Equinox 890 vs. Dedicated Gold Detector?

[MikeMSD]

I'm curious. There must be a reason for dedicated gold detectors. But multi-frequencu detectors like the Equinox can be configured in many ways.

So, is it possible to configure an Equinox 800 to be as good as a dedicated gold detector? Or is there something about the design of dedicated gold detectors that cannot be matched in an Equinox 800?

 

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[gunsil]

No, and yes. The big Minelab gold machines are PI detectors and they will find gold the Nox is incapable of finding. As for VLF detectors, the Nox 800 runs 40 khz in gold mode while some dedicated gold VLFs run higher. The lower frequencies are great on high conductors like silver, higher frequencies better for low conductors like gold. Nox is one of the best all around detectors with a great range of frequencies but if you're looking for natural gold like nuggets a true gold machine will be better.

 

[TORRERO]

And just to be clear, they can pick up almost anything small in size, therefore great for small Gold, but they are worthless in Salt water wet sand and make endless noise and chatter, so No you can't use them on the beach for small gold Chains, earrings or bracelets or fragments of broken rings..

 

[gunsil]

Which are you referring to? Nox most certainly is good at finding gold jewelry at the salt beaches but you gotta run it in beach mode, not gold mode. The big PI gold detectors work fine in wet salt sand also. The single frequency VLFS are not good in salt.

 

[TORRERO]

In 35 years I've used many different types of machines for for all kinds of hunting, you can run a few tests of your own to determine which machine works best for you, PI machines work great in Salt water wet sand but are not sensitive to small gold, Small earrings, chains, bracelets, etc. Single frequency machines do better in wet salt water sand, but when I say "small gold" I'm talking chains or earrings or maybe even a broken ring. I have a Nox 800, but prefer my XP DEUS II for salt water beaches, that being said, my XP DEUS I with Elliptical coil will pick up anything so small it might be considered a fragment.. but on a wet salt beach it makes too much noise to hear those small targets ...
(and if your hunting beaches a lot, and Never find small gold, then your machine almost certainly is NOT picking it up)

Two months ago I was on Hilton Head beach and hunting (DEUS II) and saw several others walking around, Nobody was finding much of anything but a few coins that I saw... but I dug a small Gold looking earring, and later I stopped another guy who was using a NOX 800, I said, what do you get here, and held my hand out with it closed in my fist.. swung it in front of his coil, and he said... Nothing !! I get nothing !! I said really He said yes, I don't pick it up at all..
(to be fair, I don't know the settings he had his machine at, or if changing his settings would have given him this thing)
I opened my hand and showed him the earring and he said, oh that's gold, and it sure looked like gold... (it was not actually gold when tested at home) He was amazed his machine did not pick it up... And for my part, I was amazed that My XP DEUS II actually did pick it up.....
For those who want to try some experiments (to see how your machine reacts) Get some small gold pieces.
(make sure its GOLD and not silver w/gold plating) like a gold chain (without anything attached, no medallions or crosses or charms) and lay it out on wet salt water sand (or anywhere) and see what your machine can pick up. Try small gold earrings, try a small bracelet !! But here is the real test that gets most gold hunters up in arms... (if you have a scrap gold ring you are willing to cut) take a small gold ring you found, cut the band and separate the opening so they don't touch... you can clearly see the band and the amount of gold hasn't changed but I doubt that 9 out of 10 people with anything but a true GOLD machine can pick that up... My Deus I can pick it up, and special gold machines can pick it up. But no other machines I've ever had can pick up a cut gold ring... (Nothing. (accept gold machines) Fisher CZ, Whites Eagles, Whites DFX, Spectrum, Tesoros, Minelabs, Nox, Garrets, NOTHING)
Try this, it makes for very good conversations ha ha ha

 

[cudamark]

The choice of coil, type of ground, and settings have much to do with if a detector will hit on a tiny gold (or platinum) item. The Deus 2 currently doesn't have a real small coil option, and In my testing, won't find as small a gold target as an Equinox with a 6" coil in Gold 1, in ground that isn't terribly mineralized. A dedicated gold machine like a Gold Bug 2, Gold Monster, Axiom, and many other Minelab PI gold machines will do even better. All of them do better on tiny gold over a Deus 2. That's one of the complaints against the 2, that it's not as good as the 1 when gold prospecting. Supposedly XP is working on an upgrade to cure that.

 

[TORRERO]

The choice of coil, type of ground, and settings have much to do with if a detector will hit on a tiny gold (or platinum) item. The Deus 2 currently doesn't have a real small coil option, and In my testing, won't find as small a gold target as an Equinox with a 6" coil in Gold 1, in ground that isn't terribly mineralized. A dedicated gold machine like a Gold Bug 2, Gold Monster, Axiom, and many other Minelab PI gold machines will do even better. All of them do better on tiny gold over a Deus 2. That's one of the complaints against the 2, that it's not as good as the 1 when gold prospecting. Supposedly XP is working on an upgrade to cure that.

