600 headphones In the water

[Larwar]

Stupid question but I'm afraid to submerge my control box with the stock phones, will it really keep the water out?

 

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[vferrari]

Sort of. There is an internal seal that will protect the electronics and battery inside of the control head from water intrusion, but if you are using the stock Head phones without the outer seal plug, water can still get into the headohine jack cavity, and if you don't flush it with fresh (preferably distilled) water and let it dry out, salt water residue can corrode the headphone jack metallic contacts. Since the cavity is so small, it is hard to get a decent freshwater flush. An accidental dunking may not be a problem, but I would not do it frequently. Also, the stock headphone plug is not waterproof, so any salt water that gets into the plug internals may also cause corrosion over time.

 

[smokeythecat]

Good grief. "Sort of" is not too good an answer. I don't remember what the manufacturer said in the literature. What does it say? Go by that.

 

[vferrari]

It's "sort of" because you're supposed to be using the waterproof phones with the external seal if you want to dunk the detector, not non-waterproof wired phones. If you don't want to do that, then you won't break the detector but you may not have a working headphone jack down the road. An alternative is to use WP wireless phones which will work as long as you don't keep the control post continuously submerged. Half measures result in "sort of" answers. Simple as that.

 

[smokeythecat]

So you need another different set of headphones for true waterproof? Like I said, didn't study the manual for this machine.

 

[vferrari]

Yep. The supplied wired phones are not waterproof nor do they come with the sealed outer plug. Won't break the detector, but not an ideal situation if you plan on dunking it in salt water regularly. Just like the screen protectors, why supply WP phones when you can charge for them as extras?

 

[dirtlooter]

thanks for the info, when I got my 600, I couldn't see how the jack with the wired phones could possibly be waterproof. They force you to purchase their waterproof headsets in order to get the waterproof connector. surely someone will come up with an aftermarket waterproof connector that works correctly. at this point, I would have to go the BT route to water detect and stick to shallow water.

 

[vferrari]

Compatible "home brew" connectors are available on eBay for about $30. You can also buy the ML adapter cable for $40. This enables you to plug a headphone with a 1/4" plug into the detector. The detector end is WP but the 1/4" jack end is not. If you have Garrett comoatible WP phones, you can also take one of these ML adapter cables and splice it to a Garrett adapter cable jack and then plug your Garret phones into the jack and the other end into the Equinox.

Waterwalker described these mods here: http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/equinox/578983-15-hours-still-1-bar.html#post5823574

 

[Larwar]

Thanks for the info guys, After reading manual I also got the sort of answer. But I knew I could count on the good people of this forum to straighten me out. I also have to admit I was a little afraid to ask.

 

[vferrari]

Don’t ever be afraid to ask. That’s the whole point of the Equipment Forums.
You probably have 50 other folks who want to ask the same question, so there are no bad questions.

HH

 

[flgliderpilot]

The headphone connector is supposedly sealed, so water will only short out the connection, but will not enter the machine (in theory). In salt water this obviously will not work because the headphones would be shorted. In fresh water it may work, because fresh water does not conduct well, but I would not do it. I think it was intended to prevent rain, brief dunk, etc, from entering the machine through the headphone port, not full submersion.

Some people have used the plastic plug to create a waterproof connector by drilling a hole thru it, running the connector thru, and then filling it with epoxy or silicone.