Family Activity "X", Lets Discuss a mod together...The PVA40

[madmonkey]

First thing first, this isn't just a review or a slam session on Peg, There are plenty of other threads for that. What we have here I can only describe as "The best mod of late 2014" and we only got it six months late. So love it, hate it, regret it, sleep with it, here is your place to to talk about it. So let the fun begin. Before I write my "pro's and cons" and opinion of the device it'self let's start with a few pictures to give every one a better idea of what it looks like and how it came out. I will say it weights a disappointing metric shit ton that makes my old VTR seem like a feather in comparison. But be the judge of how you rate the appearance yourself. I don't have the exact measurements but it's a big box as well, quite a bit larger than a Segelei 150.

 

[madmonkey]

As you can see, it's not a bad looking guy on the surface, it's not the mod's fault for his reputation out the starting gate. In my next post below I will put up pictures of the coil I used to test it out.

 

[madmonkey]

What we have here is a 9 wrap 28 gauge Nickel wire build with an inner diameter of 9/64th's coming out to 0.12 ohms. It had been months since I did a nickel build, much let alone any other build than a single or dual parallel build except for one standard coil for a Kayfun...this was actually my third coil I wrapped to make sure I had a good solid coil for testing the functionality of the DNA40 and the device in whole. I put a standard dripper on it as well and a Subtank to see how accurate the ohm's reader built into the DNA chip is and it is within accurate within .02 which is better than most ohm meters and on par with my other DNA devices.

 

[madmonkey]

Ok, enough with the show and tell....let's get down to the brass tacks.....

I am not here to discuss the drama surrounding this device...it's been covered in other threads and we are all aware, (especially those of us that supported the project,) of it's delays and issues. Feel free to discuss it below but I simply stating here what the device is, what it could be and what it couldn't....

So, the PVA40 is a crowd funded concept mod that a Youtube reviewer came up with the idea of building a mod "for the people, by the people." It was funded by a indegogo campaign and some of the design concepts were voted on by the channel's subscribers while other aspects were overruled and decided by the reviewer. The project started in November of 2014, where at the time, this mod was on the cutting edge of high end mods featuring the new DNA 40 temperature regulation technology. However, after many setbacks and problems, most if not all backers did not receive their mod till the end of June or beginning of July 2015 which by that time made this mod largely passed by in terms of technology with Yihi's new temperature control boards of their own changing the playing field in terms of relevant vaping technology and with the rumor of a new Evolv board in the works makes this mod old news before it's even gone threw it's first battery change. So before we dive into the Pro's and Con's of the mod let's go into the DNA40 chipsets that are used in these mods and why I am dissapointed with them....see next post by me below for more....

 

[madmonkey]

Now let's discuss the heart of the PVA40, the DNA40 temperature limiting chipset that is the heart and soul of the mod.

The DNA boards used in the PVA40 are supposed to be the latest "version 4" of the chipset. However they have been overshadowed by their newer, larger screened siblings that everyone was hoping for but did not get. While unlike my earlier version DNA40 chipset in my Vaporshark rDNA I got shortly after their release at the end of 2014 this chip appears to be more stable and the Celsius feature is nice (if I ever had a reason to use it,) The board in my PVA40 still gives me the same issue my Vaporshark does annoying me to no end and defeating the purpose of my purchasing this mod in the first place. Although my temperature limiting mode works quite nicely it has a flaw...everytime the board goes to sleep I have to wake it up, fire it once or twice, unscrew my atty, screw it back on, and tell it that it's got a new coil on it even though it's the same one....then the temp functions work fantastically....they work better than on my vaporshark where sometimes that board will try and stay in temp mode when I put a Kanthal coil atty on it or won't ask me if it's a new coil or not after I change them and still malfunction in temperature mode....so in that respect the PVA40 was a big win for me because I am finally actually able to use temperature regulation, albeit with a small hassle, but I can finally see what all the fuss is about and enjoy my vape off of it somewhat. And I must say I am impressed with the temp regulation...I have it set at 400 because I prefer a cooler vape and the only time it hits that is when the wick is near dry and I haven't been able to burn my cotton yet despite attempts of doing it on purpose.

So...in short and closing...when I get the temp function to work it works flawlessly, I just have to wake it up and make it think I've changed atty's to get it work at all so to quote someone else...that's a "no thumbs" winner there.

Stay tuned for my next post....the pro's and con's of the PVA40 as a whole...

 

[madmonkey]

Alright...so you're still with me...awesome! Let's keep things moving right along...Here's my Pro's and Con's for the PVA40 with my final thoughts review in closing...

