Equinox repair announcement from Minelab

shoveler Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> A comparison between the Deus and Equinox is indee
> d not fair. A broken Deus controller with no warra
> nty still has value , the Equinox controller in si
> milar condition has none.
>
> I think Minelab will have to put some type of "val
> ue added" clause to the Equniox control handle war
> ranty to get them out of their disposable detector
> dilemma.
>
> A core charge type redeemable value for the contro
> l pod , regardless of warranty or condition , migh
> t stop a warranty expiration exodus of the machine
> in a couple of years and could assuage the concern
> s of owners with warranty , that they will not be
> excessively punished for issues they may be respon
> sible for. I'm sorry , the fact that they have no
> policy to deal with this scenario this far after i
> ntroduction does not say much for the judgement of
> their management team or their field testers.


Again you seem to be forgetting,
What was Deus warranty upon release ??
Why was it extended to 5 years??

Does any manufacturer really know how reliable their units will be??
I mean you only have so many field testers and test so many units.

In Xp’s case seems they underestimated the reliability of their units.

Maybe Minelab is needing some time from the field to see how reliable the Nox is before they can commit.

I have read little about what Xp charges to repair Deus do owners out of warranty.
Maybe some folks will share.
There really aren’t that many units out of warranty maybe this is the reason why.
Or maybe some can report on repair caused by self inflicted damage where they indeed were charged.

Anyone have any thing to share as far as the Go Find models as far as repair costs??



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/16/2018 02:49AM by tnsharpshooter.

I don't think a Go-Find has seen enough use to break
And Minelab needs more time to determine their units reliability? What difference does that make,? it's disposable!!!!
Time to accept the truth,,,
Minelab has created a beauty queen with green teeth

The Deus control box has always been available as an accessory or replacement for about $500. Given that the Nox costs about half what a full up Deus does, I would expect the Nox replacement to be about $300-$350. just my guess of course.

Rick Kempf
Gold Canyon AZ- where there is no gold

shoveler Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I don't think a Go-Find has seen enough use to bre
> ak
> And Minelab needs more time to determine their uni
> ts reliability? What difference does that make,? i
> t's disposable!!!!
> Time to accept the truth,,,
> Minelab has created a beauty queen with green teet
> h


Well let’s do some math.
If Nox control exceeds expectations in the field with not leaking and other faults, that would suggest they could charge less to remedy. If they don’t they would likely charge more.
Make sense?

Some autos by virtue of recalls or faults likely produced smaller revenue for manufacturer.
But they are a lot bigger than a detector manufacturer.
So auto manufacturers likely build in some loot (sales price wise) to cover things like this.
They don’t always get it right.

Not like Minelab has an actuary table on Nox yet like life insurance companies do on the human race.

I love this forum.

No dog in this fight. Let me get off topic just a bit Rick. Ive noticed a lot of praise, and well deserved, about MLs PA repair shop. Keith and the guys have seemed to really improve turn around and customer service opinions. Is it possible they are able to do this because a lot of machines arent being used right now? The Nox kind of put all other purchases on hold when introduced as the next best thing since peanut butter. Just wonder if grabbing the Nox has slowed repairs....... or was it just a slow period when no ones been hunting?

Aren't we putting the cart before the ox? In three years, who know what type of machine may come to the market. The Deus is a top notch machine. No doubts there. The Nox is a great machine in it's own right. I have found things that the Dues missed, the Ctx missed, and a score of other machines.

If you are thinking, "If I buy this machine, who's gonna fix it in three years", I think you are missing the whole point. You should be thinking, "Am I going to get $900 worth of use/enjoyment/finds in three years?".

Comparing myself to other Nox users, I am making incredible finds in hard hit areas and others aren't. So, I have come to realize that, the machine will only take you so far, skill will take you the rest of the way. While you may think that is simplistic thinking, it's solid.

A person can throw up as many red herrings as they wish to avoid the issue but it doesn't alter the current state of Minelab having no support for Equinox owners facing the dilemma of repairing an Equinox control handle that is not covered by warranty. In the OP quote you will notice "several requests" which tells me the situation has been occurring with sufficient frequency to have Minelab issue a statement addressing it.

