cudamark

22 hours ago, BeachBunnyTRHunter - DP said:

Are you volunteering to be the camera man?

Sure! Next time I'm in Florida.....

Thanks for the video. A different camera mount would be nice. I was getting dizzy watching it! 🤪

If the proposed "large" coil was available now (something 13" or bigger), I'd put my order in today for the Deus 2. Having been  toward the top of the list buying a "cutting edge" new detector recently, and finding it rather disappointing to say the least, I would also like to see a few more beach videos from trusted sources before I actually put my money on the line again. After all, we have only seen a few select people get the D2. Lets see what the general public has to say about the machine after they get to flog it a bit. I'd also like to know when they will have a decent supply of these machines and coils available before my name gets put at the bottom of the list.

My legs hurt just watching him squat on every target and wave handfuls of sand over the coil. hasn't he ever hear of a scoop? 😄. Not a single fresh drop that I saw, but, nothing particularly deep either. Were any of those coins older than Euros? He paused and talked about one of them, but, I didn't see a caption as to what it was. For sure we'll need to see many more test videos before we rave about it's performance. I too would like to see full tones and TID stability along with some of the other harder to find targets like chains and stud earrings. Also, hearing what iron and rejected targets sound like would help us beach detectors decide, as I run all metal (or at least no rejected targets) when I hunt the beach.

The delay range on the AQ is from 7 to 11.5 according to it's control, but, I understand that the range is actually a bit wider than that in reality. Turning it to the longest delay helps some, but, not enough for most conditions here in SoCal. I didn't expect the AQ to have perfect discrimination, but, being a PI water machine, I did expect it to be stable in moving salt water. I definitely didn't get either one....

I got one of the first handful of AQ's, so, I was an early tester of this detector too. I had the same problems that Deborah had as I mentioned early on in this thread. I followed all the suggestions that those who were having some success with theirs gave, but, nothing has helped in the surf. In damp sand, it doesn't work too bad, except for the continuing fact that it's discriminating abilities are pitiful and totally unreliable. In sopping wet sand, it's still a chore getting it stable enough to get deep targets except for big iron. As mentioned many times, by the time you detune it enough to make it stable, you may as well just use a VLF machine and enjoy life.

12 hours ago, phrunt said:

Well, I discovered a photo of the First Texas Factory, and it appears the lights aren't even on, but certainly nobody is home, looks abandoned, not even a car in the car park.    🙂

The coils still not out, I asked the guy that did the test videos of it on Youtube in action and he thought it was already for sale, I said nope, nowhere to be found, he seemed rather surprised it never made it to market and just assumed it did.  Looks like he spent all that time doing his marketing videos for nothing.

The other thing I recall it was discussed they were making a lighter version of the 15" monstrosity of a coil, this was quite a while ago now and I've heard nothing more and retailers are still selling the solid concrete 15" coil so it never made it to market either.

Judging by the shadows, the photo was taken before or after working hours.

My experience as well. It's just way too noisy in our surf regardless of settings.

5 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

Having skill means knowing what detectors and coils to use - another area where novices fail miserably. I'm not discounting the hardware - the best operators in any sport always use any hardware that will give them the the best edge. Tiger Woods does not use crappy clubs, and knows which one to use  for any given shot. Knowing which is which is part of the skill involved.

And if you don't think a pro with a poorer detector can't run circles around a novice with the best, you've not detected with very many novices. I've seen real life examples many times, especially in nugget detecting. 

That will depend on how much "poorer" the detector is, and if it's one suited to the task at hand. If you're going head to head with a rookie with a GPX6000 and you have an old Gold Bug, sure, you'll beat them every time.....for a while anyway....till they learn the machine and get some of their own experience. 

