Beach performance

[dewcon4414]

I know there are a few more beach hunters on here than most any of the other forums. So as soon as someone gets their machine who beach hunts..... let me know ive got a couple of tests for you. The EQ based on all the pre-orders is one of the hottest machines to hit in a long time. I know one of the testers was a NASA Engineer....... at this point hes not been able to post a single thing about the beach performance and the final update. His opinion to me is VERY important .... so im waiting. Andy was correct dont expect a $2500 all around machine for $900......but it would be shameful if its de-tuned to the point of just another that works on the beach but not near the BBS or FBS machine. Those machines are ring finders plain and simple. You just arent going to make a smooth as butter running machine in the wet sand IF its going to find smaller gold. Why cant we have a $2500 salt water machine.......if it has that potential? Why cant we have a machine hitting on some smaller gold? I think we can. But ...you dont know what you missed if you missed it. At this point im going to wait and pass on the first batch to test one...... it may mean i have to get one later on.... or not. Dont take this as knocking the machine...... i love what it offers. We have 3 machine basically for salt water ... less PIs..... if the EQ can hit on smaller gold based on the way it works ..... then it is a $2500 machine to me.

Dew

 

[Beyonder]

Dew, from the first "user air test", I wouldn't say the machine is detuned. The key here is multi-freq use in ground. It is unknown if that is the key to this machine. As soon as i get mine(this week(hoping)) I will have more info for us.

 

[nagov]

Beyonder, I have to agree, what I saw on the air test video did look promising, but it wasn't on the beach modes. I would think it would be fairly easy to de- tune the beach modes (losing the small gold finding ability) yet keep the coin/park modes hot on coins. I would hope that isn't the case though.....only time and testing will tell how good this thing is on the beach.

Cliff

 

[GeorgeinSC]

The equinox interests me because of the Weight, speed of recovery and the possibility that it will work on small gold at the beach. But i will wait until such time as folks have done a lot of testing on the machine and report how well it works. Until that time i will just struggle along with what i have. It will have to give me some advantage over my current arsenal.

 

[toddbbq]

I should be in on the second batch as I pre-ordered 25 sept. and will run it thru its paces with my CTX. Now I need to learn how to use a GO-Pro and upload to you tube lol.

 

[midalake]

I know there are a few more beach hunters on here than most any of the other forums. So as soon as someone gets their machine who beach hunts..... let me know ive got a couple of tests for you. The EQ based on all the pre-orders is one of the hottest machines to hit in a long time. I know one of the testers was a NASA Engineer....... at this point hes not been able to post a single thing about the beach performance and the final update. His opinion to me is VERY important .... so im waiting. Andy was correct dont expect a $2500 all around machine for $900......but it would be shameful if its de-tuned to the point of just another that works on the beach but not near the BBS or FBS machine. Those machines are ring finders plain and simple. You just arent going to make a smooth as butter running machine in the wet sand IF its going to find smaller gold. Why cant we have a $2500 salt water machine.......if it has that potential? Why cant we have a machine hitting on some smaller gold? I think we can. But ...you dont know what you missed if you missed it. At this point im going to wait and pass on the first batch to test one...... it may mean i have to get one later on.... or not. Dont take this as knocking the machine...... i love what it offers. We have 3 machine basically for salt water ... less PIs..... if the EQ can hit on smaller gold based on the way it works ..... then it is a $2500 machine to me.

Dew

Well I was out today with my GT. Hunting in pinpoint all metal. Quiet as a church mouse. Someone needs to tell me if the Nox is going to be like a three month wife or a 10 year mother-in-law. [in salt water]

Dave

 

[MAKRO RACER POWER]

Believe the true . BBS & FBS is the best mode forever and the VLF mode is always the second choice.

 

[dewcon4414]

I contacted ML with my concerns and got a very respectful, thought out and prompt response from Bill Stirling.....which i appreciate very much. He said i could share it and in all fairness i will. I also appreciate his and ML following these forums and listening to our concerns because way to many times i read ML dont care. Most of us who have a CTX remember the problems when they first came out. I believe ML really wants this to be a glitch free machine for the majority of user. Salt water has been a challenge. Thats why basically we have but 3 capable VLF machines most of us choose from. But... its been awhile..... years in fact since we have seen a machine that could be a game changer for beach hunting in or near the water. I had no expectations of this machine finding a lot the Xcal/CTX/CZ wouldnt on larger gold or even deeper gold. I did... and do believe this machine has the potential to find smaller gold than those machines..... not crazy deep..... but within inches.... eye opening inches. Im not a hater of this machine.... id just really like this machine to display its real potential.

