Sublimator Master Glass Kit Review: Vaporizer meets Water-Pipe?

The Sublimator is a vaporizer that’s sure to catch the eyes of most enthusiasts, as this is one of the most unique devices that we have taken a look at, both in appearance and operation. One look at it and you’ll know what we mean: this thing is half vaporizer and half huge water-pipe. Our experience testing this thing backs up what many report, which is that it puts out some very good vapor. There’s more to the Sublimator story though.

VapeCritic, another trusted industry expert claims in this review video: “ I kinda want my 800 bucks back…I have pretty mixed thoughts”.

So, the big question that needs answered is whether or not the performance of this unit can justify the crazy expensive cost, and that’s what we’re here to shed some light on today in this Sublimator review.

For a more up to date look at which desktop vaporizer is claiming the top spot on our rankings, feel free to check it out here!

Sublimator Vaporizer Review

How it Works

The Sublimator vaporizer works by producing vapor with an electronic heating element that is then drawn immediately into a water pipe. The actual vaporizer is comprised of the atomizer and the heating element, which you connect via a cord to a power supply. The power supply has different temperature settings so that you can adjust the amount of heat you are using to create the vapor. The process of creating vapor is pretty simple at face value, but there is some crazy science going on inside the ‘heating/material chamber’ which has drawn a lot of attention to the Sublimator. The manufacturer explains the Sumblimaor as conducting ‘biomolecular gasification’ through a three-part system: thermal injection, radiation, and induction. When the user takes a draw from the water pipe, vacuum pressure is produced. Combining this vacuum pressure with thermal energy and atomization produces dense essential oil- gas. This is essentially how to use Sublimator in its default setting. So basically, this three-part system actually converts the essential oils in your herbs directly into a gas.

Vapor Quality

We were very satisfied with the vapor we were getting from the Sublimator. It didn’t seem to matter whether we were using dried ground herb or a concentrate; we were able to get nice thick clouds regardless. This is certainly a key differentiating factor of the Sublimator. It not only vaporizes dry herbs and concentrates very well separately, but the manufacturer claims that the Sublimator is the only device on the market that can be used with dry herbs and concentrates simultaneously, due to their unique gasification process. The other thing to note is that the vapor was dense and intense, which may or may not be related to the water-pipe-related aspects of the unit. Although we found that adjusting for stronger, thicker vapor or thinner, smoother vapor was pretty easy once you get a hang of your own draw speed and preferred temperature setting, the one problem we had regarding the vapor was related to the temperature. Similar to the Classic Volcano, there was no real indication of the exact temperatures we were setting on the ‘Monkey Controller’. We got by alright, but we’ve grown accustomed to extreme temperature precision, especially in high-priced devices meant for use at home, like the Volcano Hybrid.

Temperature Flexibility

The temperature flexibility is average. There are 12 different pre-sets that you can choose between, but there isn’t any clear indication of what the corresponding temperatures are for these levels. For a device that costs this much, it would certainly be preferable to see the precise temperature options of other desktop vapes like the Arizer Extreme Q. That being said, once you abandon the need for understanding the temperature settings you can begin to experiment and see which ‘notch’ on the controller produces your preferred vapor thickness and flavor.

Options

There are a few decisions you’ll have to make if you are considering the Sublimator. The first is what type of material you want. The heating device and the atomizer are both available in either stainless steel or titanium. More importantly, there are different styles of the heating device depending on what your main usage will be. There are three options available: one which performs best with dried herbs and minimal concentrate use, another which performs best with concentrates and minimal dried herb use and the last option is a hybrid that can handle both dried herbs and concentrates just as effectively. Finally, the kit includes the water-pipe and you can choose between a 9” version and a 3” version. Now keep in mind, this is just for the Master Glass Kit we reviewed but there are 6 different Sublimator ‘kits’ to choose from.

Manufacturing Quality

The Sublimator is extremely well made overall. The actual material chamber for the vaporizer comes in either stainless steel or titanium (and we are basing our review off the titanium version) which feels sturdy and pure. Everything is put together very well, and the individual components are smooth and well machined. There is room for improvement in regards to the glass water pipe though. It certainly is good enough, but leaves something to be desired compared to other high-quality water pipes that we’ve tried. The glass just isn’t as thick or of as premium quality. Not a deal breaker, but it would certainly be nice to see this upgraded, especially given the price tag. Improving the quality of the product over its predecessor is a good practice by some manufacturers. Similarly, vapes that improve over their previous releases like the Utillian 722, can be a much better upgrade in terms of manufacturing quality.

Reach

This really isn’t a unit that you can move around with. While some desktop vapes incorporate a bag system so that the vapor can be passed around, or moved from room to room, the Sublimator desktop vaporizer is stuck with the least portable characteristics of both desktop vapes and water-pipes. On one hand, you’ll be using this with glass, which is fragile and prone to breaking. On top of this, the device has to be plugged in, which means you’re also limited by the length of the cord. This means the device is better for use with just 1 or 2 people, and if you try to use it with more, your friends will have to come to the device and respect the individual nature of this unit’s sessions. However, choosing a more portable option like the Zeus Arc GTS Hub can enable you to quench your vaping needs wherever you go.

Ease of Use

While vapor production is one of the device’s strengths, ease of use is a different story. Compared to other options out there, this one comes across on the difficult end of the spectrum. The first thing worth pointing out is that the device can take over 10 minutes to fully heat up so it is inconvenient. We’ve heard people complain about vapes that take a couple minutes, and this is significantly worse than that. On top of this, the lack of precise temperature settings means you have to play around to get things right where you want them in terms of vapor production. Finally, the all-metal design means that handling the components can be tricky if you don’t want to burn yourself or the table you are using it on. This isn’t something to just pass around at a party like a balloon full of vapor, or even just a normal water-pipe, you need to take some precautions while using it and ensure you know exactly what you are doing and have assembled it correctly. But if you want something that’s suitable for parties, the LITL 1 can be a good choice because of its size and weight is very compact.

Overall Experience

We can see why people like the Sublimator, or are at least attracted to the idea of it There is no denying that it produces great vapor, and at the end of the day that is the single most important feature and strength, a vaporizer can have. Despite this, we have our reservations. If this were cheaper, we would be all over it, but at its current price you’re looking at spending significantly more than most units cost, even more than the renowned king, the Volcano Hybrid which we recommend over this unit for its detachable vapor-balloon, precise temperature control and much faster heat up time. We aren’t opposed to spending money when the value justifies the cost, but in this case it just seems like there is a disconnect. Our main complaints are the lack of precise temperature controls and the quality of the bong. Before we’re ready to fully recommend the Sublimator, we’d need to see the price come down, have it be more convenient/ have more features, or a combination of all.

If you’re in the market for a more compact yet hard hitting vaporizer, the Storz & Bickel Plenty is also a great option so feel free to check that out!

Warning: Not Compatible with ZEUS Iceborn
This vaporizer is not compatible with the ZEUS Iceborn, a revolutionary new vapor cooling system designed to produce cooler draws and bigger clouds when connected to your vaporizer. The ZEUS Iceborn adds an additional 2 points to the vapor quality score of compatible units, so we highly recommend considering a whip-compatible vaporizer to take advantage of this stellar ZEUS accessory item. All compatible vaporizers will have a compatibility notice.

If you have questions about this vape or just want to let us know what you think, feel free to drop us a comment below! Thanks for reading and as always, keep vapin’! ðŸ˜‰

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