Myers Depot Metal Detectors

my thoughts on the equinox 600

D

Dflan83

Elite Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2010
Messages
1,129
Location
Fayetteville, TN
Well I've taken some time to get to know the equinox 600 for 3 hunts now and this is just my 2cents for what its worth.

At first I thought I might be selling my CTX but I feel like FBS is still superior for selective digging and TID that is unmatched. Maybe its my inexperience but I feel like I always know with FBS if there is a coin under my coil. If the equinox had 2 dimensional discrimination I feel that it would be much more equal to fbs in terms of discrimination.

Trash - I am digging a lot more bottlecaps with the equinox but I am definitely getting smaller targets the FBS just doesn't pickup most of the time. Overall I am digging more trash with the equinox

Tones - 50 tone on the ctx does not = 50 tone on the equinox.. I am picking up so many targets on the equinox that 50 tones feels like sensory overload. I had to back down to 5 tones and this feels about right to me. On the CTX I have more discrimination and the targets, especially coins seem to lock dead on.

Target Separation - This is where the equinox seems to shine and I took it over places where I've hunted with the CTX. I hunt super slow with the CTX and did a pretty darn good job pulling out the coins. I only managed to pull a few that had many targets in proximity that the CTX didn't pick up.

I bought this machine for the beach and I think I will be happy with it, but in my experience it defiantly cannot replace FBS as for me as far as coins go.
For speed and relics/beach use its a no brainer.

I am not saying I am unhappy with the equinox at all. I see that it will defiantly find me some small targets that the CTX will not find and its much hotter on the gold/pulltab/nickel targets that the CTX is not.
cheers and happy hunting
 
Dflan83 said:
Well I've taken some time to get to know the equinox 600 for 3 hunts now and this is just my 2cents for what its worth.

At first I thought I might be selling my CTX but I feel like FBS is still superior for selective digging and TID that is unmatched. Maybe its my inexperience but I feel like I always know with FBS if there is a coin under my coil. If the equinox had 2 dimensional discrimination I feel that it would be much more equal to fbs in terms of discrimination.

Trash - I am digging a lot more bottlecaps with the equinox but I am definitely getting smaller targets the FBS just doesn't pickup most of the time. Overall I am digging more trash with the equinox

Tones - 50 tone on the ctx does not = 50 tone on the equinox.. I am picking up so many targets on the equinox that 50 tones feels like sensory overload. I had to back down to 5 tones and this feels about right to me. On the CTX I have more discrimination and the targets, especially coins seem to lock dead on.

Target Separation - This is where the equinox seems to shine and I took it over places where I've hunted with the CTX. I hunt super slow with the CTX and did a pretty darn good job pulling out the coins. I only managed to pull a few that had many targets in proximity that the CTX didn't pick up.

I bought this machine for the beach and I think I will be happy with it, but in my experience it defiantly cannot replace FBS as for me as far as coins go.
For speed and relics/beach use its a no brainer.

I am not saying I am unhappy with the equinox at all. I see that it will defiantly find me some small targets that the CTX will not find and its much hotter on the gold/pulltab/nickel targets that the CTX is not.
cheers and happy hunting
Click to expand...

Then again you compared a $650 detector to a $2500 detector. Obviously they will be different. The fact that a detector that is a 1/4 of the price can do anything better is saying something. The better test would be against the 800. Also, comparing a detector you have many hours on vs one you have 3 hunts on really doesn't tell the story. The 600 will probably not make you trade in your CTX but I'll bet the more you use it the more you will like using it. Good luck with both machines
 
Coin-Saver said:
Then again you compared a $650 detector to a $2500 detector. Obviously they will be different. The fact that a detector that is a 1/4 of the price can do anything better is saying something. The better test would be against the 800. Also, comparing a detector you have many hours on vs one you have 3 hunts on really doesn't tell the story. The 600 will probably not make you trade in your CTX but I'll bet the more you use it the more you will like using it. Good luck with both machines
Click to expand...

It sounds like you're implying that's an unfair comparison. On the one hand, yes, you're right, as Minelab designed them with different goals in mind. On the other hand, the 3030 was released in 2012 and the Equinox in 2018. So the fact that the 3030 uses "older" tech means it's not as unbalanced of a comparison as one might initially think. That's my opinion, at least.
 
Coin-saver is right about 3 hunts being hardly enough time to get a feel for the machine. Holler back after 50 hours. I do agree 50 tones is overload for me too at most of the places I hunt. I use 5 tones 90% of the time. If you mean twist off aluminum bottle caps they tend to ring up from 22-24. Sometimes as high as 25-26. I still occasionally dig them if I am desperate and think something might be partially masking a coin.

This only applies to land hunting.
I have found silver dimes never to ring up 26 and below. You might get flashes of lower numbers, but you will also get more in the 28-30 range. Quarters average above 30 like 30-34. Knowing how deep the silver in your area is goes a long way at least with me to know what targets not to waste my time digging.

