Sidemount Diving With The Mares Genius Dive Computer

[@arp202]

Great review, and one with an 'in the water' screen view of the DC. Thanks. Both thumbs up!

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Glad you liked the review ARP.

[@Migetsub]

Ive used the Genius for over 100 dives and I'm currently using it as my back up computer for my Mares Horizon SCR, i cant praise the computer enough i love it. Ive had some form of air integration since i finished my open water course it has made diving easy knowing exactly how much time i have left till my tank reserve so i can dive without having to figure out how long i got left.

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hello Migetsub, glad to know that the Genius is working for you. How to you like your Mares Horizon.

[@Migetsub]

@@LakeHickoryScuba while i only just got certified on it, ive been really enjoying the experience, 2 of my dive buddies have the horizons and wouldnt stop going on about how much they prefered them to open circuit, so i bit the bullet and bought one brand new, and i can say with certainty that i can see why they prefered them, just going for a 40 minute average dive is a bit lack lustre compared to the 3 and a half i get on a single dive now. So yeah i cant recommend them enough. And mares Australia has just gotten the steel backplates in they are 7kg so that means no more weight belt to supplement my integrated weights and i can put smaller weights in the unit itself now. I will admit i think im having a little too much fun with the unit but hey thats all part of the game huh.

[@BingSurjawan]

I have the Mares Smart with the AI transmitter, not on a sidemount but on a one tank backmounted. Makes maintaining dive logs a lot easier and with more detail. Definitely was a good purchase for me.

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hello Bing Surjawan, several of our Instructors here use the Mares Smart AI computer as well, and they love it. This past winter, I upgraded to the Mares Quad Air as my primary, and went back to wearing my Citizen Aqualand 20th Anniversarry Dive Water / Computer, that was a gift to me from one of my diving mentors.

[@JorgeVargas-po1tb]

Can you please make a video explaining how to change the Mares ultra adj hose?

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hello Jorge Vargas, I will be happy to make a video for you.

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hey Jorge Vargas, our next video should go live tomorrow (10/08/2021) at 6:00am EST. It will show you how easy it is to replace a hose while using the Mares Twin Power System.

[@j.r.young2]

I've been trying to decide on a computer for a long time. Lots of the locals I speak with have negative feelings about the Genius, but I can't understand why. There is a lot of love for the other brands, but I am strongly leaning towards the Mares Genius because I feel it has all the features I would use and can continue to grow with it as I progress.

[@j.r.young2]

@S M Georgia. There is a LOT of Sherwater love, and Mares hate. I don't know why.

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hello Jay Young, every divers is going to have his own preference to what computer is the best. What we try to do is, find that computer that suits the individual needs of a diver. Its been my experience that most of the hate some divers speak about is the lack of knowledge of the actual product. We are fortunate to be able to test many different systems, a perk to working in the industry. This allows us to give a semi un-biased opinons. I do use that word un-biased lightly though. We definitely have our favorites, but at the end of the day, comparing dive computers is like comparing cars. Each has their pros and cons. You just have to figure out which one is going to be best for you.

[@bloodymarvelous4790]

What I like about the Mares Genius is the ability to enter cylinder size, and its capability to calculate RMV. What I'm not a big fan of is the method of pairing. I prefer a permanent pairing instead of having to pair before every dive. I personally have a Shearwater Perdix AI, which can only pair up to 4 transmitters (the Genius can pair 5). While the menu structure of the Shearwaters is excellent, only having two buttons to navigate is a bit of a pain. I much prefer the 4 button interface of the Genius.

[@JortHarmsen]

I use my Mares Icon HD with 2 transmitters for my sidemount right on the first stage and that works perfect. But the tip on just replacing the analog gauge and using the same hp hose somehow never came into my mind as a solution.. thanks for the tip

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hello Jort Harmsen, glad you found the video helpful. One of the biggest things about routing the transmitters down is, it protects them during the dive.

[@tiagor3272]

I do use air integration with my mares genius and it is great, nevertheless I always have an analogue meter on my rig just in case... And I do believe that despite having air integration the analogue meter should no be waived, have at least a button style pressure gauge just in case.

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hello Tiago r, glad to know the Genius is working for you. A lot of divers like having a backup analog gauge as well.

[@bloodymarvelous4790]

I carry an analog SPG in addition to the transmitter as well. It provides peace of mind, but I don't think it's necessary though. As long as you keep track of your battery charge, having only a transmitter is just as viable as having only an SPG. With an SPG the needle can get stuck, and over time the bourdon tube stretches, giving you false/incorrect readings. With a transmitter, you can lose connection or your battery can run out, giving you no reading at all. Personally I believe no reading is safer than an incorrect reading. You'll know immediately the pressure reading is compromised. Having both will allow you to check both readings against each other. That way you'll know when to replace your SPG, and you can check your SPG when the transmitter link is (temporarily) lost.

