It also depends on you. How tall/strong are you? Do you travel a lot, or will you dive it more locally? Are you diving in open sea/lake or super tight caves? Do you need an expedition unit if your diving is mainly for photography above 40metres? Where can it be serviced? How long does it take to get spare parts? Are other divers in the area using the same machine, so you can get advice/spare bits? Who is the instructor? Would you like to do the course with that person?

Why did I choose rEvo?

I went through these questions myself, and in the end, I decided on rEvo.

What advantages did I find?

Working as a support diver, I always loved divers with rEvo, the unit is light! (It is very compact, barely any additional weight is needed, so even when it is set up, they are easy to lift and move around.) The square shape also makes it easy to pack in a car/truck.

Then, on to diving. Field of vision. Since the unit and the lungs are behind you, there is no “T-piece” next to your face which would restrict your head movement or how wide is your vision sideways.

What about CO2?

Probably the most discerning feature is the dual scrubber with temperature sensors. One of the biggest dangers with CCR diving is CO2 breakthrough. Packing 2 scrubbers automatically halve what is already a low possibility, making the unit safer even if one of the scrubbers is not perfectly packed. Also, it is easier to pack smaller volumes. On top of that, the unit will tell you if anything is wrong with the scrubber!

Normally, other rebreathers give you 3 hours with 2.6-3 kg sofnolime. With rEvo you can dive at least 3 hours with half of that (1.35 kg lime) and with the advanced rMS (temperature monitoring system) you will likely be able to dive even longer while being completely safe. No stress about how long will your scrubber last because it literally gives you remaining time in minutes (actually hours). I really love that feature!

The number of sensors.

On a rEvo one can run up to 5 sensors. You don’t change them all at once, but in a rotation, so the chance that they fail all at the same time is practically zero. I thought having 5 sensors costs more but literally, I don’t spend more changing them according to factory recommendation one in every 6 months. Tempting much?

The rEvo is a hybrid CCR, enjoying the benefits of both manual and electronic CCRs.

It has a continuous O2 flow which you set to your metabolism, so at constant depth there is nothing to do, your O2 partial pressure remains constant. Meanwhile, the electronics keep the ppO2 at the set level with any changes. This makes the rEvo a very easy to use and relatively simple CCR.

How can one fit for all?

The 3 different sizes give a selection for taller/smaller people, however, I have seen pretty tall people diving comfortably with the micro.

Backup systems:

The general rule in CCR diving is that you need at least 2 independent systems monitoring your ppO2 at all times. In other units, this is usually solved with a handset controller/computer and a HUD (Head up display) showing the ppO2 readings in parallel.

In rEvo, each HUD can show 1 or 2 cells, and if you are running 5 cells, even in case of connection error or failure, the chance that you don’t have at least 2 cells to compare is effectively zero! (unless you flood the unit. Don’t do that. That is expensive.)

Is this unit perfect then?

This is the only disadvantage that I have heard from divers about the unit. The flood tolerance of the unit is quite low, there is no dump valve other than the OPV. True.

However, the amount of parts to be assembled is so small, and if they leak, you will notice it (and fix it) at the predive check.

Hence, the only real way to flood a rEvo is to take the open mouthpiece from your mouth, which in truth will flood any unit. Simply don’t do that.

How can a rEvo save your dive?

Basically, the Expedition versions from the factory come with 3 independent displays with which you operate the machine. The displays will be your choice of handset/ HUD/ Nerd. Finding yourself in a remote area or a liveaboard, if any one of these systems fails, you simply continue diving, while still retaining two independent systems.

Cables, sensors are all accessible, so they are quick and easy to fix locally (Yes, we can do that for you). The only time you would need to send the unit to the main service centres is for the 5 or 10 years’ service.

And last is the flexibility: If you don’t like any of the features, you have a choice. It is not simply a hybrid unit. You can easily convert between manual, hybrid, or simple electronic CCR, and your choice of using 3, 4 or 5 sensors.

Summary:

I am not a CCR expert, and neither have I dived all the machines available. When the occasion came along, I took the chance to try the JJ and an expedition grade Hammerhead, however, I am still happy with my choice.

As I said, there is no perfect unit. But the rEvo is very close to it, at least for me.

If you are interested to become a rEvo diver or even a trial dive, send me a message, I would love to hear from you!

Here you can learn more about the CCR course itself.