DaVinci Ascent -- Review?

OK, I read up on vaporizers, did some cursory research, tried one with a friend, went out an bought the Ascent by DaVinci


It comes in wood panel finish, black, and carbon fiber. I think black, or carbon. They're $200, more or less, depending where you buy. Reviews rate this item generally high. Mine had a few issues -- The spare glass draw stem was cracked out of the box. Retailer had a spare and replaced it. My first unit would not hold a charge. This unit was replaced. The grass draw tube in the second has a microscopic nick in the neck. Seems DaVinci needs to think about how it handles these tubes when packing the unit.

Five hours to charge. Nothing in the manual say the unit cannot be used while charging, Digital heat control is easy to set. There's a digital read-out screen that monitors heating, signals when the unit is fully heated. There are options to turn off heat only. There are three separate heat settings available, and these can be set for how long they run. Unit has a motion timer that shuts off when the unit is not moving -- a safety feature for when it gets set down.

I tried the oil cups. Pain in the butt, they drip and bubble over. Nearly impossible to remove the cup when it's hot.

The heat bowl is ceramic, white. Heat source is infra-red. Unit heats reasonably fast, 20 seconds to 375 F.

The flip open bowl section is easy to access, easy to load. Would be nice if emptied closer to the dump site. I like to catch the remains in an ash-tray and this design doesn't allow close in dumps from the bowl. Would be nice if the unit sat steady with the bowl section open, for loading.

Unit is solid, constructed of the best materials, stable, clean components. The glass draw pipe is a nice feature, clean taste. There's an option to retract the tube and "pass the pipe." Nice but not necessary.

Best feature of the Ascent is that it looks like a cell phone. It looks like you're on the phone, not toking.

I'm new to vaporizers. I get one heavy hit with some terpenes. Then I don't taste anything. The bud doesn't discolor much -- green to light green/brown. Seems like I'm not getting anything from the hit, but the "ash" is potent when smoked in a bong. I expect this is part of the learning curve.

Top of the line product. Worth the $$$
 

fanofpanic

Well-Known Member
Thanks for the review. I, too, was looking at either the davinci ascent, magic-flight launch box or the cloud v phantom as my first intro to vaporizers. Your review gives me some inside info!
 

BWG707

Well-Known Member
I've owned a Ascent for about 10months. It's not my go to way to consume but I do use it almost daily. There is a slight learning curve to get the best performance out of it. I haven't had any problems at all with my unit but I have heard stories about quite a few returns. I think they have probably got the bugs out by now though. For a portable, rechargable vape it works very well.
 
great info...i vape e liquid now instead of smoking cigs,so i am looking to see how vaping wirks with mj. i noticed there r so many units to chose from. has anyone tried any other brands or is the davinci ascent the best?
 
Some additional looking around. The Ascent is safe to run while charging. I ran a "test bowl" of bud from the previous day. Mostly I was trying to decide what sort of THC I'm getting. I'm not tasting much at all, and there's no "smoke" -- like drawing heated air.

The load that I was thinking smoked out is still producing THC draws. There's a learning curve to this stuff, and I realize that I rely on the "hit" I get from the smoke to signal that I'm getting results.

Ohhhhhh, yeah, and you need to invest in a bud grinder. Bud grinders are not rocket science. I found a simple black plastic version, grinds on one end, stows bud in the body, waterproof and air tight. Made from food grade industrial plastic.
 
These look awesome! I haven't used one just the MFLB for a portable.

I like the volcano for home but for a serious portable vape these look nice.
 

demandeman

Active Member
What is the one on the right? I'm looking for a stationary vape
avoid the ascent- the bowl is takes a lot of herb to fill ,and you have to fill it to get ANY KIND of taste at all; the taste is minimal if anything- which is not a plus in my book

Bought it and the battery lasts only 30 minutes
Now- I have to pay to ship it back / and it is on the high end of pricing for portable vaps
try a SOLO- great taste and very efficient with your herb use
or I here the pax is good
 

BWG707

Well-Known Member
The Ascent bowl can be filled with .3 gram. If that's too much you can use the glass oil can as a spacer and/or glass flowers. As for taste, it's the only portable vape with an all glass air path and IMO taste pretty good. There is a slight learning curve but once you learn it the Ascent can produce clouds of vaper. My biggest complaint is it doesn't vape straight oil/wax. It's got a great feel to it and has worked flawlessly for me going on 11 months. It is on the expensive side but all the decent portables are overpriced.
 
What is the one on the right? I'm looking for a stationary vape
The one on the right is the Solo by Arizer. I have a full review on my website. The hydrotube and added GonG (glass on glass) adapter is extra though. Normally it just comes with glass stem which still works pretty well. I just like to use the water attachments.
 
First Ascent I purchased would not hold a charge. Also, the spare draw pipe was cracked. Retail replaced the unit (but would not provide a requested refund) Second unit had a micro-chip in the mouth piece on the draw pipe. I've broken both lower "screen" pipes while carefully cleaning with a needle probe. I suspect the tubes get brittle when exposed to heat. Tubes should be better designed and constructed of heat resistant Pyrex -- laboratory glassware. Replacement draw tubes are $12.95, plus shipping. Latch on the second unit broke. Edge chipped off. Unit still functions, but this is not "normal wear & tear" as claimed by Davinci. The unit is less than a month old. I treat it with anal retentive care. The latch is puny, weak, and poorly designed. I suspect it too gets brittle from heat. A week on emails to Davinci for warranty work -- fix the latch. Davinci claims "this is normal wear & tear and so not covered by warranty." Piss poor customer service, and so for this reason I vote a big NO on this unit. Get a Volcano instead.
 

BrennaBrown

New Member
Yeah, Ascent produces a very good amount of vapor and it tastes really great. But I love using MFLB than Ascent. It may not be the most attractive or “coolest” vape with lots of digital features, but MFLB delivers in the vapor and functionality departments!
 
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