mh9162013

There's so much to your question(s) and I'm not experienced enough with MIQ to give a full and detailed response. But based on my research and from a few hunts in my yard and local parks (as well as using Monte's Nail Board), here's the approach I take with Iron Bias.

I leave Fe alone. I only mess with F2. Yes, any adjustments will be more extreme, but I hunt many locations where there's no heavy iron. Heavy aluminum, yes. But heavy iron? Not usually, at least not the amount or type of iron that makes me think I've got a coin. In other words, I'm usually not worried about digging up a rusted nail or bolt b/c it happens rarely enough where it doesn't bother me.

Right now, I use Park 1 with F2 at 0 (and everything else "stock," although I'll ground balance and adjust sensitivity as necessary given my EMI). If I sense I'm digging more rusted iron or bottle caps than I'm comfortable with, I may move F2 to 1. If somehow that's too much of a change, there's always Fe for me to mess around with.

You're not the only one who was leaning one way, but went with the Equinox!

Happy hunting!

If you found something (or did something) that couldn't have otherwise been accomplished but for the fact you were metal detecting (this includes what you did traveling to and from the hunting site), then you get credit for the accomplishment as a metal detectorist. 😎

7 hours ago, Veisal said:

Here are some improvements to the ergonomics of the minelab equinox 600/800 made with a 3D printer 

 

 

Does that use parts from the stock Equinox shaft?

5 minutes ago, phrunt said:

Not a chance, Nokta came out swinging with the Legend, some very bold performance claims.

I agree. Not to say N/M is lying, but based on what XP and N/M have said so far about their respective SMF detectors, if anyone's going to disappoint, my guess it's N/M.

Again, not saying that'll happen, but if someone told me either XP or N/M would underdeliver with the Legend/Deus II, I'd assume it was N/M.

4 minutes ago, King-Of-Bling said:

Whenever you overpromise and under deliver , you run into many issues. Sure , you can make profits in the short run. But never in the long game. For starters , legal issues and recalls ( misrepresenting the product , fraud ). When companies do this whether knowingly or not it portrays them as not being transparent , untrustworthy and scammers. On the 2nd go around , smart people are not coming back. PERIOD. Maintaining your reputation and how you handle something when it goes south means the world to alot of people. Sadly , in these times there are many that just don't care either. Regarding XP , I don't know enough about them to honestly comment. Though I do have a pinpointer that has worked flawlessly the few times I've used it.

When I refer to overpromising and underdelivering, I'm referring to marketing fluff, not legally actionable fraud or misrepresentation.

I presume when XP says the Deus II is shockproof, there's at least a moderate amount of truth to it. 

41 minutes ago, King-Of-Bling said:

It's better to under promise and over deliver , than over promise and under deliver.

True.

But you don't want to lose out on sales b/c you undermarketed a product. But you also don't want to take a hit to your reputation b/c you couldn't meet expectations. It's a fine line, of course. Also, keep in mind that overpromising and underdelivering often leads to more profits/benefits than the other way around. That's one reason why it happens so often, whether it's in private industry, politics or the dating world.

Are you saying that N/M is walking that fine line better than XP is?

8 minutes ago, phrunt said:

I look forward to Minelab's answer to all this criticism

Me too! Minelab doesn't seem like the type of company that sits around and lets the competition fly by them. 

15 minutes ago, King-Of-Bling said:

No different than the Legend being shock proof , though not advertised as such. It's in the build quality unlike the Nox housing. Similar to "military grade" on cell phone cases. Or a drop test on the cellphone itself.

But a company advertising something is "shockproof" (depending on the company) makes a difference. 

So yes, it's all about the build quality, but the better the build quality, the more promises a company can make in reference to the build quality.

Perhaps the Legend is more shockproof than the Deus II, but N/M has higher standards before they market a feature in one of their products...I don't know. So I have to assume (for now), that XP explicitly touting the shockproofness of their Deus II means it'll be more robust in real world conditions than the Legend.

