With the release of the new Bauer Ultrasonic line, we’re also pleased to announce that the lower end model of the Ultrasonic, the Bauer 3S lineup is now available.
Bauer 3S Goalie Pads
Should I be looking at the differences between Bauer UltraSonic and Bauer 3S?
To sum this up quickly, the Bauer UltraSonic lineup is awesome, yes. But as far as the actual pad is concerned, there are not major differences between the 3S and the UltraSonic.
If you’re like many, in the business of saving money, consider getting the Bauer 3S series.
Now, that’s not to say that the UltraSonic line isn’t top of the line. It is. But, in the past, there have been durability concerns with Bauer goalie pads as a whole. Bauer hasn’t done a whole lot to remedy that over the years, as they’re more concerned with generating a profit (as most businesses should).
There are plenty of people out there who would rather stay in the good graces of Bauer who will tell you that the UltraSonic pad far out performs the 3S.
Honestly, in our opinion, they haven’t done enough to differentiate. The material doesn’t change. Sure, a feature or two may, but that’s to justify having a lower option available to the public.
Both sets of gear, in fact, every set of gear Bauer makes, is built using their C.O.R technology. They’re not intentionally adding things to the “senior” level of gear that bring the actual quality of the gear downwards. They may gloss over a few things, like better strapping on the UltraSonic line, or they may not.
Sure, there may be certain pieces of the gear that are beefed up a bit, but overall.. there are no major differences.
When it comes to Pro vs. Senior goalie equipment, there just isn’t a major difference. By calling the gear “3S” Bauer gets away from selling an UltraSonic Pro pad and downselling an UltraSonic Senior pad.
Bauer 3S Pads Review
Overall, we’re going to go ahead and rate this gear a buy. If you’re in Bauer gear already, you know that at the higher levels, the stuff does wear out after a couple of years. But, with what Warrior has done to the goalie gear market, prices are down from where they used to reside at.
At the time of writing, you can buy Bauer 3S gear for under $1,000 at Goalie Monkey.
In comparison, the UltraSonic line will run you north of $1,500.
The biggest argument against Bauer has always been the quality. While they make an undisputed, unbelievable goalie mask, they have struggled with creating gear like Brian’s can when it comes to overall durability. Now, that’s not a knock on Bauer. They’re also trying to innovate at levels far from what most of their competition could ever dream of. That’s commendable.
But, chances are, if you’re reading.. you’re already somewhat interested in Bauer (or, perhaps, you already wear their stuff). The 3S line offers improvements that we didn’t get out of the 2S line, or the 2X line, and it’s awesome to see this pad push the limits of what technology can do.
Check out the 3S line at Goalie Monkey
