My First Mod: The Provari Mini (A Picture Review)

[Scott_Simpson]

Given that the Senator seems to like carto tanks, I might suggest Kir Fanis' Prive & Prive-Varadero Carto tanks for a sweet look ... here's the Prive on PBusardo's black Provari ...



As for the genesis element, I've heard great things about them, but I'm a Penelope fanboi and it's hard to imagine anything better.

 

[Racehorse]

Gotta say, it's so awesome when somebody like you take the time to catalog the entire process of receiving a purchase, along with photos and everything. This is one of the best posts, esp. for newbies, that i've seen on this item.

One thing that irked me was that are all kinds of pictures comparing the Provaris to other mods, but never of household items. I had never seen/held a Provari in real life, so I was always trying to get a grasp of the size of these. I hope this next pic helps out another semi-noob like myself

Those were infinitely helpful!

Good job! And I would mention the oxidation to the vendor, just because they are the type of people who seem to really want a great product w/extra thoughtful DETAILS, and maybe they can talk to their manufacturer .....

 

[subdude]

Adding my thanks to the senator for the great pics. Been thinking about buying a Provari for a while, just not sure if I want standard or mini. After seeing the pics, mini is in the lead (mostly for it's portability). I'll wait to here how much vaping time you get with the 18350s. Guessing they're 700mah.

 

[kabonk]

I love the provari mini it's so cute and even if you add the extension cap it's still rather small, enjoy your new PV

 

[TheSenator]

So Ive been using the Provari at 4.2v with a vivi nova 2.4 head. I vaped 2-3 mL of Tiger's Blood from Friday night all the way until Sat evening on one 18350.
I would say that they last about as long a my 650 Twist, yet the vape is much thicker. Im pretty impressed with these little 18350s. Im going to try the 18490 today and tomorrow.

At first I wasnt sure Id like the small size, but at a wedding shower last night, it fit perfectly in my pocket.

 

[Baditude]

I went to an outdoor concert event Friday nite. Loverboy, Pat Benatar, and Journey. I was rocking with my Provari 2 with ext cap with a choice of cartotanks in my fanny pack. My PV never left my hand the whole show.

I had a couple of people make comments. One lady, obviously on the tippsy side, asked me what I had in that thing as her boyfrind led her away from me. Then there was a guy standing next to me at one point who just said, "I see ya got the ol' vaporizer tonight" as he gave me a thumbs up. Other than those two people, no one seemed to even notice me. I will add that I went to a security person as I was walking into the event if they had any issues with me using an electronic cigarette, and she replied, "No problem."

 

[TheSenator]

I'm on my second day using the 18490 in the Mini, but I decided that I'm not ready to take it to work, so I've been using my twists at my desk. I will probably order another 18490 just so I'm not cycling the 18350s as much.

Still having trouble deciding whether the reg cap or ext cap feels better in hand. I will say that the hand position DOES change for me with using a different cap.

Also noticing my 2.4 Vivi heads are reading 2.6-2.7 ohms. I've read this is pretty common though.

 

[VaporHead512]

I'm on my second day using the 18490 in the Mini, but I decided that I'm not ready to take it to work, so I've been using my twists at my desk. I will probably order another 18490 just so I'm not cycling the 18350s as much.

Still having trouble deciding whether the reg cap or ext cap feels better in hand. I will say that the hand position DOES change for me with using a different cap.

Also noticing my 2.4 Vivi heads are reading 2.6-2.7 ohms. I've read this is pretty common though.

I had a 2.4 head read 3.1 on my Provari yesterday.

 

[YKruss]

All 2.4 heads I have reads 3.1 on Provari.

 

[TheSenator]

I had a 2.4 head read 3.1 on my Provari yesterday.

All 2.4 heads I have reads 3.1 on Provari.

Thanks guys for verifying. Will be trying different 2.8 heads and my EmpireMods 1.8 Bridgeless atty tonight.

 

[A17kawboy]

All 2.4 heads I have reads 3.1 on Provari.

