RANT - JUST A SMALL RANT!

[Minelab Matt]

Love my Equinox 800.

BUT....getting tired of it Identifying practically everything as a good target!!!!!

I know the CTX is wayyyy better, wayyy more expensive and i wouldn't get one for numerous reasons, mainly the crap screen and weight.

BUT....check out one example of what i mean here:



Equinox gives a slamming signal, but when CTX passes over same target...NOTHING!

Why? well...watch.....CTX could tell it was a good target, so couldn't be arsed to go "bleep" BUT the Equinox, just practically orgasms over everything!!!!

ARGHHHH!!!

Rant over.


No, not selling my Nox.

Matt

 

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[IDXMonster]

Well,buddy...that’s why I DO have the CTX. Opinions about the weight,cost,screen and whatever else are just that...opinions. The RESULTS are NOT opinions,which is why the EQ is going to be my “lightweight take it anywhere” machine and my CTX will continue to do what it’s done from DAY 1....find deep coins in difficult conditions with excellent accuracy. For MY specific criteria as an “old coin hunter” the EQ cannot and wasn’t intended to do what a CTX does. It’s just not the same animal. I have 25 hours on the 800 as of today and not ONE high conductor coin has come to light in my sites. After 100 hours I will have my own answer as to whether or not(no matter the weight) the EQ will continue to live here.

 

[sgoss66]

FWIW -- I have both the CTX and Equinox.

I personally would not have classified that signal on the EQX as a "great" signal; definitely not a "banging, no brainer keeper target," but it was definitely a repeatable signal that said a mid conductor was down there, for sure. I heard some clues in the audio that suggested something not round/possibly trash; my guess prior to his dig, based on what I was hearing, would have been beaver tail, deep. Based on what I heard on the CTX, I would have guessed maybe small rectangular tab, deep. I may or may not have dug it, with either machine -- depending upon whether I was in the mood to be reaching for "possibly could be deep nickel" signals.

I ran an Explorer for 7 years -- 2011 through late 2017, and then switched to the CTX 3030 in late 2017. I then hunted the CTX exclusively through Spring 2018, and then got an Equinox, after which I've hunted about 80% Equinox, 20% CTX. At this point, I can say that I'm equally confident with FBS or Multi-IQ. Both have found, and continue to find, good targets, and at this point, now that I understand them both, I notice no difference in my silver totals using either machine. I will say FOR SURE that I find more Indians, and more old nickels, with the Equinox, but silver totals are about the same. That's just me, YMMV, but I did not have the same reaction to the video as the OP...

I will say this -- the CTX certainly allows more "visual" clues, obviously. No doubt about it. If you are someone who likes to watch a screen, you definitely can get more "dig vs. no dig" clues visually from the CTX vs. the Equinox. But audibly, with a honed ear, I think both give an equal number of audio clues, overall. Yes, some targets sound better with one of them, vs. the other, and vice versa. But overall, there is audio nuance with both machines' languages, that if I listen closely, I can make fairly accurate dig vs. no dig decisions with either one. My overall "trash" digs are not substantially higher with the EQX, and the number of good targets I recover is at least equal. YES, I'd love a smart screen, FE/CO numbers, and target trace on the EQX, but otherwise, both are from my perspective very, very capable. YMMV, of course...

Steve

 

[Shooting Star]

Matt,

Your arguments are valid, and it is well known CTX does better identify objects better than the 800 in general.

But what if the foil was on top of a coin? The foil would have obscured the coin, for either detector, and if you skipped it, you would have missed out on the coin.

I believe this is one of the reasons for the "dig everything" philosophy, so you don't miss anything because of multiple objects near or on top of each other.

P.S. Are you selling your CTX?

 

[Terry Soloman]

Kinda like comparing your wife's apple pie, to your mom's apple pie. Are there REALLY any winners here?

 

[cudamark]

Kinda like comparing your wife's apple pie, to your mom's apple pie. Are there REALLY any winners here?

Not if you answer honestly and verbally! Those conclusions should never leave your mind....ever......

 

[smokeythecat]

800 is a mid range performance machine. CTX is a much better animal. Terry got it right.

 

[sgoss66]

800 is a mid range performance machine. CTX is a much better animal. Terry got it right.

