OBS or DBS?

[lunatik]

Hey guys, i'm new to the idea of smoking (no pun intended  ;D )  here so please bear with me as i ask a lot of questions!

Like i said before, i've never smoked anything before.  I've looked at the OBS and DBS both of which have their pro's and con's.  OBS has basic functions but is about $100 cheaper, DBS has more bells and whistles.  I've heard that with the DBS you can set the temp and it will maintain that temperature even when the weather outside is changing, not sure how true that is.  I've also read that most people with a DBS just utilize a 3rd party external thermometer so that they know exactly what's going on in the smoker.


Now is that just for the purpose of know what the temp of the meat is internally or to help monitor the temp inside the smoker?  I have an external thermometer for oven baking that does both, but not sure if that's what you guys are doing as well.  I'm basically trying to find the most user friendly and reliable smoker at a reasonable price.  the obs and dbs 4 racks are within my price range.  I'm not trying to babysit the smoker every hour if don't have to.  Any pro's and cons you guys can provide would greatly be appreciated!!

[Toker]

HI and welcome here, all depend of what you wish to smoke. The OBS is cheaper ($) but has a better temperature reliability less swing about 5 degrees VS 15 degrees with the digital. Me, i personally rather this one (OBS) because of it. The purpose of the thermometer with this unit is for knowing at what temp your cooking at since there is no other way to know. There is no digital display on this one. The other purpose is to know the internal temp of the meat cause that is how we know when the food is ready (cooked). If your thermometer has 2 probes, just drop one on the smoker and the other on the food.

One other option, is to buy a pid controller (Auber pid) they are plug and play. They act a bit like the digital system of the other smoker but more accurate. This option gain in popularity these days. It's up to you. This is not required but if you don't want to babysit your smoker this option assure you that your smoker stay at the temperature you set it to.

[lunatik]

Thanks for the reply!  i've looked online and found a Maverick ET-73 anywhere from $40-$60 which looks ok   http://www.amazon.com/Maverick-RediChek-Remote-Wireless-Thermometer/dp/B0000DIU49

and the Auber looks nice, but more than twice the cost and i'm not sure if i could justify it if the Maverick is doing the job minus a couple of degrees.  any thoughts?  Another question about the DBS, let's say you set it for 215 and it reaches that temperature.....the weather takes a turn and drops 15-20 degrees.....will the DBS kick it up a notch to maintain the temp?  on the flip side, you start off the cooker at night but will be going into the next day and it warms up outside, will the DBS turn off the heater element so as to not to raise the temp inside?  thanks again :)

[Toker]

Yes the DBS is supposed to adjust itself. But remember something, if example, you set it to 220, it will climb up to 235-240 and decrease up to 200-205 it won't stay at 220. Unlike the OBS But the OBS without a pid, you constantly have to adjust the slider bar to stay at the temp you set it. Or it will increase when the meat get warmer.

As far as the Maverick goes, most people start with it. It's a good tool to have. But remember, the Maverick monitor the temp and the Auber pid controll the temp. That is not the same thing

Also, may i suggest you to buy a set of 3 Bubba aluminium pucks please? These in my opinion, are required to end your smoking cycle and are not expensive for the help that it bring. Without it, you will wast all the last 2  pucks of each smoke that you are cooking.

[lunatik]

wow wow wow lol lots of info!  so is the auber pid controller on an OBS almost the same as a DBS on it's own?  or is there a big advantage to having the auber pid on the obs

[3rensho]

The OBS with an Auber (my setup) will give you tighter temp. control than a DBS and offers an advantage that there is no timeout on long smokes.  I bought my setup before the digital's were available and I'd go with an OBS + Auber again today.  If you need a 6 rack smoker though then a DBS is your only option.

[Toker]

You understood! :D the only difference is that with the combination of OBS+pid you will get better temperature much even i mean and the OBS is cheaper. With a pid it's easier to set a temperature you just slide the slider bar completely to the right and you set the temperature from your pid. But like i said earlier, the pid is not required. You can easily make it work with the slider bar. I have my smoker for 2 years now and i just bought the pid. At the condition that you don't mind for the little temperature swing. Most food does not require the pid only fish, sausages and a couple of others things does require the pid. Me, if i bought the pid, it's because i did not want to play with the slider bar anymore. On the DBS you don't have any slider bar. You have a kind of pid, rheostat i think but less accurate than the pid. At 1ST i did not have the money to buy the DBS that's why i bought the OBS but i have no regret.

One more thing, With the DBS you can also play with your smoke generator. I mean you can set it for the time that you need it to function then, it will shut off by itself. The OBS does not have this feature. Me i have it on my pid.

I know it makes a lot for the 1ST time for you to learn but you will learn with the time if you buy one smoker. I really hope you do.  :D

[Quarlow]

You say you don't want to babysit your smoker so then regardless of what you are going to smoke your best bet is to go with an OBS and the money you save on the OBS is well put to the purchase of a PID. Then you will have the best set up for not having to watch it constantly. With the PID you can set temp ramps which means you could set a temp of say 120f for 2 hrs and then have it ramp up to 140f for say 3hrs and then have it ramp up to another temp which is how you want it if you are smoking sausage or salmon. This ramping is not an option with the DBS which will require your to have to keep an eye on it and make the temp ramps by manually changing the settings. Also the DBS will only program for I think 9hrs 40mins or something like that where as the PID is infinite.
Now even with a DBS or an OBS with a PID you will still want at least one probe style thermometer like the ET-7 but preferably a 2 probe thermo like the ET-73. The ET-73 gives you one of the probes temps wirelessly so you can keep the receiver in your pocket which is very handy. I am not sure if the ET-7 is wireless but I would personally like to have 2 wireless single probe thermos so I could watch the IT and the cabinet temp without having to go out to the smoker. It is really nice to monitor both temps to clearly know what is happening at all times.

[Toker]

Sorry, why to have 2 wireless single probe and not 1 dual like ET-73 Quarlow? Personally i have both the ET-7 and ET-73.

BTW, yes the ET-7 is wireless.

[lunatik]

thanks for the awesome detailed replies!!! it's sounding like the obs combined with the auber pid is the way to go for me, unless someone can produce a great reason to go with the dbs! 

so for the auber pid this would be the correct one? http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=72

and for the bubba pucks, what do you think of these?  http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=14&products_id=111

[Toker]

you could Wait a few weeks for the dual probe pid to come back in stock me i GREATLY advise it to you. Should be back on stock in April. This way, you will be able to monitor both the food and the smoker.

Also you should think buying a Maverick available from the same site to for the reason we discussed earlier in the earlier post.

[Quarlow]

Sorry, why to have 2 wireless single probe and not 1 dual like ET-73 Quarlow? Personally i have both the ET-7 and ET-73.

BTW, yes the ET-7 is wireless.

Well my understanding is that the ET-73 only transmits the temp of one of the probes so you would have to walk out to it to see the other temp, where I would like to have the temp of IT and cabinet temp. So if I had 2 single probe remotes I would have full pockets but both temps remotely. Unless I am wrong and the 73 does transmit both temps.

[Toker]

Sorry i don't understand, my Maverick display and remote both, the smoker and the food temp. Not your?  ???

[Quarlow]

Must be my mistake. I don't have a maverick but I beleived you only got one temp on the remote and both temps on the base. I am going to have to get one then. I was reluctant to buy one cause I wanted both temps on the remote so if that is the case I will get one for sure. Thanks for setting me straight.

[Toker]

plasure!  ;)