Best device for non-sub ohm vaping

[Kat Eyez]

So I just upgraded from my zmax v5 paired with Kanger aerotank mega bc my poor zmax has seen better days. It's bent and the screen is cracked. It still works, but I definitely needed to move forward. I bought the eleaf pico 75 with melo 3 mini mainly bc I was wanting something a lot smaller than my zmax and easy to hold for stealth vaping. Somehow I missed that this device is for sub ohming. I could kick myself since I bought 2 of them (one for my hubby) and neither of us care for the harshness and intensity of the subing. So my question is, what would a comprable device be to the zmax? But being more like the pico in size? I LOVE the hit my zmax gives, even more than my mvp or any other device I've owned. I like my coils around 1.8 ohms and keep my volts at about 3.7. I personally get the most flavor from this and a nice vapy drag.

I will tell you that I don't know much about TC other than the research I've done b4 buying the pico, but I have given sub ohming a good shot over the last few years, it's just not for me.

I've also attached my aerotank to the pico and didn't like that either. When I keeps wattage at about 7 (what I like on my non sub ohm mods) it's way too light, hardly and Vapor, but then when I kick it up, it's too hot and taste nasty, and still hardly any vapor production.

I'm desperate for advice, as my poor zmax probably won't make it another week. Thanks!

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[DaveP]

You are vaping at something like 6.66 watts at the resistance and the voltage you quoted. The Pico will work with tanks using a normal coil at 1.8 ohms and low wattage. It goes down to 1W and up to 75W. It also works in wattage mode as well as temperature control mode. It will work with your 1.8 ohm coil. Just set it to 7 watts and go up or down from there.

The Melo coils are for sub ohming. That tank is probably not for you.

The Kanger Aerotank has 1.8 ohm or .8 ohm factory coils. If you are vaping the .8 ohm coils you need to switch to the 1.8. You did try a new 1.8 ohm coil, didn't you? The vapor hit you described sounds like a coil change is in order. A gunked up coil is pretty bad at any wattage. When you turn it up it just gets worse. Years ago when I vaped the Aerotank a coil only lasted me a few days before going south.

Here's a link to a source for those.
Kangertech VOCC Aerotank, Protank 3 Organic Cotton Replacement Coil

 

[sawlight]

I agree with @DaveP id take what's on top of the Zmax and put it on the Pico, set it the same way and run with it!
The Pico is a great mod with tons of features, it can be as simple or as complicated as you chose it to be. For your needs I'd just keep it in wattage mode and use your old toppers. You can then sell or trade the Melo's off and get tanks more suitable for you.
For tanks that you might like take a look at the Aspire Nautulis tanks, the Kanger Sub tank mini, with the higher ohm heads or if you think you can build your own coils the Kayfun lite/Russian 91% would be places to start.
To answer the original question, look at the Provari V2.5's in the Provape clearance section, around $35. It doesn't have variable wattage, but it's variable voltage and built like a tank! Look at the mini if you want something smaller even. If you go this route bite the bullet and get the AW batteries, the Provari was designed around these batteries.
I hope something here helps you.

 

[NealBJr]

So I just upgraded from my zmax v5 paired with Kanger aerotank mega bc my poor zmax has seen better days. It's bent and the screen is cracked. It still works, but I definitely needed to move forward. I bought the eleaf pico 75 with melo 3 mini mainly bc I was wanting something a lot smaller than my zmax and easy to hold for stealth vaping. Somehow I missed that this device is for sub ohming. I could kick myself since I bought 2 of them (one for my hubby) and neither of us care for the harshness and intensity of the subing. So my question is, what would a comprable device be to the zmax? But being more like the pico in size? I LOVE the hit my zmax gives, even more than my mvp or any other device I've owned. I like my coils around 1.8 ohms and keep my volts at about 3.7. I personally get the most flavor from this and a nice vapy drag.

I will tell you that I don't know much about TC other than the research I've done b4 buying the pico, but I have given sub ohming a good shot over the last few years, it's just not for me.

I've also attached my aerotank to the pico and didn't like that either. When I keeps wattage at about 7 (what I like on my non sub ohm mods) it's way too light, hardly and Vapor, but then when I kick it up, it's too hot and taste nasty, and still hardly any vapor production.

I'm desperate for advice, as my poor zmax probably won't make it another week. Thanks!

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I would third that advice. The melo tank is designed for high wattage. You could put your aerotank on your istick pico like others have stated. The trick is though, to find the wattage on the istick to get it to use 3.7 volts. It says to use 7.6 watts, so I would set it for 8 watts and find out. Make sure the aerotank reads 1.8 ohms on your device. I wouldn't go any higher than 10 watts with it. Make sure it's in power mode, not temperature mode.

Devices should be the same... the Istick pico shouldn't be a sub ohm only device. Your Zmax was a 15w device. The trend HAS been to go lower ohms and higher power, but not all of us are trendy. I like a .8 ohm build, and even though I have an 80,100,and two 200w devices, I rarely take any of them above 30 watts. Some companies still make 15 watt devices. Provari still makes and sells their Provari classic for around $80US, and they've been known to be very durable.