For sure, detecting skills are the most important, but, the right equipment for the job at hand is also very important. Same goes with matching the equipment with the venue. With the newest "turn-on-and-go" SMF detectors with excellent standard default modes, it isn't quite as important to know how every adjustment works and how to tweak it to the max. Choice of the proper detector is critical however. Using your analogies of fishing, your not going to catch a marlin with a fly rod meant for a trout stream. You're also not going to hit a 250 yard drive with a putter either. I'd bet on a novice with an Equinox over a pro with a CZ5 when it comes to surf hunting. I'd also bet on the novice with a GPX6000 over you hunting with an Ace 150 looking for tiny nuggets......no offense! 😄 If course, I've lost bets before!

7 hours ago, ColonelDan said:

I've read several threads on the soon-to-be-fielded Deus 2 and how it will compare to the Equinox. There have been many good views on this topic so I thought I'd share mine. As you read this, keep in mind the views expressed here are worth just as much as you've paid for them. 😁

1. Wireless vs Wired: I'm 99% a salt water beach hunter with my EQX 800 and the way I grid a beach, I often go from the damp sand to the wet sand and then into the surf (only about 1 foot deep due to concerns over water intrusion so I keep the control box dry). Given that, a Deus II for me would have to be constantly wired from coil to control box in order to work in the surf. For that reason, a totally wireless capability would not be that enticing since the wire from coil to box would be a permanent configuration.

2. Waterproof: I owned a Deus and found it to be a solidly engineered machine so I'm not a skeptic where XP claims of being waterproof are concerned. Were I to make a wager, I'd bet on much better waterproof performance in the Deus II than was the original ML waterproof claim for the EQX. Being truly waterproof is important for me and not because I hunt deeper than 1 foot in salt water these days because I don't. Ours is an outdoor hobby so I think all detectors should be waterproof...at the very least, reliably weatherproof. How many times have you been caught in the rain or dropped your detector in a puddle of water? Even if you are a land hunter and never go near any water, replacing a damaged or inop machine due to moisture intrusion isn't a trivial thing.

3. Build quality: The Deus I had was quality built, rugged and reliable. No coil ear issues, wobbly shafts or arm cuff breakage. In my view, it was a much more rugged detector than Minelab products in certain areas. XP doesn't seem to pinch pennies as did Minelab on simple things. Recall the original skimpy gaskets they put in the CTX 3030 that caused flooding of the battery box. The issue was solved when they came out with merely a little thicker gasket! Their use of cheap coil ears, arm cuffs and wobbly shafts on the EQX series is another example. For a few pennies more per unit, they would have saved untold thousands in warranty replacement costs in both the CTX and EQX series machines. Although they are among the very best where software technology is concerned, I never understood that "penny wise pound foolish" approach in their physical build design.

4. Overall Performance: This is where the EQX was superior to my original Deus. The multi-frequency/multi IQ of the EQX vs the selectable single frequency of the Deus was an obvious choice in my salt water beach hunting environment. I eventually sold my Deus for that reason. Now, if XP has really overcome that limitation in the Deus II with their FMF feature, I'll be happily impressed.

5. Final Thoughts: I'm with the others who will take a "wait and see" approach. But, given my past experience with XP engineering, I have no doubt the Deus II will be a very capable salt water beach detector. Will it generally outperform the Minelabs? TBD. Will it be found that XP pinched pennies on their build quality? I say no. It will be a well built unit. Will it be more comfortable to use than the Minelabs? Yes. Will it be more complex in its settings options than the Minelabs? Yes. Will it's overall performance justify the higher price tag compared to the current EQX? TBD but that will be determined solely by and in the eye of the beholder as the saying goes.

Just a few thoughts from my foxhole...

 

I like your overall assessment, and I agree with almost all of it except for maybe some of #2. Let's say that both Minelab and XP were coming out at the same time with the Equinox and Deus 2 respectively. Minelab had many years experience in making waterproof machines, and XP had yet to make one. My money would have been on Minelab to make a dependable waterproof detector, with XP a big question mark. Since we now know some Nox machines have had leaking issues. it's easy with hindsight to think XP would do a better job. XP's track record of a quality built unit surely helps reassure that bet, but since this is their first stab at waterproofness (is that a word?), I would have still put my money on Minelab......and probably lost it. . We shall soon see. If they had a complete Deus 2 package with the big coil, I'd buy one today just to see what it will do! 😀👍

21 hours ago, mh9162013 said:

Two things.