Wow. Mine have been off a point or three but .7? That's quite a difference. All the more reason to wrap your own. Just sayin'.

 

[TheSenator]

Wow. Mine have been off a point or three but .7? That's quite a difference. All the more reason to wrap your own. Just sayin'.

True, soon as first one goes out, I'm going to try. These things are lasting awhile though!
Thought I'd try on this and move to my first RBA near the same time.

 

[A17kawboy]

True, soon as first one goes out, I'm going to try. These things are lasting awhile though!
Thought I'd try on this and move to my first RBA near the same time.

That's exactly what I did. Was pleasantly surprised how forgiving the Vivi Nova heads are. Wrapped my first genesis style wick (genuine DID) last night. Working great and even that wasn't really as difficult as some have made it out to be. Hope it wasn't just beginner's luck!

 

[sgenn99]

thanks for the review. i went to my local e-cig store (i just found out there was one in my hood-sweeeet!!!!), and the guy behind the counter let me try his. just holding it in my hand, i knew it was a hell of a machine. then, i took a toot off of it-holy cow, so much vapor!!! i've been using ego twists for a while, and i love the form and function of them, the fact that they're portable and so easy to use. i'm still a newbie, so i'm not really sure about the whole variable voltage thing. if i turn my twist up too much, i get a burnt taste, especially from the kanger t2's, which i love (although i've been using these sweet tanks with custom punched cartomizers i've been getting from Texas Select Vapor lately...they're awesome! After holding and trying the ProVari Mini though, i've decided that i've just got to have one...or something similar. just the sheer power alone is mind blowing. i saw grimmgreen's youtube video of the provari vs darwin, and i know i should be into the darwin a bit more, since it takes all the guesswork out of the whole ohm's law thing (which i do NOT get) and does the math for you, but i just don't like the way it looks. the provari is beautiful. i read a comment from someone mentioning the vmax from madvapes, and it looks interesting too...apparently, it's the best of both worlds, and a lot cheaper. does anybody have any experience with it want to share their thoughts? i'd like to get myself a provari or something similar for an early christmas/hanukkah/kwanza/festivus/what-the-hell present...but being a newbie, i'm probably jumping the gun a bit, and i should stick to my twists...logically speaking, anyway. but i want an upgrade...and any advice would be more than appreciated!
thanks-vape well, friends.

 

[TheSenator]

thanks for the review. i went to my local e-cig store (i just found out there was one in my hood-sweeeet!!!!), and the guy behind the counter let me try his. just holding it in my hand, i knew it was a hell of a machine. then, i took a toot off of it-holy cow, so much vapor!!! i've been using ego twists for a while, and i love the form and function of them, the fact that they're portable and so easy to use. i'm still a newbie, so i'm not really sure about the whole variable voltage thing. if i turn my twist up too much, i get a burnt taste, especially from the kanger t2's, which i love (although i've been using these sweet tanks with custom punched cartomizers i've been getting from Texas Select Vapor lately...they're awesome! After holding and trying the ProVari Mini though, i've decided that i've just got to have one...or something similar. just the sheer power alone is mind blowing. i saw grimmgreen's youtube video of the provari vs darwin, and i know i should be into the darwin a bit more, since it takes all the guesswork out of the whole ohm's law thing (which i do NOT get) and does the math for you, but i just don't like the way it looks. the provari is beautiful. i read a comment from someone mentioning the vmax from madvapes, and it looks interesting too...apparently, it's the best of both worlds, and a lot cheaper. does anybody have any experience with it want to share their thoughts? i'd like to get myself a provari or something similar for an early christmas/hanukkah/kwanza/festivus/what-the-hell present...but being a newbie, i'm probably jumping the gun a bit, and i should stick to my twists...logically speaking, anyway. but i want an upgrade...and any advice would be more than appreciated!
thanks-vape well, friends.

