Computer + SPG? Or am I crazy?

[Attrayant]

Hey everyone!

I just completed my confined water dives and with any luck I'll be doing my OW dives within the next 2 weeks. Woohoo!

I know this is an equipment question but I thought I would try here first in case this is a really silly question. Anyways I have been looking around here and there at dive computers and I like how the air-integrated computers operate, like the ProPlus II. Seems convenient to have everything right there for you to see on one screen. Maybe I'm being over cautious, but I got to thinking that it might be a good idea to have a spare analog SPG + depth gauge hooked up also in case of o-ring & battery failure. Does anyone do this or am I just over thinking? Is it even possible with most 1st stage regs?

 

[matsat64]

My suggestion is to try different things before you buy. I have been diving for two years now and the most important and most money I spent was on a good reg.MK 25 with a S600 and recently got a Sitech S40 and octo . then come a good dry suit try many on and dive with them before you buy one so you really get or spend your money on what works for you.
Use a regular SPG until you get to this point then start looking at computers because at this point you will be ready to further your experiences such as diving deeper , navigation, nitrox.
I waited for two yrs and just did the research and I just got the uwatec alaidan smart Z with transmitter cause it will do what I need and free up some space gear wise.
Also I forgot about the BC try a couple and see what works for you that is the key.
Hope this will help you not just go get the latest and greatest gear and then find out you like something else like I did.

 

[laguna230diver]

redundency with a spg is commonly seen on hoseless integrated computers (like the uwatecs)

not silly at all safety first!
-brandon

 

[RJP]

I dive an AI wrist computer with transmitter on recreational dives. On such, I don't bother removing my SPG from my regulator, preferring to leave it on... just in case.

Have never had the need to need it as back-up, but why chance it.

PS - I also wear a bottom-timer/depth gauge on my other wrist as well.

 

[vladimir]

Yes, as laguna points out, the desire to back up gas-integrated wireless computers seems to be widespread, and I did it myself for a long time. That should make you ask the question, "if my AI computer isn't reliable, why have it?" Especially since they tend to be expensive.

My answer? They have gotten progressively more reliable. I was an early adopter of the technology (~15 years ago), and gaps in gas-data transimission were frequent (more likely than not on a particular dive), especially when strobes were cycling. Contrast that with my Suunto D9 (3 or 4 years old with a few hundred dives on it) which I have never caught in a transmission failure, not even a fleeting one.

The second reason to have one is, as you have indicated, it is nice to have the data in one convenient place. So, if you have qualms about the reliability (I no longer do), you can use an AI computer and back it up with a SPG. If you're comfortable with the reliability, lose the extra hose (albeit a pretty unobtrusive one) and avail yourself of all the benefits of the technology.

 

[knowone]

What happened to your Datamax?

 

[Jim Baldwin]

Hey everyone!

I just completed my confined water dives and with any luck I'll be doing my OW dives within the next 2 weeks. Woohoo!

I know this is an equipment question but I thought I would try here first in case this is a really silly question. Anyways I have been looking around here and there at dive computers and I like how the air-integrated computers operate, like the ProPlus II. Seems convenient to have everything right there for you to see on one screen. Maybe I'm being over cautious, but I got to thinking that it might be a good idea to have a spare analog SPG + depth gauge hooked up also in case of o-ring & battery failure. Does anyone do this or am I just over thinking? Is it even possible with most 1st stage regs?

I have been diving and teaching with the Pro Plus which is older version of the Pro Plus II for nearly 10 years. I have three of the units, my wife, my son and I all dive with them and they are very reliable units. Between the three of us we have made hundreds of dive with these computers and have had zero problems.

Never had one go out. I change out the battery each year and they're still going strong. If you pass on the compass and quick disconnect the unit is not much larger than a SPG.

You will find that you don't need an extra hose with a backup SPG to dive safely. This is another failure point and more clutter to drag through the water.

The numbers on the PPII are big and easy to read. The tick marks or circles for your NDL and your O2 build up are clear and your tank pressure is always on the bottom display. Great for older eyes.

In answer to your last question some regs do have two HP ports which allow for better hose routing.

 

[a22shady]

I also have the Oceanic Proplus 2. Have owned it for over a year and I am very happy with the computer it self. It's easy to use and set, nice large number. The one thing if you get I would tell you do as I did and order the the "Invisible shield" for it to protect the front screen as I have seen ones get scrathed up easily. Mine has zero scrathes.

For the back-up I personally did not but a lot of people do. Once I start getting further into wreck/Cavern I will. I got the Datamask now so for now I am diving with both computers. My G/F has the Non AI Nitek Duo and dives with a Pressure guage clipped off. It's whatever makes you feel safe and confident. the Key is redundancy.

Good luck with your class

 

[vladimir]

Hey everyone!

I just completed my confined water dives and with any luck I'll be doing my OW dives within the next 2 weeks. Woohoo!

I know this is an equipment question but I thought I would try here first in case this is a really silly question. Anyways I have been looking around here and there at dive computers and I like how the air-integrated computers operate, like the ProPlus II. Seems convenient to have everything right there for you to see on one screen. Maybe I'm being over cautious, but I got to thinking that it might be a good idea to have a spare analog SPG + depth gauge hooked up also in case of o-ring & battery failure. Does anyone do this or am I just over thinking? Is it even possible with most 1st stage regs?

When I first answered your question I assumed the Pro Plus 2 was a hoseless gas-integrated computer, but it is not. For a computer that is physically connected to the tank a redundant SPG is overkill, in my opinion, and accommodating it will needlessly complicate your hose routing.

 

[Dirty-Dog]

Something you will hear a lot from really advanced divers is "two is one and one is none."

Redundancy, to my way of thinking, is neither inherently good or bad. Ask yourself what will happen if your computer fails. If you're in OW dive, probably nothing catastrophic, and so you probably don't need to worry too much about redundancy. Of course, the redundant SPG and pressure gauge aren't much use unless you also have a redundant bottom timer... See where this is going?

Start simple. Worry about redundancy when it's really necessary. And have fun.