Now that the nox has been out awhile now. I thought I would bring this post back to life and see what you guys think Equinox vs Ctx?
It's clear there is still more demand than available NOX units in stock.
Here is a copy of my write up for comparing my first hunt where I compared the NOX vs Surf PI vs CTX at a NE-Florida (ocean) beach
First long hunt with the NOX600 and it pulled out this half-broken ring from the middle of an iron laiden patch of Florida's wet ocean sand. WoW!
On the beach, the NOX seemed more like swinging the Excal. You can get a good feel of the target’s ID by the tones, however, at times the VDi is a bit jumpy. It is definitely NOT like the CTX's confidence in VDi, but it works nonetheless. There are whisper signals like the Excal, but again, not like the CTX.
COIN SPILL ... We hit several coin spills and I was impressed how quickly you could pass the coil over multiple targets and hear distinct, different tones. In one case, we had a quarter, two nickels, and a penny all within 18" of each other. As the coil flew over the buried targets, I thought it was another jumpy signal, but digging revealed it was in fact four distinct signals for each target. That was something I felt was better/faster than the CTX.
DEPTH... The NOX seems to hit at the same depth as the CTX's 11" coil, but it is definitely not as deep as the 17". Iffy signals on the NOX could still be heard loud and clear with the Surf PI and CTX. For example, the broken ring was strong in one direction with the NOX but not in other directions. Meanwhile the PI had no issues and binged loud and clear from all directions. This makes it really hard to dislike PI technology.
WATER... Ran the NOX through runnels. It was erratic for a second and then seemed to auto adjust and balance fine. This is an amazing improvement if you're upgrading from a single frequency machine, but if you’re accustom to multi-frequency machines, you may notice it not as smooth and balanced as an Excal, CTX, or PI. Regardless of your experience, I think once you have some time behind the wheel, you'll understand what it's telling you and be OK.
WEIGHT... After a little over 5-hours, we didn't have the slightest fatigue. Clearly the NOX takes the win over the CTX on that, but it is also nearly identical to the weight of the Surf PI.
BEST performer... If it wasn't for having to dig 5,000 junk targets with the PI, the PI would still be my favorite. Alas, MF-VLF machines ability to discriminate makes life so much better. If I was a dedicated water hunter, I'd stick with the Excal. It is just more stable and you only use tones so the VDi is irrelevant. For those just on the beach, well, the CTX has a more accurate VDi and the readily available 17" coil covers more ground quickly AND with better depth. BUT for the price point, the NOX is a good all-purpose machine that is leaps above single frequency detectors.
Anyhow we kept the NOX in beach mode (MF) and auto tracking for 99% of the time. Right before we left, we switched to SF...which actually worked in the dry and some moist sand.
Happy Hunting!
