@dandurston how much will the solid nest add to the total weight?
With the new solid inner version of the X-Mid we've made a few tweaks to it besides just the solid fabric to make a bit more suited to harsh weather. So there is the solid fabric for the inner tent and also added reinforcement for the extra stake points along the perimeter, and new low stretch guylines that are slightly heavier but with less stretch it's more solid in high winds.
All of that adds about 0.5oz, so it's about 36.5oz vs 36oz for the regular model. That's 4.8oz lighter than the Stratospire 2 (40.8oz) and really about 6oz once you factor in that the SS needs seam sealing and more stakes.
We've also redesigned the X-Mid 2 and improved a ton of stuff, and those updates will first appear on the solid version that's launched in a few weeks. So there are some further improvements for stormy conditions that will appear on both the mesh and solid models (e.g. small buckles at the base of the door zippers, added guyouts, more catenary curves).
Regarding the solid inner itself, we're using solid fabric for the entire inner except the top halves of the doors (so you can see out and for airflow). This is similar to the Stratospire, whereas the Eolus only uses solid fabric around the bottom perimeter. That saves cost and still blocks drafts, but doesn't add as much warmth and still leaves you vulnerable if you have heavy condensation + winds knocking that off the fly.
Regarding the doors/zippers, the X-Mid 2 uses #5 zippers (like the Stratospire) which are quite durable and then the new version of the X-Mid 2 will add small buckles at the base of the zips to reinforce them in high winds. The zipperless doors are neat, but have a few downsides that aren't immediately obvious:
1) They require a lower angled panel slope to work, which means a larger footprint for the tent and a much longer reach to close them. With the X-Mid 2 it is 26" from the edge of the floor to the bottom of the zipper, so you can comfortably reach out and close the fly from inside the inner tent. Whereas with a zipperless door it's a far longer reach of 48" were you do need to crawl partly into the vestibule to close them.
2) The billows of fabric hang a lot lower than a regular door, so if the fly is wet it's hard to enter unscathed by the rain.
The main advantages of the X-Mid vs the Eolus are a simpler pitch, no sag fabric, higher build quality (e.g. fully double stitched), a few ounces lighter, more spacious, peak vents, factory seam taped, and about $100 less expensive. Compared to the Stratospire the main advantages are many of those same things (simpler pitch, no sag fabric, higher build quality, seam taped) but now it's ~6oz lighter, much simpler pitch, $60 less expensive, no struts to pack up into a long shape (will store horizontally) and the vents are a lot larger/more functional.
