Why the Equinox actually COULD make a lot of other detectors obsolete.

Rattlehead

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Was just talking about this in another thread and thought it might make for a good topic.

Whether or not the Equinox series with Multi-IQ is some ground breaking technology remains to be seen. But if this detector performs as advertised it'll offer a LOT of bang for the buck.

- Light weight.
- Ability to run single frequencies ranging from 5kHz to 40kHz, all with a single coil.
- Simultaneous multi-frequency.
- Waterproof.
- Good depth.
- Accurate Target ID at depth.
- Fast recovery speed.
- Wireless headphones included (Nox 800).
- Very reasonable price point.

What other detector in the $500-$1200 price range can match everything on the list above?

Lets see...

Garrett AT-Pro, Gold, Max: Price is good and decent recovery speed, but no multi-frequency, no accurate ID at depth (at least not on mine).

XP Deus: Very light weight with fast recovery, but no sumultaneous multi-frequency, not waterproof without removing the remote or adding accessories, TID not accurate at depth. Price point with the remote is at the top end of the price range.

Thats just a couple of popular detectors that came to mind. FWIW, I'm not knocking these detectors. I own both of them. Just trying to look at what the Equinox is supposedly going to offer vs whats already on the market.

Is there another machine in the price range that could tick all of those boxes? I could be wrong, but I don't think so. Maybe this is why Minelab keeps talking about making other machines obsolete?

Either way, new tech with great features at a very reasonable price point is good news for all of us whether we get one or not. :cheers:
 
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yup i have the mx sport, which has been no slouch mind you, and I'm eyeballing this thing hard. Looks like it may end up in my hands eventually. Very interested for all the reasons you stated.
 
My main concern is that its built too light to be an effective water rig?...If the coil floats thats NOT GOOD, if this is the case, the waterproof aspect for the OX as well as its recovery speed to knock off the Pro for waterbabies goes right out the window...You can only swing a coil so fast in the water anyway, and a weightier rig balanced right is actually a benefit in the water...

So then, is it a better/faster dirt rig for clad/jewelry than the one I already have? Speedier drysander? Even if it may be, theres only so much a guy can recover in a given amount of time and then it becomes a matter of speedy target retrieval methods/physical fitness and not so much the rigs speed or lightweight capabilities....I cannot get any faster than what my F70 is already, and Lord knows I've tried....

Then, for the old deep silver hunters? What do they think? I dont know, some switched to the Deus and have done right well, some prefer to hunt slow and listen carefully with the rigs they already have...:?:

Also, how long will it take for me to figure the thing out? Thats a huge drawback since this is a big planet and time is short, I dont want to be fiddling around learning something all over again when I could be finding things and not having to concentrate so hard, and carry an extra set of batts for the wireless headphones too?...I do not want to be a first adopter to figure this thing out without getting paid for it!..I have a hard time with the TV remote! .:laughing:

We all gotta wait and see about these and other questions/concerns...so yes, its a great topic to kick around here as we wait! :laughing:
 
Well XP have had their profits from the Deus, others like Nokta, Garrett, Whites, who have had detector releases this year haven't, and since Detectival i guess sales slumped on the mid/upper range units.
The 2nd hand market is swamped with bargains.
Nothing in the low-mid range can offer the same skill set as the Equinox, but some machines that specialize in certain areas will still sell, the iron sifters, the depth monsters etc etc
 
Well XP have had their profits from the Deus, others like Nokta, Garrett, Whites, who have had detector releases this year haven't, and since Detectival i guess sales slumped on the mid/upper range units.
The 2nd hand market is swamped with bargains.
Nothing in the low-mid range can offer the same skill set as the Equinox, but some machines that specialize in certain areas will still sell, the iron sifters, the depth monsters etc etc

Agreed! The OX has sure upset the Industry applecart!:laughing: It will be interesting to follow and review next November! In field performance, no initial bugs, and the finds will tell the tale...
 
My main concern is that its built too light to be an effective water rig?...If the coil floats thats NOT GOOD, if this is the case, the waterproof aspect for the OX as well as its recovery speed to knock off the Pro for waterbabies goes right out the window...You can only swing a coil so fast in the water anyway, and a weightier rig balanced right is actually a benefit in the water...

