Which of these might be a better machine?

I might be able to help with a couple of free masks to try. Not sure of what I have but if you will get with me about what looks interesting to you we can talk about it and the sizes. My inventory is really limited now but I think I have a Wisp fit pack and maybe another type you might be interested in.

Pugsy wrote:The BiPap above is nothing more than cpap with extra exhale relief in the form of bilevel pressures...plus it also has cpap mode available.

No it isn't auto adjusting but there's no reason at all for it to not do the job it needs to do. The first bilevel machine that I ever tried was a 650 PR S1 BiPap Pro and was instrumental in my progression through bilevel. Do I just HAVE to have bilevel...no, but it sure is nice to have that comfort.

Are you saying the legacy Remstar Bipap Auto is not a true auto and is not a true bilevel? I never actually researched it because it was nothing I was interested in buying, but if so I will not offer it to anyone for that purpose. It makes a decent hose dryer, though!

For purposes of clarity, I was not suggesting that the Bipap Pro was not a good deal especially for a BiPap, I was talking about auto-titrating CPAP machines which I have (recently) seen PRS1 Auto (both bipap and remstar) come up for 100-200 a few times which I think might be more ideal if a person is doing it himself and does not need a bipap.

EDIT: P.S. I should have said "a number of deals" instead of "a lot better deals". The Pro is not a bad deal at all for 100 if you need something right now.

Some of the better deals have already disappeared. This is one machine in the area that might make a decent choice for the money if a CPAP will work instead of a BiPap. I might buy have looked at it myself it it were on the North Shore. :
http://worcester.craigslist.org/hab/4956212639.html

mralaska wrote:

Pugsy wrote:The BiPap above is nothing more than cpap with extra exhale relief in the form of bilevel pressures...plus it also has cpap mode available.

No it isn't auto adjusting but there's no reason at all for it to not do the job it needs to do. The first bilevel machine that I ever tried was a 650 PR S1 BiPap Pro and was instrumental in my progression through bilevel. Do I just HAVE to have bilevel...no, but it sure is nice to have that comfort.

Are you saying the legacy Remstar Bipap Auto is not a true auto and is not a true bilevel?

The PR System One BiPAP PRO (model 650/660) is a true bilevel, but it is not an auto titrating machine.

The PR System One BiPAP Auto (model 750/760) is a true bilevel and it is an auto titrating machine.

robysue wrote:

mralaska wrote:

Pugsy wrote:The BiPap above is nothing more than cpap with extra exhale relief in the form of bilevel pressures...plus it also has cpap mode available.

No it isn't auto adjusting but there's no reason at all for it to not do the job it needs to do. The first bilevel machine that I ever tried was a 650 PR S1 BiPap Pro and was instrumental in my progression through bilevel. Do I just HAVE to have bilevel...no, but it sure is nice to have that comfort.

Are you saying the legacy Remstar Bipap Auto is not a true auto and is not a true bilevel?

The PR System One BiPAP PRO (model 650/660) is a true bilevel, but it is not an auto titrating machine.

The PR System One BiPAP Auto (model 750/760) is a true bilevel and it is an auto titrating machine.

The question was about the "legacy" Remstar BiPap Auto which I thought was both when I offered to lend/give it to him. If Pugsy was talking about my post then it appears it lacks the features of either to perform as such.

mralaska wrote:Are you saying the legacy Remstar Bipap Auto is not a true auto and is not a true bilevel?

No...not at all. It is auto adjusting and it is bilevel. My main problem with it is that it requires the DT3500 Infineer card reader to use the software and only Encore software will work with it and that card reader costs around $80. It's also older than the M Series Auto BiPap and it like the M series machines doesn't flag centrals.
The Legacy machine shown above for $250 is way overpriced for the age of the machine even if it had 0 hours on it.

For someone who is self titrating...the 650 PR S1 model collects more data (like centrals which is kinda important to know about). So the added data that the 650 has I think is more important than auto titrating capability.
Not everyone needs, wants or even likes auto adjusting pressures.

In general when given a choice between any machine that requires a special card reader or uses a SD card I will pick the SD card machine any day of the week unless it is a brick.

When someone is on a really limited budget...hey, the $100 650 BiPap Pro will do the job. Not having auto adjusting pressures is a minor and a maybe inconvenience...it isn't the end of the world to not have auto adjusting capability...yeah, it's nice and it can come in handy at times but a person can quite easily come up with suitable pressures using the Pro BiPap or Pro CPAP for that matter.

In this situation with this OP if the $350 S9 AutoSet would take food off the table if she bought it....and $100 is actually more in the budget....the Bipap Pro would get the job done.
Perhaps my offer to help with masks might make the S9 AutoSet more doable since the masks are free.
For someone who is self titrating....I want central flagging available...and the M series and Legacy series machines don't do it and the price is too high anyway.
So that's why I would target either the BiPap Pro 650 or the S9 AutoSet if at all possible....the M series and Legacy machines don't do centrals and that trumps auto adjusting in my book.

While I would appreciate the offer to lend your Legacy series machine....it lacks central data and requires the $80 card reader.
Now once it is determined that centrals aren't an issue...then yeah, it might come in handy but for right now in this situation it lacks one critical piece of data IMHO that makes it down further on the list of options.

Pugsy wrote:...