If someone feels that is incorrect and has a true inside track to Minelab's workings why don't they contact the service personnel there and come back with both a price and a procedure. I believe the contact person is Jamie

Rick , I would guess the figure will fall somewhere between $500 and $600.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/16/2018 02:52PM by shoveler.

Look at the cheerful side. Since the Nox is waterproof, flooding is a “peril” covered by warranty. Not so if you accidentally dunk your non-waterproof machine of any make and try and get warranty coverage for it.

Rick Kempf
Gold Canyon AZ- where there is no gold

Id dare say ive paid for my machine 3 times over now. I think it will be one of those fine lines between ..... NEW or getting it repaired. After a repair i believe ML gives you 6 mos warranty. Some may just buy another so they dont have down time.......... do a repair and sell that machine when it gets back. Advantage of NEW is 3 year warranty vs 6 mos. after a repair....... whats that worth? Long time away........ but it will be interesting to seem the decision people may make. Right now PA isnt doing any repairs/replacement of the Nox...... aussie land HQ wants them all sent once replaced to them for review. Ive got nothing in it now and as a salt water hunter i EXPECT repairs.

How much of this thread is speculation?? Is speculation even debatable?? Don't understand the idea of a brand waiting to see how reliable a particular model is, prior to stating how long the warranty is. Doesnt First Texas (for example) offer a 5 yr warranty on all older or brand new models they currently sell?? Generally most would shy away from a product with a short time warranty. Does Minelab have confidence in the quality of Minelab....any current model?? Is it possible that new technology can be so out-of-the box (too new) that any company would flinch at the gamble to be first. After all it is a business.

Minelab’s Equinox warranty is 3 years, I believe - speculation is pointless - it’s done.

Rick Kempf
Gold Canyon AZ- where there is no gold

Arkansas Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> How much of this thread is speculation?? Is specu
> lation even debatable?? Don't understand the idea
> of a brand waiting to see how reliable a particula
> r model is, prior to stating how long the warranty
> is. Doesnt First Texas (for example) offer a 5 yr
> warranty on all older or brand new models they cur
> rently sell?? Generally most would shy away from
> a product with a short time warranty. Does Minelab
> have confidence in the quality of Minelab....any c
> urrent model?? Is it possible that new technology
> can be so out-of-the box (too new) that any compan
> y would flinch at the gamble to be first. After al
> l it is a business.


Speculation or not , while it may not require debate it certainly deserves discussion.

All of the crap tnss continues to push forward is just diversionary smoke to avoid the current repair issues and make himself feel relevant. His drivel has nothing to do with how someone with a damaged machine can get it fixed at this point if it is an unwarranted repair. You cannot buy any part of an Equinox from Minelab to do the repair nor can you get a price from them to repair it for you,,,period!! THAT IS NOT SPECULATION!! If you fall and rip the coil wire out of the back of your control handle you cannot currently get it fixed by yourself OR MINELAB. Dozens of scenarios of potential damage can be created but the only machines Minelab will currently repair are ones under warranty. Any other issue and you have no support from the corporation.

Call or e-mail them and prove me wrong.....................

Well, somebody sure stirred up some stuff with an innocent little “bald” link to a minelab page.

Wonder what the folks in OZ are telling their “European Business Development Manager” today? Wonder if he cleared that announcement with the mothership at Codan?

Empty bag, missing cat - oops

Rick Kempf
Gold Canyon AZ- where there is no gold



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/17/2018 03:20AM by lytle78.

Rick...... Surely this is all a ML marking strategy..... no one could screw the pooch this badly with not having machines and accessories available as well as the initial pirces..... and now not knowing the price for repairs after warranty/or we broke it since they make the entire machine themselves? Has any company ...... with the resources and knowledge ever been behind the power curve this far?

