Disco 15 Series

You could use a Paria quilt of you want to try that route. Saying that I just bought my wife a disco 15 and tried it. They are very nice and not claustrophobic at all.

Cheap, warm, or light and packable - you can only have two, you’re never going to get all three. You’ll also be colder in a bag for two. The more air space in the bag, the harder it is for your body to warm all that space. So the colder it is, the less comfortable that will become. Mummy bags are designed to be conforming to your body for that reason. They are not meant to be zipped together. So a pair of rectangular bags will fit together but be bulkier and harder to be warm in. Nemo Forte, Disco and Riff bags will zip together and be warmer- but they will also not be cheap enough for you unless you get the heaviest versions. Synthetic also breaks down faster than down. They are a compromise between mummy and rectangular. Then there is the pad issue. Two single pads tied together will have a cold gap in the middle. A two person pad weighs a lot and takes up more space in a pack. Two rectangular pads will do better than two tapered pads, same trade offs. Everyone has a different equation for what is important. But it’s hard to sell the gear you no longer want unless it’s of sufficient quality to be desirable. Higher end sleeping gear includes Western Mountaineering, Feathered Friends and the top tier versions of Marmot bags. if your boyfriend is already backpacking, he has cheap stuff. You say that he doesn’t have good stuff. I highly recommend that you start with moderate quality gear like Marmot or REI brands and get separate bags because you don’t even know how much you will want to backpack. He already backpacks and will want lighter and warmer. Get couples gear when you are sure you will want to go often with him.

This. I hate mummy bags. I move too much in my sleep. My Nemo takes up a bit more space in my pack but it is so comfortable and a good night’s sleep, where I can fully roll around in my bag, is worth it. I will never go back to a mummy bag.

BLUF: Test fit at a store or use the 30 day return policy. Only you can determine what length you need as there are multiple factors that go into that. Cost is based off several things and comfort isn’t usually one of them. A few things. For determining length: Most camping stores or stores that sell sleeping bags will let you try them on at the store, plus there is usually a 30 day return window. I’ve noticed a difference in actual bag length both from the same brand and definitely between brands so doing a test fit is always beneficial. Finally, how do you sleep? Do you keep your feet at a 90* angle from your legs like you are when standing and measuring your height? Do you relax them or point them away from your head (some side and most stomach sleepers)? Do you put your “pillow” in the hood of the sleeping bag or leave it outside? Do you put your clothes in the bag with you to keep them warm for the next day? All of these things will determine what the right length of bag for you is while remembering that large unfilled space will require you to heat it or fill it. Bag temp should be based off of night time temperatures. Yes, you can use a colder rated bag when it’s warmer, but people often can’t figure out why they are cold in a 10-15* bag when it’s only in the mid 30s and think they need a 0* bag. Price could be due to better materials, insulation (lots of different qualities between the various “synthetic” insulations, type of down and it’s fill count), “compressibility”, brand, and quality of product. Finally, comfort is entirely subjective. Lighter is definitely better when you have to carry the sleeping bag; however, lighter may mean it’s a tighter mummy fit which may make you more comfortable or may make you less comfortable. As a side sleeper/rotator, while I could sleep in a mummy bag, once I tried the NEMO spoon shaped bags I started sleeping so much better and will now only rock a mummy when I’m really worried about weight or when the temps are in the low teens and below. Also, how noisy is the sleeping bag? How noisy is your sleeping pad and bag? And how does the sleeping bag slide on your pad? Some of the fabrics over the years have not only been very noisy, but also very slippery and both of those can cause issues. Once while on a week long backpacking trip, I was ready to kill my hiking buddy because his new sleeping pad was so F***ing loud that anytime he moved during the night it was like someone getting into a fight with a bag of chips and I would wake up. He also had the problem of the two fabrics being extremely slick and so if we were on anything but perfect level ground he was sliding downhill. Needless to say he never used that very nice and very expensive sleeping pad again.

If you’re having issues you could place the disco loose into the bag without the stuff sack, it allows it to contour to the space inside the bag more. Same with the hammock and underquilt. Then when you cram everything else in there it should compress it and make more room. If that sounds like a chaotic mess to you then at least just do it with the disco in the lower backpack compartment.

Seconded! Regular tensor will be fine fine in most conditions. Maybe one of the Nemo bags? I've got the Disco. Friend of my mine recommends the Durston X-Mid, but I think it's not freestanding. The Sea to summit Alto 2 was highly recommended, as well.

Get a disco 15 from Nemo. Only use kelty in the summers.