Please do not be overly concerned about “dumbed down” performance of EQUINOX in Beach Mode from the limited information that is available so far. Drawing conclusions from perhaps reading the full Instruction Manual and/or seeing the first published air-test do not give a true indication of the capabilities of our new Multi-IQ technology in saltwater conditions. You may also have seen a pre-release video from Brandon Neice showing EQUINOX having quite a bit of “chatter” at the beach with sensitivity set high. When this video was posted, the public assumption was that EQUINOX would not work at the beach. This could not be further from the truth.



There are always trade-offs with getting a new detector to perform at the absolute limits of capability while still making it user-friendly for newcomers. You would understand how to set the controls to maximise performance, but newcomers wouldn’t – hence the reason for detector default settings being conservative rather than aggressive. The EQUINOX 800 has an extensive range of advanced settings that you would really enjoy experimenting with. We do understand that experienced detectorists want to operate potentially into ‘the noise zone’ rather than just run a very stable detector. Though, please note – a high-performance stable detector will likely still outperform a low-performance unstable detector. There is not always the direct correlation to make when comparing across brands and technologies.



With EQUINOX we stand by our claim of equally adaptable across Park, Field, Beach and Gold locations – not from developing a “dumbed down” detector but by giving the market a “maxed out” detector that has exceptionally good performance across all detect modes, especially when compared to other detectors currently available. Also, please don’t draw any conclusions, before trying EQUINOX yourself, based on price comparisons of detectors. We regard EQUINOX as a “game-changer” that will redefine the price/performance assumptions that many people are currently and incorrectly making.



Minelab will very soon (most likely this coming week) be allowing all field testers with public profiles (e.g. Tom Dankowski) to convey a lot more information publicly. We hear your plea – loud and clear! To do this earlier was not possible as we do not allow our testers to release preliminary information about a product that has not been finalised. Please don’t expect to hear about how the technology works, but do expect to hear about practical results for different conditions and different targets, along with how the various controls function and how to set up the detector. From your posts on findmall.com and Dankowski Detectors, it appears that you use a Minelab CTX 3030 and also an Excalibur? Ideally you will be able to carry out your own comparison testing quite soon, although dealer demo units will be in short supply until all pre-orders are filled.



If you decide to purchase an EQUINOX, please let us know what you think, as we always value direct feedback from our customers, especially experienced users. You may also post this reply on any detecting forums you are a member of.

 

[toddbbq]

Nice read and Thanks for posting the e-mail.

 

[JP.Diggzzit]

I know there are a few more beach hunters on here than most any of the other forums. So as soon as someone gets their machine who beach hunts..... let me know ive got a couple of tests for you. The EQ based on all the pre-orders is one of the hottest machines to hit in a long time. I know one of the testers was a NASA Engineer....... at this point hes not been able to post a single thing about the beach performance and the final update. His opinion to me is VERY important .... so im waiting. Andy was correct dont expect a $2500 all around machine for $900......but it would be shameful if its de-tuned to the point of just another that works on the beach but not near the BBS or FBS machine. Those machines are ring finders plain and simple. You just arent going to make a smooth as butter running machine in the wet sand IF its going to find smaller gold. Why cant we have a $2500 salt water machine.......if it has that potential? Why cant we have a machine hitting on some smaller gold? I think we can. But ...you dont know what you missed if you missed it. At this point im going to wait and pass on the first batch to test one...... it may mean i have to get one later on.... or not. Dont take this as knocking the machine...... i love what it offers. We have 3 machine basically for salt water ... less PIs..... if the EQ can hit on smaller gold based on the way it works ..... then it is a $2500 machine to me.

