New and confused

[Haiku]

I'm recently certified and want to begin my equipment purchase with a regulator.
I have until July 31 for the free alternate with Aqualung and Apeks.
I am deciding between the Apeks XTX50, Apeks XTX200, and Legend LX ACD which the LDS stocks, or special ordering the XTX100 through the LDS.
My LDS says that the 200 and Legend breath better than the 50.
The service guy says he likes the ACD feature on the Legend because it protects the system better. My gut feeling is that Apeks are better made and look better, but the ACD is a better protected system.

Should I get the Legend because of the ACD feature?
If the ACD is not a consideration, is the FST first stage definitely better that the DSR first stage of the 50?
Does the swivel of the 50 actually reduce airflow?
Will I really be able to breath better with one regulator over the other?

I really appreciate any advice. Thanks!

 

[Atticus]

I'm recently certified and want to begin my equipment purchase with a regulator.
I have until July 31 for the free alternate with Aqualung and Apeks.
I am deciding between the Apeks XTX50, Apeks XTX200, and Legend LX ACD which the LDS stocks, or special ordering the XTX100 through the LDS.
My LDS says that the 200 and Legend breath better than the 50.
The service guy says he likes the ACD feature on the Legend because it protects the system better. My gut feeling is that Apeks are better made and look better, but the ACD is a better protected system.

Should I get the Legend because of the ACD feature?
If the ACD is not a consideration, is the FST first stage definitely better that the DSR first stage of the 50?
Does the swivel of the 50 actually reduce airflow?
Will I really be able to breath better with one regulator over the other?

I really appreciate any advice. Thanks!

Hello Haiku,

I doubt you will notice any difficulty with any of the above regulators. They all test extremely well. I own an Apeks DST first stage, several ATX200's, and several DS4's. I do not notice any difference in breathing resistance between the DST (swivel), ATX50, and the ATX200.

Oh, and I frequently dive in the 200' range with these regulators.

 

[Lead_carrier]

Go with the ATX50. Extremely sweet reg. I have the ATX100 and have never had a problem with it but I'd prefer the 50 with the swivel.

 

[Rafael]

I have the Legend LX, and i love it, is a very nice cold water reg.

 

[Meng_Tze]

I doubt you will notice any difficulty with any of the above regulators. They all test extremely well. I own an Apeks DST first stage, several ATX200's, and several DS4's. I do not notice any difference in breathing resistance between the DST (swivel), ATX50, and the ATX200.

Ditto for the Apeks......there is no difference in breathing between DST/DS4's nor the ATX40/50/200.... all the same. The only difference is size on the ATX50/200 and the addition of a swivel on the DST.

But any of the mentioned regs are very good. In light of that, go with the cheapest option out of these and save money for other things.

 

[Haiku]

Any thoughts on the ACD (autoclosure device)?

 

[Stormbringer]

Any thoughts on the ACD (autoclosure device)?

The ACD is totally unnecessary...just use the dust cap...its what its there for. It offers no performance advantage whatsoever and while it may sound cool its just another marketing gimick. All mechanical devices, including valves can fail. I don't like the idea of introducing another point of failure in a piece of life support equipment that offers no performance advantage.

 

[UWupnorth]

If you plan to dive doubles in your future I would go with the DS4. I use them with my doubles and my older DST on my stage bottle.

 

[jbichsel]

I have two Legend LX (pre ACD) and a Titan Micra ADJ, so there's my bias.

You will not be disappointed with any of the regs you listed. I don't believe you would notice any perceptible difference in breathing ease unless maybe you were beyond recreational scuba depth, under stress and had another diver sharing air. Probably never going to happen.

ACD - While kind of an interesting idea, my opinion is it's not worth the addition of another thing that can go wrong. I kind of like the K.I.S.S. line, especially when it comes to getting me air to breathe. Like Stormbringer said, it's a mechanical device and another point of failure.

Simple care of blowing off the dust cap and ensuring no moisture gets in the orifice has worked for millions of divers for decades.

If I were buying another high performance reg right now, I would probably pass on the ACD, even though I think the Legend is one of the best regs available. I would probably opt for the XTX200 or XTX100 for my diving, but the XTX50 is great also. Any of the Apeks line or even the Aqualung Titan are also great regs.

As to the ease of breathing differential, I doubt most divers would sense the difference, especially new divers. No offense intended, just much more experience needed.