Hi all,
New to the forum but have been detecting for just over a year now. I purchased a Nokta Simplex+ to get me started into the hobby just over a year ago. I have decided to upgrade to a new detector and have been looking at both the Nokta legend and the Minelab Equinox 800. I know users of each machine will be biased towards their machine but I would like to know if their are significant differences which would outweigh the purchase of one against the other. I will be keeping the Simplex as a backup or for my youngest daughter when she wants to come out with me. I detect both field and beach areas if this makes any difference. I thank you all in advance for information and guidance.
regards
Richy.
Like some who will respond to your question, I have owned and used all three of the detectors you mentioned in your post.
There are several big differences between the Simplex+ compared to the Equinox 600/800/Legend so you need to be ready for this upfront.
The audio tone difference between the Simplex line and the Equinox 600/800/Legend is very big, almost polar opposites. There is literally no way to make an Equinox 800 or Legend sound like a Simplex. For many, that is a very good thing.
The target ID scale on the Simplex+ and the Equinox 600/800 is radically different with the Equinox 600/800 having comparatively a very compressed 50 target ID scale. The Legend has a 60 target ID scale but there are a few similar target IDs in the ferrous and low conductor range between the Simplex and Legend.
The ground is absolutely going to light up with targets using the Equinox 600/800/Legend compared to the Simplex series. Being overwhelmed by the amount of audio information coming from the 600/800/Legend is very common.
EMI will be an issue when using the Equinox 600/800/Legend compared to the Simplex+. That is just how it is with these latest, high gain, simultaneous multi frequency detectors
Screwing up the settings on the Simplex is possible if one is not being careful. Screwing up the settings on the Equinox 600/800/Legend is really easy to do even for experienced users.
I owned a 600/800 for five years and used one almost everyday for four of those years. That detector broke the previous simultaneous multi frequency VLF detector mold and made detecting fun and very rewarding for me. Those that wholeheartedly recommend a 600/800 are not wrong. They are fantastic metal detectors.
Those that say that Minelab released the 600/800 with several design flaws are not wrong either. For such a revolutionary detector, the stock shaft system is from the 1990s. Many serious 600/800 users paid extra dollars for aftermarket carbon fiber collapsible shafts. The hand grip has a very poorly thought out grip angle. The coil ears on the larger coils break easily. The control pods can have a water ingress issue. These are just facts.
The Legend says Nokta or Nokta Makro on it and it's a VLF metal detector with a busy display and collapsible shafts similar to the Simplex. However, the Legend is much much more like an Equinox 800 than it is a Simplex. From my own experience I like the Legend way more than I liked my Simplex+.
I even like the Legend more than my Equinox 800. As far as I'm concerned and the detecting I do, the Legend is a more capable detector in every way and does not have the design flaws mentioned earlier that the Equinox 600/800 has. The Legend has every single setting and feature that the Equinox 800 has and more. The Legend, at least for me is just a tad quieter than the Equinox 600/800 as far as EMI and its falses less on manmade iron infested sites and on ground with high iron mineralization. I have not noticed a difference when it comes to overall sensitivity to a wide variety of targets between the Equinox 800 and the Legend. The Legend is a bit faster as far as overall recovery speed and separates targets a little better.
The only thing that I like about the Equinox 600/800 over the Legend is the user interface. However, if the Equinox 600/800 had all of the features that Legend has, the Equinox 600/800's display would get crowded fast and its user interface would be a lot more complicated.
Some have mentioned the Equinox 700/900. Minelab addressed the design flaws that I mentioned earlier when they released the 700/900. Minelab also dramatically changed the target ID system and increased the recovery speed, target separation and sensitivity on the 700/900. Minelab also changed the Bluetooth system to one that is not currently supported by aftermarket vendors so it's basically proprietary and very limiting at the moment. I owned a 900 for four months and I made the mistake of thinking it was supposed to act like an improved 800. For me it was more like a very misbehaving 800.
Since you have never used an Equinox 700 or 900, you may not have the issue that I did coming straight from the 800. It does have a very similar non-ferrous target ID range to the Simplex and has a very similar, well thought out build quality with great collapsible carbon fiber shafts and is a real pleasure to swing.
Good luck with your choice and welcome to this forum!!!