Bottom line the Equinox 600 and 800 tend to be machines you really must learn before you can feel super confident with them vs. say a Etrac or CTX. I think most of the guys who prefer the Equinox know the machine well enough they don't see a big advantage to a Etrac or CTX.
 
longbow62 said:
Coin-saver is right about 3 hunts being hardly enough time to get a feel for the machine. Holler back after 50 hours. I do agree 50 tones is overload for me too at most of the places I hunt. I use 5 tones 90% of the time. If you mean twist off aluminum bottle caps they tend to ring up from 22-24. Sometimes as high as 25-26. I still occasionally dig them if I am desperate and think something might be partially masking a coin.

This only applies to land hunting.
I have found silver dimes never to ring up 26 and below. You might get flashes of lower numbers, but you will also get more in the 28-30 range. Quarters average above 30 like 30-34. Knowing how deep the silver in your area is goes a long way at least with me to know what targets not to waste my time digging.

Bottom line the Equinox 600 and 800 tend to be machines you really must learn before you can feel super confident with them vs. say a Etrac or CTX. I think most of the guys who prefer the Equinox know the machine well enough they don't see a big advantage to a Etrac or CTX.
Click to expand...


Have you ever owned an FBS machine?
 
I agree I don't have a ton of time on the machine. I do think however it will serve as an excellent water machine.

I read a lot of users had sold their etracs and ctx in favor of the equinox. Maybe I'm just spoiled by fbs and need more time with the equinox.


I still think though I will end up reaching for the ctx for hunting coins.

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk
 
Dflan83 said:
I agree I don't have a ton of time on the machine. I do think however it will serve as an excellent water machine.

I read a lot of users had sold their etracs and ctx in favor of the equinox. Maybe I'm just spoiled by fbs and need more time with the equinox.


I still think though I will end up reaching for the ctx for hunting coins.

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

I agree with your opinions,,nox is about as easy as it gets to run so field time is not really relevant in assessing
nox performancee vs fbs.... I think your opinions are spot on to mine.
 
woodbutcher said:
I agree with your opinions,,nox is about as easy as it gets to run so field time is not really relevant in assessing
nox performancee vs fbs.... I think your opinions are spot on to mine.
Click to expand...

Field time not important?

It may be easy to run if you are popping 1 inch zinc pennies.

Learning the nuances of deep silver dimes definitely takes a lot of field time.
 
Pretty much spot on for the limited time you have with it.

I have not sold my ctx or etrac for spots where electronic components , shaved piston heads and some screw caps and other non ferrous trash are in abundance. I dig much less iron with my NOX than i do my ctx. When you will be really impressed with the NOX is when you have a several hundred hours in and learn what it is telling you on iffy targets. Today i got a 23 jumpy ID and a little iffy tone. I had 4 bars for depth and i found a penny at 7 inches, but not before i recovered 6 nails from my plug which was about 7 inches wide. I admit i had doubts after the 4th nail came out of the hole but i kept telling myself that 23 and tone said there was a penny in the hole. Even after a couple years with the machine, it still is amazing me what it can do.

But i will not be selling my CTX or Etrac and i carry them with me at all times, i have had to put my NOX up on several occasions and grab one of them to save the day and my back.

Another thing is, i have dug coins at 14 inches that my CTX and ETRAC just will not touch. Most of the time i can run my NOX in max sensitivity, something my CTX and ETRAC will not do without showing trash as good targets. After about 7 to 8 inches, ID on the fbs machines ID starts to degrade with increasing depth. I have compensated for this in areas with lower trash density by opening up the screen to a mostly open pattern and relying on tones and not so much ID numbers.
 
Stiffwrists said:
Field time not important?

It may be easy to run if you are popping 1 inch zinc pennies.

Learning the nuances of deep silver dimes definitely takes a lot of field time.
Click to expand...

Nox has 2 modes that anyone really ever used,park 1 or 2. The rest are imo useless.to a dirt hunter.Iron bias and recovery speed are pretty much set and forget for the most part.
I know what your saying about nuances and understanding deep dimes,,with fbs you don't need to really learn the nuances as much, my experience is when the nox starts getting iffy around 7 inches in dimes the fbs is still slamming them hard and no mistaking what it is. So that's what I'm saying about field time, when the nox starts giving out and the user hasto start using experience to determine if it's good or bad,,well at that point and beyond the fbs is still slamming that coin and pretty much a no brainer what it is....Not saying the nox isn't good,I have one too. But for me it gives out before a fbs
 
Dflan83 said:
Well I've taken some time to get to know the equinox 600 for 3 hunts now and this is just my 2cents for what its worth.

At first I thought I might be selling my CTX but I feel like FBS is still superior for selective digging and TID that is unmatched. Maybe its my inexperience but I feel like I always know with FBS if there is a coin under my coil. If the equinox had 2 dimensional discrimination I feel that it would be much more equal to fbs in terms of discrimination.