I'd still advise trying to get the Pico to work first though.. Try low.. and go up one watt at a time until you get close to the sweet spot, then go by .? ohm increments to find the sweet spot. It shouldn't be much more than 8 watts though.

 

[KenD]

I would third that advice. The melo tank is designed for high wattage. You could put your aerotank on your istick pico like others have stated. The trick is though, to find the wattage on the istick to get it to use 3.7 volts. It says to use 7.6 watts, so I would set it for 8 watts and find out. Make sure the aerotank reads 1.8 ohms on your device. I wouldn't go any higher than 10 watts with it. Make sure it's in power mode, not temperature mode.

I'm sorry, but why would it matter to get the iStick Pico to output 3.7 volts specifically? Watts are watts.

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[Kat Eyez]

I agree with @DaveP id take what's on top of the Zmax and put it on the Pico, set it the same way and run with it!
The Pico is a great mod with tons of features, it can be as simple or as complicated as you chose it to be. For your needs I'd just keep it in wattage mode and use your old toppers. You can then sell or trade the Melo's off and get tanks more suitable for you.
For tanks that you might like take a look at the Aspire Nautulis tanks, the Kanger Sub tank mini, with the higher ohm heads or if you think you can build your own coils the Kayfun lite/Russian 91% would be places to start.
To answer the original question, look at the Provari V2.5's in the Provape clearance section, around $35. It doesn't have variable wattage, but it's variable voltage and built like a tank! Look at the mini if you want something smaller even. If you go this route bite the bullet and get the AW batteries, the Provari was designed around these batteries.
I hope something here helps you.

I'm loving that price on the provari!! Wow! That is definitely sounding like it would be right up my ally compared to the style vaper I am. I've always wanted one, just couldn't ever comfortably drop that much cash on a device.

One of the 1st things I did after my initial pico set up (once I realized it was sub ohm) was to put my aerotank atop my pico, and it definitely tasted better, but I still noticed the flavor and Vapor production weren't quite to my taste. I will however mess around with the settings a bit more to see if I simply forgot to get my wattage right. I also own and svd 2, and vamo, the old straight style evic 1, and a plethora of others. Yet I my most enjoyable hit & flavor comes from my zmax by far. I have a few aspire nautilus tanks but they've been sitting in vape gear box with all my unused gear for a year or so. I kept breaking them and they are a bit rigged lol. It used to my go to tank for years but after I broke so many I went to the SS aerotank instead of glass and it's been a godsend with my clumsy hand lol.

It sounds to me like I've just gotten too comfortable with this one device over the last 2 years and I simply need to get out of my comfort zone and do a little research and make this pico thing work (and possibly take advantage of that killer price on the provari [emoji14] )! I think we all get used to our edv at some point and that's where I am. I'm going to venture out to the vape shops and see if I can try out some of the mods you mentioned above and see what works best. In the meantime I'm going to take your advice on the Kanger and see how it goes. Bc I really do the size and style of this pico. Thanks so much for the tips!

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[Kat Eyez]

I'm sorry, but why would it matter to get the iStick Pico to output 3.7 volts specifically? Watts are watts.

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As strange as it sounds, it does make a difference to those of us who prefer volts over watts. That sounds confusing when I say it, but on my zmax I use the volt setting rather than watts bc if the volts don't line up to right around 3.7- 3.9 I lose my sweet spot.

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[mcclintock]

Yeah the Melo 3 is ridiculous. Coil head the size of some whole tanks, DEEP subohm. Don't necessarily avoid 0.99 ohm just because of it. But I hated the mini Aerotank too.

The voltmeter readout is a good sanity check against the power setting. Sometimes power modes will respond to momentary increases of resistance and crank up the voltage resulting in too much power when the connection re-engages. If the device had a voltage mode I'd say try it, but anyway that's the only case it's not just a different way of setting the same things. I've run my Pico at 7.3 watts over half the time I've had it.

 

[subwayaznm]

I would go with the Prover which you can pick up from Pro vape site under specials for about $39 and a Aspire Nautilus Tank which does offer 1.8 and 1.6ohm Heads and cost is around $29. Both are reliable and durable. They both have also been staples in Vaping for quite a few years now. I vape that set up presently and have for a few years now at around 8 - 10 Watts. Nice vapor and real good flavor as well.

 

[Hitmetwice]

If the main trouble was breaking the glass on the Nautilus tanks, there are steel sleeves and tanks for them.
Makes the tank much more durable.
Vape bands also help minimize breakage. Cheers.

 

[KenD]

As strange as it sounds, it does make a difference to those of us who prefer volts over watts. That sounds confusing when I say it, but on my zmax I use the volt setting rather than watts bc if the volts don't line up to right around 3.7- 3.9 I lose my sweet spot.

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You're imagining things. Coil mass, watts, coil materials, plenty of other variables may make a difference, but not the volts by them selves.

As for the zmax giving the best flavor. The mod only provides power, and while it can do so better or worse it won't affect the flavor.

