultimate comparison in my opinion. If one is testing a VCO audio mode on one detector then any other detector with VCO audio should also be compared using that type of audio. Goldfield on the Legend and the two Gold modes on the Equinox are VCO single tone audio similar to Deus 2 Relic and Goldfield. Which one is deeper doesn't particularly matter to me. From any testing and actual field detecting that I have done, the Legend, Equinox, Deus 1 and ORX single tone VCO audio modes are deeper and more sensitive than any other mode on those detectors. I can't test Deus 2 yet since I don't have a 9" coil. However, not testing them head to head is puzzling.

Make the threshold tone in all modes be able to blank/null on targets with IDs that are discriminated out by a preset or custom discrimination pattern. Add a mineralization meter either in a timed out window or as a button feature. Keep up the great work and thanks for asking for our input.

I agree with Chase in that single frequency vs good quality SMF detectors like the Etrac, CTX, Equinox, Deus 2 and even the Legend, really are a comparison between a detector (single frequency) hitting a deep target and a detector (SMF) not only hitting it but identifying it or at least its conductivity accurately in most cases. Like you and GB Amateur have noted, basing buying decisions on some YouTube tester’s results and marketing information is very iffy unfortunately due to test garden conditions, tester’s parameters (accurate target ID not usually being one of them) where just hitting a target is good enough and marketing mumbo-jumbo. All I can say is why would you upgrade a big coil on the Simplex with a slightly bigger one, when the Simplex has already shown itself to be inferior or basically equal to your T2’s and Gold Bugs as far as inaccurate target IDs on deeper targets. My results in my dirt showed the Simplex to be very similar in all but four ways to the T2, F75 and F70 along with the F19. Those four improvements were slightly better target ID on surface to 6” targets, wireless audio, internal rechargeable battery and waterproof. The Simplex was no where near as accurate target ID wise as my Equinox and Vanquish or the Legend I have now. For the price, the Simplex is an incredible deal when compared to the price of a new T2, F75 or F19 along with a new Garrett AT Pro, AT Gold or AT Max if all one needs is a single frequency detector and one is willing and able to go beep/dig on deeper targets.

I tried to update my Legend for 4 hours yesterday. I used the same Windows laptop that I used for Multi Kruzer, Gold Kruzer and Simplex updates along with two different Macs. I could never get the computers to recognize that my Legend was plugged in to them even after downloading the USB port drivers that are linked on Nokta Makro’s website download instructions. I have noticed that my charging/data cable has had some issues during charging……mainly that sometimes my Legend will power up randomly during charging. So maybe I have a wonky charging/data cable. Hopefully the problem is not in the control unit.

SHB111, you have been a very amiable topic starter and your enthusiasm, willingness to do testing and to listen to the those that have commented with open ears is very commendable. I concur with olddog46. The arrow and spear points look way too fresh, uniform in shape and size and are made from more "pretty" forms of agate and chalcedony than most North American authentic points found in the wild. That does not take away from their beauty.

Flint is very interesting material. There are places in Europe and the US (others probably too) where flint and chert are found within sedimentary rocks like limestone and chalk as nodules. Some are huge. There are some amazing sounding theories about how the flint/chert was once gelatinous silica which filled holes made in the limestone or chert that were originally either cavities created by sea life like bore holes, the decomposition of actual animals that left spaces for the flint/chert to form or similar spaces caused by disintegrating plant life, sponges, etc. So flint and chert are kind of in a weird in between category (is it a rock or a mineral) since they form in sedimentary rocks but are secondary formations. As I said, some of the flint nodules in Europe are the size of a big house and have a uniform texture and a regular almost spherical or disc like shape which could indicate that there were some huge single cell living things in the oceans of the earth at one time. Other nodules have fossilized remains in them that are easily recognizable as plants/animals that we are familiar with.

Two 1.5 hour hunts at local Denver parks with the Legend. Found 332 zinc pennies in one 2'X2' area about 4" deep. Took me almost an hour to recover them and I needed to change my Tek-Point pinpointer batteries afterwards. I just thought there might be a huge piece of aluminum or a buried 6-pack in the ground..........or maybe a casket? Today I would have been happy with just the clad coins and a wheat penny, but I will take a sterling, 10k, 14k and copper ring anytime. The Legend did really well still in Park M1 with the 1.05 software. The 10K .85 gram ring had a 15 for target ID. The 14K 2.3 gram was 19. These small women’s rings were all in the same hole. I found the sterling one first at 4” depth. The 10K and 14K were just a few inches left and right of the sterling one at the same depth.

