The first e-cigs were unregulated devices, then we had regulated fixed-voltage, then variable voltage, then variable wattage, and now we even have regulated fixed-wattage devices like the Endura Endura T18 (regulated to 14 watts, non-adjustable.) My question is, why watts? They say it makes it easier, and you can just set the wattage once and then not have to fiddle as it will automatically vary the voltage to apply the same wattage across all your atomizers. Thing is...why do we want that? I don't want that. 14 watts might be just right for a 1Ω coil, but it might be too hot for a 2Ω and it's definitely not enough power for 0.5Ω. So I end up having to adjust my watts when I switch atomizers, anyway. So there goes that theory. On the other hand, if you work out the voltage for the comfortable wattage ranges for each of those atomizers, somewhere around 4.4v (root(20), to be exact) gives a very satisfying vape on those coils at 20, 10, and 40 watts, respectively. If I could just set my device to 4.47v and leave it there, then I really would be able to "set it and forget it." And I know that there are some devices that will do that, still, but anymore you're seeing less and less of those, and more and more that only adjust in watts. It used to be that variable voltage was all we had. Why did we even move away from that in the first place?
Why watts?
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I sort of understand where you are coming from.
When I first started vaping a few years ago, it was with a fixed voltage mechanical mod. Shortly thereafter, I advanced up to a Provari which was a variable voltage regulated mod. I was quite content with that setup for 3 - 4 years. I didn't need variable wattage, because it wasn't much effort to change the voltage according to the resistance coils I was using, and I tended to purchase all of my coils in the same resistance anyway. And, I usually adjusted the voltage to the specific flavor I was using, too. Less for fruit flavors, more for coffee flavors.
There were great, heated debates on this forum back in the day on which was better: variable voltage or variable wattage. IMHO, each method gets you to the same place at the end of the day.
I made a return to my mech mods when I began to do sub-ohm coil rebuilding with my RBA's. And the last few months I've been using a 200 watt regulated mod (although I rarely use more than 30 watts).
In theory, variable wattage should automatically adjust the power applied to the coil depending upon the resistance of the different juice attachments you use. I tend to adjust my voltage or wattage depending upon the time of day, mood, or flavor, so its all moot to me.
When I first started vaping a few years ago, it was with a fixed voltage mechanical mod. Shortly thereafter, I advanced up to a Provari which was a variable voltage regulated mod. I was quite content with that setup for 3 - 4 years. I didn't need variable wattage, because it wasn't much effort to change the voltage according to the resistance coils I was using, and I tended to purchase all of my coils in the same resistance anyway. And, I usually adjusted the voltage to the specific flavor I was using, too. Less for fruit flavors, more for coffee flavors.
There were great, heated debates on this forum back in the day on which was better: variable voltage or variable wattage. IMHO, each method gets you to the same place at the end of the day.
I made a return to my mech mods when I began to do sub-ohm coil rebuilding with my RBA's. And the last few months I've been using a 200 watt regulated mod (although I rarely use more than 30 watts).
In theory, variable wattage should automatically adjust the power applied to the coil depending upon the resistance of the different juice attachments you use. I tend to adjust my voltage or wattage depending upon the time of day, mood, or flavor, so its all moot to me.
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I like watts in general. I build within a narrow ohm range and watts are set and forget for the most part. I also do what Baditude does and change wattage during the day. I like it warmer/thicker during the day and cooler/less vapor in the AM and late evening.
With that being said, I'd be totally fine if there was only VV mods on the market. Dialing in is pretty easy either way.
With that being said, I'd be totally fine if there was only VV mods on the market. Dialing in is pretty easy either way.
But then so would volts be.
If you adjust throughout the day or for different juices, the point is moot, because you would be adjusting anyway whether you're adjusting in watts or in volts. So the only part that's really relevant is the part about switching between different atomizers and in that case, it still seems to me that VV gets the job done better than VW. Either 1: the ohms are about the same, and it doesn't really matter which one you keep constant (you'll get about the same result with either volts or watts, as the other one won't change very much anyway) or, 2: the ohms are significantly different, in which case they won't all want the same wattage as each other in the first place (but they might all want about the same voltage.)
Yes, in theory, and in practice, that's exactly what it does (except technically it doesn't vary the power, but the voltage -- "power" and "watts" are the same thing, so what it does is it varies the voltage to deliver the same power or watts across all your attachments.) But what I'm getting at, is that "delivering the same power across all your attachments" seems to be counter-productive, when the attachments don't all function well at the same or similar wattages. They do all function well at similar voltages, though, in my experience anyway, which is why it seems odd to me that wattage has become the norm in spite of this fact.
