Free 2-Day Shipping on orders over $50*
Memorial Day SaleMemorial Day Sale
Detail Pics

Description

Whew, there it is.

Don’t panic—you didn’t forget to pack a sleeping bag. The Marmot Plasma 30 Sleeping Bag is just so compact and lightweight that it may feel like you left it at home. This technologically advanced bag features a Pertex Quantum shell that is 25-50% lighter than standard sleeping bag shells, and lofty, highly compressible 900-fill down insulation. That’s right, 900-fill down—the highest fill power available.
  • Winner of numerous industry awards, including Outside Magazine's 2011 Gear of the Year, Backpacker Magazine's 2011 Editors' Choice, and National Geographic Adventure 2011 Gear of the Year
  • EN comfort-rated at 42-degrees F for shoulder-season conditions; lower-limit-rated at 33-degrees F for occasional use during mild winter temps
  • Ultra-premium 900-fill goose down is as light as a wisp of fog, as good at rebounding as a seven-foot-tall center, and features one of the highest warmth-to-weight ratios known to humankind
  • Pertex Quantum shell fabric keeps weight to a minimum while maximizing packability and enhancing breathability so that condensation doesn't build up in the down insulation
  • Intosect Flow vertical baffle system reduces weight and transfers heat from the core of your body to your extremities
  • Vertical baffles optimize thermal performance and significantly reduce weight
  • Down-filled draft collar, zipper-length draft tube, and ground-level seams help prevent leaks and improve warmth retention
  • Wrap-around foot box vaults the foot area to prevent the compression of down and extend the bag's comfort range
  • Two hang loops at the foot allow you to easily hang the bag to air it out

Share your thoughts

What do you think of the

Marmot Plasma 30 Sleeping Bag:30 Degree Down

? Share a...

No file chosen

Rather attach a photo from another website?

Rather attach a photo from your computer?

  • Product review:
  • Share a video
  • Share a photo

How familiar are you with the product?(optional)

Invalid filetype.

Save

Here's what others have to say...

Temps? I think the 30 would work better...

Luxx989

Member since 
Posted on

Temps? I think the 30 would work better for most of my trips than the 15, as I will have some nights up to 70 and as low as 20. I figure I'll just unzip and use more like a blanket on hotter nights? And layer clothing on colder ones. This will be my first high end bag, weight and stuff size are important to me. My question is will the 15 burn me out on a hot night any more than the 30? Enough to make a difference in my choice? Maybe I just need two bags since I'm looking at such big temp differences?

Matt Deen

Member since 
Best Answer Responded on

I would go two bags, but I would slurge for the 15 to keep you warm on those cold nights and then pick up a cheap 30-40 degree down bag for those warmer nights on one of the many sales going on right now with the summer coming to an end soon. This is what I did last year and I'm very happy.

Luxx989

Member since 
Responded on

I think I will just look at two bags. I like the stuff size and weight of the Plasma so I might go with their 40 for summer. Also checking out some Western Mountaineering for a winter bag, thinking of going lower than 15, I guess it couldn't hurt to go 0 degrees if I'm only using it for colder trips? Thanks for the advice

5 5

xen100431116

Member since 

I've read a couple reviews from people complaining that this is not a true "ultralight" bag because it has a full zip and built in pillow etc... All true, but the "extra" features make the bag more usable, even if it is and ounce or two heavier. I'm a tall guy (6'3") and the fit is good in the long. The pillow was frankly nice to have and the draw strings for the draft collar and the hole were easy to operate from inside the bag in the dark. 30 degrees is a bit generous, but 40 with wind was no problem. Storage sack and stuff sack are also top notch in quality. No feathers leaking after 10 days of use.

5 5

yri5080982

Member since 

I have had this bag on a 1 night trip which went down to 50F. Used it as a blanket worked beautifully. Expect to take it to 20F trips with additional sleeping layers no problem.

I heard that the only way to get 900 fill...

thomaswhin2148096

Member since 
Posted on

I heard that the only way to get 900 fill down is by live plucking geese, does Marmot comment on their down supply chain? I'm not sure the extra fill power is worth that kind of torture, I don't really care about geese but I don't need to go out of my way to $uck with them.

Dave Marcus

Member since 
Best Answer Responded on

900-fill down is available from humane sources. Marmot says they source down from geese that have been raised for food, and that they harvest the down only after the geese have been savagely murdered. Doesn't that make you feel better?

3 5

gear freak

Member since 

Although the Plasma 30 is very comfortable and fashioned from some of the best ingredients available, we believe that other bags perform better in the ultralight summer category. For one, the Plasma has a full neck baffle with two snaps and a drawcord. While this feature is well designed we don’t believe it belongs on an ultralight summer bag. Similarly, the hood is very comfortable, but almost too comfortable. Marmot stuffed extra down into the back of the hood to make a mini pillow. These features don’t add too much extra weight, but they illustrate that the bag is designed more for comfort than for performance.

