Considering the EQ800 but have a question

[larryk56]

Hello -

I am considering the Equinox800 or the Vanish 540

I like the Vanish 540 for the simplicity - Turn on and go
I hear good things about the Equinox 800

I read the instruction manual for the EQ800 and it said to be a "turn on and go"
but..... I also see Andy Sabish has books that explain how to use it?

I just want to get a good machine without needing to spend "tons" of time
getting frustrated with complex settings.

I am only looking for chains, jewelry etc...
will hunt freshwater shorelines etc.....

Is the extra price worth the difference with the nox?

My thanks in advance for anyone sharing feedback!

Larry

 

[jmaclen]

I help friends of mine who have purchased an Equinox after using another brand for a long time. To say that most of them are overwhelmed with all of the Equinox features would be an understatement and these folks have been detecting for years. The people that have adjusted well to the Equinox were former Minelab X-Terra users or those that do not mind multiple tone operation. So, if you keep your sensitivity levels lower than the default levels and just use Park 1 multi frequency in 5 tones or less for awhile in easy to detect areas, the Equinox 800 can be a turn on and go detector. So can the Equinox 600 for $250 less. So can the Vanquish 540 Pro pack which is $150 less than the Equinox 600. I have used them all and still own the Nox 800, 600 and a Vanquish 340. To me the Nox 600 is well worth the price difference over the Vanquish 540 IF you want to do some serious metal detecting and if you want or need to detect in situations where you might accidentally or on purpose submerge your detector or you have weird or high mineralization and you need to manually or frequently ground balance your detector.

If a new user decides to crank up the sensitivity on the Equinox, it will pick up every metal target in the first 11" or so of the ground including tiny 1/8" sized pieces of foil, can slaw, iron fragments, tin fragments, I mean stuff that your pinpointer won't even hit. Lots of new users have complained about disappearing targets and EMI problems and this is one reason why. The Nox 800 and the Nox 600 are extremely high gain detectors. The Vanquish series use a detecting mode taken from the Equinox that is much more benign and will not drive a new user crazy.

Otherwise, the Vanquish 540 is a very good quality simultaneous multi frequency detector with several nice bells and whistles like wireless audio, backlight, excellent discrimination patterns, salt water beach capabilities, good recovery speed, user software updatable online, good coils, very light weight and easy to adjust for anyone of any age, and most of all it can really detect accurately on low, mid and high conductor targets even at the edge of detection range, and you get good, no nonsense service and a three year warranty.

The Equinox 600 has all of the features of the Vanquish 540 and many, many more. The 800 takes the 600's features and expands on them even more. To me, the 600 and 800, if you like them and they suite your detecting needs, are forever detectors, if there is such a thing. The Vanquish series are stepping stone detectors for those who might want something better later, for those who just want to detect a bit, for those who need lightweight adjustability (at my age sometimes I do for sure...) or for those who just want to go out and have some fun. You can do that with the Equinox too but on the other hand, the Equinox is one heck of a detector and if you want to go into the details and get really serious (addicted is more like it) that is easy to do with the Equinox.

 

[BigTony]

Hello -

I am considering the Equinox800 or the Vanish 540

I like the Vanish 540 for the simplicity - Turn on and go
I hear good things about the Equinox 800

I read the instruction manual for the EQ800 and it said to be a "turn on and go"
but..... I also see Andy Sabish has books that explain how to use it?

I just want to get a good machine without needing to spend "tons" of time
getting frustrated with complex settings.

I am only looking for chains, jewelry etc...
will hunt freshwater shorelines etc.....

Is the extra price worth the difference with the nox?

My thanks in advance for anyone sharing feedback!

