Paintball is a great sport, and it is so much more enjoyable when your gear is working and keeps up with your skill level. The marker you pick, and how you care for it, will impact your happiness with the sport. The following article will hopefully help guide you to the marker that is best for you…. To begin your journey, ask yourself these two questions and be honest with your answer:
Question 1: How well do I take care of my equipment? – All paintball markers require at least some maintenance and cleaning, including the High-End ones. Some markers require more maintenance than others to perform optimally.
Question 2: How long have I been playing? How much do I play already, or how much would I like to play? How good am I or how good do I want to become?
Now that you have answered these questions, read the following differences between Entry, Mid, and High End Markers to find the right one for you.
Entry-Level Markers
An entry-level marker may be best for you if you answer yes to any of the following questions… Are you still figuring out if you love the sport? Are you not the best at caring for your gear? Is your budget less than $350 for a marker? Most Entry-Level products are an affordable way to enter the sport, and are usually pretty durable and can handle a little neglect. (You’ll notice a lot of fields use Tippmann markers for their rentals.)
Here are some of our favorites in this category:
- Tippmann Cronus: AKA the tank of guns, this gun is extremely hard to break, and with routine maintenance this gun will run like a champ. It is a mechanical semi-automatic marker, which means one ball for each trigger pull and no internal electronics. click here to view Cronus
- Tippmann US Army Alpha Black Elite: Has a realistic look and feel. Affordable, Durable, and Mechanical. click here to view US Alplha Black Elite
- Tippmann A5 series: Affordable, durable, mechanical and has lots of Upgrades available. Fun for the player who likes to add upgrades and attachments to their marker. Click here to view Tippmann A5
- Tippmann TMC: Available in Tan, Black, and a Limited Edition Grey. This marker is unique because it can be hopper fed like any standard paintball gun or it can be magazine fed (magfed). It offers a realistic, metal design and is also very customizable. This is a mechanical marker. click here to view TMC
- Dye Precision Rize or Rize Maxxed: Is an affordable Electronic Marker – Electronic guns offer firing settings which allow you the option to send more paintballs down field at a faster rate. For an Electronic Marker, the Rize (Rize/Maxxed) extremely easy to clean. You remove the bolt to clean the breach, and the eyes are also very easy to clean and remove. The Rize Maxxed marker is an upgraded Rize that comes with a 2-piece barrel, an on/off ASA, clamping feed neck, and a gun case. Both versions come in several colors, and have the benefit from Dye’s decades of experience in paintball. click here to view Rize and Rize Maxxed
- Empire Mini GS: Another Electronic Marker that also offers easy bolt removal, clamping feed neck, hose-less design, and an On/Off ASA. It’s a great marker for smaller players. It has a smaller frame and is comfortable for small hands. It has the reliability Empire is famous for. Something to know: this marker is a little more difficult to disassemble for cleaning (But a YouTube video can help with that). click here to view Mini GS
- Planet Eclipse EMEK 100: The EMEK 100 is the Mechanical version of the Etha 2. The EMEK has a very easy to clean bolt system, as well as a very user friendly layout. Being a completely mechanical marker based off of the Etha 2, this marker has the best of both worlds. New players and Veterans are picking this gun up to use at their local fields. The low price point makes this marker one of the best up and coming Entry-Level markers. click here to view EMEK
Mid end markers
In the Mid-End category, you get the benefits of better air efficiency (can shoot more with the same amount of air) accuracy (can shoot straighter), and usually, easier maintenance (easier to clean). A Mid-End Marker is right for you if you plan to play pretty frequently and want to get good. These markers are between $450 and $900, and all come with a 2 piece barrel, adjustable board, and easy to remove bolt. These markers are 80% as great as the high-end markers, with a lower price tag.
