How To Get Maximum Depth/Sensitivity With Your Equinox 800

[bigscoop]

How To Get m Depth/Sensitivity With Your Equinox 800:

If there was a way of hunting deep with the Equinox 800 then I was going to find it, and after several water hunts with the machine I finally did. Now this certainly isn’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea but if you really want to start accessing deep targets with your Equinox 800 machine then this is how it’s done.

Now I’ve only gotten to play with this setup in freshwater so you guys on the coast will just have to play with it to see what you can get out of it? First, go to one of your Gold modes, I use Gold mode #1. We’re using the gold modes because of their true threshold which will add inches in depth to your efforts. And in fact, it is this true threshold that is going to allow us to access that second level of depth that we can’t otherwise access.

Now pay attention to the following because I’m about to turn you onto something that you won’t read about in the user’s manual or hear about in all of the forums or in those Youtube videos. And here it is, “The Nox 800 Gold Mode threshold will only break or blank on non-ferrous targets once you’ve notch out all of the iron range.” If you have the iron range notched out then the gold mode threshold will ignore/reject these iron targets and your threshold will not be disrupted. This means that if you have the iron range notched out then you will only get a target return or threshold break/blank on non-ferrous targets. So, in essence, now we can treat the Equinox 800 Gold Mode threshold in much the same way we treat the three tone threshold return on the Minelab Excalibur.

No, you will not always get a VDI reading on these deeper targets, however, if the threshold breaks/blanks then you can rest assured that the target is a non-ferrous metal and not iron. And so, just like we do with the Excal we can now dig these targets with relative certainty that we aren’t chasing iron. Even if I were overseas chasing those deep ancient coins I’d be doing it in one of the Equinox’s 800 gold modes for all of the above reasons, so this method isn’t just isolated to beach and shallow water hunting.

Is there a downside? Yes, at least with the small 6” coil, and that downside is that this setup loves those very tiny shallow targets. However, not that big of a deal once you get use to this and you just might also come up with a few smaller gold or silver chains that you would have otherwise missed. (I just recovered two separate sections of one such fine/small gold chain that was about 3- 4” deep. The threshold kept breaking with a rather scratchy static return so I decided to dig the target to see what was going on?)

My method of choice goes like this. I use the 6” coil, run my sensitivity as high as I can, usually around 22-23, and my recovery speed at either 1 or 2, so I am all out going for maximum sensitivity and depth. Once I get a repeatable break/blank I’ll center the target and I’ll dig my first hole or two, then I’ll stick my coil into the hole to see if I can generate an actual target return and VDI reading and I’ll keep doing this until I do. I can’t do this as easily with the large 11” coil because I can’t get the coil into the hole even with my larger scoop, nor can I typically run that larger coil with nearly as much sensitivity and still retain a smooth and stable threshold, which is vital to this much deeper Gold mode method.

Obviously you’re not going to be able to apply this method in every hunting situation, as super trashy areas can present obvious problems. Nor do you have to hunt super slow over fairly clean bottoms even with the slower recovery speeds as the machine will keep up just fine. But whenever the conditions are right then this Gold mode method of hunting will get you a lot deeper then any of the other machine’s modes, and by a long shot. And yes, you will also have to get use to the gold mode’s single tone but this really isn’t an issue as there is no additional target information provided in the Nox’s system of standard tones anyway. They are just basic tones, nothing more. So I hope this information helps…..Cheers!

 

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[sube]

I can see where this would be a problem in a area that has a lot of foil and small can slaw as you said . But I have a few ?s since it rejects iron what happens when we go from a iron target to a non-ferrous target that's close to the iron does the non-ferrous get rejected at the same time before the detector has a chance to reset. ? 2 what does threshold do when we have a piece of iron go high and falses . sube

 

[cudamark]

I've found the gold modes are unusable in wet salt sand and water.

 

[bigscoop]

I can see where this would be a problem in a area that has a lot of foil and small can slaw as you said . But I have a few ?s since it rejects iron what happens when we go from a iron target to a non-ferrous target that's close to the iron does the non-ferrous get rejected at the same time before the detector has a chance to reset. ? 2 what does threshold do when we have a piece of iron go high and falses . sube

I'm so use to the Excal and Sov any clipping is second nature now, so whenever I get a suspected clipping I just slow down until I get the source isolated. As for the iron, whenever I suspect iron is masking a target I just switch to all metal real quick and check that out. I just got back from the lake Friday and while I didn't score any gold I did return with a lot of deep clad, etc., also a deep silver bangle bracelet. So I'm pretty happy with the results, but like I said, I'm also use to dealing with clipping and slow recovery speed issues simply from having spent so much time in the trash with the Sov and Excal. You just can't go super fast and you're not going to cover a lot of ground the way a lot of hunters prefer.

