Don't see that we're going to get much traffic on this one, so i'll add a couple more thoughts on a simplified Equinox before they vanish
The Vanquish models offer a lower price alternative to the entire Equinox package. They come in a less expensive housing that isn't water resistant, have fewer modes and settings, and mostly lack the wireless headphones and other niceties of the Equinox. The exception is the 540 which supports wireless headphones.
The Vanquish is an entry level detector ($199 to $500), the Equinox is a mid-level detector ($650 or $950) and whatever Minelab is working on for the Etrac / CTX 3030 replacement will be a higher end detector. (Currently $1600 and $2500 respectively). I looked around on several online stores and didn't see 1 that had the E-trac listed on the website. So, it might have been placed out of production. ??
Anyway, there are certainly detectorists out there that don't venture far from "factory" settings for whatever reason. Would Minelab build a special Equinox just for them? My guess is they believe they already have the 'easy' version of the 800 covered by the 600. And for those that need or want easier and/or less expensive than that, there are the 3 versions of the Vanquish; 340, 440 and 540.
And for those that want the looks and name of the Equinox 800 they can always leave the settings on factory defaults. Seems a waste to me where there is so much that can be done to fine tune the detector the way I like it, but, to each their own.
rich
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Just one more good target before I go.
Detectors - Manticore / 800 / Axiom / CoRe / ProPointer AT / MI-6
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