gg murmur dislikes

[kyle davis]

well maybe its just me but has anyone else that has used it had serious problems with it making your back sweat? it had me totaly soaked and the air temps were below 70. just one thing i really didnt like about it and the spinnaker is way to thin even for SUL with my 6 lbs base weight

[Jim MacDiarmid]

I have have a GG Gorilla, which has the same exterior pad sleeve as the murmur, and (using the included sitlite pad) I've not found excessive backsweat to be a problem.

As far as the material, which is spinnaker, not silnylon, I'll quote GG's product description:

"The Murmur is for EXTREMELY low base weight and low volume hikers. You'll know it if it's right for you."

Not to blow smoke, but one thing I appreciate about these cottage retailers is that they don't try (IMHO) to sell their products as anything but what they are. I've been intrigued by the Murmur's weight + price combo, but I am concerned that the Spinnaker fabric wouldn't survive long with my inherent combination of bad luck+clumsiness.

[Brad Rogers]

I don't have a Murmur, but I'll give my two cents anyways.

I think the Murmur is made from Spinnaker Fabric, not silnylon, which seems quite durable for the weight. Speaking of durability, what do you expect for 7.5 ounces? It certainly isn't the pack for everyone. It isn't the style pack for me, hince I don't own one.

As far as making your back sweat, it is probably the fact that there is no mesh or foam on the back panel to insulate and soak up sweat. Most packs without mesh seem to have that problem.

[EndoftheTrail]

"Most packs without mesh seem to have that problem."

Truth be told, so do packs with mesh.

[Aaron Zuniga]

I have noticed a slightly wetter back when using the Murmur, but nothing major. Most SUL/UL rucksacks don't have mesh on the back panel; In fact my Conduit and Pinnacle don't have mesh either=) I guess it hasn't posed that big of an issue for me yet. The mesh pad holder should soak up some of the sweat, maybe? When i start to warm up i always undo the waist belt and the sternun strap=) That always provides a cooling feeling throughout and allows the weight to be transfered to my shoulders for a minute; giving my waist a breather as well.
After speaking with Grant and others on these forums, a 6 lb BPW should be just fine. The spinnaker will actually get stronger and quieter with more use. Just watch your water and food loads in conjuction with your BPW and you should be solid=) Grant also said they would be coming out this summer with a run of silnylon Murmur's that would be about an oz heavier. Maybe an option; or theres the Minaposa that will definiely handle a slightly heavier BPW with ease. my 0.2 cents>
-Aaron

[Nick Gatel]

The Murmur is my favorite pack, by far. I even use it when my ULA Conduit will carry a bunch of water easier. This pack is just so convenient for me to live out of. I don't understand the comments about the Spinnaker fabric making you sweat. If you put a foam pad in the sleeve, only mesh and the pad are against the pack.

Regarding durability, I screwed up and did some bushwhacking in mine and got a small tear. My fault. I have used it in temps approaching 100F and yes, you will sweat, but no more than any pack, save an Osprey, Deuter, or REI Venturi; all of which have a suspended mesh panel.

I have done 20+ mile days with huge elevation gains, and the pack handled the initial total weight of 17 pounds well.

My only dislike is the fact I did not read the information on the GG Website of a possible leaching of the mesh dye onto the back of a shirt.

As suggested earlier, this pack is only for those who know it is for them. Also, I got the weight below 7 oz by removing the foam pads in the shoulder straps. Mine weights 6.8 oz.

For total pack weights under 15 lbs, I think this pack is perfect if you can fit your gear in it. I have taped the tear in my pack, and if that doesn't work out, I will be more than happy to buy another one for under $100.

[Don Meredith]

I've used the Murmur with up to a total packed weight of 12 lbs. Here is my experience:

Back sweat – I did find that the supplied pad felt warmer against my back than a folded up Thermarest ProLite 3. I assume that this is due to the high R value that the GG pad offers. I typically don't carry a pad (GG or otherwise) between my back and the pack for this reason.