Trash - I am digging a lot more bottlecaps with the equinox but I am definitely getting smaller targets the FBS just doesn't pickup most of the time. Overall I am digging more trash with the equinox

Tones - 50 tone on the ctx does not = 50 tone on the equinox.. I am picking up so many targets on the equinox that 50 tones feels like sensory overload. I had to back down to 5 tones and this feels about right to me. On the CTX I have more discrimination and the targets, especially coins seem to lock dead on.

Target Separation - This is where the equinox seems to shine and I took it over places where I've hunted with the CTX. I hunt super slow with the CTX and did a pretty darn good job pulling out the coins. I only managed to pull a few that had many targets in proximity that the CTX didn't pick up.

I bought this machine for the beach and I think I will be happy with it, but in my experience it defiantly cannot replace FBS as for me as far as coins go.
For speed and relics/beach use its a no brainer.

I am not saying I am unhappy with the equinox at all. I see that it will defiantly find me some small targets that the CTX will not find and its much hotter on the gold/pulltab/nickel targets that the CTX is not.
cheers and happy hunting
Click to expand...
Get in more hunts and learn it more before you compare to another machine. I have hunted with guys running a ctx while using my equinox 800 and all 4 of them now run a 800.
 
mh9162013 said:
It sounds like you're implying that's an unfair comparison. On the one hand, yes, you're right, as Minelab designed them with different goals in mind. On the other hand, the 3030 was released in 2012 and the Equinox in 2018. So the fact that the 3030 uses "older" tech means it's not as unbalanced of a comparison as one might initially think. That's my opinion, at least.
Click to expand...

It wasn't about being unfair. A corvette will go down the road the same as a 4x4. they both have many of the same functions. They can both do 60. At some point the similarities stop and the differences begin. Two machines built to do different things well. My point wasn't to upset the FBS fans. It was to merely point out that in no way in 3 hunts can you make an assessment vs a machine you have years on. But that's just my opinion.

It seems that many of the people that claim the Equinox doesn't hold up to the hype that came from FBS machines expected it to just be better in every way. So what if you can get an extra inch from the 3030. So what if you can tell a great amount of time that it is a coin and not trash. All of that COULD be your time on THAT machine. It in no way means you can't learn it on the Nox too. It also doesn't mean that someone else who has put the time in on the Equinox couldn't compete with someone on the 3030.

You still have to look at the fact that even the worst case scenario the 3030 is not worth 4 times the Equinox. And THAT is what the company is banking on. All things being relative I think the Equinox as it stands is a better deal (Not better machine). But also I think the technology has the potential to be way more than what either of the machines are at the moment. Besides, no one will mind if you keep your 3030
 
Dflan83 said:
I still think though I will end up reaching for the ctx for hunting coins.
Click to expand...

Been using my Nox 800 for a long time now and I still prefer the CTX for coin hunting. I do prefer the Nox for other scenarios but coin shooting isn’t one of them. That’s not to say that the Equinox isn’t a good coin shooter, just that the CTX/Etrac is a better coin shooter for me at the places I like to hunt. There’s nothing wrong with having a preference. It’s just a metal detector after all.

FWIW, if something happened to my CTX I wouldn’t hesitate to pay full retail to get another one if I had to... even with all the other cheaper options available nowadays.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I have been using a Nox 600 for a year now. I was looking to upgrade from my Whites classic SL idx and Garrett Ace 250 and was undecided between the Nox and the Garrett AT Pro. I decided on the Nox and initially kind of regretted getting it as the Ace and Whites were so much easier to use. However, now that I have a year under my belt learning and understanding it I feel it is a great machine. Where it really stands out is it's ability to sniff out coins and jewelry in the trashy areas. I am far from an expert on using it but am so glad I pulled the trigger on the 600.
 
Thanks for the comments everyone. I'll give the equinox more time and see where it goes.

Sent from my SM-N975U using Tapatalk
 
woodbutcher said:
Nox has 2 modes that anyone really ever used,park 1 or 2. The rest are imo useless.to a dirt hunter.Iron bias and recovery speed are pretty much set and forget for the most part.
I know what your saying about nuances and understanding deep dimes,,with fbs you don't need to really learn the nuances as much, my experience is when the nox starts getting iffy around 7 inches in dimes the fbs is still slamming them hard and no mistaking what it is. So that's what I'm saying about field time, when the nox starts giving out and the user hasto start using experience to determine if it's good or bad,,well at that point and beyond the fbs is still slamming that coin and pretty much a no brainer what it is....Not saying the nox isn't good,I have one too. But for me it gives out before a fbs
Click to expand...

That's strange. I just found a 10k gold ring today using beach mode in dirt. Then again I always was a little different.:lol:
 
Coin-Saver said:
That's strange. I just found a 10k gold ring today using beach mode in dirt. Then again I always was a little different.:lol:
Click to expand...

I currently use Beach mode almost exclusively in my dirt. Been doing really well at areas I have hunted heavily in the past.
 
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