Computer Advice - To Lynx or not to Lynx, that is the question

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finnegankp
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Computer Advice - To Lynx or not to Lynx, that is the question

Post by finnegankp »

Hello my esteemed diving friends, colleagues, and gear experts,

I'm getting ready to do some gear upgrading in the near future and one of the key pieces of gear I'm looking to upgrade is my AI computer. I've been diving the Oceanic Veo 4.1 (the version before they took away the buddy monitoring setup) and it's been a great computer and I've racked up a fair few dives. And while it's still in great condition I'm looking to upgrade to something that is easy (I'd be getting my wife the same computer) but that still supports AI and could transition with me should I look to move into tech diving in the future. I've been looking at different setups over the last year from Oceanic, Mares, ScubaPro/Uwatec, Suunto and Liquivision and so far I'm looking heavily at the Liquivision Lynx. I'm just about to bite the bullet, but wanted to pulse the crowd here and see if anyone has used it, and if so get their thoughts? But also, if you aren't using it, what are you using and why did you choose it over others. All feedback is very welcomed!

Cheers!
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Norris
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Re: Computer Advice - To Lynx or not to Lynx, that is the question

Post by Norris »

I have not had much luck with liquivision and moved towards shearwater. I have the predator and just absolutely love it. Its bright enough to read, the batteries last quite a long time, it is fine as bottom timer or computer.
You can set your particular conservative setting and run dive plans on it to get an idea of your deco plan. You can custom 5 gasses be it tri-mix or nitrox.

It has everything I wanted and I use it alongside a Uwatec BT when doing technical dives.

Just my two psi and ymmv on the liquivision
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GearHead
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Computer Advice - To Lynx or not to Lynx, that is the question

Post by GearHead »

I have three Liquivision computers — the Zen, Kaon and Xeo. Haven't had any problems with any of them. In particular I love the big numbers in the OLED display. They are easier to read underwater than any other computer that I've seen.
The Lynx is basically the Kaon with wireless AI. Unlike other AI computers, it uses a form of Ultrasound for the communication link instead of radio. The drawback is that it uses up batteries much faster. I would recommend investing in a set of IMR 16340 lithium-ion batteries and a good charger if you go this route.
Another option is to keep it simple by ditching wireless AI and using a simple brass & glass SPG. No batteries needed for one of these.


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BillZ
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Re: Computer Advice - To Lynx or not to Lynx, that is the question

Post by BillZ »

There are definitely better computers out there for the money.

I owned and dove a Liquivision Xen (the bottom timer version of the Lynx) for 2 years and IMHO the computer was junk. The root of the problem has to do with the proprietary battery and power management. In the beginning I was burning through a $10 battery after every 15 dives or so after a year of replacing expensive batteries I ended up getting the rechargeable pack. A single rechargeable would last about 8 dives but at least I didn't have to special order them any more. The battery meter on the Xen never really worked so I had many dives where I'd descend and the computer would either shut down or I'd get the message "not ready to dive".

A few other issues...
The screen was starting to go out and even on full brightness I couldn't read it in daylight
The computer couldn't keep accurate time - You'd think that this would be a simple thing but it lost several hours over a month.
With all of the changing of batteries that I had to do the wires to the battery tray were starting to break down.


I now dive a Shearwater Petrel and it's absolutely fantastic. In the 80 or so dives that I have on it so far it's never had a problem. The best part is that I get 30+ dives out of a singe AA battery and when it comes time to replace it I can get one at any gas station or 7-11.

Bill
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CaptnJack
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Re: Computer Advice - To Lynx or not to Lynx, that is the question

Post by CaptnJack »

Another vote for a shearwater (which wouldn't have any AI functionality fyi). I have 2 and they are faboo

Most technical diver askew AI because the transmitters are fragile and everything about them including the synching is (in general) more fragile than a simple brass and glass SPG. So despite the lack of the AI functionality I'd give the predix and petrel some serious consideration.
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johndo88
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Re: Computer Advice - To Lynx or not to Lynx, that is the question

Post by johndo88 »

And another vote for Shearwater, and for wrist mounted computers in general. I used to use Cobalt 2 computers, they are very good. But what I really like about wrist-mounted computers is that I can view the computer on my right wrist to monitor ascent and descent rates while controlling ascents and descents with my left hand on the BC and drysuit. I have two Shearwaters and have found them to be excellent.
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Re: Computer Advice - To Lynx or not to Lynx, that is the question

Post by SwamiMacGyver »

I dive a Lynx and I like it. I also have a Xen on my scooter, and I like that, too. The displays are really bright, and I think their interface is pretty intuitive. The air integration is good. I've never lost the signal between the computer and the transmitter, which is an improvement over my experience with my Oceanic VT4 (I used to lose signal for a few seconds multiple times during a dive). I haven't used the buddy locator feature much. I used it once just for fun, and it seemed to work, but that was long ago and I don't really remember it. Seeing my buddy's gas pressure was also nice, but my buddy knows how to manager her consumption just fine, so it definitely isn't a critical feature to me.

As for the batteries, I change them after every dive on the Lynx. I have the rechargeables, and they seem to work well. When I did a three tank dive in Hawaii, I think the battery ran out on the transmitter before the third dive, but I've never had an issue with 80-90 minutes in Puget Sound. I also had an issue where the Lynx drained the battery in about 10 minutes, but that was a hardware issue and Liquivision support took care of it quickly.

The Lynx is good enough for me to recommend it to my friends if they're a certain type of diver. I've used Shearwaters before, and those are certainly more popular among my tech diving friends.
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CaptnJack
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Re: Computer Advice - To Lynx or not to Lynx, that is the question

Post by CaptnJack »

SwamiMacGyver wrote:
As for the batteries, I change them after every dive on the Lynx. I have the rechargeables, and they seem to work well. When I did a three tank dive in Hawaii, I think the battery ran out on the transmitter before the third dive, but I've never had an issue with 80-90 minutes in Puget Sound. I also had an issue where the Lynx drained the battery in about 10 minutes, but that was a hardware issue and Liquivision support took care of it quickly.

The Lynx is good enough for me to recommend it to my friends if they're a certain type of diver. I've used Shearwaters before, and those are certainly more popular among my tech diving friends.
after every dive? Sorry that is horrible, "dislike" lol
Sounder wrote:Under normal circumstances, I would never tell another man how to shave his balls... but this device should not be kept secret.
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johndo88
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Re: Computer Advice - To Lynx or not to Lynx, that is the question

Post by johndo88 »

I recently certified a student on Peak Performance Buoyancy. He too uses a wrist-mounted computer on his right arm leaving his left hand free to adjust buoyancy. In this class we performed an ascent without visual reference up to 15 feet to then performed a safety stop, again with no visual reference. This is the profile from that dive that he downloaded from his computer. I am not suggesting that this is the only equipment configuration one needs to become proficient with buoyancy control, but it's the configuration I have found to be successful.

Cheers
OpenWaterSafetyStop.png
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