Charging the nox.

Gros21

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Mar 2, 2019
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In the manual it says use a good charger 2a 5v which is fine or a Minelab unit. Then it says a laptop which will provide .5a at 5v which is the min standard for USB.

Now why on earth cant I use a 1.2a 5v charger? Or any mains powered charger that’s under 2a. I fully understand don’t use cheap chinease crud. My offical iPhone 7 one is 5v 1a plus as it’s work supplied we have dozens of these in the office.

I have several powerboard style ones that are like 2.4a total over 2 ports ect.
 
Electricity may as well be wizard’s magic from my perspective - I don’t understand it well enough to give a very technical answer. But I believe the main difference that you’ll see with any of the lower amp 5v chargers is the length of time it takes to charge the detector. I’ve never tried to use a computer USB port myself, but I know others on the forum who have said it took a ridiculous amount of time to reach full charge. The 2 amp charger recommended by Minelab gives a very fast charge rate, and I’d be reluctant to use a charger rated any higher than that, just based on Minelab’s recommendation coupled with my limited electical expertise. My guess is that you can safely use your 1.2a charger (assuming it’s decent quality) - you’ll just see a recharge time somewhere between crazy long and amazingly short.

All that said, I’ll make a disclaimer: this is just my opinion - best bet is call Minelab and ask.
 
Anything with a respectable name between 2 and .5 will work...changing times will vary as AMT said. Consider “amps” and “milliamperes” as the water flow coming out of a hose,”amps” is flow of CURRENT. The higher the number,the more flow...and it charges quicker. “Voltage” is the “pressure” pushing that water out of the hose....1/2 a volt seems to be the spec. USB in general should be safe.
 
Sorry boys should mention I’m a lecky. So

Yea you are correct excerpt it warns against use mid rate charges even from appple/Samsung.

Now I.cant see the point of this. But figured there must be more to the story.

Finding a good charger with several ports that can all handle 2a+ Each isn’t easy. Many are 2.4a over 2 ports or 3.6a combined or similar. Which would not reach Minelab specs.
Just want to know why there are up in arms about it.

Below is warning from Minelab.

EQUINOX
Battery Charging Recommendations
Use a high quality charger for your high performance detector

1. High Quality 2A Chargers - Charge the EQUINOX battery with a USB charger that has a minimum capacity of 2A @ +5V (e.g. Apple™ or Samsung™). This will result in a full charge time of less than 4 hours.

2. Minelab USB Chargers - Charge the EQUINOX battery with a Minelab Accessory USB charger, that has a minimum capacity of 2A @ +5V. This will result in a full charge time of less than 4 hours.

3. Laptop Standard USB 2.0 Port - Charge the EQUINOX battery with a USB charger that has a maximum capacity of 0.5A @ +5V (e.g. a standard USB 2.0 port on a laptop). This will result in a full charge time of approximately 18 hours.

WARNING! DO NOT USE a mid-capacity USB charger. For example, using a reputable and certified USB charger (e.g. Apple™ or Samsung™), rated at1A @ +5V, the USB charger will typically engage its thermal protection safety function and automatically shut-down - the detector may NOT charge fully. A non-certified and sub-standard USB charger, rated at 1A @+5V may NOT have a safety function and could overheat and potentially fail completely.

It is important to ensure you use a reputable and certified USB charger when charging the EQUINOX battery. Some USB chargers have NOT been certified to the relevant safety standards (e.g. C-Tick, CE, EAC, UL/ETL) and therefore may NOT provide protection or their rated charging current (e.g. cheap devices sourced online).Look for the following symbols on the USB charger intended for charging the EQUINOX detector:
 
What’s peoples preferred charger? Most sites refer to us models. Considering it’s going to need 3 x USB ports.

Is the nox really that fussy with chargers?
 
Sorry boys should mention I’m a lecky.

Awwwwee shoot bro, I'm sorry to hear that. I think one of my roommates in college ended up with that after a night with two brunettes. Pretty sure he was prescribed something and came out of it, though.
 
This is the charger I have been using since October and have had no issues. Fully charged in less than 4 hours.
 

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Yep that is the min requirements. But I need 2 at that rating then what ever headphones, gps and any other kit I’d take with me.

Also iPhone 7 chargers are only 1a 5v so that’s not suitable.
 
This is the charger I have been using since October and have had no issues. Fully charged in less than 4 hours.

I use the same one, works fine, 5 volt 2 amp. Its for a samsung smart phone.

I use a 5 volt 1 amp for the headphones and it works fine as well.
Its the charger for my kyocera cell phone.
 
Didn't your detector come with the magnetic connect charger?

It came with 2 but the issue is it comes with no ac adaptor. The tell you to use 2A chargers which is the top of the limit kind of ones.
 
Yep that is the min requirements. But I need 2 at that rating then what ever headphones, gps and any other kit I’d take with me.

Also iPhone 7 chargers are only 1a 5v so that’s not suitable.

