Walter S. Fowler

On 7/16/2020 at 4:49 AM, Steve Herschbach said:

I assume you are using tracking or the so-called automatic pump method? I can’t say I’ve ever had much luck with the auto pump method, and always set the ground balance manually.

Minelab needs to get their act together fast on these repair/replacement delays. They spent the last three years building up a reputation for quick, efficient turn around, and a pissing that all away now.

I haven't been looked at the forum for a while, as I was awaiting the return of my control pod and coil.  But, finally did get both a new control pod and coil back from Minelab just recently with extreme apologies  for the delay which they attributed to a parts delay due to Coil-19.  I'm sure they did the best they could in terms of getting me a new pod and coil.  The issue was also very confusing and took them a while to figure out.  Actually, they never did totally figure it out and just decided to give me a new pod and coil.   I tried both the automatic pump method and manual ground balance when it first started giving me problems with the same bad issues occurring , but not all the time which made it even more frustrating. I don't use tracking.  Also, installed new 3.0 update successfully and at least in my ground test garden does seem to hit better on my deeper test coins.  As mentioned by Steve, very grateful to get updates from Minelab.  Happy to be back detecting again. Spent the last 6 weeks water/beach detecting at Lake Tahoe with my pulse detector. 

Just throwing this out in case anyone else has had this problem or for future reference.in case anyone has it in the future.  I bought my Equinox 800 in April 2018 and it has been great with no problems until  a month ago. I started getting problems ground balancing and getting very different ground balancing numbers even over the same ground.  I tried factory reset but didn't help .  Also, it didn't always have the problem. I called Minelab and they had me send control pod and 11" coil to their service center in PA. in early June as it was under warranty.  (thankfully). After getting message they had it and processing might be delayed due to Colvid-19 issues I finally heard back from them July 7.  They indicated "after much testing the unit has begun showing issues.  However, the issue is very sporadic and does it when it decides too.  The issue is a ground balance issue. When trying to ground balance the unit it will ground balance correctly.  The unit will be wildly off in the 80's.  Next it will ground bale to 0, all in the same location of a couple of feet. The difficulty of pin pointing it however is that it seems to do it even when replacing an item.  Our test coil will experience the same issue on the customer's pod.  The I tried the customer's coil on our control pod and will experience the issue again.  I have done factory resets and reloaded the latest firmware to insure it was not just a software problem. Out of an abundance of caution, I strongly recommend the replacement of both the coil and the control pod.   NOTE: There will be a delay on the control pod as there are parts difficulties due to Covid-19. Once art is received  we will update the ticket and return the unit to the customer."  This all was very weird.  I recontacted Minelab about what the new timeframe might be for getting my detector back and why I just couldn't have them send me a brand new detector(minus wireless headphones] .  No response back as yet.  

On 10/21/2019 at 9:24 AM, GB_Amateur said:

What were the TID's you were seeing with the nails?

It looks like some of them don't have heads.  Do you think they were cut off, or actually made that way?  Also the fraction that appear straight seems pretty high.  Was there any sign of a fire?  If not maybe a nail spill (ala 'coin spill') is responsible for a bunch of these.

There's gotta be more good stuff at that site.  Don't give up on it!

 

The TID's were in the same range as a copper penny around 23-27 , but some jumped all over the place.  Yes, there was sign of a fire and also bits of pottery and glass and large pieces of iron of various shapes.  Does seem strange that so many are not bent and perfectly shaped.. Might have been that a building burned down at this site.?  I'm still trying to do research .   The ground is very mineralized at this site also. I haven't found any coins there as yet, but still hopeful.  I think the ones without heads were just broken for some reason.

I went out yesterday with my Equinox 800 to a previously located site and found a few more square cut nails and a few other interesting items.  Well, actually 84 more square cut nails. Using Field 1, changed to 5 tones, recovery speed 4, F2 at 2.  Makes you wonder why/how that many square cut nails ended up in such a concentrated area.  Quite a few of them were found just using my pinpointer. It's always fun getting out in the woods and doing some relic hunting instead of the usual coinshooting in local parks.  

