hahaha
man id hate to be the first one with a new pack.

John,

With regards to volume questions people are posting...you own both the Conduit and the Ohm. The main pack bags are listed at the same volume but the Ohm is being described as taller. So, essentially the same capacity but the Ohm is taller/narrower? How does it differ from the Conduit?

The specs don't make the volume of the Ohm to be much more than the Conduit. The larger extension collar provides a little more capacity but nothing major. Not sure if I should buy the Ohm or get a new Conduit and call it a day (mine has suffered tearing where the top strap meets the mesh- looks like this has been addressed on the 09's). Or is the difference really all about how the pack carries at 20+ pounds?

OK, OK, I'll try to load a few things in the pack later this morning and get a photo or two of the hip belt. In the meantime...
John... The hip belt wings on my large Ohm extend 10" from the pack to the front webbing. On my 36" (real measurement, not belt size) waist the wings wraps around enough to just reach the front part of the iliac crest. At that point the tapering wing is down to 1.5" where it joins the belt webbing.
Russell... By my measurement the Ohm is approximately one inch longer than the Conduit measuring from the bottom of the pack to the spot where the extension collar meets. Visually it appears that the Ohm is much longer because of the higher portion where the frame mount is located. There appears to be a small difference in circumference, but the Ohm, visually, looks much narrower at first glance because the mesh fits snugly against the pack... not like the loose, stiff mesh of the 2008 Conduit.

I've got to get out into the forest with my dog for an hour or so and will get those photos up later today.

Edited by Quoddy on 02/19/2009 07:22:54 MST.

I measured the hip belt and padding. It's 5.5" wide where it joins the pack and 1.75" where it joins the webbing. The gridstop that's visible in the center photo is what attache the pocket to the pack, not part of the hip belt itself. The last photo (recently added) is the back side of wing showing the padding. I hope these photos answer the questions, but if not fire away:

Edited by Quoddy on 02/19/2009 13:55:03 MST.

Great photos John! I also wanted to let everyone know that ULA now has the fully rotatable zoomable image of the pack on their website. You can rotate the pack and view it from different angles in a separate browser window. Then when you get to an angle that you want to view in more detail you can zoom way in and get detailed closeups. They don't have the hip-belt pockets on it, so you get a really good view of the hip belt. Hope that helps.

Thanks John! This looks like it will work.

Can any Ohm owners so far compare its main compartment volume to the Jam2.

John - thanks for the pics.

@both John and Mark Verber, if you have already answered this I apologize for the repeat but what size did you each get and what is your torso length in inches? My Relay is a m/l but I find it a little short. I am 19.5"

Curious, thanks.

David... My Ohm is a large and the distance between where the shoulder straps are sewn and the bottom of the hip belt attachment is 21.5" (M/L Conduit is 20.75"). My torso length is 20.75". The large is not in any way big on me and fits much better than the Conduit in a M/L.

BTW, I've found the measurement from the inside sewn portion of the shoulder straps to the bottom of the hip belt to be the best way to fit most packs for length. For me, that number is between 21.5" and 21.75".

Thanks John.

I just received my size large Ohm and wanted to throw in my initial observations. Packed it up with about 15-20 lbs. of gear and carried it around the house for an hour or so. For reference, I'm 5'11", 177 lbs., and 20.5" torso. I like the large torso length, plenty of volume for my setup, and it carries comfortably.

My only issue thus far is with the hipbelt sizing. I like to really cinch the waist tight on my packs. I have a 33" waist and with this pack I can max out the belt. This leaves about 12-14" of hipbelt webbing hanging down. I could see this being and issue should i ever drop a few pounds or carry it on an extended hike where I might lose some weight.

Since the hipbelt is not size specific or otherwise adjustable on this pack, I thought this would be worthwhile info for any tall/skinny folks out there looking at the Ohm.

Edited by smyth on 02/20/2009 16:56:56 MST.

I'm pretty sure Brian will replace the hipbelt with a smaller one if asked. I bet he would do it before shipping it to you.

I'd have no doubt that he would if that were possible, but the hipbelt on the Ohm is not removeable.

Sure it is. Just cut it off and sew a new one on. I inquired about changing out the hip belt on my Relay with a Conduit hip belt and was told "no problem". I was told it would cost me about $25. I wish I would have thought about it before ordering, it would save me some shipping.

John,

Thanks for posting the pic's, I should have my large Ohm by late next week?
I bought a MLD Arc last year, but have yet to use it. Then when I saw the Ohm, with its hooped frame, hip-belt, and shoulder strap load lifter straps, I knew it would carry very well in comparison to it relatively light weight.
I''m guessing it will probably carry a load better than most packs of comparable weight.
I have a 36" waist, so I should be good with the fit of the hip-belt.
I bought the large, because I have a large Circuit, which fits me well, so I figured the large Ohm would be a good fit too.
Casey at ULA, mentioned that the hip-belt is padded at 31". It would add extra weight, but......a hip-belt could be designed with a 2nd set of slider/adjuster buckles, back from the front buckles to accommodate smaller hips, and for dealing with long distance hikes and weight loss.

I wonder how many OHM's they've sold so far? I'm really looking foward to useing mine. I'm supposed to go on an overnight trip to the Smokies tomorrow. It's supposed to be pretty cold. I don't think I'll get all my cold weather gear in the OHM or not.

Edited by Rcarver on 02/20/2009 17:30:59 MST.

MEDIUM OHM: the hipbelt has ~8" of padded surface per side.
(~30" min waist/hip size)

LARGE OHM: the hipbelt has ~10" of padded surface per side.
(~32" min waist/hip size)

The backpanel is 12" wide. So if you care to measure at home to get a sense of where a hipbelt might fit for you, measure from the center of your back (spine) around either side ~14" or ~16" respectively. That spot on your hip/waist is where the end of the padded surface of the belt will be.

The buckle assembly is ~3", and the webbing straps for adjustment are ~20" long.

Although the hipbelts are sewn to the Ohm, if you give me a heads up, and give me a decent window of time to do it for you, I am more than happy to sew a MD belt to a LG Torso, or a LG belt to a MD torso....just email, call, or mention it in the "comments" section of the order form.

Enjoy your weekend.

Brian

@ Robert: Ahhh....taking a sharp edge to this lovely pack never crossed my mind. I thought you were suggesting switching out the hipbelt for a different size like could be done with a Catalyst. Now I see.

@ Brian: Thanks for the info. I didn't realize the hipbelts were different sizes too. I may think about a medium or a custom as you suggested.

Looking at the pictures on the ULA site between the Conduit and the Ohm and it appears that the hipbelt is the same. Is this the case?

I am trying to get my head around why one would choose the Ohm over the Conduit. Both are rated to the same load carrying. Although the Ohm has the Delron Hoop, in the Circuit with the wide, firm belt, one can see why that pack would have higher load carrying. If the Ohm has the same belt as the Conduit (i.e. not nearly as wide and stiff as the Circuit), why not save a few ounces and go with the Conduit?

David-

All good thoughts...three reasons I'd choose an Ohm over a Conduit:

1)Pack Stability/Load Control
2)Pack Compression
3)Load Transfer

Of course this is all dependent on intended use. The Ohm (and its features) allow me to go for a week comfortably in a 21 oz pack. I have hard time doing that in a Conduit, and the Circuit is too much pack for me once I am down to a 4 day load. The Conduit for me is the perfect pack for a sub-5 day load in well-watered environs.

Brian

Brian

Thanks Brian - you don't take Saturdays off?

I e-mailed you direct as well.