You don’t necessarily need 2 chargers.
I use this one with my Equinox 800.
I can charge loads of things at once.

Works well for me.

Purchased as Walmart for around $20 US around a year ago.

https://www.anker.com/products/vari...6POTIH4DLNUgK4jehzAn-0bnKwYlXM_RoCd4MQAvD_BwE
 
I have USB ports on my house receptacles. I charge everything through them with a usb cable.
 
The amperage rating of a charger is how many amps of current it CAN provide. Much like someone else replied, like a water hose providing water. If Minelab recommends 2 amps @ 5v, then any 5v charger with an amperage rating of 2 amps or higher will work. The battery will act the same as the nozzle on the end of the water hose and draw the amperage it needs. Just because the charger CAN provide more than 2 amps of current doesn't mean that it always will. The device that you're charging is what will determine how much current is being pulled. The voltage is what's important. Stick to their recommendation of 5v. Anything less than 2 amps will increase your charge time. 2 amps and above will allow the Nox to draw their recommended 2 amps.
Any device that charges the battery while it's still installed in the device has its own onboard charging circuit. And any device that's electronically advanced, such as the Equinox, will also have it's own program to regulate and balance the charge of the cells. The first 70 percent or so of the charge will be provided fairly quickly, then the program will start throttling down the charge rate by reducing the amperage being drawn until the battery cells are at their maximum capacity and balanced. Otherwise, each cell of the battery system would have varying amounts of voltage with some being overcharged and some being undercharged, which would reduce the batteries overall life cycle significantly.

Sent from my HTC U11 life using Tapatalk
 
You don’t necessarily need 2 chargers.
I use this one with my Equinox 800.
I can charge loads of things at once.

Works well for me.

Purchased as Walmart for around $20 US around a year ago.

https://www.anker.com/products/vari...6POTIH4DLNUgK4jehzAn-0bnKwYlXM_RoCd4MQAvD_BwE

Anker products are top notch quality - I also use an Anker charger for my Equinox. Anker is my go-to source for third party charging adapters, power banks, charging cables, portable speakers, you name it.
 
I use my iPad charger for charging my Equinox and my iPhone charger for charging my Minelab Equinox wireless headphones. Both of these chargers are certified and have worked very well charging my Nox and headphones. Sorry I have not timed it but I can say it charges both fairly quickly. Hope this helps.
 
Step up Minelab. If you have such tight standards, throw out some recommendations.. That or for the 5-10 dollars it would cost you, SUPPLY ONE with your over priced detectors.

No offense, but Minelab did offer 3 specific recommendations, along with pretty detailed information about how to choose even more options. The quote below by Gros21 from earlier in the thread is copied directly from a large “Equinox Battery Charging Recommendations” sheet included in the box with the Equinox detector. I was originally miffed that Minelab didn’t include a charging adapter with the detector (see my post here), but I’ve come to appreciate the ability to choose my own high quality adapters to use with the machine, and not necessarily have to buy them from Minelab. And the reality is, every rechargeable device I’ve bought over the past few years only comes with a USB recharging cord and no adapter.

Below is warning from Minelab.

EQUINOX
Battery Charging Recommendations
Use a high quality charger for your high performance detector

1. High Quality 2A Chargers - Charge the EQUINOX battery with a USB charger that has a minimum capacity of 2A @ +5V (e.g. Apple™ or Samsung™). This will result in a full charge time of less than 4 hours.

2. Minelab USB Chargers - Charge the EQUINOX battery with a Minelab Accessory USB charger, that has a minimum capacity of 2A @ +5V. This will result in a full charge time of less than 4 hours.

3. Laptop Standard USB 2.0 Port - Charge the EQUINOX battery with a USB charger that has a maximum capacity of 0.5A @ +5V (e.g. a standard USB 2.0 port on a laptop). This will result in a full charge time of approximately 18 hours.

WARNING! DO NOT USE a mid-capacity USB charger. For example, using a reputable and certified USB charger (e.g. Apple™ or Samsung™), rated at1A @ +5V, the USB charger will typically engage its thermal protection safety function and automatically shut-down - the detector may NOT charge fully. A non-certified and sub-standard USB charger, rated at 1A @+5V may NOT have a safety function and could overheat and potentially fail completely.

It is important to ensure you use a reputable and certified USB charger when charging the EQUINOX battery. Some USB chargers have NOT been certified to the relevant safety standards (e.g. C-Tick, CE, EAC, UL/ETL) and therefore may NOT provide protection or their rated charging current (e.g. cheap devices sourced online).Look for the following symbols on the USB charger intended for charging the EQUINOX detector:
 
Step up Minelab. If you have such tight standards, throw out some recommendations.. That or for the 5-10 dollars it would cost you, SUPPLY ONE with your over priced detectors.
Exactly! Im putting my new Nox 600 together and I'm dumbfounded that they don't include a charger. !!!?

Shawn

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
 
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