Dew

I am passing for now also. Picked up my refund yesterday as I had some bills come up and it didn't sit well with me with how it's being rolled out. 1 - 2 units to most dealers and they are "hoping" to fill preorders by end of March. I can't have my $ tied up any longer. I also have some concerns about beach performance. #1. Bottle caps...looks like they ring in right in the middle of the range, where most are easily ID'd or discriminated out at the 1 ferrous line with CTX. They can be ID'd with the deus with a frequency shift. What type are they referring to in the chart? I have been on beaches and at parks where there are hundreds of these nuisance targets. #2. Tiny specks of canslaw. If it's extra sensitive to small gold, we will be digging the tiniest pieces of aluminum and other junk. #3. Coil buoyancy. A UK tester mentioned it was buoyant in a beach hunt video. Not good for serious water hunters.

Maybe a niche machine for serious beach hunters? Eroded beaches with lots of iron and deep low tides with the larger coil. I am going to wait for some more beach reviews before I pull the trigger on this one. My current detectors have me well covered.

 

[Hello]

Someone ask a Equinox tester on facebook how it compares to fbs on the beach, his reply was better and more stable. I guess we will find out sooner or later.

 

[Tony (Michigan)]

Dew, from the first "user air test", I wouldn't say the machine is detuned. The key here is multi-freq use in ground. It is unknown if that is the key to this machine. As soon as i get mine(this week(hoping)) I will have more info for us.

[size=large]Hi Beyonder,
When you get it, I hope you will let us know how well you do with it!

Tony[/size]

 

[Gannon]

Thanks for sharing! I too wonder how it will handle the dreaded bottle caps... especially rusty ones. The Etrac handles them well and I dig very few. If there are a lot of them and I'm using my deus... even freq shift and full tones....it still loves them. I'm hoping the nox does at least good with their ID.

 

[Tony (Michigan)]

Here is a video of the Equinox used on the beach:

Equinox on the beach

 

[dewcon4414]

Most of the time the best disc for bottle caps is between your ears. We dig or dont dig a lot of iffy stuff out there in the water...... some can be surprising especially in that 1 and 2 foil range. Sorry Tony i didnt gain a lot form that video...... except he said it was stable. We didnt get much from the testers for the beach mode. I think Steve H is right...... at this point the machine is hitting the street.... we will see how it fits most beach hunters. Hey ML is reading ... thats important, updates are but a mouse click away if needed.

Dew

 

[JP.Diggzzit]

I have dug small gold rings and jewelry at the 1 and 2 conductivity markers also. 0.5, 0.6 grams of 10k and 14k. Do we really want to dig smaller gold than that on a beach that could be holding the heavy Gold? Factor in the super small canslaw/foil and one could go nuts chasing the small gold on a beach.

 

[Tony (Michigan)]

I have dug small gold rings and jewelry at the 1 and 2 conductivity markers also. 0.5, 0.6 grams of 10k and 14k. Do we really want to dig smaller gold than that on a beach that could be holding the heavy Gold? Factor in the super small canslaw/foil and one could go nuts chasing the small gold on a beach.

[size=large]That is so true what you stated, JP.
But I'd like to find some very small
earring posts with real 4 carrot diamonds.[/size]

 

[IDXMonster]

I have dug small gold rings and jewelry at the 1 and 2 conductivity markers also. 0.5, 0.6 grams of 10k and 14k. Do we really want to dig smaller gold than that on a beach that could be holding the heavy Gold? Factor in the super small canslaw/foil and one could go nuts chasing the small gold on a beach.

That is so true what you stated, JP.
But I'd like to find some very small
earring posts with real 4 carrot diamonds.

Diamonds as big as “carrots”? Hellz yeah brother! I’m ALL THE WAY UP on that one!

As you can see,it’s “pick on Tony’s usage of the English language” day! I’m so damn bored right now I could....

 

[dewcon4414]

So... how much do u think a chain weighs that we miss? For some it is effort vs profit... not so much for me. Ive seen some pretty good size pieces missed or that the machines just didnt get. No one knows what u missed if u missed it. Im retired ive got the time.

 

[Reeseb]

" #1. Bottle caps...looks like they ring in right in the middle of the range, where most are easily ID'd or discriminated out at the 1 ferrous line with CTX..."
What type of bottle caps are you referring to?

1) New bottle caps: there is isn't a machine on the market that allows you to discriminate these out without missing good targets, E-Trac and CTX included.

2) Older, deep, rusty and crumbling bottle caps: The E-Trac and CTX do a great job placing these below a reasonable ferrous line.

If the Equinox isn't able to discriminate #2 above, it will be a tough machine to use in most older parks like the Deus, CZ3D, Omega, and so on are.