I have been diagnosed with severe sleep obstructive sleep apnea, for which I need an operating pressure of 9 cm of H20. So now I am in the process of selecting a quiet CPAP machine that I can use. I have narrowed the field down to a choice between two machines:

1. DeVilbiss Intellipap with a noise of 26 dBA
2. The new ResMed S8 Elite II with a noise of 24 dBA

In general people seem to say good things here about the DeVilbiss Intellipap (apart from its lack of data taking). I wondered if anyone had the ResMed S8 Elite II and what they think about it. Since data taking is not really important to me, I wondered how important the EPR on the ResMed machine was in deciding between the two machines. I would welcome hearing peoples experiences with these two machines, differences in quality, ease of using the humidifier etc.

Blayne wrote:

Since data taking is not really important to me, I wondered how important the EPR on the ResMed machine was in deciding between the two machines. I would welcome hearing peoples experiences with these two machines, differences in quality, ease of using the humidifier etc.

A data capable machine should be priority one.  Without the daily information, you will have no idea how your therapy is going or if your pressure is correct.  This forum is filled with people who after a few months say "Why don't I feel any better?" and since they have no data, there is no way to tell what is wrong or help them.  

Having a data capable machine is like having a sleep study every night.  The S8 Elite will give you a morning report showing your API, Apnea Score, Hypopnea Score, Mask leak rate & more.  This way you will KNOW that your CPAP therapy is actually eliminating your Apneas and doing (or not doing) what it is supposed to do.

Thank you for clearing that up for me Barry. I didn't realize how effective the monitoring on the machines was. I had assumed that you needed to be all wired up to assess your apnea score, but I guess that if the machines have flow meters in them then they can check when your breathing stops. In which case, it sounds like the data taking is very important for assessing how effective your current treatment is.

Blayne wrote:

Thank you for clearing that up for me Barry. I didn't realize how effective the monitoring on the machines was. I had assumed that you needed to be all wired up to assess your apnea score, but I guess that if the machines have flow meters in them then they can check when your breathing stops. In which case, it sounds like the data taking is very important for assessing how effective your current treatment is.

Thats exactly right!  The machines have sophisticated flow meters that measure the flow-in/out, so they can tell if you have an apnea or if your mask is leaking.  The difference between 24db and 26db is imperceptible.  I would go with the machine that is data capable...the S8.

In my opinion, everyones machine should be data capable for this very reason.  It's like buying a car without a gas gauge!

I use an IntelliPAP most of the time and an auto-M a few nights a month or so to get numbers.  As soon as DeVilbiss comes out with software for the auto-IntelliPAP, I will be be getting one of those.  I have a problem with ResMed because of their minimum pricing policies, so I will not buy one.  I am not so sure about Respironics right now because of their advertised price restrictions.

Not sure if this is of any use to you, but my provider told me that in his experience the Fisher & Paykel is the quietest and the most reliable CPAP (that his business sells - his stable included ResMed, Respironics, and F&P as far as I could tell).  I didn't buy one because I wanted CFlex\EPR and F&P does not offer that sort of feature, but I did get a F&P nasal mask.  He also told me that he has helped people do things like put holes in walls so people can run long hoses from a machine in the next room, and other things like that to combat noise.  I wasn't sure what I thought of that (and he wasn't recommending those sorts of measures) but apparently some people do that sort of thing.

I have a F&P HC-233; it is as quiet as my IntelliPAP and it is very well built.  My problems with F&P CPAPs involve the fact that all of their machines are designed to accommodate an integrated humidifier -- it cannot be powered from 12 VDC without an inverter and it is quite large.

My husband has a F&P 233 and it is very quiet and has been very reliable (almost 2 and 1/2 years).  It could be smaller, I suppose, but he's been able to move it around without much trouble.  What he hasn't done is to fly with it.

aikejon; My auto M and 420's are loud enough that they should be put in another room, provided that there is enough soundproofing between the rooms.  My IntelliPAP and HC-233 are quiet enough to sit on a nightstand next to the bed.

I found ResMed S8 Elite noisy, switch on the machine at full pressure to check if the noise bothers you. For me, it seemed like it made a constant metallic sound.

I now use a F&P 604, very quiet & no rainouts

Thanks for the all the advice. I now have a Resmed S8 Elite II, which I am very happy with. I got it through Somnihealth in Alameda, who were knowledgeable and very helpful in setting up my machine and advising me on the masks.

Working with Somnihealth was particularly pleasing, after the previous frustrating experiences I had with Apria Healthcare and Pulmonary Solutions, Santa Clara, Ca. Why people who are selling such expensive machines, have no knowledge and no motivation, I don't know. Maybe they are just used to dealing with older people, who will accept whatever they give them.

Anyway, I had a great nights sleep with the Resmed S8 Elite II together with a Micro Mirage Mask.

Blayne wrote:

Thanks for the all the advice. I now have a Resmed S8 Elite II, which I am very happy with. I got it through Somnihealth in Alameda, who were knowledgeable and very helpful in setting up my machine and advising me on the masks.

Working with Somnihealth was particularly pleasing, after the previous frustrating experiences I had with Apria Healthcare and Pulmonary Solutions, Santa Clara, Ca. Why people who are selling such expensive machines, have no knowledge and no motivation, I don't know. Maybe they are just used to dealing with older people, who will accept whatever they give them.

Anyway, I had a great nights sleep with the Resmed S8 Elite II together with a Micro Mirage Mask.

Congratulations Blayne!!  I'm relatively new to CPAP's and I can't tell people how big the difference is once one gets a machine and mask that works for them.... a whole new life.