What's the best reg for me?

[halocline]

If you're going to the caribbean side of Mexico, like Cozumel, for 6 weeks, I'd consider getting another Mares reg. The Abyss is one many experienced divers swear by. I personally have never used one, so I don't know about them. The reason I would recommend it is because I know that Mares regs are very common on Cozumel; there's a distributor on the island I believe, and a DM told me they're very easy to get serviced there, unlike my SP regs.

I have a feeling something is wrong with your reg to give you the impression that it's not responding to your air demand accurately. All 2nd stages, balanced and unbalanced, are designed to give you the air you want, not any more. In both cases, the spring counter-acts against air pressure from the 1st stage at whatever the IP is. The difference is that balanced regs divert some air into a balance chamber, so that it "pushes back" along with the spring to keep the valve closed until you inhale. So, the spring itself is lighter, but the end result is that you're still opening the valve against the IP. Does this make sense? With a good solid IP, and proper adjustment of the 2nd stage, the difference between otherwise identical 2nd stages that are balanced or unbalanced is very subtle. For example, if you had a G200 and a G200B(balanced) both adjusted well on the same 1st stage, you might tell a difference but it would be subtle.

What you're describing kind of sounds like an over-active venturi assist.

 

[weaserm99]

I have a feeling the reason he wants a new reg is that with unbalance first stages the regulator becomes harder to breathe at depth and harder to breathe as the tank gets lower. Also Aqualung has and Auto Closure Device, similar to the Oceanic in the fact that it helps keep water out when disconnected from the tank, i use to dive the Aqualung Legend and i absolutely thought the design was terrible. I Work for a shop that sells both Oceanic and Aqualung, when it comes to servicing the regulator the Oceanic is much easier and a much more simpler DVT.

 

[mempilot]

Weaser,

Just curious. You think an Oceanic is easier to overhaul than an Aqualung Legend?? The 1st literally takes like 10 minutes if it doesn't need cleaned.

 

[fppf]

I would also go with the Delta 4
My wife and I have dove the Delta 4 from Ice diving, to the tropics, down to 130 feet at 37 degrees in lake Erie. They have never missed a breath. No free flows, no issues. We set docks in the Niagara River at 45 degrees draging chains around and breathing like a freight train with no free flows. Even tried to free flow the reg and could not get it to free flow.

 

[buza831]

This is what I have discovered...
The amount of energy your regulator requires to move each liter of air is called work of breathing (WOB). Lower work of breathing means lower effort required to breathe and increased comfort and safety during a dive.
The spring force must be just enough to overcome the difference between downstream air pressure and upstream balance chamber pressure.
The downstream air travels through a hole in the poppet into the balance chamber and applies an "upstream" force just slightly less than the downstream force.
The size and force of the spring is considerably less than that used in a standard demand valve, leading to less effort required by the diver to open the valve and initiate air flow.
The only problem with the pneumatic systems is that they deliver pretty much the same air at depth as in shallow dives therefore you can breathe up to 50% more air with a pneumatically balanced system.

The Delta 4 has diaphrams made of polycarbonate not steel, and I've heard the second stage is a bit noisy and gets a bit wet when inverted. Other than that I think it would be a great choice, besides Weaserm99 is a divemaster and he likes them.

 

[Jimmer]

Well, what I have stated was a brief understanding of what I was being told by the sales people. It does not slowly leak in air. It just makes it easier to breathe in. The pneumatic second stage thing makes the reg release a certain amount of air whether you breathe shallowly or deeply. Pretty much, it forces you to breathe the way it wants you to.





The reason I targeted the Atomic reg was because that is the reg I was told about that did not have this feature. It was a Dive Master who said he accidently dunked his T2 and had to have it repaired. Oh and this dive shop I was at sold Atomic regs but not Oceanic so that was an honest opinion.

The Aeris doesn't force you to breathe in any specific manner. It's just an easy breathing adjustable regulator, nothing more. It has the same features, ie. adjustment knob and venturi switch, that most high end regs from every manufacturer have.