48 minutes ago, Steve Herschbach said:

Deus 2 is also IP68 rated. But like Minelab and NM they can promise and warranty for whatever they want, and what they think they can afford in the way of leaks, which I bet will happen. I actually basically agree with you, but at end of day the actual IP rating for the Deus 2 is the same as the others, and all that really matters is how well they engineered above and beyond that basic rating. And that, only time will tell.

I just realized thanks to this graphic that the Deus II has shock resistance. I don't know what kind of "rating" it is, but I don't recall any other metal detecting company having that as a feature.

I don't have a job or hobby that necessitates equipment or gear that's "shock rated." However, after using a G-Shock watch for 5+ years, I have come to appreciate that when something is built to be shockproof, it often means there's a level of quality and robustness that isn't present with non-shock-designed devices. 

Ignoring everything else about the Deus II in terms of performance, it's almost like this machine is the "Panasonic Toughbook" of metal detectors, which if true, would be a very nice bonus.

It'll take a while, but I'm excited to see if the Deus II has a level of durability that meets or exceeds our expectations.

With all this talk about FT, I'm thinking more and more that I better get another F-Pulse while I still can...

If these bone phones work well, I will strongly consider using them. I know I'm missing out by only using the speaker, but I won't dare hinder my situational awareness by using earbuds or headphones.

On 11/12/2021 at 4:21 PM, flakmagnet said:

What do rain people dress their detectors in?

They don't dress them in anything. They just use an AT Max, Gold or Pro (kidding).

1 hour ago, phrunt said:

But Nokta's build quality is superior?

With respect to waterproofing and coil ears, I think so. Right?

I'm not saying the Legend is better than the Equinox. I'm not even saying the Legend will be more waterproof and have more durability than the Equinox (athough I imagine it will).

But the Equinox is notorious for broken coil ears and leaking seals. Therefore, one of N/M's approach to promoting the Legend is to claim that their machines are better than the Equinox in those and other respects.

So it's my belief that Minelab's motivation to bury N/M isn't coming from how N/M is calling Minelab out (using insults). Rather it's from the fact that Minelab may lose sales to N/M because of the percetion (and possible fact) that the Legend is superior to the Equinox in certain regards.

EDIT: My point is that Minelab is motivated to take on N/M not b/c they've been insulted by N/M, but because N/M might pose an economic threat to Minelab's sales.

5 minutes ago, phrunt said:

Well you missed the point entirely, the CTX which came out before the Nox has the same weak coil ears, the Vanquish that came out after the Equinox has the same weak coil ears.  They had no motivation to fix the issue.  Now with the Competition attacking the build quality and using it as a marketing tactic they're VERY likely to fix it on the Equinox 1000, you can bet the 1000 will have marketing going on about enhanced coil ear strength.

It benefits us as all our kicking and screaming didn't get Minelab to fix their coil ears, maybe Nokta's gloating will do the job better.

I think Minelab's motivation to fix any issues would come from competition from another company releasing a superior product (or at least a product that addresses the flaws in Minelab's products) rather than a competitor hurling insults.

I could be wrong, but that's my thought process, at least.

6 hours ago, phrunt said:

Pointing out Minelabs build quality and constantly making a big deal about it by Nokta is also a short sighted thing, sure it may hurt the 3 year old detector a bit, most who wanted one have one now anyway.  Now Minelab know what to improve to fight back and throw it in Nokta's face.

I don't see what the big deal is.

Are you saying that because N/M took shots at Minelab, Minelab is now motivated even more to produce a better product?

And are you saying that N/M's insults to Minelab brought to their attention problems with the Equinox that Minelab wasn't aware of?

I presume we'd agree on the fact that Minelab's motivation to product the CTX 3030 replacement or the Equinox 1000 isn't/wasn't affected by N/M marketing insults. I think we'd also agree that Minelanb is aware of the Equinox flaws, even without N/M pointing them out.

