The Return Of Dr. Tones!

[Steve Herschbach]

17 hours ago, Chase Goldman said:

Good rundown by Brandon...especially the multi use and multi frequency aspects.  Agree with Steve's quibbles and have a few other very minor ones. Brandon says he can't imagine why anybody would [still] want to plug directly into the detector with the available wireless options.  Well, ahem, I can think of one reason, submerged control head hunting and is one of the reasons why there is continued frustration amongst Equinox water hunters that the WP accessory phones are not yet available (BT and proprietary RF wireless H/P tech doesn't work under water).  The battery discussion is a tad disingenuous: (1) you only have to charge two batteries (with the Deus) coil and remote control unit if you plug phones into the Deus control head which is the same as the Equinox (control head and phones), so why even go there?  (2) Brandon talks about the disadvantage of the gaskets associated with the CTX removable battery vs. the Equinox which is charged in place but apparently has not received the ML memo regarding minding the gaskets associated with the Equinox battery should the end user choose to service the battery themselves.  In other words, you are relying on gasketed battery seals for either detector.  Finally, besides the missing in action "reason 7" that was pointed out earlier, Brandon's Equinox seems to have a bit of a smoking problem and he really should have that looked into by the ML service center.  Lol.  That is all.

Actually I hated all the delicate little charging do-dads with Deus and most definitely do not want a rechargeable coil when I can have a wired one for half the price. I agree however that one should only mention why a machine is good without dragging other detectors into the discussion. It invites defensive blowback.

I think you missed the point on CTX. You have to remove the battery at least every couple days to charge, which vastly increases the risk of a bit of dirt or misaligned gasket causing a problem. It is not that both units use gaskets. That’s a given. It’s the need to constantly break the gasket seal versus one that is left alone that makes the difference. Equinox also employs a double oring seal versus the single gasket on CTX. And at the end of the day if I have to kill a detector in saltwater, far better to kill a $900 detector than a $2500 one!

[Chase Goldman]

12 hours ago, Steve Herschbach said:

Actually I hated all the delicate little charging do-dads with Deus and most definitely do not want a rechargeable coil when I can have a wired one for half the price. I agree however that one should only mention why a machine is good without dragging other detectors into the discussion. It invites defensive blowback.

Thanks, Steve.  That was exactly my point.  Splitting hairs and inviting defensive blowback when bringing other detectors into the mix (well stated). 

I too can easily and effectively argue both sides of the Equinox vs. Deus charging doo-dads story and no one will learn anything useful about either detector or why either might be worth their while.  The whole Deus wireless thing is definitely love (great when you are just out detecting and scarfing up targets with the flexibility of multiple configurations) AND hate (dealing with the fragile charging clip/coil expense/water antennas) . LoL.

Thanks for clarifying the CTX point, wish Brandon had done that and his argument would have been more effective.  I was equating the CTX gasket with the Equinox O-rings (both seals have to be handled properly if you do end up disturbing them).  But I do get that you introduce more risk of human error in the CTX battery seal design because every CTX owner has to deal with them frequently and the Equinox owner never does if they choose not to...

Bottom Line:  The Equinox sells itself on its features and performance alone without having to compare it to anything else out there (Minelab or otherwise) because it is truly not like anything else out there.   In fact, as I posted in a separate thread, I am refraining from comparing the 600 to the 800 from a performance standpoint, because I believe that, too, is splitting hairs.

I liked his other points (and, again, who can argue with point 7) and thought he did a great job discussing the centerpiece feature of the Equinox, Multi IQ.  Still think he should check his charging/battery connection though because his detector is generating too much smoke.  LOL.