Attention Enlightened Equipment Enigma quilt users!

My 20-degree Enigma is scheduled to arrive on Tuesday (Woohoo!). I will post some initial feedback quickly, but won't have any real-world experience in it for a while. I was in the same boat as you and decided to bite the bullet. I am pretty convinced that for Sierra use I won't really miss the ability to open the footbox, but will like the lighter weight and lesser down shift than my current 20-degree RevX.

They've only been out a short time. I bought a 30F one, so it won't be used until mid Spring at the earliest. If I had bought a 10F, it would been used numerous times by now, as I'm out most Saturday nights year round. 13F this morning at 6:30 when I got up, forecast was 22F.
Duane

Well, other than initial quality impressions (which are excellent) and general fit comments, I can't say much about it yet since the temps in MN haven't broken 20F since I got it . . . I won't have any real experience with it until April, but after trying a Rev and RevX (keeping the Rev for cold weather) I think this is the perfect quilt for me.

I'm assuming you did read this thread?

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=83819&startat=40

Art,

I've had problems with searching the forums recently and somehow missed that thread. Thanks for posting it. I read through it and it confirms my impressions regarding Tim's customer service and EE's craftsmanship. I was hoping for reviews from people who have pushed the quilts to their stated temps, but did not realize just how new these Enigmas are.

It seems I'll probably have to wait until spring to get decent usage reviews. From a sizing perspective, I'm still trying to figure out if I should go long/wide, or just plain long. I am a cold side sleeper who tosses and turns a lot, so it might behoove me to have the extra space. On the other hand, I don't want too much space, because of the extra dead air.

Duane and Paul,

Please keep us posted, though I do understand that based off where you live it might be a while before you can use your respective quilts.

I'm sold but have only used it to 30F so far (most days warmer than avg in Arizona and New Mexico) not tieing it to my pad and ventilating a bit (which is one reason I got it). In a couple days I will take it to 20-25F with dry base-layers (it is winter) and see how it goes. I'm pretty confident.

I'm 5' 11" 190 and would absolutely recommend a long for someone taller than 6'. My regular length Rev is definitely longer than a regular length Enigma, the sewn footbox makes a difference in what I'd call usable length.

As for the wide-vs regular, I'm not a small guy by any means, and am a tossing and turning side sleeper, the Wide seems ideal, I'm more than willing the carry the extra weight to know I have the width I "really" need. But if you didn't have any problems with a Regular width Rev, I would think you'll be fine with a Regular width Enigma.

The reg, long that Tim suggested for me, allows it to be brought up to my ears, I'm 6', 165lbs or less. I'm a little concerned about using a quilt or a regular type bag (ZPacks) for 10F trips. I bp year round, so a quilt's weight savings sure would be SWEET. I know my WM 15F Apache was sure nice to have last night, 13F, I could have been more comfortable, but I'm 60 years young now. :)
Does the extra width allow pads to be used, strapped on or does the width matter then?
Duane

Look at Greg's post 3/4 the way down for the way to search the old way.

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=84394&skip_to_post=720179#720179

Duane, the extra width allows you to wrap the quilt further around your body while still leaving a little room to roll over. I am 5' 11" and 185 pounds, and sometimes I think I could make do with a normal width quilt. But when it gets cold, I am glad I have the extra width on my RevX to make sure there aren't any drafts. So far I haven't attached the quilt to my pad, except experimenting at home. I use the straps directly underneath my body and on top of the pad. I prefer this method because I can sit up without having to worry about accidentally yanking on the straps, although it does seem that you may be able to use less width by attaching the quilt to the pad directly. Maybe someone who attaches the quilt to their pad can chime in.

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/search.html?q=EE%20Enigma%20quilts

Just use the search forums tab under FORUMS: to the right.

Zipper > no zipper

Yep, I'm aware of that. I visit EE and ZPacks a few times a week.
Links only come back to this thread. I'll have to try mine out this Spring or at the BPL trip in Jan.
Duane

I have an Enigma 20 degree (Regular Width, Regular Length) and I have a RevX 10 degree (Wide Width, Regular Length).

I haven't taken the Enigma out for a spin yet but the thing is freaking light! So light that it almost doesn't feel substantial enough to keep me warm at 20 degrees… but I'm not worried about it. I trust Tim's craftsmanship. I may regret not having a WIDE version (only because I toss and turn like a madman) but two things steered me toward the Regular Width…

1. I plan on using it as a TQ with my Warbonnet Hammock
2. It was a "ready to ship" item during Tim's sale so it was 20% off…

The RevX 10 degree is awesome as well. I just got back from a Sierra trip in the teens and left the straps at home. For me, I don't need them.