One, I wasn't speaking about just myself. You asked why anyone would want an AT Max, Pro or Gold (at least, that's how I interepreted your post). I gave some potential reasons that someone (not just me) might want one of those detectors.

Two, those factors don't matter to you and I wasn't trying to say they should. We all have different things that are important to us, whether dealing with metal detectors or anything else.

I'm not trying to convince you to buy an AT series detector. The biggest problem is what their MSRP is, not what they're lacking in.

For example, if the Fisher F11 cost $4.99, we would all be singing praises about what a wonderful machine it is.

Oh sure, I'm sure there will be a few folks that will stick with the AT's for whatever their reasons are. I guess my point was that their reasons are seemingly flawed in my mind. Many members of our local detecting club (and I'm sure others) tend to be stuck in the past, with the attitude that "I've been doing it this way with this machine for over 30 years and I will keep doing it that way". It's like trying to get your grandfather to try a new food dish. They won't even taste it before turning their nose up. You can even prove the superiority of a new piece of gear and they will still use the old one. I'm sure part of it is the success they've had in the past with "old blue", but, I also think it's the potential learning curve that may be daunting to them. We have some members that still have an old flip phone because they claim the new smart phones are too complicated. If that's truly the case, I guess they're probably better off not upgrading. These people probably won't be buying a new machine anyway, instead, if and when their detector dies, they'll probably just find a used one exactly like the one they had. As for a $5 F11, they could give it to me for free and I still wouldn't use it. I already have several detectors from the past that are gathering dust, and they don't cost me a thing at this point......except closet space! 😄

Me too, not that I have any scientific studies to point to, just my observations while dredging in Northern California. I was running a 6" dredge years ago before they outlawed it, and while looking behind the sluice discharge I would see schools of fish just waiting to eat what we were dredging up! They seemed more than happy with what we were doing. Not only that, but, we were removing lots of mercury out of the river too. Most of the gold we were finding (I'd say about 80%) were coated with the stuff.

22 hours ago, mh9162013 said:

S-Shaft design

Use of AA batteries

Wider selection of aftermarket coils

Better waterproofing

Made in America (if that's important to you as a purchaser)

For coin shooting in mild ground (with little trash) and for shallow coins, I don't see an edge that Equinox has over the AT Max.

For coin shooting in a tot lot, the AT Max and Equinox perform the same or are so close to each other, I can't really see a difference.

If the AT Max/Pro were priced appropriately (around the Simplex), then I'd say it's a viable option for many metal detectorists.

 

S shaft? Not a fan, and neither are any of my detecting buddies. Straight carbon fiber shaft is the only way to go IMO.

AA batteries? Not for me anymore if I can avoid them. Cheaper in the long run to use the latest and greatest battery tech.

You need more coils than what is currently available? I don't use but half the ones I have now! (I have them all, both stock and the Coiltek ones) Multi IQ is so forgiving, that even using the largest coil can be used in most trashy areas once you get used to it.

Waterproofing, sure, I'll give you a slight edge on that, except in salt water where the AT's fail miserably

Made in America? OK....So only Garrett or Fisher for you? Are all their components made in America? I seriously doubt it. Everything has become so global these days it's hard to tell true made in America products anymore. 

Shallow coin targets, well, even a Walmart or Harbor Freight detector will find those, so, yeah, the AT will too.

Tot lot finds, Not in my book. I find much more with the Nox in a tot lot (mainly tiny items or deep items) than any other detector I've used, period. Not even close.

YMMV of course with different conditions, but, this is what I've found in my area and with the places and targets I detect.

