Volcano Hybrid vs Volcano Classic

Which one should you buy?

Since the Classic Volcano Vaporizer was released more than 20 years ago, Storz & Bickel have come a long way, with their most recent release being the Volcano Hybrid Vaporizer.

• Featuring the same great design and isolated air path, you might be wondering what the price difference is about.

In this review, we’ll be going over all of the specifications and key feature differences between these two desktop vapes to help you make the right decision.

With a Bluetooth web application, whip, and touch-screen display, is the Hybrid worth the extra $250? Read on through our Hybrid vs. Classic vaporizer review to find out.

What are the main differences?

• At face value, the Classic Volcano relies on pure convection heating, a heat dial, as well as a fan button.
• The hybrid has done away with these buttons and dial with a much more user-friendly touchscreen interface with a digital display.

You’ll also be able to use a phone app if you’re outside of Canada, or a web application if you’re in Canada to control the power, heating, balloon workflow, and much more. As we’ll discuss later in the review, the Hybrid is also compatible with a 360-degree swivel whip that helps its overall versatility.

• For the chambers that they use, the Volcano Classic’s connects loosely with a snap, while the Hybrid’s is a twist-on design which is overall much more stable.

This is because it needed a stronger connection for its 360-degree rotatable whip, while the Classic only needs up and down connections for the balloons that it uses. You might be thinking that you can just buy the Volcano Hybrid Whip Kit and put it on the Classic’s valve, but you can’t.

The Hybrid’s whip won’t work on the Classic’s chamber because its magnetic attachment is weaker than the Hybrid’s twist-on chamber lid, meaning it will fall off unless you’re holding it up, kind of like most of my past relationships.

Hybrid vs. Convection Heating

With similar working hot air convection pumps, both vaporizers work overall very similarly with a temperature range of 40°C-230°C, or 104°F-446°F.

Although the dial on the Classic does involve a bit of guesswork, you’ll still be able to have a pretty good guess as to what the temperature is hovering around. Where the Hybrid does have a slight edge in this regard over the Classic, is in the precise temperature control and use with the application which you’ll be able to control out of the room for when you come back to it.

In terms of the hybrid heating system though, the Hybrid Volcano does do a better THC extraction and cloud production. As the Classic can only be used to fill a balloon, you may have to wait between three to five minutes to get good enough vapor extraction to fill up a balloon.

• With the Hybrid cranked to max temperature, you’ll be able to get vapor production almost instantly to fill a balloon within 2 minutes of turning it on.

Is the Hybrid more portable than the Classic?

As we mentioned at the start of the review, the two bodies of the vapes are nearly identical in terms of size. The Hybrid does weigh 2.5 more pounds though thanks to the addition of Bluetooth technology and digital display, though.

As far as power plugs, they use a similar six-foot power cable with the main difference being that the Hybrid’s is detachable and can be replaced since it’s removable at the DC port.

If you want to bring a Volcano around with you on the go, we suggest picking up the Volcano Carrying Travel Case which will let you keep either model safe in its foam cutouts.

Similar Vapor Quality

Either volcano you buy is going to offer you the best-in-class vapor quality thanks to the air pump blasting isolated hot air through your dry herb. While the hybrid has an improved helix heat exchange system and will be able to heat up faster, both will be able to fill up balloons quickly once heated.

Because the Hybrid is heated by a combination of convection and conduction heating, you’ll find that you can get more potent vapor clouds if you crank up the temperature, and will always be a bit thicker than Classic bags.

On another note, the Classic and Hybrid Volcano’s can be used with concentrates by putting your choice of dab onto either the included concentrate drip pad, or onto the normal flower on the chamber.

Which is easier to use?

In my experience, the Classic is the easier model to use just because the Hybrid has a small learning curve Once you get over your first few uses of the Hybrid, it becomes a lot easier to use and isn’t as intimidating to use, though.

On the Hybrid, simply press heat, and then air if you want it to pump vapor out of the hookah, or to fill a balloon

This is because the Volcano Dial is a lot more user-friendly to beginners as 1-9 is a familiar concept to adjust and tweak whereas the precision temperature control can be a bit confusing to beginners.

On the Classic, simply press heat, wait for the orange control button to fade, and then press air

• When you first start, a lower temperature of around 360°F − 182°C is going to be a smooth temperature to get started with, which would be about #5 on the Volcano Classic heat dial

Volcano Vaporizer Manufacturing Quality

In terms of manufacturing quality, the Hybrid takes the cake as its smartphone app and ability to do both balloon bags and hookah whips are game changers.

Once you get past your first few sessions, the touch screen is a joy to use, and the functionality remains the same with both an air pump and a heat button.

The chambers are about the same size, but the Hybrid is ceramic glazed

The Hybrid as well now uses a new double helix air path with better heats the hot air it intakes compared to the Classic, which cuts its heat-up time down to 90 seconds from 3 minutes. Given its ‘Hybrid’ name, it now also features a ceramic-glazed ring in its chamber which adds a level of conduction heating to make its bowl extraction that much faster.

When you’re using balloons, one of the nice features is that the balloon mouthpiece will only expense vapor when it’s pushed down, so you won’t be wasting vapor when you’re not hitting it or carrying it room to room.

Accessories Comparison

While the Volcano Classic originally shipped out with the now discontinued solid valve system, luckily these days it comes with the same easy valve as the Hybrid.

They’ll both use the same Easy Valve Replacement Set for balloon replacements at around $60, but each has their dosing capsule adapters in the Volcano Hybrid Filling Chamber Reducer and the Volcano Classic Chamber Reducer.

Aside from that, many of the accessories are shared between the two devices.

Storz and Bickel Warranty

Each Volcano comes with a three-year warranty that will cover manufacturer defects. Storz & Bickel have a great reputation in the industry and are known to stand by their warranty, and if worst comes to worst, you’ll be able to send your Volcano to Germany, and they’ll be able to repair it for you.

Volcano Hybrid vs Classic Conclusion

To wrap things up, if you’re a connoisseur and know you’ll prefer having more room for session customization and better overall functionality, then the Hybrid will be the better option for you if you don’t mind the $200 or so difference between them.

Beginners definitely won’t be making a mistake by going for the Classic though, as it’s extremely easy to use and the balloons are still plenty effective at producing vapor and awesome sessions. If you don’t mind the slower heating and balloon filling, its performance is nearly identical to the Hybrid, and not everyone needs a smartphone app to be able to get good sessions in.

If you’d like to know more about each device, be sure to check out the individual reviews:

• Volcano Hybrid Vaporizer Review 
• Volcano Classic Vaporizer Review