Larry

Larry’s, I can’t talk about price comparison but will add to jmaclen posted - the Nox 800 gets updates as well as the others he spoke about.
If you have used minelab before than learning curve is short.
If not - the Nox is not difficult to use at all and can be 5urn on and go
Just use some test targets - good chain, ring and coins. Test these out and remember the numbers.
There are also videos that folks made to help setting up tone bins - they helped me at first.
Tony

 

[fwcrawford]

I bought an 800 back last October after much consideration.. and I have not looked back since.
I have only been in the hobby for about 14 years and have owned several detectors... some of which I still have and this is by far the most user friendly detector I have used so far.
It is about as turn on and go as you can get,, although there are some adjustments you can make, but even then it is not overly complicated in my opinion.
My very first time out with it I found a 1909 wheat penny in about 10 minutes in a heavily hunted area.
I was shocked not only by the fact that I was able to find something that fast, but that it gave such a clear signal.. no mistaking it was worth digging.
There was about a 4 inch nail in the hole with it too.
I have been very impressed with it and have made more finds with it in the time I have had it than i have with all my other detectors put together.
And these are sites that I have searched for many years.... not new sites.
Without the need to ground balance in multifrequency, this is a huge advantage where I am.. the ground changes every few feet.
To me this equates to more time finding something and less time ground balancing.
The Equinox 600 I'm sure is very capable too if you do not have a need for the wireless headphones or module that comes with the 800.
I have not studied on the Vanquish, but I'm sure it is a capable machine too, but the 600 or even the 800 are pretty simple to operate... the default settings are a good place to start with it.
Heck, there is a very good deal on an Equinox 600 in the classifieds right now in case you are interested.. only a few months old!!
Good luck to you in what every decision you make!!!

 

[larryk56]

I help friends of mine who have purchased an Equinox after using another brand for a long time. To say that most of them are overwhelmed with all of the Equinox features would be an understatement and these folks have been detecting for years. The people that have adjusted well to the Equinox were former Minelab X-Terra users or those that do not mind multiple tone operation. So, if you keep your sensitivity levels lower than the default levels and just use Park 1 multi frequency in 5 tones or less for awhile in easy to detect areas, the Equinox 800 can be a turn on and go detector. So can the Equinox 600 for $250 less. So can the Vanquish 540 Pro pack which is $150 less than the Equinox 600. I have used them all and still own the Nox 800, 600 and a Vanquish 340. To me the Nox 600 is well worth the price difference over the Vanquish 540 IF you want to do some serious metal detecting and if you want or need to detect in situations where you might accidentally or on purpose submerge your detector or you have weird or high mineralization and you need to manually or frequently ground balance your detector.

If a new user decides to crank up the sensitivity on the Equinox, it will pick up every metal target in the first 11" or so of the ground including tiny 1/8" sized pieces of foil, can slaw, iron fragments, tin fragments, I mean stuff that your pinpointer won't even hit. Lots of new users have complained about disappearing targets and EMI problems and this is one reason why. The Nox 800 and the Nox 600 are extremely high gain detectors. The Vanquish series use a detecting mode taken from the Equinox that is much more benign and will not drive a new user crazy.

Otherwise, the Vanquish 540 is a very good quality simultaneous multi frequency detector with several nice bells and whistles like wireless audio, backlight, excellent discrimination patterns, salt water beach capabilities, good recovery speed, user software updatable online, good coils, very light weight and easy to adjust for anyone of any age, and most of all it can really detect accurately on low, mid and high conductor targets even at the edge of detection range, and you get good, no nonsense service and a three year warranty.

The Equinox 600 has all of the features of the Vanquish 540 and many, many more. The 800 takes the 600's features and expands on them even more. To me, the 600 and 800, if you like them and they suite your detecting needs, are forever detectors, if there is such a thing. The Vanquish series are stepping stone detectors for those who might want something better later, for those who just want to detect a bit, for those who need lightweight adjustability (at my age sometimes I do for sure...) or for those who just want to go out and have some fun. You can do that with the Equinox too but on the other hand, the Equinox is one heck of a detector and if you want to go into the details and get really serious (addicted is more like it) that is easy to do with the Equinox.

Hello -

I am considering the Equinox800 or the Vanish 540

I like the Vanish 540 for the simplicity - Turn on and go
I hear good things about the Equinox 800

I read the instruction manual for the EQ800 and it said to be a "turn on and go"
but..... I also see Andy Sabish has books that explain how to use it?

I just want to get a good machine without needing to spend "tons" of time
getting frustrated with complex settings.

