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**Chris H** · 07-22-2003, 10:38 AM,

There has been some discussion, comments, opinions, or whatever in the DRYSUIT thread about regs. Has anyone seen tests on the new Poseidon Xsteam? Some of the Xtream models have only 3 ports on them so they really adapt well to a DIR configuration. (Well, except for the fact they are Poseidon Wink

) The conver is now tool-less, and if you really wanted to you could take it apart under water. It still uses the special hose, same as the Odin. I think it breathes really well, requiring much less effort than my Odin. I have only dove it 4 times, but it seems like a winner to me. I'm not going for any sort of crazy heated debate on the subject, but it is always nice to hear other people's experiences and opinions.

FreediveWI · 07-22-2003, 01:43 PM,

Here is the review from DIVER magazine.

They have a panel of testers and also do a machine test on it. The work of breathing is listed at 1.56 joules/liter compared to .95 joules/liter on the apeks. You can go to their site to see the results of other regulator tests. Unlike the dive mags in the U.S., they actually give honest evaluations of dive gear- good, bad and ugly.

Jon

POSEIDON XSTREAM DEEP 90 (Â£375)
FIRST IMPRESSIONS: A radical design with a heavy first stage which has a unique ball-bearing and large heat-sink spring design. Only one hp and three mp ports. Minimalist features includes a DIN fitting with A-clamp adapter. The ambidextrous second stage is a very compact upstream servo design with a pressure-relief valve on the mp hose. It has a side-exhaust but an offset front diaphragm. No knobs or switches and the test example had an original Poseidon lanyard attached. It required a thumb positioned over the mouthpiece when turning on the air-supply to discourage it from free-flowing.
IN THE WATER:
"It seemed to give an unnatural breathe. You needed to suck to get air, and then you got too much. The purge was horrific! I felt it moved me 3m sideways each time I used it! Impossible to make free-flow but scary when you turned the tank on. It gave plenty of air but pulsed if you inhaled strongly."
"Disappointingly, this seems to be merely a Jetstream in a new set of clothes. You have to suck for your air, then it comes in a rush. When I purged it, it blasted my mouth. If I wanted my tonsils removing I would have gone to hospital! Not for inexperienced divers."
"It felt balanced in the mouth but was like breathing from a machine. The air came in quick pulses and the purge blew out my other end! Exhaust bubbles were routed well away from my face. Very dry face-up."
"Frightening the first time. It gave plenty of air when I wanted it (and sometimes when I didn't) but stuttered in its delivery. The purge nearly blew my balls off! Not for an beginner who needs to share air."
INVERTED:Absolutely dry.
SECOND-STAGE ASSEMBLY:Relatively easily disassembled for cleaning.
ANSTI RESULT:This regulator appeared to have a positive-pressure spike at the start of each inhalation. Inhalation effort was low if uneven. Work of breathing was 1.56 joules/litre.

07-23-2003, 07:35 AM,

Then again...here's another review from DIVERS magazine:

SECOND SURPRISE
Now for the second surprise. Under water, instead of getting the expected icy blast each time I inhaled, I found that I was breathing from one of the nicest regulators I have ever used. Did I really say that? Yes, this Poseidon gave me one of the nicest, subtlest breathes ever.
It may have its pressure-sensing diaphragm on the side of the regulator, and the exhaust deflector may put the bubbles out to one side, but the actual exhaust valve of the Xstream is positioned centrally within it, so there was no hint of a wet breathe however I twisted and turned.
The mouthpiece was soft to my mouth yet firm in my grip, and the flow of air was as near to breathing normally as one can possibly expect. Wow! Am I really saying this about a Poseidon regulator?
So if you are prepared to get an H-valve for your tank, and buy a second regulator as your octopus, you can enjoy using the Xstream for ordinary leisure diving.
Provided you don't mind turning on your supply immediately before you need it, I can recommend the Xstream unreservedly, whereas the Jetstream is for fans of Captain Scott

The bit he's talking about, the rush of air when you turn it on - he's really making more of a deal of it than he needs to. If you just turn the air on, the reg will stop the flow of air after a second or two - if you tear one of the regulators apart you'll see exactly why that rush of air happens. You don't need to put your mouth on the regulator at all...

FreediveWI · 07-23-2003, 09:59 AM,

There is still a difference in work of breathing and the Posiden still has a an upstream valve- which means it shuts down your air supply in an emergancy and it also needs a special, read expensive, hose for the regualtor to work. Because of the upstream valve, and special hose, it would not be a DIR candidate.

A really good regulator, that doesn't cost a ton of money, is the Diverite regulator. It has a very standardized parts kit, can be ripped apart underwater, uses all standardized hoses and has been used to some pretty deep depths- check out the Tanya Streeter thread.

In the rest of the article that you sited he went on to compalin about the Posdien Jetstreams for the breathing- the same ones that I had spit ice down my throat and others have had freeze solid on them. If your comfortable with this new one, great. But one of the orginal question was would it be adaptable to DIR and the answer appears to be no.

The magazine is interesting in some of the other gear reviews, they even do a DIR and a GUE review in one issue. THey put all of the regulators to the test on the breathing machine to get an objective number- where the Apkes reglators still kick butt Wink

, and then they put them to a wet test by a panel of divers. They do the same thing with drysuits, fins, ect.

Jon

**Chris H** · 07-23-2003, 10:12 AM,

My usual dive buddy just bought an ATX200. I will give it a breath or two on our next dive.

07-23-2003, 10:24 AM,

No offense intended, but that's just fine by me ;D

FreediveWI · 07-23-2003, 10:31 AM,

None taken.

Another regulator that I haven't tried, but looks pretty impressive, is the New Agualung Legend. It has a work of breathing score of 0.7 joules/liter which means that it has less than HALF the breathing effort as the Posdien(@1.56 joules/liter)

IF you really have some cash to drop on a good regulator you should check out the Atomic line. George Irvine has been working with them on a new cave regulator that is pretty nice- but out of my price range.

Jon

07-23-2003, 11:05 AM,

One of these days I would like to try one, simply out of curiosity as I do hear so much about them (either Apeks or Atomics). Maybe if I give one of them a try someday I may actually like them. Although honestly, I'd hate to have to buy a whole new set of regs!

Vtach · 07-23-2003, 04:13 PM,

Initially I had a Poseidon Triton which worked flawlessly in all conditions. After diving that for a couple of years I found out that Poseidon was not going to continue support for it in the US, so I had to upgrade/downgrade to the Cyklon. I started using the Cyklon and I really didn't care for it because of the side exhaust only. After I had my "problem" with the Poseidon Cyklon while ice diving and on the Milwaukee, I was pretty frustrated. Now given the time of year and weather on that day, few regulators worked well. But I was already unhappy with the side exhaust so I decided to switch and gave the Zeagle Tech 50 a try. My LDS had one for sale that was basically the Apeks TX 50/US4 with a Zeagle purge button cap. I got a pretty good deal on it because it had been sitting on the shelf for awhile. I threw a 7ft hose on it and tried it out. Worked real well, easy breathing at depth, easy adjustability. A pretty good reg with the bottom exhaust. I found a pretty good deal on a used ATX200 so I picked that up too. They both breathe much differently than a Poseidon. The higher IP of the Poseidon is very noticeable when you inhale and "crack" the valve which delivers a relatively forceful large volume of air that you cannot overbreathe. The Apeks 200 seems to deliver air much more smoothly with a volume that is slightly greater to your inhalation demand without ever feeling starved for air. That is the best way that I can explain it. I'm going to stick with the Apeks for awhile. But I am not going to critique the new Poseidons until I try one out.