Equinox 600 - when to dig

Dig dig dig. Like Jason said: Pay attention to what sounds and numbers were for each target you dig. You will develop a feel for what's what, but there will be surprises...but only if you dig them. Gold rings, pendants, earrings, etc. can give you numbers that are almost always trash, or zinc pennies. Consider location, ground conditions, environmental factors, your time and energy level. Then, decide what to ignore. Modify as you see fit. However you do it, dig dig dig.

Are you ground balancing? Running auto-ground balance?

REAL_RAT_FINK said:

My nox 600 arrived 2 weeks ago and I have been putting it to work. For me it has some drawbacks but the good outweighs the bad. I still need a lot more time with this detector. My Nokta Fors Core and I were "in tune" with each other.

I run the Nox on park 2, multi, 20-21 sens, 8 disc, 1 iron bias, recovery speed 1 or 2. Anytime I see a vdi of 20-34, even if its super jumpy and bouncing out of that range I dig it. 35+ has been iron or oddly enough hot rocks so I Ignore those. 12-19 is where most of the targets sit, often jumpy as all get out. I have been digging all these targets but have yet to see a pattern of good target/bad target.

I have been avoiding 8 - 11 vdi. From those of you with nox experience, when do you dig?

Click to expand...

Your decision to dig, maybe should be situational.

Virgin sites, dig the more solid, as targets get fewer and fewer lower your threshold for digging.
Detecting site history. What has been pulled out before. How old is site.

On solo sitting real deep nonferous high conducrive coins, Equinox can read lower, these signals usually real coil position sensitive, and you may not get tone on every sweep. Once alerted to begin with, better coil management sweep height and seeped, and location needed to gather better intel.

You can try and dig say targets that tend to read 19 plus on meter. Some fluctuation will generally be witnessed though id wise.

Speed setting. Speed 3 on your unit is a good speed to use to get accustomed to unit.

Sens between 20 and 24.
Don’t sweep too slow if area is more open. Nice brisk sweep.
You’ll gather intel on target’s size by using horseshoe button. Audio squeal on bigger items usually.

Signals reading in the mid teens can be looked at with single frequency 5 kHz, if these mid teen reading targets jump to high 20s to in the 30s, good clues pf bottle cap. Can be deeper too.

Repeatability of signal as well as repeatability of how ID is displayed, even if it windshield wipes a bit- good clues to determine how worthy a targrt. Iron likes to really vary when comparing sweeps, even after you really control your sweep, coil height and position.

Nickels can read 10-14, with biggest number reading 11-13. Deeper nickels can read lower than 10 too.

Gold, can come in really anywhere, good range 07- 19,with some bigger rings reading a bit higher like 20-22.

Equinox will jump on lower conductor and mid conductor signal,wise better than high conductor. Assuming similar size and depth.

Equinox can give signals with more coil height above ground on lower conductors vs higher.

Running 50 does give me more intel sometimes vs running 5 tones.

Spend time with your detector. It will come to you.

Try and learn to determine how challenged a nonferous targrt actually is, by using sweep speed variation, horseshoe button, coil height-especially in areas already hunted hard that contain modern trash.

REAL_RAT_FINK said:

I hunt parks, beach, and lakes. Each place I hunt differently. But the VDI's should be similar.

Click to expand...

from what I have learned the Equinox TID's and tone result from the difference between the ground signal and the target signal. so if you have the same target and different ground areas like a park or a beach, it is no surprise you get different TID readings. Then add in lots of trash in a old heavily used park that would change the TID readings even more for the same targets.

If what I think in the above is not correct, please anyone correct me on it. Last thing I wish to do is operate on incorrect info.

With this being said it isn't any wonder that people new to the Equinox (like myself) get frustrated in dealing with this. I was used to the AT Pro which I could almost always depend on the display reading and tones. I think the guy who said the Equinox just sees more targets both good and junk hit the real source of our frustrations with the Equinox 600 and 800.

tids can vary from site to site slightly

from what I have learned the Equinox TID's and tone result from the difference between the ground signal and the target signal. so if you have the same target and different ground areas like a park or a beach, it is no surprise you get different TID readings. Then add in lots of trash in a old heavily used park that would change the TID readings even more for the same targets.

If what I think in the above is not correct, please anyone correct me on it. Last thing I wish to do is operate on incorrect info.

With this being said it isn't any wonder that people new to the Equinox (like myself) get frustrated in dealing with this. I was used to the AT Pro which I could almost always depend on the display reading and tones. I think the guy (ohiochris) who said the Equinox just sees more targets both good and junk hit the real source of our frustrations with the Equinox 600 and 800.

