midalake

1 hour ago, Norm S said:

Getting my 2nd 800 tomorrow. Ordered on Monday.. That will make two 800's and one 600.  The 2nd 800 is my grandsons birthday. 

Wow! Do you need another grandson...........I am available! ?

16 hours ago, mn90403 said:

When you are digging everything to see what a machine can do then you dig everything.  After a period of time you decide not to dig such things and you setup the machine in a different way.  The Nox is an international seller.  Some English and Canadian coins I find here are definitely in my 'trash zone.'  How can you not dig a bit of trash in the beginning?

The picture below is from my hunt yesterday. I threw out the trash before your reply. The trash was minimal yesterday with a few small "hot" rusted iron objects, about 15 or so trash items in total. I understand about digging everything, as I use a Sovereign GT in all metal pinpoint mode. I get the fact that depth and sensitivity go hand-in-hand. But if the Nox is concentrating too much on small items at the beach this may actually be a drawback. So do not get mad at me but I would not rather see and dig little stuff...especially stuff that goes through my scoop holes.  By the way 367 pesos 151 coins in total and one lousy bracelet [no other jewelry].

18 minutes ago, schoolofhardNox said:

It's funny. The Equinox reminds me of an Etrac/GPX 5000 hybrid machine. It picks up small stuff like my GPX but has kind of an older Minelab multi frequency feel. Here's some of the small stuff it found at the beach that day. I had even smaller pieces but forgot to photograph them. 

With all do respect.......I do not want to find the items in your picture. 

Dave

2 hours ago, Dug D said:

It does seem like a phone could be a possible source, (like a phone trying to connect to a wifi signal) some phones have an "extreme power saving mode" it allows for texts and phone calls, but cuts off all everything else. If airplane mode fixes the issue, maybe extreme power saving will also work and allow the phones basic features?

A couple of days ago on the beach. A friend got close to me with a power mega phone......My Sovereign went nuts, chirping like a canary. So you never know.....

Can the detector go in airplane mode?  

6 hours ago, flakmagnet said:

Secondly; it is absolutely necessary to take the coil cover off each time you use the detector, especially in the sand. To my surprise I see that the coil cover is the only thing between the potting in the coil and the ground. (first full coil pic) I am a PI detectorist and so maybe I just don't know about vlf's but I was surprised to see the potting so easily accessed. After two hours of hunting, there was lots of sand under the coil cover and I am sure it began to affect the way the detector behaved. 

Put the coil cover in the closet and put a coat of marine epoxy on the bottom. 

Dave

6 minutes ago, MontAmmie said:

Dave,

Will putting epoxy on the coil not void the warranty on the coil?  Thanks!

I do not know, I have never had a failure in a coil except for the sheeting covering the wires....way out of warranty.

8 minutes ago, Chase Goldman said:

Why is drilling the lower hole not recommended?  Thanks.

In my opinion, the most pressure on your shaft  is when you are moving it in water or when you have water rushing by it. The coil is the heaviest part, putting all the pressure on the portion of the shaft above the coil. Personally I do not want to weaken that portion of the shaft. Due to water weight, sand, the ease of taking the shaft apart....keep the water/sand out to begin with. I have drilled a hole in the end cap of my custom straight shaft by my arm. When I am done I just point the coil in the air and if a drop or two comes out that is a lot.

D  

3 hours ago, Thegoldenone said:

I think you'll be fine on the dry and damp beach it's when you go in the water that the sand seems to work its way in underneath the coil cover... I'm sure they're expensive so this will be the first time I will use a coil cover.... I'm looking for some black silicone caulking to seal the coil cover

A few people here have been talking about issues/problems with salt water detecting. I will address a few of the problems and solutions.

Your scoop......When putting your travel scoop together do so with some heavy white grease on both portions. Then Put electricians tape around the seam. This will keep water and sand out, also allows the white grease to remain longer. Every month re-do it.

Coil covers... Throw the coil cover in your closet. It has no place being on a detector in the water. To protect the bottom of the coil take JB weld or two part marine epoxy and brush a thin layer all over the bottom side. Mine will last about a year, just touch-up missing areas as necessary.   

Your shaft....PLEASE do not drill lower holes...  Again use a heavy White Grease to put your shaft together. Also use Black Electricians tape to cover all water/sand entry points. If you have issues with the tape unwinding use silicone caulk on the last 1" or so. Same as the scoop about monthly just remove the tape and re-do the connection. point.  

Edit/add......if you are breaking in a new coil to be coated with epoxy, it is better if you do run it in the sand some to dull the surface of the factory coating. The epoxy will adhere better...of course clean well before applying.

