Here's the new Minelab Equinox

Heres my opinion...... its what Tom ISNT saying about this machine that really bothers me at this point. Hes the only engineer testing this machine that we know...... his opinion counts because he knows as an avid hunter what we NEED out here. I honestly dont need a machine that gets de-tuned to run smooth as butter on the salt beach. Every one will uuuuh and awwww how smooth it runs ..... but at what cost? If you are beach hunting you arent coin hunting....... we are gold hunters. If its running to smooth..... its not what you find but what you didnt find guys. Give me a little chatter........ i run stuff HOT any way...... i make my own headphones ..... even hunt in PP with the Xcal, all these are to try and find those smaller golds other miss. Small gold is hard to hit near or in salt water...... we need it tuned correctly...... we really would like to find something other than RINGS. Toms always said salt water hunters are RING hunting...... wouldnt it be eye opening to see what we be missing. ANY water machine can do find rings ..... this machine has the potential to go beyond what we have. What a shame if we have one of the BEST new detectors......and make it an average salt water machine. Most wont know what they are missing......... or just never found. So before i buy this machine id like to know that its ..... not less than what im using.... why waist my money? ML has a real opportunity here ..... there are basically 3 water machine ...less PIs, none of those machines honestly do more than find gold RINGS. Come on ML .... put some balls on this water machine......it has potential.

Dew



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/10/2018 08:43PM by dewcon4414.

I have taken the time to help get Tom released , have you?
Takes two minutes if you're a slow typist like me

[www.minelab.com]

Now that it has been released I would think anyone including Tom would be able to voice their opinion and observations
on its performance as long as they don’t delve into the technology behind the Equinox itself..

Bryan

Thanks...... i sent a message, im hoping i dont just get a CS rep response. But if ML is reading this ......and why wouldnt they with 35,000 comments...... i hope they can see what may be a $900 dirt machine could well EXCEED that as a salt water machine. Like i said .... only 3 VLF currently serious water machine and this tech seems to trump them..... IF its not dumbed down to run smooth for the average user. Most of us know what that would mean on in the salt water......... Im hoping the goal isnt to ensure its a $900 machine in ALL areas..... accept it some areas may have greater potential than others based on the machines/purpose.

Good example...... back in the days most dirt machines run in the 5 to 7khz range...... why? because they ran smooth and worked in most situations for most people. I know this in an N hour push.... but many of us appreciate every review Toms done. Lot of insight as an engineer and a down to earth guy who swings a coil.

I read its $900... not $2500 machine a few times now. BUT .... is this not new better tech? Does it not exceed other multi tech? If thats true..... then why make it gold blind if it capable? I dont wat to be the guy with high hopes just to end up saying..... well what do u expect its just a $900 machine.

Off the soap box.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/10/2018 10:28PM by dewcon4414.

Well said Dew! Stay on the soapbox......

Cliff

This being the first in what will probably be a series of Equinoxes, dumbing it down would seriously hurt sales on future models. We are all expecting it to be a hot machine. If it doesn't live up to the claims, it will be a tremendous flop. The majority of serious detectorists will not be fooled twice when Minelab releases yet another Multi-IQ model claiming that this one has added performance.

We asked for an affordable, lightweight, waterproof, multi frequency detector that will perform as good or better than what we already have. The main thing that we want is performance. It has to have that edge.

The CTX is heavy, expensive and overly complex. That's why I didn't buy one and I'm sure that's why they aren't selling so well.

It would really bother me if they made me wait this long for a dumbed down model.

.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/11/2018 03:25AM by Badger in NH.

Good video in this link

[www.detectorprospector.com]

Sod-buster Wrote:
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> Good video in this link
>
> [www.detectorprospector.com]
> -good-video/


To anyone with experience, this video speaks volumes.

Beyonder-Pa Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sod-buster Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Good video in this link
> >
> > [www.detectorprospector.com]
> 87
> > -good-video/
>
>
> To anyone with experience, this video speaks volum
> es.