I am so glad someone bought your F19. Just having it for sale on this site was giving me nightmares caused by chronic F19 separation syndrome. I can take a nice deep breath now, knowing I don't have to struggle with whether I was going to send you a PM or not😁

Thanks Sven. I don't have the wired headphone adapter so I can't test that possibility. The threshold tone volume gradually and pleasantly increases in Park, Field and Beach using the external speaker. I hear no gradual increase of the threshold tone in Goldfield using the external speaker. It just suddenly comes on at setting 5 at a fairly loud volume and gets ridiculously loud by the time it gets to default 13. So, some have reported this as just a BT/BT headphone issue. There is more going on than that which needs to be addressed. By the way. I am a big fan of the Legend. It has proven to be quite a detector. I just want it to be better especially in its Goldfield mode.

I hope that all of the fine people at Nel in Ukraine and their families are safe and that they will be able to reopen soon

Okay, just talking about it made it better. I think I can resist the overwhelming temptation….. Let’s see, I have two Nox 800s, a Deus 1 and the Legend which can all run at roughly 19 kHz so why would I need a Camo F19 with the 10X5 coil…….It’s got those awesome knobs that actually work like old school analog knobs and…………….😱

I have a totally ridiculous infatuation with the Fisher F19/Gold Bug Pro/Technetics G2+. I have bought and sold 5 of them and regretted it each time. It is all I can do to not buy the one Noah FL has for sale on the Classified forum right now plus it‘s the Camo version with the 10X5 coil………..Please help me!!!!!!

I know I am being picky. Maybe I am asking too much. But I want every advantage I can get when hunting for very small non ferrous targets like sub gram gold nuggets or for very deep targets using the Goldfield mode. I remember seeing the illustration in the manual showing the threshold being continuous in Goldfield as opposed to blanking on rejected targets in Park, Field and Beach. I wish that nulling was included in Goldfield. My point here is that the actual threshold tone is not very audible until setting 10. Others have noticed this too. I have no need of the threshold as it is currently set at 10 or above. It is just useless noise in my opinion. The same happens using the external speaker at setting 5. In both cases the threshold tone is suddenly audible instead of being a gradual volume increase. My other point is that there is enough background noise when the threshold is set below ten (even though the tone sounds more like intermittent static than a threshold tone) to act as a nulling threshold. That background noise will null/go silent over discriminated target IDs in Goldfield. That is a very good thing in my opinion. I just wish that background noise was a little more controllable. I am assuming that what I am hearing with the threshold set at 9 or below is part of the target tone/ground noise floor. I use the same technique with the Equinox.......run it as hot as possible so the ground noise will act as a quasi threshold tone which will also null on discriminated target IDs in the Equinox gold modes since the Equinox threshold tone in the Gold modes does not null over discriminated targets. So, I want the threshold tone to start being more gradually audible for sure instead of just coming on at almost full blast at setting 10. However, I also would like to hear the other quasi reference noise that is being generated by the VCO audio too which acts like a nulling threshold............. Since Nokta Makro were good enough to add single digit discrimination to Goldfield, please also make the threshold tone officially a reference threshold if you can.

I have been doing some field testing on small gold, lead, hot rock and typical Western USA gold fields iron/tin trash. All of this testing has been done with planted targets in mineralized ground using the 11" coil and with software update 1.05 installed. At some gold prospecting sites I would probably run the Legend in Goldfield M using the A (all target IDs accepted) discrimination pattern so using an audible reference threshold tone is not crucial. At sites where mineralization is not overpowering I would probably use the Legend in Goldfield M using the G (ground) discrimination setting (1 and 2 rejected) or something similar so that iron minerals like magnetite along with some iron trash will have broken tones and would hopefully be accompanied by a nulling threshold. So far using the Ground (G) or Iron (F) discrimination patterns, I can only hear a nulling threshold on magnetite and iron targets by using a threshold tone volume level of 9 or less. The actual threshold tone itself at volume level 9 or less is very erratic, intermittent, actually hard to hear and unpredictable. I can hear it stop (null) however if I use a sensitivity setting of around 18 or higher. Using threshold volume level of 10 or more creates a constant, unwavering, easy to hear threshold tone which does not null over targets that are being rejected using the G or F discrimination patterns. Hopefully Nokta Makro can fix this issue.