The Pros: This is a parallel wired DNA40 device. True, it's not the cutting edge concept device at the time of the writing of this but at it's conception this could have been a real contender in the playing field. With most high MAH DNA devices being hard wired LiPo packs the ability to change out the batteries put it initially in the same playing field with the Vapor Flask. The DNA maxes out at about 16 amps and is meant to be run off a single battery so after three nights of constant use I am still using the same set of Samsung 25R's and they are still going strong. This thing does have the battery life that a dual battery anything should. The batteries fit snug and they fit well. The battery door is fitted properly and held on by strong magnets and doesn't rattle or give me any grief. The 510 connection is recessed and spring loaded making everything I've screwed onto it sit flush and neat and is floating in a well to allow larger than 22 mm attys and tanks a little "wiggle" room to have a nice fit. The cover for the usb recharging plug is a nice touch but I am sure I'l loose it in a month. I haven't attempted to charge the batteries with the on board charger yet so I can't say to it's functionality at this time but I will update this when the batteries are ready to be recharged and report on that. It's a nice looking mod and is definitely solid.

The Cons: The buttons are cheap and it shows. The fire button is especially loose and rattles and has a "hair" trigger to it. These mods were supposed to have the Segelei fire buttons in them...I own a Sigelei 150 and the buttons on the PVA40 are crap in comparison. Also, despite feeling solid and well made, if I had to take a guess of what it's made out of I'd say a Zinc alloy or some sort or other cheap metal. This mod is probably twice the weight of my VTR making it impractical as an all day carry mod...it feels like it's going to rip my pockets out so it's been grounded for desk use only. Along with the weight, the size of the thing is massive. I have huge hands and I feel like the thing was made for my hand specifically so with it being quite a bit larger than a Segelei 150 and twice the weight I can only imagine how uncomfortable it must be for a majority of users making it impractical for them with so many other DNA40 mods out there to choose from. The small screen DNA40 and having to "trick" the chip to make the temp mode work is another con for me...It's well known that Evolv has a 6-8 week lead time for large orders and I am sure they could have accomidated us with the larger screen for ordering that kind of numbers...even if I am wrong about the screen we were told these were "bug free" chips...I don't know what else to call tricking my mod to get it to work right other than a bug. At least the screens work.

In closing... do I regret buying it? No...

But.....if I hadn't been part of the campaign to build this mod in the first place would I buy it off a store now that I've seen it and used it and held it in my hands....the answer is probably not to well...no, no I wouldn't. The price point at the time made it seem ideal but in reality by the time it was delivered there are many other temperature regulated mods by various companies and I personally the more I use nickel the more I don't care for it. Never burning your wick is nice, but I still prefer my old school Kanthal parallel builds so for me Temp control isn't a big selling point that determines whether or not I am going to buy a mod. The battery life and the DNA40 is always a nice touch but it's sheer size and bulk don't make it practical for most users. I was looking forward to getting this mod for months, gave up on it, got excited when it finally shipped, and now after three days of testing it feel like I could have done better. I plan to hold on to it and use it for what it is, but for now my trusty Vaporshark DNA30 and rDNA40 will remain my trustly all day cary mods. This was a pipe dream that was too good to be true that good intentions that the road was paved with. I like the mod, but I don't love it...and for the price I can't bitch because it is a DNA40 mod I got for 140 bucks....but at a price point like that I could have picked someting up from Fasttech and had it months earlier, much cheaper, and wired the board in for the same price with just a little hard work...or paid a couple extra bucks and had a DNA40 when it was worth having.

The bottom line, as much as I love my rDNA40 Yihi has put out some fantastic boards of their own and the DNA200 looming in the future I wish I had skipped the second DNA40 device route and looked into one of them instead. I will continue to own this mod and use it for what it is...something great for long road trips and testing out nickel builds where I don't have to keep it in my pocket all day. It truly is one of the great DNA mods of 2014 with just a few flaws, it just got here 6 months too late...

...and in the vaping world where timing is everything...that six months probably will sink the PVA40 and any other future mods from the concepts originator. And that's kind of a sad thing because a mod designed by vapors started out as a really awesome idea....for whatever the reasons are and be it just went wrong...and that's all I have to say about the PVA40.

Anyone who is still sitting here with me please post your thoughts and comments below...my hope is to get every PVA40 owner to chime in with their opinion and review of it so if something like this is ever attempted again there is a feedback reference from the first time so the same mistakes can be avoided and never repeated. Because lets be honest, a mod for you designed by you sounds awesome right? And you can get that....but what if someone would make your mod idea for everyone? You'd like that too right? Well...maybe someday we can try this again and get it right...let's start small by making our voices once again all here heard where they won't be censored or deleted.

How do you like your PVA40?

 

[hazozita]

Great write-up @madmonkey. Lots of good info. Since I’m having zero luck selling mine even at $60, I took it out of the box and went back to using it. Good god, this is one heavy mod! It feels like a brick compared with every other dual battery mod I have. Definitely not a mod I’d ever take out of the house.

The up/down buttons are also poorly placed – they are too close to the fire button, so I’ve been hitting them occasionally when I thumb fire the PVA, which is the first time that has ever happened to me with a box mod. I find I have to use power lock so that an errant press of the up/down button doesn’t change the settings.

