I am very lucky that I received the opportunity to review the Equinox 700 by Minelab, and while I have not been able to test the metal detector a lot, the performance so far is amazing. I have a less expensive metal detector that worked for my amateur needs, but handling and using the Equinox is such a treat.
First released in 2022, along with the Equinox 900, the Equinox 700 has almost all the features of the 600 and 800 (both released 2018) and more. There are three search modes: park, field and beach. Each mode has two settings that filter results based on value and location. It, unfortunately, does not have a gold search mode like the Equinoxes 800 and 900, which might not appeal to enthusiasts, but it can find gold with relative ease.
The unit comes with headphones and a headphone adapter cable, which the Equinox 600 and 800 do not have. The 700 also lasts six more feet under the water’s surface than the models 600 and 800, a whopping total of sixteen feet (5 meters). With the Equinox 700, hunts by a body of water don’t have to stop at the water’s edge.
Long treasure hunts are made easy with this metal detector. It weighs only 2.8 pounds, about one kilogram. This is wonderful, since I don’t have the strength or the desire to lug around a big heavy detector.
There are three shafts made of light carbon-fiber that can easily be adjusted to your preferred height. On the flip side, the 700 as well as the other models can be compacted down to just 24 inches long (about sixty-one centimeters), making it easy to toss in a backpack for hunts far from home.
The Equinox 700 can also last in impressive temperatures, so it is fully capable of detecting in snowy or desert conditions. A few adjustments like Ground Balance and taking proper care of your metal detector is required though.
It’s so easy to find buried treasures with this metal detector, especially because of the Equinox’s amazing Multi-IQ advantage. Multi-IQ is only offered in the Equinox and Vanquish series, allowing no room for “false readings.” Multi-IQ is like having a big team of trusted metal detecting friends working with you to find something awesome, all inside a single metal detector. Maybe you have a team detecting with you and they own metal detectors without Multi-IQ. You and your team will cover more ground, but you might not find anything of value. With Multi-IQ, you yourself probably won’t be able to cover as much ground, but you can definitely discover an exciting find.
Working with the Equinox 700 is really amazing. Metals like iron leave traces of their presence in soil which the 700 can pick up, so on all of my hunts it beeped animatedly at me. When I get a real reading, it’s always super exciting because I know there’s a higher chance of finding something of value, or at least something at all. Ten minutes into my first little expedition, I found a small screw and I am not entirely sure if I could have found it without this metal detector.
I also found a lump of mystery metal. I’m currently researching what it could be. It’s not very heavy and looks kind of like melted silver or aluminum. It read an 80 on the display screen and I have never gotten a reading so high. It excites me so much to have potentially found something of value, especially given the fact that I haven’t found a single thing except discolored dirt with my other metal detector.
My old metal detector isn’t as helpful with target identification. It only has three sounds: a low sound for trash, a higher sound for jewelry and coins and a high sound for coins of more value, with nothing in between. The Equinox 700 constantly produces a different sound every time and a number that tells you the target’s value on the display screen. However, I must be aware of my house’s infrastructure. I’ve gotten my hopes up too many times by detecting a little too close!
While a screw and a mystery lump of melted metal is often considered trash by many metal hunters, there are hundreds of success stories on minelab.com that tell of large gold nuggets, jewelry, coins and more found by various metal detectors and their owners. Other useful websites include mindat.org and gemdat.org. Mindat.org is extremely useful for identifying not only metals, but also, minerals, fossils, rocks, gems and more, among other things. Gemdat.org is Mindat’s all-gem counterpart.
It’s always amazing reading stories where people go hunting and discover a long lost Viking coin or gold ring or something like that. With a metal detector, you don’t have to be a seasoned metal hunter to find those amazing artifacts. With the Equinox 700, anyone can head out and possibly, find something incredible.
Check out this the Equinox 700, as well as Minelab’s line of excellent products at its website.
MSRP: $749
Another WON writer, Nancy Keaton, took a Minelab X-Terra Pro metal detector to a field, a beach and an old park. Find out what she discovered along the way in this post at The WON.
The Women's Outdoor News, aka The WON, features news, reviews and stories about women who are shooting, hunting, fishing and actively engaging in outdoor adventure. This publication is for women, by women. View all posts by The WON
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