The only time feathers get ruffled on here is when we start preaching instead of teaching or just giving honest opinions and reports from our own experiences. You are just telling your story as it happens which has been a great read.

For me, using Disc IAR depends on the amount of shallow iron targets on or near the surface, the amount of iron mineralization and the size and type of targets I am after. In milder ground without tons of iron targets I use as much as I can to really break up the tone on iron targets. If there are multiple iron targets under every swing and/or higher iron mineralization I usually use as little as possible or none to avoid accidental masking. That’s just me. I am no expert. Did XP change the threshold for the Deus 2 Relic and Gold Field modes so that using some Disc IAR, the threshold tone will clearly null on iron targets using both PWM and Square audio? I heard some early reports that it doesn’t null. Maybe I am mistaken. On Deus 1 and the ORX in their gold modes, the sparky PWM VCO audio almost has a natural background “threshold” even with the actual threshold on zero. Turning up the threshold and using some Disc IAR on an iron target not only breaks up iron target responses, it can also completely silence the audio if set high enough and the iron target isn’t too deep.

Absolutely, one tone VCO audio like Deus 1 Gold Field, ORX Gold modes, Deus 2 Gold Field and Relic modes and the Equinox Gold modes to name a few that I have endured for days and days gold prospecting, can definitely wear out my hearing and morale sometimes. They get old and I hear an imaginary threshold tone for hours after using them. However, they will hit the deep, heavily masked and smaller targets that other modes on the same detectors won't hit even in mineralized dirt. Some fairly recently released detector's VCO hybrid threshold based all metal modes modes are no deeper than their discrimination modes. That is not the case with XP and Minelab. I can't wait to read some more of your posts in this topic. Thanks!!!!!

I hate to throw cold water on that lovely spearpoint. However, from your photos, the spearhead appears to be made from reddish orange jasper/chert, not red sandstone. Also, it is possible for the jasper, chert, agate/chalcedony family of quartz to contain gold and other low temperature forming metals from hydrothermal deposition. I just am not convinced that I am seeing any gold in your spearhead from the photos you provided. Is that spearpoint Native American or a reproduction?

Yes. For me, the target IDs were a bit more unstable on the Legend. However, somewhat like the Equinox, when the Legend's 11" coil's sweet spot is centered over the target the numbers are very stable, even on deeper 7" to 9" targets. On my 11" coil, that spot is directly under the coil nut area. I have not used my Legend since installing software update 1.05 which was supposed to improve M1 in some way that was not described by N/M. Maybe this slight instability of M1 noticed on deeper targets was addressed.

I had the opportunity to hunt a sports complex here in the Denver area two days in a row under similar ground and weather conditions. This sports complex has soil made up of sediments from the last mountain building/erosion episode of the Rocky Mountains and is filled with weathered granite and volcanic rock particles and ash. It will fill up the mineralization meter on a Deus 1 and nearly filled up the mineralization meter on a fellow hunter’s Simplex, so it is very bad ground which allows single frequency detectors to get about 5” of depth on coin sized objects and around half of that for any reliable target ID accuracy. Coin sized targets that are deeper than that are basically undetectable by single frequency detectors in this type of dirt no matter what frequency they run at or what they cost. This is not a comparison by the way between the Equinox and the Legend other than to note that their performance on the same ground was virtually identical. The first session was with the Equinox 800 which I used for 2 hours. The important target results were detecting and accurately identifying 7” to 9” US nickels and various pull tabs along with 7” to 9” copper pennys, clad dimes and clad quarters. Target IDs were only slightly up averaged or wider than normal on these targets so that an 8” US nickel would respond with 11, 12, 13 and 14 target ID numbers instead of just 12/13. That same slight spreading of target ID numbers also occurred with the other coins. In addition, the high iron content of the ground also created some minor occurrences of minus numbers and 39/40s along with the accompanying tones on all of those deeper coin sized targets while running the Equinox 800’s iron bias set to F2 = 3 using Park 1. The Legend also was used at this site for two hours and its results were so similar to the Nox 800 as to be uncanny. It had no trouble detecting and correctly identifying the same types of coin sized targets and pull tabs at similar depths. There were also iron responses that accompanied these deep non-ferrous targets along with the Ferro-Check meter being confused by the mixed responses from the iron rich ground and the coins/pull tabs. Hopefully, the addition of adjustable iron bias settings will help the Legend not give so many of those deep targets so many iron responses along with Ferro-Check confusion. Using Park M1, I also noticed a lot of one way hit target ID 11 responses coming from the ground even with numerous ground grabs which also may be cured by being able to lower the amount of iron bias used in the future. I actually recovered almost the same type and amount of targets using both detectors in different areas of the sports complex after hunting roughly the same amount of time. I just concentrated on digging obvious coin sized non-ferrous targets with relatively stable numbers and repeatable tones. To add to the uncanny performance similarities, I was fooled into digging only one ferrous target by each detector out of over 50 recovered non-ferrous targets by each detector.

