Mammut Pulse Barryvox Avalanche Beacon - 2007

I personally think this is the best beacon on the market. The software is easily updated, and the hardware is Swiss quality. Easy to use, but also loaded with features for the advanced user. When all else fails you can even switch to a classic analog search mode.

No doubt having to search for someone would be a frightening experience. With this tool in hand you can relax and let it find your friends for you. The processor needs a bit of time to stay fixed and will find your friends quickly as long as you take your time. You will be quicker by letting the machine work for you.

It has many features that with practice one could become very proficient with. But even without knowing all the tricks this beacon will find and locate quickly. Which is what matters most.

When I took an avy course this winter, everyone else in my group complained that I was cheating (in jest of course), but thats how much faster and easier my searching was in comparison to others using BCA trackers and F1s. It was very handy for helping direct a group search for multiple burials as I could reliably declare how many were buried and to tell people which signal for them to pay attention to (to direct subgroups of searchers to different beacons).

Still as with most beacons, I found its important not to move too quickly while searching. The beacon would sometimes get confused if you tried to move very quickly and then it would ask you to stand still while it reacquired its target. The symptoms of confusion usually were that it might try to send you the long way on the flux line. The cure for this was to stop moving and let it figure it out quickly. I wouldn't consider this a flaw as with all digital beacons its important not to "outrun" them.

Love this beacon, i got 2, pulled them out of their boxes threw the batterys in and turned them on, withing seconds i was using one to search for the other throughout the house. the display with 360 arrow makes it really easy to use and fast.

This thing is super pricey. But it is expensive for a reason. A) It is the best beacon on the market B) It has all the bells and whistles...and then some. Granted A and B go hand in hand, but still. This beacon operates on three antennae signals to locate burial victims, so you are guaranteed to pick up a strong reading. When looking for victims this beacon utilizes a 360 degree direction arrow, making it easier to find burial victims. It also displays signals from multiple burial victims, upto 8, and displays them by closest to farthest. You can also lock into a burial, so that you are distraction/distortion free from other beacon signals being broadcasted, making finding a buried victim much easier, and allowing you to do so in a shorter time. This beacons is also relatively small in size and fairly lightweight, making it less of a hinderance to wear than other beacons. And the cherry on top...this beacon, when wearing, detects motion from you breathing and your heart beating, so that if other skiers in your party have this beacon as well, they can tell if you're still alive. Great feature! If you are looking for the best beacon, the most chock full of technology beacon, and/or the most efficient beacon to use in a recovery situation, there should be not other beacon on your list but this one. Mammut really nailed it with this one. You get what you pay for. You might be paying a lot more than for other beacons, but you're getting a lot more also...you're getting the best!

Best beacon I have ever used. I still love my SOS, but you can't beat the Pulse. I want whom ever is looking for me to have the pulse.

For multiple searches nothing is faster!

My first try out was at a avalanche training center at Andermatt, Switzerland I was able to test my response time over the older digital Mammut Barryvox, and the signal response was infinitely faster. The ability to shut off signals already found totally eliminates the confusion with multiple burials. With a little practice it's easy even for a beginner. Be careful though when using outside the US though, the Vital status feature is transmitted on a frequency only valid in the area you buy it. Apparently the frequency used by the rest of the world is illegal in the US. (Thank You US Army). But this only applies to the vital status feature, which only works if everyone in your party has a new pulse Barryvox anyway. Otherwise great product!

Had this beacon for 1 seson now and thinks its smashing.Easy to use.Needs a little practice along with other to be 100 % comfortable with it. The puls system dosent work in norway,thinks u need to download some software to get that working.

At first I had trouble with this binding cause it stretched out and my tiny foot wouldnt stay in, but the rep showed me how to tighten this down to a 23.5. Give em a call, they are way chill and seem to ski more than spend time in the office. Yeah!

Hands down this is the most advance, user friendly and amazing piece of gear of its kind ever made. If you are looking for a new beacon try to get your hands on this and see for yourself.

This thing is so easy to use, me and my buddy just switched the things on and could use it around the garden out of the box without reading the instructions. This bodes well for the occassional vacation skier. We did read the instructions before taking them up the hill of course!Highly recommended.

I had the opportunity to try this beacon out in a controlled environment. It is a super easy beacon to use. The compass feature gives the beacon the very accurate readings. Another great aspect of this beacon is the multiple burial function. It shows you the signal that is closet to you and you are able to check each individual one off as necessary. Remember the only way this beacon is effective is to practice.

Forgot to add in my original review, the strap for this isn't much good. Despite spending hours to try and adjust it and get it snug, it kept slipping whilst skiing. Why don't they make a proper 4 strap harness instead of the 3 strap one? Ended up putting the transciever in my pocket and attaching it to my jacket via the beacon clip and my jacket clip.

After having to think to solve a multiple burial problem in an avy training, I picked up a Pulse. It has more features and is easier to use then the Pieps. Generally it will find all beacons in range in about 45 seconds. It is generally just a matter of walking, probing and marking. Impressive.

There are a couple quirks. It takes about 45 seconds to find all the beacons in range. I have had this under-report beacons in a multiple burial but never give a false positive. Throwing the beacon in to the mis-named analog mode (I think of it as "tracker" mode) I was able to quickly find the missing beacons. The beacon can get confused if you move to quickly during acquisition. You need to practice with this beacon. If you are willing to it pretty much rocks. More information and less thought then my old Tracker.

This is an easy to use, compact & comfortable to wear beacon. If only it had a harness like the ortovox so when you put it on it was turned on, it would be perfect.

I got this beacon as a part of package deal, and luckily, I haven't actually had to use it yet. Hopefully I will never have to (knock on wood). Being a native East Coaster I had never used a beacon before. I took it to a practice park and was finding and checking off multiple burials in just a few minutes. It was really easy and made me feel way less intimidated by the idea of having to use one. There is a review above that mentions a lack of range, which is definitely something to consider, but the review mentions "digital" as the reason for lack of range, and the Pulse actually has an Analog antenna, so take that however you want.

So far this beacon is the bee's knees,
Unfortunately being quite new on the market I would like to see if everything all the bugs are worked out with it. I wouldn't recommend the pulse for someone who hasn’t had any experience using avi beacons but definitely for someone looking for the most advanced.
For first timers I recommend the Peips dsp

I purchased this beacon after using an Ortovox M2 beacon for four years. I have worked in the ski industry for two years and am well trained with analog beacons so was skeptical at first about how much these beacons take away from thinking as I was used to. At first glance the user interface was really simple to use. After three weeks of using the beacon and putting it through its paces I came to this conclusion that I could not use this beacon with a clear conscious. The user interface was great, simple to use and made multiple burials a snap (also great for those who are not as well practiced at their searches). The only downfall (and a huge one) is the range, or lack there of. In comparison to the Ortovox F1, the range of the Pulse was consistantly about 1/3 that of the F1's distance ...unacceptable. I could not keep this beacon, knowing what one day it might cost someone their life so it went back and I am back to an Ortovox F1 until the technology improves in the digital beacon field.

Excellant piece of kit, well worth the expense. I had the last barryvox but this one's extra features which will go that one step further to keep you alive. Simple to use, well protected in a plastic case when worn, comfortable. Highly recommended.

I watched someone with no skills take this beacon for the first time ever and find 4 "victims" faster then some pros. The simplicity of the tool is excellent! I am not convinced that motion technology will assist in triage scenarios of multiple burials, but the beacon is fast and easy, so it wins huge kudos from me. Seems like they need to universalize the beacon some more, but in general this beacon blows away peips and is a close second to the Ortovox S1.