This reminds me of the old VHS vs beta cassette tape debates, or today's DVD vs Blue Ray debates. Both had their time in history, and the product which eventually gained the most popularity wasn't necessarily the "best" between the two.
At the end of the day it's just personal preference. I prefer watts. It's easier for me personally and works great. When I say narrow range I mean between 1.0 - 1.5. Inside of that range 12 watts bascially vapes the same regardless of coil so I don't have to adjust anything when I switch tanks. I would if I was using volts though. You prefer volts and that's great too because it works best for you. I'm glad the choice is there either way.
It all gets you to the same place. I'll happily use either. But I will say this, on devices that I've owned where I had a choice between the two, I usually stuck with VV. Not sure why.
I like the idea of set it and forget it, but that doesn't really work out for me. I have a CoolFire IV right now that I use as my primary vape. I don't generally fire above 35 watts ever, but sometimes I like it lower or higher, depending on if I'm dripping, if I have a tank, and what flavor/Pg/Vg ratio I'm using. Different juices taste different at different power, in different toppers. I won't sacrifice flavor for any reason. No need to. I'll just add more nicotine to my juice to increase the TH and nicotine satisfaction, if I have a juice that doesn't taste optimal to me at higher power; big clouds are not a concern for me. So VV or VW, I'm fiddling anyway.
I like the idea of set it and forget it, but that doesn't really work out for me. I have a CoolFire IV right now that I use as my primary vape. I don't generally fire above 35 watts ever, but sometimes I like it lower or higher, depending on if I'm dripping, if I have a tank, and what flavor/Pg/Vg ratio I'm using. Different juices taste different at different power, in different toppers. I won't sacrifice flavor for any reason. No need to. I'll just add more nicotine to my juice to increase the TH and nicotine satisfaction, if I have a juice that doesn't taste optimal to me at higher power; big clouds are not a concern for me. So VV or VW, I'm fiddling anyway.
Why watts?
Coils change resistance with use. The resistance will gradually creep up over time. Variable wattage will automatically adjust for the slight resistance changes, variable voltage will deliver the same voltage regardless of the change in resistance, resulting in a change in the way the coil works.
For example, let's say you start with a 1ohm coil at 4 Volts. You're resulting wattage is 16 watts being pushed through the coil. Now, after some use let's say your coil now reads 1.2ohms. With variable voltage you end up getting a gradually weaker vape as the wattage drops from 16 watts down to just 13.3 watts. With variable wattage the 16 watts is maintained despite the increase in resistance.
It is this very aspect of variable wattage that makes Temperature Control possible. Temperature Control wouldn't work with a Variable Voltage mod because VV ignores resistance changes.
Coils change resistance with use. The resistance will gradually creep up over time. Variable wattage will automatically adjust for the slight resistance changes, variable voltage will deliver the same voltage regardless of the change in resistance, resulting in a change in the way the coil works.
For example, let's say you start with a 1ohm coil at 4 Volts. You're resulting wattage is 16 watts being pushed through the coil. Now, after some use let's say your coil now reads 1.2ohms. With variable voltage you end up getting a gradually weaker vape as the wattage drops from 16 watts down to just 13.3 watts. With variable wattage the 16 watts is maintained despite the increase in resistance.
It is this very aspect of variable wattage that makes Temperature Control possible. Temperature Control wouldn't work with a Variable Voltage mod because VV ignores resistance changes.
Let's be perfectly clear, here. Voltage and wattage are interdependent. You can't change one without changing the other (assuming all other variables, specifically resistance, remain the same). You turn the device up, they both go up. You turn it down, they both go down. When adjusting manually, it really doesn't matter which one the device uses. For all we care, it could just have a dial labeled 1-10 or "min" and "max," and it would still work exactly the same.
There's nothing "magic" about VW that makes TC possible. When it detects a rise in resistance, indicating increased temperature in the coil, it automatically turns down the (applied voltage and therefore also the derived wattage) to maintain the desired temperature. This would work just as well no matter which value was shown in larger font on the device's screen. And, for all intents and purposes, that's really the only difference between VW and VV, is which number is shown in bigger font on the screen. They're both there. They both go up or down by the same amount, relative to each other, regardless of which one you're adjusting "directly." As people have pointed out, "they both get you to the same place." Whether it's you making the adjustment manually, or the device doing it automatically in temp control mode, they both get you to the same place. So clearly, "dialing in" the level via manual/automatic adjustment of the (power or voltage) setting on a single atomizer is not the issue here.