I used the old software on my Equinox 800 this morning using my Normal Field 1, recovery speed lowered to 3, changed to 5 tones, and everything else factory.   I found a nice sterling silver Saint Christopher pendant and 25 coins.   However, after successfully installing the new software 2.0 I did some testing on targets in the front yard.  I did see a marked difference in the response (sound) to a bottle cap after bumping up the new F2 iron bias to 7.  My question is the setting on the old iron bias should be similar to the new F2 iron bias setting(say 1 on both or 7 on both) , or, does the two somehow work in different reams? Can the iron bias be 1 on the old iron bias and 7 on the new F2 to get the best results of a different sound response on bottle caps?  Im still playing with it, but curious to know anyones take on the settings question. Of course, there wasn't much of a explanation from Minelab on their website on how the the new feature works or the settings, but I am grateful that they do come out with updates/ fixes. Thanks.

17 hours ago, Chase Goldman said:

The lack of corrosion on those nails indicates they were likely annealed by a structural fire or the wood was intentionally burned in a bonfire.  Though the arid climate and soil could have also limited corrosion, too.

Funny you should mention that. There was some evidence of a campfire or some other type of fire at the site including some pieces of melted glass.  As always, thanks to everyone for the added information about square cut nails and comments. Good hunting!

I've been metal detecting with my Minelab Equinox 800 all summer sine getting it in April 2018, but just finding the usual coins and nothing exciting to post.   The last several days outside Reno I made it out to a new site and found a cache of  75 square(actually rectangle) cut nails and some other interesting items.  One item appears to be the end of an old spoon. Using Field 1 pretty much factory settings, but when in town and hunting parks I lower recovery speed down to 3 and slow speed rate speed way down . ( I find gets better depth) . Also, switch target zones to 5 to get more different sounds on the various targets.  For the first 1 and 1/2 years of using the Equinox I used Park 1 all the time, but after getting more experienced with it, help from this forum, and reading a couple of books on the NOX( Clive James Clynick and Andy Sabisch books) I feel comfortable enough using some other modes and changing the factory settings.  After using a Whites XLT for 15 years it definitely was a learning curve with he NOX , but well worth the learning process.   Now, up to 1061 coins and $71.16 for 2019 including the water/sand finds with another detector. (including 9 wheat cents). The forum does great job of speeding up the learning process. Great day in the field. 

Thanks Steve.  Looking at the YouTube reviews of the Fisher F-Pulse pinpointer, but more importantly your original writeup of the F-Pulse was what influenced me to get it.  What has been your most effective way to ground balance it, if necessary?  Per the instruction manual there are several different ways to ground balance it.  I tried both methods myself and they both seem to work.  Thanks for doing such a great job on the forum. 

Got out today with the Equinox 800 for a short hunt.  Not a lot of coins, but did find 1944s wheat penny and Malibu Castle & Showboat Fun Center token.   I believe this amusement park was active in the 1970's, 1980's, and 1990's in North Holleywood, Ca.  and closed and then burned to the ground in 1998.   Correct me if I'm wrong. The live round was a PMC .270 Win.  I have no idea how it got to where it was. Used my regular Park 1, recovery speed down to 4, and sensitivity up to 23.  Also, first time out with my Fisher F-Pulse pinpointer which replaces my Garrett (black) Propointer.  The F-Pluse definitely goes about 1 1/2 inches deeper on most coins and has a lot more features than my older pinpointer.  It is much more powerful and does require ground balancing to operate smoothly.  Anyone  have any experience longer term with the Fisher F-Pulse they would want to share? Thanks. 

I was able to go out detecting with the Nox 800 for the first time this year several days ago.  The weather has been bad in Northern Nevada this year and I had minor knee surgery in early March. I didn't find a lot of coins , but did manage to find an unreadable date wheat penny, a tiny gold ring, and beautiful 17" necklace(unfortunately not gold.).  The gold ring measured in at .9 gram and was by far the smallest gold ring I have found in 16 years of detecting.  The Nox sniffed it out at about 6 inches down with a solid "9" .  The ring was so small it was even hard to locate with my pinpointer , but finally managed to capture it.  I was using my standard Park 1, recovery speed 5, iron bias 1, and sensitivity 18-20 based on conditions. 

Messed up on my original post and forgot the wording.  However, just got back from visiting family in Denver , CO. and found the coins and items in a local park.  Found 1955d wheat penny, hose nozzle, and what appears to be address name plate before zip codes which I believe started in 1963, Don't know what it was on as was not found at the same address as shown on the item. Any ideas? Used my normal Park 1 mode with recovery at 5, iron bias at 1, and sensitivity depending on conditions. 

