Equinox 800 what it has taught me

maxxkatt · Jan 26, 2019

I have made this statement before and I will make it again. Since March 2018 I have learned more about metal detecting in general with the Equinox 800 than all my detecting of and on since 1988. And more importantly I am still learning.

The Nox forces you to learn more if you want to use the Nox as it is designed and intended to be used. For me the 800 was not an easy detector to learn. Coming from the AT Pro I thought I was pretty good at metal detecting. the AT Pro is a great machine, but not as challenging as the 800. I was fat, dumb and happy with my AT Pro. No stress no strain. A well designed detector that has proven itself to be one of the best.

But the 800 will do things the AT Pro won't do, but only if you truly under stand the Equinox and learn how to use it. The 800 will either fight you or work for you. That totally depends on you and your ability to use the 800 as it is designed.

Yes you can simply select field2 or park1 and ground balance and noise cancel and be on your way and find some junk and good targets much like the AT Pro.

But unless you really know your 800 you will leave un-found but findable good targets behind for someone else. If you really know your 800 you will find targets you and others have left behind. I have proven this to myself hunting one of the few not fenced and locked public soccer fields that is hunted by me and every other detectorist in this highly dense part of North Atlanta and pulled out 15 deeper coins that have been buried a long time that we all missed. This was my turning point with my 800. I thought by golly this really is a good machine. Prior to that I had my doubts. But the machine was always good, it was me that was getting better.

More than once since March 2018 I thought I should sell the 800 and buy an XP Deus or eTrac. But after investing so, so much learning time in the 800 the actual thought of buying a new machine and learning it makes me cringe. Probably won't happen. I finally realized that the 800 is a hot machine and it is up to me to learn how to use it and get out there on new permissions and find the goodies.

So my advice to newbies on the 600 and especially the 800 is don't give up, buckle down and study and learn your machine in the field. Oh yeah, and listen to the experienced guys on these forums who hunt with the 600 or 800. Especially Vferarri on another forum. Wished he would defect and come to friendly. But we have Mud Puppy and Tom_in_CA and a bunch of others who add greatly to this forum. They are why this forum is my landing place.

pryan67 · Jan 26, 2019

I'm trying to learn the 800 during the "off season". Any tips as to settings for parks or old homesites?

Stiffwrists · Jan 26, 2019

pryan67 said:
I'm trying to learn the 800 during the "off season". Any tips as to settings for parks or old homesites?

I've had my 800 a few weeks. I first week I had it, I changed up all the tone breaks, pitches, and volumes based on programs I found online. I think I did myself a disservice jumping into all the settings so early. I was starting to get frustrated by the response I was getting. Since then, I have done a factory reset and just learned the machine in Park 1 and Park 2. Trying 5 tones vs 50 tones and getting a better feel for the machine. It has helped me. I will get more onto customization of settings once I get more hours on it. It's a really fun machine.

Mud-puppy · Jan 27, 2019

Yeah...Its got a lot of Horse Power under the hood alright! This is a rig that could keep a guy entertained for a good long while...It takes a lot of in field and youtube study to master all the settings and use the one that is THE BEST for a certain situation/location...

It was almost too much for me for my average run around daily hunting.....hunting totters and clad stabbing shallows with it was like bringing a Howitzer to a knife fight....On the beach though, in the black sand mess, it was right in its element..!

beephead · Jan 27, 2019

I'm still learning mine. I found that there isn't a real need to turn up the sensitivity to a high setting to get good depth. To a large part, the sensitivity just amplifies the audio response. The difference in depth between say 18 and 22 sensitivity settings is not noticeable if you're using good headphones. Also, I prefer using 50 tones so the need for tone breaks etc. on the 800 would be a big waste for me.

beephead

Briman05 · Jan 27, 2019

I feel if you have used at minelab detector you have already gotten used to how you need to detect with the minelab

jl1252 · Jan 27, 2019

Maxxcatt, your post is kinda cryptic, but I think I know what youre alluding to.

I previously used an Xterra 505 and found only 3 or 4 silver coins the entire two years i hunted with it. I purchased the Nox 800 back in May and from then until December I found 27 silver coins with it, simply re-hunting the same locations. Sure, some will say I just missed them the first few times around. I can see that with a few, but not 27.

Just my experience thus far.

