CTX3030 Versus Equinox

Wishfull said:

How are Nox users getting on with the software updates ?

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I like the update..it definitely helped with those small thrips Down deep.. :Y:
But it's a personal choice. I'm sure all those that didn't like it switched back. Its good that you can do that. :Y:

Im pondering my next purchase for a coin/relic machine
Ive noticed that there are not many people using or talking about the E-Trac
The Minelab scale of things seems to put the E-Trac next peg down from the CTX, & a bit up from a NOX.
& now Miners Den lists
CTX $2370
E-Trac $1595
NOX800 $1220
So if Im budgeting around $1500, why isn't the E-Trac as popular as the NOX, for only around $350 more, whereas the CTX is near double the NOX800 price, & the E-Trac is just under a grand cheaper than a CTX.
If not wanting to pay the high premium for a CTX, why is everyone going for the NOX over the E-Trac?
What is the big attraction to the NOX vs E-Trac
For a small amount extra, does the E-Trac not have any real advantages over the NOX?

Ded Driver said:

Im pondering my next purchase for a coin/relic machine
Ive noticed that there are not many people using or talking about the E-Trac
The Minelab scale of things seems to put the E-Trac next peg down from the CTX, & a bit up from a NOX.
& now Miners Den lists
CTX $2370
E-Trac $1595
NOX800 $1220
So if Im budgeting around $1500, why isn't the E-Trac as popular as the NOX, for only around $350 more, whereas the CTX is near double the NOX800 price, & the E-Trac is just under a grand cheaper than a CTX.
If not wanting to pay the high premium for a CTX, why is everyone going for the NOX over the E-Trac?
What is the big attraction to the NOX vs E-Trac
For a small amount extra, does the E-Trac not have any real advantages over the NOX?

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I bought a new E-Trac and was over the moon with it until I took it to a trashy site and then a mate showed me what a dedicated single frequency machine could do and within a couple of days I bought a new machine like the one he had,

The Etrac excels on the beach but they are as blind as a bat when it comes to tiny targets and regardless of the coil fitted they just can't see the real small stuff and they will give up to a dozen ID's for the same targets and mine mis ID'd Crown Caps as Coins and it ID'd Coins as Crown Caps, I then checked those targets with my New single frequency and the Etrac got 5 out of 16 targets right, The single frequency machine got 11 out of 16 right, and the Etrac is painfully slow in Iron/junk filled sites.

To be honest when it comes to Minelab VLF's the NOX is a breath of Fresh Air, The last great VLF they made was the Musketeer Advantage which ran at 5khz and it was lightning fast and very Deep and it could out hunt just about any machine on the market at the time and the only down side to it was it never had a meter.

For Coins and relic hunting and for use in old mining camps or the Gold Fields when it comes to Minelab VLF's I don't think there is a better All rounder from Minelab than the NOX, because you can Coin and relic hunt with it and you can prospect with it, It does it all with good results, the Etrac is so slow and it will drive you nutz, A switchable single/multi frequency machine like the NOX has all but unlimited uses, And the sooner they start making heaps of coils for the NOX the better,

Best thing I ever did was sell my etrac, ^%$>@g thing. LOLOL layful: layful: oop:

J.

A couple of things to consider, the lack of weight, waterproofing and fast/adjustable recovery speeds on the Equinox - essentially being able to pick up coins in difficult ground containing junk and especially iron, areas that the Etrac can struggle in at times. The Equinox should also have an advantage on lower conductors over the Etrac (ie gold targets, buttons and some relics) and on edge coins, with the Etrac slightly more biased to high conductors. The Equinox also offers selectable single frequency operation, something the Etrac lacks.

When you consider the ever decreasing number of easy targets out there as sites are being cleaned out, fast detectors like the Equinox should help liberate targets that were previously missed or possibly not even heard due to slower recovery speeds on the Etrac and issues such as masked targets co-existing with junk or iron. Whether the Etrac does better on deep coins over the Equinox, can't say, though it is considered by some to be a favourite on deep silvers in the right ground.

The Etrac does has a more accurate system of target identification due to the ferrous/conductivity ID numbers, and also has higher resolution discrimination for knocking out specific junk targets, whereas the Equinox probably relies a bit more on its audio combined with its simplified discrimination abilities. There is the advantage of being able to run third party coils on the Etrac, though to counteract the slower recovery speeds you really do require a couple of smaller coils to help aid working in junky/iron infested areas.