About a week ago I had another great hunt for older coins with my Equinox 800. I don't often go to areas with the chance of finding older coins so this was a real treat.  Of course, finding older coins is very much a function of going to places where the older coins actually are there.  Found 1941s, 1952d,1941s, 1910, and 1953 wheat pennies. The 1953 on the far left in the photo had been made into a button.  Pretty neat.  Also, found 1956d rosie, 1935 and 1924s Mercury dimes in nice condition. Also, found 2 ea Mexico 1946 10 Centavos and 1 ea Mexico 1945 10 Centavos.  Hunted in my normal Park 1 with Recovery speed upped to 6, iron bias down to 1, and sensitivity 18-20 depending on conditions.  Really getting to like the Equinox after a beginning with a strong learning curve after having used another detector (Whites XLT) for 14 years.  

On 7/24/2018 at 4:42 AM, GB_Amateur said:

I haven't felt loss at working any of Park-1, Park-2, Field-1, and Field-2.  I start with one (usually one of the Parks) and then move to another when the environment (especially EMI) drives me.  Like you, I turn the iron bias way down from the default when in Park-1.  Eqx really is (more than) four detectors in one.  If you only had any one of the modes it would be a top detector.  Getting to choose according to conditions is a bonus.

You said your Warnick ID'ed at 16?  I wonder if that had anything to do with its depth in your (presumably mineralized) soil.  Did you check it after it was recovered?  I've been ignoring 15-17 range but you have me second-guessing my decision, now.  I'm working sites which should produce those desirable targets and sure don't want to miss one.  The only silver nickel I've found was right there with the copper variety -- 12-13.

I went back today and double checked the ID on the War nickel in my back yard soil in Reno, NV. It still came in at a solid 16.  But, per previous posts including Steve the ID number on various targets can differ according to the ground conditions.  Regardless,I dig everything to avoid missing any good targets and not have to deal with the same target in the next visit to that site.  Now, a different subject.  I didn't reply to your question sooner as yesterday I was up at Lake Tahoe detecting at a very heavily minialized black sand beach.  I found a 14k gold ring and a sterling silver ring with my pulse induction detector.  This beach is so bad in some areas that the pulse induction detector can find things, but I haven't been able to get the NOX 800 to locate things the pulse detector can.  But, per previous posts including Steve even the NOX can't do all the things and everything that a group of highly specialized  detector can do.  I have tried the NOX at this beach and can find coins but not in the really bad areas or in the same  amount as the pulse detector. However, still learning the NOX and hope to get it to work better in these very advise conditions. I've tried the various modes, decreased the sensivity , increased the recovery speed, etc. , but in the really bad areas has not helped much. 

Finally getting the learning curve moving forward with the Equinox 800 after getting it in late April and using a Whites XLT for 14 years.  On 9th outing with the NOX yesterday found 1944s and 1940 wheat pennies, 1928d Buffalo nickel, and 35 per cent silver 1943s War nickel.  Starting to find the coins with this awesome machine that I was really frustrated with in the beginning. Of course, every outing depending on where it is will not have older coins, but I can now use the NOX much better to its capabilities. I use the Park 1 only now with recovery speed upped to 6 and iron bias down to 1 and sensitivity from 16-20 based on conditions.  The Buffalo hit pretty solid at 13 and the War nickel at 16 down about 5-6 inches.   Thanks again to Steve and everyone else who gave me hope and suggestions on learning the NOX. I found the sterling silver earring on an earlier outing.  Still learning with it and never finished learning, but makes it much more enjoyable when you start to find coins and the older, deeper targets.  Also, thanks to all the veteran users who submit the ideas for better using the NOX.

2 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

Do remember that each mode has separate noise cancel settings. So doing a noise cancel in one mode does not work when you switch modes unless you noise cancel them also. Treat each mode as a separate detector with separate settings.

