XP ORX Wireless Metal Detector with 9" X35 Search Coil

The XP ORX with the 9 inch X35 coil is a lightweight wireless metal detector for coin hunting, relic hunting and general land detecting, made in France by XP. With the X35 coil it offers 35 frequencies from 3.7 to 27.7 kHz and runs one selected frequency at a time. Two factory Coin programs (Coin Fast and Coin Deep) and two Gold programs give you starting points, two user programs hold your own settings, and four Reactivity settings let you trade target separation against signal strength. The coil is waterproof to 6 meters (20 feet); the remote control is not waterproof. XP covers the remote and coil for 5 years.

Who the XP ORX with the 9 inch X35 coil is for

We recommend the XP ORX to detectorists who want a lightweight machine for coins and relics without complicated menus, and to prospectors searching for small natural gold. What we like about it is that it is lightweight, wireless and considerably simpler to operate than the original XP DEUS, with Gold and Coin programs and compatibility with XP's high-frequency coils.

The ORX is not a simplified XP DEUS II, though. It operates at one selected frequency at a time; the DEUS II offers simultaneous multi-frequency operation. That is an important distinction, and it matters most on wet salt sand.

Coin Fast and Coin Deep programs

XP describes Coin Fast as the program for coins and all types of targets with good performance on mineralized or contaminated ground, and Coin Deep as the one for low-mineralized, uncontaminated ground. The XP ORX gives you a numerical target ID from 0 to 99 plus an iron probability from 0 to 100%, discrimination in 99 levels, an iron tone you can switch on or off, and adjustable Reactivity. Along with ground balance, sensitivity and frequency selection, the differences between the Coin and Gold programs are the settings we would learn first. XP's manual puts the most commonly used sensitivity levels at 50 to 80; higher levels can reach deeper targets but may make the ORX unstable, and with too much interference you lower the sensitivity or shift the operating frequency slightly.

Reactivity: target separation against signal strength

The XP ORX has four Reactivity settings (XP's values are 1, 2, 2.5 and 3). Increasing Reactivity can help the detector respond more distinctly to closely spaced targets, but faster Reactivity can also reduce the strength of certain deeper signals. XP's manual says the greatest detection range comes with low Reactivity, that clean ground calls for lower Reactivity and a slower sweep, and that medium or high Reactivity finds more targets and penetrates deeper in mineralized ground. In an open farm field with widely spaced targets we would slow down; near an old building full of nails we would speed up. We would not run the fastest setting everywhere.

Where the XP ORX works well

Imagine a rocky creek bed holding small gold nuggets and scattered iron fragments. With one of XP's HF coils fitted to the ORX, we would use a suitable Gold program, ground balance carefully and investigate faint, repeatable signals around exposed bedrock. For coins and general relics, the X35 coil in this package covers the lower and intermediate frequencies, while an HF coil suits very small natural gold. Farm fields, older parks, freshwater beaches and general land detecting all suit the ORX. Around an old homesite full of nails, Reactivity, discrimination and a smaller coil help you investigate signals, but iron masking remains a challenge and the ORX cannot reliably identify every desirable target near iron. XP's manual also notes that iron, hot rocks and other mineralized debris generally reduce soil penetration, and that deep gold nuggets in mineralized ground can give a signal similar to iron. For other coin and relic detectors, see our relic and treasure metal detectors.

The three X35 coils for the XP ORX

All three X35 coils give the same 35 frequencies, built around five main channels with offsets, so the choice is about coil size and weight. A common mistake is assuming every ORX coil supports the same operating frequencies: the HF coils give 21 frequencies, from 13 to 59 kHz on the 9 inch HF and 13 to 80 kHz on the HF elliptical. The 9 inch X35 is the lightest of the three at 370 g (13.1 oz); the 11 inch X35 weighs 470 g (16.6 oz) and the 13 x 11 inch X35 590 g (20.8 oz) on the end of the stem. Each coil mounts on its own lower stem, and changing coils means changing the lower stem and pairing the coil to the remote by its serial number. XP lists the X35 and HF coils for the ORX; the FMF coils made for the XP DEUS II are not on XP's ORX compatibility list. For more coils, see our metal detector coils.

Saltwater beaches, freshwater and the remote

One limitation worth explaining is that the XP ORX is not a simultaneous multi-frequency detector. Wet saltwater sand is difficult because conductive saltwater produces a ground response that interferes with metal detection. The ORX has a salt mode for highly conductive ground such as salt lakes and beaches (ground balance from 0 to 30, switched on by holding a button for 2 seconds) to help manage those conditions, but it is not the detector we recommend for regular saltwater beach hunting.

The X35 coil is waterproof to 6 meters (20 feet), and a submerged coil needs XP's aerial antenna. XP's manual says the remote control is not waterproof, so keep it dry; along a freshwater shoreline the coil can go in the water while the remote stays dry.

XP ORX, XP DEUS II or XP ICONX

For someone regularly searching saltwater beaches or wanting simultaneous multi-frequency operation, we recommend the XP DEUS II or the XP ICONX instead. The DEUS II's FMF technology offers simultaneous multi-frequency operation, it has substantially more audio customization and advanced settings, and it is fully waterproof with the appropriate underwater equipment. For other coin machines, see our metal detectors for coins guide.

What is in the box with the XP ORX with 9 inch X35 coil

XP's standard contents for the ORX with 9 inch X35 coil

• XP ORX remote control with backlit LCD display
• XP 9 inch (22.5 cm) X35 search coil
• S-Telescopic Lite stem
• Built-in rechargeable lithium batteries in the coil and remote
• USB charging cable with one mini-B plug
• USB connection cable with three mini-B plugs
• Connection clamp for recharging the coil
• Coil hardware and spare parts (2 screws, 2 wing nuts, 1 washer, 1 spacing washer)
• Owner's manual

XP ORX with 9 inch X35 coil specifications

Our view: choose the XP ORX for lightweight, relatively straightforward detecting, especially when small-gold sensitivity is important. Serious Detecting is an authorized XP dealer, and every ORX configuration, coil and accessory is in our XP ORX collection.