Any reg that gets flooded is going to need some attention, regardless of who made it. The Oceanic/Aeris DVT system may or may not help. I don't feel it's the be all and end all of regs but I'm sure it helps some people. In fact I would expect the Atomic to be very resistant to flood, partially because it is a piston, and partially because it's Titanium which is extremely corrosion resistant.

 

[anzac65]

My vote would be the Apeks DS4/XTX...... As for brand name, the Apeks/Aqualung connection makes the Legend a great reg as well.....

Sorry, but what is the connection between Apeks and Aqualung please ? You lost me on that one.

 

[keyshunter]

Sorry, but what is the connection between Apeks and Aqualung please ? You lost me on that one.

Both companies are under the same corporate umbrella. Both make excellent regulators. It has been rumored that they share engineering. Logical, perhaps, but I have not seen an actual statement to that effect.

 

[anzac65]

Both companies are under the same corporate umbrella. Both make excellent regulators. It has been rumored that they share engineering. Logical, perhaps, but I have not seen an actual statement to that effect.

Thanks for your reply, but I don't think so. Apeks is Apeks. Aqualung are just the (US) distributor, just like they are for Suunto. (I think !!!!!!). Feel free to correct me.

 

[Couv]

Shallow dives I do will be around 60 feet (18.3 meters) and the deep dives will be around 100 feet (30.5 meters).

What I mean by not pneumatic is a part in the second stage. I'm not entirely sure what it is called ....snip

Hello again Buzo,

Through no fault of your own you have been misinformed about the basic functioning of regulator 1st and 2nd stages. Rather than attempt to explain it all here, I will provide a couple of links to post that others have made. These post articulate very well some common questions and answers about: diaphragm vs. piston, balanced vs. unbalanced etc. Please know that most of these post are made by know legible people who have no interest in selling you a regulator. I can highly recommend the post of (in no particular order) Awap, DA Aquamaster, Captain, Pescador775 and Luis H …there are lots of others but that will keep you busy for a while. Find any post by one of these gurus and click on their name, then select "find more post" or use the advaced search feature.

After you have made your way through some of this information you will be far better equipped when you go back in search for a regulator that fits your needs. Before I send you off with out doing any contributions of my own, I will paste my standard advice for buying a regulator for basic recreational diving and follow with links to useful post.

c
........
One should buy a regulator brand that has a good track record for keeping parts available for each model. Of course unless you intend to DIY, you also want a regulator that can be serviced by your local dive shop and lots of locations in the world. The two best companies in both regards are Aqualung and Scubapro.

My recommendation for the average recreational diver, i.e. not freezing water, 150 feet or less, is a simple non balanced piston 1st stage such as the Scuba Pro MK 2 (or Aqualung Calypso, Mares R2, Sherwood Brut and a few others.) This simple design is usually inexpensive, nearly bullet proof, easy to get parts for and easy and inexpensive to service. It is also easy to DIY because it requires only a few o-rings and a seat. Yes, the unbalanced design will increase the breathing effort at low tank pressure, but I view this as a good thing especially for new or inexperienced divers. See this thread: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/regulators/87374-scuba-pro-r190-2.html Additionally, if/when one wants to start more advanced diving where high concentrations of oxygen will be used this type regulator can be moved to that application.

For a second stage I like an adjustable and balanced unit. This provides the ability to have the regulator tuned to minimum inhalation resistance with the option of the diver increasing the resistance it if he/she finds the need to. Having said that, a straight forward classic downstream design with a simple to replace set of o-rings and button soft seat can be highly recommended as it is a tried and true design, parts are usually available and almost anyone can service them.

It is a good idea to have the same manufactures 1st and 2nd stage to make getting service less complicated.

For more demanding diving and high end/higher performance (higher price) regulators see the following link for DA's excellent advice.
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/regulators/181745-advice-regulators.html

...............................
helpful link:

Regulators
1st Stage
Balanced/non-balanced/piston/diaphragm
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/regulators/197974-diaphram-vs-piston-regs.html <http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/regulators/197974-diaphram-vs-piston-regs.html>

2nd Stage balanced threads
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/regulators/206355-pneumatically-balanced-2nd-really-true.html <http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/regulators/206355-pneumatically-balanced-2nd-really-true.html>