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[Kat Eyez]

Ok, I took y'alls (and a friends) advice and messed around my pico and settings, switched to one of my higher vg juices in the melo, put a smaller drip tip in place of the big lung hitter atop the melo, kicked up the wattage to about 20, and voila!.. sweet spot achieved! I can even kick it up to 45w without any major difference in flavor, just a little warmer hit. Now I see what everyone is saying about sub ohming! I still enjoy my light and dense vape I get from my zmax and aerotank, but this is definitely going to be thrown into the mix throughout the day.

I'm so glad I've finally figured this out y'all! I've literally been trying to give this sub ohming a try for years and wasted a lot of money of high end gear to ensure I was getting the best stuff for optimal results, but it was always a huge fail! I'm still a long way from knowing all I need to, but this is a huge step for me. I no longer hate sub ohm vaping! Yay!

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[DaveP]

I'm sorry, but why would it matter to get the iStick Pico to output 3.7 volts specifically? Watts are watts.

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It wouldn't, but she's used to the Zmax voltage setting, which would be a little under 7 watts. The Pico is new territory to her and we are just trying to offer similar options for the Pico setting that matches her old voltage based vape at 1.8 ohms.

Of course, there's not a vast difference in 6, 7, and 8 watts. She just needs to use the up and down wattage button to find the sweet spot like we all do.

ETA: she just found it in the post above ...

 

[Kat Eyez]

If the main trouble was breaking the glass on the Nautilus tanks, there are steel sleeves and tanks for them.
Makes the tank much more durable.
Vape bands also help minimize breakage. Cheers.

Yes, I had forgotten about those! Thanks for the reminder [emoji6]

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[Kat Eyez]

It wouldn't, but she's used to the Zmax voltage setting, which would be a little under 7 watts. The Pico is new territory to her and we are just trying to offer similar options for the Pico setting that matches her old voltage based vape at 1.8 ohms.

Of course, there's not a vast difference in 6, 7, and 8 watts. She just needs to use the up and down wattage button to find the sweet spot like we all do.

ETA: she just found it in the post above ...

And many thanks for trying to help me out through the transition. I knew it was kind of a dumb question/ delima to start, but that never stopped me before lol. I didn't really know how to word my exact issue, but since you guys were so great about knowing exactly what I mean, I came to the right place, once again [emoji6]

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[Kat Eyez]

You're imagining things. Coil mass, watts, coil materials, plenty of other variables may make a difference, but not the volts by them selves.

As for the zmax giving the best flavor. The mod only provides power, and while it can do so better or worse it won't affect the flavor.

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Yes, you're right. It wasn't the volts persay, DaveP put it best. I was/am simply used to vaping a certain device and I'm having to learn the ropes of the newer gear in order to achieve something similar to what I'm used to. If that makes sense

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[DaveP]

And many thanks for trying to help me out through the transition. I knew it was kind of a dumb question/ delima to start, but that never stopped me before lol. I didn't really know how to word my exact issue, but since you guys were so great about knowing exactly what I mean, I came to the right place, once again [emoji6]

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There are no dumb questions. What counts is that you found the answer you were looking for.

 

[KenD]

Yes, you're right. It wasn't the volts persay, DaveP put it best. I was/am simply used to vaping a certain device and I'm having to learn the ropes of the newer gear in order to achieve something similar to what I'm used to. If that makes sense

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I don't even want to imagine how difficult it would be if I'd have to get new gear after not having kept up to date for even only a few months. Things have progressed so ridiculously fast.

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[Kat Eyez]

There are no dumb questions. What counts is that you found the answer you were looking for.

I do have another question that goes back to Ken's comment on volts and watts being the same... so if there isn't a difference, why is that they offer vv OR vw settings? It makes sense that coil material, and any number of other differences would affect the hit, but why is that if I put my aerotank on my svd 2 (which only offers vw) and I set the watts to about 6 or 7, I don't get the same taste as I do on my zmax or mvp when using volts? Even if I take my zmax and switch it to watts and run the same power I get a different tasting hit? And Ken could be right, perhaps I'm imagining it... I don't know.

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[KenD]

I do have another question that goes back to Ken's comment on volts and watts being the same... so if there isn't a difference, why is that they offer vv OR vw settings? It makes sense that coil material, and any number of other differences would affect the hit, but why is that if I put my aerotank on my svd 2 (which only offers vw) and I set the watts to about 6 or 7, I don't get the same taste as I do on my zmax or mvp when using volts? Even if I take my zmax and switch it to watts and run the same power I get a different tasting hit? And Ken could be right, perhaps I'm imagining it... I don't know.

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There are barely any vv devices produced anymore, it's almost only vw and tc nowadays. The vv and vw devices (common when I started vaping) was basically so people could choose how they wanted to adjust. Vv came first, and some people refused to accept vw as any good (the Provari had no vw adjustment so vv clearly had to be superior). Vw is easier (you don't have to care about the resistance) so it won the vv vs vw battle (I could never get how heavily invested people got into that whole thing).

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