beyondx4

Yep. That is the CD27 stethoscope. Don't forget you could also pick your colors when you order. If you've never used these Cardiology III-type scopes, keep in mind they're a little bit heavier than the Classic II SE dual heads.

I've owned a couple of Littmanns myself and was introduced to the GRX CD27 last year and I still love it. Sound quality is excellent, probably only topped by the Master Cardiology (which has a bigger diaphragm and better isolating single-head). I'm still amazed at the construction quality of this scope for its price. Since it looks virtually identical to the Cardiology III, be careful of unscrupulous hands (especially for people who replace it with Littmann diaphragms). A word of thanks to CNA_Timmy, he'd found out that GRX is now offering the CD27 at the promotion price on Ebay again. If you're thinking about buying one, go on Ebay, search for seller GRXMEDICAL, under items: Cardiology III Stethoscope (it won't be posted as CD27). It's so tempting at this price...hehe.

Thanks. I've been trying to get as much feedbacks on the CD27 as possible to ensure that it's not just me and I'm not recommending the wrong equipments to fellow students. When I was first recommended the CD27, being a Littmann fan, I didn't want to believe it either. Then I tried it for myself and compared it to my Littmann Cardiology III; I was disappointed. Not that the GRX outperformed the Littmann, but I expected the Cardiology III to be bounds above the CD27 since it was 3-4x the price. What I found out was that the GRX equaled the Littmann in virtually every way (quality and performance). Littmanns used to be the "champion" in my head...now I'm alot more open-minded. Also, if you're thinking about getting a Kila, the only one I could recommend is the Single-head stethoscope; I would rate it as a VERY GOOD scope.

CNA_Timmy, That was some work you had to go through. I'm glad it's all cleared up; however, I doubt if your nursing director will be able to enforce his/her authoritarian rulings upon the nursing class on such a ridiculous requirement. Please test out the CD27 when it arrives; I'd appreciate your input on any findings. It's unfortunate you're not able to get it at their promotion price as myself and the students I'd recommended it to did. At least you didn't have to deal with the troubles of buying a single-head scope and later finding out you have to get a dual-head.

CNA_Timmy, Hmmm, registered to FDA? I think that is one of the most ridiculous **** I've ever heard. I don't recall even seeing an FDA registration certificate with either my Littmann Classic II Se or the Cardiology III. I was actually introduced to the CD27 by a few medical students from a respected med school. Hehe...don't know what to say. I'm not sure how the whole mfg process goes for health products, so maybe somebody could shine some light onto this issue.

CNA_Timmy, Make sure your nursing school allows students to use single-head scopes. Honestly, if any student asks me what scope I would recommend, I wouldn't hesitate telling them to get the GRX CD27 due to its performance and versatility (it may be a bit heavy for some people). I just went into ebay to search for products offered by GRX Medical and have sadly found out they've stopped offering the CD27/penlight promotion. The only way to get it now is thru their website at full retail price . Anyways, I'm not sure why the GRX MC clone you bought is NOT listed in their retail website like the rest of their stethoscopes, but if for some reason you are not satisfied with this scope, I highly recommend you exchange it for the CD27! Even at the retail price, the CD27 may be the best bang-for-the-buck for school and work.

GlenCoco, With my limited experience, I'm not aware of another company that makes a single-head stethoscope that is so close in specifications to the Littmann MC as the Kila single-head. The only GRX scope that I currently have is the GRX CD27 (the CardioIII clone), which works beautifully as is. I do know of a nurse with this scope; she replaced the large diaphragm with a Littmann CardioIII tunable diaphragm and converted the peds diaphragm into a cone bell (which I'm sure you could switch in a Littman peds diaphragm if you really wanted to). Have fun!

