Buying full setup / Thoughts?

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If you plan to travel with your gear, specifically your reg set then you should consider servicability on the road. Given the current state of affairs with Aqualung, I would not recommend dropping coin on their regulators despite them being good equipment and nearly worldwide serviceability...the next in line with worldwide recognition/serviceability would be Scubapro followed by Mares. While I like Mares for their simplicity, I think you would do well to scope out Scubapro....I don't think you will have any issues finding a shop overseas (Europe, South America, Asia) to service Scubapro regulators, whereas Atomic and Zeagle may be hit or miss.

For drysuit, I would recommend having a wrist cuff ring system installed as OEM instead of waiting...this will give you the option to run either latex or silicone seals, and will afford you the option to add a dryglove system later. I am partial to the Si-Tech QCS oval wrist ring system. In particular, the QCS oval rings give one the most choices for dryglove systems down the road. The other recommendation would be Kubi, but one can only couple the Kubi glove rings with the Kubi cuff side rings.

While you have probably seen loads of discussions about back plates, you will find once you have one, that it is just a bent slap of metal that you strap a tank to and sling on your back....They all pretty much work the same and more expensive ones don't really offer anything over an inexpensive one in the water. I would not hesitate to purchase a DGX bp/w package, especially if you are going with a one-piece webbing harness (hogarthian style)...if you want something adjustable then I would recommend looking at the Sub-Gravity Paragon adjustable harness. In fact, I am considering converting my wife's harness to the Paragon, by cutting her existing one-piece webbing harness and adding similar adjustable metal buckles sourced from Piranhadivemfg.com at nearly half the price compared to the individual hardware pieces sold by Sub-Gravity....but Sub-Gravity makes very nice equipment (my wife and one of my duaghters each have Sub-Gravity small plates).

Also, opinions on drysuits with regard to material type abound (crushed neoprene vs Trilaminate)....both are good. In my eyes the benefit of the neoprene is that one does not need as thick of an undergarment as the neoprene provides some thermal protection, but if you find yourself prefering to dive with a drysuit and the water temp does not necessecitate much thermal protection, a benefit of a trilaminate suite is that one can vary what one wears, from nothing to full-on max thermal protection as the water and air temp dictates....one just has a little bit more flexibility in adjusting for comfort in my opinion.

One last recommendation is to consider a Si-Tech neck ring system. While DUI zip seals have their dedicated followers, and they make it easy to replace neck and wrist seals, the seals themselves are awfully expensive, prohibitively so in my opinion. The Si-Tech neck ring will give you the option of using a silicone, latex, or a neoprene neck seal, and you won't need a 2nd mortgage to pickup a spare set of seals for your save-a-dive kit.

-Z
 
Ok so, another question now that I have some feedback from several of you on the reg. Knowing that most of my diving is cold water (mid 30s and up) depth up to my current certification level of 130ft, but also understanding that in several years I may progress to deeper.

How would you rank the Z8, M1, and Deep6 signature series?

You can of course say the deep 6 is the most affordable option and capable, but I'm talking true reliability, capability, and confidence to be included in this comparison as well as price. I'm going to leave out the scuba pro Mk25/G260 as I think id like to keep the cost a bit lower then that one (locally its nearly 1400).
 
If you plan to travel with your gear, specifically your reg set then you should consider servicability on the road. Given the current state of affairs with Aqualung, I would not recommend dropping coin on their regulators despite them being good equipment and nearly worldwide serviceability...the next in line with worldwide recognition/serviceability would be Scubapro followed by Mares. While I like Mares for their simplicity, I think you would do well to scope out Scubapro....I don't think you will have any issues finding a shop overseas (Europe, South America, Asia) to service Scubapro regulators, whereas Atomic and Zeagle may be hit or miss.

For drysuit, I would recommend having a wrist cuff ring system installed as OEM instead of waiting...this will give you the option to run either latex or silicone seals, and will afford you the option to add a dryglove system later. I am partial to the Si-Tech QCS oval wrist ring system. In particular, the QCS oval rings give one the most choices for dryglove systems down the road. The other recommendation would be Kubi, but one can only couple the Kubi glove rings with the Kubi cuff side rings.