- Axe Pro & Axe 2.0: Empire makes the Axe pro and the Axe 2.0. They are both fabulous markers that come with 2-piece barrels, an easy on/off asa and a bolt removal requiring zero tools. The main difference between the two markers is the Axe Pro has a full LED display board whereas the Axe 2.0 utilizes an LED indicator. Keep in mind, the Axe Pro has a significantly smaller trigger frame. So if you feel like you have larger hands, the Axe 2.0 has a larger and more comfortable grip and trigger frame. Click here to view Axe Pro and Axe 2.0
- Etek 5: The Planet Eclipse Etek 5 uses a poppet bolt system using a rammer to move the bolt. This also makes the poppet bolt one of the easiest bolts to clean, but also makes it much more vulnerable to debris. This gun is light, quiet, and very air efficient. click here to view Etek 5
- Gtek: The Planet Eclipse Gtek is one of the best Mid-End markers. The Gtek has one of the easiest bolt removal systems with an extremely easy to clean bolt design. This marker has an enclosed bolt design called a spool valve. This gun is extremely air efficient and reliable. click here to view GTEK
- Gtek 160r: If you want something more advanced than the Gtek the Planet Eclipse Gtek 160r has all of the amazing features of the standard Gtek with some added upgrades. The 160r still has the easy to remove and easy to clean Spool valve bolt system, but adds a full OLED board and an AT pipe instead of a Macro Line. The AT pipe allows air to travel from the ASA to the regulator without any Macro Line being used (Hoseless). This Marker is beautifully built and extremely efficient. This Marker is the great middle marker in-between a Mid-End and a High-End while still resembling a high end marker in a full aluminum body design. click here to view GTEK 160R
- Shocker XLS: These are at the top of the Mid-End Category. The XLS has improved ergonomics vs its predecessor the RSX – it has more space between the grip and the reg, and also has a reshaped trigger guard… In short, it feels better in your hands. It comes with a Freak Barrel Back, Color Matched Tip, and an insert… All you need are the rest of the inserts and you have a kit that will borematch any paint. It’s also more air-efficient than before, and has an easier to manipulate ASA. click to view Shocker XLS
- Dye DSR: Dye introduced their first mid-range marker this year. The DSR has a smooth, quiet, and accurate shot that is extremely gentle on paint. The 3rd Generation Eye Pipe System, Quick Release Bolt, and Free Wire Connectors make service effortless. And they’ve paid close attention to ergonomics for a good hand feel. click here to view DSR
High-End
High-End markers are designed for tournament play, but are available for sale to everyone. They are the pinnacle of performance in the sport. If you've been playing for quite some time and want to elevate your game, a high-end marker is right for you. These markers require experience and care to operate and maintain; that said, if you're new and just want to jump right in, there are plenty of resources on youtube to help. Most High-End markers are going to shoot the same, more or less; however, each marker has its own characteristics, and features that make it unique.
- CS2: The CS2 is the next installment in the Geo line. This marker takes 2 AA batteries, has tool-less grips, eyes, and an easy to remove bolt. The CS2 is the newest marker from Planet Eclipse and is one of the best paintball markers in the game. It’s lighter and feels less bulky than its predecessors, and is even more air-efficient (can shoot an additional pod of paint over the CS1). It also has the robust reliability that all Planet Eclipse markers offer. click here to view CS2
- M3S: Another great High-End marker is the Dye Precision M3S. The M3S provides a shorter feel than its predecessor, the M2. The M3S come out of the gate swinging with a brand new bolt design, and the huge OLED board that makes reading your markers settings extremely easy. The M3S also has something no other gun has, a wireless charging dock for the marker. click here to view M3S
- Luxe Ice: This next marker is one known by all High-End gun users, the Luxe Ice. The only paintball gun that talks to you, tells you your battery life, bps, and training modes. The Luxe Ice has a very quiet and stealthy sound signature that matches its slick and slim body style. The Luxe Ice comes STOCK with a 2 piece Freak barrel, allowing barrel inserts to be used to obtain better accuracy on the field. This gun also comes with an OLED screen, on/off flip asa, and an easy bolt removal system. One of the most unique features and the way this marker gets its name is by way of the core. This marker used an Internal Ceramic Elastomer core, meaning the core is coated with ceramic elastomer making it more durable and less prone to temperature and friction. click here to view Luxe Ice
- Inception Designs Autocockers: The Hornet and The Sleeper are part of Inception's new Retro series that take classic paintball guns and mill them with classic old school styles* and update them with modern easy to use parts, modern functionality, and modern ergonomics. Their barrel kit includes the Legendary Stella Barrel in .685 back with a .689 SlimLine Tip and the best pneumatics available, The Inception UFC-3Way, GTR-Ram and LPR. The new FLE v2 is milled to the minimum amount of material required. This gun body is nearly 66% lighter than a WGP unibody and now has the body milled to perfectly match the lines of all Inception frames. The front block is designed to fit all modern pneumatics, has an anti-rotation step to lock it into alignment, and a large bore transfer hole that is designed so the LPR can never block it if it is screwed in to far. click here to view Inception Designs
- Dye DAM: The Dye Assault Matrix was built from the ground up to be the ultimate performance product for tactical players. It switches seamlessly between Mag Fed and Loader Fed, and between its 3 firing modes. It's also fully customizable. Click here to view Dye Dam
We hope this article was helpful! If you want more information, please check out our videos on YouTube! . If you have any questions at all, please do not hesitate to call and ask at (661) 724-6822. You can also reach us on Instagram @paintballrevolution or email us at sales@paintballrevolution.com. Thank you for reading!