Aeris A1 and Mares Brigade Viper package?

Hi all - I'm thinking about getting the following package from Scubatoys.com:
http://www.scubatoys.com/store/Scuba_Package_Reg.asp
"One Hell of a Deal Aeris Package: Aeris A1 Regulator combined with a Mares Brigade Viper Octo. "

Does anyone have any experience with the Aeris A1 or the Mares Brigade Viper? I see that the Aeris A1 has an unbalanced piston first stage. Am I going to notice that the breathing gets harder as I suck the tank close to 500 psi? Any similar priced alternatives anyone recommends?

Thanks, trig

I answered this yesterday but I noticed today my reply did'nt show up. :huh:

Anyway, I have an A1 and I like it allot. It breathes really good and I like the simplicity of it. I've breathed mine down to 500 psi a couple of times and I did'nt really notice it breathing any harder at all.

In fact I also bought a Oceanic Delta3/DX4 recently and I actually prefer the A1 over the Oceanic so my backup regulator is the more expensive of the two.

The Aeris A1 Regulator actually meets the requirements of a US NAVY Class A regulator.

Thanks for the info guys! I posted a similar question in the Aeris forum and I sent an e-mail to Aeris through their website a few days ago and have not received any response. That surprises me.

trigfunctions:

Thanks for the info guys! I posted a similar question in the Aeris forum and I sent an e-mail to Aeris through their website a few days ago and have not received any response. That surprises me.

Click to expand...

Dang! Sorry, I didn't see the post on the Aeris forum. I'm not sure however why you didn't get an answer to your email. I will investigate.

Best,

Chris

I have an Aeris A1 that I bought a couple months ago. I've used it on about 15 dives so far, up to 72 feet. For as inexpensive as it is, it's a pretty good regulator. I sometimes have a little trouble with it honking for the first few minutes of a dive, but it usually goes away pretty quick. It's not nearly as "low-profile" or small as I was expecting. I haven't noticed it getting hard to breathe off of as the tank gets low on pressure, and I've taken my tanks down to ~200 psi on spring dives. I'm going to Paradise Spring tomorrow and we'll see how well it does at 100 feet. But so far I am happy with it and would purchase it again.

As for the Mares Brigade Octo, it's the same thing as the Dacor Viper Octo. It's cool looking, and that's about it. Originally I was going to get a Viper Tec America reg, but after owning the octo version, I am really happy I have the A1 instead. It breathes terrible -- it like inflates your lungs for you, pushing on your diaphragm. It also breathes really wet in all positions too! But for an octo, I think it's fine. Plus its got a good swivel and you can put it in upside down with no consequence.

Update on the A1 at 100 feet.

No problems. Didn't breathe silky smooth, but definitely not bad. Was not uncomfortable in any way. Gets the CF stamp of approval, whatever that's worth.

Thanks for the info CrazyFingers!

I have the Mares Octo and, if you ever wanted to use it for non-emergency, I think it sucks. If your plan is just to use it for a back up, as most octos are, it's fine. Not great, but fine.