XTX200 vs XTX50

[natal_nihilist]

What type of dives do you usually do? I try to explain why this question my be important

Xtx200 and xtx50 are excellent regulators for demanding dives, especially in cold water. Usually, in these conditions, you'd like to have redundancy, like double tanks (other options exist).

If you aren't diving in these conditions (or aren't planning to do so in the early future), the only reason I can imagine to buy these regulators vs. others is aesthetic... If this is the case, just go for the one you like

Yeah it’s only warm water dives for the foreseeable future, I did also look at the the XL4+ set but it was more expensive than the XTX200 set, plus I prefer black.

 

[natal_nihilist]

Not a good idea in Philippines because of hefty import duty.

The duty isn’t so bad, 1%, it’s the 12% VAT that will nail you. That is unless you can reclaim your VAT on the other end (19-22% in Europe ). Also Aqualung doesn’t allow retailers to ship outside of their region so in most cases it’s impossible. Also probably best to support your local dive shop and all that.

 

[ginti]

Yeah it’s only warm water dives for the foreseeable future, I did also look at the the XL4+ set but it was more expensive than the XTX200 set, plus I prefer black.

How deep? If you are doing just recreational diving, cheaper regulators will work as fine as high end ones... Just pick a cheaper black one from a major brand (possibly with a good technical and customer service in your area) and you are done

Edit: I don't mean to randomly pick a black cheap regulator... I mean to select one that fits your needs, which you probably can find among cheaper regs

 

[Pao]

Whitetip (Philippines official distributor) prices are actually reasonable, call them up before you buy online. Also check if they have stocks as they may give you a quote even for out of stock items. The 2nd hand market (via Facebook) is also good, just keep your wits about you as scammers are not unheard of.

 

[Wibble]

Whitetip (Philippines official distributor) prices are actually reasonable, call them up before you buy online. Also check if they have stocks as they may give you a quote even for out of stock items. The 2nd hand market (via Facebook) is also good, just keep your wits about you as scammers are not unheard of.

If buying second hand -- which is a really good thing to do! -- remember to factor in a full service for the regs.

Regs that have hung around for a while do degrade as O-rings fail and they can seize up.

 

[Open Ocean Diver]

I believe the XTX 200 has a micro adjuster, where the 50 doesn’t .

 

[Centrals]

I believe the XTX 200 has a micro adjuster, where the 50 doesn’t .

You have to decide if that makes any noticeable difference in performance.
I could not.

 

[Open Ocean Diver]

You have to decide if that makes any noticeable difference in performance.
I could not.

Maybe not but its sure easy to adjust with the Micro adjuster..

 

[Pao]

You have to decide if that makes any noticeable difference in performance.
I could not.

The micro adjuster is inside the cracking effort knob and separate from it. It allows the technician to adjust the cracking effort independent of the lever height. It is more for the technician allowing them to control WHEN (lever height) the 2nd stage starts to deliver gas and HOW HARD (cracking effort) it is to "trigger".

The cracking effort knob is used during operation to "detune" the 2nd stage as it is set by default to open very easily with little inhalation effort. I usually set mine on a "hair trigger" but this does make it prone to free flow. When swimming against current, the force of the water is enough to trigger the 2nd stage, this is when you turn the knob in/tighten it to reduce cracking effort. You might also want to do this when the reg is not in your mouth on the surface or when clipping off you primary off to prevent free flow but turning the venturi on and off is more convenient.

When the 2nd stage soft seat takes a "set" after service, there might be some leaking that occurs. You can tighten the cracking effort knob temporarily to stop this during the dive and later use the micro adjuster to compensate for it. If it does not work, then the soft seat is probably chewed up and you need to bring it in for service.

 

[GF99/99]

I believe the XTX 200 has a micro adjuster, where the 50 doesn’t .

XTX200 and XTX50 are the exact same second stages except for some cosmetic differences. The XTX50 also has a micro adjuster, as @Pao has explained.

If you want to get really technical the only difference between them is:
200 has a "chrome" purge button -- 50 has a black one
200 has a "chrome" front cover -- 50 has a black one
200 has a black inner cover --50 has a chrome one
200 has a XTX200 decal -- 50 has a XTX50 decal

Other than that every single part from the XTX200 and XTX50 are the exact same with the exact same Apeks part numbers.