The fire button gets the prize as the worst fire button I’ve ever used on a regulated mod. It works, but it feels like it came from the sale bin at the Dollar Store. (Which probably is not far from the truth).

The DNA chip has been very stable. Zero glitches, and the power level indicator seems to be working better than the previous generation chip that I have in my Vapor Flask.

Living without resistance lock can be a challenge, but is doable. I’ve been using a no resistance lock DNA since November, and have found that it’s best (at least with my build skills) to avoid any atty that has a post hole connection for the leads. It will work great for a while but when refinement kicks in, things can – and usually do – go south. However, screw-fastened leads work great. I’ve been using the Apollo and the Calix (both are from By Leo) for a couple of months now, and both have been rock solid. Works just as well on day 2 (or 3 or 4, etc.) as it did on day 1.

The PVA40 did serve me well last night. I got the email that the Cloudmaker Technologies pre-sale was live and I was drawn to it like a moth to a flame. Love the concept; love the design; impressed with the company; better than expected price point. But, looked at the PVA, and thought.....let's wait a bit and see how they actually pull it off.

Of course, the 4th of July sales meant that I still put money in the pockets of a few vendors. Just could not resist getting a second Lotus LE80 since it was on sale for $39. And a Mink Machine chuff cap for the Marquis. And some FA flavors I've been wanting to try. Got to start looking for a 12-step program for vape mail addiction....

 

[Fictitious Character]

Thanks for the detail follow up of this device. I did not buy one but was half ass following the initial family discussions. Shame that it took so long to actually arrive in hands because vape tech moves fast and at the time of conception it seemed like cutting edge and today it is old tech.

I find it odd that with the long delay it did not come with a newer version of the dna board. Must have had the boards sitting while they waited for the budget fire buttons to arrive lol.

 

[SHEK]

Great write-up Since I’m having zero luck selling mine even at $60...

You'd be better off removing the DNA40 from the enclosure and asking a modder to place it in a much lighter enclosure with high quality parts.

If you do, you won't want to sell it....

It would cost more than what you've already spent, but in the end you'd get exactly what you paid for and wouldn't have to eat an enormous loss.

Might try looking in the modder's area here for someone willing to do it?

Certainly didn't help your sale by another unhappy PVA40 recipient commenting in your classifieds ad....but it should be expected.

Best Wishes

 

[Fictitious Character]

You'd be better off removing the DNA40 from the enclosure and asking a modder to place it in a much lighter enclosure with high quality parts.

If you do, you won't want to sell it....

It would cost more than what you've already spent, but in the end you'd get exactly what you paid for and wouldn't have to eat an enormous loss.

Might try looking in the modder's area here for someone willing to do it?

Certainly didn't help your sale by another unhappy PVA40 recipient commenting in your classifieds ad....but it should be expected.

Best Wishes

There are three of these on page one at ecf. hazozita's looks to be a fair deal at 60 bucks for a dna 40 the other ppl are asking what they paid.

 

[SHEK]

There are three of these on page one at ecf. hazozita's looks to be a fair deal at 60 bucks for a dna 40 the other ppl are asking what they paid.

Funny, I just noticed that now too.

I've got a feeling that we're all going to be seeing a new record to be set in the ECF classifieds. We could all be seeing hundreds of them in there all at once.

Start counting, cuz there could be a race to sell yours first before the onslaught of "I'll take ANYTHING!"

$60 is gonna turn into..."How much for just the DNA, you can keep the enclosure?"

Edit...there's more than 3 in there now. One in the back has 78 views and not a single comment. What's gonna kill the sales of these isn't gonna be the 'obvious', it's gonna be too many of them in there and they'll all be brand new....that'll scare off a lot of peeps. And once they find out they're the heaviest mod known, that'll be the end of it. A seller would be lucky to dump it at $60.

 

[hazozita]

Yeah - seems like there's a flurry of PVA sales! I'm not going to go below $60 shipped. If the market value is less than that, I'll either gift it to one of my nephew's friends or keep it as a build platform. I've always wanted one of those setups where you can build, check your resistance and fire your coils. I saw a review of one of them (can't recall where) that was really nice looking, but ridiculously expensive ($200 or so). USA Ohm Meters has one that is more reasonable ($85) but less fancy.

One nice thing about the weight of the PVA -- it's not going to tip over!

 

[SHEK]

I've always wanted one of those setups where you can build, check your resistance and fire your coils. I saw a review of one of them (can't recall where) that was really nice looking, but ridiculously expensive ($200 or so).

That's actually an excellent idea for re-purposing it.

Maybe try selling it that way?

You'd probably get more for it.

 

[Fictitious Character]

Funny, I just noticed that now too.

I've got a feeling that we're all going to be seeing a new record to be set in the ECF classifieds. We could all be seeing hundreds of them in there all at once.

Start counting, cuz there could be a race to sell yours first before the onslaught of "I'll take ANYTHING!"

