X-Mid 2p Solid Vs Stratospire 2

[Henrik S]

Hi!

I am in the need to a tent for me and my 4 year old son that have the room for two 25 inch wide sleeping pads and our Zenbivy’s. I use trekking poles, and would like to use those as tent-poles in order to save weight. As we usually tank up on chocolate, pancakes, children books, and fishing gear, it would be nice with a fairly lightweight tent.

We camp all around Norway, meaning in the forest, by the sea, and up on the mountains. So the tent has to be able to handle a variety of conditions (no camping at the mountains in winter).  It has to be a double wall tent, and sturdy so the 4 year old doesn’t get any bad memories if the weather becomes rough.

So far I have reached the conclusion that either the Durston X-Mid 2p Solid or the Tarptent Stratospire 2 will be the best choice for us. However, I cannot seem to decide which one is the better. Maybe they are equally good, but offer different benefits and trad-offs?

For the X-Mid:

* Easy to pitch (I know because I own the pro version).

* Magnets on the fly-door (my preferred solution)

* Slightly lighter and slightly cheaper. Both factors too insignificant in order to really be of any importance.

* Does not seem to require seam sealing.

 

Against the Xmid:

* Does not seem to be very available, so if the inner tent gets wrecked by my 4 year old – I guess it would be difficult to buy another that could replace it.

* It does not seem that you can buy both types of innertents – mesh and solid – so that one can alternate as the seasons change.

* Star-gazer kit is extra and not very available

 

For the Stratospire 2

* The inner can be widened to 62 inches so we can bring more stuff inside the tent.

* It appears to be more storm worthy, but i have yet to confirm this

* I like the strut-solution on the Notch – maybe it’s equally as smart here?

* Availability is better – so a damaged inner tent could more easily be replaced.

* Real access to different sorts of innertents (solid/mesh), and also the possibility to only pitch the inner tent. The 4 year old absolutely loves looking at the stars.

 

Against the Stratospire 2:

* No magnets at the fly-door

* Reviews points out that it may be more finicky to set up

* Somewhat more expensive and heavier – no big deal though.

* Needs to be seam sealed.

 

Would someone like to offer an opinion on the choice between the two tents?

[Mark Verber]

I don’t own either. I own/use the xmid pro 2 (which I am delighted by) and have shared a friend’s Stratospire 2 and well as seeing both side by side in moderately severe weather, 35mph wind driven rain / sleet.  I didn’t see a significant performance difference.  Might become apparent in worse weather.

One advantage of the xmid you didn’t note is the lack of struts makes it easier to pack if you like it to be horizontal in a narrow pack. An advantage of the Stratospire which almost swayed me was the mix/match of inner.

Both are great options… you won’t go wrong with either. I would say don’t worry about future replacement.  Today has enough worries, don’t borrow from the future. If you shelter is damaged in the future re-assess your needs and decide what’s best. Who know how things will change between now and then.

[Mark Verber]

forgot to say above equiv performance when all the stakeout / guylines were used.  In the most basic pitch (the xmid is more basic), the Stratospire is more stable.

[Henrik S]

Thank you for the reply, and your thoughts/experiences. The stargazing-possibility that the Tarptent provides, by offering both innertents, are probably becoming the decisive factor here. The 4 year old would be disappointed without that possibility, i think.

Your friend that owns the Stratospire – does he have problems pitching the tent, or has he learned a way to do it without much hassle?

[Mark Verber]

He didn’t have troubles with the stratosprire, though that isn’t telling. He is someone who has used tarps all his life and is quite skilled.

I would note that I am still in not happy with my pitching of the xmid. It goes up really easily… but I love having a beautiful, tight pitch that barely moves in wind.  I was able to fairly easily achieve this with my old hexamid but haven’t figure out how to get the xmid to quite that state. Could be the size of unsupported fabric won’t give me what I have be able to achieve in the past.

–mark

 

[Paul S]

We have both X-mid 2 solid, and Stratospire 2, solid.

Both are great.

X-mid has better, larger vents.

Stratospire 2 seems more stable in the wind. It has 6 main perimeter stake-out points compared to 4 of the Xmid. That being said, we have had or X-mid 2 in (measured) 31mph wind, and it held-up.

X-mid is just slightly easier to pitch.

I think the inner-tent floor width of the SS2 is a little bit wider (a couple of inches?) than the X-mid 2.

Xmid can be pitched closer, or farther off the ground whereas the stratospire 2 pitchlock corners create a fixed (~ 2″) distance off of the ground that cannot be adjusted. The rest of the SS2 can be higher, or lower, off of the ground, but not the pitchlock corners.