No, actually, I'm not that good of a salesman. I've made a career change from computer network engineering into the health industry recently. It's ok if you wanted to go with the majority and buy the Littmann...nobody's telling not to do so, in fact, I encourage you to do so if you have lots of money to spend or have doubts on what to choose for school. I've owned a Littmann Classic II SE and still have my Cardiology III (I still love it); however, I just feel cheated when there are things out there that could perform just as well and feels even more solid, yet cost less than half, which is the reason why I've started considering the underdogs out there. I was a victim myself, having fell for 3M Littmann's trick that turned me into a closed-minded guy for a long time. Please don't be mistaken and think my thread is to convince you or other Littmann users to switch stethoscopes; in contrast, many of these people dislikes me and tend to belittle me to try to discredit my opinions or claims in order to justify their spendings. It's okay. My intent is so that people who wants to get the best bang for their buck really do get the most for their hard-earned dollars (especially students). I'm not a salesman for Kila or GRX (they happen to be the only two other brands I've tested besides Littmann). But for people interested in trying out alternatives, please PM me so that I can give you some warnings.

Some of you may have read my earlier review postings on various stethoscopes from Kila Labs and GRX Medical (the CD27 is just amazing). I've been using Kila's single-head stethoscope (http://www.kila.com/specssingle.html) for a few months now and was impressed by the quality of the bi-lumen tubing, chest-piece, and clear/detailed sound. I've compared it directly with my friend's Master Cardiology many times. In fact, it is such good clone of the Master Cardiology in size, weight, looks, and performance that the only obvious difference is on the diaphragm. Yes, the Littmann has a tunable diaphragm. I happen to be the curious type of guy who likes to play with and test things. My buddy just happens to have a replacement tunable diaphragm/rim set for his Littmann, so I decided to try it on my Kila scope for fun...Lo and behold, it fitted on and functioned perfectly!!! I cannot resist comparing the two scopes again and had a difficult time telling which one is which (luckily my buddy's MC has his name engraved on it). What I'm trying to tell you is this: You can now put together a Master Cardiology for $40! The replacement rim/diaphragm set is less than $10 and the Kila was about $30 shipped. My Kila single-head now has the full capability of auscultating hi/low frequency sounds from Littmann's tunable diaphragm! If you're already using a Kila single-head, then you know how good of a scope it is. Now you have an option of expanding its powers and upgrade its looks for next to nothing. Have fun guys! ***MC rim/diaphragm set: http://www.webmedbooks.com/content/productdetail.aspx?upc=4259949a-5405-4a06-a0ea-d71e6b8ed176

kylesscreenname, i've ordered from kila multiple times and have never received boxes like these. the boxes should be similar in style and quality to, say, a 3m littmann box. email them and complain about the packaging. their customer service is very good and will at least refund your $3. i'm not sure if you have dealt with a scope with thicker dual lumen tubings in the past, but they are usually not perfectly round and slim like your typical classic ii se tubings. i thought it was a little weird when i first used it too, but adjusted to it quickly. i've directly compared my single-head with my friend's littman master cardiology and could safely say that i've made a sound purchase!

I think most students make it a bigger deal than it really is. Trust me, there will be many things in nursing school that will stress you out much more. You seem like you're set on the Littmanns. The Classic II SE is a good universal stethoscope many nurses love. Unless you're working in a Cardiac ICU type of unit, the Classic II SE will satisfy all your requirements. As for me, I've owned both Littmann scopes and just feel cheated when I could get something else of the same quality that works better for a quarter of the price. It's hard to convince others...ya just gotta live it. More importantly, know that this stethoscope has a tunable diaphragm and how variable pressure on the chestpiece could affect the auscultated sound. It's funny but many nurses I talk to on the floor with Classic II SEs or Cardio IIIs around their necks have no idea what a tunable diaphragm is...yikes!

I used to have a Littman Classic II SE throughout nursing school and it was great until it disappeared. I do have a Cardiology III as a gift that I also love but don't use too often because I don't want to lose another expensive stethoscope. Now, if you like the Classic II SE, the Kila dual head stethoscope is an excellent clone and peforms just as well (I've used one for about six months now); however, you may like the flexibility and accuracy of the Cardiology III (with binaural tubing and to have both a pediatric and adult diaphragm, or to convert the peds into a bell). I was recently introduced to the GRX Medical CD27 by a few medical students. It is a super-duper clone of the C-III for about 1/4 the price (check their ebay store promotions). I'm currently still testing it out but can tell you this: head-to-head with my Cardiology III, it'll embarrass the C-III when you factor in the value, quality, and performance. Surprisingly, you could also get it in a dozen diff colors! On the other hand, if you prefer the Littmann Master Cardiology but couldn't afford its $200 price tag, I feel Kila does make an excellent single-head clone.

