What makes High-End... High-End? Part 2

HE mods = Ooh i want something pretty
HE RDA/TANK = Ooooh i want something pretty that performs may 8% better than reasonably priced items.

I totally understand the mods, they are art, the Viking that Rob got is absolutely beautifull,
but the price is always justified by the person buying, the performance not so much.

As for HE rda/tanks the price increase for the performance given is not justfieid *Insert law of diminishing returns*




Just a side note, MADE IN AMERICA normally means designed there, and mass produced elsewhere
My real Petri RTA MAYBE performs 2% better than the clone.
 
My real Petri RTA MAYBE performs 2% better than the clone.

So your play play Petri is almost as good as your real Petri?
:-D:-D:-D

I understand what you meant just had to have some fun ;) everything is Real but not everything is Authentic ;)

I am on the opposite boat as you, i would rather pay a premium price for a RTA and increase my vaping pleasure because im getting a better vape, then pay a premium price for a Mod.

Sure the Mods look beautiful but its not gonna better your flavour or cloud production or battery life for that matter.

HE mods are purely made bettter and look better than commercial mods and thats about all you gonna get from a HE mod vs a mass produced mod.
 
So your play play Petri is almost as good as your real Petri?
:-D:-D:-D

I understand what you meant just had to have some fun ;) everything is Real but not everything is Authentic ;)

I am on the opposite boat as you, i would rather pay a premium price for a RTA and increase my vaping pleasure because im getting a better vape, then pay a premium price for a Mod.

Sure the Mods look beautiful but its not gonna better your flavour or cloud production or battery life for that matter.

HE mods are purely made bettter and look better than commercial mods and thats about all you gonna get from a HE mod vs a mass produced mod.

This could not be further from the truth if possible!

I really really want to go sleep, but I thought that I would give my 2c's on this.

My next article will go into detail about this, but I will just give a quick snippet into why the perception is so invalid and incorrect with regards to this matter. Your standard DNA board get shipped from Evolv to the mod maker, they can yes just insert it into their mod, do a few solder connections and be on their merry way.

What the HE modders do is actually modify the board, they strip all the existing cables from it and put high quality cabling, this reduces voltage drop, resistance in the circuit and increases efficiency of the board. The other thing that they do is put the board onto a solder hotplate and desolder components and replace them with more premium components to further improve the efficiency and performance of the board. HE mods are not just about looks, the boards actually perform better than the OEM. What further needs to be looked at is the overall connectivity and requirements to get a board functional. Do you really think all 510's are made the same? Is there maybe a difference between spring loaded and manual 510s?

Food for thought :)
 
I am thoroughly enjoying this narrative series focused on HE - and also the debate and responses around it. I almost missed this thread, and I enjoyed the Part 1 also. Is there no way we can keep this series together?
 
I am thoroughly enjoying this narrative series focused on HE - and also the debate and responses around it. I almost missed this thread, and I enjoyed the Part 1 also. Is there no way we can keep this series together?

When @Takie is finished we can make a new thread with only his posts in as sticky thread! :b1:
 
This could not be further from the truth if possible!

I really really want to go sleep, but I thought that I would give my 2c's on this.

My next article will go into detail about this, but I will just give a quick snippet into why the perception is so invalid and incorrect with regards to this matter. Your standard DNA board get shipped from Evolv to the mod maker, they can yes just insert it into their mod, do a few solder connections and be on their merry way.

What the HE modders do is actually modify the board, they strip all the existing cables from it and put high quality cabling, this reduces voltage drop, resistance in the circuit and increases efficiency of the board. The other thing that they do is put the board onto a solder hotplate and desolder components and replace them with more premium components to further improve the efficiency and performance of the board. HE mods are not just about looks, the boards actually perform better than the OEM. What further needs to be looked at is the overall connectivity and requirements to get a board functional. Do you really think all 510's are made the same? Is there maybe a difference between spring loaded and manual 510s?

Food for thought :)

You see thats why we need you @Takie to help give us a in depth look into HE.

But i still stand as to a HE tank/RTA/RDA will always be more benifical than splurging on a HE mod.

Dont get me wrong if i could i would buy all the HE mods in the world :)

But i think a good place to start if one wants to get into HE is to start off with the tank, and later spoil yourself on a nice HE mod.
 
Right....

So I have largely avoided this debate because I didn't feel the need to voice my opinion on this topic and offend people, and then deal with the fallout that would follow, so I remained sitting very quietly reading and staying out of it. But I believe that I got an opportunity today, and can offer some valuable input into this dialogue. It might piss some people off, but I think that is possibly just part of the nature of discussing high end gear.

Let me start by explaining my thoughts on this when the discussion of HE first came up (and even an hour ago):

High end gear is nice, and no doubt that the tanks, and the mods in particular are very attractive, both mods and tanks might be built better, and might offer an experience that is marginally better than what we have available to us as the masses, but certainly nothing significant enough to justify the price, which IMO is simply determined by exclusivity, and nothing else. Where the value comes in is that not everyone can simply acquire one, and therefore the experience of owning an almost unique device or piece, is largely determining the quality of the vape that the person owning said piece. I have seen it a lot, when someone buys something new, they look for the good in it only, and tout it as such in order to justify to themselves and others, that it is worth the money. I have seen this with everything from R150 juices to expensive mods, and therefore it extends and applies to the world of HE gear.