While you have probably seen loads of discussions about back plates, you will find once you have one, that it is just a bent slap of metal that you strap a tank to and sling on your back....They all pretty much work the same and more expensive ones don't really offer anything over an inexpensive one in the water. I would not hesitate to purchase a DGX bp/w package, especially if you are going with a one-piece webbing harness (hogarthian style)...if you want something adjustable then I would recommend looking at the Sub-Gravity Paragon adjustable harness. In fact, I am considering converting my wife's harness to the Paragon, by cutting her existing one-piece webbing harness and adding similar adjustable metal buckles sourced from Piranhadivemfg.com at nearly half the price compared to the individual hardware pieces sold by Sub-Gravity....but Sub-Gravity makes very nice equipment (my wife and one of my duaghters each have Sub-Gravity small plates).

Also, opinions on drysuits with regard to material type abound (crushed neoprene vs Trilaminate)....both are good. In my eyes the benefit of the neoprene is that one does not need as thick of an undergarment as the neoprene provides some thermal protection, but if you find yourself prefering to dive with a drysuit and the water temp does not necessecitate much thermal protection, a benefit of a trilaminate suite is that one can vary what one wears, from nothing to full-on max thermal protection as the water and air temp dictates....one just has a little bit more flexibility in adjusting for comfort in my opinion.

One last recommendation is to consider a Si-Tech neck ring system. While DUI zip seals have their dedicated followers, and they make it easy to replace neck and wrist seals, the seals themselves are awfully expensive, prohibitively so in my opinion. The Si-Tech neck ring will give you the option of using a silicone, latex, or a neoprene neck seal, and you won't need a 2nd mortgage to pickup a spare set of seals for your save-a-dive kit.

-Z
A lot of really great feedback. Thank you so much for taking the time.

Hadn't really considered the reg serviceability while diving internationally, will need to give that some more thought. I don't intend to do a ton of diving internationally, 1-2 short dive trips a year. Will think about it, but I think I'd be best suited to make my regulator choice based on the majority of the diving I will be doing, and risk having to switch to a rental reg while travelling if it cant be serviced.
 
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Ok so, another question now that I have some feedback from several of you on the reg. Knowing that most of my diving is cold water (mid 30s and up) depth up to my current certification level of 130ft, but also understanding that in several years I may progress to deeper.

How would you rank the Z8, M1, and Deep6 signature series?

You can of course say the deep 6 is the most affordable option and capable, but I'm talking true reliability, capability, and confidence to be included in this comparison as well as price. I'm going to leave out the scuba pro Mk25/G260 as I think id like to keep the cost a bit lower then that one (locally its nearly 1400).

I think most all modern regulators are up to the task. Tech diving communities seem to have and advocate certain preferences, but the reality is that you will most likely not find much of a performance difference across the spectrum of available products currently being offered by any brand.

Apeks seems to be the common "go to" brand for tech divers, but they are currently owned by Aqualung who seem to have some financial issues going on.

As I mentioned in my post above, think about where you will/might need to have your reg set serviced. While some will advocate that any competent shop should be able to service any regset, my experience living and traveling around the world is that shops tend to be partial to servicing gear from the companies whose product lines they sell....Globally, in my experience, it is easier to find shops that service Aqualung, Scubapro, and Mares....in that order. If you plan to just dive your reg set locally and/or self-service then that opens up recommendations for others, and among what you are considering, Deep6 would be the easiest to get service kits for self-service.

-Z
 
... but if you find yourself prefering to dive with a drysuit and the water temp does not necessecitate much thermal protection, a benefit of a trilaminate suite is that one can vary what one wears, from nothing to full-on max thermal protection as the water and air temp dictates....one just has a little bit more flexibility in adjusting for comfort in my opinion.
Not true at all. There is not more flexibility. It's one of these things people repeat but doesn't make any sense.
 
Not true at all. There is not more flexibility. It's one of these things people repeat but doesn't make any sense.

Haven't heard this argument before. With the undergarments you can add/remove/change based on the thermal conditions you are going to dive in. With the neoprene you have a certain level of themo protection in which you dont have any options with. Is that not the case?

Just seeking to learn about different opinions. I highly doubt I will go the neoprene route, I have been diving in a tri lam and my experience vs others i have seen on boats with the neoprene I just think my preference is the trilam. I'm sure both have there merits and best use cases. (i tried on a friends neoprene and personally found it more restricting of movement, but this is based on another persons suit though)
 
Haven't heard this argument before. With the undergarments you can add/remove/change based on the thermal conditions you are going to dive in. With the neoprene you have a certain level of themo protection in which you dont have any options with. Is that not the case?
You will hear it. It's not the case.
The crush neos are usually 2mm or 4mm and due to being compressed already they don't have that much thermo protection. If you're diving in hot climate and really warm water you can just put on a wicking layer and don't have to put on much before getting into the suit, which is nice. I used to have a 'slim cut' crush neo drysuit just to dive in Egypt.
You see, there is a gang of 'experts' here on SB that will attack and insult me every time I don't agree with the standard SB BS answer because they have nothing else of substance to say and can't explain their reasoning, they just repeat stuff and try to gang up on me with OT stuff.

