13/ Audio Recognition
The Equinox’s audio tones need some practice to interpret. One of the first things I noticed about this detector was that it reported multiple tones on some bottle caps--a very good sign. That is the brass, the tin, the steel of these caps--all sounded off. Some also gave weak, broken tones. This was due to the machine’s precise reporting and built in bias against iron, steel, odd shaped objects and alloys. When you learn to listen for these broken, “skewed,” “bitty” or multiple tones the need to be continually looking at the meter is reduced.
The Equinox’s sophisticated electronics make for a high standard of processing. What I mean by this is that an object has to be “clean” metal, coin sized, and ideally, round to produce a good sound (and stable, centered ID). The key is to learn to listen for the work that the detector is doing for you. This involves audio recognition. A good way to practice your “ear” skills is to try and tell if something will “stay in” --that is--be a repeatable signal from the first sound it makes. This is a good way to get in the habit of concentrating on the signal tone.
It’s not enough to hear a sound that falls within a given “notch” or discriminate pattern. Practice listening hard for “quality signals.” This simple basic skill is worth all the features and settings in the world.
Another thing worth noting in the design of the pre-set modes is that where the intention is to use “Tone Break” to segment and distinguish between targets on the conductive scale--“5 Tone” is used. (“Park 1” and “Beach 1”). The idea here is the use the machine’s clean transitions to be alerted to exact differences--between a silver coin and a zinc penny for example.
Where the intention is to select the cleanest responses in dense trash, “50 Tone” is used. (“Park 2” and “Field 2”). This is more of a jewellery setting that allows
you to hear more definition in the tones and listen for even sounds. Objects like misshapen lead scrap, “can-slaw,” and weak foils will become more obvious using “50 Tone.”
Become familiar with both of these types of approaches--it’s an important difference in the types of applications and target distinctions that the Equinox is capable of.
Picture Caption:
Audio recognition of poor versus quality responses with a high gain detector. With a high gain detector like the Equinox, it’s important to learn to recognize short, “clipped” “sound offs” that the machine's power can bring up. Another thing to listen for is the broken or segmented “too big” tone.
From: The Minelab Equinox: "From Beginner to Advanced" (201
by Clive James Clynick
The Equinox’s audio tones need some practice to interpret. One of the first things I noticed about this detector was that it reported multiple tones on some bottle caps--a very good sign. That is the brass, the tin, the steel of these caps--all sounded off. Some also gave weak, broken tones. This was due to the machine’s precise reporting and built in bias against iron, steel, odd shaped objects and alloys. When you learn to listen for these broken, “skewed,” “bitty” or multiple tones the need to be continually looking at the meter is reduced.
The Equinox’s sophisticated electronics make for a high standard of processing. What I mean by this is that an object has to be “clean” metal, coin sized, and ideally, round to produce a good sound (and stable, centered ID). The key is to learn to listen for the work that the detector is doing for you. This involves audio recognition. A good way to practice your “ear” skills is to try and tell if something will “stay in” --that is--be a repeatable signal from the first sound it makes. This is a good way to get in the habit of concentrating on the signal tone.
It’s not enough to hear a sound that falls within a given “notch” or discriminate pattern. Practice listening hard for “quality signals.” This simple basic skill is worth all the features and settings in the world.
Another thing worth noting in the design of the pre-set modes is that where the intention is to use “Tone Break” to segment and distinguish between targets on the conductive scale--“5 Tone” is used. (“Park 1” and “Beach 1”). The idea here is the use the machine’s clean transitions to be alerted to exact differences--between a silver coin and a zinc penny for example.
Where the intention is to select the cleanest responses in dense trash, “50 Tone” is used. (“Park 2” and “Field 2”). This is more of a jewellery setting that allows
you to hear more definition in the tones and listen for even sounds. Objects like misshapen lead scrap, “can-slaw,” and weak foils will become more obvious using “50 Tone.”
Become familiar with both of these types of approaches--it’s an important difference in the types of applications and target distinctions that the Equinox is capable of.
Picture Caption:
Audio recognition of poor versus quality responses with a high gain detector. With a high gain detector like the Equinox, it’s important to learn to recognize short, “clipped” “sound offs” that the machine's power can bring up. Another thing to listen for is the broken or segmented “too big” tone.
From: The Minelab Equinox: "From Beginner to Advanced" (201
by Clive James Clynick
