Minelab Equinox 700
Equinox 700 Depth and Coil Chart: What Each Coil Reaches
Quick answer
With its stock 11 inch coil the Equinox 700 realistically reaches around 5 to 10 inches on a US coin in average soil. A 6 inch coil trades an inch or two of that for far better separation, and a 15 inch coil buys depth on large targets only.
Minelab publishes no depth specification for the Minelab Equinox 700, which is the honest position, because depth belongs to the target, the coil and the soil at least as much as to the machine. The 700 ships with the Minelab EQX 11 Coil (11 inch) alone, so unlike the 900 it arrives with one coil rather than two, and coil choice is therefore the first real decision an owner makes.
The ranges below are collected from what owners consistently report and are deliberately wide. Nothing here has been depth-tested by this site. For a range worked from your own inputs, the expected detection depth calculator takes target size, coil diameter and mineralisation, and the coil size selector handles the buying decision.
Top pick
Minelab Equinox 700
Same Multi-IQ platform and waterproofing as the 900, and it accepts every Equinox coil, so its depth ceiling is a coil question rather than a machine one.
Price was accurate when this page was compiled and changes often.
What depth does the Equinox 700 reach?
With the stock Minelab EQX 11 Coil (11 inch) coil, a slow overlapping sweep and a coil kept low and flat.
A US coin sits in the region of 5 to 10 inches in average soil with the stock 11 inch coil, falling to 3 to 6 inches in heavily mineralised or bone-dry ground.
| Target | Mild damp soil | Average soil | Mineralised or very dry |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small gold, under 1 gram | 2 to 5 in | 1 to 4 in | Under 3 in |
| Thin gold chain | 1 to 4 in | 1 to 3 in | Surface only |
| US nickel | 6 to 10 in | 4 to 8 in | 3 to 5 in |
| Silver or clad dime | 6 to 10 in | 5 to 8 in | 3 to 6 in |
| Silver quarter | 8 to 12 in | 6 to 10 in | 4 to 7 in |
| Gold ring, mid to large | 6 to 11 in | 5 to 9 in | 3 to 7 in |
| Button or buckle | 6 to 11 in | 5 to 9 in | 3 to 7 in |
| Large iron relic | 12 to 20 in | 10 to 16 in | 7 to 12 in |
Ranges reported by owners, not measurements. Minelab publishes no depth figure for this machine. Bury known targets in your own soil, let them settle through a few rains, and record what your own machine says.
Which coils fit the Equinox 700 and what does each do?
The 700 accepts the Equinox coil range. Waterproof depths below are the figures Minelab and Coiltek publish for this machine specifically.
Minelab publishes the EQX 06 and EQX 15 as submersible to 16 feet on the Equinox 700, and Coiltek publishes 5 metres for its NOX coils on the same machine.
| Coil | Size | Published waterproof depth on the 700 | What it is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minelab EQX 11 | 11 in round Double-D | Machine rated to 16 ft | The stock coil, general detecting |
| Minelab EQX 06 | 6 in round Double-D | 16 ft (5 m) | Trash separation and small targets |
| Minelab EQX 15 | 15 by 12 in Double-D | 16 ft (4.9 m) | Depth on large targets, open ground |
| Coiltek 10 by 5 NOX | 10 by 5 in elliptical | 5 m (16.5 ft) | Iron-infested ground with coverage |
| Coiltek 15 inch NOX | 15 in round | 5 m (16.5 ft) | Large open ground |
Coiltek publishes compatibility with the Equinox 600, 700, 800 and 900 and the X-Terra Pro, with a 2 year warranty. Minelab publishes 10 ft for the older 600 and 800 bodies against 16 ft for the 700 and 900.
Which coil should a 700 owner buy first?
The small one. The stock Minelab EQX 11 Coil (11 inch) is already the all-round size, so the gap in the kit is separation rather than coverage. On any ground that has been hunted before, and that is most ground, the finds that remain are masked by iron and aluminium rather than sitting out of reach. A Minelab EQX 06 Coil (6 inch) or a Coiltek 10 by 5 NOX Search Coil reports targets the stock coil blends together.
Buy the Minelab EQX 15 Coil (15 inch) or Coiltek 15 inch NOX Search Coil only if you have genuine open ground: pasture, ploughed fields, dry beach. On those it earns its price through coverage as much as depth. On a small trashy permission it will find less than the coil already on the machine, which is the point the coil size chart exists to make.
What else changes the depth you actually get?
Sweep speed, coil height and ground balance, all of which are free. A coil held an inch off the ground loses depth it will never get back from a setting. A fast sweep gives the machine one look at a deep target where a slow one gives several. A ground balance taken at the gate does not describe the far corner of the field.
After that it is soil moisture and season, which you do not control but should account for. The same site gives noticeably less depth in a dry spell. If a familiar patch of ground has gone quiet, check the weather before you check the machine, and see the master depth chart for how large that effect can be.
Sources
- Minelab Equinox 700 and 900 instruction manual
- Minelab EQX 06 and EQX 15 coil specifications
- Coiltek NOX coil product specifications
Frequently asked questions
How deep does the Equinox 700 go on coins?
Realistically around 5 to 10 inches on a US coin in average soil with the stock 11 inch coil, more in damp mild ground and as little as 3 to 6 inches where the soil is heavily mineralised. Minelab publishes no depth specification for this machine, so any exact figure you see anywhere has been estimated. Test it with buried targets in your own ground.
Is the Equinox 700 shallower than the Equinox 900?
Not measurably on coin-sized targets. The two share the Multi-IQ platform, the same body, the same waterproofing and the same coil range. The 900 adds two single frequencies, a Gold mode and the small coil in the box. Those change which targets respond and how well you separate them, rather than how far down the machine can reach on a quarter.
Can I use Coiltek coils on the Equinox 700?
Coiltek publishes compatibility with the Equinox 600, 700, 800 and 900 and with the X-Terra Pro, submersible to 5 metres on the 700 and 900, and backs the coils with a two year warranty. The 10 by 5 elliptical is the usual choice for iron-heavy ground and the 15 inch round for open ground where coverage matters most.
How deep can I take the Equinox 700 into water?
Minelab publishes the machine as fully waterproof and submersible to 16 feet, and publishes the EQX 06 and EQX 15 coils as submersible to the same depth on this body. The limit in practice is audio rather than the machine, since wireless headphones do not work underwater. Use the wired waterproof Equinox headphones for anything submerged.
Will a bigger coil fix a site that has gone quiet?
Usually not. A site that has been hunted hard is short of separation rather than depth, so the remaining targets are masked by trash rather than sitting out of reach. A smaller coil will normally produce more on that ground than a larger one. Save the big coil for open pasture, ploughed land and dry beach where coverage is the real constraint.
Researched, not professional advice. This page is compiled from published specifications, manuals and owner-review consensus, not hands-on testing. Target ID numbers, depth figures and settings vary with soil chemistry, moisture, target size, depth, orientation and firmware version, so treat every figure here as a starting point and verify it against your own machine's manual and your own ground. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.