Dave

45 minutes ago, Steve Herschbach said:

I never said they are identical. If that were the case there would be one model, not two. Since you are looking for a sales person to sell you an Equinox I suggest you go find one. I personally couldn’t care less if you ever get an Equinox. As far as my mention of PI that was to explain my personal perspective and where I am coming from. Since you have no interest at all in anything I have to say then perhaps you should just wander off and find some other forum where the host better suits your proclivities.

Partially taking you advise. Off for a 3-4hr Salt water hunt.

D

1 hour ago, Steve Herschbach said:

Hi Dave,

Sorry, I missed your post earlier. If you are looking for me to justify anything you got the wrong guy. The settings are what they are. If you have serious concerns or issues as regards the beach performance of the Equinox then I suggest you wait six months to a year for a wide ranging consensus from users around the world to develop. Perhaps when I have the opportunity to get in a lot of hours of beach use with the Equinox myself I will be better equipped to answer that question. Other individuals were far more involved in the beach aspects of Equinox than I and in that respect I have plenty to learn yet myself. My time on the beach has been limited to proving to myself it has the punch I want, and since I have generally preferred using a PI for beach detecting I am fairly sure Equinox will do better than a PI as regards bobby pins and nails. It’s not an issue that overly concerns me but obviously it is a primary concern for you. If that is the case, then hopefully at some point somebody will be able to alleviate your concerns or not in that area. In the meantime you may be better off continuing to use whatever you have.

Well that is a disappointing answer. I just want to say you are the one stating these two machine are identical. If your not sure where does that leave me?  That the difference in Iron Bias adjustment and I will throw in recovery speed adjustment as well.........maybe these machines are not the same!  Also to mention a PI machine in the same breath with an Equinox is a horrible comparison in my opinion. 

Dave

10 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

“I have seen some confusion on the internet regarding the differences between the Minelab EQUINOX 600 and EQUINOX 800. I think that the EQUINOX 600 is being somewhat overlooked because it’s not the “top model” but, in my opinion, it is incredible value for a remarkably low price. I hope this blog will clear up any confusion and, in the process, show why I think the EQUINOX 600 deserves a second look by some people…”

https://www.minelab.com/anz/go-minelabbing/treasure-talk/equinox-600-vs-equinox-800

So Steve

Assuming one wants one of these machines to hunt salt water. How can one justify the Iron Bias settings between the two detectors? 

The 600 comes preset at 2,  The 800 comes preset at 6..............The 600 has a max setting of 3..........This seems like a complete disconnect.  And yes I know a 3 setting on a 600 is 6 on the 800. But the 600 is missing  settings 7 and 8.  

Am I really going to be able to get rid of bobby pins and nails at the beach with the 600?

Dave

13 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

I sure second that Mitchel. The external speaker is quite loud and does initially make me think the headphones have already paired sometimes so it is actually pretty understandable. One thing about Minelabs historically has been weak audio and this was another area where Minelab paid attention and did a great job in my opionion. Glad to hear you hung in there. This is why it is so important people give things a bit of time before making a snap judgement.

I see ongoing commentary about Minelab not saying much or testers not saying much. I flat out told people over on another forum that it is because the machine will sell itself. All Minelab has to do is get them out and in users hands. The rest is just going to happen.

If the audio only comes through the speaker and NOT the headphones........the detector will be worthless to me. So is there a ruling on this? 

Dave

45 minutes ago, Chase Goldman said:

Depends on how much and the type of iron on your beach.  Since beaches vary in that regard, you will probably have to experiment on each beach.  But I suspect, once you have it dialed in for a specific beach, you can probably forget about it. 

I am not so sure the iron bias will make a difference or "see" black sand at all. After all it is multi-freq that cuts black sand in conjunction with sensitivity and threshold. Once a detectable target is passed under the coil then iron bias will come into play. Even Minelab's own definition mentions nothing about soils conditions.

5 hours ago, dewcon4414 said:

Is that a METAL clink i hear?   Are the Shafts aluminum?  Now come on....... they used a CTX connector for the cable and not the phones?  LOL...... a penny first target 24 imagine that.   I appreciate the video...... targets are what that are.  Once this thing is out....... i believe we will see its not just a coin machine..... it will pick up gold.... smaller gold than the CTX/Xcal.

That was fairly painful to watch. Aluminum will work great in Salt Water. I did catch the part where they had to turn sensitivity down......my beach has more black sand than the one they were on. 

2 hours ago, Nuke em said:

The second line from the bottom are the new Pound coins . The line above are the old Pound coins that are no longer in circulation but can be banked . The new ones are the same style as the old Three Penny bit that we had in 1937 to 67 but slightly thicker and wider. 