Well, for those who want my first real world opinion……..it really is just my opinion gained from the sites I have hunted which are all moderate to extreme iron mineralization sites…….here it is. If you are looking for your first simultaneous multi frequency detector for coin, jewelry and relic hunting and some of that detecting may involve fresh water hunting AND you are on a tight budget say around $500 to $600 US, you currently have two viable choices. The Equinox 600 and the Legend. At this time after thousands of hours using an Equinox 600 and less than 20 hours using a Legend, I would pick the Legend every time, everyday. I am not going to go too far into the whys of my opinion. However, basically the Legend has a feature set that is very close to the Equinox 800 and is far more feature rich than the Equinox 600 with very similar performance on the targets mentioned above. So, I would skip over the Vanquish series, the Garrett APEX and the Equinox 600 and go straight to the Legend for anyone that is considering those detectors for purchase and has budget constraints. Until Nokta Makro straighten out the saltwater beach performance and the adjustable iron bias settings through an update along with releasing the 10X5” elliptical coil, I will not compare the Legend any further to the more expensive competition as far as saltwater and gold prospecting detecting.

I haven’t noticed this issue on my Legend but I haven’t updated it yet. Bill set up some single frequency user profiles from what I understand. That may have something to do with it along with the blurb in the manual which says something like when you turn off and turn back on the Legend, the settings will default to the last user profile used before turning off. As far as I have experienced so far, the Legend in Multi has “normalized” target IDs. In single frequency they are not normalized from what I have seen. The same happens on the Equinox from my experience.

Take those two detectors to a different location hunting in less iron trash and the results could be different. I didn’t see any target recovered that either detector won’t hit if you get the coil over it and know what the detector is indicating. Had CD said “the targets that the Deus 2 found in the gridded area and called non ferrous after detecting the same area with the Legend should have been checked with the Legend to see why I missed them since I probably interpreted them as iron.” Instead he said something condescending about the Legend. That would have given anyone who watched that video and owns a Legend some valuable info instead of just dissing the Legend for not being a viable option since it costs $1000 less than Deus 2. Weird logic if you ask me. Same goes for his opinion that the Legend isn’t as good as the Equinox for the same reason……..$s So Deus 2 must be 2.5 times better than the Legend for all detecting scenarios using his logic. I don't think so. At the specific site he chose for that mostly head to head video.........maybe. Let's see how the Legend does after the iron bias update and the release of some different coils hunting in thick iron trash instead of just calling it done and dusted..........case closed.

There were numerous discrepancies between the online English language manual, the French manual and the actual settings and instructions for Deus 2. You seem to have found one of those.

I have seen a few YouTube videos for Legend trashy park settings from the USA along with advice to use the Legend in single frequencies......... Their advice blows my mind and not in a good way since it is very site and personal preference specific. Not being particularly intelligent, I have actually read the manual from cover to cover several times. I am still confused by the user profiles and saving settings............but whatever I have done so far is working. We are very fortunate to have the Legend be so adjustable. Aside from some software glitches/weird performance during a couple of east coast USA saltwater beach videos, the Legend from my experience is at least everything Dilek said it would be.......... I am really impressed so far.