Anyway, some ugly kid showed up at my office today (@Rob Fisher ), and as I approached his vehicle to try chase him off the property, he shoved his hand out the window, containing two devices. If I'm not mistaken (and please don't crucify me if I am!), an ESG Skyline, and a Hussar RTA, both sitting pretty on top of Hellfire Phantoms. Both loaded with XXX, which I have in my hand at some point in every waking hour of the day, so I know EVERYTHING that this juice has to offer. Relishing the opportunity, I take the two to task.

The Skyline was impressive, and I was assured it is even better and wasn't blowing my mind because it didn't have a fresh wick, so I must try the Hussar.

Hands down, it is the most incredible flavour I have tasted. Not a bit better than my favourite setup, but absolute LEAGUES better. I picked up flavours in that XXX that I have never ever tasted before. It's actually a shame to be back on my STM (I know it's not a favourite for many, but I have tried a LOT of setups, and this does the most justice to XXX for me), that now tastes dirty and dry. Simply put, it sucks in comparison, and that is the sad truth.

So where am I with HE gear now? I haven't spent any money, so I don't need to re-assure myself for the cost.

The vape I got off that Hussar was so mind-blowing, I can categorically say that it is way better than anything I have tried before, by an absolute mile. I have had a few PM conversations and those guys know that I held those original views towards HE gear, but here I am, eating my humble pie, and vaping my sad-looking subtank.

I still don't believe that the mods can perform so much better, and that flavour and the overall experience is mostly given by the tank. I KNOW that there is a lot done to an HE mod that make differences, but that, in my world, is still up for debate.

What isn't up for debate though, is that HE tanks are that much better. Am I going to go get one? I highly doubt it. Firstly I don't believe they come in black, but more importantly, I don't earn enough to warrant spending that amount on a tank, but that is not the issue. Justifications of cost is a separate issue, and is a discussion about as useful as religion or politics to me. Can HE gear be that much better than normal gear? Yes, and from my experience today, it is.

Thanks for the experience Rob, and I mean that both genuinely, and with a large amount of resent. Tasted like you spent the week basting that thing in fresh litchis.... Dammit... Next time someone pulls up in a car and offers me to try something I'm just going to say no! :-D
 
@Takie did I miss the followup on this series? I have been waiting for some more information on this interesting side of vaping.
 
I had the pleasure of handling Takies' Hellfire Phantom last week at Vape Cartel.
For me, that is a true HE mod. He had the awesome Hadaly on it, a perfect pairing IMO.
The fit and finish and the feel in the hand is just phenominal.
That and its squonking brother, the Shadow, are the most wanted on my list.
 
I had the pleasure of handling Takies' Hellfire Phantom last week at Vape Cartel.
For me, that is a true HE mod. He had the awesome Hadaly on it, a perfect pairing IMO.
The fit and finish and the feel in the hand is just phenominal.
That and its squonking brother, the Shadow, are the most wanted on my list.

Thats great @Pixstar
I would also love to try out the Hellfire Phantom to see what it feels like in the hand.
Have had my eye on that for a while...

And a Billet box, which I have fortunately had the pleasure of trying out - thanks to @Paulie - that is a stunning little device and its so comfy. The front facing fire button is great too.
 
Thats great @Pixstar
I would also love to try out the Hellfire Phantom to see what it feels like in the hand.
Have had my eye on that for a while...

And a Billet box, which I have fortunately had the pleasure of trying out - thanks to @Paulie - that is a stunning little device and its so comfy. The front facing fire button is great too.

Will bring a Hellfire Phantom, Shadow and Billet Box to the Vape Meet... Boom!
Family 001.JPG
 
Thats great @Pixstar
I would also love to try out the Hellfire Phantom to see what it feels like in the hand.
Have had my eye on that for a while...

And a Billet box, which I have fortunately had the pleasure of trying out - thanks to @Paulie - that is a stunning little device and its so comfy. The front facing fire button is great too.
I agree with you on the Billet Box @Silver , was one of the first reviews I watched when I started vaping and I think the concept is excellent! Have never tried one though...
 
@Rob Fisher - that photo is just glorious!!

If you could only keep one of those setups, what would it be and why?
(I know its hypothetical, but am keen to hear)
 
I just "registered" now Rob - the Skyline is not there :eek:
 
@Rob Fisher - that photo is just glorious!!

If you could only keep one of those setups, what would it be and why?
(I know its hypothetical, but am keen to hear)

Probably the Billet Box because it's an all rounder... good flavour... portable with decent battery life and good juice capacity... the NarTa is the best flavour but it's more of a desk device for me because you really need to fill with a syringe and it needs filling often. But if there was only one setup I could have in the whole world it would be the Hellfire Phantom with the Skyline on top.
 
Probably the Billet Box because it's an all rounder... good flavour... portable with decent battery life and good juice capacity... the NarTa is the best flavour but it's more of a desk device for me because you really need to fill with a syringe and it needs filling often. But if there was only one setup I could have in the whole world it would be the Hellfire Phantom with the Skyline on top.

This is great to hear - just epic...

Billet Box / Exocet + Phantom / Skyline - sounds like a good longer-term combo for me.
 
I am SOOO bringing my purple mod!

Great to hear @Takie
We must try do a high end photo with all the high end gear on a single table!

We did a similar type of thing about two years ago with the Reos - Rob had his Captain America drip tip - was a fabulous photo.
 
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