I got my mares fusion octopus brand new from a seller from ebay (he was nice enough to charge me only $200.00 with free shipping so I got this octopus with a wonderful deal). I've attached with to the Mares MR12 first stage regulator and I've tested out for the first time in a fresh water lake. Let me tell you that Mares promise most of what it said in regards to the Mares fusion regulator set and octopus. With the VAD system and VAD system plus (VAD is an acromyn for Vortex Assisted Design) in the second stage, I had an awesome time breathing through the 2nd stage octopus without any problems at all. In comparison with other mares products like the Abyss and Rover and some other advance regulators from Scubapro and Atomic, to breathe through the 2nd stage octo was like breathing fresh air at sea level. I almost forgot that I was breathing through the regulator while I was underwater at the lake. That is how awesome this 2nd stage octo is to me. Of course all of mares 2nd stages from say the Rover to the Abyss have the VAD system inside, but the mares fusion 2nd stages and octo VAD system is even more advance and it has the special VAD+ where if you need more air due to say scuba diving underwater against a current for example, then there is a knob next the 2nd stage mouthpiece where you can adjust it to either the regular VAD or VAD+.Notice that I give the fusion 2nd stage octo 4 stars instead of 5. The only minor issue that I have with this octo is the same thing that I've just mention about the VAD and VAD+ inside the regulator. Since the VAD and especially the VAD+ allows more air to flow from the tank to the 2nd stage so that a diver can breathe underwater of course, I did notice with my dive computer (I own a oceanic datamask with a transmitter) that I was using air in my tank more quickly than usual. This didn't happen to me when I was using the Mares Rover or any other regulator from Mares, Scubapro, Atomic, or anyone else. There was nothing wrong with the bcd, tank, etc. that I was using either and it wasn't the depth of the lake either as the maximum depth of the lake that I was in was 25 feet and I'm aware that the deeper a diver goes the faster that I use the air in the tank due to the pressure underwater decreasing gas volume inside the tank. However, at any depth in a lake or an ocean, I still should not have used up air in a tank that quickly.That is just a minor issue to me and I don't breathe heavy at all on land or in a body of water and I'm not a smoker or have any lung problems like asthma. If you are a heavy breather or plan to dive underwater where you have to swim through a current, then this 2nd stage octo or the entire regulator set in general may not be for you.All in all, I do recommend this Mares 2nd stage octo or the entire Mares fusion regulator set to any scuba diver regardless of skill level otherwise.

ITEM IS AN EXCELLENT PRODUCT MONEY CAN BUY