Advice on new regulator for beginning OW

[rsingleton]

Hi. I'm not up on all the various brands and details of equipment.

What are the top mid-range regulators:

Atomic Z2 (good reg good value, Atomic line not sold by particular retailer of choice)
ScubaPro M25/s600 (expensive, but seems very popular.) - is it heavier than normal b/c of full metal design
ScubPro M21 with S560 and G260 - can't really tell the difference between these two except cost and one is metal and one is carbon fiber. Cheaper than the s600.
Apeks line i hear is good, but also not sold by my particular retailer of choice


What about Mares, Sherwood, Cressi, etc.

This is for a female that would prefer a lighter weight one, but doesn't want a cheap one. A good balanced, perform in various environments, adjustable, etc. Something they can grow with. I would say under $700/$800

Thanks

 

[tbone1004]

what is your preferred retailer and are you opposed to going outside of their lines? and anything against buying used?

Tusa is preferred to scubapro, comes out of the same factory, same designs, and much cheaper. Tusa is actually the manufacturer stands for Tabata USA, come out of Japan. Halcyon actually gets their regs from Tabata as well

Atomic is not really good value, but it's good. They are made in house n California, by a bunch of ex Scubapro engineers, so the designs are very similar.

Apeks is very high on the list. Hollis is overpriced, so if you're spending that money, Apeks is much better, comes out of UK

Dive Rite is good for the money but comes out of ODS, same as HOG, Taiwan.

Poseidon is now viable again due to Dive Right in Scuba and Dive Gear Express are selling them. The xStreams are wonderful regulators. Bit over your budget at $850 for two seconds, a first, and an SPG, but very very nice. They also don't require custom hoses anymore so it helps to knock down the cost of ownership. *I prefer Jetstreams, but the xStreams are very very nice and much lighter/smaller

Zeagle is under the general Apeks line and they are pretty good. About $800 for a singles set.

For my money now in a singles setup for someone looking for light weight, I would honestly go with the Edge Epic, otherwise the DiveRite XT's would probably win.
https://www.divegearexpress.com/regulators/sowpkg.shtml
These are the single tank packages that DGX has, $400 for the discontinued Dive Rite *just replaced by a new model, still very viable*, up to the $1k Atomic M1. They include all hoses, a yoke adapter, bolt snaps, SPG, and 90* angle adapter so you can streamline your hose configuration. Great values right now.

Hog BP/W Singles Full Set w/ Reg - Dive Right in Scuba
That's a full system with BP/W for $900. It's high quality, but not tank duty like some of the heavier duty regs, but certainly good enough for any normal diving conditions. The Edge Epic is actually a very nice little regulator, and will last a long time.

 

[Scubatude]

I agree. The Edge Epic is kind of a sleeper. Well it was until it was named the 2013 Best Buy, by ScubaLab. I have sold a bunch of them and never a complaint.

 

[ScubaBros]

The Mk21/S560 combo, offers almost identical performance as the mk25/S600. The main difference is the S600 has a metal air barrel in the second stage and the S560 uses techno-polymer. Yes, that is a fancy way to say plastic. But you would be surprised how many companies use plastic components in their regs. The plastic in some cases performers better than metal. Don't be too caught up on who is making the particular reg, if you like it buy it! No one can afford to make a bad one. But the more expensive regulators do perform better at depth. That is usually the only difference between say an entry level $300 combo and the $700 MK25/S600 or similar reg types. And yes I am prepared to get all the hater responses for saying such things on scubaboard. Hope this was helpful. (Just remember Scubapro does hold the world record for the most amount of people breathing from a single first stage, So they must be doing something right)

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I really don't like to think of regs as entry level that much. Fact is while years ago there were regs (mostly unbalanced pistons) that could have been though of as entry level, the truth today is most any sealed reg will do the same job as another. The average OW diver would be hard pressed to tell the difference between a $1200 reg and a $250 one in a blindfolded test.
My GF's Edge EXP breathes as good as any of my HOGs.
I had a Sherwood Brut that was a great reg. Bought it used from a shop and then kept it tuned myself.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

I didn't see Aqualung mentioned.
Look at the Titan. The innerds of that reg can be traced back to about 1967 as the internal parts kit is the exact same as the Conshelfs and doublehoses for almost 50 years. One of the best all time reg series ever produced. Pretty hard to improve on something that simple and bullet proof.
Another best bang for the buck type regs.

 

[uncfnp]

If Aqualung an option, weight and comfort a factor, consider the Mikron. Love mine.

 

[Keith.M]

I'd be looking for used in whatever regulator you are looking for.

Scubapro MK25 and S600 | eBay

 

[Tbar]

I'd be looking for used in whatever regulator you are looking for.

I agree, all mine have been used.

But the one linked is very old, the original MK25 (2002-2003 vintage) and I would say s600 (2001-2005). They would need servicing and kits $100-$150. The balance chamber may need upgrading on the s600 ($40). Need to know if the MK25 has constant IP other wise the piston may need changing, $100.

 

[Keith.M]

Hmmm... Good points I am sure, thanks.

I know I picked up that set (not same year) here on SB, had them both serviced for $85 and had the set for my son to use for 295.