I am only looking for chains, jewelry etc...
will hunt freshwater shorelines etc.....

Is the extra price worth the difference with the nox?

My thanks in advance for anyone sharing feedback!

Larry

Thank you for taking the time to write your informative reply! I surely appreciate it.

 

[larryk56]

I bought an 800 back last October after much consideration.. and I have not looked back since.
I have only been in the hobby for about 14 years and have owned several detectors... some of which I still have and this is by far the most user friendly detector I have used so far.
It is about as turn on and go as you can get,, although there are some adjustments you can make, but even then it is not overly complicated in my opinion.
My very first time out with it I found a 1909 wheat penny in about 10 minutes in a heavily hunted area.
I was shocked not only by the fact that I was able to find something that fast, but that it gave such a clear signal.. no mistaking it was worth digging.
There was about a 4 inch nail in the hole with it too.
I have been very impressed with it and have made more finds with it in the time I have had it than i have with all my other detectors put together.
And these are sites that I have searched for many years.... not new sites.
Without the need to ground balance in multifrequency, this is a huge advantage where I am.. the ground changes every few feet.
To me this equates to more time finding something and less time ground balancing.
The Equinox 600 I'm sure is very capable too if you do not have a need for the wireless headphones or module that comes with the 800.
I have not studied on the Vanquish, but I'm sure it is a capable machine too, but the 600 or even the 800 are pretty simple to operate... the default settings are a good place to start with it.
Heck, there is a very good deal on an Equinox 600 in the classifieds right now in case you are interested.. only a few months old!!
Good luck to you in what every decision you make!!!

Thank you for taking the time to write your informative reply! I surely appreciate it.

Thank you for taking the time to write your informative reply! I surely appreciate it.

Thank you for taking the time to write your informative reply! I surely appreciate it.

 

[larryk56]

I bought an 800 back last October after much consideration.. and I have not looked back since.
I have only been in the hobby for about 14 years and have owned several detectors... some of which I still have and this is by far the most user friendly detector I have used so far.
It is about as turn on and go as you can get,, although there are some adjustments you can make, but even then it is not overly complicated in my opinion.
My very first time out with it I found a 1909 wheat penny in about 10 minutes in a heavily hunted area.
I was shocked not only by the fact that I was able to find something that fast, but that it gave such a clear signal.. no mistaking it was worth digging.
There was about a 4 inch nail in the hole with it too.
I have been very impressed with it and have made more finds with it in the time I have had it than i have with all my other detectors put together.
And these are sites that I have searched for many years.... not new sites.
Without the need to ground balance in multifrequency, this is a huge advantage where I am.. the ground changes every few feet.
To me this equates to more time finding something and less time ground balancing.
The Equinox 600 I'm sure is very capable too if you do not have a need for the wireless headphones or module that comes with the 800.
I have not studied on the Vanquish, but I'm sure it is a capable machine too, but the 600 or even the 800 are pretty simple to operate... the default settings are a good place to start with it.
Heck, there is a very good deal on an Equinox 600 in the classifieds right now in case you are interested.. only a few months old!!
Good luck to you in what every decision you make!!!

Thank you for taking the time to write your informative reply! I surely appreciate it.

 

[larryk56]

I bought an 800 back last October after much consideration.. and I have not looked back since.
I have only been in the hobby for about 14 years and have owned several detectors... some of which I still have and this is by far the most user friendly detector I have used so far.
It is about as turn on and go as you can get,, although there are some adjustments you can make, but even then it is not overly complicated in my opinion.
My very first time out with it I found a 1909 wheat penny in about 10 minutes in a heavily hunted area.
I was shocked not only by the fact that I was able to find something that fast, but that it gave such a clear signal.. no mistaking it was worth digging.
There was about a 4 inch nail in the hole with it too.
I have been very impressed with it and have made more finds with it in the time I have had it than i have with all my other detectors put together.
And these are sites that I have searched for many years.... not new sites.
Without the need to ground balance in multifrequency, this is a huge advantage where I am.. the ground changes every few feet.
To me this equates to more time finding something and less time ground balancing.
The Equinox 600 I'm sure is very capable too if you do not have a need for the wireless headphones or module that comes with the 800.
I have not studied on the Vanquish, but I'm sure it is a capable machine too, but the 600 or even the 800 are pretty simple to operate... the default settings are a good place to start with it.
Heck, there is a very good deal on an Equinox 600 in the classifieds right now in case you are interested.. only a few months old!!
Good luck to you in what every decision you make!!!

