Mixing Brands

[Ron Brandt]

As someone stated ,Mares is at the upper end.

Although I no longer use it ,I would look into Sherwood.They have some really nice stuff at reasionable prices.

Check out Ebay.I got a really good deal on a spare drysuit last year.

Ask your LDS for used gear.

I do own some Scuba Pro stuff but prefer Oceanic Regs (own 6)
and computers.All are affordable.

Stick to tables and watch until you have some dives in and learn how they work.

Ron

 

[Knavey]

I don't believe I have ANYTHING that matches...except my BC and octo+. They are both Zeagle.

Sherwood Regulator

Zeagle BC and octo+.

Scubapro wetsuit

Mask and fins...don't recall right off the top of my head.

Now...my wifes setup and mine are pretty much the same for the BC and regs...

Shop around...use the stuff if you can. Different people like different things. The same manufacturer for everything may not be the best way to go.

 

[Scuba13]

So, is Mares good or bad? I really like the Mares Vector Origin BCD, and Tusa reg, octo, and gauges.

 

[ouachita]

You are going to get several recommendations on which is best, but truthfully most of the brand names are good. I have a mares reg that I love, and my wife has an atomics that she loves. To me they both seem about the same. Buy the best reg you can afford. And the guys above are right, start out with gauges. Put that computer money into your regs and bc.

About bc's, don't trust your lds or the magazine reviews. Try a few before you buy one. The best bc you can buy is the one that fits you the best. Any lds you go to will push whatever brand they sell, whether it is any good or not.

But to answer your last question, mares is fine, but if you can afford it you might look at a little better bc and try a few different brands.

Just don't buy before you try it out!

Good luck and good diving.

 

[fins wake]

So, is Mares good or bad?

Like almost all recreational scuba gear today, Mares is good. Certainly not bottom of the barrel.

I have a Mares BCD which I still use for single tank diving, it does the job it has to do very well and is excellent for its purpose. I've also liked many of the Mares regs I've tried in my earlier diving days (although I use Apeks nowadays), and Mares fins are well-known quality too (although I almost exclusively use Jetfins today).

Then again, other manufacturers such as Aqualung or Scubapro are also excellent. The difference between most brands today is quite artificial, as many modern reviews will bear witness to.

Be weary of "brand X is better than brand Y" generalizations, they're just personal opinions anyway.

Try the gear yourself and find out what you like. But there's no need to have all your scuba gear from one manufacturer, that is rather unusual. Then again, if you like it that way, why not.

 

[perpet1]

Sydney_Diver once bubbled...


Umm do you want to elaborate on why Mares gear is bottom of the barrel? IMHO Mares is more towards the top of the pile....

If you are on tight budget look at decent second hand scuba equipment. All it will need is a good service and will cost you much much less than new kit.

It was quite obvious that the post you are questioning was out of the park. I mean to list Rive Rite (although excelent equipment) in this thread, as he did, obviously misses the point. If you want to include all tech gear as options then, yes, most of the gear we are talking about is bottom of the pile.

BUT generally most recreational equipment is made to acceptable standards and Mares is safe equipment that will perform the function that you need.

 

[Zagnut]

..are top quality as are the V16 epos regs. Definately not the bottom of the pile.

Would I buy a HUB BC?...No. Probably not. Would I buy a V16 epos reg? Yes. I did and I think it's a great reg at a good price.

The Abyss regs (other than being kinda heavy in your mouth) are as good as any on the market.

 

[dc4bs]

I'd say Mares is prety good equipment from my experience with it.

I used to have a Mares v12/2nd/octo/console setup.

I traded everything in but the console for credit on buying an Apecs ATX100 setup with 2 atx100 2nds with no 'octo' as I decided I don't like them.

The ONLY reason I traded it in at the time was because the news that titanium was no good for nitrox came out... (I was about to get certified for nitrox) The v12 had a titanium core... Oh well.

The LDS owner had sold it to me based on the fact that I would use it through nitrox training at a later date. He was good enough to give me full purchase price credit towords upgrading to the new Apecs regs and my old reg is still one of the shop rental regs today (for air diving only). As far as I know, it's still in good shape.

I still use the Mares console on my recreational setup. Good, solid equipment. Never had a single bit of trouble with the console in about 5 years of diving.

 

[ElectricZombie]

Scuba13 once bubbled...
My LDS makes it seem liek you NEED a computer.

Then your LDS does not have a clue. They are trying to get more money out of you. You never *NEED* a computer. Dive tables and a waterproof timer of some sort is all you need.

Take the money you would have spent on a computer and buy better gear with it. Check out Halcyon BCs and ScubaPro regs...they are great.

 

[Chromis]

Low and High pressure connections are standard on all modern scuba equipment therefore you can mix and match all you like. Concerning a computer, I'd suggest you get a Wrist mounted one (Suunto Mosquito is good entry level model)and have your analogue gauges (air/depth) attached in a consol to the high pressure port. It is a good, safe diving practice to have an analogue back up in case the computer fails.
(ps: I agree, Mares does make good gear but nasty computers.