Thanks for the reminder.  I did a noise cancel and ground balance when I switched modes, but again thanks .  I worked with Field 1 in my backyard to simplify things as strongly mentioned in Chase's excellent post.  It was wonderful to get that type of help/feedback from someone in such great detail. Now a days it's not too often that someone goes to that extent to help someone out.  It is like having 5 detectors in one. As mentioned in another post, hopefully, there are still some coins to find out there in Reno parks. Probably going out Monday AM to give the 800 another try with a whole new plan of attack(keep it simple stupid approach).  Then, probably going up to lake Tahoe on Wednesday, but don't want to use the Equinox 800 until I get more familiar with it ( heavy mineralized black sand beach) and will stick with my Garrett Infinium LS. Thanks again and love the site.

14 hours ago, Chase Goldman said:

Walter -

First of all, hang in there.  It is going to be a frustrating journey because you are being forced out of your 14-year XLT comfort zone.  It is not going to be love at first sight.  You apparently picked a tough site situation and without experience on the machine did not have enough familiarity with the machine to be able to tweak it to compensate for a tough situation (sprinkler pipe and few targets).  The XLT and the Equinox are very different in their speed and range of target sensitivity so you can easily get overloaded by what the Equinox is telling you.  I was coming from a Deus which is similar to Equinox in terms of speed and tonality (i.e., target dig decisions are based primarily off tonal cues rather than off visual target IDs), yet still am climbing somewhat of a learning curve.  So despite your years of detecting experience, there will be some getting used to a different beast and that may take a few outings to get both your comfort level with the machine up and your confidence in the machine up.  This will come with time and certain things will click.

Couple of friendly suggestions.  First - see if you can track down Steve H. and follow behind him.  Lol.  But seriously, grab some popcorn and try the following:

Site Selection - Try taking the machine to a site you are familiar with, that produced at one point and preferably is still producing.  Do not challenge the machine or yourself the first few times out.  If you have no choice but to go to a hunted out spot, at least try to find a site that is free of other issues like plentiful ferrous and non-ferrous trash, nearby interference (power lines), and other similar difficulties that are normally fun to overcome when you are on top of your game but that you don't need to deal with when learning a new machine.  Since you are not familiar with the machine, at least go to site you know like the back of your hand.

Mode Selection - Pick the mode appropriate for the site and stick with that mode regardless of the results.  By appropriate for the site I mean appropriate for the targets you want to find and that you are most likely to find at that site, not just the landscape.  If you are coin shooting - go with Park 1 or Field 1 as those are geared towards hitting harder on high conductive targets.  If you are going after primarily mid-conductive targets (gold, brass or lead relics, small jewelry, nickels) then you can go with Park 2 or Field 2 which are geared towards those targets.  Note, however, the "2" modes are hotter and will hit hard on aluminum trash and small trashy objects which can be overwhelming.  That is why I recommend Park 1 or the oft ignored Field 1 (because it is a two-tone ferrous/non ferrous beep mode) as the best "training ground" modes for newcomers to the Equinox and to fast detectors in general.  Beach modes are also great learning modes (esp. Beach 1) if you are at a salt beach, especially.  But since this is likely not the case in Reno.  I would stick with Park or Field 1.  Don't bother with Gold modes for now because they are a different animal with respect to tones (VCO-based) and you only need to learn one detector at this point.  I am not kidding by the way about learning one detector.  Each of the modes behave so differently, it is literally like you are taking out a different detector every time you switch modes.  Folks have advised to not over tweak the settings.  But I am advising you to not over select the modes.  Pick a mode and stick with it. Learn it.  Love it.  It is a multifrequency machine after all, so even if you stick with one mode you will not be stuck finding only one type of target.  So don't be afraid to use your "go to" mode at multiple different sites even if you are looking for different target types.  Once you gain confidence, feel free to shift around and learn what the other modes can do.  But if you shift modes every half hour out of frustration, it will be like running to grab a new machine every half hour.  So avoid the temptation to do "Mode Hopping".

