looking for opinions on any of this gear for my first setup.

[eurospeed951]

Ok, well after my post about gear for under 1k, I am thinking about this setup:
vyper-$315
mares syncro power tech-$200
scubapro mk16/s550-$260
oms brass pressure gauge-$75
Dacor viper octo-$75

Like I said, I will be diving about 5 times a year. Mostly Florida and Caribean, but I would like to try a bit of everything. I know I will be trying out the quaries near by as well as NC diving.
Anyone use any of this gear? Any info would be great. Thank you in advance.

 

[HarleyDiver]

Good choice on the Regs, not their top-of-the-line, but probably the best value choice on great equipment.

Can't comment on the rest.

 

[redacted]

I would go with the R190 octo rather than the Dacor. It simplifies servicing staying with one brand. If you can't find an LDS that deals with both, you'll be forced to go to different shops to get service. And the Dacor guy may be pointing fingers at the SP 1st as the source of problem which he can't touch, "That will be $35.00 please." Even if your LDS handles thonse brands today, will he still have them next year? Will he even still be in business next year?

 

[Northeastwrecks]

The Mares Synchro Power Tech BC is an overblown, unstreamlined disaster waiting to happen. Its full of toys that do nothing but increase the drag and the number of potential failure points.

You'd be far better off trying to find a good deal on a Dive-Rite or a BP&W setup.

 

[double125's]

IMHO I would not recomend the mares bc. I would try to look at something less restrictive. The mares bc looks like everything is cluttered together and would be hard to get used to. Not to mention that it would probably have way to much lift ( I am guessing it would have 50 - 60 lbs) for tropical diving you wont need more than 30 lbs. The d rings look like they would be unusable where they are. Not to mention if you deceide to advance you career that bc will not grow with you. I would recomend not getting a "wanna be" tech bc. Start with a recreational style like the zeagle scout or equivilant. If you decide to get into tech diving it will still require you to upgrade your gear but at least you are not stuck in the middle with gear that is not good for either recreation or tech diving. If you plan on advancing to tech diving you may want to hold out and get a bp/wing or look at the zeagle ranger/tech bc. Those 2 are the only ones I would recomend for both sides of the house. Hope this helps ya'

 

[eurospeed951]

I agrea with your ideas. It makes sence to stick with one reg brand. One of the reasons I know I want a SP reg is because I know I can get it worked on at a lot of places. As for the BC, I just found a lot of reviews on it that said the same thing. WAY TOO BULKY. I realy do like the idea of the diverite gear, but I would like to keep the price closer to 200. I did come acrose the Oceanic Tour APS. It looks very slim and seems to have a few nice features as well as a very atractive price. So let's build on this:
Sunuto Vyper-$315
Oceanic Tour APS-$150
scubapro mk16/s550-$260
oms brass pressure gauge-$75
SP R190 OCTO-$85
================$885

 

[Northeastwrecks]

One further suggestion.

Skip the computer and buy a better BC.

You don't actually need a computer to dive as you can always use tables. You can add a computer later if you decide that you want it.

The Oceanic does appear to be a better design than that Mares. However, it still has some issues, including the laterally sliding shoulder straps and a non-standard power inflator. These may seem like a great idea; however, they are actually failure points.

 

[eurospeed951]

well I have done a bit more research on the Oceanic Tour APS. Most of the reviews have been great. I still know that it is not the best that I could buy, but it seems like this setup will meet my needs. One more thing to add, though I might start this as a new post; I will be doing most of my diving with my fathe r who will also be getting gear at the same time I do. We are close to the same size and will be doing the same typ of diving. Anything wrong with us diving the exact same gear?

 

[double125's]

If you are asking if you should both buy identical gear and dive as buddies then I would have to say that is the preffered method. You will be familiar with each others gear in the event of an emergency. I believe that is one of the fundamentals they teach in DIR. Maybe one of the techies will stop by and confirm this.

 

[Jeblis]

Northeastwrecks once bubbled...
One further suggestion.

Skip the computer and buy a better BC.

You don't actually need a computer to dive as you can always use tables. You can add a computer later if you decide that you want it.

Yes get a good bc (wings maybe), but a computer is nice because it can take into account multi-depth profiles. Diving by tables will force you to take your entire dive time at the max depth even if you were only there for a minute. I find a computer reduces my task load considerably.