Ways to reduce bubble noise?

[mikemath]

Maybe I'm alone in this, but I find the motion and noise of my bubbles irritating, to the point that when I want to focus on something (like getting a good photo), I tend to do it during a slow inhalation to avoid having the sound distract me. I also find that releasing bubbles close to a photo subject startles it more than with this method. This has the unfortunate side effect that if it takes longer than I expect to get the shot, my buoyancy goes a bit positive, and the shot becomes more difficult.

I dive for fun withing recreational limits and photography is a nice bonus but not the only reason I dive. I feel like a rebreather is total overkill, but the sweet, sweet silence sounds so nice. I like the idea of the old-style double-house regulators that exhaust bubbles near the tank valve, but am assuming there's a reason they've been completely replaced by single-hose regulators. I've seen some regulators with offset exhausts, either far to the side or further below the mouthpiece but don't know if they actually work to improve noise or bubble position. Earplugs (if they work underwater) might reduce the noise, but also make it harder to hear a signal from a buddy or the boat, and the bubbles would still startle fish and I'd feel the motion on my face.

What's a quiet-lover to do?

 

[NorthWoodsDiver]

Your probably best off with this (or similar item by another company):

Ambient Pressure Diving Ltd.

appropriately sold in the US through Silent Diving Inc.

 

[fdog]

First, I'd try a thick, well-sealed hood. Otter Bay has one that's custom made, fits like a glove, and is thick enough my buddies have to yell at me on the surface so I can hear them.

Failing that, next, modify the reg you have. I dive with Atomic regulators, and found that replacing the stock exhaust tee, with the super-wide tee from the Atomic M1 (easy to do; 20 dollars and 20 seconds) made a big impact in my perceived noise.

Then, the next step is to try a double hose. I can attest this is a lot less perceived noise than a single hose.

If you want to try this, sniff around for a Aqualung Mistral. It didn't quite do what Aqualung wanted, so sales suffered. <shrugs> I didn't find it that bad and won't give up mine. However there's lots of Mistrals available used for cheap, and a hundred dollars isn't that bad to try it out, which is less than an old, fully- restored double hose would cost.

<This is where the classic equipment divers will chime in to tell you how great their old regs are>

If none of these work well enough, you are stuck with a RB, but odds are that one of the above will help "enough".


All the best, James

 

[Scott L]

Your probably best off with this (or similar item by another company):

Ambient Pressure Diving Ltd.

appropriately sold in the US through Silent Diving Inc.

I do beleive he expressely excluded rebreathers...

 

[mikeyjoe]

I have a servo reg with a side exhaust - Oceanic Omega II. Great reg BTW.

The side exhaust does re-direct the bubbles away from your face, but does not reduce the noise.

Rebreather, or not breathing, are your only options to completely eliminate your isses - I'd go with the former.....

I don't think ear plugs are the way to go, IMHO. I know they have ones for diving, I'm just not convinced they are a good idea.

 

[rstofer]

Why do you dismiss the idea of double hose regulators? A lot of photographers use them.

There is a nicely rebuilt (ie ready to dive) DA AquaMaster at VintageDoubleHose:
Pico Boulevard DA Aqua-Master [PICO DA] - $400.00 : Vintage Double Hose!, Your online source for all things related to vintage diving

There is a Vintage forum here on ScubaBoard and those folks have a lot of information.

Were it me, I would get the DA AM and see if VDH has the parts to install a Phoenix nozzle. The nozzle replaces the inlet to the regulator and you wind up with a balanced regulator (the DA AM is unbalanced) with ports for octo, SPG, inflator, etc. I just had this done to my DA AM and it works great. Yes, I actually dive the thing at Monterey and I use an Oceanic Omega II as an octo.

The premier regulator would be the Royal AquaMaster because it is already a balanced reg. You can find them on eBay but you should still send them to VDH for rebuild.

Of course, if you want simplicity, you would look at the DW Mistral. It is a single stage regulator with only one moving part. It is a little more noisy with the 'wooshing' in the hoses. This was the regulator of choice for Jacques Cousteau down to about 300'. See US Divers Two Hose Regulator Labels There is no intermediate pressure so an octo and inflator are problematic. There is a banjo fitting that sandwiches between the tank and reg to provide for an SPG.

My Phoenix conversion (known as a PRAM - Phoenix Royal Aquamaster (Royal because it is now balanced)) breathes quite well. Probably not as good as the very best single hose regs but good enough that I plan to use it as my main regulator. Just because...

Richard

 

[herman]

First, I'd try a thick, well-sealed hood. Otter Bay has one that's custom made, fits like a glove, and is thick enough my buddies have to yell at me on the surface so I can hear them.

Failing that, next, modify the reg you have. I dive with Atomic regulators, and found that replacing the stock exhaust tee, with the super-wide tee from the Atomic M1 (easy to do; 20 dollars and 20 seconds) made a big impact in my perceived noise.

Then, the next step is to try a double hose. I can attest this is a lot less perceived noise than a single hose.

If you want to try this, sniff around for a Aqualung Mistral. It didn't quite do what Aqualung wanted, so sales suffered. <shrugs> I didn't find it that bad and won't give up mine. However there's lots of Mistrals available used for cheap, and a hundred dollars isn't that bad to try it out, which is less than an old, fully- restored double hose would cost.

<This is where the classic equipment divers will chime in to tell you how great their old regs are>

If none of these work well enough, you are stuck with a RB, but odds are that one of the above will help "enough".


All the best, James

The NEW Mistral failed because it was a cobbeled together from available parts and had major design flaws. Had AL stuck to it's USD roots and revived one of the old designs they would have sold.

Mike, the old DHs dive different than modern regs, always have and any DH reg always will, they are not for everyone. I don't find them that much quiter than modern regs but I do like not having the bubbles around my head. I do find fish do not seem as afraid of me when diving one. They take some getting use to and require a little different diving technique. There are plenty of us around who can help you if you would like to give them a try.

 

[mikemath]

First, I'd try a thick, well-sealed hood. Otter Bay has one that's custom made, fits like a glove, and is thick enough my buddies have to yell at me on the surface so I can hear them.

Cool, I want to get a custom Otter Bay hood anyway to help students identify me (I'm a DM candidate planning on going the instructor route). One more reason to bump that up the equipment priority list.

Failing that, next, modify the reg you have. I dive with Atomic regulators, and found that replacing the stock exhaust tee, with the super-wide tee from the Atomic M1 (easy to do; 20 dollars and 20 seconds) made a big impact in my perceived noise.

I use a Zeagle as my primary right now, and it doesn't look like they sell other exhaust options. I'll try the hood first and if I feel adventurous (and willing to buy a new regulator in the worst case), maybe I'll try a DIY project to expand and extend the exhaust ports. The ones on the M1 look like they'd make a big difference without really getting in the way.

Thanks for the tips!

 

[mikemath]

I do beleive he expressely excluded rebreathers...

For the moment, yes. If I find myself suddenly independently wealthy, I'd definitely look into it.

 

[halocline]

Go double hose, you won't regret it. Well, maybe the money part....nah!

Actually I saw what looked like a round label royal on ebay recently sell for about $175, the hoses looked good, I think it had the band clamp, so add a rebuild kit, maybe a hookah port adapter, banjo, and a new diaphragm and you're in business for somewhere close to $300. That's unusually low for a royal, though. The no-fuss way to go is the phoenix nozzle, and that's pretty tough to get under $400. The nozzle is $180, figure at least $100 for a used DA then all the rebuild stuff, new hoses, etc...and it adds up.

But, it's still less than many people spend on a new reg, it will solve your bubble problem, and opens up a whole new side of diving.