Thank you for taking the time to write your informative reply! I surely appreciate it. I guess.....you could say that I am leaning towards the NOX.
Surely, people will have visited the same place that I would likely detect. That being said, I think the NOX800 would give me the edge?

 

[bootyhoundpa]

Jmaclen nailed it ... everything he said about the 800 I’ve experienced.. I got lost in the menu ,dug way more iron with this machine than I should have found a few coins others have missed and found smaller gold than I thought possible ...the 800 has a lot of adjustability and with that comes the challenge of finding which settings work best for the site and targets you intend to find...ironically the learning curve is probably a little easier for younger users just due to the lifelong experience with computer screens and how to navigate same...I’ve had great success freshwater hunting with it mainly due to not giving up and paying my dues ..if your expecting immediate results and proficiency ummm you will probably be disappointed at least for a while.. ive dug many a shotgun BB up that sounded great ..it hits the tiniest targets if that is how you set it up.. I don’t regret buying mine and am glad I did ..you will need to purchase water headphones separatly if you submerge the module..

 

[larryk56]

Jmaclen nailed it ... everything he said about the 800 I’ve experienced.. I got lost in the menu ,dug way more iron with this machine than I should have found a few coins others have missed and found smaller gold than I thought possible ...the 800 has a lot of adjustability and with that comes the challenge of finding which settings work best for the site and targets you intend to find...ironically the learning curve is probably a little easier for younger users just due to the lifelong experience with computer screens and how to navigate same...I’ve had great success freshwater hunting with it mainly due to not giving up and paying my dues ..if your expecting immediate results and proficiency ummm you will probably be disappointed at least for a while.. ive dug many a shotgun BB up that sounded great ..it hits the tiniest targets if that is how you set it up.. I don’t regret buying mine and am glad I did ..you will need to purchase water headphones separatly if you submerge the module..

Thanks for your reply! What if I hunt in Park 2 settings and lower the sensitivity a bit. I don't want to dig a hole from here to China. Just want to find that
valuable stuff within a few inches. Don't want to wear a hard hat ....lol

 

[jmaclen]

If you read the manual about the detecting modes carefully you will notice that Park 2 and Field 2 are inherently set up to detect the smallest objects better than Park 1 and Field 1. Park 2 and Field 2 use more of the higher frequencies employed in the Multi-IQ system and Park 1 and Field 1 are more weighted towards the medium and lower frequencies so they are better for larger, shallower and higher conductive targets like silver coins that aren't extremely deep or on edge. So if I just wanted to hit the US dime sized and larger coin and jewelry targets in say the first 6" of normal dirt I would probably run Park 1 multi with my sensitivity at 15. If I started getting all sorts of semi or partial shallow hits in the 3 to 17 target ID range those would be small pieces of foil or can slaw or tiny falsing iron. I might turn the sensitivity down a bit more until I am just hitting coin sized object. OR you can easily set up a discrimination pattern just for US coins and/or jewelry since every single numerical target ID can be accepted or rejected individually. Running in Park 2 would make it much more likely that you would have lots of tiny target detection than running in Park 1. I have gold prospected successfully for sub gram sized gold nuggets/pickers using Park 2 and Field 2. That would not work nearly as well in Park 1 or Field 1.

 

[larryk56]

Thank you! Very informative!

 

[fastdraw]

I just want to get a good machine without needing to spend "tons" of time
getting frustrated with complex settings.

I am only looking for chains, jewelry etc...
will hunt freshwater shorelines etc.....

Based upon your quote above,... The Vanquish 540 is what your asking for..!
I have the Nox 600 & Vanquish 540 and sometimes the setup and constant adjustments on my Nox 600 is a pain.
Also... The 540 has a NEW software update that gives great control of your Iron Bias..!

