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RSD SCUBA LAB
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AUGUST 1997
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| These new regulators from Atomic were this test's
showstoppers. The T1/Ti2, with titanium first and second stages, is not
only the lightest regulator we've ever tested; it also received the best
scores on both the breathing simulator and the ocean ergonomic tests of
any regulator we've ever tested. But this performance comes at a price:
$1,442, making this the most expensive regulator in distribution. The B1/Ti2
(titanium second stage and brass first stage) has the same performance
characteristics, but at a more modest $600. The all-titanium version is
much lighter and resists corrosion better than any other metal.
What sets these regulators above the others is not just their raw scores, but the stability and repeatability of their performance under the most demanding conditions. This level of performance is achieved with almost no "positive pressure breathing" - that feeling you get with some regulators when the air is being forced into you. In this way the Ti2s breathe very naturally regardless of depth or the adjustment setting.  |
Much of this outstanding performance is a result
of the Automatic Flow Control (AFC) in the second stage. This is a venturi
assist that is depth-activated - the deeper you go the more it helps to
deliver the air. The manual (diver-controlled) resistance dial takes only
two turns for complete adjustment and is needed only in conditions that
my cause slight leakage.
During ocean tests, evaluators praised the Atomic’s breathing, adjustments, clearing, comfort and performance in odd positions. Some of these high scores were based on the adjustment taking only two turns, the purge button being the whole front cover of the second stage and the primary hose being of a more flexible material than most other regs. As is common with most high-performance regulators, exhaled bubble interference was the lowest score. |
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REGULATORS
IN
REVIEW |
| Our test team of four divers began
a rapid descent to the sandy 165-foot bottom off Catalina Island, Calif.
Purpose of the dive: to stress-test a batch of new high-performance regulators.
Each of us would try our best overbreathe the regulators at 165 feet. Although
these regs had already been tested in the lab on a breathing simulator,
it was time to see if a human being could detect differences in their breathing
performance.
This deep stress test was the last in a series of evaluations of new regulators that began with inspections, breathing machine |
test in an engineering lab and then ergonomic tests in
the ocean. After we ascended from depth, completed our decompression stops
and added our new scores to all the others, the results positively stunned
us.
A New Standard of Excellence
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Breath Analyzer
This computer-generated breathing machine chart is from the test of the Atomic Ti2 at 264 feet. The inhale line begins on the left and runs across the bottom to the right. The first few oscillations are the cracking pressure - the force required to open the valve. As a diver, you do not notice the minute variations in resistance represented by the squiggles. The inhale line is so close to the zero line that this regulator has an extremely low work of breathing on inhale. The exhale line begins on the right and runs across the top to the left. In this case, the work of breathing on exhale is greater than on inhale due to the pressure of the water and density of air at depth. The total area inside the loop is what the computer analyzes to give the total work of breathing - the amount of energy this regulator requires to move each liter of air. |
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$ | First Stage | Breathing
Machine Test |
Ocean Ergonomic Tests | Total
Score |
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| Type | Swivel | # of ports | Second
Stage Adjust. |
WOB
(Jules per Liter) |
Perfor-
mance Score |
Bubbles | Clearing | Position | Wetness | Comfort | ||||
| HP | LP | |||||||||||||
| ATOMIC AQUATICS
T1/Ti2 |
$1,295 | BP | YES | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1.10 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| ATOMIC AQUATICS
B1/Ti2 |
$600 | BP | YES | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1.10 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| MARES
RUBY DFC |
$900 | BD | NO | 2 | 4 | NONE | 1.30 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 10 |
| OCEANIC
DX3 DELTA II SUB 0 |
$350 | BD | NO | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1.60 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| SCUBAPRO
MK20/G500 |
$528 | BP | YES | 2 | 5 | 2 | 1.25 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 |
| SEA QUEST
SPECTRUM XR2 |
$350 | BD | NO | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1.25 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 11 |
| U.S. DIVERS
SEA IMPULSE |
$525 | BD | NO | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1.13 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 11 |
| FIRST STAGE
BP=Balanced Piston BD=Balanced Diaphragm HP=High Pressure LP=Low Pressure |
| OCEAN ERGONOMICS TESTS
The score on each test is the average of all scores given by test divers at 33 and 165 feet. |
| BREATHING MACHINE TESTS
WOB (Work of Breathing) is a measure of the energy (measured in joules) required to move each liter of air. The lower the score, the better the performance. Regulator second-stage adjustments were set to the easiest breathing position for these test runs. Performance Score is a composite of the U.S. Navy Class B, Class A and CE tests, plus the run at 264 feet. |
| 1 = OUTSTANDING |
| 2 = EXCELLENT TO GOOD |
| 3 = AVERAGE |