Ultralight vs. Beneath the Surface

[rickthompson]

I have a Canon S100 with Ikelite UltraCompact housing and a Sea and Sea YS-02 and am looking for tray/arm. B&H seems to carry a ton of Beneath the Surface, so that's where I started my search for arms/trays but I've heard a lot of good things about Ultralight. Coincidentally, you can get the same thing (below) from B&H in Beneath the Surface as you can from Backscatter in Ultralight:

Compatible tray
Handle with ball mount
8" double ball arm
5" single ball arm with sea and sea mount
2 standard clamps

Same thing, different brands, different vendors, both $255.07. How strange is that. Does anyone have any opinions?

[muzikbiz22]

ULCS is the "tried n true standard" , and they hold up very well. I own several arms and clamps, use them almost every weekend, and travel frequently. Have never had any issues. While I have no experience with "Beneath The Sea" products, they seem to have some great solutions and colorful products. Both companies are based here in Southern California.

[Jak Crow]

The whole ultralight standard, regardless of brand, with a few exceptions, are usually around the same price. optical ocean sales has several inexpensive arm pieces. I bought most of my current kit from them and I highly recommend them.

[BluewaterPhoto]

The whole ultralight standard, regardless of brand, with a few exceptions, are usually around the same price.

There is no "ultralight standard" that I have ever heard of, Ultralight is a brand, also known as ULCS. In my opinion they are the "gold standard" in terms of quality, their product is top notch. I am huge fan of their products. - Scott

[derway]

If you are not diving every weekend, or even every month, cheaper arms may be a better solution. The ikelite arms are a bit cheaper, and flex arms might be good for small strobes, shooting macro and fish portraits.