It's a dead link

It worked for me. The items in the air test couldn't get past 9 inches

Beyonder-Pa Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> It worked for me. The items in the air test couldn
> 't get past 9 inches


Maybe they took it down can you try it again?

Diggs4ever Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Beyonder-Pa Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > It worked for me. The items in the air test coul
> dn
> > 't get past 9 inches
>
>
> Maybe they took it down can you try it again?


I will be getting the Nox this week i will be posting REAL tests done by an experienced detectorist. In THAT video that was posted, they could only get the hit at nine inches if they waved the target very fast in front of the coil. There is NO doubt in my mind that they had no clue what they were doing.

Id like to thank Bill Stirling from ML for a very respectful, thought out and prompt Email he sent me explaining how ML felt the EQ should be tuned and why. He said i could post this Email and in all fairness i feel i should. This also shows that ML is reading and responding to what we want..... or at least a majority. I think back when i first started using a detector.... many were tuned the same ... 5 to 7khz so they would work about any where and the average Joe could use the. But .... thing have really changed. We have went into different freqs.... even multi freqs expanding the limits of each...... and now here we are. Salt water hunting is a nitch......but its growing, even on Toms Forum there arent many of us. Not since Gary Storm and ML collaborated giving us the Xcal have we seen this kind of interest that could be a game changer in water hunting...... a machine capable of finding smaller gold than anything currently on the market. Obviously they dont want a repeat of the CTX introduction and it seems they felt some of us had a concern with Brandons' video. But i dont believe the answer is to .... in my words to him ... dumb it down. The best answer was to allow someone like Tom to address those concerns. Tom has said he may have been the delay......if thats the case then why..... was there progress we may not see? I know Tom like me has wanted a machine that would be capable of finding smaller gold. Gold just inches under the wet sand that dont make a peep.... this machine i think could. Im not a hater of this machine....... in fact im just the opposite. I believe its great that we may have a machine thats not just another machine that can hunt salt water... but may have a lot of potential in and out of the water for beach hunting. I really look forward to Toms review..... why, because Tom has a reputation of being an honest straight shooter and he knows most of these machines inside out. Thanks again ML and Bill Stirling.

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.

That email from Mr. Stirling should get everyone's adrenaline pumping. He says it's still the "game changer".

Dew, thanks for staying on your soapbox and posting that response from Mr. Stirling. It is good to know they are following the posts and are responsive to our concerns about the machine. We will know soon enough from what all the testers say and what we see in our own tests.

Cliff

Dew - Thanks for sharing that. It certainly gives me a lot more confidence in Minelab the Company - they are obviously (finally) listening.

Ozzie...... it is a game changer is a lot of ways...... however like he said there is a trade off. That trade of in this case i feel was the real game changer.... sensitivity to small gold and maybe even depth in or near the salt water. However, looks like we will finally hear more from some of the testers and especially Tom. That may depend on how the first batch performs lol.

Well said thanks for sharing

Here is a 2012 video i believe showing an Explorer on some gold. Darn good machines and a notch below the CTX to some. Note thats a pretty good piece of gold ..... add in conservative setting and a salt setting IN salt water. Now the question is..... how will it test against what we have? Maybe Bill is right there hasnt been fair testing yet and we havent seen a true indication of the capabilities of there new Multi-IQ technology in saltwater conditions. I dont think that means it will outperform what we have........so what capabilities are we looking at here?

Dew

Sod-buster Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Maybe Minelab wants the detector to do most of the
> talking.

Bingo, give the man a prize! Minelab has been watching your posts for years folks - why do you think Equinox exists? Now is the time for testers to shut up so the first purchaser reports can provide even more feedback about what people like or dislike. Minelab has already heard from testers - now they want to hear from you.

Simple logic isn't welcomed on forums, Steve.

How dare you be the voice of reason.