I would like that, currently I use the XP 1 to hunt playgrounds where I can pick up gold chains and small gold earrings, I don't used the Deus II for that, but in the wet salt sand it's a lot quieter than the Deus 1 for hunting.
Maybe not as sensitive as the Nox, but I have found things my friends machine won't, no machine can get everything and basically you find one you like and stick with that one... Weight and the fact that it is completely wireless is something I really like. I also like the AUTO connect feature for the wireless headphones, my friends Nox might do that but he hasn't figured out how, and always seems to have a time trying to get his headphones to connect. Mine connect automatically as soon as the machine is turned on, without doing anything... even if you aren't wearing the headphones... then you just pick the sound you want to use, with or without, on the keypad.
BTW the XP I does NOT connect automatically, this is an XP II feature.

 

[bc5391]

I think he is trying to ask the difference between a nox 800 and a goldmonster 1000, or perhaps a nox 800 and say a minelab 6000.
With tat said, 800 VS GM1000 = frequencies, the higher the freq = smaller gold (nuggets) the nox will find some small gold, but I have found some just as small with the Orx and Deus 1 using the epical coil.
Then if you compare the 800 to a PI machine, it will be mostly depth, and with most PI machines, you can forget about the tiny gold (nuggets) that is what he VLF is for, but then again why would you spend 4k to 8k to find fly poop

 

[TORRERO]

Most people don't want to invest $6000 in a Minelab 6000 in the off chance you will get lucky and get enough to cover that cost.... GM1000 is $950 Nox800 is about $900 and XP I at about $1000
Most are not going to want to get those really expensive machines and will go with a top of the line machine from known manufactures ... Once they use the machine they pic, they will stay with it if they like it, and will always tell you theirs is the best ha ha ha.

Realistically you can't say your machine is the best unless you do a side by side comparison of what each machine will detect or won't detect. If we are hunting the beach, and I get a signal (Deus II) and its clear to me, and I call you over and you get that same signal, then my machine is no better than yours.. If you can't or you get a signal that I can't, then and only then is one machine better than another in a given situation.

But in all honesty, if a Minelab 6000 could pick up gold chains in the wet salt water sand at a beach, I might be consider the investment, but the truth is, you have to buy it before you can know its capabilities, and if I dropped $6000 and it was like all the other machines I have I would be very P.O.

 

[bc5391]

Most people don't want to invest $6000 in a Minelab 6000 in the off chance you will get lucky and get enough to cover that cost.... GM1000 is $950 Nox800 is about $900 and XP I at about $1000
Most are not going to want to get those really expensive machines and will go with a top of the line machine from known manufactures ... Once they use the machine they pic, they will stay with it if they like it, and will always tell you theirs is the best ha ha ha.

Realistically you can't say your machine is the best unless you do a side by side comparison of what each machine will detect or won't detect. If we are hunting the beach, and I get a signal (Deus II) and its clear to me, and I call you over and you get that same signal, then my machine is no better than yours.. If you can't or you get a signal that I can't, then and only then is one machine better than another in a given situation.

But in all honesty, if a Minelab 6000 could pick up gold chains in the wet salt water sand at a beach, I might be consider the investment, but the truth is, you have to buy it before you can know its capabilities, and if I dropped $6000 and it was like all the other machines I have I would be very P.O.

He asked why a dedicated gold machine vs a nox 800. Of course he did not say what he was looking for. I can only assume if you want a gold machine you are looking for gold nuggets. And no, I would not take a gold machine to a beach or park. I've been detecting since about 1976, lost count of how many machines I have had, but I also have no reason to spend $6k on any machine, my odds today are much less, of getting my return back than it was 30 years ago.
I do of course find on average 1 or 2 gold rings each year and 10 - 30 silver rings.(with vlf machines) My deus 1 has found the most.
Also this guy has never returned to make any comments.

 

[kenpodetector]

Which are you referring to? Nox most certainly is good at finding gold jewelry at the salt beaches but you gotta run it in beach mode, not gold mode. The big PI gold detectors work fine in wet salt sand also. The single frequency VLFS are not good in salt.

You want a goldmonster.

 

[TORRERO]

Personally I have always wanted a machine that could pick up small gold in wet salt water sand, I've had many machines but the one that stands out was the Tesoro Stingray, 20 years ago I could get small gold earring, Chains, and rings, depth was not great but who cares if your digging 18k gold that no one else could get ? (in Spain btw)
The Sand and Tiger sharks did not work as well, no other machine I ever used could pick up a gold chain by itself in the salt water wet sand..
And true GOLD machines just make crazy noise on a wet salt beach to make them worthless..

 

[daniel440]

The Equinox 890 is a versatile metal detector suitable for various types of metal detecting, including gold detection. It offers advanced features and can perform well in different environments. However, dedicated gold detectors are specifically designed for gold prospecting and excel in highly mineralized areas. They operate at higher frequencies and offer specialized settings for optimal gold detection. Your choice depends on your specific needs and whether you prioritize versatility or specialized gold detection.