 

Both have huge vestibules- great for crappy weather.

Our stratospire 2 pre-dates the new polyester rain fly version-ours is the SS2 version just before the newest version. So, I can’t comment on the new one in terms of its rain fly. Our silnylon one works fine. Yes, it sags a bit but is easy re-tensioned and that has not been an issue.

 

We are so lucky to have such great tents to chose from!

[Henrik S]

Mark: at least your friend has shown that it’s possible to learn. Which makes for a fine evening in the garden for me :)

I have the same “problem” as you regarding the Xmid pro 2 – but it’s more than sufficient to actually work well enough – in my limited experience.

 

Paul S: You are right – a choice between two quality tents is a luxury-situation!

It appear that the new SS2 has about 10 inches wider floor if you lower the interior and move the poles a bit. So that appears to be a real benefit, on paper at least. Can accommodate three standard width mats.

The SS2 also appears to have (the possibility for) a smaller footprint, as it’s now possible to collapse the vestibules. Here from the Tarptent set-up video where the vestibule on one side is buckled together and staked down to create a smaller footprint. Both vestibules have this possibility.

 

If only they could incorporate magnets :)

[Dan @ Durston Gear]

A few notes here:
– the mesh and solid inners are interchangeable for the X-Mid and we will start offering those separately for 2024
– supply issues for the X-Mid are largely resolved (at least the regular models). We have had them in stock for months now and anticipate being able to keep them in stock.
– you can collapse the X-Mid vestibules the same as you can collapse the SS vestibules.
– you don’t need the Stargazer kit to pitch the X-Mid inner. You can use a bit of cord and a clove hitch knot. The Stargazer kits are out of stock right now but will be back soon.
– the second generation of the X-Mid 2 released this year is easier to get a tight pitch with due to added catenary cuts.

Regarding the floor width, the Stratospire doesn’t actually widen to 62″. The floor is 52″ wide (same as the X-Mid) and has 5″ sidewalls, so the idea is that if you could loosen it so much that the sidewalls were laid flat on the ground then it would be 62″, but you can’t do this because there isn’t that much adjustability. That’s why if you look carefully at pictures showing 3 pads in the SS they are always overlapping a bit and riding up the walls (and notice how the side walls are not flat, which they would be if it was 62″). The SS can only go to about 56″. Both tents are about the same here because with either one you can lower the inner for more floor width. I just don’t recommend it because it of course you give up headroom but more notably much off the inner becomes loose and the end walls hang in. It works in a pinch, but it can’t truly fit 3 pads and most people would agree the inner feels less spacious when you do this. Trying to fit 3 people in there is a good way to stress the side walls and tear the mesh.

Stormworthiness is a complicated topic and often mostly anecdotal but both of these tents do well with lots of people on both sides, but really both tents do very well and should perform plenty well. With both tents, the woven fabric version will be a bit easier to get tight due to the stretch in the woven fabric that covers small issues. If you do have issue with the X-Mid, this diagram explains how to get it tight all over:
https://durstongear.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/X-Mid-Pitching-Tips.png

Anyways, they’re both very nice tents. I think the main argument for the X-Mid is that is quite about lighter (about 1/2 lbs), simpler pitch, no struts to pack up and has some other nice things like larger vents, seam taped, easier reach to close the fly door, and the vestibules are beside the door instead of blocking it. It also has higher end built quality (e.g. double folded edges and full double stitching) while costing less.

[Henrik S]

Thank you for this useful information! Especially that the double inner tents are to become available in 2024.

The weight difference between the two, with solid innertents, seems to be only about 75-ish grams according to the webpages (counting all but the stakes), if I am adding the numbers correctly. However the SS2 is not seam sealed so I guess a few grams will be added with that in place. Was it the mesh combinations that was about 1/2 pound lighter?

Collapsing the vestibule on the xmid: by using the stake-out point on the fly located at the end of the innertent, in stead of the usual four outlying corners of the outer? Smart (or wrong?)!

Could you explain the double stiching part – when I look at the pictures, the fly seems to have double lines of stiching on both tents. Useful for me to learn a bit about that.

[Mole J]

We also have both tents referred to.

• About 150 nights on the SS2 in Scotland and Pyrenees.
• About 35 nights on the XMid2p solid all in the Pyrenees.

 

Both are great tents.

As already stated by others, I’d say the SS2 has the edge in solidity in winds.

A friend has the new silpoly SS2 which has openable pitchlok vents like the Notch and Moment, so will give a big improvement in ventilation. It also has even more perimeter pegging points than before.