$60 is gonna turn into..."How much for just the DNA, you can keep the enclosure?"

Edit...there's more than 3 in there now. One in the back has 78 views and not a single comment. What's gonna kill the sales of these isn't gonna be the 'obvious', it's gonna be too many of them in there and they'll all be brand new....that'll scare off a lot of peeps. And once they find out they're the heaviest mod known, that'll be the end of it. A seller would be lucky to dump it at $60.

Yeah a flooded market will not help anyone. If I see one for 40 bucks I will snag it out of pure curiosity.

It is a shame for the buyers that it got drug out so long and because of that resale is difficult. If it was a dual batt series sx350j mod it would be a hot ticket item but small screen and possibly buggy dna40 is not a hot item.

 

[Fictitious Character]

Yeah - seems like there's a flurry of PVA sales! I'm not going to go below $60 shipped. If the market value is less than that, I'll either gift it to one of my nephew's friends or keep it as a build platform. I've always wanted one of those setups where you can build, check your resistance and fire your coils. I saw a review of one of them (can't recall where) that was really nice looking, but ridiculously expensive ($200 or so). USA Ohm Meters has one that is more reasonable ($85) but less fancy.

One nice thing about the weight of the PVA -- it's not going to tip over!

That is a good idea.

60 bucks is a fair price imo. Dual batt dna 40 small screen should have no problem bringing that but the form factor and density of the device is/will work against it.

 

[SHEK]

If it was a dual batt series sx350j mod it would be a hot ticket item but small screen and possibly buggy dna40 is not a hot item.

It's not the DNA or the amount of time it took to be delivered that makes this thing virtually worthless.

It's the crap parts and a lead brick of an enclosure that killed it and made it a $140 paperweight.

The biggest complaint is it's immense weight, from what I've been told, it's almost 2X's heavier than a VTR with the batteries.

That's insanely heavy for a mod.

I can only imagine the reaction of all of the women that bought one, let alone the men?

If it were made of machined Aluminum, 20mm shorter, it had a real FDV 510 and it had the Sigelei buttons that everyone was expecting and paid for....nobody would be selling it.

The other serious problem is that the device isn't fused. There's no protection between the batteries and the DNA. So if you short out the device anywhere in between the batteries and the DNA, or you put one of your cells in upside down.....you'd be holding a grenade.

Cuz the moment you push that fire button = KaBOOM!

This is why Peg so strongly made the point NOT to put a battery in upside down.

But what he neglected to mention, is just what will happen if you do; your batteries could explode.

Had there been fuses added to protect the batteries....this wouldn't be an issue and that point wouldn't have been brought up.

The only way around this 'problem' is to use protected batteries....or open it up and solder fuses between the battery cradle and the DNA.

 

[Fictitious Character]

It's not the DNA or the amount of time it took to be delivered that makes this thing virtually worthless.

It's the crap parts and a lead brick of an enclosure that killed it and made it a $140 paperweight.

The biggest complaint is it's immense weight, from what I've been told, it's almost 2X's heavier than a VTR without the batteries.

That's insanely heavy for a mod.

I can only imagine the reaction of all of the women that bought one, let alone the men?

If it were made of machined Aluminum, 20mm shorter, it had a real FDV 510 and it had the Sigelei buttons that everyone was expecting and paid for....nobody would be selling it.

No doubt those are the big issues as the size and weight is substantial from what I have read, and that is a direct contradiction to what the people said they wanted of the mod at the time of conception as far as I can tell.
At the time when the idea came to light of a mod for the people from the people a dna40 for a buck forty was a good price but since then many of the dna40 mods have been slowly racing to the bottom. An older small screen dna40 without atty lock is not on peoples wish lists and just gives it one more con to focus on. Right now there are many good temp limiting mods out there to choose from and the majority of them are not being compared to a brick as a streamline form factor is important for on the go.

Anyone know an estimate of how many of these things were made?

 

[SHEK]

Anyone know an estimate of how many of these things were made?

According to Peg....1000.

 

[hazozita]

The battery issue is not as severe as that. It's the same with any dual battery DNA mod, such as the Vapor Flask. Put in both batteries the wrong way and you're fine since the board has reverse battery protection. The mod won't work, but nothing bad happens. But, put in one battery the right way and one the wrong way and you fry the DNA board. No explosion, no flames, just a board that has been rendered toast.

People who have done it with the VF report that there's a little smell of burning insulation when the board cooks. And a lot of swearing when they find out that VF does not cover that under the warranty. I triple check when I'm swapping batteries on my VF, and make a point of avoiding that task early in the AM or late in the PM when my brain is often not fully engaged.

Happy to report that my PVA is sitting in a box waiting for the USPS to come on Monday. Seems $60 is the price point to hit.

 

[SHEK]

The battery issue is not as severe as that. It's the same with any dual battery DNA mod, such as the Vapor Flask. Put in both batteries the wrong way and you're fine since the board has reverse battery protection. The mod won't work, but nothing bad happens. But, put in one battery the right way and one the wrong way and you fry the DNA board. No explosion, no flames, just a board that has been rendered toast.