ChrisMD said:

Are you ground balancing? Running auto-ground balance?

Click to expand...

I've tried both but Im favoring the manual ground balance.

Foragist said:

Dig dig dig. Like Jason said: Pay attention to what sounds and numbers were for each target you dig. You will develop a feel for what's what, but there will be surprises...but only if you dig them. Gold rings, pendants, earrings, etc. can give you numbers that are almost always trash, or zinc pennies. Consider location, ground conditions, environmental factors, your time and energy level. Then, decide what to ignore. Modify as you see fit. However you do it, dig dig dig.

Click to expand...

Yep, Im with you. Another few hours yesterday and I've got a better feel. Dug probably 50 targets and Im seeing some consistency. Quarters dimes and pennies are easily picked out, fishing weights are across the board but usually closer to the 13-18 range. One thing Im really liking with the Nox is its ability to search in mineralized ground. My fors core would always chatter a ton at certain areas of the lake I hunt. The Nox is quiet and stable and still gives a good VDI!

tnsharpshooter said:

Your decision to dig, maybe should be situational.

Virgin sites, dig the more solid, as targets get fewer and fewer lower your threshold for digging.
Detecting site history. What has been pulled out before. How old is site.

On solo sitting real deep nonferous high conducrive coins, Equinox can read lower, these signals usually real coil position sensitive, and you may not get tone on every sweep. Once alerted to begin with, better coil management sweep height and seeped, and location needed to gather better intel.

You can try and dig say targets that tend to read 19 plus on meter. Some fluctuation will generally be witnessed though id wise.

Speed setting. Speed 3 on your unit is a good speed to use to get accustomed to unit.

Sens between 20 and 24.
Don’t sweep too slow if area is more open. Nice brisk sweep.
You’ll gather intel on target’s size by using horseshoe button. Audio squeal on bigger items usually.

Signals reading in the mid teens can be looked at with single frequency 5 kHz, if these mid teen reading targets jump to high 20s to in the 30s, good clues pf bottle cap. Can be deeper too.

Repeatability of signal as well as repeatability of how ID is displayed, even if it windshield wipes a bit- good clues to determine how worthy a targrt. Iron likes to really vary when comparing sweeps, even after you really control your sweep, coil height and position.

Nickels can read 10-14, with biggest number reading 11-13. Deeper nickels can read lower than 10 too.

Gold, can come in really anywhere, good range 07- 19,with some bigger rings reading a bit higher like 20-22.

Equinox will jump on lower conductor and mid conductor signal,wise better than high conductor. Assuming similar size and depth.

Equinox can give signals with more coil height above ground on lower conductors vs higher.

Running 50 does give me more intel sometimes vs running 5 tones.

Spend time with your detector. It will come to you.

Try and learn to determine how challenged a nonferous targrt actually is, by using sweep speed variation, horseshoe button, coil height-especially in areas already hunted hard that contain modern trash.

Click to expand...

Ahhh, this is good info. I was wondering about coin depth and the occasional beep. In other words, a mid tone that is infrequent could be a deep silver, if I read that correctly.

Next time out I will use the horseshoe to try and determine size.

Im running a 2 speed setting because im worried I'll lose too much depth with a 3. Your thoughts?

I dont have an 800, so I cant easily switch to 5khz. But i can adjust it on the next park/field mode. Ill try this next time out.

"Equinox can give signals with more coil height above ground on lower conductors vs higher" what do you mean by this? If i lift the coil over the target I may be able to gather more info on it?

Thanks for EXCELLENT info and write up. I think there are many guys who are still trying to understand "Nox Speak". There definitely is something special about the Nox.... it is just fun to use even though I dont always understand it

It's a lot like spending time with my wife. Theres a lot of mixed signals but I enjoy spending time with her and she never lets me down!

I have pulled silver rings my last two hunts so the results are there even without fully understanding the machine.

REAL_RAT_FINK said:

I dont have an 800, so I cant easily switch to 5khz. But i can adjust it on the next park/field mode. Ill try this next time out.

Click to expand...

On the 600 you can easily switch to 5khz with one push of the frequency button from multi and you are there

SoOregonMd said:

On the 600 you can easily switch to 5khz with one push of the frequency button from multi and you are there

Click to expand...

Ha! Thats me overcomplicating things Thx for the correction.

REAL_RAT_FINK said:

Ahhh, this is good info. I was wondering about coin depth and the occasional beep. In other words, a mid tone that is infrequent could be a deep silver, if I read that correctly.