I hunt with both; I have to respectfully disagree here. The CTX has more "bells and whistles." But the Equinox separates better in trash, and the Equinox runs equal to, or even a tad deeper, in the types of dirt I hunt, on all conductors -- and with reasonable ID maintained at depth. You can "cherry-pick" a TAD bit better, IMO, with the CTX...

Price-wise, the Equinox is a mid-range machine. I think it is more than that, though, performance-wise...

Again, YMMV...just my two cents.

Steve

 

[Ammoman]

My son likes his 800 for one reason. It forces him to dig everything. And, as we all know, digging everything results in more junk but better finds in the long run.

 

[Truth]

My son likes his 800 for one reason. It forces him to dig everything. And, as we all know, digging everything results in more junk but better finds in the long run.

I’ll 2nd that. Some of my best finds where iffy’s that was trash but once I got down there there was a small silver treasure found in all the mix. I call it forcing myself to get lucky.

 

[smokeythecat]

I cannot dig everything. In a hole yesterday I pulled a Civil War corps badge, percussion cap, 2 pieces of scrap lead and enough nails to almost make a house. My machine picked out the badge and lead, and pinpointer did the rest. Lots and lots of scrap iron, some with lead solder attached makes you tired fast. If I dug everything I would have to take up knitting.

 

[CoinFetcher]

What was the iron bias on the equinox compared to 3030??

Rant is kinda silly without the settings used

 

[Peyton Manning]

Sorry, but I must report you
I am pretty certain that it is against the rules and perhaps also illegal to say anything negative about the equinox

 

[HighVDI]

I agree. The Equinox is garbage. DO NOT BUY!

 

[vferrari]

First of all, it was not a slamming signal by any stretch of the imagination. The variable TID and audio indicated probable trash vice nickel or gold ring, so the can slaw was not surprising. CTX provided a more convincing trash response but neither Equinox nor CTX gave convincing "dig me" signals. Not the best example to support the rant. Perhaps getting more swing hours to learn the audio tells vice ranting is called for.

The narration at the end was hilarious and telling - "CTX completely ignored it (factually not true BTW - the detectorist ignored it, just as he should have properly set his expectations with the Equinox) and the Equinox thought it was valid." Well it was a valid piece of can slaw and the Equinox responded accordingly (12 is usually not a coin). Regardless, I personally am glad the Equinox sounds off on such targets because they could very well be irregularly shaped gold jewelry (which should lock on with a stable TID), wonder if the CTX would ignore that too. If you want to focus on just nickels, feel free to notch out everything but 13 and roll the dice. CTX and Equinox are two good detectors that excel in their own wheelhouses and comparisons are kind of pointless.

 

[Truth]

EQUINOX there is no substitute

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Minelab Matt, please remember we have rules on language, remember we are a family friendly forum.

 

[dirtlooter]

just the cost difference alone for what you pay for and get with the Nox is crazy nice. I never expected mine to do what the more expensive Minelabs can do but it does a lot in my opinion. I was just thrilled to get a Minelab at such a price. I do like the 50 tones at this point but still learning it. I really think that someone just starting out and was using a Nox, and nothing else to distract the learning process, could get very good with it tone wise. My hunts are shorter than they used to be and my memory sucks so I struggle some with the tone's slight differences. Awesome Machine! I was thinking Granny Smith apples and Red Delicious apples, both are apples but very different in flavor and use

 

[Geobound]

I've only done a quick few practice swings with the Nox so I won't comment on that, but I do use a CTX, and would have skipped over that target.

There was nothing about it that really screamed out "DIG ME", but if I were in a cleaned out spot with little to dig.........well then maybe I would have given it a go?

Kudos for swinging two machines and trying to learn them though. When I switched from my AT Pro to my CTX, I dragged the AT Pro along for my first two hunts to help decide if the targets were worth digging or not.

 

[CarsonChris]

There is no perfect detector. They all have varying uses, strengths, and weaknesses. I bought an Equinox because it seems the most well rounded. It can hunt in almost all environments where others are limited. I dug a ton of trash targets today in the hopes of finding jewelry. I didn’t find jewelry but did find clad and lead. Where I was hunting was heavily mineralized black sand that most vlf detectors can’t hunt in.