Your Favorite Regulator? How did you decide?

[Downing]

I've concluded that in general divers are most attached--no pun intended--to their regs as opposed to rest of their gear.

My theory is it's the machined metal that gets us going. Regs are kind of primal in that way. And it's kind of hard to get excited about rubber or neophrene.

 

[docbrown]

I have both a Zeagle envoy Deluxe and a Mares Abyss and like them both very much. Prior to these I had a set of Dacor Enduro's for about 15 years. On a scale of 1-10 I give the Zeagles a solid 9 and the Abyss an 8.25. Both breathe easily, but the Zeagle just "feels" better.

 

[The Blue Whale]

Doc mentions 'feel' and that's something that we'll be asking about the six regs we narrow our reviews down to. Each diver will have a different idea of how to evaluate the regulators. The facts are pretty easy to sort out, but the feelings are going to be more interesting.

I like the 1-10 scale because most people understand the point... not sure if we can expect to be precise enough for 0.25 increments...

 

[theduckguru]

Was it price? Yes, I was looking a mid line price unit.
Was it style? No, just wanted something that breathed well.
Was it features? No
Was it just part of a package deal? Yes, the package was a great value.
Was it free parts warranty? No, did see the value in it.
Was it a cold water reg? No, don't do quarries.
Was it servicable in your geographic area? Yes, within a reasonable distance.
Did you care if it was piston or diaphram? No.
Did it have good reviews from Scuba Lab? Yes, Best buy and excellent test results.
Was there any durability testing published for your reg? Yes, it did well.

XS Scuba Seaair Tri-Metal. Put 30 or so dives on it in last 6 months and really happy with it.

 

[Aigtbootbp]

I really like my Zeagle envoy. very smooth and easy breathing.

 

[Jimmer]

My fave is the Zeagle ZX-DSV. It has been utterly reliable in a wide variety of conditions, from tropical to ice diving (in the same week even!), has performance equal to Zeagle's top level reg (at least according to my "feel") and costs far less. All in all, it is my choice for best bang for the buck.

 

[sander8]

I have found that in heavy surge or current I can overbreath the Apeks XTX200 and that I cannot overbreath any of the Atomic regulators. There is no comparison in heavy conditions. And the Atomic regulators always breath dry. My Apeks did not and I sold it.

 

[nwdiver2]

Zeagle after 35 years of using most brands at some point, now it is Zeagles all the time.

 

[peterbj7]

I consistently hear good reports about Atomic regulators but have never used one. I haven't particularly heard reports about any Zeagle regs, and I've never used or even seen one.

What I look for in a regulator is first and foremost ease of breathing, secondly consistency in breathing, (3) quality and robustness, (4) consistent performance throughout and well beyond the normal service interval, (5) compactness and lightness, (6) price.

Particular regs I have liked very much have been Poseidon Jetstream (my overall favourite, though not what I tend to use most) and Aqualung Titan (the cheapest model, the basic "Titan"). Although I like the idea of Apex regs I have never particularly liked any that I have actually used. I used to sell Scubapro and used many Mk25/S600's, but I have to say I don't like them and never use them out of choice. I still own a Mares MR22 and like it very much, but it feels fragile (all too easy to damage the HP seat) and is very heavy.

The Titan I'm using at present is quite remarkable. It delivers air at a very reassuring pressure regardless of depth - I've had them below 400ft with no problems - and is incredibly tolerant of lack of servicing. The one I currently use for warm water recreational diving has not been serviced for over 3 years (well over 1000 dives) yet performs as new. But for cold water diving I reach for my Poseidons.

 

[The Blue Whale]

peterbj7... not so sure we need to know about those 'recreational' regulators at 400 ft. But appreciate your input. When I was commercial diving with SCUBA, we had shallow gear 0-60', mid-deep gear 50-150', and deep gear 150+ ... of course, we never got to pick as we were told what gear we'd be diving. The deep gear was always used as a lock out, so we never got to see how the gear performed in shallow water... my guess is that it was calibrated for the depth we were using it.