Not to hijack the thread, if the OP
@Zebra 1 is unhappy hit report at the bottom of my post and I will remove it, but I feel like other folks looking for a first rebreather may find this thread so it could be helpful...
the best thing about the Se7en is the BOV.
Yeah the BOV is very good indeed. It's a remodelled XStream so it's a superlative regulator in and of itself, unlike many bolt-on BOV from many other manufacturers.
I understand Cis Lunar patented that process and Poseidon now owns it.
Correct, the cell validation process is, for me, the biggest reason to own a Poseidon. Nobody has yet died on one due to any cell issues of any kind, the 3 fatalities I am aware of were a recent(ish) Norwegian diver who left off an o-ring on the scrubber canister and had a CO2 hit a few minutes into the dive, and 2 others of folks completely untrained on the unit diving them, where they completely ignored the unit failing the predive checks (low gas, low battery) and dived it anyway until they ran out of O2 in one case and completely killed the battery in the other (not great on an eCCR). In both cases the units were screaming alarms at them but they chose to ignore them and paid the Dunning-Kruger price.
Every single rebreather I own (5 right now) is sold in its max configuration.
That is fair, personally when I started off I was only going to be diving recreationally on the unit, had no tech plans at all (sound familiar?) and so I could save a few grand. Later when I went to the dark side, I just added the bits I needed and off I went.
not two different batteries anymore? One for shallow water one for deep water?
Yes, there are still different batteries, but that is a slightly complex story. For the original certification as "Type-R" or recreational rebreather there needed to be a means for the unit to prevent divers from exceeding their cert limits. IIRC the older Megs had a PIN code you would enter to unlock deeper/mixed gas, or was that AP?
That led to the green "Rec" battery, which acts like a rec dive computer ie will bitch if you go deeper than 40m and / or deco, but will give you guidance on a safe deco ascent. The certifying agencies requested the same functionality at the various levels, which led to the yellow battery (40m, air dil, deco), the blue battery (48m light trimix), the white battery (60m normoxic) and the black battery ( no depth, any gas).
Users complained that when you upgraded you ended up with a bunch of "unusable" batteries, and after Poseidon got no support from the agencies who were the ones insisting on it, they removed the requirement for proving certifications when purchasing batteries. Thus, if you only ever want to dive recreationally, you can buy a (cheaper) green battery with your unit, if you think you might end up going all the way to Mod3, then buy the unit with a black battery. No harm no foul.
It's $11k all in on DGX right now which is $1500 more than the comparable O2ptima. Not cheap, but has the solid state sensor which is the price jump.
Ok, the SSS make a big difference. A Seven in full tech mode with paddle and galvanic sensors is 7500 USD. That is pretty close to Optima spec. The SSS are around 700 USD each, however they add up once you look at the replacement costs of galvanic sensors. If you have a 3 cell CCR, then you are paying around 250$ a year to replace sensors, over 10 years that is 1000 more than buying 2 SSS now. Of course that is upfront cost, but I believe that will increase the relative resale value of the units.
that 10 years is when the sensor factory says they will need recalibration. Right now there are no sensors that have reached that mark yet, however Poseidon are building a recalibration rig for service techs to be able to recalibrate cells at services, will be a year or two before that is out but we may see significantly longer cell lifetimes.
As a side note, Poseidon are selling SSS machines to military buyers faster than they can keep up. These are (mostly) adapters that allow the clients to use their existing O2 rebreathers as eCCR with very few mods. They are selling hundreds of these units, its a main part of why the SSS aren't available for individual purchase yet.
lol, I sell Kiss, all in, they are THOUSANDS cheaper
Peter, that's a little disingenuous. mCCR are always going to be cheaper than a full-tilt eCCR. Apples with apples, the Poseidon is not significantly more expensive than any comparable unit out there, especially once you start factoring in the sensor costs and other "extras" that need to be purchased with many other units.
SE7EN+ TEC Package US is a good place to have a look. Bear in mind that prices include 20% VAT, which does not apply to US customers. The "Rec" vs "Tec" labels on the units are an indication of the target market, any of the units can be upgraded to full spec, it is just an indication of what comes in the box. the "Sport" units are also fully Tec-capable, they just don't come with the cover and they are in low-frills packaging.