My Thoughts On The Deus I I

[ColonelDan]

After several days of research, testing in a controlled environment and then actual operation on Cocoa Beach, my simplified bottom line: The Deus 2 is a better detector than my Equinox 800.

Summary of my conclusions by area: (In the interest of brevity and simplicity, I did not include the detailed values/numbers/results from each of my individual tests…..boring!)

Build Quality: Deus 2 by far. I don’t see the potential for broken coil ears, no wobbly shaft, better water proof characteristics/capability, more solidly built control box, better arm cuff and better overall design of the total unit—excellent compact travel capability. I do think the arm cuff stand could/should be wider to provide more stability when laying it on the ground.

Simplified use: Equinox—-but only initially. Admittedly, the Deus 2 menus, locations and option functions have a steeper learning curve...but only after a day or two. I quickly became very comfortable with it.

User manual: Deus 2. Comprehensive, better layout and easily understood. An update is needed however as the manual doesn’t cover the Beach P and Fast 40 programs which are available in the Remote Control. Another feature I think XP could add that would help flatten the learning curve would be to provide a detailed menu tree in the user manual showing where to find each function and what role that function plays in the overall operation of the unit. I would also like to see a graphic, in spreadsheet form, that shows all the factory settings for each program...just as a quick reference which allows you to see and compare the settings of each program in hard copy form.  The one they do show on page 46 omits Beach P and Fast 40.
Sensitivity at depth: Deus 2. It’s simply the latest and improved/better technology. Clear and more accurate target ID at depth throughout the spectrum of target size and composition.

Depth: As we know, depth is highly dependent on many factors unrelated to the detector itself but overall and in general, the Deus 2 can detect targets at greater depths in most cases than other detectors I’ve used.

Stability: Deus 2. More and better options to quiet the chatter even in challenging salt water environments where I do most of my detecting. The Salt Sensitive adjustment is a game changer for me as a beach hunter. I can leave the main sensitivity setting alone and quiet the detector with the Salt Sens option which only neutralizes the sensitivity to the mineralized salt!

Initial Cost: Equinox…. However, in my opinion, one gets what one pays for. When you add all the after market equipment to rectify the wobbly shaft, weak coil ears, fragile arm cuff, control box cover etc, the final cost of the Equinox quickly approaches that of the Deus 2.

Ergonomics; Weight and balance--Deus 2 by far! Around 2 lbs beats around 5 lbs everyday, all day.

Personalized programs: Deus 2 provides slots for 12 personal programs and are easily added.

Charging: Equinox. Single cable vs 3 pig tails and somewhat fragile coil clip is much simpler and less vulnerable to ham handed use. Having said that, I do like the totally wireless design of the Deus 2.

Under water: Deus 2 has the edge here even though it requires the manual addition of an antenna since blue tooth just doesn’t work in the water. But I’d much rather take the time and effort of installing that wire than risk the real possibility of flooding we all know is an unfortunate chapter of the Equinox history.

Pinpointer and Headphone connectivity: Deus 2. I really like how the MI-6 pinpointer pairs with the remote and can be controlled by the remote. I also appreciate how the headphones automatically connect with the remote when the remote is powered on and off.

One final thought regarding the Deus 2—the back phones. I don’t like them. On-the-ear design just doesn’t make it at the beach. Ambient noise such as wave action and the crowd over comes the back phones by a wide margin. To me, they’re uncomfortable to boot. Yes, I tried the after market full cover headphones on my Deus 1 a few years ago wherein you slide the WS-6 “puck” onto the headphones. I just didn’t like that set up...I guess I’m just more of a purist in that regard. So I’ll be among the first on the list for XP’s WSA II XL over-the-ear headphones when they become available in the May-June time frame. I do like the fact that if you wanted to, you can control the Deus using just the WS-6. I much prefer using the remote however.

So what does all this mean for me? The Deus 2 will be my primary detector...but I won’t be selling my Equinox 800s any time soon. The Equinox is still a very good detector...and much better since I modified it with Steve Goss’ outstanding shafts.

Please keep in mind, that as I always say, these thoughts of mine may be worth just as much to you as you paid for ‘em. In the end, it’s only the view from my foxhole….

[NCtoad]

22 minutes ago, ColonelDan said:

After several days of research, testing in a controlled environment and then actual operation on Cocoa Beach, my simplified bottom line: The Deus 2 is a better detector than my Equinox 800.

Summary of my conclusions by area: (In the interest of brevity and simplicity, I did not include the detailed values/numbers/results from each of my individual tests…..boring!)