Keep your Twists! I use them at work so I don't have to port around the Provari all the time. Great backups too.
Keeping reading about variable voltage/wattage and you'll get the hang. Lots of people like the KT2's, but for $10 I'd recommend trying a Vivi Nova too. Works great on both my twists and Provari.

Here's a simple calculator so you can get the idea behind Ohm's Law. Pretty easy tool:
Ohm's Law Calculator

 

[sgenn99]

i bought a vivi nova, and i love it. it does look a bit silly on my twist, though. so, i went ahead and ordered a couple vivi mini's, and they should be in my mailbox today!
i'm not planning on abandoning my twists...never! they're too idiot proof, and you can't beat the form factor for portability. i'm just thinking of having a sweet advanced bad boy for myself, when i'm at home chillin'. i love the twists, and the egos in general. i have 3 twists and 2 little egos in my kit. but you know how it is...there's always something bigger, better, cooler...you know. i'm just thinking that it would be a nice present to myself-a nice, advanced pv that i can sort of grow with as i learn more and more. you know, i can't really justify spending all that cash on something i don't really know how to use-all the ohms and watts and stuff really confuse me. there's so much to learn, it really does my head in! thanks for the ohm's law calculator link, Senator. i still don't quite get it, though. what's the benefit of higher voltage? i'm getting tons of vapor from my twists at the low setting, and like i said, when i turn it up, i start to get that burnt taste. i'm still messing around with it. it seems to produce more of a "kick" when i have it turned up, especially on my "good" tanks...but with the t2's and starlight clearos, it tastes like burning when i go up on the voltage.

 

[A17kawboy]

i bought a vivi nova, and i love it. it does look a bit silly on my twist, though. so, i went ahead and ordered a couple vivi mini's, and they should be in my mailbox today!
i'm not planning on abandoning my twists...never! they're too idiot proof, and you can't beat the form factor for portability. i'm just thinking of having a sweet advanced bad boy for myself, when i'm at home chillin'. i love the twists, and the egos in general. i have 3 twists and 2 little egos in my kit. but you know how it is...there's always something bigger, better, cooler...you know. i'm just thinking that it would be a nice present to myself-a nice, advanced pv that i can sort of grow with as i learn more and more. you know, i can't really justify spending all that cash on something i don't really know how to use-all the ohms and watts and stuff really confuse me. there's so much to learn, it really does my head in! thanks for the ohm's law calculator link, Senator. i still don't quite get it, though. what's the benefit of higher voltage? i'm getting tons of vapor from my twists at the low setting, and like i said, when i turn it up, i start to get that burnt taste. i'm still messing around with it. it seems to produce more of a "kick" when i have it turned up, especially on my "good" tanks...but with the t2's and starlight clearos, it tastes like burning when i go up on the voltage.

Does seem overwhelming at first. Steep learning curve for those of us that failed high school electrical class! But if you keep reading it's not really that complicated. Basically it's all about the watts produced by your setup. Watts equal heat which is what turns your e-liquid into vapor. More voltage is needed to produce more heat in a higher "resistance" coil. For example if you change the atomizer head in your Vivi Nova from a 1.8ohm to a 2.8ohm resistance then you'll need to increase your voltage to produce the same watts (heat). The amount of heat affects the amount of vapor, the taste of the liquid, and to some extent the amount of throat hit. Watts=Volts squared/Ohms. Hope I'm not blabbing about something you already know.

IMHO every vaper should have a Provari. At the moment it's the most reliable and accurate device available.

 

[sgenn99]

That's what I keep telling my wife. Gotta have a ProVari! If I keep talking about it, she'll tell me to get it just so I shut up about it.

 

[DirtyPaws]

Thank you for posting images of the Provari next to household images. It helped me to decide to finally buy one. From the images on their site and pictures without a good frame of reference, these devices look enormous. Your images help put them into a proper scale. I know they provide measurements on their site - but - it's hard for me to visualize the numbers. Your review has helped this buyer immensely.

 

[Riverboat]

Great choice for a first mod... Nothing like starting at the top