The BCD is the AquaLung Pro LT, the regulator is the Titan, and the computer is the Zoop (as discussed). The only thing I'm not wild about is the Octo, which is the ABS Octo from AquaLung. It's got mixed reviews from the a few places I could find on-line, with the issue being a free-flow problem. My dive shop will allow me to trade that out for the Airsource 3 at no extra charge, but I'm not wild about the idea of a low pressure inflator being mixed in with my Octo. Seems like too much for a newbie. The dive shop ad specifically mentioned being able to switch out a piece of gear if I'm looking for something in particular, so I'm thinking I might just cough up an extra hundred to make sure I've got an Octo I feel good about.
Pricing out individual components, the cheapest I was able to find the deal for was about $350 more for the package, so I'm strongly considering it after I do a little more research on comparable packages, but the main thing I wanted to make sure of was the computer, so thanks to everyone that responded.
BCD: The Aqualung Pro LT is a simple, weight-integrated jacket BCD design. Personally, I like the SureLoc weight pockets. The mechanism emits an audible/tactile click when the pockets are securely loaded into the slot. I have never heard of the mechanism failing and causing inadvertent ditching. With the regular power inflater, the BCD would be a very robust piece of dive gear. You'd probably get sick of it before it "died."
Reg: The Titan design (simple downstream 2nd stage) is very reliable. It's been around for decades. There's a reason that many dive shops use Titans for their rental regs. Simple, robust, easy to service, and should last a long, long time. You might want to consider upgrading the second stage to the Titan LX (which is identical to the low-end Legend 2nd stage). The Titan LX and Legend both feature a balanced poppet design. Another thing to consider is upgrading the first stage with the cold/environmental sealing kit, which is nice for cold/silty water conditions.
Octo: I purchased the ABS octo when I bought my first reg set. It doesn't breathe great. I ended up replacing it with the Legend octo. I'd recommend getting another Titan LX 2nd stage to use as an octo...or the Legend octo (which is exactly the same as the Titan LX, except for cosmetics). I'd also recommend against the Airsource 3. I don't really like the idea of doing air-sharing ascents with a power inflater/alternative air source combo. It's certainly
possible to perform air-sharing ascents safely with that setup, but it demands more practice IMO. I suspect that not all divers with this setup practice air-sharing ascents enough. That's just how I feel about it. FYI, I'm an average OW recreational diver, so take my opinion for what it's worth.
A common ScubaBoard recommendation for budget-conscious divers looking to purchase a first set of gear is to try out a BP/W setup and consider the HOG regs (two 2nd stages + 1 first stage) along with a simple brass-and-glass SPG. You really ought to try out a rear-inflate BCD and BP/W
prior to purchasing a conventional jacket BCD. The HOG regs can be overhauled and tuned by any competent reg tech that overhauls/services the Aqualung Legend or any Apeks regs. There are advantages and disadvantages to all of these setups.
So you can see that, as with any package, the one you've been offered has some desirable and not-so-desirable elements. No doubt that you're getting a nice discount relative to MSRP, but you need to ask yourself whether it's the gear you
want. Bear in mind that, as an active diver, you'll likely be putting several hundred dives on the gear.
Hope this info helps...