I don’t find the XMid any easier or harder for pitching. Take similar time (2minutes for the basic).  If both are set up with perfect “rectangles” for the first 4 pegs, then they go up ok. If corners a little out, both can have issues with the outer touching the inner, and need adjustment.

It is possible to get a higher pitch on the SS by raising the pole height, it’s only the pitchlok corners that stay low, the door base edges can certainly go higher for better ventilation.

For sitting out bad weather the door arrangement of the SS is better IMO as it’s more protective – have option of 2 doors each side rather than one.

 

Magnets are ok but I still prefer the old Tarptent velcro for door tiebacks.  XMid could really do with 2 tiebacks on the doors rather than just one, which takes care to get a tidy roll back and can pop open if not careful or windy.

Also, the SS even as a full footprint, is easier to get in tight spaces than the wide ended XMid. It’s footprint is hex rather than rectangle so less pronounced corners to fit into a small circular patch.

In use Xmid is a slightly  nicer space and easier access  generally. The doors, porches and straight door zips are good to use.

The SS door zips are sometimes a pain to close down or open if shelter is nailed down.  Which is frustrating in bad weather.

We like both, and for many uses will now choose the XMid. It’s simplicity is very attractive.

I’d say the SS in its current iteration is more versatile. Ventilation, pitch space, solidity.

But probably either would suit your needs. Both 9/10 from me!

 

[Jon Solomon]

I don’t have anything to add to this thread except admiration for both Paul S and Mole J’s down to earth, balanced evaluations.

[baja bob]

Agreed. There should be rules about what product makers and sellers should be allowed to post. Many other forums have rules prohibiting them coming on the forum pumping their products. Their sales pitches should be left to their own websites.

[Jerry Adams]

on the other hand, product makers and sellers know more about their products and can answer detailed questions better

as long as they’re transparent about their association with the product

and as long as they stay objective about the products and not be annoying

Dan’s post about xmid is a good example of a good post from a maker/supplier

[Dan @ Durston Gear]

“The weight difference between the two, with solid innertents, seems to be only about 75-ish grams according to the webpages (counting all but the stakes), if I am adding the numbers correctly.”
Sorry you are correct. I was referring to the regular versions but you are asking about the solid versions which are closer in weight. Also it appears they adjusted their specs recently to take 40g off the fly.

“There should be rules about what product makers and sellers should be allowed to post…prohibiting them coming on the forum pumping their products. ”
My intent is to provide factual information on questions that are being asked/topics that are already being discussed (as opposed to changing the topic to bring up my products or providing subjective commentary). If someone is wondering about not being able to get the inners separately, not being able to collapse the vestibules, or they have incorrect info on how the floor width compares, then I think it is helpful to provide that info. With that said, I probably did say a bit too much and didn’t need to sum up the advantages since that is one sided.

“Could you explain the double stiching part – when I look at the pictures, the fly seems to have double lines of stiching on both tents.”
The main seams of any tent are pretty much always double stitched. It’s the less important seams where you see more variation, such as around the bottom of hem, on the vents, or around the reinforcements. I’m a big advocate of double stitching so we’ve always double stitched pretty much everything. Double stitching on the SS has been increasing (e.g. they now double stitch the hem) but is still less widespread. I’m not at all saying it is low quality – the SS is a very well built tent and has become more double stitched than many tents – just that this is an area where we take extra (arguably unnecessary) steps.

“Collapsing the vestibule on the xmid: by using the stake-out point on the fly located at the end of the innertent, in stead of the usual four outlying corners of the outer?”
I will do a video on this once the snow melts here, but essentially yes you use that stake and the peak guyline. I explain this in a long post about halfway down this page:
https://www.trek-lite.com/index.php?threads/dan-durston-massdrop-x-mid.4960/page-121

 

[baja bob]

[post removed – MK]

[Tim H]

I couldn’t disagree w/ @baja bob any more. I find a manufacturer’s product provided insights and comparisons extremely valuable. I’ve never found Dan offering disparaging comments or comparisons about other manufacturers; however, when his products are criticized or inaccurately compared he will set the record straight, like I would expect Ron or Henry to do as well.

When a personal animus towards an individual is present it may be more helpful to the forum to refrain from displaying said animus, as it offers utterly no value.

[Bill Budney]

^^– This.

Dan was a BPL member long before he became a manufacturer. I love his knowledgeable and balanced comments.

[Henrik S]

Adding to the pile of majority opinions here – I welcome alle input, and will consider/examine the arguments myself, regardless of who they are. So only grateful that mr Durston would for spend some of his free-time on my tent-research here.

