How is a beginner to choose a reg?

[CJ_Albertson]

How should a beginner choose a regulator? No, I'm not asking "What should I buy?" The problem is I can look at them in the store, I can asked questions and read the manufacture's web sites but none of that gives a beginning diver the information he needs which is "How will reg X breath vs reg Y at 100 feet."

Even if you read the description of a manufacture's lowest end model it will say "great performance and extream reliability in an attractive price." WOW isn't that what everyone wants? Then you think "If the low end model is that good why do they bother making the other models?" Clearlly what we have is "description inflation" where bottom end units are "great" and mid range is "exceptionally excelent".
The result is that it's all meaningless.

Asking owners doesn't help much either as the answer you get is always the same "I like my XXX and would recomend it."

Are there dive shops that rent the high end stuff. Ski shops typically will rent thier high end equipment at premium rental rates. It works well for both the customer and store. (I'm in So. California if anyone knows a place that does this.)

I don't want to start a "My reg is better than your reg" war here. I'm not asking "Which is best?" I'm asking "How to determine which is best?"

 

[d33ps1x]

Good luck getting your answer.

 

[AzAtty]

You'll have to dive them yourself to determine which one is "the best." That's really the only way find out. Some shops will have a "demo unit" you can take out on a dive, and if they don't have one, ask if there's any way to try it out at depth.

When you reach the high end, you'll be breathing great regulators regardless of the brand. Of course the "high end" in my opinion includes only a few brands, so take that comment with a grain of salt. The differences in how they breath may be slight. One may breath a little better while inverted; another might breathe a bit drier.

Another way to test out regulators is to do gas sharing drills with buddies who have the equipment you're interested in. Of course, finding those people may be difficult, but a dive club can be a good place to meet some people with different gear.

 

[TDunbar]

New Regs
One you used in your class
One your dive buddy or friend likes
The most expensive one you can find
The least expensive one you can find

Used Regs
Any of the ones listed under new regs and prepare yourself for the fact that you may have to spend a little on it to have it serviced

Modern regulators perform well within recreational dive limits. The differences become apparent only when pushed to extremes.

If you become an avid diver, you will end up with more than one set of gear. You will also have the experience to choose the gear that suits YOU best. And there is someone online who will pay you more than you originally paid for your used gear if you want to get rid of it.

Don't fret too much about trying to find the perfect gear - it doesn't exist and fretting will suck all the fun out of diving.

Hope this helps. Todd

 

[simbrooks]

You can find reviews on regs, not just here, but in magazines, some of these articles you can find online as well. The reviews typically put the regs on a breathing machine and quote a Joules/Litre as in energy to breathe 1 litre of air during the breathing phase, that can give you a clue as to if the regs breathe better than others, typically a lot of higher end regs have similiar performance. Some lower end regs have reasonable performance at shallow <60ft depth, but are poorer later on. I wont name names as to which regs are "better" than others, suffice to say that piston regs are often regarded as some of the best breathing, but if you are in cold water (So Cal is chilly, but not "cold", so that may not affect you) then pistons arent that great due to their likelihood of freezing (<40F) and diaphragms are preferred. Some regs are overbalanced, so that they breathe "easier" at depth and others have said that this means they dont breathe as nicely in shallow water, the phrase "comes into its own at 100ft" is often quoted.

Unfortunately beyond these objective tests with the breathing machine and subjective reviews from scubaboard or other sources, you just have to rely on jumping into the unknown on how they perform. I dont know So Cal, but i do know around here that only cheap to moderate gear is on rental, so good luck with finding that. The other option is to borrow a friends regs on a trip or maybe try out breathing off their octo or swapping primary 2nd stages at depth of those regs you are considering (ie you donate your primary to them and them to you) with your buddy. Otherwise we are back to blind leap of faith. I wouldnt read into the wording from reg manufacturers or LDS owners telling you x or y, as they are often after the sale, some are more caring than others though, just be cautious.

Obviously you are going to get some extra features on a more expensive reg than a cheaper one, its IF those features are important to you that determines what you want and whether you will pay the extra over a cheaper reg by the same manufacturer.

Often there are some different 1st and 2nd stage combinations, some upgraded models use the same basic 1st stage (workhorse of the reg) with a fancier, smaller, lighter 2nd stage, which may appeal to you - beware of extra bubble intereferance (sp?) with some smaller 2nd stages. Then for an octo, either go for a standard by the same manufacturer that is similar, although some primary 2nd's come with adjustment knobs (again personal pref if you want those) you dont need adjustment knobs on the octo as hopefully it wont be used often and if it is, then probably not for long, just ascending. Other features that might appeal are a certain number of LP and HP ports, 1 HP for a standard pressure guage, another if you have an AI computer, possibly 2HP's if you want both, then a number of LP ports, 1 for primary 2nd, 1 for octo, 1 for BC inflator, another for drysuit inflator - if you where one. Some have different hose routing patterns depending on 1st stage, others are environmentally sealed. 2nd stages can come with adjustment knobs and pre-dive switches - again these are all your pref.