However, I think N/M taking shots at Minelab is a net positive. Sure, it might annoy some people, but I think one of N/M's biggest hurdles right now is name recognition and brand awareness. By the latter, I'm preferring to people not understanding where N/M's products fit in against the competition. Also, don't forget that Minelab has taken its fair share of shots at Garrett, although perhaps in a more subtle manner.

I think it's fair to say amost people currently considering a mid-level and/or SMF metal detector right now are aware of the Equinox and Apex. So whent hey hear about the Legend, they're probably asking themselves, "ok, but why should I buy a Legend when the Apex and Equinox have already been out a while?" 

I believe these shots at Minelab address that question. Not only do they get more attention ("no news like bad news"), but they succintly tell a prospective customer why they should get the Legend instead of the Equinox.

N/M might be doing what you say they are, but I don't see the issue. Well, I do, but it happens everywhere*,so I guess I don't see it as a big deal. Of course, this assumes no IP laws are being violated and no industrial espionage is taking place here.

*Examples: GUI for PCs, space shuttles, smartphones, Sabremetrics, etc.

38 minutes ago, CPT_GhostLight said:

just seems like they're a little desperate with their comical commercial.

You didn't watch Garrett's "commercial" with the Apex, did you? 

Honest question: why is having a clock on a metal detector so important to many of you? I get the "odometer" and/or timer, knowing how long you've been operating your machine for a given hunt or its entire lifetime. But a clock? You can't check your phone or watch?

Is it that your phone is off to avoid interfering with your SMF detector and you don't normally wear a watch?

Just asking for a friend...😁

49 minutes ago, ☠ Cipher said:

I wonder if we will see as many spin offs and variations of multifrequency machines from NM as we have single frequency machines. I’d imagine they’d want to set their sights on the space between Simplex and Legend to better target Vanquish maybe. Simplex Multi anyone? 

Great point!

I could definitely see that happening. A "stunted" SMF Simplex could be a great seller. It'll be like the love-child of the Vanquish and the Simplex.

The only hesitation I can see is N/M finding the right balance so this machine doesn't cannibalize too many Legend and Simplex sales. Or maybe they'll just drop the single frequency Simplex altogether and replace it with a SMF version (that's more limited than the Legend, of course).

13 minutes ago, cudamark said:

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.

Probably because the screen is one of those LCD-segmented displays. If it had enough pixels (maybe 300x500 or whatnot), then sure, just change the language settings. But I don't think the screen on the Legend is like that.

1 hour ago, ☠ Cipher said:

If it performs comparably to an equinox 800 it’s going to be a force. $635. Even less than I expected. What will a used one go for? 500? Maybe less over time. 

I agree, getting what amounts to an Equinox 800 in terms of performance, but maybe an AT Pro/Max in terms of build quality for $635 street? SWEET!

But, having comparable performance to MIQ is a tall order, so we'll see how that goes. As for what a used Legend will go for, if it's as good as we hope, you won't find that many used models and if you do, they'll be for close to retail...kind of like how it was with the Equinox a few years ago.

I have a feeling that within a year, we're gonna see what Minelab has up their sleeve, though.

I've only found a few spoons. One I kept and actually use to eat with (made out of stainless steel). The rest I've tossed.

I hate not being able to hunt beaches and look for some gold rings. But a silver lining to only being able to hunt in dirt is that the silver coins look good, at least. 😀

I'd still trade a gold ring for a silver coin any day of the week, though!

7 minutes ago, nickeldNdimed said:

Check out Sea Ghost housing if you have not.  Probably no cost effective solution but pretty neat. He makes for various detectors. 

I have, but I'm not 100% confident about placing the order with the maker, especially since (based on my understanding), I'd have to mail him (her?) the control box/pod of my metal detector. Then there's the language difference and international nature of the transaction. Not sure what kind of buyer protection I'd have if things didn't turn out well.

Still very interested in it, though...