I had over-weighted the importance of Auto for a person starting out without the benefit of a sleep professional but I agree with everything you said. I have recently seen full data capable machines come up for $100 but seem to sell quick and you never know if you will see another one when you need it. The 650 PR S1 is probably a good grab and would do the job with the knowledgeable support of the forum to help tune it in faster. I tend to try to trust the electronics go it alone too much. I am here pretty quick when it looks like the electronics have failed though!

EDIT: And I also did not realize Legacy and M Series do not flag Centrals. I had heard they do not provide flow data which combined with that fact seems to make it not worth the price of a card reader in any case.

mralaska wrote:The question was about the "legacy" Remstar BiPap Auto which I thought was both when I offered to lend/give it to him.

2 main issues. 1) That is a very old machine. Series 60 and Series 50 CPAP machines are newer. 2) It has a SmartCard instead of an SDCard.

Note that I have a M-Series BiPap Auto myself as a backup machine and have the card reader, but you have to use Encore to read the data as it is not compatible with Sleephead which is much better software.

Krelvin wrote:

mralaska wrote:The question was about the "legacy" Remstar BiPap Auto which I thought was both when I offered to lend/give it to him.

2 main issues. 1) That is a very old machine. Series 60 and Series 50 CPAP machines are newer. 2) It has a SmartCard instead of an SDCard.

Note that I have a M-Series BiPap Auto myself as a backup machine and have the card reader, but you have to use Encore to read the data as it is not compatible with Sleephead which is much better software.

Thanks. When I made the offer I thought any auto machine would have been better to start with from scratch until a data capable auto machine came along, but I knew I was making the offer in an environment that would advise if I were on the wrong track. After reading what Pugsy said I realized how much more advantageous it would be to start out with a data capable machine and then work with the data to have knowledgeable people help fine tune the settings.

Some vendors on Amazon sell masks at good prices without requiring a prescription: I just got an Airfit P10 sealed in the package for $76 from Amazon without a prescription.

Nick Danger wrote:Some vendors on Amazon sell masks at good prices without requiring a prescription: I just got an Airfit P10 sealed in the package for $76 from Amazon without a prescription.

ebay can also be a goldmine for masks and mask parts.... look for the ones that are 'parts + bonus'.

the 'bonus' is often the rest of the mask.

Hello All,
I cannot thank you enough for your kind thoughtful input.

Mr. Alaska, That is a very kind offer. Thank you I don't know if I need Bipap. I just know that I have trouble breathing out with the CPAP machine on (full mask). My apnea is with every breath I try to breathe out on my back only, but I am also a smaller person and have no experience with Cpap/bipap/apap whatever (!!) and will need to self-titrate (?) After all this talk and research I think I picked up that bipap would be gentler for this. Not sure if that's right. It's a lot of information to take in at once, and I know you've all "been there".

Have a great doc who will be calling me this afternoon hopefully, and I will ask him about this. He did mention that some patients buy their own machines so maybe he can point me in a closer direction of what I need after a short sleep study I had done last week. Then I'll come back here and explore further.

Interesting about needing scripts to purchase accessories. I wondered if I'd run into things such as that going DIY.

Enjoy your Friday night, everyone!

mralaska wrote:Unless I missed something, do you actually know you need a Bi-Pap? There are a lot better deals on auto-titrating fully data capable machines that come up in the boston area if you can use a CPAP/APAP. I know because I have auto alerts set up in case someone tries to sell the model I am looking for but I have a bunch of crazy search terms I use because the best deals are sold by people who do not even know what the machine is for.

If you really need a Bi-Pap right away and Concord NH is in your strike zone I can lend/give you one like the second link legacy Remstar Bipap auto (http://boston.craigslist.org/sob/for/5004568385.html ) which would probably help get you through for now but I did not realize you could not access or read the data even with the card reader.

UPDATE!

Doc's receptionist called just now to say he "put order in for me today and expedited my insurance approval"!
Receptionist says a DME will call me and gave me their phone number as well.

I don't know if this is for my at-home sleep study - or if he's skipping right past that to a REAL machine I can "keep"! All receptionist knew is that the order is for a "CPAP vented with heated humidifier."

Will call DME Monday morning. Sounds hopeful (hence my screennamE!) for starters anyway!

That sounds wonderful and very promising!

I am new to this myself as evidenced by the education I got in this very discussion but the resident experts here are more in tune than anyone regarding what is needed to provide the best shot of going the distance on your own with the best suited equipment and least frustration. Regardless of what they offer it cannot hurt to find out the exact model(s) available to you and post it here if possible. There are only a small handful of devices that are best for the needs of a person taking control of their therapy but fortunately they are getting more popular as we move forward while the unsuitable devices are falling by the wayside. If the DME is calling you it seems logical that is the machine you are ending up with, and if the doctor is planning to check your progress via your own machine then it seems even more likely that it will at least meet the basic requirements of doing it on your own.

I read your first post again and saw that I had missed your comment about having trouble exhaling which is probably why someone may have suggested a BiPap. I am hoping the doctor got to the root of whatever was going on there but it sounds like he is compassionate and has your best interest in mind.

Yes. Unfortunately I did not get to have a conversation with him before he ordered for me to tell him I have trouble breathing out on CPAP so I hope this works. I will tell the DME but I'm guessing they'll just say "This is what the Dr ordered". I just hope I don't have to go through unnecessary changes, time wasted and more exhaustion because of the tiny amount of time managed care gives docs and patients time to communicate.

But it is a start.

BTW last night I had dreams of watching my own breathing chart as I slept. I could see hypopneas as they occurred. Weird!