Settings - Once you have settled on a mode.  Your goal is to set your machine up to run as quiet as possible.  Do NOT get into a reactive mode and start tweaking settings because you are not hitting targets.  Adjust settings, if necessary, because the noise is keeping you from hearing the targets.  Equinox is set up for success when you have maximized signal to noise ratio not when you have maximized signal gain.   Here is what you do - Auto Noise Cancel - keep the coil in the air when you do this.  If you have relatively mild soil - you do not have to ground balance because the machine is pretty forgiving if GB is not set precisely to match the actual ground phase, but I go ahead and do an auto GB (hold the accept/reject button and pump) regardless and let the machine zero in on the right GB reading, especially if I know the soil has some mineralization.  Do not adjust recovery speed or Iron Bias from their defaults.  Once you come out of the settings menu if the machine is still chatty, then dial down sensitivity as necessary to get rid of the chattiness.  Don't be afraid to go low because the machine is pretty sensitive at the default and will still go deep - you need it to quiet down, though.  Take Steve's advice.  Once you think you have the machine running quiet then start swinging.  If you are using a mode that uses 50-tones (Park 2, Field 2), you might want to adjust that mode back to 5-tones to keep from getting overloaded.  The "1" modes default to 5 tones (Park 1) or 2 Tones (Field 1) which makes them a good starting point.  50 tones really gives you a feel for tonal nuances on targets so you may eventually want to go there but if you find it overwhelming, no problem just going with 5 tones or even 2 tones.

Swing technique and Target ID - Use your test garden to gage the best swing speed for the recovery speed setting you are using.  This may take a little getting used to.  The faster recovery speed of the Equinox will tend to force you to swing perhaps a little faster than you are used to in order to get a good target signal response.  You can, of course, overswing and also not get a good response but you should practice and listen to what good targets sound like and get to the point that you can just wiggle the center of the coil over them to get the response you need.  Listen to the good tones and bad tones.  Dig probable junk to verify your suspicions.  This will build your aural muscle memory and get you use to the tones.  Rely on target ID to back up your tonal ID and look for target ID bounce indicating likely junk.  Also, make liberal use of the All Metal Horseshoe button to interrogate a target and listen for iron tones which may indicate that the tone you are hearing is iron falsing.  Now I will say the depth meter has been reported to be a little wonky - I don't use a depth meter anyway so I am not missing it on this machine, but there does seem to be a love-hate relationship with it amongst Equinox users and the pinpointing feature is also a little quirky, but I have gotten used to it and like it not because it helps me pinpoint the target better (I use the wiggle off method primarily) but because it is a non-motion mode that gives you some good audible information on the target to help determine relative size and depth.

As you gain confidence in your abilities with the Equinox you can start tweaking other settings, but don't do it without a purpose (remember - the key is getting rid of unnecessary noise or falsing, but it is always a balancing act against losing target depth or inadvertently missing a target due to overfiltering - e.g., overuse of iron bias).  The default settings are good for 80 to 90% of your detecting situations.  Also, you may gain some insight based on what you wrote above.  In one post you said you went through all the modes, you tweaked recovery speed and iron bias, you dialed down on sensitivity.  In the next post you said all you did was switch modes and left the settings at their defaults.  So there may be a little new machine confusion going on.  To ensure you are starting at the default settings for your next outing, you may want to take Bill's advice and do a factory reset.

Again, Walter, hang in there and stick with the machine for awhile.  It will grow on you after a bit, you just need to snag a few keepers to gain confidence in the machine.  Once you get on a roll, you will steadily climb that learning curve.  But the best thing you can do is minimize the variables that force you to take backward steps.  Good Luck and Happy Hunting, sir.

Thanks for all the info.  Being very frustrated on my first post I misspoke when I said I changed the recovery speed and iron bias.  I just accepted what the mode was set up for , but I did start dialing down the sensitivity.  I was guilty of mode hopping , also when I did noise cancel I had the coil on the ground, and went to a park that I had not been to since 2011(big mistake).  On a better note I did dig dimes, nickels, and pennies so I became familiar with the varying signals and target Id's , dug some junk targets, dug some deep targets (that weren't sprinkler heads or pipes), got plenty of sun , and lots of good exercise.I'm very competitive with myself and set yearly goals for the coin totals I hope to find , so, it was very discouraging based on my past experience.  Based on my test garden I already know this beast goes deeper so I'm going to adjust my goals to hope for more older coins.  Do you suggest using the Auto Tracking after ground balancing? Thanks again for all the good info. and to everyone else who replied. 

2 hours ago, Jeff in Pa said:

Maybe some of the issues are coming from interference from your cell phone? Try putting your phone in airplane mode or just turn it off.

I just went thru this issue and it frustrated the heck out of me till I realized what was going on.

Thanks. I had my phone on airplane mode for this hunt, but will leave it in the car next time.