A lot of water has gone under the bridge since this topic was first posted and there's still nothing concrete that I can find about non-warranty and out warranty repair cost on the Equinox. That makes me wonder how much a used Equinox will be worth if it has a short warranty period remaining or no warranty at all. Reading about a 'disposable' control housing has gotten my attention. If one control button goes bad, you throw the entire control housing away and buy a new control housing? How much will that cost if it's out of warranty?

tabman

I have a friend who is stuck in exactly that situation.
He is entering the third week of discussion with Minelab service personnel to get a price for fixing his Equinox with no resolution or price for repair.
Last time I talked to him he was just being shuffled around to different Minelab personnel but they still refuse to either help or give him a way to send in his machine with a price of the repair.

I would not touch an Equinox that had an expiring warranty in a couple of years and if I remember right , parts repaired by Minelab only carry a six month warranty.

shoveler Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I have a friend who is stuck in exactly that situa
> tion.
> He is entering the third week of discussion with M
> inelab service personnel to get a price for fixing
> his Equinox with no resolution or price for repair
> .
> Last time I talked to him he was just being shuffl
> ed around to different Minelab personnel but they
> still refuse to either help or give him a way to s
> end in his machine with a price of the repair.
>
> I would not touch an Equinox that had an expiring
> warranty in a couple of years and if I remember ri
> ght , parts repaired by Minelab only carry a six m
> onth warranty.


Shoveler---I'm not trying to argue about this but I must be missing something here.-----Why would your friend have to pay for the repair at this point in time?---What with the Equinox just now coming out & with a 3 yr. transferable warranty?----Later on/down the road---yeah, I can see the concern.-----Just don't understand why he would have to pay for any repair now.-----Maybe I'm "missing" what you are saying.-----------Del

D&P-OR Wrote:

> Shoveler---I'm not trying to argue about this but
> I must be missing something here.-----Why would yo
> ur friend have to pay for the repair at this point
> in time?---What with the Equinox just now coming o
> ut & with a 3 yr. transferable warranty?----Later
> on/down the road---yeah, I can see the concern.---
> --Just don't understand why he would have to pay f
> or any repair now.-----Maybe I'm "missing" what yo
> u are saying.-----------Del

What if you bought a brand new Equinox, it fell off the tailgate of your SUV and it got busted and isn't covered under the warranty since it's your fault, what would the cost be to replace a 'disposable' control box? I suppose since the sales are hot on the Equinox, Minelab doesn't want to let the cat out of the bag on what the cost will be, since it will also be the same cost when it's out of warranty if a single control button fails. Just guessing.

tabman

Del ,
He damaged his machine by accident. Detector meets tire and he freely admits the error to Minelab. Minelab refuses to give him a price to replace control handle since it is beyond repair but admits how easy it is to change it out. Three weeks now with nothing but a runaround. You can contact White's , Fisher , Garrett , XP or any other detector manufacturer and get a price for repair/replacement but not Minelab when it come to the Equinox but if you have a warranty issue they will deal with it immediately.
Last load of crap they gave him was that the parts were "out of stock"(even though they apparently have stock tor repairing warranted units) but still refuse to give a price as to the cost when the parts do become available.

shoveler Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Del ,
> He damaged his machine by accident. Detector meets
> tire and he freely admits the error to Minelab. Mi
> nelab refuses to give him a price to replace contr
> ol handle since it is beyond repair but admits how
> easy it is to change it out. Three weeks now with
> nothing but a runaround. You can contact White's ,
> Fisher , Garrett , XP or any other detector manufa
> cturer and get a price for repair/replacement but
> not Minelab when it come to the Equinox but if you
> have a warranty issue they will deal with it immed
> iately.
> Last load of crap they gave him was that the parts
> were "out of stock"(even though they apparently ha
> ve stock tor repairing warranted units) but still
> refuse to give a price as to the cost when the par
> ts do become available.


Oh, I didn't get that he damaged it himself Shoveler.-----Well, I hope Minelab gets their act together on all this before much longer.

I'm usually the guy that if something bad or crazy is gonna happen with a detector (or other items) than it will happen to me. I've had my share of bad units, bad coils, etc.