One of the key advantages of the Equinox over the Etrac is waterproofing for beach detecting. The Etrac does work very well on salt and in the water, though not being waterproof can be an expensive exercise if accidentally dunked or from corrosion to the electronics over time.

Unfortunately it is not the most well balanced detector out there, and the extra weight can be wearing at times when used for prolonged trips into the field - can also be quite nose heavy depending on what coils are used. That was one of the main reasons why I sold mine, it ended up playing havoc with my fingers after longer hunts.

The other casualty from the introduction of the Equinox is the nearly forgotten Safari, essentially a simplified version of the Etrac.

that's interesting reading RR & GP. A couple of Youtube vids I watched suggested much the same. Seems the ETrac might be a bit of a flop.

Im keen to see where the new (coming) Vanquish sits in ability & price. Maybe it will supersede the ETrac!

Nox is good machine , you dont need an 800 you can go cheaper and get a 600 if your only doing beaches , parks etc and dont need gold mode.

I second the NOX being a great machine, I got the 800. Had a work buddy over recently, he uses the 4800. Anyway, he had a 1 gram gold sample encased in a bottle cap filled with resin that he uses as a test nugget in the field - great idea should you drop it and easy to find in ya pocket. In an air test we did, my 800 clearly picked up the 1 grammar about 8 inches away. Air test I know, but it made me feel warm and fuzzy and my buddy was blown away. Like I said, he has a GPX 4800 with various NF coils.

I'm yet to find gold with my 800, its only a matter of time. I keep my 800 in the ute for those moments you drive past a likely spot. Quick and easy rigup, no harness ect to don on. Just open the car door, grab the 800, pick and pinpointer and I'm off. The 800 comes with bluetooth headset which is a real bonus in my book, helps keep the ears warm on these cold days!

The discriminator on the 800 is brilliant. I use it mostly to knock out the mineralised rocks - works a treat. Its a great little detector and a platform Minelab needs to place more focus on in my eyes, particularly given it has gold modes with adjustable frequency!

I'm Assuming you meen a Gpx 4500.
BigL Or is the 4800 an upgraded version.

Smoky bandit said:

I'm Assuming you meen a Gpx 4500.
BigL Or is the 4800 an upgraded version.

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GPX4800 is a now discontinued model. It was probably more aimed at relic hunters in Europe but still has good gold detecting capabilities. Was a bit of a strange release by Minelab with the GPX5000 with more features following soon after.
https://www.minelab.com/support/knowledge-base/discontinued-products?product=280659
More info:
https://www.detectorprospector.com/forums/topic/144-minelab-gpx-4800-vs-gpx-5000/
The new release GPX4500's now have the improved enhance timing etc. so no need for the 4800 I guess.

Ok cheers Mbasko.
Thanks for the info. :Y:

mbasko said:

Smoky bandit said:

I'm Assuming you meen a Gpx 4500.
BigL Or is the 4800 an upgraded version.

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GPX4800 is a now discontinued model. It was probably more aimed at relic hunters in Europe but still has good gold detecting capabilities. Was a bit of a strange release by Minelab with the GPX5000 with more features following soon after.
https://www.minelab.com/support/knowledge-base/discontinued-products?product=280659
More info:
https://www.detectorprospector.com/forums/topic/144-minelab-gpx-4800-vs-gpx-5000/
The new release GPX4500's now have the improved enhance timing etc. so no need for the 4800 I guess.

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I maybe wrong, but I always thought the 48 was middle road between the 4500 and 5000. Near identical menu's but unlike the 4500's 0-15 menu setting range the 48 has 0-20 as does the 5000... making for finer tuning in compared to the 4500. I'm fairly sure my mate also said he uses the fine gold setting. Will find out more in the coming days, we're heading off for a few days detecting so no doubt it'll be tested against my 45.... or should I say my 45 will be tested against it!

Sorry Off Topic:
4800 gain is 0-15 same as the 4500 & only the 5000 has Fine Gold.
The differences between the 4500 & 4800 were promoted as mainly smoother threshold, better Enhance timing & improved ground balance (as per JP in the link above) - due to sharing the electronics platform of the 5000.
I believe the new 4500's now share this platform & the "benefits" (although many believe the older 4500 still to be better?).
4500 v 4800 v 5000
https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/doc/member-docs/4485/1561461272_1387516411_compare_minelab_4500_5000-1.pdf

Plenty of 4500s in WA Mbasko , think because of price difference between the 4500 and 5000 . Having said that the 5000 performed great in highly mineralised conditions .

