Post-hike thoughts on my Synmat UL7 vs NeoAir XTherm

I recently did my first multi-day trip with my new XTherm regular on the Ozark Trail. I could never get comfortable on it. My brother was using the Synmat UL7 and he loved it. When I got home I sold the XTherm regular and am now debating whether to go with the XTherm large, to see if it is more comfortable for me, or get the Synmat. It is hard to get beyond the overwhelming positive reviews the XTherm gets.

I cannot speak to the comparison of the Synmat vs NeoAir.

But I do use a the orginal rectangular NeoAir regular for 3 season backpacking. I am mostly a side sleeper and it took some experimentation to get the comfort dialed in. Basically I had to inflate it fully at the beginning of the night and once in my bag, deflate it slightly to get the comfort level bag. Sometimes during the night, I will actually add some air.

I bought a NeoAir XTherm for Winter and snow camping. The slimmed down shape at the bottom was OK but not as comfortable as the rectangular shape of my original NeoAir. I could see if you were a back sleeper, you might find your feet or legs slipping to the ground or bothered by the sharp edge of the pad because of the 2 inch drop off to the ground.

What I found at temperatures around 10 and 15 degrees F is that the XTherm was not all that warm. For my first trip, I had a Cascade Designs ZRest underneath the XTherm. For my second trip, I bought a Gossamer Gear 1/8 inch pad and doubled it up under my torso. I was under a tarp and inside my bivy but the two pads were outside the bivy resting on the snow. I was still getting cold around 200am.
I concluded that perhaps the very high R rating comes from a laboratory test that measures conduction from the human body to the ground. Perhaps my XTherm pad was radiating heat from the sides, since it is exposing a lot of surface to the ambient air with its two inches height and perhaps 13 feet of circumference.

Cheers

Your observations with the Xtherm seem to match my own. I did some testing last winter in my backyard (here in Texas) where temps were around 30-32 F, and I was actually somewhat chilled with my Xtherm while using my Zpacks 20 bag. This summer I did an overnight in the Indian Peaks Wilderness using my Xtherm followed by a 2 day backpacking trip using the Synmat UL. I did not notice any difference in warmth at night and was camped at similar elevations (around 10000' – 11000').

On paper, the Xtherm is nearly twice as warm as the SynMat UL. I wonder as you do whether the lab tests match up with realistic testing environments in the backcountry.

Now durability between the two may be a whole other story…

I have many nights on a syn ul7, downmat ul7, and an xtherm. I was cold on the syn at temps approaching freezing and swapped it out for the downmat when it was released. Super warm and comfy, I was in slumber heaven, until I developed a hard to find leak that left me cold and uncomfortable in the wee hours of the morning. While exped looked at the pad I picked up an xtherm large ( the expends were regulars) and have been enjoying it ever since. I do like the extra length and width despite only being 5'9".

Warmth wise I haven't noticed much difference between the xtherm and downmat and regularly push a slightly overfilled 40f quit into the 20's with no issues. I liked the larger side tubes of the exped's but the extra width of the large xtherm makes it a wash. The xtherm is much more grippy top and bottom and my quilt stays tucked in better and the mat stays put. The fabric of the exped's is more comfortable to sleep on and allows for slightly easier tossing and turning.

Overall I would rate them a wash, that is a regular down ul7 to a large xtherm. Weight is about the same as is packed bulk. FWIW, I have a brand new regular length downmat ul 7 in the original pkging (warranty exchange) that can be had for $170 shipped FedEx to the lower 48 if anyone is interested.

I've found the Synmat UL7 to be more comfortable because it's thicker (2.8"?) and has a different tube layout + thicker edge tubes. I easily sleep better on it than a NeoAir. However it has three substantial downsides:

1) The 20D fabric is more fragile. Over 140 days on the PCT this summer I got 5 holes in my Synmat, while my wife got 1 in her NeoAir and she was using the Xlite, not the Xtherm with the tougher bottom.

2) The insulation in the Synmat delaminates and falls apart after substantial use. Moisture from your breath keeps things perpetually soggy in the pad and the insulation eventually comes unglued and falls to one end of its tube. Not an issue at 5-10 nights/yr.

3) The valves are sensitive to grit etc. So occasionally you have to get up in the night and wipe it out.

In terms of warmth, the Synmat is fine to about freezing. If you hike in warmer temps then this then I wouldn't worry about warmth. Despite similar R ratings, the Synmat is definitely less warm than the regular NeoAir, so substantially less warm than the Xtherm.

If you take care of your gear and hike in warm weather then I vote Synmat. I've picked up a Xtherm for cold weather use and I'll probably continue to use my patched and decrepit Synmat in the summer.

Dan,

Were you able to successfully patch your Synmat while in the field? How did you deal with it at night?

FWIW, I've taken an XTherm into the teens and been very warm. This was despite being fairly under-inflated for extra comfort. My butt was initially cool (it was the closest to the ground), but it warmed up quickly and the rest of my body never felt it. I was camping on snow and using an overfilled 20 degree F quilt.

Keep in mind that according to BPL tests, R-value decreases significantly at lower inflation levels. Correspondingly, fuller pads measure with much higher R-values. Could that have had something to do with the lack of warmth at 3-season temperatures?

I've been using my Synmat UL7 for something like 2-3 years, doing 5-8 nights per year on it. I use a Downmat 7 on trips where the forecasted low is less than 30F. At lows 40F and below, I use a 16 x 19 x 1/4 inch sit pad under my hips/torso on top of the Synmat. Without it things start to get pretty chilly as the temp approaches 30F.

I think not using breath to inflate it makes a significant difference in R-value though. I made an inflator (around 1 oz?) from a turky-size oven bag duct-taped to a plastic elbow which is just the right size to insert into the valve.

I haven't had any holes, but the insulation on one of the end tubes delaminated. That's not significant enough to remedy for me.

"Were you able to successfully patch your Synmat while in the field? How did you deal with it at night?"

Yes. With the exception of one, the holes were fairly small – the type that take 2-4 hrs to achieve a flat pad. To fix I would blow up the pad nice and firm, sit on the pad and slowly move my face over the surface. The face is pretty sensitive so you can feel a little air breeze if you're in a sheltered area like a tent. Sometimes it took 20 minutes but eventually I could feel a little wind on my face from a pinhole.

The best thing to patch Synmat holes is the sticky Thermarest NeoAir patches. These are clear and about 1" x 1". They work fantastic and hold up in the long term. Unfortunately I only had two, so for later holes I used tenacious tape which worked okay but it would slowly degrade over time and start to slide around/peel off. So I would replace it about once every 30-45 nights.

Dan,

What type of ground surfaces did you sleep on? Did you use a groundsheet underneath your tent? I'm just curious if a 1/8" thinlight would be necessary underneath, or whether the Synmat UL can hold up fine on its own. For solo hiking, I use a Zpacks Hexamid–it has netting on the ground and then a cuben fiber bathtub groundsheet over that.

I was using a tent with a silnylon floor, no groundsheet. Surfaces were everything on the PCT but I tried to avoid gravel and heavy use areas. Obviously my experiences are a small sample size and a 5:1 puncture ratio (Synmat vs Neoair) is probably extreme, but based on the lighter fabric used it makes sense that the Synmat punctures more.

Of my 5 punctures, 2 were on the top and 3 on the bottom. The first and largest cut was on top. I think it was caused by the zipper on my down jacket when I rolled over in the night. It put a 2" cut in the nylon but a smaller cut in the plastic membrane inside. The other punctures were all small. I tried to clear the sleep site, but there's always a chance of a stray ponderosa bract or sharp rock.