Build Quality: Deus 2 by far. I don’t see the potential for broken coil ears, no wobbly shaft, better water proof characteristics/capability, more solidly built control box, better arm cuff and better overall design of the total unit—excellent compact travel capability. I do think the arm cuff stand could/should be wider to provide more stability when laying it on the ground.

Simplified use: Equinox—-but only initially. Admittedly, the Deus 2 menus, locations and option functions have a steeper learning curve...but only after a day or two. I quickly became very comfortable with it.

User manual: Deus 2. Comprehensive, better layout and easily understood. An update is needed however as the manual doesn’t cover the Beach P and Fast 40 programs which are available in the Remote Control. Another feature I think XP could add that would help flatten the learning curve would be to provide a detailed menu tree in the user manual showing where to find each function and what role that function plays in the overall operation of the unit. I would also like to see a graphic, in spreadsheet form, that shows all the factory settings for each program...just as a quick reference which allows you to see and compare the settings of each program in hard copy form.

Sensitivity at depth: Deus 2. It’s simply the latest and improved/better technology. Clear and more accurate target ID at depth throughout the spectrum of target size and composition.

Depth: As we know, depth is highly dependent on many factors unrelated to the detector itself but overall and in general, the Deus 2 can detect targets at greater depths in most cases than other detectors I’ve used.

Stability: Deus 2. More and better options to quiet the chatter even in challenging salt water environments where I do most of my detecting. The Salt Sensitive adjustment is a game changer for me as a beach hunter. I can leave the main sensitivity setting alone and quiet the detector with the Salt Sens option which only neutralizes the sensitivity to the mineralized salt!

Initial Cost: Equinox…. However, in my opinion, one gets what one pays for. When you add all the after market equipment to rectify the wobbly shaft, weak coil ears, fragile arm cuff, control box cover etc, the final cost of the Equinox quickly approaches that of the Deus 2.

Ergonomics; Weight and balance--Deus 2 by far! Around 2 lbs beats around 5 lbs everyday, all day.

Personalized programs: Deus 2 provides slots for 12 personal programs and are easily added.

Charging: Equinox. Single cable vs 3 pig tails and somewhat fragile coil clip is much simpler and less vulnerable to ham handed use. Having said that, I do like the totally wireless design of the Deus 2.

Under water: Deus 2 has the edge here even though it requires the manual addition of an antenna since blue tooth just doesn’t work in the water. But I’d much rather take the time and effort of installing that wire than risk the real possibility of flooding we all know is an unfortunate chapter of the Equinox history.

Pinpointer and Headphone connectivity: Deus 2. I really like how the MI-6 pinpointer pairs with the remote and can be controlled by the remote. I also appreciate how the headphones automatically connect with the remote when the remote is powered on and off.

One final thought regarding the Deus 2—the back phones. I don’t like them. On-the-ear design just doesn’t make it at the beach. Ambient noise such as wave action and the crowd over comes the back phones by a wide margin. To me, they’re uncomfortable to boot. Yes, I tried the after market full cover headphones on my Deus 1 a few years ago wherein you slide the WS-6 “puck” onto the headphones. I just didn’t like that set up...I guess I’m just more of a purist in that regard. So I’ll be among the first on the list for XP’s WSA II XL over-the-ear headphones when they become available in the May-June time frame. I do like the fact that if you wanted to, you can control the Deus using just the WS-6. I much prefer using the remote however.

So what does all this mean for me? The Deus 2 will be my primary detector...but I won’t be selling my Equinox 800s any time soon. The Equinox is still a very good detector...and much better since I modified it with Steve Goss’ outstanding shafts.

Please keep in mind, that as I always say, these thoughts of mine may be worth just as much to you as you paid for ‘em. In the end, it’s only the view from my foxhole….

Very nice write up Dan!   

[GB_Amateur]

Overall I like your approach (and review) -- no drama!

I see you are in Florida (looked up Cocoa Beach -- halfway up penninsula on the Atlantic coast, to save others like me who want a drone's eye view 😁).  Thus your depth and 'sensitivity at depth' reflect that.

One thing which might be a typo:

2 hours ago, ColonelDan said:

Ergonomics; Weight and balance--Deus 2 by far! Around 2 lbs beats around 5 lbs everyday, all day.

Equinox 5 lbs?  How about ~3 lb w/11" coil.  Even with the 12"x15" coil (which at present has no comparison with the Deus 2) it's more like 3 1/3 lb.  (That coil is 170 g heavier than the 11" when both are outfitted with scuff covers.)  But Deus 2 is lighter?  No issue on the qualitative result.

