During its initial release, the Virtue Spire 200 was known to be the only hopper that was capable of directly competing with the Dye Rotor in the high end loader market. In a similar vein to iPhone vs. Android, these two companies and their hoppers have become hot topics for players to debate about – which one is more efficient, which jams less, etc. With many players pledging their loyalty to the Virtue brand and swearing by their hoppers, I figured it’d be a good idea to go ahead and try and give my unbiased opinion on the Virtue Spire 200 Paintball Hopper. Let’s take a look at what it brings to the table.
Overall Rating – 4.8/5
Pros:
- Feeds 20 BPS without issue
- Never jams
- True 200 paintball capacity
- Many settings through programming
- Low profile and lightweight (18.5 ounces)
- Extremely durable
- Tool-less simple disassembly
- Easy cleaning
- Great customer service
- Good battery life
- Many colorways
Cons:
- Poor Quality control
- Popcorning issues on older models (Send it to Virtue and they’ll help you out)
- Can run through batteries if you have high sensitivity settings
- When down to 5-10 balls there’s feeding issues
- If you have a speed feed lid on, very hard to get a clean full reload
Be sure to compare the Virtue Spire 200 to its rival the Dye R2!
What Your Purchase Includes:
When you purchase your Virtue Spire 200 this is what you should expect when you open the box:
- Your Virtue Spire 200 Paintball Loader
- Display case surrounding your Spire 200
- Feature highlight page
- Owner’s Manual (Can also be found here)
Notable Features & Specifications:
Simple Disassembly & Cleaning
The Virtue Spire 200 paintball hopper has an extremely easy and simple disassembly that allows for quick field stripping if need be. Since the Spire 200 is smaller than a large majority of other hoppers on the market you’ll find that you won’t be getting many hits to the hopper. However, if you do, because of the easy disassembly you’ll find how easy it is to clean the internals of it as well. You can even clean 2 of the 3 major parts by just dunking them in water. The one piece you can’t dunk underwater is the piece that holds the spire & control board (pictured outside the hopper above).
How Do I Disassemble My Virtue Spire 200 Paintball Hopper?
Below are steps on how to take apart the three main pieces of your Spire 200, as well as a picture to provide a visual tutorial.
- To remove the backshell, there is a lever on the back of the Virtue Spire 200 that you simply press upward, then inwards and then simply remove the shell off the top.
- To remove the Spire Tray you need to push the black tab (Seen in Step 2 near the back of the Spire) inwards toward the Spire feed and then simply pull up to remove the tray out of the loader’s internals.
- Done! It really is that simple.
If you need a more visual tutorial of how to remove the shell and tray of the Virtue Spire here is a video from Midwest Alliance showcasing how to do both:
The removal steps of the backshell happen at 4:15. I’ve linked the video at the time stamp for the removal of the tray.
Spire Feed & Flex Cycle Paddle
This feature is what makes the Spire 200 so highly praised by its users. This is what’s made the Spire 200 never jam. The spire feed and rubber cycle paddles always ensure that balls are fed smoothly without jams and at extreme speeds. Because the paddles are made from rubber, it allows for the Spire to feed extremely brittle paint. I’ve never heard of paint breaking within the spire, and people have tested it before with Wal-Mart quality paint so rest assured that you’ll never have paintballs breaking within your loader. Many players have reported that this Spire feed system has no issue doing 17.5 BPS without any hiccups. The highest I’ve seen the Virtue Spire 200 reach is 30 BPS, although you’d never have a need to go that high.
G-Force Sensor
What causes the Spire 200 to rotate is the G-Force sensor on the very front of the hopper. What the sensor does is it detects any recoil or movement from the gun and that causes the Spire to spin. This is how the Spire ensures that it’s always smoothly feeding paint for the next shot.
LED & Sound Customization
The LED & Sound customization is the final feature that allows for a quality customer experience. Virtue understands that players love to have the power of being able to customize and tune the hopper to their liking and therefore gave them this. Users of the Virtue Spire 200 Paintball Hopper are able to change the colors of the LED light on their Spire as well as the sounds that it makes. You can even completely turn off the LED lights and mute any sounds (Awesome for night games!).
How Do I Customize the LED Colors On My Virtue Spire 200 Paintball Hopper?
To customize the LED colors on your Spire 200 all you need to do is press the LED button and the button above it at the same time and your LED light will start to blink. Then simply keep clicking it to cycle through the different color options.
Recommendations
Get a SpeedFeed and Spring Ramp! As the Virtue Spire 200 does have a hard time feeding paint when low on balls I would definitely recommend picking up a Spring Ramp for the back of the loader to help feed paint towards the Spire. Obviously, I would recommend picking up a Virtue Spire Crown speed feed as well as they are incredibly convenient. The Spire 200 stock lid is a little bit of a struggle to get open so you can’t go wrong getting a speed feed for your loader.
Be smart with your customization. While the Spire has long-lasting battery life when in normal settings that isn’t the case when you move towards the higher-end sensitivities. When you tune your Spire to a higher sensitivity (to feed at a quicker rate), you sacrifice battery life as your Spire will start to run through its batteries like crazy. So just a heads up to you guys, try and be as efficient as you can when tuning your hopper to optimize both performance and battery usage.
Final Verdict
Overall the Virtue Spire 200 is a solid paintball loader and I don’t think you could be wrong about purchasing it if you’re looking for a mid to high-grade hopper. With a great amount of customization, many colorways, and a quality Spire Feed, the Spire has made its mark on the paintball world. If you’ve tried the Dye Rotor R1 or R2 and felt it wasn’t right for you then give the Spire 200 a shot, you may find that it’s right for you. Low-profile, durable, and efficient, Virtue has made a solid hopper to stand toe-to-toe with the Dye Rotor series, and in some people’s viewpoint – beating them.
If you’re looking to purchase the Virtue Spire 200 Paintball Hopper, you can find it here at Amazon.com.