Spinnaker fabric – The fabric is thin. I can see how it might feel fragile to you and its not intended to be as bomber as heavy duty cordura BUT this thing weighs ounces instead of pounds. The fabric is plenty durable and I don't take any particular caution to protect it. I of course wouldn't go into heavy bramble carelessly and I pay attention to raking it across boulders in restricted areas. The truth is I do that with any pack I carry.

As with everything, your mileage may vary. Everyone uses products differently. I would think that anyone that has their total carried weight in the sub 10lb range already has several pieces of UL gear. Is your tarp as sturdy as a 4 pounder? No. Is it sturdy enough given reasonable care? Absolutely!

[Michael Fogarty]

All this Murmur talk made me go and order one. I have the Whisper, but never liked the fact that it lacked side pockets. They are curently on sale for $80.00 I'll probably be selling my Whisper shortly.

[Monty Montana]

Way to go Michael! I also have a Whisper and love it except for the lack of water bottle pockets…now you're gonna make me want to go and get a Murmur. Darn!

Yes, the spinnaker fabric does seem to make for a sweaty back, but since I'm usually wearing Smartwool or some other wicking fabric, it dries out in fairly short order, so I really can't complain.

[Jim MacDiarmid]

I'm starting to want a Murmur too. I've been kicking around a Zpack Blast(not till fall, now) and MLD Revolution, or a Murmur. Murmur has them both beat on price. I just have concern about the noise/durability of spinnaker vs the expensive cuben. But I'm starting to get swayed. (No waiting list for it either)

[t.darrah]

"No waiting list for it either"

True if the gg item is in stock at the time your ready to order. I have been waiting for more then six weeks for a gg item to come back into stock and it seems the waiting period may end up being seven to eight weeks.

[Nick Gatel]

I don't understand the concern about spinnaker noice in a pack. I sleep with it under my legs and it it doesn't make noise, even when it was new. Well maybe it made noise, but I was sleeping.

[Aaron Zuniga]

I went through the same back and forth battle of which SUL pack and ended up going with the Murmur. This has been my go to bag since. I really like the fact that the Murmur came fully loaded with a waistbelt thats removable, sternun strap, a nice exterior pocket for wet gear and other trail goodies, and some of the best bottle holders i've ever experienced. One of my favorite things about the Murmur is how the main packbag is slim, keeping the load closer to my center of gravity. This IME this makes items much more accessible on the trail and way more comfortable way to carry my load. It's also nice to have your pad handy for breaks. The Murmur is like others have stated above for a lower BPW, and has the ability to carry loads up to 20 #'s.
For the price and what a quality product you get, the Murmur is up there with the best of um! It will want to make you want to do the Ryan Jordan pose with your pack on your finger=) It did to me!

[Jim MacDiarmid]

Nick, I'm sure you're right. I read all about the 'noise' that the Neo Air made, yet I've used mine 3 times now myself and never been bothered. Come to think of it, I have one of those Spinnaker wallets sold on BPL, and I've never noticed it being particularly crinkly.

I'll come right out and admit it; I'm intrigued by the 'cool' factor of cuben, despite the price.

Aaron, thanks for reminding me about the removable hip belt. I'll have to check with GG, but I assume it's removable in the same way that my GG Gorilla belt is removable, making the two belts interchangeable. That'd be nice flexibility to have if I want to push my pack weight closer to 20 lbs as opposed to the 10-15 I'd normally be carrying in it for a 3 oz penalty.

Darn BPL, you people are too persuasive.

[Kendall Clement]

"even use it when my ULA Conduit will carry a bunch of water easier."

Hey guys,

I got my base pack weight down to 5 pounds give or take a pound on either side. I just bought a Murmer (used only 2x) in the BPL Gear Swap for $55. What would you guys say is the absolute MAX weight you've used with your Murmurs? I'm thinking of water weight.

Thanks

[John Brochu]

I checked out my friends Murmur and thought it was a nice pack. I ended up going with a cuben Blast 18, which was more expensive but not excessively so when you consider durability.

The crinkly noise factor of the Murmur did bother me, but his pack was brand spanking new and we were not sure if it would getter quieter with use.

He ended up sending the Murmur back and getting himself a Blast 18.