 

[larryk56]

Based upon your quote above,... The Vanquish 540 is what your asking for..!
I have the Nox 600 & Vanquish 540 and sometimes the setup and constant adjustments on my Nox 600 is a pain.
Also... The 540 has a NEW software update that gives great control of your Iron Bias..!

How to I know if I would get a machine with the latest software update?

 

[fwcrawford]

How to I know if I would get a machine with the latest software update?

You will not know until you get it, but you can go to the company’s website and run a scan to see if it has the latest update.
My Equinox did not have the second update when I got it although it had already come out.
On the carton, it will state what version it has.

 

[plowboy]

Hello -

I am considering the Equinox800 or the Vanish 540

I like the Vanish 540 for the simplicity - Turn on and go
I hear good things about the Equinox 800

I read the instruction manual for the EQ800 and it said to be a "turn on and go"
but..... I also see Andy Sabish has books that explain how to use it?

I just want to get a good machine without needing to spend "tons" of time
getting frustrated with complex settings.

I am only looking for chains, jewelry etc...
will hunt freshwater shorelines etc.....

Is the extra price worth the difference with the nox?

My thanks in advance for anyone sharing feedback!

Larry

Hello -

I am considering the Equinox800 or the Vanish 540

I like the Vanish 540 for the simplicity - Turn on and go
I hear good things about the Equinox 800

I read the instruction manual for the EQ800 and it said to be a "turn on and go"
but..... I also see Andy Sabish has books that explain how to use it?

I just want to get a good machine without needing to spend "tons" of time
getting frustrated with complex settings.

I am only looking for chains, jewelry etc...
will hunt freshwater shorelines etc.....

Is the extra price worth the difference with the nox?

My thanks in advance for anyone sharing feedback!

Larry

Larry, I had problems getting the box open when I got my 600 if that tells you anything. With that said, right off the bat the Equinox says turn on, select mode, noise cancel, begin detecting. It even has pics, I've been happy as a lark with it. Made some nice finds already. I'm still working on the box though.

 

[jmaclen]

How to I know if I would get a machine with the latest software update?

Larry if you buy a new 600 or 800 you can check and see it they have the latest software by seeing if they have the choice of single frequency of 4kHz. If you buy a used one, you can ask the seller to update before shipping it if it hasn't been done yet.

 

[larryk56]

THanks to all for the responses!

 

[MackDog]

Love the Knox. If you want turn and go you got it. Then you can expand or tweak slowly until you get the settings the way you like it. Got mine last Oct have a couple hundred hours on it. It works best in all metal mode and then you use the tones and VID numbers to decide whether to dig or not. I've found more gold with this than any other detector. It's super deep and will find good targets masked by iron. Bad news is as with any other detector you will dig some trash. So many are out there see if someone in your area has one and ask them to walk you through it

 

[JimmyCT]

Larryk56,


Once you figure what you are hunting for, you won't spend more then a minute before you are off and hunting.

the Equinox is a breeze to set up and truly is a turn-on-and-go.

Since you are hunting for Jewelry and the like, it may very well be Field2 or even single frequency of 20 or 40khz on the Equinox 800 that you will choose.

The versatility is expanded (over the Vanquish 540) and covers a multitude of hunting situations. I want to point out I am not implying the Vanquish is a bad machine at all. If you are looking for something less "customizable" Then maybe the Vanquish IS for you.

Is the extra price worth the difference with the nox? To me, paying a bit more to have the versatility of controlling more of my settings is truly worth it to me.

I wish you the best in your decision.

- Jim

Hello -

I am considering the Equinox800 or the Vanish 540


I like the Vanish 540 for the simplicity - Turn on and go
I hear good things about the Equinox 800

I read the instruction manual for the EQ800 and it said to be a "turn on and go"
but..... I also see Andy Sabish has books that explain how to use it?

I just want to get a good machine without needing to spend "tons" of time
getting frustrated with complex settings.

I am only looking for chains, jewelry etc...
will hunt freshwater shorelines etc.....

Is the extra price worth the difference with the nox?

My thanks in advance for anyone sharing feedback!

Larry