Minelab Equinox 700 Review

Welcome to the ultimate Equinox 700 review.

Minelab has long been a well-known name in metal detection due to the company’s excellent balance of price and quality. The metal detectors are well-suited to all-terrain use and have high levels of accuracy under any conditions.

The Equinox series, in particular, is a popular series of tools that many professional metal detectors use, and with the Equinox 700, Minelab has carried on that tradition of excellence. It’s somewhere between the Equinox 800, which is excellent for professionals, and the Equinox 600, which is more of a budget model. So it’s not the cheapest, but it perfectly balances cost and functionality.

The Best Metal Detector?

We’re on a mission to review all the best metal detectors.

Minelab’s Equinox 700 is very good but it doesn’t beat some other metal detectors…

So, is the Equinox 700 the right choice for you? It’s more professional than entry-level hobbyist metal detectors, but does it have the features you will need? Let’s go into more detail on the specifications, features, pros, and cons of the Equinox 700 so you can decide.

If you’re looking for a different equinox series review click here: 600, 800.

Design And Appearance

The Equinox 700 looks impressive. It has a carbon fiber chassis that’s sturdy and lightweight with a sleek, modern look in a deep black color. The detector consists of three carbon fiber shafts, making it highly portable. It weighs only 2.8 pounds (1.2 kg), so it’s easy to carry in your backpack.

The handle is easy to use and comfortable to hold, even for long periods, partly because it’s so light but also because of its ergonomic design. 

The control box is excellent but not ideal for beginners. Those with metal detecting experience will find it easy to use, but the interface is not very intuitive, so beginners will have difficulty figuring it out. However, once you understand the functions, you will find the display informative, giving you all the essential information you need without having to browse around.

The monochrome LCD display is bright enough, and the high-contrast grey and black stand out, even on a sunny day at the beach.

Features

The Equinox 700 has plenty of features that make it a fantastic metal detector.

Coil

It comes standard with the EQX 11 Double-D Smart Coil. It’s waterproof and sensitive enough for all general metal detecting, so even though it’s not the most potent coil out there, it’s great for hobbyists and weekend detectors. It’s also relatively light, weighing only 510 grams (about 1.1 pounds). 

Frequency

The Equinox 700 supports four frequencies: 4kHz, 5kHz, 10kHz, and 15kHz. This means it caters well to the low- and mid-range frequencies and can easily detect metals with high conductivity, but it is slightly lacking in high-frequency ranges.

It does include a Multi-IQ option that will let it search on all available frequencies simultaneously, which is helpful if you’re not looking for something specific. This is great since it’s a missing feature on some entry-level and hobbyist metal detectors.

Search Modes

The Equinox 700 has three search mode presets: Beach, Park, and Field. As the names suggest, each caters to a specific type of environment, and you can set it to the one that most closely matches your current conditions.

However, you can also adjust and fine-tune several settings for each search mode, so you’re not limited to the basic presets, though they are pretty adequate at what they are meant to do.

You can save your manual search mode settings to one of six available slots, making your life much easier.

Read more in the manual here.

Sensitivity

You can adjust the Equinox 700’s sensitivity between 1 and 25, so you have plenty of room to find the perfect setting for the type of item you’re looking for while also minimizing the possibility of false detections.

Water And Dust Resistance

The Equinox 700’s coil and control box are both IP68 water- and dust resistant. This essentially means you can submerge it up to 16 feet (5m) into the water without risking failure. That’s one reason the Equinox 700 shines as a metal detector for beach use.

Features For Night Treasure Hunting

The device has several features that make it perfect for use at night. It has a powerful built-in flashlight, which is an absolute lifesaver. There’s also a handgrip vibration option so you can feel when it detects something noteworthy, and the backlights in the LCD display and control box make it easy to change settings and view the results.

Target Identification

The Equinox 700 has an above-average target ID system which accurately tells you what to expect. This helps you save time by not digging up trash and unwanted items. The screen displays its ID predictions, and you can hear tones and frequencies over the low-latency wireless headphones that will give you an idea of the depth and size of the item.

You can also fully control the audio to find the perfect volume that won’t let you miss anything but also not let you suffer hearing damage in the process.

Performance

The Equinox 700 is an impressive machine with surprisingly good performance for its price range. It’s not a high-end metal detector, so don’t expect any miracles, but it manages to outperform similarly priced metal detectors from other manufacturers.

For example, using the 700 on a spot that had been scoured multiple times with the excellent Vanquish 540 (read the review), one user immediately discovered a 200-year-old silver coin. The Equinox 700 outperforms most other brands and models in the mid-range and entry-level market.

Its depth is also exceptional. It will detect dime-sized objects up to 11 inches deep in average soil. It is also not highly susceptible to sound interference, which makes it an excellent metal detector by any standard.

It’s worth noting that, apart from its design and manufacturing materials, the only aspect that really sets the Equinox 700 apart from the much cheaper 600 is that the Equinox 600 has only 50 discrimination segments, while the 700 has 119 segments. 

This means the 700’s target identification is far more accurate than that of its cheaper sibling, and it makes an immediate, significant difference in the results you will see.

However, apart from that, the two models are nearly identical in specifications and capabilities.

That said, it’s difficult to go wrong with the Equinox 700. It’s a high-quality metal detector that will not disappoint. The only real negative experience is that you may forget how much time has passed while you’re out hunting for treasures since the night features and long battery life make it unbelievably easy to carry on searching long after the sun has set.

The Equinox 600 will probably be better for those who are just starting with metal detecting and are not too serious about it or have budget constraints. However, if you are looking for the absolute best in mid-range metal detecting capabilities, the Equinox 700 is one of the best options due to its robust set of features and pin-point accuracy, outshining even the excellent 900 in some ways.

➜ How good is the Equinox 600 really?

Minelab Equinox 600 vs Equinox 700 vs Equinox 800

Below is a quick comparison between the Equinox series models:

Pros and Cons

FAQs

Conclusion

The Equinox 700 is not the cheapest metal detector around. In fact, Equinox isn’t known for its low prices in general. But it is known for giving you more value for every dollar you spend, and that’s definitely the case with the Equinox 700.

It’s easy to save a few dollars and opt for a cheaper or more low-end metal detector, but that will likely lead to hours of fruitless metal detecting. The Equinox 700’s accuracy and excellent target identification sets it apart from most of its competition, so it’s well worth the few extra dollars for value that will serve you well for many years.

Equinox 700 Alternatives

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