 

[bigscoop]

I've found the gold modes are unusable in wet salt sand and water.

Ya, I haven't had the opportunity so I have no idea what one can get away with in that salty environment with the Nox?

 

[bigscoop]

I've found the gold modes are unusable in wet salt sand and water.

Just curious, have you tried it with the 6" coil?

 

[midalake]

Just curious, have you tried it with the 6" coil?

I would never go to a beach with a 6" coil. EVER!

 

[bigscoop]

I would never go to a beach with a 6" coil. EVER!

I use to feel the same way, had several larger coils, including the big orange "O". They are great coverage tools after those busy weekends looking for those recent drops or when one is desiring to cover a lot of ground. But then I got to studying those guys who were recovering 100 or more gold rings every year because I wanted to be like them. Now I very seldom use those larger coils anymore.

 

[cudamark]

Just curious, have you tried it with the 6" coil?

Yes, I have 4 different coils now with the addition of the Coiltek 15". The Gold modes are just too noisy with all of them when in the wet salt.

 

[vferrari]

I use to feel the same way, had several larger coils, including the big orange "O". They are great coverage tools after those busy weekends looking for those recent drops or when one is desiring to cover a lot of ground. But then I got to studying those guys who were recovering 100 or more gold rings every year because I wanted to be like them. Now I very seldom use those larger coils anymore.

Agree, but midalake is not talking monster coils either, I believe. The big coils may have their downsides (weight and loss of sensitivity) but doesn’t mean going to the extreme opposite end of the spectrum (i.e., the 6” coil) is the right answer either. The 11” coil appears to be what the Nox is optimized for. Regardless, the 6” inch coil doesn’t sufficiently improve stability in salt water when using the gold modes to make them usable. I personally like the new CoilTek Nox 5x10 for all around use, but it too can’t be used around salt with anything other than the beach modes.

Anyway, I find your gold mode threshold-based detecting method interesting and will check it out. One concern I have is that being limited to the gold modes also limits ultimate depth capability because even in Multi, the gold mode frequency is weighted higher which means less ground penetration overall, especially with high mineralization. That’s why I wish ML would have made the true threshold and gold pitched audio tone an option for the non-gold modes. Plan to test this when I have a chance.

 

[midalake]

I use to feel the same way, had several larger coils, including the big orange "O". They are great coverage tools after those busy weekends looking for those recent drops or when one is desiring to cover a lot of ground. But then I got to studying those guys who were recovering 100 or more gold rings every year because I wanted to be like them. Now I very seldom use those larger coils anymore.

OK, my bs meter is going off slightly. Lets narrow this down. Stock Equinox 6" coil to 11" coil on a salt water beach. Tell me which one is better and why?

 

[cudamark]

OK, my bs meter is going off slightly. Lets narrow this down. Stock Equinox 6" coil to 11" coil on a salt water beach. Tell me which one is better and why?

6" around the fire rings, metal fences, and playground equipment.....bigger coils everywhere else. With the 6", you can get right up next to big metal without it blanking much. The bigger coils on a beach gives you much more coverage and the likelyhood of finding more targets in a given period of time. They'll also go deeper in most cases.

 

[bigscoop]

OK, my bs meter is going off slightly. Lets narrow this down. Stock Equinox 6" coil to 11" coil on a salt water beach. Tell me which one is better and why?

Well, there you go trusting that VDI again.....lol j/k You'll notice in that little write up that I said I hadn't had a chance to try it in a saltwater environment, which is why I said that, and asked Cuda, out of curiosity, if he had tried the small/smaller coil? So let me ask you this, each time we increase coil size are we making the search field larger or smaller? And if we are making it larger then does the ground balance have to filter out more or less of those undesired nineralized returns, etc. You see, most everything relevant, this is also why you can often turn on your machine in those house with a smaller coil and adjust it to run smoothly, VS trying to do that with one of those larger coils, like the WOT. And yes, EMI is still returns, as are false signals, etc. Personally, I wish Minelab would have offered an 8" coil, a true threshold with each mode, and even the three tone return on that threshold much like we have on the Excal. Of course, if a detectorist is relying solely on actual target returns then none of that matters to them anyway, but for those who are also looking for deep gold then it matter by several inches. For every action there is a reaction and most everything is relevant. It's no different when we start swapping coil sizes. Put on those larger coils and those deeper returns need to be larger/stronger.