Baffle design: continuous horizontal baffles found in the Feathered Friends Merlin and Western Mountaineering Summerlite provide more versatility than the Plasma's vertical baffles. The Flow Gates (7-8 in each baffle) are made of no see um mesh neeting and cover most of the baffle. You can pass some down though them, but it's quite difficult. Continuous baffles are better because you can shift the down to the top of the bag if it's very cold and to the bottom if it's warmer.

Another potential drawback is the shell material, Pertex Quantum. Though superlight and surprisingly durable for its weight the material offers virtually no water resistance. Other materials, such as the Pertex Endurance UL offered on the Feathered Friends Merlin, are nearly as light and more water resistant. You can’t go wrong with the Plasma 30, other bags perform better and are cheaper.

check out the review on www.outdoorgearlab.com for more details

michael

Member since 
Responded on

this is just a horrible review, too comfortable, really? you are a joke

Peter Kaminski

Member since 
Responded on

I have to assume this was written by someone who doesn't know much about sleeping bags.
Baffles are intended to PREVENT down shifting. A spot with thinned insulation ANYWHERE in the bag makes the entire construction cooler. In addition to that, the two bags that you mentioned have horizontal baffles. In the case of the baffle closest to your face, as an example, you could move the down closer to your nose, or closer to your sternum, but not down to your feet. Similarly, the baffle near your feet wouldn't accommodate shifting down up, as there is a piece of material there to prevent exactly that.
The difference of water resistance between Pertex Endurance and Quantum is offset by the additional ounces - which seem to me to not 'belong in an ultralight summer bag.'
It pains me to think that you might be paid to write this review - unless maybe you're being paid by Western Mountaineering or Feathered friends.

Draft Collar detail

Simon Hatfield

Member since 
Posted on

Matt Mio

Member since 
Responded on

okay, a few months down the road now...are you loving this bag or additional thoughts? down-proofness of fabric, down migration in vertical baffles an issue at all?

Simon Hatfield

Member since 
Responded on

Still liking the bag, fabric is ridiculously down-proof. There is a little bit of down migration, but the wispy materials are holding up well. I do notice that it really loses loft in humid environments though. The zipper snags a bit too.

Tim Coats

Member since 
Groups:
Posted on

Marmot's own Curly shows you the brand-new Plasma Bag, Marmot's high-end 900-fill down sleeping bag available Spring 2011. The lightest, warmest down on earth! Curly and bag designer Wade Woodfill take you through the bag's many features and show you why it's the best bag out there!

4 5

Simon Hatfield

Member since 

This bag is a work of art. The 10D fabric is silky soft on your skin, the hood cinches down to create a nice seal, and the draft collar is stuffed full of luxurious down and adjusts smoothly. The interior fabric is a bright, translucent green and the exterior a svelte, glossy black. The Plasma is neither constrictively narrow, nor is it roomy, striking a nice balance between warmth and spaciousness. The footbox is well constructed, and the full length zipper operates smoothly, providing venting or clean mating with a Helium or Pinnacle. The Plasma comes with an ultralight stuffsack as well as a nice mesh storage bag, with "900 FILL" emblazoned on the bottom in huge, heart-racing numbers. Marmot has cleverly used synthetic insulation in the draft tube to keep it evenly stuffed, and it works quite nicely.

With the stuff sack, the Plasma weighs in at 1lb 8oz on my scale. The EN rating of 32ºF seems accurate, I was cool but comfortable sleeping outside on a 30º night in Joshua Tree NP with a hat, socks, and midweight baselayer.

But is it worth $420?

Depends on who you are I guess. If you absolutely must own the best of everything at all times, this is your bag. Its primo. If you want to get the most for your dollar, however, you can do much better. The Hydrogen, for example, is EN rated 3º warmer, costs $80 less, and only weighs an ounce or two more*. The Hydrogen's warmth rating is achieved without a draft collar and with roomier dimensions, making it far more comfortable. The thicker fabric on the Hydrogen holds in the down better (the Plasma sheds feathers from the seams occasionally) and its horizontal baffles mitigate down shift - a big problem i notice with the Plasma's longer vertical ones.

Overall, the Plasma is a very unique and worthy piece of gear, and I'm glad I bought it, but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it, nor would I tell you it's worth the money.

*according to my scale

wma5690095

Member since 
Responded on

I was previously using an REI sub-kilo 20 degree rated bag. I'm just too big for that bag. Even though the Plasma 30 weights less it's several inches larger at the shoulders and hips. I expected to be warmer just because I fit in the bag better. But, it's warmer anyway, rating or not. I've taken it on three trips. During a night in the mid 30's I didn't bother to zip the bag all the way up and was comfortable. The cover feels delicate, but didn't suffer any snags with my dogs crawling all over it. I'm totally satisfied.