Is that what you're repeating, or what you actually know for sure?

With dual parallel batteries, you need 1 resettable SMT fuse on each battery.

The fuses would prevent ANY damage to the cells OR the DNA, even if you insert one upside down! (Shown on the left)

If you added the fuses shared between the batteries, as shown on the right, your batteries would still be protected but your DNA would fry....if you inserted one upside down.

If there no fuses at all....KaBOOM!

It's not the same as any dual battery mod, cuz a professional would KNOW how to build it correctly.

Fuses are meant to protect your batteries from exploding if a short occurs. However....SMT fuses, when using one for each cell, provide added protection and prevent your DNA from frying. No other known fuse will do this, just the SMT's.

Strap fuses might also do it, but they haven't been tested yet in the general "modders" area....since the SMT's have already been proven.

 

[SHEK]

Quick way to find out if your mod is fused is to open up the compartment and look for a fuse.

It should be on the positive end and close to the cradle.

If all that you see is a wire leading from the battery cradle to the DNA....then you'll know that there's no fuse.

Check both positive a negative.

This is what you should be looking for...

The green colored SMT's will probably be black in color, but they might be sealed in heatshrink tubing.

The radial fuse will look like the one furthest left, it'll be big...can't miss it....and it will probably be wrapped in Kapton tape (yellow).

If you find radial fuse(s) in there, then yes....those will not protect the DNA.

ONLY the SMT fuses will.

 

[SHEK]

 

[SHEK]

This is a dual parallel battery set-up using a DNA 30....

It's exactly the same set-up when using a DNA 40.

See the two black fuses close to the charger?

They're actually wired closest to the batteries but you can't really tell because their mounted to stripboard.

They're wired one for each cell.

 

[SHEK]

And just to prove it to ya...

"One batt inserted backwards, the other batt inserted correctly...red LED is lit indicating which batt is inserted backwards... the problem with this set up, other than a batt is inserted backwards :laugh: is that without the red LED indicator there's no system warning and the DNA works fine."

 

[cascadian]

5 consecutive posts without a response. I had a neighbor that talked to themselves, stop signs and cars. Diagnosed schizophrenic. Talking to yourself online. Wonder what that diagnosis would be?

 

[SHEK]

5 consecutive posts without a response. I had a neighbor that talked to themselves, stop signs and cars. Diagnosed schizophrenic. Talking to yourself online. Wonder what that diagnosis would be?

I dunno Doc, what do you think?

Do I get my full 45 minutes and you still charge for an hour?

 

[hazozita]

5 consecutive posts without a response. I had a neighbor that talked to themselves, stop signs and cars. Diagnosed schizophrenic. Talking to yourself online. Wonder what that diagnosis would be?

I assume you're referring to Shek? I learned on ECF that any thread with shek in it is far more enjoyable with him on ignore. I did just that a few posts back. That way, his posts never even show up when I look at this (or any other) thread.

 

[cascadian]

Yes... Lectures on forum etiquette aren't typically very productive. I usually try to find other ways to suggest a change in behavior.

 

[SHEK]

I assume you're referring to Shek? I learned on ECF that any thread with shek in it is far more enjoyable with him on ignore. I did just that a few posts back. That way, his posts never even show up when I look at this (or any other) thread.

Yea...I suppose none of this concerns you at all now.

Congrats on selling your PVA40, it's someone else's problem now isn't it.

 

[st0nedpenguin]

I'm not sure why everyone is getting so butthurt about useful info regarding safe fuse installation.

 

[Fictitious Character]

I'm not sure why everyone is getting so butthurt about useful info regarding safe fuse installation.

I figured it had to do with past forum interactions.

 

[madmonkey]

Yeah - seems like there's a flurry of PVA sales! I'm not going to go below $60 shipped. If the market value is less than that, I'll either gift it to one of my nephew's friends or keep it as a build platform. I've always wanted one of those setups where you can build, check your resistance and fire your coils. I saw a review of one of them (can't recall where) that was really nice looking, but ridiculously expensive ($200 or so). USA Ohm Meters has one that is more reasonable ($85) but less fancy.

One nice thing about the weight of the PVA -- it's not going to tip over!

There is nothing wrong with a small screened DNA40, if you look at evolv's website they sell the small screen and the larger screened version both for 60 bucks just the same new either way...and for a working used board and a nice battery sled and whatever parts else you do or don't want to gut out of the thing 60 bucks is a fair price in my opinion if you want to sell it and I wouldn't go less. I plan to keep and use mine either way...it's still a parallel DNA40 mod at the end of the day and I've got big enough hands that other than the sheer weight the form factor still fits them quite well...I know I am the exception in this but I paid for it and I plan to use it.