So then, is it a better/faster dirt rig for clad/jewelry than the one I already have? Speedier drysander? Even if it may be, theres only so much a guy can recover in a given amount of time and then it becomes a matter of speedy target retrieval methods/physical fitness and not so much the rigs speed or lightweight capabilities....I cannot get any faster than what my F70 is already, and Lord knows I've tried....

Then, for the old deep silver hunters? What do they think? I dont know, some switched to the Deus and have done right well, some prefer to hunt slow and listen carefully with the rigs they already have...:?:

Also, how long will it take for me to figure the thing out? Thats a huge drawback since this is a big planet and time is short, I dont want to be fiddling around learning something all over again when I could be finding things and not having to concentrate so hard, and carry an extra set of batts for the wireless headphones too?...I do not want to be a first adopter to figure this thing out without getting paid for it!..I have a hard time with the TV remote! .:laughing:

We all gotta wait and see about these and other questions/concerns...so yes, its a great topic to kick around here as we wait! :laughing:

You're onto something there, Mudpuppy.

Just because a machine has a few more bells and whistles, such as multi-frequency, or even wicked fast response speeds, it doesn't mean it'll actually outperform an existing rig. If you're already digging up the signals you're hitting, unless you're MISSING signals, then it's not likely to do that much better.

I'd love to play around with several other rigs, like the F75, or a Minelab, but ultimately, I'd simply be paying extra money just to try the machine.. I cannot with good conscience even suggest that I'd find more with a better-whistled rig. Not in my local parks and schools, anyway. In fact, the cost of learning new equipment would actually make my find rate go down for a while. Not a lot of incentive to switch up, when I'm clearly doing very well with what I have. (better than any of the two guys I know with CTX3030s... because they have to swing more slowly... that kills them on the find rate. One often comments how he keeps wanted to switch to the AT Pro because it's "faster." He's already got a 17" coil on the CTX, too!)

Now... if I lived near a BEACh...hhh.mmmmm.
 
A 17" coil sounds mental for parks and schools, no wonder he go's slow lol

Not in my local parks and schools, anyway. In fact, the cost of learning new equipment would actually make my find rate go down for a while. Not a lot of incentive to switch up, when I'm clearly doing very well with what I have. (better than any of the two guys I know with CTX3030s... because they have to swing more slowly... that kills them on the find rate. One often comments how he keeps wanted to switch to the AT Pro because it's "faster." He's already got a 17" coil on the CTX, too!)

Now... if I lived near a BEACh...hhh.mmmmm.
 
Nothing in the low-mid range can offer the same skill set as the Equinox, but some machines that specialize in certain areas will still sell, the iron sifters, the depth monsters etc etc

Based on what?

From what I can see there is only a 'chosen' few have done testing on a pre-production model.

It is only when the machine is readily available to the general users will we know if your claim that it can offer the same skill set in the low and midrange market is correct.
 
Sorry i should rephrase that, nothing in the low to mid range can compete on the Equinox's spec sheet.

Based on what?

From what I can see there is only a 'chosen' few have done testing on a pre-production model.

It is only when the machine is readily available to the general users will we know if your claim that it can offer the same skill set in the low and midrange market is correct.
 
Sorry i should rephrase that, nothing in the low to mid range can compete on the Equinox's spec sheet.

Thank you.

The specification sheet is quite impressive but how in performs in the hands of the likes of you and I will be the true test?

I'm sure the machine will give some manufacturers a wake up call if nothing else just how light you can make a machine with today's SMT (surface mounted technology) and small lighter batteries.

Will I replace my old (heavy) Minelab beach machine with the Equinox, possibly at sometime in the distant future.............Doug.
 
I don't know how many VLF machines Equinox is going to obsolete, but it will definitely cause some prices to drop and hopefully make the competition finally start making multi-frequency machines. Why they haven't so far is beyond me.
 
A 17" coil sounds mental for parks and schools, no wonder he go's slow lol

Depends on the park and school. In my town, everything here is less than 25 years old, with lots of parks in the sub-10-year mark. A large coil enables you to cover ground FAR more efficiently than a smaller coil would.