 

[bc5391]

The Equinox 890 is a versatile metal detector suitable for various types of metal detecting, including gold detection. It offers advanced features and can perform well in different environments. However, dedicated gold detectors are specifically designed for gold prospecting and excel in highly mineralized areas. They operate at higher frequencies and offer specialized settings for optimal gold detection. Your choice depends on your specific needs and whether you prioritize versatility or specialized gold detection.

when did the 890 come out?

 

[TORRERO]

when did the 890 come out?

I'm thinking he means the 800 ... I've never heard of an 890, but I have an 800 hahaha

 

[daniel440]

when did the 890 come out?

The Equinox 890 metal detector was released by Minelab in 2019.

 

[bc5391]

The Equinox 890 metal detector was released by Minelab in 2019.

still never herd of it. try an equinox 800.

 

[TORRERO]

Well.... Just to be clear.. a Google search for an Equinox 890 does NOT turn up anything but the 800 and 900 So maybe it was released by a company that no longer exists 🤣

 

[LawrencetheMDer]

In 35 years I've used many different types of machines for for all kinds of hunting, you can run a few tests of your own to determine which machine works best for you, PI machines work great in Salt water wet sand but are not sensitive to small gold, Small earrings, chains, bracelets, etc. Single frequency machines do better in wet salt water sand, but when I say "small gold" I'm talking chains or earrings or maybe even a broken ring. I have a Nox 800, but prefer my XP DEUS II for salt water beaches, that being said, my XP DEUS I with Elliptical coil will pick up anything so small it might be considered a fragment.. but on a wet salt beach it makes too much noise to hear those small targets ...
(and if your hunting beaches a lot, and Never find small gold, then your machine almost certainly is NOT picking it up)

Two months ago I was on Hilton Head beach and hunting (DEUS II) and saw several others walking around, Nobody was finding much of anything but a few coins that I saw... but I dug a small Gold looking earring, and later I stopped another guy who was using a NOX 800, I said, what do you get here, and held my hand out with it closed in my fist.. swung it in front of his coil, and he said... Nothing !! I get nothing !! I said really He said yes, I don't pick it up at all..
(to be fair, I don't know the settings he had his machine at, or if changing his settings would have given him this thing)
I opened my hand and showed him the earring and he said, oh that's gold, and it sure looked like gold... (it was not actually gold when tested at home) He was amazed his machine did not pick it up... And for my part, I was amazed that My XP DEUS II actually did pick it up.....
For those who want to try some experiments (to see how your machine reacts) Get some small gold pieces.
(make sure its GOLD and not silver w/gold plating) like a gold chain (without anything attached, no medallions or crosses or charms) and lay it out on wet salt water sand (or anywhere) and see what your machine can pick up. Try small gold earrings, try a small bracelet !! But here is the real test that gets most gold hunters up in arms... (if you have a scrap gold ring you are willing to cut) take a small gold ring you found, cut the band and separate the opening so they don't touch... you can clearly see the band and the amount of gold hasn't changed but I doubt that 9 out of 10 people with anything but a true GOLD machine can pick that up... My Deus I can pick it up, and special gold machines can pick it up. But no other machines I've ever had can pick up a cut gold ring... (Nothing. (accept gold machines) Fisher CZ, Whites Eagles, Whites DFX, Spectrum, Tesoros, Minelabs, Nox, Garrets, NOTHING)
Try this, it makes for very good conversations ha ha ha

I just tested my 800 with 15" coil (Beach I, Sensitivity 20, Recovery speed 4) with a 14k tennis bracelet and it did NOT detect the bracelet until it basically was touching the coil. A 14k chain (bigger links?) did slightly better at about 2". When I switched to Gold Field I, the 800 detected the bracelet at 8-9".

 

[TORRERO]

I just tested my 800 with 15" coil (Beach I, Sensitivity 20, Recovery speed 4) with a 14k tennis bracelet and it did NOT detect the bracelet until it basically was touching the coil. A 14k chain (bigger links?) did slightly better at about 2". When I switched to Gold Field I, the 800 detected the bracelet at 8-9".

Gold is HARD to detect, and I can guarantee you that you WON"T be able to use GOLD FIELD mode at a SALT water beach.. its just the thing with machines...
When you ramp up sensitivity for small gold, you get endless feedback from Salt Water Sand....
I use the XP DEUS I for playgrounds with the Elliptical Coil., and it is super sensitive to small gold, Chains, Bracelets, broken rings ETC. But the DEUS II is not designed the same and probably wouldn't pick up Chains or bracelets of gold..
The DEUS I, I only use in playgrounds or parks for coins and jewelry, it makes a lot of noise on a salt water beach and becomes less sensitive to small gold and so I use the DEUS II on Salt Water Sand beaches...