 

[midalake]

Well, there you go trusting that VDI again.....lol j/k You'll notice in that little write up that I said I hadn't had a chance to try it in a saltwater environment, which is why I said that, and asked Cuda, out of curiosity, if he had tried the small/smaller coil? So let me ask you this, each time we increase coil size are we making the search field larger or smaller? And if we are making it larger then does the ground balance have to filter out more or less of those undesired nineralized returns, etc. You see, most everything relevant, this is also why you can often turn on your machine in those house with a smaller coil and adjust it to run smoothly, VS trying to do that with one of those larger coils, like the WOT. And yes, EMI is still returns, as are false signals, etc. Personally, I wish Minelab would have offered an 8" coil, a true threshold with each mode, and even the three tone return on that threshold much like we have on the Excal. Of course, if a detectorist is relying solely on actual target returns then none of that matters to them anyway, but for those who are also looking for deep gold then it matter by several inches. For every action there is a reaction and most everything is relevant. It's no different when we start swapping coil sizes. Put on those larger coils and those deeper returns need to be larger/stronger.

I asked about the 6' and 11" coil and all you mention is an 8"..........

 

[bigscoop]

OK, my bs meter is going off slightly. Lets narrow this down. Stock Equinox 6" coil to 11" coil on a salt water beach. Tell me which one is better and why?

If only it were that simple. When you put on one of those larger aftermarket coils you’re not creating stronger sends and returns. You’re just creating a larger search field. As such, especially true in a mineralized environment, you’re also creating a more unstable search field that requires increased filtering. How does the processor do this?

The process/processor accomplishes this stabilization by filtering out information, whatever it takes to stabilize the search field. Unfortunately this also starts to include some of those faint/weaker returns that often times are not filtered out in smaller search fields because their presence isn’t overloading that smaller search field. So, as a general rule, the larger the coil the larger and/or more dense those same deep targets have to become as coil size continues to increase in order to not be filtered out due to the increased instability and strain those larger coils are putting on those larger search fields. This is also why those smaller coils are typically more sensitive to smaller items because, when it comes to mufti-frequency machines, everything is relative. You can’t make noticeable gains in one area of the process without making sacrifices in others, Recovery speed is one prime example, if you make it faster it comes at the cost of depth and sensitivity. Just the nature of the technology at hand.

When I lived on the coast of Florida I routinely recovered fine/small gold and silver chains with my Excal and 8” stock coil. But I seldom got an actual target return on those items, most often I kept getting a repeatable threshold break or scratchy returns and each time that threshold would return in either a mid or high tone. I could not have done this with those larger coils for all of the above reasons. And I can say this same thing in regards to smaller gold rings at depths, this including two tiny 1gram 14K birth rings that were surprisingly deep. At Bear Lake in Michigan I recovered a 1/5gram 14k birth ring with a single solitary diamond that had probably come off of a charm bracelet or necklace somehow. Again, I would have never recovered these with those larger aftermarket coils for all of the above reasons. On the other hand, with that same Excal and 8” stock coil I’ve recovered countless larger gold and silver rings over the years that were in that 15 to 17 inch range, most of these being heavier/denser bands and/or older class rings, older signet rings, etc., most of these running rather small as well, say in that size 4-6 range due to their having been worn on the pinky finger which was the style back in the day. (I thank OBN for that bit of knowledge as to why those older rings were typically running so small.)

By the way, I never did get to 100 gold rings for the year while I was hunting those beaches in Florida but I did get close a couple of years. The main reason for the short fall was because I could just never accept the notion of chasing everything and digging that many holes and/or collecting that much trash. But those guys that do get to 100 certainly chase and collect more iron and trash then the rest of us. And again, for all of the above reasons, I doubt you will find very many of them using those larger aftermarket coils, or relying solely on a multi-frequency machine as most of them frequently employ PI machines, and again, for all of the above reasons. As one such hunter told me, “”When I’m done hunting an area the bottom looks likes a minefield.” And that’s how they consistently get to 100 gold rings for the year.

For all of the above reasons I now use 5,6,8, and sometimes a 10” coil for 99% of my beach and shallow water hunting, even in freshwater environments. Just depends on the machine I’m using and the conditions at hand. There are only two ways to cover the bottom efficiently, horizontally and vertically, very-very rarely can you do both at the same time with a multi-freqency machine, and for all of the above reasons. There is no simple answer to, "which coil is best."