Durston X-Mid 1 Pro vs. Zpacks Duplex - Detailed Tent Review 

Would the pro 1p be more stormworthy than the 1p solid (for UK, Scandi weather)?

@@tomson842 They each have their advantages. The Pro is a stronger fabric and less stretch, so it can handle higher winds, while the Pro is still quite good and has the solid inner that would make storms more comfortable.

Yeah .. I think it's really important to include that info. And I see six feet tall often being a "cut-off point" on where many of these tents start being too small .. or at least cramped .. in terms of length.

@@DougGreene - exactly. Im also 6’ tall. A few years ago when getting into long distance hiking, I struggled deciding between duplex and solplex. I went with the solplex because I valued lower weight and packabilty. I loved it as I merely sleep in my tent, not camp. However it was slightly too short and I would wake up with the wet foot box. Last year I got the DupleXL because of the added inner length. And it worked. It’s an awesome tent, but it’s almost too roomy inside and doesn’t pack horizontally very well due to the end struts. This is why I feel the durston pro 1p might just check all the boxes. Looking forward to more reviews when people start getting them.

For some people .. yes .. that's true. But there are a lot of us that use the Duplex exclusively for solo ultralight backpacking. And it's for those people that this review is probably most applicable.

Weighs less than the duplex, yet has plenty of room for 1 person. Since most people use the duplex for 1 person its a good comparison.

@@michelstronguin6974 No it is not auntie. 'Duplex' is for two people, not one. Hence one should compare it to a XMid 2. Per your logic one should compare it to a tarp since that weighs less than a Duplex and has plenty of room for one person. Get real!

@@thewanderingsoul71 Wrong auntie lol, you have to think about how it’s used. Check the most used tent for thru-hikers going from 2020 to 2022. You will find its a single person using the duplex. You compare that to the unrivaled comfort for a single person in the Durston 1 person (seating hight due to steep walls + huge length for tall people). And you have a fair comparison for a choice of which tent to take for a thru-hike as a single person. The Duplex is huge on width space, while the Durston is huge in hight and length space. That’s the trade off. If you get the Durston 2 it isn’t a good comparison because the Durston 2 in the same weight has so much space (width, hight and length) it just crushes the Duplex, it’s not fair. It would need to be compared to the DupleXL, but not sure because the Durston 2 would win just because it doesn’t have a pole obstructing the entrance and because it’s less drafty. Zpacks has an insanely short fly, which makes it insanely drafty in high winds, while the Durston fly goes all the way to the ground if you need it to, or not if you don’t need it to. Also the Durston has peak vents. It’s not a fair comparison regardless, the Zpacks tents had their time, and that time is over. Having said that, Zpacks wins on so many other products that aren’t tents, so they will be fine.

Right?! And it makes a world of difference on the inside.

Hello to an extra half a kilo on your back then .Personally I can t carry a heavy weight so I ve no option but if you are a packhorse and don t mind the extra weight you re wasting your money buying the DCF version

I have the Pro 1 and it feels plenty big for me. The Pro 2 I think is too big. I'd rather have a tent with a smaller footprint, that's $80 cheaper, and weighs 3-4 oz less.

@@Andy-Mesa I guess doug is a pretty big guy. His size may have just made it look small. Thank you. I'm hoping to make it to trail days to try one out.

For me, the X-Mid 2 (both versions) are simply too big. The footprint size is massive .. even compared to the Duplex. While the Duplex does technically have a large footprint also, much of it is in the extra space captured by the vestibules. But you only need to attach one guyline outward on each vestibule .. and that can be over rough ground, and the vestibule can "hover" over it.. On the X-Mid 2 .. you literally have to fully enclose that vestibule space (because you're staking down hard on all four of the outer corners). Even the original X-Mid 1 (v1) had too large of a footprint for me .. especially in relation to show small the inner tent was. But the X-Mid 1 Pro solves that problem by both having a smaller footprint AND have a wider, longer, more spacious inner. It hits the sweet spot!

@@DougGreene Thanks for getting back to me Doug. That's what I needed to hear. I'm hoping there will be one at Trail Days that I can look at.

It is true that our Pro series tents are made in China, but not at all by kids. We use a well respected and premium factory there who also build for Nemo, Big Agnes, and Black Diamond that keep a careful watch on the practices. We use this factory because they are the only tent factory that can do the highest quality bonded construction with DCF. That is why every company that builds high end DCF shelters uses this same factory including Locus Gear, Tarptent, Big Agnes, Samaya and us. Zpacks does build in house, but then it's sewn construction which isn't nearly as strong.

@mtadams2009 you might want to reconsider who you buy your packs from then now. Because all of the cottage companies have been switching to Ultra or Ecopak and guess where it is manufactured at? "Where is UltraWeave (Ultra) Manufactured? Ultra and its ECOPAK sister line are manufactured in one of Challenge’s factories in China. While many people see overseas production as a potential downside, Hale explains that it lessens the environmental footprint of the fabric, seeing as virtually all recycled yarns, fabrics and films are produced in Asia."

completely irresponsible to make this comment with no facts or evidence.

@@Kevinschart What fact do you want, their tents are made in China who like it or not are our financial enemy. This is also why they have supply chain issues. It’s a beautiful tent and if you have no issue helping China to become a stronger nation then go ahead and purchase one. There is no doubt it’s a very nice tent. I love some of their design adjustments they made from the Duplex. Let’s be honest we can’t purchase all of our products here in North America but when given the opportunity I am willing to pay up. Almost all of my backpacking gear is made in the USA and it’s super light and flawless. The average factory worker in China makes about 3.90 and hour, I guess if that works for you. They also have their workers stay in dorms, pretty much living where they work. China is not a nice country and their environmental standards are very low. I have family that used to run plants in China, they left their job because of how poorly they treat their workers.

@@mtadams2009 What people are taking issue with is not that the tent is made in China (yes it is) but your claim that it is made by "12 year olds chained to sewing machines" which is not true at all. I can understand that you don't want to support China, but this is not as simple as looking at where something is made. About 75% of the cost of an X-Mid Pro is paying for the DCF fabric which is made in the USA - so most of your dollars are going to the USA. Assembling work with DCF is a fairly small component of the price not a lot of your money is going there. Conversely, some products from Zpacks would support China much more even if they are 'made in the USA'. For example, their Ultra series packs are sewn in the USA but the most expensive component is the fabric which is made in China. So their 'made in USA' pack is sending more dollars to China than our our 'made in China' tent. That's not to say something bad about them - just that this isn't as simple as looking at the country where it's assembled.