Next time out I will use the horseshoe to try and determine size.

I’m running a 2 speed setting because im worried I'll lose too much depth with a 3. Your thoughts?

I dont have an 800, so I cant easily switch to 5khz. But i can adjust it on the next park/field mode. Ill try this next time out.

"Equinox can give signals with more coil height above ground on lower conductors vs higher" what do you mean by this? If i lift the coil over the target I may be able to gather more info on it?

Thanks for EXCELLENT info and write up. I think there are many guys who are still trying to understand "Nox Speak". There definitely is something special about the Nox.... it is just fun to use even though I dont always understand it

It's a lot like spending time with my wife. Theres a lot of mixed signals but I enjoy spending time with her and she never lets me down!

I have pulled silver rings my last two hunts so the results are there even without fully understanding the machine.

Click to expand...

I’m running a 2 speed setting because im worried I'll lose too much depth with a 3. Your thoughts?
Your soil better be less than medium mineralized to run level 2 speed.
Some targets may not be heard using speed 2 vs 3 (this not attributed to separation either) rather depth and minerals and or conductivity level of target.

You may only get one way tone using speed 2 vs using speed 3, where the same target may yield two way tone.

Sweep speed more critical using speed 2. Speed 3more forgiving. Speed 3may yield weaker signal but will yeild more signals vs speed 2.

Real mild soil speed 2 will work better.


Equinox can give signals with more coil height above ground on lower conductors vs higher" what do you mean by this? If i lift the coil over the target I may be able to gather more info on it?

Okay here is what I was talking about. Equinox likely to give signal on deeper nickle with more coil height above ground vs a deeper dime, penny or even a big ole quarter.
So if you raise coil using Nox and still get a signal. You may think bigger junk target buried. Might be a deeper lower conductor (nice find) actually.

Deep coin can read real low ID wise like even say 2 in the meter. If you get one of these, tale tale signs to watch for. Super duper coil sweep/position sensitive to acquire signal. Also quite a few one way hits when sweeping. Use of horseshoe button engaged, iron tone can be heard (don’t let this fool you).

One thing about Nox, it gives strong pinpoint even on deeper signals, but not the what I call squealing pinpoint signals. (Squealing usually heard on the bigger and or shallower stuff, usually junk, can be bigger iron)

Depth meter will be pegged.

Don’t expect 4 way hits on a lot of the deep stuff.
If you have to raise sensitivty up to 22 and above to get signal, good sign of real deep whatever. Or if you lower sensitivty to 20/21 and target signal goes bye bye, or gets extremely faint sounding, good clue of real deep target.

Big congrats on your discovered rings.

This info here for the park hunters, or for folks who use Equinox seeking deeper targets, all conductive levels, even hunting in areas where users have run Minelab explorers, Etrac and CTX.

Now, this is a strategy I would use, it may not suit all. I am basing this on my testing, and real world use in the field.

The Equinox is like a musical instrument. It’s menu is easy to navigate, and using the menu to change settings while over possible good finds is key.

Folks seeking the deep stuff, Lower reporting IDed targets are the ones to watch.
You can open up range 1-13.
You may witness deeper finds reading a mere 2,3or even 4.
What to do?
Some things you can do.
Watch the signal, raise your coil and see if signal disappears.
Check signal using single freq. if target is not detected using any of the single freqs,,,I would dig all those.
If soil is milder, and speed 2 gives better 2way signal vs level 3 (600 model) I would dig those.

Iron bias setting. If a user is using some say levels 2-4, if you lower to 0 and signal gets longer, this may suggest more masked targrt being exposed more.

Small foil that reads like 1-4 using multi freq, good chance when you switch to 5 kHz signal goes bye bye or gets broken or definitley less stellar sounding=walk.

If when you go to single freq after locating suspect target using multi frequency and the suspect targets seems to read higher and not as repeatable id wise sign of deeper target. Remember though bottle caps read higher using 5 and 10 kHz especially vs multi freq.

Deeper targets can read higher than usual too. You may see a deeper whewt for example read high 20s to low 30s occassionally, even a silver dime too.

Lowering sensitivity and still be able to acquire a target exposes shallower targets. Varying sensitivty upwards while sweeping can give clues to depth.

Sites with fewer detectable nonferrous targets overall, the above works real well with. Will take some patience.

I guess maybe what I am saying in a nutshell above. Before you walk, have a process you go through to try and put odds on “ target is deeper and is indeed nonferrous”.

Not all folks will have same regiment for doing accepting targets to dig or dismiss.

The good stuff is out there, the Equinox is definitley capable of locating some of it.