I just don't play the worse case scenario game. Heck I could choke while eating, get food poisoning, ...does that mean not eat? How many bad things can go wrong while driving a vehicle? Stuck gas pedal, brake failure, engine catch on fire? Other drivers texting while driving and hitting me....you could go on and on til you get to the point where you wont go anywhere, do anything. Anything COULD happen but no need in giving yourself ulcers fretting over it.

Daniel Tn Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I'm usually the guy that if something bad or crazy
> is gonna happen with a detector (or other items) t
> han it will happen to me. I've had my share of ba
> d units, bad coils, etc.
>
> I just don't play the worse case scenario game. H
> eck I could choke while eating, get food poisoning
> , ...does that mean not eat? How many bad things
> can go wrong while driving a vehicle? Stuck gas pe
> dal, brake failure, engine catch on fire? Other dr
> ivers texting while driving and hitting me....you
> could go on and on til you get to the point where
> you wont go anywhere, do anything. Anything COULD
> happen but no need in giving yourself ulcers frett
> ing over it.


I would say that's a pretty common widely held outlook most people adhere to but if you indeed found yourself in that situation wouldn't your outlook change. Minelab has sold thousands of these detectors , do you think my friend is the only one to be confront with the dilemma? and why can't/won't Minelab produce an answer for him? To go to tabman's point , in a couple of years when you might be considering buying a used $900 Equninox , would you even consider a price of more than a couple hundred if the next push of the button could incur a $600 repair?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/27/2018 06:05PM by shoveler.

Considering that it would cost me about $650 to repair my out of warranty CZ-21 if it flooded, I am not too concerned about the warranty of the Equinox.

I could buy a brand new unit for the price of just repairing my old CZ-21, so a repair is certainly cheaper than that.

FLGP, I got curious about your estimate of $650 to repair a flooded CZ-21, so I called Felix in customer service at Fisher. He confirmed that a fully saltwater flooded CZ-21, with damage to all three boards would cost that sort of money to repair.

He added however, that in the 10 years he has been on the customer service desk at Fisher, he has seen only about 2 units with flooding damage to the electronics chamber (as opposed to the battery chamber - a much simpler and cheaper repair). He added that to the best of his recollection, in both cases, he told the customer that the unit was beyond economical repair.

Salt water and electronics mostly don’t mix, as you have pointed out,

Rick Kempf
Gold Canyon AZ- where there is no gold



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/06/2018 09:24PM by lytle78.

I rarely worry about these sorts of issues, all my hobbies cost me a certain amount of money, i could compare a new Longbow i had saved for (cost a heck of a lot more than my Nox) i closed the car door on it and snapped the end off it, non repairable, but such is life.
If someone doesn't like the fact that it may be costly to repair/ unable to repair/have to wait till they can quote to repair etc, then just don't buy that particular dang detector, buy something within the budget available, from a manufacturer who can repair it at a fixed cost that can be afforded, simple!



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/06/2018 10:23PM by ghound.

I used to practically live on the water fishing. My dad still does. He is always going thru sunglasses, so for fathers day last yr, I bought he and I a pair of Costa Del Mar sunglasses. They aren't cheap...about $175 a pair. But fisherman swear by them and they boast a Lifetime warranty. Well on both our pairs, the rubber pieces around the lens and nose pieces came off. I was going to send both pairs in to have repaired. In my mind, lifetime warranty means that any defects will be repaired at the expense of the company. Not so with Costa! You pay for shipping to them AND back to you, and approx $90 per pair to repair frame work, and $90 more if anything is wrong with the lens. You come out about the same as buying a new pair! It's a worthless lifetime warranty, that's for sure. I wonder how long before detector companies get that idea? Advertise a lifetime warranty for the ones that gotta have a warranty...but then charge for repairs.

There us also a few hundred dollars difference between the 600 and 800..... but will there be a difference in repair price? Hardware is hardware. You may have the 800 ..... but you think u can do fine with the 600.... now new or repaired? For a $100 or so it might be worth buying the 600 and parting out the machine. You have the wireless stuff.... shaft... and coil.

Sure have made me look at anything saying "lifetime" warranty. I go through sunglasses so fast I quit buying high end. Now I just find them on the beach. lol.