[@GrahamF]

Hi, do you know if the Mares Quad Air has full integration (the same as the Genius model), when using independent twin cylinders and regs? Great video thanks 👌

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hello GrahamF, the Mares Quad Air is an air integrated model just like the Genius. The standard Mares Quad is not.

[@GrahamF]

@@LakeHickoryScuba Thank you very much. 👌

[@selfdefenselasvegas]

I’m currently using the mares genius with transmitters on side mount. What software are you uploading to for the dive profile you demonstrated?

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hello @selfdefenselasvegas, we are using the Dive Organizer from Mares.

[@johnchurch2321]

I wish there was a tank graphic for both

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hello John Church. A divers can use the UTD Z-Sidemount sytem, which creates a manifold for your sidemount bottles, then technically you would have one graphic that represented both cylinders.

[@mld3691]

@@LakeHickoryScuba UTD-Z-System is the next lack in understanding of sidemount. No REAL sidemount-instructor will ever recommend to use that system. It takes away one of the big advantages of sidemont. By using it you will loose the "REAL" redundancy! But add a lot of additional points-of-failure to your setup

[@mikkosport2300]

I use AI transmitters even with my CCR with Shearwater Perdix AI. Well working combo but not cheap.

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hello N N, that is probably the biggest compalint we get from newer divers, the cost is so high for transmitters and air integrated computers.

[@bloodymarvelous4790]

@@LakeHickoryScuba Compared to a CCR though... And you don't have to buy transmitters right away. An air integrated computer will work perfectly fine without transmitters. You can add a transmitter at a later date (provided you did buy an AI computer to begin with). I prefer doing things the right way to begin with. I'd rather spend a extra money up front than having to replace something later on.

[@timgosling6189]

A lot safer having the transmitters on the 6" hoses; much less chance of damage if they get knocked. With the same gas in both tanks I like to use the AI pods with the left one paired to my left-hand computer and the right hand paired to the one on my right. I still use the old SPGs as well but that's because I'm a dinosaur. In a few hundred dives with (Suunto) AI pods and EON computers I've never had a failure or even a drop out!

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hello Tim Gosling, the only issue with seperating them, it will never give you an acurate SAC and RMV rate. After a switch, one tank will simply be sitting in limbo until you switch back to it. Now this does not really matter if you can calculate it on paper.

[@timgosling6189]

@@LakeHickoryScuba It does give me real-time SAC and Gas Time for the tank I'm on at any given point during the dive, which is when I need it. For different gasses, eg with a stage, you do have to run them all on each computer or it gives the wrong NDL.

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

You are correct Tim Gosling. How would suggest newer divers to compensate for the average SAC Rate after the dive considering both tanks are not being used at the same time. This is where we would see them having an issue.

[@timgosling6189]

@@LakeHickoryScuba The answer is of course to pair both transmitters with both computers and just pick left to display on the left computer and right on the right. That's what I do when I'm not being lazy! I personally don't worry too much about the average SAC for the dive because there are some big variations within it when gas is going into the drysuit and wing on descents or when it's getting cold. When all we had was start and end pressures, time and a calculator, the average was all you could get. With AI you can pick out particular bits of the dive and use the data for subsequent planning.

[@bloodymarvelous4790]

@@LakeHickoryScuba I don't think that's really an issue. I don't believe you should be monitoring your SAC rate during the dive. This can lead to taking shallower breaths or holding your breath to try and reduce it. SAC and RMV should be used for dive planning before your dive, and reference data after your dive. You calculate SAC through your total pressure used over your dive time. You can simply add the pressure difference from both cylinders and divide it by your time underwater. Only when you're calculating RMV, and you are using different sized cylinders, do you need to compensate for the different cylinder sizes.

[@mld3691]

What a crap - if you want to use sidemount with transmitters, you need other computers! If you're diving with two sidemount-tanks with transmitters, then you want to see both pressures on the display at the same time. Initially Mares wanted to do so, but never succeded to implement that. Take a Shearwater Perdix AI, or a ScubaPro Galileo G2 - they both can do that. Mares has switched to Bühlmann-algorithm, which was a great decision, but they did NOT build a computer that really is suitable for sidemount. Bad that you did not understand that key-feature!

[@LakeHickoryScuba]

Hello, Dirk Lehmann, sorry to hear that you did not like our video. Nevertheless, we appreciate you watching it and sharing your thoughts with us.