Hope this helps somewhat.

 

[simbrooks]

If you become an avid diver, you will end up with more than one set of gear. You will also have the experience to choose the gear that suits YOU best. And there is someone online who will pay you more than you originally paid for your used gear if you want to get rid of it.

Agreed, you will probably get several sets and if you first choice as a newbie is not so great, use it for a stage bottle or something, or the one you loan to others when they come over to stay etc. As you dive more, you will find that you know a little more and can make these choices more easily.

 

[IndigoBlue]

ScubaPro, Zeagle, Apex, and Atomic are the top of the line. Look for 2 controls on them, one for general breathing ease adjustment, and the other for turbo-like additional breathing ease. ScubaPro and Atomic are almost the same, and Zeagle and Apex as well. Talk to divers who own them. Then take a shot in the dark.

The next most important consideration is whether your scuba shop can properly service the product. Some shops have terrible maintenance. Find an old guy in the back room who has been doing this since forever. Ask him his opinion.

If he tells you ScubaPro is overpriced, then he is honest. If he tells you there is no difference between Apex and Zeagle, he is even more honest. Ask him what he suggests, then bring your regs back to him every 6 to 12 mos for servicing.

Since you are in Los Angeles, you can go to Ken Kurtis' dive shop in Beverly Hills. He is an old NAUI instructor who knows just about everything about diving. Reef Seekers is the name of the store, I believe.

Welcome to Scubaboard!

Mo2VAtion is the local SoCalif mod down there.

 

[TechBlue]

How should a beginner choose a regulator? No, I'm not asking "What should I buy?" The problem is I can look at them in the store, I can asked questions and read the manufacture's web sites but none of that gives a beginning diver the information he needs which is "How will reg X breath vs reg Y at 100 feet."

Even if you read the description of a manufacture's lowest end model it will say "great performance and extream reliability in an attractive price." WOW isn't that what everyone wants? Then you think "If the low end model is that good why do they bother making the other models?" Clearlly what we have is "description inflation" where bottom end units are "great" and mid range is "exceptionally excelent".
The result is that it's all meaningless.

Asking owners doesn't help much either as the answer you get is always the same "I like my XXX and would recomend it."

Are there dive shops that rent the high end stuff. Ski shops typically will rent thier high end equipment at premium rental rates. It works well for both the customer and store. (I'm in So. California if anyone knows a place that does this.)

I don't want to start a "My reg is better than your reg" war here. I'm not asking "Which is best?" I'm asking "How to determine which is best?"

That's almost like asking which came first the chicken or the egg? It's all relative to the kind of diving you intend to do, currently all the WKPP and DIR tech community swear by Apeks, before GI3 had a falling out with them Scuba Pro was unbeatable. A diaphragm reg will never out perform a flow through piston design but you need to know what kind of diving you intend to pursue, if you're going to be travelling you'll want to make sure that you can get them serviced wherever you may go, btw a little bird told me that WKPP has a pending order for a 100 Atomic M-1 regs with cave rings-would this make them the best reg?

 

[6Gill]

How should a beginner choose a regulator? No, I'm not asking "What should I buy?" The problem is I can look at them in the store, I can asked questions and read the manufacture's web sites but none of that gives a beginning diver the information he needs which is "How will reg X breath vs reg Y at 100 feet."

Even if you read the description of a manufacture's lowest end model it will say "great performance and extream reliability in an attractive price." WOW isn't that what everyone wants? Then you think "If the low end model is that good why do they bother making the other models?" Clearlly what we have is "description inflation" where bottom end units are "great" and mid range is "exceptionally excelent".
The result is that it's all meaningless.

Asking owners doesn't help much either as the answer you get is always the same "I like my XXX and would recomend it."

Are there dive shops that rent the high end stuff. Ski shops typically will rent thier high end equipment at premium rental rates. It works well for both the customer and store. (I'm in So. California if anyone knows a place that does this.)

I don't want to start a "My reg is better than your reg" war here. I'm not asking "Which is best?" I'm asking "How to determine which is best?"

I suppose it depends mostly on your budget, type of diving and some research of requlators that breath easy and have a good reputation.

I like the Atomic line and dive an Atomic M-1. I had a B-1 before it and enjoyed it until it was stolen in a House Burglary. Most of the "high end" regs are pretty much the same.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

A lot of what makes a reg better than another in the high end category is usually very subjective. All perform very well but some "feel" different than others and what feels better or worse is a personal opinon.

Beware of reg reviews for this reason with the added concern that the reg reviewed may not be set up to it's potential or to the testers preferences. The best reg in the world will breathe like a rock if poorly tuned.

Stick with what the people you dive with seem to like and stick with what you can get serviced locally. I'd almost select the shop and the tech before I selected the regulator all other things being equal.