Low Profile Reg's

[eng1ne1]

I am looking for a low profile regulator.

Considering the following:
- Poseidon Xstream
- Dynamo Monel EAN
- Sherwood Maximus

I am open to others if you have any suggestions. Mainly considering for weight and jaw fatigue. I am open to lighter weight full size regs.

Thanks for the info,
Jt

 

[rescuediver009]

Xtream - If money were no object and you have local support it is a great reg. I have used it in the coldest of cold (ice) and it worked flawlessly. Super rugged and reliable. The Stainless Steel ball for a seat is a great idea.

Dynamo - Again great reg pending parts support. It is not always heard of but when you do hear of it, it is always good. It is the first piston reg I know of to be environmentally sealed without the use of grease. The adjustment free second stage with a second balance spring is a good idea too.

Sherwood - real nice reg, but not really in the same class as the other two mentioned. It is a medium performance first stage coupled with a second stage that while adjustable, is not balanced or super high performance. Dry inside, and easy to maintain though.

Hope this helps.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

Mainly considering for weight and jaw fatigue.

Divers seem to confuse weight with bouyancy when buying regs, and since they are divers they should know better.

The "lightweight, low profile regs prevent law fatigue" concept is the biggest lie in dive equipment marketing and was basically invented to convince us that moving to lighter plastic second stages was a good thing - it wasn't.

It's true a larger second stage is usually heavier, but it also displaces more water which is, compared to the plastic used in nearly all second stage cases, much heavier. This means a larger second stage may actually feel lighter under water as it has more bouyancy to offset the heavier metal bits in it, which weigh about the same regardless of external case size.

And in truth, it really does not matter. Hose lenght and mouthpiece design are much larger factors in jaw fatigue. A hose a few inches too long or too short will push or pull the second sage throughout the dive with a lot more force than a large "heavy" second stage. Similarly, a poorly designed mouthpiece requires you to actually clamp down on the mouthpiece to hold the reg in your mouth regardless of what it weighs.

So you need to totally rethink your selection criteria and focus on performance rather than size. It will get you a much better breathing regulator. Then once you own it, make sure it has a comfortable mouthpiece and make sure your hose is not pushing or pulling the reg one way or the other. If so, get a new hose to adjust the lenght accordingly.

 

[caringbah]

Oceanic Omega, I have 2. One on an Oceanic FDX 10, the other on a scubapro Mk10. I prefer the Omega to both the Poseiden Cyklon & Jetstream.

 

[Scuba Tech]

DA Aquamaster, great response, could not have put it any better my self!

Dont be fooled by small gimmiky regs a modern balanced 2nd stage is the size it is for good reason and are designed to be neutrally buoyant (well most of them!).
Stay away from Oceanic Omega and Zeta's the servo diaphragm tends to lag on inhalation and gets worse if not seviced often. The Maximus realy is not that much smaller then most other regs, Titan/S600 etc and has noware near the quality or performance.
Read DA's quote carfully, thats good advice.

 

[ZzzKing]

The "lightweight, low profile regs prevent law fatigue" concept is the biggest lie in dive equipment marketing and was basically invented to convince us that moving to lighter plastic second stages was a good thing - it wasn't.

Keep in mind this is from a guy named "Aquamaster" with a reg on his avatar that was buried with King Tut about 30 centuries ago. Hehehehehe...

 

[KrisB]

I have the Aqualung Micra ADJ, and have been quite pleased with it. Small and comfortable.

Some people complain about bubble interference, however I had a chance to dive with a Legend LX on my last trip, and I couldn't notice the difference as far as that was concerned.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

Bubble interference is another interesting marketing phenomenon. It used to be that you never heard complaints of bubble interference, but then the divers of the day had much larger masks and regs with larger exhaust tees (and that was even a step backward in non-bubble interference evolution that occurred after the earth cooled and double hose regs became extinct.)

Over the last decade or so however, low volume masks have been marketed as aggressively as low profile regulators. It is true that they are easier to clear and with proper design can offer wide fields of vision even with the relatively small window(s). However unlike the much larger wide vision masks of yester year, they do a very poor job of deflecting bubbles, particularly those emitted from very small exhaust tees.

A low volume mask is a real asset for a free diver who is much better off if he or she has to devote less air to equalizing the mask and has no ehxaust bubbles to worry about. But the benefits are not all that great for a scuba diver who has, comparatively speaking, unlimited air to clear/equalize the mask and also has exhaust bubbles to contend with.

In the past, masks were actually designed so that the bottom edge directed bubbles off to the side of the mask to ensure they did not interfere with the diver's vision. But at some point it became a triumph of smaller is better marketing over engineering and systems integration with the result that small second stages and their small exhaust tees were designed in isolation from the small low profile masks with the result that bubble interference is now perceived as a much larger problem - because it is.

But my sympathy for bubble interference suffering divers is limited because while the marketing types work hard to convince us that what they sell is really best for us, it is ultimately the customer that chooses style or fashion trendy items over substantive design and indirectly rewards the marketing pukes and the companies that hired them.

So...if you make an ignorant and uniformed choice, be prepared to live with the consequences.

The other factor with bubble interference is also one of perception. Bubbles just don't bother some people, while with other people you'd think it was the only thing they saw on the whole dive. Personally, I kinda like them, because they mean the regulator is still (or at least recently was) delivering gas.

 

[cbborromeo]

Wow, I've not read a more complete, accurate and direct response to a thread before. Props to you DA Aquamaster for the clarity and the education. I must admit I fell for the marketing of "low profile" mask and regulator for their packability as well as UW performance. I can say that without a doubt, I dive better because I am no longer fiddling with my gear while on a dive. As to the original post, I just dove with a guy in Turks & Caicos who swears by Poseidon regs. Purchase is subject to parts and service availability though.

 

[eng1ne1]

The original intent of this thread was to querry about some reg's I am looking at. I'm glad that you all are discussing the pro's and con's of light weight, low profile regs. DA Aquamaster, you stated "The "lightweight, low profile regs prevent law fatigue" concept is the biggest lie in dive equipment marketing and was basically invented to convince us that moving to lighter plastic second stages was a good thing - it wasn't." I don't necessarily agree... I am a person who needs a light weight reg due to prior TMJ, so I appreciate your input, however in my case you are incorrect. My doctor actually wanted me to get a full face mask similar to Interspiro's. We came to a compromise if I could find a light enough reg (in and out of the water). BTW I love my low volume mask.