Wow...they look exactly like 10 Peso Mexican coins.

On 1/18/2018 at 8:23 AM, Nuke em said:

 

What coins are those with the brass colored outside and silver color inside?

Dave

20 hours ago, Gerry in Idaho said:

 

Now if you could only get what is in that picture to me in Mexico right now!  I could have many questions answered in 48hrs. PS, Had a two gold ring day yesterday! 

4 hours ago, Sinclair said:

Well - you can use your favorite existing headphones with the benefit of having no wire running to the detector...

I really like that feature!

Well that is good. There is no other phone I want to run on the beach other than Black Widows! 

Dave

I find that at 55 there is no need to bend over and go to the ground to pull silver coins out when I can stand and pull gold off the beach. I have had a sovereign since the XS. Is there any machine really better than the GT in wet salt. NO.

I am not getting NOX yet, mainly because I am already on my 4 month detecting sabbatical. Will be listening closely and I think there is one member here that knows the BBS tech. well and between him and his group I will know soon enough. 

Dave 

21 minutes ago, Chase Goldman said:

And an Excal II and a CTX should bang on it as hard as well, I would expect no less from these specialized or top of the line Minelab Multi frequency detectors.  But is the demonstrated performance coming at the same cost and/or with the same overall flexibility, though?  That is the question folks should be asking themselves about the Equinox.  Did Minelab come up with the proper balance of features, performance, cost?  Balance means that the Equinox SHOULD be outperformed in some respects by other detectors in Minelab’s product line.  So if the Equinox is not the end all and be all needed for a specific set of conditions, not surprising that folks ma stick with their GTs, Excals, or CTX.  In my case, I am expecting improved mineralized dirt performance vs. any other vlf out there be it Multi frequency or not.  I still don’t expect it to outperform my GPX.  My GPX doesn’t like rain...so the Equinox might come out at that point.

To to help one confused person and to clarify. If you know your detector as much as I do. The Excal and GT will both loose performance if you have moving water[salt water] past your coil [as in a wave coming up and back out the beach].  Yesterday there were several targets I came back to because I thought I heard something. When the water was out a CLEAR faint signal would repeat. So if the NOX is going to have any salt, it will need to be stable both with some black sand around and with moving salt water. On most days the beach I hunt I can be over waist deep and have 15' feet of wet sand to the water standing in the same spot. Anyone who does not understand your Excal and GT looses performance with a wave coming and going does not know their machine very well.  Dave

OK That video!  Well let me tell ya! That coin would have blown my ears off on my GT. I need stability in salt and MOVING SALT WATER!

Dave

I don't FB someone translate.

2 hours ago, Cabo Chris said:

As a shallow water hunter who travels to hunt, I'm finding the NOX 600 attractive.  First I travel with 2 machines and will need 2 sets of waterproof headphones... this as back-up.  Imagine arriving at your final destination only to discover your machine quit!  The price of 2 600s and 2 sets water phones is less than the price of 2 800s.  

ML says on a wet salt beach the prospecting mode will not work.  So do I need it or any of the other 800 extra bells?  Perhaps?  If the NOX meets my expectations, then for the first time that I can recall, will be able to travel with a great detector (600) where it will only take 1 or 2 gold ring finds to fully pay for the machine!  Which means most likely paid for on my first day in the water!  OK the 800 is not that much more, but with the 600 one can almost view it as disposable!  Before you all pounce on me by that I mean.... If my CTX 3030 gets broken, run over or stolen on a trip... there goes $2400!  If customs or some Island cop decides to confiscate it, there goes $2,400!    Were I to lose a 600, well that's far less hurt and won't cut as much into my trip profits... or add big to losses!  Losing an 800 there is just a bit more ouch factor than a 600.

From years experience, if something can go wrong on a trip it will.  Like everything being stolen out of your room, including your passport!  So I see the 600s as having less Ouch Factor for my style detecting.  Plus it's not that far fetched to sell the 600s after 2 or 3 trips and replace them with new ones- just for better reliability.   Now for those who need a Jack of all Trades machine, 800 all the way!  Or if it turns out the 800 for some reason is better in saltwater than a 600, again the 800 wins.      

OK, Does Minelab not say you need all of the frequencies of the 800 to do beach mode?  Or do both machines have a beach mode?

Dave

I saw a NOX video where there was a chunk of iron among clad/high conductive coins and the NOX ignored the chunk of iron. So I m going to go out on a limb and say "what stinkin bottle caps"           Dave