Just asked people to explain why they say stuff and you'll see. I have several dry suits and crush as well as tri are fine. The downside of crush was already correctly explained by tbone. The other downside is that crush neos with diagonal zipper and telescoping torse are pretty pricey and not many companies make them. For instance, SF-Tech makes them and are probably the best suits on the market today. The cheap ones from them start around 4 grand though.

Edit: See, people will just comment in a thread just to attack me. No substance.
 
Atomic M1 is a great reg but insanely expensive and I don't have any love for unsealed pistons. I know there is a seal kit but that is literally just pissing money away to get it sealed. Get a sealed diaphragm regulator and you'll be set up for everything. Deep6 Signature gets my money these days, but depends on what you are willing to do for local service options or if you're OK doing DIY or sending back to Georgia.

I don't love Hollis wings, QC is not great and customer service is quite bad. This package from @DiveGearExpress will save you a ton of money and IMO is actually a higher quality product.

Do some digging on here with drysuits, DUI has gone down the toilet in the last few years quality wise and are still charging top dollar. No way could I recommend their suits in good conscience right now. If you're staying with local diving and not going to fly with your drysuit then the OThree suits are absolutely epic and the service from England is terrific for getting them custom cut. It's roughly half the price of that DUI suit and at least 3x as nice.
I almost bough that Hollis system, but went with the dgx hogarthian kit (dgx plate/harness, OMS wing) Absolutely love mine.
 
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You will hear it. It's not the case.
The crush neos are usually 2mm or 4mm and due to being compressed already they don't have that much thermo protection. If you're diving in hot climate and really warm water you can just put on a wicking layer and don't have to put on much before getting into the suit, which is nice. I used to have a 'slim cut' crush neo drysuit just to dive in Egypt.
You see, there is a gang of 'experts' here on SB that will attack and insult me every time I don't agree with the standard SB BS answer because they have nothing else of substance to say and can't explain their reasoning, they just repeat stuff and try to gang up on me with OT stuff.

Just asked people to explain why they say stuff and you'll see. I have several dry suits and crush as well as tri are fine. The downside of crush was already correctly explained by tbone. The other downside is that crush neos with diagonal zipper and telescoping torse are pretty pricey and not many companies make them. For instance, SF-Tech makes them and are probably the best suits on the market today. The cheap ones from them start around 4 grand though.

Edit: See, people will just comment in a thread just to attack me. No substance.
Fair enough. I get some of these topics are open to a certain level of opinion/interpretation/personal preference in which people might defend or gravitate towards. I do really appreciate both perspectives though.

I feel as though I have a better collection of thoughts on the BP&W now, DGX, Sub gravity and Dive Rite all seem to have some cheaper options which are in theory the same thing as the hollis without the brand mark up and potentially equal or better quality. So looking into those options a bit more now. Dry suit as well I really appreciate the feed back on DUI quality degrading recently.

The regulator piece I'm still a bit unsure about. The deep6 signature sounds good in theory and price, I haven't seen much reliability topics about it in cold water deep water though. The Zeagle and M1 people are talking about more often as very high quality regs for those conditions. Open to more thoughts on the Deep6 though. Right now I'm leaning toward the Zeagle based on price and quality. (scuba option I'm thinking is more then I want to spend, even though it would be more globally serviceable.). I don't care about 200-500 price difference if it means i have the best tool for the job and that I have confidence in it.
 
Haven't heard this argument before. With the undergarments you can add/remove/change based on the thermal conditions you are going to dive in. With the neoprene you have a certain level of themo protection in which you dont have any options with. Is that not the case?
You are right that crushed has a minimum level. However, that minimum level is low enough (for the thinner crushed options) that if you want less, you probably would choose not to wear any dry suit at all. For an equivalent level of thermal protection, they will be fairly similar in flexibility, with variability within each class exceeding the difference between the classes.

There are other advantages and disadvantages of crushed and trilam that are better reasons to pick one over the other.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

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