Thanks to those who chimed in that have one, and to those that didn't get one I don't blame you, but the honest truth in my opinion was until we finally got them in our hands it could have gone either way with them....they could have turned out to be best DNA mod yet instead of soso. Like I said, I like mine enough to hand onto it and play with it, either way...it is a big part of what will someday become vape history assuming the government doesn't take our gear away...looking forward to more owner's responses.

@SHEK .... thanks for the lesson in fusing DNA boards, I feel honored that you spent half of your entire posting time giving a lesson on how to fuse a DNA properly on a thread I made to review a specific mod for. I am aware of the need to fuse dual battery DNA mods for that reason, or single or any other battery configuration with a DNA mod for that matter, especially since the older ones didn't have built in protection at all the fuses were kind of required to have any reverse battery protection. I am also honored that you spent almost half of your total post count explaining this in a review thread for a mod you've had it out for since the beginning and I am not even sure if you own, As I look back at your posts in this forum they're all basically hating against this mod...you have that right, and your info about fusing batteries for DNA mods is good for people to know but I have to ask one simple question.....why you mad bro? What do you have against this one mod that would make you spend your entire time here when it's so much better than the other place (and I remember you from there too even if you don't remember me,) trolling this one little mod? Seriously bro, really?

 

[hazozita]

Glad that the thread is going back on point, and my apologies @madmonkey for my contribution towards derailing it.

You're right -- nothing wrong with the small screen DNA. What drew me to the PVA was the fact that in November 2014 there was only one choice for a commercially available dual battery DNA40: a Vapor Flask. It cost $300 and you had to be quick when they came into stock or you'd miss it. I bought one in Nov and loved it. Still do -- at any point in time I usually own about 20+ mods, but the VF is one that is always in daily rotation. A small screen DNA40 without atty lock is still a very capable performer. It can challenge your build skills, but it also can deliver an excellent vape.

I wanted a second one but $300 is hard to justify once, and impossible to justify a second time. So the PVA comes along and offers the same chip, dual batteries and a price point of $140. Yes, it wasn't all that sleek and sexy looking, but it had the chip and battery life I wanted. I jumped in.

You have to remember that the PVA pre-dates the introduction of the Hcigar DNA40 and was at about the same time as the Innokin SVD2 with the DNA 20. These were watershed events: China using a US chip. Get the advantages of lower priced gear without having to do without an authentic chip. I didn't care much for Peg's videos, communications style or his "Academy" but figured the overall concept was sound. Granted, he proved to be an incompetent boob at best, but the concept itself -- a crowd-sourced, crowd-driven design -- remains sound. It was his execution of it that sucked.

Had the current PVA been delivered in Jan I wouldn't be upset. Still would not care for the buttons and the weight, but I would have kept it and used it since there were no other temp controlled devices available. But fast forward to July, and we now have a huge number of temp controlled options available. Some good, some bad, but many of them at price points well below $140. For me it was not worth keeping the PVA since I have other temp controlled mods at hand (and plan on getting a few more -- drooling over the DNA200!).

That's good for vapers, but not so good for retaining the value of a mod. My VF is probably worth less than half of what I paid for it in Nov. I'm fine with that since I've been getting daily use out of it since then. With the PVA, we had to eat the depreciation without the benefit of using it. Add to that the ridiculous lack of transparency for the project sprinkled liberally with incompetent project management and you have the disaster that is the PVA40.

 

[j66]

Well #0096 finally arrived today and may be something of an anomaly. The firing button does not rattle and it's not quite as massive as everyone else's seems to be. It's the same height, and only a mm in each other direction more than my Sigelei 150 wearing it's sleeve. It states it's zinc alloy in the badly translated manual [was under the impression Peg could speak English, but whatever..] so figuring that out was a doddle and explains why it's so heavy. It may wobble but it's unlikely to fall over. Small rodents should wear safety gear around it.

The battery door, whilst pretty stiff, as others have noted, moves a little and makes a knocking sound when the mod is grasped. Oh yes, it's been grasped. Although the firing button doesn't rattle the absurdly cheap little +/- buttons move around, look half-assed and are hard to press at the same time but easy to press by accident. It's been an up and down experience, all in all.

As first impressions go, this has been one. Shortly, I will unsubscribe from the Youtube channel.

 

[dre]

I think those type buttons can be tightened by screwing the outside ring.

Sent from my XT1030 using Tapatalk

 

[madmonkey]

Glad that the thread is going back on point, and my apologies @madmonkey for my contribution towards derailing it.

You're right -- nothing wrong with the small screen DNA. What drew me to the PVA was the fact that in November 2014 there was only one choice for a commercially available dual battery DNA40: a Vapor Flask. It cost $300 and you had to be quick when they came into stock or you'd miss it. I bought one in Nov and loved it. Still do -- at any point in time I usually own about 20+ mods, but the VF is one that is always in daily rotation. A small screen DNA40 without atty lock is still a very capable performer. It can challenge your build skills, but it also can deliver an excellent vape.