I don't knock the 5x8 folks for anything, but I can guarantee in a newer park with sparser targets, they'll get the pants beat off of them simply because larger coils cover all the empty space between the targets better.

Smaller coils have their places, but when I can grid a whole strip of soccer field (sideline to side line) and hit only three targets, a larger coil is the boss...

That's the reason the CTX3030 user went with a larger coil, too. 17" is huge, but this particular gentleman has the arms to swing it (Big tall guy!). Proportionally, it looked perfectly normal. LOL

Skippy

Skippy
 
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I never considered that some of your parks are so new, so it's modern coins and jewellery your finding, fresh drops.
You'd love my small town park, it's a WW1-2 War memorial park but it also has the remains of a 12th century Norman fort, just wish we could detect there, it must be hiving with coins and relics.


Depends on the park and school. In my town, everything here is less than 25 years old, with lots of parks in the sub-10-year mark. A large coil enables you to cover ground FAR more efficiently than a smaller coil would.

I don't knock the 5x8 folks for anything, but I can guarantee in a newer park with sparser targets, they'll get the pants beat off of them simply because larger coils cover all the empty space between the targets better.

Smaller coils have their places, but when I can grid a whole strip of soccer field (sideline to side line) and hit only three targets, a larger coil is the boss...

That's the reason the CTX3030 user went with a larger coil, too. 17" is huge, but this particular gentleman has the arms to swing it (Big tall guy!). Proportionally, it looked perfectly normal. LOL

Skippy

Skippy
 
Just because a machine has a few more bells and whistles, such as multi-frequency, or even wicked fast response speeds, it doesn't mean it'll actually outperform an existing rig. If you're already digging up the signals you're hitting, unless you're MISSING signals, then it's not likely to do that much better.

I'd love to play around with several other rigs, like the F75, or a Minelab, but ultimately, I'd simply be paying extra money just to try the machine.. I cannot with good conscience even suggest that I'd find more with a better-whistled rig. Not in my local parks and schools, anyway. In fact, the cost of learning new equipment would actually make my find rate go down for a while. Not a lot of incentive to switch up, when I'm clearly doing very well with what I have.

I wonder how many people in my situation are looking at an Equinox. I don’t have a few other high to mid end rigs to either compare it to or to switch back and forth between. I don’t already have a dedicated beach machine or a deep silver finding monster. All I have is a lowly beginner detector and got bit hard by the MD’ing bug. The next option for me is to “step up” to a better detector. The Equinox looks like promising tech and at a point that doesn’t make me want to look elsewhere for a waterproof detector because I hunt at the beach in the water. I might not have to look at another $4-500 detector that will up my park hunting game. It is some awesome new technology with BT, multi freq in one coil. No deciding if I really need to get a detector that accepts different freq coils to suit different situations. All of those decisions don’t have to be made because it is basically rolled into one detector and at a relatively awesome price point to boot! It is a VERY easy decision for me to make to buy one. I also get the luxury of sitting back while the ground is basically frozen for a few months while others test it out and then order one. Hopefully by the time I am ready to get one for spring they won’t be on a backorder and any small bugs might be worked out. Win-win!
 
I don't see the forsale section being any different right now than any other year. Fall is always a buyers market.

Last 4 ctx's i have followed have all sold below 1350, one being only a few months old. Etracs.... i just bought another one for 650 with Rnb, 3 coils and camo covers .... I just purchased a F75 se ltd with 3 coils and covers for 375. I also purchased a Teknetics t2 se ltd for 350 with plastic still on screen and 2 coils and bag and covers, was only a few months old.

If i go back to before the announcement of the Equinox i would say on average these machines would have brought around 200 to close to 300 more than right now. It for sure has the market down right now. But i am liking it:D
 
Feel free to go back and do a detailed spread sheet. I don't see a big surge:grin:

This time of the year machines always hit the forsale section. People aren't detecting with the weather, Xmas, beer, taxes, Crack, Hookers and so on.

Having a new machine coming out won't help but I don't see this huge sell off going on.
 
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