 This Product
MSR Remote 2 | |||||
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| Awards |  | |  |  | |
| Price | $731.84 at Amazon Compare at 2 sellers | $900 List | $799.95 at REI Compare at 2 sellers | $800 List $559.99 at REI | $449 List |
Overall Score  |
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| Star Rating | |||||
| Pros | Huge hooped vestibule, one of the lighter double wall options, bomber design, easy to set-up, durable construction, does well in the rain | Bomber, great durability, compact footprint, lighter than average weight, fantastic balance of strength, weight, and livability, ample guy points | Versatile, lightweight, double wall design works far better in rain than single wall models, handles condensation well, big vestibules, easy to pitch | Included removable hooped vestibule, above average breathability among single wall tents, excellent ventilation, good headroom, compressible, robust | Lightweight for a double wall tent, inexpensive, versatile, easy set-up, interior fabric handles condensation well, and longer-than-average dimensions make this a better option for taller people |
| Cons | Managed condensation and interior moisture just okay, good-but-not-great headroom, middle-of-the-road weight-wise, small interior doors, vestibule is hard to get taught and proved less useful than other small secondary vestibules | Poor ventilation, slightly tricky setup, insufficient guy lines included | Isn't as strong as other 4-season models, offers a good but not excellent packed size | Guylines are light duty, not quite as storm worthy as other models, fabric is less resistant to tearing and long term exposure to UV | Tiny vestibule, one of the weakest 3(.5)-pole designs in our review, only one door |
| Bottom Line | A high performing all-arounder that does most things well but isn't the absolute best at anything | All-around uses are this model's forte, but it's still robust enough for when the weather turns gnar | The ski and summer mountaineering focused design perfect for almost any trip you can dream up | A versatile single wall tent that works well for a greater range of conditions than most other 2-pole bivy-tent models | A solid 4-season shelter at an excellent price. Great for summertime mountaineering or winter camping near treeline |
| Rating Categories | MSR Remote 2 | Black Diamond Eldorado | MSR Access 2 | The North Face Assa... | REI Arete ASL 2 |
| Weight (25%) | |||||
| Weather/Storm Resistance (25%) | |||||
| Livability (20%) | |||||
| Ease of Set-up (10%) | |||||
| Durability (10%) | |||||
| Versatility (10%) | |||||
| Specs | MSR Remote 2 | Black Diamond Eldorado | MSR Access 2 | The North Face Assa... | REI Arete ASL 2 |
| Minimum Weight (only tent, fly & poles) | 6.97 lbs | 4.5 lbs | 3.80 lbs | 3.5 lbs (no vestibule) | 5.75 lbs |
| Floor Dimensions | 87" x 55 in. | 87" x 51 in | 84 x 50 in | 82 48 in | 88 x 57/60/44 in |
| Peak Height | 43 in | 43 in | 42 in | 42 in | 43 in |
| Measured weight (tent, stakes, guylines, pole bag) | 6.50 lbs | 4.9 lbs | 4.1 lbs | 5.44 lbs | 6.25 lbs |
| Type | Double Wall | Single Wall | Double Wall | Single Wall | Double Wall |
| Packed Size | 7" x 20 in. | 7" x 19 in | 18 x 6 in | 7 x 22 in | 6 x 6 x 20 in |
| Floor Area | 33 sq. ft. | 31 sq ft | 29 sq ft | 27.3 sq ft | 32.9 sq ft |
| Vestibule Area | 22 sq. ft. | 9 sq ft (optional) | 17.5 sq ft | 10 sq ft | 8.7 sq ft |
| Number of Doors | 0.3 in. | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Number of Poles | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| Pole Diameter | 9.3 | 8 mm | 9.3 mm | 9.3 mm | |
| Number of Pockets | Side: 2 Ceiling: 0 | Side: 4 Ceiling: 0 | Side: 2 Ceiling: 0 | Side: 2 Ceiling: 0 | Side: 2 Ceiling: 2 |
| Pole Material | Easton Syclone | Easton Aluminum 7075-E9 | Easton Syclone | DAC Featherlite NSL | Aluminum |
| Rainfly Fabric | 68D ripstop polyester 1800mm polyurethane & DWR | 3 layer ToddTex | 20D nylon ripstop | FUTERLIGHT | Nylon ripstop |
| Floor Fabric | 40D ripstop nylon 10,000mm Durashield polyurethane & DWR | Unknown | 30D nylon ripstop | 40D ripstop nylon w/3,000mm PUR/silicone coating | Nylon taffeta |
The MSR Remote 2 is a jack-of-all-trades 4 season tent that's equally at home on extended expeditions as it is on weekend summer mountain adventures closer to home. While you can buy a model that will perform better for any one thing, it's hard to find a model that does as well at everything as this one.
The Remote 2 gives you robust four-season protection for mountaineering and winter camping. Since two of the poles are always attached to the central hub at the top of the tent, this tent is significantly stronger than if the poles weren't attached.
The guyline attachment points on the fly are bomber and are reinforced from the inside, minimizing the chance that they'll tear during a storm. For genuinely gnarly weather, all the guyline points have a corresponding Velcro flap on the inside of the fly to attach it directly to the poles, which lets the guylines support the poles better. While we rarely used this feature in the lower 48 and southern Canadian ranges, it adds to the versatility of this tent, and it's a feature we'd likely utilize on a peak like Denali and early season or winter ascents of Mt. Rainier.
Burying the snow flaps also further increase the tent's storm-worthiness. We used this tent in several fierce storms and were impressed with how well its design held up against wind and snow loading. It's on the higher end of the stormworthy spectrum, and we'd take this model most places in the world.
The Remote 2's minimum weight is 6 pounds 8 ounces (just the fly, body, and poles) and was 6 pounds 15 ounces packed weight with what most people would likely actually bring, which includes things like guylines, stakes, and the pole bag. The packed weight isn't too bad for a tent of this size with a massive vestibule.
The Remote 2 has 33 square feet of interior space and a massive 22 square foot vestibule area. It's decently wide and has room to accommodate equipment inside.
While hardly a necessity, it is nice to have two doors, and the Remote 2 was the lightest double-wall tent have them. What sets it apart from other models is its massive hooped vestibule, which is supported by a fourth pole and helps this tent feel huge.
This is a fairly versatile 4 season tent, and because of its double-wall design, it could also work for occasional three-season use. The interior fabric offered okay breathability.
To help manage moisture, there is a zippered mesh panel featured on each of the two doors. This panel has a flap that is roughly half the size of each door. This helped some, but overall this tent managed condensation just so-so for a double-wall tent. This is another time where we felt the huge vestibule was nice because in stormier weather, we would leave the vestibule-side door entirely open to help better manage moisture and condensation build-up. The vestibule is so big and has storm flaps, and we rarely had any issues with snow and spindrift combing into the main body of the tent.
The Remote 2 is one of the more versatile 4 season models. It's light enough for many summertime mountaineering adventures, and burly enough for winter camping. It's likely a little too heavy and bulky for ski touring and carry-over alpine climbs.
The Remote 2 is one of the more expensive double-wall tents in our review, but does include a vestibule. It is built to last and has several notable features, but it's a lot more expensive than some of its closest competition. Since it includes a vestibule, you'll want to keep that in mind when comparing prices.
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