Ive only got about 20 hours of IN THE SALT WATER use so far on the EQ with waterproof headphones. Its a learning process. Its a bit chatty....... like having the Xcal running around 8 sensitivity or so. I have about paid for mine in those 20 hours...... but not from small gold. Im sure as more guys start getting in the water more information will be available. NO you wont miss a recent drop...... but then most machines we are using now wont. I think the big difference is near shore or dry sand hunting. A TID screen helps and the EQ has great depth and sensitivity in those areas. Beaches are different ...... and you can run it smoother, but as of yet I'm still not sure of the depth and sensitivity you will get doing that IN the water. If you have a friend that says it catches everything and run smooth....... i HIGHLY recommend you or anyone to take one for a test run. We all know a beach machine WILL pay for its self...... so is it worth having yes still a lot of advantages.