The only other difference is how it behaves when you switch to a different resistance. And that's where, to me, it all falls apart. Either it applies the same set voltage, resulting in a different derived wattage, or it changes the applied voltage so that the derived wattage remains where you set it. So the question is, when you switch to a different resistance, do you want to fire it at the same watts (and different volts) or the same volts (and different watts)? Are you telling me that you vape your 0.5Ω atties at the same wattage as your 2.0Ω ones? Because the whole premise of variable wattage, assumes that you do. I don't know about you, but that's not how I vape. I like my 0.5Ω at around 40 watts. That's around 4.4v. On the other hand, I like my 2.0Ω coils around 10 watts. By sheer coincidence (or not, really, and this is my whole point), that also happens to be, right around 4.4v. Therefore, changing the voltage applied, in order to keep the wattage constant across different attachments, even though they won't function well at the same wattage, but would function well at the same voltage, seems counterproductive.
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because people in general are really bad at math.... 
heres an example...
3 people went to lunch and the bill was 30$ so the 3 people each put up 10$ to cover the bill..
the waiter made a mistake and the actual bill was 25$ so the waiter gave each person 1$ to each person and kept 2$ for him self... ( 3+2 =5 and 5+25 = 30)
soooo... if each paid 9$ ( since 1$ was returned to each customer) and the waiter kept 2$
( which is 3X9 = 27 and the 2$ +27$ = 29$... where did the 1$ go??????
heres an example...
3 people went to lunch and the bill was 30$ so the 3 people each put up 10$ to cover the bill..
the waiter made a mistake and the actual bill was 25$ so the waiter gave each person 1$ to each person and kept 2$ for him self... ( 3+2 =5 and 5+25 = 30)
soooo... if each paid 9$ ( since 1$ was returned to each customer) and the waiter kept 2$
( which is 3X9 = 27 and the 2$ +27$ = 29$... where did the 1$ go??????
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On my mods the wattage effects the voltage and I know basically the sweet spots for the ohms I use for the most part.
Tax? Lolbecause people in general are really bad at math....
heres an example...
3 people went to lunch and the bill was 30$ so the 3 people each put up 10$ to cover the bill..
the waiter made a mistake and the actual bill was 25$ so the waiter gave each person 1$ to each person and kept 2$ for him self... ( 3+2 =5 and 5+25 = 30)
soooo... if each paid 9$ ( since 1$ was returned to each customer) and the waiter kept 2$
( which is 3X9 = 27 and the 2$ +27$ = 29$... where did the 1$ go??????
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Ahh but that is exactly why VV works with wire that changes resistance. The voltage stays the same as the wire heats up. At some point the temperature of the wire vs the voltage applied will flatten out. Start drawing on it and the cool air cools the coil and the coils resistance goes down making it draw more current and heat the coil back up again.
At a set voltage I can hold the fire button until the hit timer expires without burning any cotton.
I've been purchasing VV/VW mods for this specifically.
because people in general are really bad at math....
heres an example...
3 people went to lunch and the bill was 30$ so the 3 people each put up 10$ to cover the bill..
the waiter made a mistake and the actual bill was 25$ so the waiter gave each person 1$ to each person and kept 2$ for him self... ( 3+2 =5 and 5+25 = 30)
soooo... if each paid 9$ ( since 1$ was returned to each customer) and the waiter kept 2$
( which is 3X9 = 27 and the 2$ +27$ = 29$... where did the 1$ go??????
hahaha lovely. If each customer paid $9 3x9 = $27, the bill was $25 and the waiter kept $2
$27 == $27 there is no other dollar.
It works better when you have multiple devices in close range like .5 - .8 would be similar at the same wattage. The only difference would be potentially more heat being created at a higher ohms. .8 @ 50w is a hotter vape then .5 @ 50w but still very close.
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Think so?
Vape your tank/RDA until the wick is dry and see what happens. My TC mod cuts the power as the wick dries out. I'll bet money that in VV mode your mod gives you a burnt hit.
Sure, VV mode does not have dry wick detection - that is where the users eyeballs needs to be engaged with the level of juice in the tank.
However chain vape a Kanthal coil on VW and then do the same with TC wire on VV. The experience is more like TC mode than VW mode.
I use VV on all my mods that support it, even with Kanthal atomizers.
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