Better OC Trimix Computer . . .

[Jax]

3 different SmartPro's read as much as 10 feet different in 300 feet of salt water. Exact same model and age computers. I wouldn't get too wrapped round the axle about a 2% difference in depth on 2 different brands of computer.

I guess a better question would be, are each of them Salt / Fresh water selectable? (Don't have the manual access at work.)

 

[Valery]

Also no. Although I started with V-planner planning all of my dives, due to the research I've seen taking place right here on my little boat, that is research involving real time measurement of microbubbles taken by ultrasound, I have become a true believer in Buhlmann with Gradient Factors. We're not talking theory here, we're talking real-time research.

And with your x1 and multideco you can choose to dive vpm or GF

 

[gkndivebum]

So, the predator shows 206 feet, the X1 shows 200. is the Predator measuring freshwater, perhaps?

At what dept were you diving?

The Predator was set for salt water and was consistently showing deeper depths than all other gauges on the team (3 divers, a total
of 6 gauges - 3 X1s, 1 Vyper and one Mares Nemo Wide (the latter two in gauge mode)). I had the salinity setting set the same as
my X1. Not sure what to attribute the difference to; all the other gauges were within 1 foot of each other.

The sand below me in that photo is at a depth of 210 FSW.

 

[Kern]

I guess a better question would be, are each of them Salt / Fresh water selectable? (Don't have the manual access at work.)

The X1 can be set to; EN13319, high salt, normal salt, light salt, mix of fresh & salt, fresh

 

[ianr33]

I've had a Predator for a few years and could not be happier with it. It had a problem once (failed depth sensor) that was replaced for a grand total of $0 (including shipping both ways!!!) and took less than a week.

When I bought it was a bit concerned about it not having VPM as I was a confirmed V planner user at the time, but after doing many dives down to around 200 feet with the Buhlmann algorithm I'm not even going to bother buying the new VPM upgrade. KISS !

Has anybody ever had to pay to get a Predator fixed/replaced? Have heard some bad stories about the liquivision in that respect.
This thread has some interesting reading The Deco Stop

Only potential downsides to the Predator is that it is large,but I got used to that pretty quickly.The strap is crappy ,bungee fixes that.

Agree that the only choice to be made is between the Shearwater and Liquivision. VRwhatever etc is not in the same league.

 

[Jax]

I've had a Predator for a few years and could not be happier with it. It had a problem once (failed depth sensor) that was replaced for a grand total of $0 (including shipping both ways!!!) and took less than a week.

When I bought it was a bit concerned about it not having VPM as I was a confirmed V planner user at the time, but after doing many dives down to around 200 feet with the Buhlmann algorithm I'm not even going to bother buying the new VPM upgrade. KISS !

Has anybody ever had to pay to get a Predator fixed/replaced? Have heard some bad stories about the liquivision in that respect.
This thread has some interesting reading The Deco Stop

Only potential downsides to the Predator is that it is large,but I got used to that pretty quickly.The strap is crappy ,bungee fixes that.

Agree that the only choice to be made is between the Shearwater and Liquivision. VRwhatever etc is not in the same league.

Yes, I've been following the TDS threads. That's what led me to these questions now -- it's a year later, how do you feel about your X1 / Pred?

 

[Kern]

Jax, another reason I'v not voted in the poll is that I don't think there is a better, just a choice.

 

[Slamfire]

* V-Planner Live and MultiDeco has one full featured price that includes everything. Shearwater will nickle and dime you $$$ for every little feature.

As far as I know, you only pay extra to unlock CCR mode and VPM -- hardly nickel and diming for "every little feature". All the other upgrades (3 or 4 that I've received), which all have included relevant and useful new features have been free. Initially I thought it was going to be like Ross says, where getting access to new features like the ability to change salinity would cost me extra. Because of that reason I was initially inclined to the X1 over the Predator. But then other Predator users explained reality of the upgrade mechanics -- the vast majority are free.

Then as I did more research there were other points steered me away from the X1. At the time when I was shopping around, you had to buy the X1 separately from the software -- basically deal with two different entities. Also I had to buy the PC interface cable separately. The X1 is monochromatic while the Predator has full color. Even though battery is rechargeable, I do not believe it is easy to replace the battery once it eventually dies (is it even replaceable? if it isn't then the life of your X1 is limited to the life of the battery). And frankly, even though it seems to have improved, my impression was that you found more X1 people complaining about problems than Predator complainers. Somebody told me that the reason for the dual sensors was the high likelihood of one of the two failing. Even when Predators had problems, comments were usually on a positive note about the responsiveness of the manufacturer to fix the problem to the full satisfaction of the user.

BTW, I have seen data from other people and have done comparison theoretical and real dives myself and the Predator VPM does match V-Planner very, very closely. For real world execution of a dive, I would say it is a definite match.

I guess a better question would be, are each of them Salt / Fresh water selectable? (Don't have the manual access at work.)

The latest firmware update (free update) allows you to set salinity. Before this update it was fixed on the EN13319, and mine would consistently read deeper than my backup. After I set the salinity to 1030, it now reads exactly like my backup.

 

[mathauck0814]

BTW, I have seen data from other people and have done comparison theoretical and real dives myself and the Predator VPM does match V-Planner very, very closely. For real world execution of a dive, I would say it is a definite match

This was actually discussed in the latest TDM (Tech Diving Mag | Free online technical diving magazine). From what I gleaned in the article it sounds like it's very similar until you start getting into expedition depths (100m+) and then you start to see the nuances in the models. But for the tech diving that most of us are doing...

 

[Kern]

As far as I know, you only pay extra to unlock CCR mode and VPM -- hardly nickel and diming for "every little feature". All the other upgrades (3 or 4 that I've received), which all have included relevant and useful new features have been free. Initially I thought it was going to be like Ross says, where getting access to new features like the ability to change salinity would cost me extra. Because of that reason I was initially inclined to the X1 over the Predator. But then other Predator users explained reality of the upgrade mechanics -- the vast majority are free.

Then as I did more research there were other points steered me away from the X1. At the time when I was shopping around, you had to buy the X1 separately from the software -- basically deal with two different entities. Also I had to buy the PC interface cable separately. The X1 is monochromatic while the Predator has full color. Even though battery is rechargeable, I do not believe it is easy to replace the battery once it eventually dies (is it even replaceable? if it isn't then the life of your X1 is limited to the life of the battery). And frankly, even though it seems to have improved, my impression was that you found more X1 people complaining about problems than Predator complainers. Somebody told me that the reason for the dual sensors was the high likelihood of one of the two failing. Even when Predators had problems, comments were usually on a positive note about the responsiveness of the manufacturer to fix the problem to the full satisfaction of the user.

BTW, I have seen data from other people and have done comparison theoretical and real dives myself and the Predator VPM does match V-Planner very, very closely. For real world execution of a dive, I would say it is a definite match.

The latest firmware update (free update) allows you to set salinity. Before this update it was fixed on the EN13319, and mine would consistently read deeper than my backup. After I set the salinity to 1030, it now reads exactly like my backup.

Once again, everything required to interface with your desktop is supplied with the unit.

Yes, the battery is replaceable.

The sensor problem was an OEM fault that affected several manufacturers including Suunto. The problem was fixed by moving to ceramic sensors with redundancy. I & many others have been using the original single sensor units for years.

Do you really know any more than I do about the percentage of dissatisfied users of either machine?

PS. As Ross is like rust & never sleeps, or so it appears, I'v received an almost instantaneous response, with fix, on the 2 occasions I needed it, & I'm on the opposite side of the planet.I'v never found dealing with the 2 entities to be a problem.