Inspire, To be honest, having the Littmann Cardiology III still feels so cool...it's like having a Porsche or a Ferrari; however, note that the recent Nissan GT-R from Japan has spanked both the Porsche and Ferrari on the road and on the track for about 1/2 to 1/3 the price. Weird analogy from a car lover...hehe. Anyways, 3M Littmann are quality products that are a bit overpriced; however, if it gives you a bit more confidence, it may be worth it. Please do read my earlier post on this thread about some problems the Littmann tunable diaphragms could pose (esp for a student). I recently found out my gf's medical school have virtually banned the tunable diaphragms to prevent errors in auscultation. Another thing you've mentioned is losing stethoscopes. I've lost my Littmann Classic II SE because somebody knew I had a Littmann and snuck their hands in my bag! That's the reason why I liked the GRX scope so much, it feels and performs as well (if not better) than my Littmann, yet nobody even peeks at it. Haha...I guess there's a price to pay when you decide to own those high-end European automobiles.

2bnursesteph2010, It's a good idea to start out in nursing school with a quality scope that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. I'd hate to make recommendations because what may sound good to me may not to you; however, for students on a budget, I agree there aren't many choices. What I WON'T recommend are the cheap Sprague Rappaport stethoscopes they sell in school. What I've gotten for myself after speaking with a few med students is a CD27 stethoscope from GRX Medical. The CD27 differs from the CD25 in that it gives you the option of using the bell as a pediatric diaphragm or you could convert it into a bell, just like the Littmann. It's basically a clone of my Littmann Cardiology III, but without the phoney tunable diaphragm (which makes it a direct clone of the Cardiology II). I swear I could hardly hear a difference in quality between my CD27 and my Cardiology III. Anyways, it's available for under $50 directly from http://grxmedical.com; but I'm a curious guy and searched around and found that GRX was promoting their line of stethoscopes on ebay for half of their retail price, complete with penlight and name tag: http://cgi.ebay.com/CARDIOLOGY-III-STETHOSCOPE-FREE-Pen-Light-Name-Tag_W0QQitemZ310050979411QQihZ021QQcategoryZ109444QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem Good luck with everything and hope I was of some help!

I'm not sure why most nursing students are just stressing and drooling over these Littmann stethoscopes, mostly because of the brand name. I'm guilty of this trend myself, as I own a Classic II SE and Cardiology III scope; however, my gf, who's a 3rd year medical student just told me the other day that her school is steering people away from these tunable diaphragm scopes, as very few med students could use them well in most situations. In contrast to the tunable diaphragm, the traditional floating diaphragm doesn't require a firm and square pressure in order to reproduce accurate high pitch sounds (hardly any patients are flat). Try to compare the low pitch sounds from a traditional deep-cone bell and from a "tuned" low pitch diaphragm on a Littman and you will notice that the bell produces a much cleaner and crisper sound (vs a muffled and boomy sound). This is very easily tested by converting your Cardiology III's pediatric side into a deep bell and then try to see if you can match the quality of the sounds from your tunable diaphragm. This is the reason why medical schools are steering away from these tunable diaphragms, it's a joke. However, I have to admit 3M products are high quality products, just overrated and overpriced. I can be sure once my Cardiology III breaks or is stolen (somebody already took the II SE from my bag), there won't be another Littman stethoscope around my neck. Look around and you will find there are very many quality-built stethoscopes out there at a lower cost (make sure it has a quality steel chestpiece, thick dual lumen tubing, comfortable eartips, etc). Hate to see poor nursing students squeezing out every chunk of their change just to have a "Littmann".