Equinox and small targets.

I've been reading lots of reports on the Nox signaling hard on small targets, and it's made me study my own finds the past few weeks.
I love digging small targets, but still like to find the bigger/deeper items as well.
So the pic below is from a hunt last week, you can see the size variety of the finds, using a 13"@14khz coil, from shallow to 10-11" on the bigger items.
Personally i think this spread in target size is quite good for a large coil, question is, with the Nox is it mostly small targets it's hitting in multi freq? would multi freq easily cover the same spread of targets in my pic, or does it have a weak spot?

NONE of those will be missed in multi freq. Ive hunted volley ball courts here on the beach even in beach 1 multi freq..... which has a salt setting im finding high conductor that make you go blind looking for them. I have one beach with WWII copper casings since it was use for target practice..... drive ya nuts with the loud tone and such a small target. Its going to depend on how slow and meticulous you want to hunt an area. But the recovery speed really increases finds near other targets.

Ghound,
Nox hits all sizes of targets, wide range conductivity wise.

And hits smaller and bigger with masking going on too, both from the soil, and ferrous, and even nonferrous.

Think about this.
You may have read where I did some head to heads on Nox located using Deus (LF coils and HF coils).

Some of the targets Deus wouldn't see using 28.8 kHz especially, was the reason frequency used driven, since Nox does TX at 40 kHz?

Or was it coil size? Or a combination of both.

I am asking here as a lead in to something else here that has been talked about as of late.

The deep tech gold gain unit.
I have not used one.

But folks should notice one thing.
What exactly?

How many VLF detectors available with 11" DD coil that operates at 30khz or above?

Not many right.

This could be the reason the gold gain unit according to reports is doing pretty good in the iron.
Biggest high freq coil for Deus iis 9".

Then there is the Equinox. Which does operate at or above 30khz.

So the next question here is, notice Minelab opted to engineer Equinox using 20khz and 40khz opting to leave 30 kHz out.
So does the IQ tech, can it by using multi frequency and using the freqs it does fill this void of 30khz missing?

We have seen some folks here, like Keith point out and I agree with him, to suggest somewhere around 28-30 kHz is the optimum freq for relics and using in polluted sites seeking nonferrous.

And this is not really a depth thingy I am necessarily referring to either, although additional depth is nice.

I have seen no head to head comments reported as far as the 2 units.

I would even be interested to see some head to head using Equinox as far a single freq goes. But I can already say with 100% certainty the multi frequency use of Equinox can indeed locate targets where the use of single freqs ops will NOT. Now, is this because some of the single freq design inside Nox was purposely dumbed down? Don't think so. Why? Because the Xp Deus using LF coils and high freq coils experiment similar problems when comparing multi freq Nox located nonferrous target.

I sure don't know all the answers.
But really the real question is here for the more technically inclined (not me), is does the tech of Minelab here actually close gap(s), even though a sector(s) of TX frequency has been omitted?

Actually I am quite shocked that some of the more dedicated relic hunters here haven't gotten Equinox units or at least got close to one and used and reported their " impressions".

I have tried to report on the unit.

I should also say, the most spectacular thing the Equinox does IMO, is how tonally it can signal on crippled targets. Lots of times the signals are no-brainers. But if you sweep with some other detectors, if they CAN alert one, signal more borderline- like sounds extremely close to iron tone. So less guess work involved many times using Equinox. Seems most Equinox discussions revolves around its ID of targets especially when compared to Etrac and CTX. But Equinox's ability to decipher ferrous from nonferrous gets left out.

A little tid bit here of gee whiz for folks.

I have a 9" deep clad dime.
Comparing Equinox to Etrac, each with their best settings to detect this dime.
Guess which detector gives me the hint of a nonferrous target existing period when sweeping (and allowing for slop) as far as coil position and sweep speed? And not really being worried about a correct target ID.

The Nox is the clear winner.

Now with ideal settings and coil position and sweep, the Etrac wins. But remember I know where the dime is buried.



Edited 8 time(s). Last edit at 04/15/2018 01:52PM by tnsharpshooter.

tnsharp,

I had my Vista Gold Gain (VGG) for a few weeks now and out on several hunts. Both the 11 inch and Super Six coils can separate ferrous from non-ferrous targets in iron extremely well...and both can find small targets. I used the 11 inch coil in a field and found several small buttons with it yesterday. Needless to say I am very happy with the machine.

I think the key with this unit is the audio...and the fact that is DOES NOT have a meter to ID targets. It's a simple dig or no dig decision based on audio.Set the unit up for the hunting conditions, run in 2 tone and if there is any hint of a high tone among the low tone iron signals, islolate and attack that target from all angles and if keeps repeating high tone....DIG. End of story. That type of hunting will have the sack full of trash...but also great finds that possibly a hunter that factors in target ID would not dig.

I also think a lot of great finds with the VGG, Deus, Nox, Kruzer family, and others, is because the hunter determined the dig/no dig decision on AUDIO alone. They didn't bother to factor in the target ID. Calabash is a prime example...his Deus is in his pocket when hunting....pure tone hunter.

Coin hunting...totally different scenario. Target ID plays a factor there, based not only on the targets being hunted, but the environment. Lawns, parks, etc. one can't really be digging 12 inch round, 10 inch deep plugs to start off. This is were machines like the E-Trac/Explorer series as well as the Whites V3i can help a hunter with the dig/no dig decision.

Not sure whether the 30kHz frequency of the VGG makes a big difference compared to a unit running either 20kHz or 40kHz, but I do know the general design of the unit, the way the coils are designed (those coils are TIGHT) and the audio of the VGG does play a huge part on why this machine performs so well.