Testing the Nokta Velox
By Gary's metal detecting

nokta velox

Nokta Velox
UK Review

Garys detecting home page

Nokta Velox 1 metal detector review
My Nokta Velox came directly from Nokta Engineering in Turkey, it was well packaged, included were 2 optional extra's, a 9" search coil and a battery holder, so the power cell can be mounted onto the machine rather than clipped to your belt. As you can see by the pictures, the designer certainly has a keen eye for design, the machine looks sharp and very modern.

Eastern European machines have really started to become popular here in the UK, detectorists have started to realise you get a lot of performance for your money, I see even some of the original non believers are using them to great effect. These days metal detector choices are getting bigger all the time, we are no longer at the mercy of the top manufacturers... in the days of economic decline people are turning towards value for money machines that do the business on European soil conditions.
 Having spent a short time with the Velox I have become quite fond of it's feel and looks, it is more than apparent that the manufacturer has a keen eye for design and aesthetics, I would say Nokta have taken EU machines to another level with it's beefy radical styling.
Let's look a little further into the Velox 1 and see why it is getting my attention !!

nokta velox image from Garys detecting
Nokta Build quality
I must confess the build quality was not what I expected, was I impressed ?...you bet, the quality is up there with the best in it's price range, the machine fitted together very well with good quality attachments, chunky locking collars and a very robust coil plug.
 
nokta velox coil plug image nokta velox locking collar picture

The potentiometers had a very nice dampened smooth operation which contributes to making the overall package feel very professional and built for the job.
Note the nice little touch on the side panel...the two raised lips front and back to protect the potentiometers from being knocked.
The headphone jack is the small 3.5 mm type, which should really be updated to the 6.5mm unit in my opinion.

 
nokta velox control box nokta velox stem picture

Search coils
As mentioned earlier the coils supplied were an 11inch 2D and an optional 9inch 2D both resin filled with perfectly fitting coil covers, the coil cable and strain relief are again top quality components which I simply can not fault.


nokta velox search coil nokta velox coil covers

Stem and fittings
The stem is a 3 piece unit, plus the control box section that feels nicely balanced, the handle grip is moulded and fit's into your hand very well, The only tiny gripe I could find is when constructed I could feel a slight looseness when I swung the coil from side to side, initially I thought one of the locking collars was loose but it turned out to be very slight play where the control box slides onto the stem, the cure was simple, just a small wrap of insulating tape ensured a snug fit. The machine is very well balanced, I am guessing a lot of thought has gone into this set up, and it shows, the machine is supplied with a heavy duty arm strap I would urge people to use this as it really makes a difference, I would like to see a slightly longer strap to accommodate the wearing of thick coats in the future.

nokta velox battery pack nokta velox audio speaker

Nokta Velox 1 basic controls and settings
Underneath the front panel is a ground mineral rotary switch, the first position powers the machine up, you will hear some short tones, then wait for the second set of tones, once they have sounded you are ready to search.

Discrimination
The discrimination potentiometer has a scale of 1-10, this is only an iron rejection, foil is to high on the scale so can not be rejected, which is a good thing for European coin and relic hunters, my test piece of coke is rejected at 8- 8.5 on the scale. If you turn the control counter clockwise it will click into the factory pre-set position marked FS, this also rejects coke and can be classed as an auto mode which will benefit people who are learning the machine.
Below is the iron switch, some think this is an all / metal discrim which is incorrect, this switch toggles between 3 tone id (iron off) and 1 tone id (iron on) which is silent iron reject.


nokta velox powerful metal detector nokta velox deep seeking metal detector

Audio boost and signal colour
As you can see the Velox has a 3 position audio boost (Signal Audio), position 1 is a nice soft sounding audio with the most economical battery consumption, position 3 is very much boosted and can make the signal sound harsher but enhance small signals, combined with sensitivity can help fine tune the Velox1 to specific targets or search scenario's, operating at 17Khz the Velox will be very sensitive to small Gold and Silver targets.

The Velox has excellent signal colour which is a bonus for the operator as vital target size and depth information can be obtained from the intensity of the signal, deep or small targets sound faint and smooth...shallow or large targets sound loud. Big or odd shaped iron has more of a "forced" digital signal.
On a busy site you may experience "tone blend" this is where the 2 tones next to each other blend, for example a low tone at depth may have a slight iron buzz with it, this is quite normal as it could possibly be ground minerals swamping the signal or the target may be next to iron. If the signal is faint and repeatable it is always worth investigating.

Ground balance
The Nokta Velox has no fixed ground balance function, it is strictly manual only....However don't be intimidated by this, Nokta has made it really easy to operate, I have been told it can cope with most soil conditions including wet sand by using position 3 on the mineralisation switch on the lower face plate, which also acts as an iron rejection filter, this determines how aggressively the machine breaks up iron 3 being the highest.

Ground Balancing Procedure
The simple way is to swing or pump the coil over a piece of ground free from iron, then starting from the left turn the ground balance potentiometer until the operation is silent, ideally around the 12 o'clock position, if you can not find a suitable position, turn the mineral switch around one position and try again, if searching wet sand and area's of high ferrous content you may require mineral position 3.
 Remember try not to turn the ground balance potentiometer to far clockwise or performance will be lost. Just for reference my soil balanced perfectly in the first position as seen in the picture above. If you can not get a reaction from the ground try turning the sensitivity to a higher level.

Nokta battery life
The Velox is supplied with a very powerful battery, it can be belt mounted or my personal preference box mounted using the optional pouch, which adds a little weight but still balances very well. During my first outing I searched all day and the battery check still gave 3 positive lights which indicated maximum charge.
 

Nokta battery Nokta Velox battery check


Will the Nokta Velox be suitable for beginners ?
Absolutely !!, it can easily be a switch on and go machine, here's how to set it up for field use, turn on to the first position...set the discrimination to FS...set sensitivity and ground balance to the 12 o'clock positions, audio boost 1 and your ready to search, it really is that simple.
If this Nokta Velox review has interested you, please mention Gary's detecting when you enquire.

nokta velox mineral control nokta velox metal detector

Here is a short video of the construction and first indoor test


Well that's the basics let's get out into the field and see how the Nokta Velox 1 performs !!
Here are 2 video's showing how this machine performs in the field, I think you will agree it is a very interesting metal detector !!
 
   


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