1 hour ago, diggindaboot said:

Terrible leadership closed those companies down. The Nox had nothing to do with it. Look at the prices some are still willing to pay for Tesoro detectors. 

I absolutely agree, but, Equinox made them realize that their days were truly numbered since they had nothing on the drawing board to compete with in the near future. Their days of living on repainted old tech were over. If the Nox release had been delayed to market or hadn't been so successful, they could have survived for many more years and possibly have come up with something to challenge Nox. Their leadership was very shortsighted for sure. Keeping up with the latest tech with good R & D is crucial in electronics these days.

Models get obsoleted all the time, even before Equinox, but, I think we can safely say that the Nox put nails into many coffins. Not all, of course, but, why would anyone buy an AT of any model over an Equinox? Fisher model.....please. Is there one thing an AT or F? can do that a Nox can't do better, or, at least as good? Brand loyalty maybe? Regardless, even if you don't think Minelab has obsoleted any particular single frequency machine, they've sure obsoleted a couple of companies (Tesoro and White's) and put one or two others on life support.

On 11/22/2021 at 7:43 PM, wltdwiz said:

this is a bit off subject but for cpt_ghostlights no 1 likes kale 

heres a pro tip

when your cooking your kale put a bit of coconut oil in the pan.

it makes it ezer  to slide in the garbage 🤣

I like to make it even easier......I just dump the kale in the garbage bin on my way from the car to the house. No point in wasting perfectly good coconut! 😄

Working fine with me. Nice interview and a few things clarified or that I hadn't heard about before. Will someone please give Dilek a headband or scrunchy! 😄 I still haven't heard what the 13" coil and waterproof headphones are going to cost. They did say  they should be available at kick-off next month, but, It would be nice to know the price and if they'll have another package that would include them, and maybe the 6" coil and battery too.

Looks like I'd need to figure out what all those damn symbols mean again! Why can't they just have words instead? Can't be that big a deal to have programmable language software for different countries.

I used to nugget hunt and I belonged to the local prospecting club for a few years, but, then reality stepped in and slapped me in the face. If I could find enough in the way of gold nuggets in my local area, that would be one thing, but, just the fuel costs alone kept me in the red. A simple look at my finds from my various hunting venues showed me the error of my ways. I was finding MUCH more gold and other valuables at my local parks and beaches than I was prospecting. The target recovery process was much easier on this old body too! Now if I had a claim near by that had some decent size nuggets.....

I don't know about the "green" ear stiffeners trunkmonkey was referring to, but, I have several aftermarket lower shafts that use the round rubber washers, and they accept the "gray" ear stiffeners that I bought just fine. I can't imagine there being an issue since the washers rub up against the coil ears, not the stiffener.....at least in all the setups I've seen.

Intriguing! One thing i see missing, that is a must for me, is a BIG coil for beach hunting. I haven't used anything under a 15" diameter coil for the last 10 years. 11" coils just don't make it for me these days. It'll probably make the D2 a bit nose heavy, but, I can deal with that one way or another. I'll be curious to see how well it will work in salt sand and water. The D1 never impressed me at all in that respect, and the squeaky sounds it made were "fingernails on a blackboard" to me. If the new tones actually sound like the ones in the video, that's a definite plus. I was actually going to buy one years ago until I heard the tones! It looks like I'll have to keep this thing on my radar, and depending on it's price with all the options I will want, it just might get me to pull the trigger.

I tried the link above.....If they want to expand into the U.S., having a website in English would be a good start.....

My condolences too, George. I know the feeling. I'm heading out to Minnesota next week for a celebration of life for a detecting buddy myself. My fourth such sadness in the last 10 years.

I too was contacted a couple of times about doing a detecting reality show. When I stated that I wanted to play everything straight, and not add phony drama with petty infighting or have planted finds, I never heard back. Maybe they found a photo of me and decided I didn't have enough "beefcake" to get anyone excited! 😄