14 minutes ago, Bill (S. CA) said:

Walter,

I think you overdosed on way too much tweaking.  For a park you should have started out in Park 1 with no adjustments and just hunted.  As many have pointed out, the presets on the Equinox are quite good.  Do a factory reset with the detector and then don't screw with anything in terms of adjustments.  Turn the detector on, select Park 1, noise cancel and then hunt.  There should be no need to ground balance, change modes or mess with any adjustments.  If the park is really trashy, just start out digging good targets like quarters and dimes and leave the low conductors alone for the moment. 

The detector is very easy to use.  No need to over think it.

Hope this helps.  Others here have a lot more hours than I do on my 800 so I'm sure they will pitch in with advice as well.

Good luck, you'll get it!

Bill

I had all the modes still on the factory pre-sets. I started with Park 1, then Park 2, then Field 1, and then Field 2. I didn't tweak any of the settings for these modes. I was getting very few good signals.  Didn't get any quarters at all when I have averaged 20-30 coins at this park in a 2 hour period with my Whites XLT. Thanks for thew reply. 

Took my Equinox 800 out for first trip ever since I bought it and went to an older local park. Wish I could stay it was great, but had a very frustrating day and only found 10 coins for $.41 in 3 1/2 hours. I have used a Whites XLT for 14 years , so, I guess the learning curve will be greater than I thought with the Equinox even though I'm obviously not new to metal detecting.  Even though I tried all the modes, thoroughly read the manual numerous times, did noise cancel in each mode, ground balance in each mode, used different recovery speeds, and iron bias I still had problems with bad signals, bad target Id, pin pointing, lots of noise./chatter.   I tried turning down the sensitivity way down to 14-15 but didn't help much.  After digging some deep holes I discovered this park did have a quite extensive old  metal sprinkler system with pipes and heads about 9-12 inches deep that I would guess was maybe largely responsible for my difficulties.   The depth system with the shovels is not all that accurate.  Some of my targets on the surface were reading 6-8 inches deep. After reading all about the Equinox on various sites I know it is better than it was today.  I realize if there's no coins at a location even the very very best detector isn't going to find anything.  I did not experience any of these problems in my test garden in the back yard, so, Im assuming this park had some type of issues I couldn't overcome at  least with my limited knowledge of the Equinox.  This is not meant as a criticism of the Equinox .  Just trying to do better next time.  Any thoughts or ideas? Thanks. 

10 minutes ago, SittingElf said:

When did you order and go on the waiting list?

Went on the waiting list in early March and ordered when one became available on April 6. 

6 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

So did everyone get their detector? Anyone still waiting, and how long have you been waiting?

I had been working with Gerry's Metal Detectors in Boise, ID . .  They were the first dealer I contacted when I knew I wanted an Equinox 800 , went on their waiting list, and even after going on about 12 other waiting lists at various dealers Gerry was the first one (and only one)to contact me back that they had one to buy.  Great dealer, honored my veteran's discount( very much appreciated) , shipped promptly after I paid , and I received about a week later in mid April.  I've been busy with home projects but playing/learning ii in back yard test garden. After having used a Whites XLT solely for 14 years just a bit of a learning curve, but hope to get out very soon. I've been trying out different programs and setting up a Profile program , so, first time in the field I'll be comfortable with it and how it's different from my Whites.  Again, Gerry's Metal Detectors an outstanding Minelab dealer and very , very good guy to work with. 

I just joined the Forum and Fan Club today but have been metal detecting with a Whites XLT on land and Garrett Infinium LS for the past 14 years.  Looking to upgrade to a Minelab Equinox 600/800 after having done the research , reviewed the manual, and watched the YOUTUBE posts. I do land detecting around Reno,NV and beaches at Lake Tahoe,so, have to deal with the mineralized ground.  In my 14 years I have found 19,376 coins while also pulling 17,835 pieces of trash/garbage from the sand/water at Lake Tahoe.  I would have to consider myself semi-hardcore when it comes to detecting.  Looking to branch out to mining camp and gold nuggets shootings, thats why in part looking at the Minelab Equinox.  ( can't afford the CTX 3030). My question.  What's the best way to get a Minelab Equinox 800?  Hard to find one currently in stock anywhere.  Also, looking for a hunting buddy in the Reno,NV area . Thanks.