For water detectorists it looked from the start (before the first detectors was in a reviewers hands) that the Deus 2 was going to be the clear choice.  The Minelab Excaibur was possibly the bigger bullseye than the Equinox.  You (and others) are confirming the beach and water features and performance that XP advertised.  For land detectorists who don't have the pristine low ferromagnetic mineralized ground, the jury is still out, IMO.  I look forward to objective reviews such as yours by more landlubbers.

[ColonelDan]

2 hours ago, GB_Amateur said:

Overall I like your approach (and review) -- no drama!

I see you are in Florida (looked up Cocoa Beach -- halfway up penninsula on the Atlantic coast, to save others like me who want a drone's eye view 😁).  Thus your depth and 'sensitivity at depth' reflect that.

One thing which might be a typo:

Equinox 5 lbs?  How about ~3 lb w/11" coil.  Even with the 12"x15" coil (which at present has no comparison with the Deus 2) it's more like 3 1/3 lb.  (That coil is 170 g heavier than the 11" when both are outfitted with scuff covers.)  But Deus 2 is lighter?  No issue on the qualitative result.

For water detectorists it looked from the start (before the first detectors was in a reviewers hands) that the Deus 2 was going to be the clear choice.  The Minelab Excaibur was possibly the bigger bullseye than the Equinox.  You (and others) are confirming the beach and water features and performance that XP advertised.  For land detectorists who don't have the pristine low ferromagnetic mineralized ground, the jury is still out, IMO.  I look forward to objective reviews such as yours by more landlubbers.

GB,  With the aftermarket equipment i.e.shaft with compensating weight, metal arm cuff and removable control box mount coupled with the 11" coil, mine weighs in at 4.4 lbs. So ..."around 5 lbs" was a pretty accurate guess on my part.  😉

Thanks for the note

[CPT_GhostLight]

Excellent review, Col! I will say in my 3rd year with the EQ, I never needed any of these add-ons that many people think they need, except the Steve's CF shaft, that just looks cool and does make it lighter (2.8 lbs with the 11" coil). However, I'm also not a beach hunter so I haven't been in the heavy surf with my detector. I will agree that the D2 looks like the beach and water detector champ and and am looking forward to more reviews on inland use in my rusty soils so I can make a final buy/no buy decision. I appreciate all your in depth information.

[ColonelDan]

5 minutes ago, CPT_GhostLight said:

Excellent review, Col! I will say in my 3rd year with the EQ, I never needed any of these add-ons that many people think they need, except the Steve's CF shaft, that just looks cool and does make it lighter (2.8 lbs with the 11" coil). However, I'm also not a beach hunter so I haven't been in the heavy surf with my detector. I will agree that the D2 looks like the beach and water detector champ and and am looking forward to more reviews on inland use in my rusty soils so I can make a final buy/no buy decision. I appreciate all your in depth information.

CPT,  thank you for the kind words.  The add ons I installed weren’t really a function of need other than Steve’s great shaft.  It was a matter of convenience and what I thought was a design improvement on the product.  I never regretted any of the add ons but you’re right, they weren’t “needed”

Thanks again.

[mudwhale]

Lady's , this is a DEUS II Thread NOT a NOX Thread!

[Chase Goldman]

Great thorough, writeup, Dan:

9 hours ago, ColonelDan said:

I would also like to see a graphic, in spreadsheet form, that shows all the factory settings for each program...just as a quick reference which allows you to see and compare the settings of each program in hard copy form.

Like this? (p.46 of the User Manual)

What you don't get from this table, though, is the top end frequency for each of the FMF modes.

[ColonelDan]

Chase, yes, just like that but with all programs including Beach P and Fast 40.

I should have a been mite clearer on that point.  Thanks for posting that.

I made a chart on my own that does show all the information to include the Max frequency for each program...except the Beach P and Fast 40 on which I didn't have any information.

[Chase Goldman]

29 minutes ago, ColonelDan said:

Chase, yes, just like that but with all programs including Beach P and Fast 40.

I should have a mite clearer.  Thanks for posting that.

Gotcha, Dan.  FWIW - those first two programs are in custom slots - they are completely modifiable and can even be deleted or replaced by the user unlike the stock programs. They are simply variants of their parent stock programs.  I believe they were created during the field test phase and it is unclear whether they will survive beyond the "Beta" update phase (firmware versions prior to ver 1.0; e.g., 0.6, 0.7 etc.).

Beach P is a customized version of Beach (Program 12) but with Pitch tones (vice 3 Tones), Silencer at 2 (vice 0), Salt Sens at 7 (vice 9), and Reactivity at 1.5 (vice 0).

Fast 40 is a customized version of Mono (Program 7) with Disc at 6.6 (vice 6.1), 2 Tones (vice 3), Frequency at 40.4 khz (vice 16.5 khz), and Reactivity at 3 (vice 2).

HTH