I wanted a second one but $300 is hard to justify once, and impossible to justify a second time. So the PVA comes along and offers the same chip, dual batteries and a price point of $140. Yes, it wasn't all that sleek and sexy looking, but it had the chip and battery life I wanted. I jumped in.

You have to remember that the PVA pre-dates the introduction of the Hcigar DNA40 and was at about the same time as the Innokin SVD2 with the DNA 20. These were watershed events: China using a US chip. Get the advantages of lower priced gear without having to do without an authentic chip. I didn't care much for Peg's videos, communications style or his "Academy" but figured the overall concept was sound. Granted, he proved to be an incompetent boob at best, but the concept itself -- a crowd-sourced, crowd-driven design -- remains sound. It was his execution of it that sucked.

Had the current PVA been delivered in Jan I wouldn't be upset. Still would not care for the buttons and the weight, but I would have kept it and used it since there were no other temp controlled devices available. But fast forward to July, and we now have a huge number of temp controlled options available. Some good, some bad, but many of them at price points well below $140. For me it was not worth keeping the PVA since I have other temp controlled mods at hand (and plan on getting a few more -- drooling over the DNA200!).

That's good for vapers, but not so good for retaining the value of a mod. My VF is probably worth less than half of what I paid for it in Nov. I'm fine with that since I've been getting daily use out of it since then. With the PVA, we had to eat the depreciation without the benefit of using it. Add to that the ridiculous lack of transparency for the project sprinkled liberally with incompetent project management and you have the disaster that is the PVA40.

Thank you...and you hit the nail on the head and I couldn't have said it better myself...I wanted the battery life of the VF but couldn't afford it so when something came along offering the same basic performance at half the cost I jumped on it. I have a rule of thumb when it comes to vape shopping..."if it came out today, wait a month till they have the revised version with the bugs worked out for half the price next month to buy it." However, with the rDNA40 I broke this rule and bought one of the first ones. My favorite regulated mod has been my DNA30 since I got it and I had been holding out for the rDNA40 to buy the bigger one and as soon as it came out I couldn't stop myself and got one of the early chips with all it's glory and quirks But it worked for me and and I wanted a dual battery DNA mod so when I saw that one was coming at a good price point if I waited for a month or two and I could have some so called imput (after I got told about the screen placement going where Peg knew best I realized that our "opinions" were of little value and we were a means to an end, but continued to play the game hoping for a quick return on my investment,,,my bad ) I was looking forward to the mod the same way you were and feel the same way about getting robbed of value and use time. Thats why I called it "one of the great mods of late 2014." Because at that time this thing would have been a contender for it's price point, maybe not it's build quality, but the chips work and the battery life is there and there are some good things about the mod despite it's flaws. If there weren't I am sure a mob would be forming by now

Well #0096 finally arrived today and may be something of an anomaly. The firing button does not rattle and it's not quite as massive as everyone else's seems to be. It's the same height, and only a mm in each other direction more than my Sigelei 150 wearing it's sleeve. It states it's zinc alloy in the badly translated manual [was under the impression Peg could speak English, but whatever..] so figuring that out was a doddle and explains why it's so heavy. It may wobble but it's unlikely to fall over. Small rodents should wear safety gear around it.

The battery door, whilst pretty stiff, as others have noted, moves a little and makes a knocking sound when the mod is grasped. Oh yes, it's been grasped. Although the firing button doesn't rattle the absurdly cheap little +/- buttons move around, look half-assed and are hard to press at the same time but easy to press by accident. It's been an up and down experience, all in all.

As first impressions go, this has been one. Shortly, I will unsubscribe from the Youtube channel.

I know what you're saying about the size not being as massive persay as we all make it seem but you also have to look at it from this point of view...the Segelei 150 is considered to be a large mod in general but is fairly light for it's size...still, it's a big uncomfortable box for people with small hands. The PVA40 although may only be a few mm's wider and thicker, that can make a huge difference in comfort factor. Not seeing that is like telling someone with a 36 inch waist that 34 inch waist pants will fit fine and be comfortable...when they won't...they'll be small and painful if you even get them buttoned and you'll be miserable the whole time trying to wear them...it's the same fit concept except the size of the mod is too be for too small of some hands...it's large, heavy and bulky and if it fit's my huge paws just about perfect than there has to be a good number of vapors out there that would say it's just too big, heavy, and bulky to be practical. I used to carry a VTR in my cargo pocket and I swear it would put a bruise on my leg if i smashed into something with it at work on accident...this thing my take me out or rip my pocket a new one...no bad puns intended

 

[j66]

That's fair enough regarding the size. You know what I just noticed? The finish perfectly matches my Nad Hi-Fi separates, so there's that

 

[SHEK]

....trolling this one little mod? Seriously bro, really?

It's not the product, it's the designer that mislead and lied to hundreds of innocent people....many of which had NO CLUE what they were getting into.