I don't think you will be disappointed with any of Tim's quilts. Go to EE's website and Just pick the one that makes the most sense for your needs.

The next thing I'm looking for is a DownTek UQ from him…(coming soon)

As I previously mentioned, I have owned an EE Revelation 20 and found the craftsmanship to be flawless and Tim's customer service to be outstanding. Really, my hope out of this thread is to read some genuine reviews from people who have already purchased and used the Enigma quilts. Thanks to everybody who has offered their experiences and initial impressions. This is why I keep coming back to BPL. I appreciate any/all feedback.

The last 6 months have been difficult for me, as I have recovered from a broken ankle and taken a major next step along my chosen career path. Unfortunately, the confluence of events has left me precious little time to hike. So I'm living vicariously through BPL and my other UL friends at the moment, though I'm hoping to change this soon enough.

And maybe this is sad to admit, but studying my gear spreadsheets and examining my gear choices for the past 2 years has helped keep me motivated and sane during my rehab period. Looking at the numbers, looking at what gear has and hasn't worked, has helped me realize who I am and what I prefer as a UL hiker. I'm willing to spend more money initially to support the companies that I feel are making the best pieces of gear in the world and EE certainly delivers that quality.

Anyway, keep up any reviews, and if you have already written one somewhere else, please don't hesitate to post a link. Cheers.

Not much of a review, since I only received this quilt last week, but… Over the weekend I took it out in the front yard early in the morning at 27F for about an hour. Perched on top of an Exped UL 7 with a light base layer I was snug as a bug. I'm a life-long bag user and this is my first quilt. No doubt I'm converted. And only 17 oz. in my pack this coming year! Tim makes some fine quality quilts.

My reg/wide 20 degree Enigma (charcoal grey outside, black inside) arrived this afternoon. A few initial thoughts:

Coming from the 30D RevX fabrics, the 10D fabric of the Enigma is luxuriously soft yet doesn't feel overly fragile.

At a hair under 5' 11" the regular length comes up to my lower lip if I am fully stretched out. As a side sleeper, I can still pull it up to cover around half my head if I am curled up like normal. I was a little worried about the length but I think it is perfect for me. I could see somebody who is 6' tall or so and always sleeps fetal getting by with the regular length. Otherwise Tim's recommended 5' 11" cutoff seems spot on.

The loft seems about right for a 20 degree quilt. It's a little hard to get your arms around the concept because of how amazingly light it is.

On my digital scale the weight came in about .5 oz over spec at 18 ounces even. 18.8 with the short straps that I prefer. I had originally asked for 1 oz. overstuff, which Tim declined as unneeded. So perhaps he gave me an extra .5 ounce on the house :)

There is a certain "efficient" feeling about the Enigma compared to the RevX. It feels more compact and bare bones, like it fits perfectly without anything extra. Less like a blanket and more like a comfortable cocoon. It definitely pushes my "minimalist" buttons in a good way.

Can't wait to get it out in the field, hopefully in the next few weeks.

Thanks for an early X-mas, Tim!

Photo of 20 degree Enigma next to 20 degree RevX (new baffle, prior to switch to duck down). Loft is close, with the edge going to the RevX. You can definitely tell the 20% overstuff vs. the 5% overstuff when you squeeze the quilts; it takes quite a bit more pressure on the RevX to collapse the loft than it does on the Enigma.

Not sure if it's helpful, but I posted a small review of the Enigma 20 in the reader's gear review section. Certainly not scientific, but it is a functional review of the flexibility and capabilities of such a light weight wonder. I sold a Nunatak Arc Expedition and ended up with the Enigma. I know this won't make sense to many people, but it does to me and this recent trip was proof of that.
Good luck!

I noticed that EE now has an option for a bottom zipper on the website for the Enigma.

The hope with the zipper is that people on the fence can have both and try a quilt with the confidence of the zipper. Plus with the zipper multiple Revelations can be zipper together!

-Tim

would this be a partial zip or a full zip?

The ability to open up the footbox completely on Tims quilts, Like the Revelation, adds about 10-15 F of comfort range in warmer temps in my experience. Since every night isnt the same temp, I really like that.

The zipper on the revelation is full zip and can be opened flat on the enigma it goes from the sewn footbox (about knee length) tonyhevtopnofvthe quilt.

-Tim

Now that the revelation has the shiftless baffles, what is the difference between it and the Enigma?

Enigma has knee length sewn footbox and Revelation has zipper and drawcorded foot that can be opened flat.

-Tim