Just my observation and 2 cents worth

mbasko said:

Sorry Off Topic:
4800 gain is 0-15 same as the 4500 & only the 5000 has Fine Gold.
The differences between the 4500 & 4800 were promoted as mainly smoother threshold, better Enhance timing & improved ground balance (as per JP in the link above) - due to sharing the electronics platform of the 5000.
I believe the new 4500's now share this platform & the "benefits" (although many believe the older 4500 still to be better?).
4500 v 4800 v 5000
https://www.prospectingaustralia.com/forum/doc/member-docs/4485/1561461272_1387516411_compare_minelab_4500_5000-1.pdf

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there ya go.. I was wrong. Thanks for clarifying.

So i was discussing this with my friend the other day who has both ctx3030 and equinox and he said he never takes his ctx out anymore because he feels like Everytime he takes it out hes missing targets .His explination for this was that the ctx uses FBS which has a tendancy to mask targets amoung good ones and that his Past experience told him that even though fbs is deep and stable readings that his equinox would see just as deep and never miss things in the ground .

Does anyone else find this to be true because i kinda had this feeling when i had my old ctx in parks as well .The main reason why i got the Nox though was because it has 40khz and its way lighter .When i used to use the ctx after about a hr detecting just wouldnt be fun anymore .

I mean maybe the equinox is cheaper than the ctx is because technology advances and becomes cheaper over time .That and minelab has to compete with XP and Other companies that have cheaper detectors ?.Maybe thats why the price is lower than the ctx ?.

The sort of question most people ask before forking out for a machine, not after.

madtuna said:

The sort of question most people ask before forking out for a machine, not after.

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I was going to get the equinox even if the ctx was better just because the Nox is apparently much lighter than the ctx and the 40khz seems nice .

You can't compare these two machines because they are totally different Tech, One is a Hi Speed machine and the other has a very high discrimination level that is fine tuneable,

Neither one is better than the other and just because one costs more does not mean it's better or because one is cheaper does not mean it is not as good, They both have their areas where one excels over the other,

You can't buy either machine by asking which one is better, First off you need to be exact about you intended needs/usage of the machine and only then can you say which one is better, But that only applies if you have been honest with your self about your intended use for said machine,

If you wanted to look for Gold or high value targets like coins etc in hi trash areas then you would need the NOX, but if you wanted to look for coins and jewellery and beach detect for those Items then the CTX would be the better Choice, Then just to bugger the thought patterns up you then have to factor in Ones state of health and Age, then add to that do you like playing with computers and programs or do you want a machine that you can switch on tweak a few setting and get in to it etc,

Get one thing straight Neither machine is better than the other and neither machine is doing anything we couldn't do 10 years ago, The question you should be asking "Your Self" is which one will suit me Best, There's No bad machine, There's Just the wrong machine or Bad Operators,

Buy with your Head not your Heart and Match the Machine To your intended Task,

That's how you buy a Detector, Anything else is just BS or one upmanship trying to up stage the next Guy and doing that will result in your Tears and no one elses.

Hope that helps.

If you are going to keep posting threads about Minelab products please post them in the Minelab section,,, Thanks.

Ridge Runner said:

You can't compare these two machines because they are totally different Tech, One is a Hi Speed machine and the other has a very high discrimination level that is fine tuneable,

Neither one is better than the other and you just because one costs more does not mean it's better or because one is cheaper does not mean it is not as good, They both have their areas where one excels over the other,

You can't buy either machine by asking which one is better, First off you need to be exact about you intended needs/usage of the machine and only then can you say which one is better, But that only applies if you have been honest with your self about your intended use for said machine,

If you wanted to look for Gold or high value targets like coin etc in hi trash areas then you would need the NOX, but is you wanted to look for coins and jewellery and beach detect for those Items then the CTX would be the better Choice, Then just to bugger the thought patterns up you then have to factor in Ones state of health and Age, then add to that do you like playing with computers and programs or do you want a machine that you can switch on tweak a few setting and get in to it etc,

Get one thing straight Neither machine is better than the other and neither machine is doing anything we couldn't do 10 years ago, The question you should be asking "Your Self" is which one will suit me Best, There's No bad machine, There's Just the wrong machine or Bad Operators,

Buy with your Head not your Heart and Match the Machine To your intended Task,

That's how you buy a Detector, Anything else is just BS or one upmanship trying to up stage the next Guy and doing that will result in your Tears and no one elses.

Hope that helps.

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Good post ridgerunner .Like what you said about buy with your head and not your heart .i ended up getting the Nox because i just wanted something light and fast .But i can see that both are good machines for sure .