whats the difference

[nelsondejesus]

Here in our side of the world, the preferred brands are apeks and scubapro for their relative ease in breathing and most of the LDS here can service such brands. Been using apeks xtx 200 regulators but recently bought an atomics T2X and now prefers to use the latter more often than the other.

 

[miketsp]

The best brand of regulator is the one that you can easily get serviced where you live.

In terms of performance there isn't actually much difference between any of the major brands and, as others have commented, practically all users end up saying that the brand that they bought is the best.

For a couple of years I dove with a really cheap Taiwan clone (supposedly an OEM for some major regulator brands) and its performance was as good as anything else I've used. I only stopped using it because I was offered some top end regs at good prices and they're easier to find support for when I'm in some far away place.