What a pity!
The Nio from QP Design has everything to be one of the best drippers of the moment: a superb finish and many accessories to customize it. Moreover, it produces excellent quality vapor. But its design makes it particularly noisy and it sounds more like a whistle than a dripper of this size. An update is needed, quickly!
Technical data
| Size | 29 x 22 mm |
|---|---|
| Weight | 28 g |
| BF Option | BF Pin included |
| Deck | single coil |
| Airflows | on top |
| Matérials | Stainless Steel, |
Nice impression
Underneath the Nio are the usual engravings, such as model name and serial number which is confirmed by a card provided in the box and individually signed. This is a guarantee of quality and product tracking. Of course, the dripper is supplied with a drilled 510 pin for use as a bottom feeder. This configuration is the one that the Nio is most comfortable. We will come back to this later.
The barrel is engraved with the brand logo. The machining is very good, without burr. The top cap is separated from the barrel and includes a 510-size drip tip. It is quite long and pleasant in contact with the lips. Airflows are located at the top of the barrel and redirect the airflow under the coil and on the sides.
The dripper is remarkably full. In the box, there are no less than 6 beauty rings and as many top caps and two barrels. It is almost impossible not to achieve the perfect combination with the mod. With the beauty ring, the Nio increases from 22 to 24 mm in diameter, a format that has become standard and is suitable for the majority of boxes today.
The noisy dripper
The mounting plate is massive. Two seals hold the barrel on the base. They are of very good machining quality and do their job perfectly. On each side of the posts, two holes allow access to the mounting screw. Most screwdrivers for the reconstructible pass through, although there is no visibility at the bottom of this hole. Airflows are oriented downwards. The resistor must be placed accordingly for optimal cooling. No blocker in the barrel rotation is present. The quality of the joints makes it possible, most of the time, to unscrew the dripper from a box. But after long vapor sessions, the condensation present complicates this rotation. The barrel must then be removed and the base unscrewed. This is not always practical and it’s dirty on the fingers.
Airflows are located on the side and below the location of the resistor. Despite beveled machining, the side airflows are straight. The air arrives directly on the coil without orientation.
The mounting plate is postless. Despite numerous attempts in our tests, we were unable to separate the positive pole from the negative without considering degrading the dripper. It’s a pity, for a deep cleaning, this is an element to take into account. In bottom feeder use, the liquid arrives from underneath. The hydration of the fiber is excellent and fast. You can allow yourself to chain the inhalations without any problem.
Coil installation is simple. A 3 mm coil can be placed very easily. Be careful not to place the coil too high to avoid excessive heating. Cotton is just as easy to place and requires little fiber.
Beyond the technical aspects and excellent manufacturing quality of this Nio, the vapor it provides raises questions. Visually, it is a success. The machining is excellent. The Nio is intended to be a high-level dripper. The vapor produced is excellent. In squonk use, the vapor is well loaded with aromas and liquid without any splash in the mouth. The entire aromatic range of a liquid is present, clean, and flawless. But the great, immense flaw of the Nio is the sound it produces. With each inhalation, airflow fully open, the dripper whistles excessively. It’s almost the ideal tool for hunting and attracting birds, although it’s more likely that the birds will take flight. Regardless of the mounting and height of the coil, this sound is present and somewhat annoying. From coils 2 mm to 3.5 mm in diameter to 3 mm, it whistles. No matter whether the coil is as close as possible to the airflows, at the top, at the bottom, it’s always the same diagnosis: it whistles. The problem seems to come from the air intakes under the coil which favor the noise.
However, there are alternative solutions to limit this noise nuisance. By directing the airflow towards the cotton and not towards the coil, there is no more noise. But this diversion is at the expense of an adapted cooling and the flavors collapse. The other possible solution is to close the airflows ring by 3/4 to seriously reduce the whistling. The mop becomes much smaller, warmer, and further away from the primary purpose of this dripper.
PS: the manufacturer has announced an update of the barrel with a more restricted airflow, following the strong reactions of users. The conditions for obtaining this new barrel are still to be defined.
We like
- Remarkably full
- Machining quality
- Flavors
We don’t like
- No blocker in the barrel
- Loud noise