Mud-puppy · Jan 28, 2019

beephead said:
I'm still learning mine. I found that there isn't a real need to turn up the sensitivity to a high setting to get good depth. To a large part, the sensitivity just amplifies the audio response. The difference in depth between say 18 and 22 sensitivity settings is not noticeable if you're using good headphones. Also, I prefer using 50 tones so the need for tone breaks etc. on the 800 would be a big waste for me.

beephead

Thats been my experience as well...drop the sense to even 13 to try to proportional audibly get an idea of whats going on down in the dirt and how deep everything is...If I was running full bore sens, I couldnt tell audibly if this is a Q at 3 or a Q at 8...or a Q at 12....sure, the whole raise coil and whatnot dealie, it was a bit frustrating for me..trying to figure out a balanced set up that would allow the Proportional Audio to kick in accurate and still get me the depth and ID masked valuables...It was tough...A guy had to think, which I dont like doing...

beephead · Jan 28, 2019

Mud-puppy said:
Thats been my experience as well...drop the sense to even 13 to try to proportional audibly get an idea of whats going on down in the dirt and how deep everything is...If I was running full bore sens, I couldnt tell audibly if this is a Q at 3 or a Q at 8...or a Q at 12....sure, the whole raise coil and whatnot dealie, it was a bit frustrating for me..trying to figure out a balanced set up that would allow the Proportional Audio to kick in accurate and still get me the depth and ID masked valuables...It was tough...A guy had to think, which I dont like doing...

Yep, you got that right about the proportional audio response being diminished at high sensitivity settings. If a guy is smart, he'd bury a coin at 6 inches deep, set up the detector with the headphones that he's going to use and play around with the sensitivity and volume settings until he gets it all figured out. By raising the search coil over the 6-inch buried target you can figure out what are the best settings for your ears to get the most depth and still have the proportional audio response. I like to hear a whisper on really deep targets.

beephead

KennyM · Feb 9, 2019

I am sure glad I found yall on here-I havent even had time to even take mine outside yet and yep I am totally new and never even used a MD at all. We have had alot going on and hopefully looking into the next two weeks.Thank yall for having this thread cause I may have to re read it all over ago a few times thats for sure.

normx2 · Feb 10, 2019

Well written informative post Maxxkatt that applies to a large number of current high tec detectors. Read, hunt, ask, read some more, hunt a lot, repeat repeat ect ect.

Most of all?? don't give up,

Mountain Mike · Feb 10, 2019

Good write up fellas. I have been really trying to experiment with and learn the machine and mysteriously my good finds has gone up dramatically lately. My wife even commented on the numerous finds and asked if the new detector was much better than my eTrac or was I becoming a better detectorist. My answer was that I thought it was a little of both. One of my hardest lessons to learn with the Nox was something Beephead mentioned. Turning the sensitivity down when needed.

Wirenut57 · Feb 27, 2019

Maxxcatt, I appreciate your post on the Nox 800. I took mine out last Saturday for the first time with no practice and felt lost, like I had no clue what I was hearing and thought what the heck did I do, spent all this money and got a detector that I cant read. I finally figured out I had the discrimination set wrong and was in a super trashy area. When I got home I laid out a lot of coins, trash, jewelry and some gold just to familiarize myself with it. I felt much better and know I need to spend a lot of time with it to get the most out of it. Your post made me feel a lot better after reading it plus the communication it has triggered. Thanks

medicchief · Feb 28, 2019

Briman05 said:
I feel if you have used at minelab detector you have already gotten used to how you need to detect with the minelab

tnsharpshooter · Feb 28, 2019

There are textbook no brainer signals with ID to boot.

There are mediocre signals with ID in error somewhat.

There are crappy signals and ID may be all over the place to include possible ID flashing in and out of iron range. And tone too may go from ferrous to nonferous tone and vice versa.

It will take some digging of some mysterious behaving targets to explore and see possible tendencies of Nox on detection of nonferrous targets.

There is one thing one can do though to help hone one’s skill and make them more curious while in the field so as not to dismiss some targets haphazardly.

Get yourself a nickel and a dime and one nail like 12 penny size.
I’ll post a pic here to show how to position and then adjust coin position in relation to nail and note Equinox behavior both tonally and visually in the meter.
And EQX 800 owners I highly recommend looking at how prospecting modes work and behave here too. They are dynamite to use relic hunting in already hard busted sites even using behind EQX both 600 and 800 using all park and field detect modes.

Here is pic.
Continue to sweep down barrel of nail (longways) and repositioning coin so your Eqx barely picks up or gives clue to coins existence.

fuzzymaster · Mar 2, 2019

This is exactly what I am trying to learn with the 600. I have about 10 hours in two really trashy small parks near my house learning the equinox. So far I have just been digging alot to figure things out, but will play around today, frozen ground here, with the above test. Thanks

Briman05 · Mar 4, 2019

Well I haven’t gone out at all this year yet. Last year I it rained pretty much every time I had free time. I only do the beach and they replenished the beaches within the past 5 years so stuff sinks quickly. Just got the nox800 but have had minelabs for 7 years.

Equinox 800 what it has taught me

maxxkatt

pryan67

Stiffwrists

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Mud-puppy

beephead

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Briman05

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jl1252

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Mud-puppy

beephead

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KennyM

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normx2

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Mountain Mike

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Wirenut57

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tnsharpshooter

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fuzzymaster

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Briman05

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