Having said all that, I think the Murmur is a great pack. Light, cheap, and nicely designed. If not for the Blast 18 it would probably be my pack of choice.

[Nick Gatel]

Kendall,

I've had up to 17lbs in mine. Over 12lbs was food and water. Each day I filled up with 8.8lbs of water. Daily mileage around 20. Pack carried well. Towards the end of each day, I really cinched up the waist strap to take a little load off my shoulders. I was concerned that the tension of the belt on the lightweight material might give away. But no problem. Much more that 17lbs then I would switch to the Conduit. But water and food are consumables and decrease as you hike. If I had a base weight of lets say close to 10lbs, then I would switch to the Conduit.

[Aaron Zuniga]

James, I agree cuben fiber is super cool! In fact if i could afford it, thats all i would buy=) But for now the Murmur has given me a chance to go SUL and not leave my wallet empty. Although i have not tried, I don't think i would be much a fan of the burrito style method recommended for the Z Packs;thats just me.

Kendall, the most i've carried so far is 2 liters. Most of the trips i have taken with the Murmur have had an abundabce of water, so it wasn't an issue. I know for sure i could easily carry another 1.5 with little problem with a BPW of 5 #'s and 3 #'s of food for example=)

Eventually im sure i will buy a Z Pack,but for now im enjoying my Murmur and comfort/freedom is brought to me on the trail. Anything under 20 #'s the Murmur will get the call for me=)

[Kendall Clement]

Thanks guys. :-)

[Kevin Babione]

I have to confess to pushing the limits of the Murmur a little on a hike this past April…I carried about 22 pounds the last two miles of our 14 mile day. No problem at all with the pack.

I was hiking with two friends who were each carrying over 20 pounds each all day. I was feeling pretty fresh since, even loaded with water, I'm sure I didn't top 14 pounds. We wanted to spend the night at the top of a ridge overlooking the PA Grand Canyon and the last water source was roughly two miles from our site. I filled a 3-liter Nalgene Canteen and managed to fit it in the top of my pack. It's not where I would have normally carried a 7-pound brick but it worked.

One thing I did notice on that trip was that the GG pads for the shoulder straps were rubbing the skin along the outside of the straps. Understand that I'm "broad" and, although I haven't removed it yet, the sternum strap on the Murmur doesn't stand a chance of reaching while I'm wearing the pack. For my last trip two weeks ago (where I started with about 18 pounds) I replaced the foam inserts with bubblewrap. The shoulder straps were much more comfortable.

It's a great pack – I'm sure you'll enjoy carrying it. I'm guessing that you'll find that volume is more of a issue for you than weight. For my April trip I was waffling between my MLD quilt and my UL60 quilt (temperatures were to be in the low 40's). The MLD quilt was just too bulky (I was also carrying much of the food for the three of us) so I ended up with the UL60. No problems.

[Jim MacDiarmid]

Kevin,

When the Gorilla was introduced with it's wide-shoulder straps, people were complaining about the rubbing. Here is what Grant of GG recommended in a thread:

One way to narrow the shoulder straps is to put 1 1/2" black foam pipe insulation in the strap instead of the flat foam we ship with it. This make the straps taller and therefore narrower and pretty cushy.

[Michael Fogarty]

Just got my Murmur in the mail today. Weight with 3' of 1/8 bungee cord and extra foam padding inserted into the full length of the shoulder straps is 8.35oz.
The spinnaker fabric is even more crinkly than my Whisper is, and seems a little thinner too? Love the side pockets and mesh front pocket.
The inside shoulder strap fabric is thinner than the Whisper. The Whisper has the same fabric as the pack bottom, where the Murmur appears to be Silnylon (black)
The mesh back pad pocket is a welcome feature and a GG sit pad fits nicely, and will actually help with ventilation along the back.

I really like this pack, it probably won't be used for any long trips, but will be nice for short 3 day weekend type trips. I have an upcoming 5 day trip, and I'll load the Murmur just to see, if I could possibly use it.
I'll probably use the Gorilla or Ohm, or even possibly the Exodus? Yeah, I know, I've got to many packs, but I like collecting/using them.

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