Deus in high mineralized soil?

RobG

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Joined
Sep 13, 2019
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5
Hi everyone, I'm new to this forum.
I need help buying a new metal detector, I'm really torn between an Etrac and a Deus (common dilemma :D)

I'm a coin / relic hunter, not interested in digging iron. My research conditions are as follows: highly mineralized soils (volcanic soils), often polluted. Always in land, no beach.

I had an XP Goldmaxx Power, which gave me some satisfaction, but I found the following problems: a little unstable and not too deep due to mineralization, very scarce in discrimination (I believe because of mineralization, but I had to dig too much, often to find only iron or pieces of tinfoil).

I had the chance to try an Etrac for a while and I found it incredible for its depth and ability to discriminate even in mineralized soil. Only problem: very very heavy.

I am currently very attracted to Deus, due to its lightness, reactivity and comfort with wireless, but I am afraid that in highly mineralized soil it does not go much better than Goldmaxx Power (with regard to depth and discrimination).

I don't want to dig hundreds of holes without even going too deep. Can I find myself in this situation with a Deus in mineralized soils? Is it better to buy an Etrac?

Thanks
 
Hi and welcome to this forum.

I have owned and used the XP Deus and the ORX, am barely familiar with the Etrac, but I am very familiar with the Equinox, plus I also hunt predominately in volcanic and decomposing granite highly mineralized soil.

You are correct that the Deus and the Orx are not going to go very deep in highly mineralized soil. They are better than most single frequency VLF detectors since you can raise the frequency high enough to penetrate mineralized soil to around 6" with good tone ID and very iffy numerical target ID. Past 6" where I detect, the Deus and Orx become purely beep and dig since they only will give 99 for a numerical ID along with iron grunts if I have the Iron Tone ON or they give no numerical ID at all. They have super fast recovery speed and outstanding target separation. They are SOOO comfortable to use and I really like them for shallow turf hunting in super trashy areas, general non-trashy park and field hunting, relic hunting in less mineralized soil and gold prospecting.

I have used an Etrac for about 30 minutes. It is super heavy, and to me has super slow recovery speed and just OK target separation. Its' ability to give accurate numerical target ID is incredible and it has good depth in mineralized soil.

You didn't ask, I know, but the simultaneous multi frequency Equinox was made specifically for detecting in highly mineralized soil. In the same areas that I have used the XP Deus and Orx, the Equinox 600 or 800 will hit 11"+ coin sized targets with accurate tone and numerical target ID. After using the Equinox since it was released, I am rarely surprised by what is under the coil. It is that consistent. With the XP Deus and Orx, if the target is deeper than 4" I have virtually no idea what the target is going to be. It could literally be anything even when iron tones and target ID are present. The Equinox is way lighter than the Etrac, and despite all of the original hype and all of the negative recent posts, it is an excellent detector for just about any situation I can think of.

Jeff
 
Thanks Jeff, your answer is really useful.
I'm returning to the world of metal detecting after a break of a few years and I want to make the right purchase.

I hadn't considered the Equinox because I thought it was similar to a classic VLF (and in this field the Deus is among the best), from what you say it would seem more like an FBS (is it correct?). My problem, as I said, is highly mineralized soils, I want a machine that does not lose too much depth and discrimination on these soils.
Have you encountered any problems with the Equinox? I have seen that some have complained about constructive defects.

Thanks again for your help
 
I have had no major problems with mine. I bought both of mine early in the release and they both have a bit of shaft wobble, but teflon tape for pipe fitting cured that quickly.

The Equinox is not FBS. It is newer technology called Multi IQ. The Detector Prospector website has tons of great, unbiased, information on this new detector and the main contributor and administrator of that site was one of the product testers. Minelab's website also has plenty of information by this same gentleman, Steve Herschbach. The other sites that you have asked this question on may give you some answers. How helpful they are is a question............since there are plenty of lovers and haters on every site except Steve's site where you just give the facts from experience. I would study first and ask questions later.

I would check those two places first and then see what you think about the Equinox. Maybe there is someone in your area that has one.

Jeff
 
You may want to consider some type of gold prospecting metal detector since they are designed for very hot ground conditions. Just a thought.
 
thanks again Jeff

I am reading in depth some posts in the forums that you have indicated to me and I am finding them extremely useful. I'll take some time to decide, studying a little. Probably the Equinox is really a versatile solution for my research needs.
 
Hi,
I got the chance to do some in the field testing at a moderately aluminum trashy public park today with the Deus and Nox. This park in the past has had high mineralization and high EMI. The EMI was so high that using an FTP Omega 8000, pre DST F75 or a T2/F70 was next to impossible when I tried them there. I used preset Coin Fast, 5 tones on the Deus with the low frequency coil at 18 kHz and Park 1 multi on the Nox with preset settings along with 5 tones. EMI interference was handled well by both detectors. I used the Nox first and detected an area about 20 yards by 40 yards. From experience I knew what most of the shallow to 6" or so targets were that I marked by their tones and numerical target IDs. I marked 15 targets: 2 which I expected to be US quarters, 3 that I expected to be US clad dimes or pre-1982 copper pennies, 5 suspected zinc pennies, 1 nickel and 4 which appeared to be some type of pull-tab. None of these coin sized targets were more than 6" deep according to the depth meter on the Nox. I then used the Deus to recover the targets. 3 of the zinc pennies and 1 of the dimes turned out to be less than 3" deep by my pinpointer's ruler and gave perfect tone and numerical target IDs. The 2 quarters also gave accurate target IDs and were 4" deep. All of the other targets including the nickel and pull tabs/beaver tails were more than 3" deep. They all had high tone (high conductor) responses and target IDs in the high 80s to mid 90s. Those are good numbers for the zincs, dimes and copper pennies. They are not good numbers for the pull tabs, beaver tail ring tabs and the nickel. By the way, the Nox identified all 15 targets perfectly.

I am used to the inaccurate low to mid conductor target ID numbers coming from the Deus and the ORX on deeper targets. No matter what settings I use this is consistent behavior from these two detectors on 3"+ or deeper coin sized targets in the highly mineralized soil in my area. So it is no big deal to me. It might be a big deal for someone who is used to accurate target IDs at depth and does not want to change their hunting style for a more tone oriented detector like the Deus or ORX. Also, in milder soil conditions those target ID numbers for low to mid conductors may not drift so high at depths past 3".

I love all three detectors and really enjoy using them. I have hunted with them at the same time before on the same ground and am always amazed at how the Deus/Orx will find things that the Nox missed, (usually very shallow targets that are not flat that is sometimes a weakness of the Nox especially on the US zinc penny, or very closely spaced targets less than 1" apart) and the Nox will easily find and identify targets over 6" deep that often the Deus/Orx will not notice at all.

Jeff
 
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