Don’t know who Ron Bell is, but if it’s the insurance lawyer “Better call Ron” from Albuquerque that Google presents to me, then I think there might arise some dealbreaking cultural differences… Interesting character though.

 

Mole J: thank you for the information – very interesting for me!

[Dan @ Durston Gear]

I don’t want to derail this thread so I’ll make one last post on this topic and then leave the matter.

“Claiming your tent or some characteristic is better than the tarp tent is not stating a fact.”
My post does not make a sweeping subjective claim like this. I do not say that my tent is overall better than another, nor am I making more specific subjective claims like “more stormworthy”. What my post does is provide factual and readily verifiable information on topics that are already being discussed. My intent is to say away from subjective information and opinion, and just provide factual information.

For example, both of these tents have 52″ wide floors, 5″ tall sidewalls, and a mechanism to lower the inner inside the peaks to widen the floor. Anyone can confirm this with a measuring tape. The floor width was mentioned by the OP as a main consideration and he was under the impression that one tent could be 10″ wider, so I think it is helpful to clarify these tents are the same in this regard.

“Other people on Reddit make the same comments about your posting conduct.”
People say a lot of things on reddit and there are always a range of opinions, but generally people in reddit ultralight community have a positive opinion of my contributions. You can see in this recent reddit thread that by far the most upvoted comment is one supportive of my posts, while the lone comment to the contrary is heavily downvoted.

Is the XMid tent really all that? from Ultralight

I was very active on BPL for a decade before I ever built gear, so yeah I am more active online than some other gear companies that rarely participate. I am passionate about my tents and try to provide helpful information when the topic comes up, but I am not bringing up my gear where it isn’t already discussed and I am attempting to avoid subjective content and provide only factual information. Where something might be seen as subjective (e.g. simpler pitch) I normally provide how I’m defining that (e.g. fewer stakes, no measuring poles).

[Jon Solomon]

I’ve been thinking about this a lot recently, not just today.

I’ve decided that I do think it would be useful to have rules about when and how designers and manufacturers can participate when the discussion is about either their own designs and products or about the designs and products of others.

If the debate in this thread has shown anything, it is that there are some pretty polarized opinions about that kind of stuff, and people feel strongly about it. For that reason alone, I think it would be in the community’s interest as a whole to regulate when and how designers and manufacturers can post both about their own products and about the products and designs of others, exactly so that we can avoid passing judgment on old members turned manufacturers and then going for each others’ throats in the process. 

It would be a shame if designers and manufacturers were not welcome here. By the same token, it isn’t beneficial for the community as a whole to allow designers and manufacturers to post like other members about their own products n designs and/or about those of others. The idea of having a separate space for designers and manufacturers to do that, within certain limits to be determined by the steering committee of BPL, seems like a great way to maximize the benefits to the community while avoiding creating greater friction — which, as we all know, ends up driving people away in the end.

[Bill Budney]

Rules are good, but this is a thread about Dan’s tent. Whom can speak more authoritatively on the subject than Dan?

@BPL: I’d like to be able to see affiliations at a glance: Perhaps in the username or sig. At minimum it should be listed in the user’s public profile.

[Dan]

I’m happy to have Dan Durston post in the forum, I think he’s a true asset. I don’t own any of his gear, but I learn quite a bit from what he writes. I’m aware that he’s likely to have some bias towards his products, and that doesn’t bother me. Plenty of members here have very strong biases, even without a financial interest.

[Matthew / BPL]

This is an excellent conversation regarding disclosure of commercial interests. I’m hoping everyone can take a minute to take a look at BPL’s proposed solution for this issue: Opinions Please: Manufacturer Disclosure.

 

[Murali C]

Definitely appreciate the knowledge that Dan Durston brings to the forum.

But I do feel Dan Durston is a little too passionate about his product and wants to control the narrative. For example, you will rarely see Henry Shires comment – like how he has not commented on this thread in spite of many comments on his tent by a rival tent maker. Same with Joe. Same with Ron. I think these folks have decided that they are not interested in controlling the narrative about their tents – especially when they have lots of variety in their product line and will be too tedious to defend everything.

Dan tents are selling like hot cakes and will continue to do so with or without his comments on his tents.

Anyways I am not saying Dan should modulate his comments – I am just an observer making an observation :-) Dan Durston should do Dan Durston!

[R L]

Life is easy.  Don’t make it hard.  Perhaps all this turmoil is from our morphed society giving trophies to the losers.  I dunno. I’m a codger. I’ve had fourteen shelters during the past eleven years.  Spent a shipload of money and time.  I’m down to a tarp/bivy and an Xmid 1P.  Pick your poison.  Happy hiking,  ~R

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