I was not one of the Koolaide kids. I was one of several others wavin' the red flag back in December.

I don't care at all about the mod, I only care about the people that Peg screwed.

 

[Whiskey]

I assume you're referring to Shek? I learned on ECF that any thread with shek in it is far more enjoyable with him on ignore. I did just that a few posts back. That way, his posts never even show up when I look at this (or any other) thread.

 

[Saddletramp1200]

I like the photos. Digi & Mouser love me. I have loved building since Jr. High school electronics. 45 years ago. Thank You.

 

[SHEK]

Nowhere else left to go, eh Whiskey?

Going for your 4th site ban..or is it your 5th, I've lost track now?

 

[Whiskey]

Nowhere else left to go, eh Whiskey?

Going for your 4th site ban..or is it your 5th, I've lost track now?

No where else I want to go except where I have been for quite some time now, Mr. Shek, I see your reputation follows you around as well.
Didn't know you were tracking me, sorry you'll get no bites on bait from me here, What you will get is an open forum where members speak their minds, and you may not like the honesty we have and allow here on VU, zip on your thick skin, eh?

Edit....Next time you want to make any more smart ass comments to staff, learn how to tag me, that way I can get to your comments faster and spank that spoiled baby ass quicker for you, and send you back to ECF.

 

[SHEK]

No where else I want to go except where I have been for quite some time now, Mr. Shek, I see your reputation follows you around as well.

Yeah...I suppose that 11 months would be a long time for you on one site.

I guess staff forgot to ask how many times you've been banned as a moderator?

Funny, you'd think that they screen for things like that?

Guess it's a good thing for you they don't, huh?

You might actually have the record for most site bans as a moderator.

And at least I can go back to the ECF...and Nu-Vapor....and Vapeatron.....and any other site where you've been not so quietly shown the exit door.

And I see that your attitude (as a mod) hasn't changed a bit, same ole Whiskey.

Shouldn't be long now...add another hashmark to your long list of bans.

 

[Pipboy]

Quote from a Pegasus post
"If you don't end up with your purchase, that is a cheat.
If your purchase is significantly not as described. That's a lie.
Wait till you have it in your hands, and take a moment. Tell me if you're still mad after."

So what was I promised prior to ordering? A dual parallel 18650 DNA 40 mod with "a big clicky button" like the Sigelei mods and an aluminum enclosure.

Button; family activity pt 2 @ 9:28

Aluminum; family activity pt 3 @ 5:06

So what did I receive? A dual parallel 18650 DNA 40 mod with SPONGY button very unlike the Sigelei mods and an and a zinc enclosure.

If you ordered some aluminum rims for your car (because Pega just loves his automotive analogies) and someone sent you zinc rims, would you consider that to be a significant difference? Or you perhaps ordered a clicker for training your dog and it showed up and just flexed without clicking, would you find that to be a significant difference? I would. And I do. So despite all the assurances to the contrary from Pegasus ( pronounced Peg ass is) yeah this is a scam. Zinc is a significantly inferior metal when compared to aluminum in strength. A cheap poor quality choice of material. And the reason the button is so touchy and spongy is he was too cheap to spring for soldering in an actual button, instead opting for a cover that contacts the DNA 40 board. So what I got was NOT what was promised in the "Family activity #2" videos. This mod is a piece of garbage. To call the PVA40 a cheap China mod is an unfair disgrace to cheap China mods. More than a few people are complaining about the weight, some claiming to not plan to use it due to that fact alone. The entire weight issue is due to the fact that zinc was used for the enclosure instead of the promised aluminum. My advice would be to steer clear of the PVA40, and never believe a single thing that Pegasus (still pronouncing it the same) has to say.

 

[SHEK]

To call the PVA40 a cheap China mod is an unfair disgrace to cheap China mods. My advice would be to steer clear of the PVA40, and never believe a single thing that Pegasus (still pronouncing it the same) has to say.

LMAO

Bravo!

 

[Whiskey]

Yeah...I suppose that 11 months would be a long time for you on one site.

I guess staff forgot to ask how many times you've been banned as a moderator?

Funny, you'd think that they screen for things like that?

Guess it's a good thing for you they don't, huh?

You might actually have the record for most site bans as a moderator.

And at least I can go back to the ECF...and Nu-Vapor....and Vapeatron.....and any other site where you've been not so quietly shown the exit door.

And I see that your attitude (as a mod) hasn't changed a bit, same ole Whiskey.

Shouldn't be long now...add another hashmark to your long list of bans.

Dude you seriously need to stop coming off like a stalker

 

[SHEK]

Dude you seriously need to stop coming off like a stalker

I think that you should go back and look at post #39 Whis....who's stalking who?

In hind site, your post was probably a bad idea huh?

 

[UncleRJ]

Be nice or........................

 

[Whiskey]

Not at all Shek, I'll watch you dig your own hole, Have a great day

 

[SHEK]

Be nice or........................

Since when is speaking the truth mean?