Great info guys!

Comparison airtest video
Nox, X-terra 705 and CTX.

[m.youtube.com]

Very low ID values... with new ML...

I saw something that i have to reply to. We are the reason we dont get more sensitive water machines. We post why chase anything that goes thru a scoop......... or who wants to dig small gold anyway. This is why we get machines that run smooth.... that dont have that extra punch in the salt setting. They just dont have to make um. Just where do you think small linked gold chains fall? Sometimes we shoot ourselves in the foot .. much like all those videos of digging in a park with a spade which got a lot of parks closed to us. Not everyone slows down and hunts a beach..... its run run run.... get a bigger coil.... and dont check what you just lost when it fell thru the scoop .... or lets disc out foil and pull tabs. We drive the train here guys....... we make or break what we get the companies willing to do. Its much like cars that get 20 MPG....... when we had college students making them that would get 70 MPG. Another reason we also see more single freq machine coming out who make them water proof and call them salt water machines. We know better..... they work, but they just arent the best for what we do.

ML and other companies ARE watching ........ you know what they say..... just be careful what you wish for...... instead more specific.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/12/2018 12:57PM by dewcon4414.

You mean they want to hear from the whole 10 guys that actually could get machines LOL.


Steve Herschbach Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sod-buster Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Maybe Minelab wants the detector to do most of t
> he
> > talking.
>
> Bingo, give the man a prize! Minelab has been watc
> hing your posts for years folks - why do you think
> Equinox exists? Now is the time for testers to shu
> t up so the first purchaser reports can provide ev
> en more feedback about what people like or dislike
> . Minelab has already heard from testers - now the
> y want to hear from you.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/12/2018 01:23PM by GreenMeanie.

Steve Herschbach Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sod-buster Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Maybe Minelab wants the detector to do most of t
> he
> > talking.
>
> Bingo, give the man a prize! Minelab has been watc
> hing your posts for years folks - why do you think
> Equinox exists? Now is the time for testers to shu
> t up so the first purchaser reports can provide ev
> en more feedback about what people like or dislike
> . Minelab has already heard from testers - now the
> y want to hear from you.


Did I win one of those famed chicken dinners?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/12/2018 01:27PM by Sod-buster.

dewcon4414 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I saw something that i have to reply to. We are
> the reason we dont get more sensitive water machin
> es. We post why chase anything that goes thru a
> scoop......... or who wants to dig small gold anyw
> ay. This is why we get machines that run smooth.
> ... that dont have that extra punch in the salt se
> tting. They just dont have to make um. Just wh
> ere do you think small linked gold chains fall?
> Sometimes we shoot ourselves in the foot .. much l
> ike all those videos of digging in a park with a s
> pade which got a lot of parks closed to us. Not
> everyone slows down and hunts a beach..... its run
> run run.... get a bigger coil.... and dont check w
> hat you just lost when it fell thru the scoop ....
> or lets disc out foil and pull tabs. We drive th
> e train here guys....... we make or break what we
> get the companies willing to do. Its much like c
> ars that get 20 MPG....... when we had college stu
> dents making them that would get 70 MPG. Another
> reason we also see more single freq machine coming
> out who make them water proof and call them salt w
> ater machines. We know better..... they work, but
> they just arent the best for what we do.
>
> ML and other companies ARE watching ........ you k
> now what they say..... just be careful what you wi
> sh for...... instead more specific.

I am not beach hunter. But anyone who does beach hunting should watch Tom's video(Metal Detecting Real World Techniques Beach and Swimming Hole Hunting) on it. I imagine the techniques and methodology explained in the video would give hunters a huge advantage!

Ya .. Toms' one of those guys you can set for hours listening to with your mouth open in the OMG mode lol.

Ya .. Toms' one of those guys you can set for hours listening to with your mouth open in the OMG mode lol. You may know how to hunt........ but the ins and outs of the machine and the whys really bring it to light.