Pros and Cons of the Aarn Mountain Magic 50 Pro
An Aarn Backpack Review After 5 days of Backpacking in the Grand Canyon
To inform this Aarn Backpack review, I tested the Mountain Magic 50 Pro on a five-day Grand Canyon Escalante Route backpacking trip. The result? Its suspension harness and balance pockets delivered as-promised, keeping weight off of my shoulders and center of gravity balanced. Despite qualms with its complexity and feature set, this pack was a great choice for heavy, extended water carries of up to 6L at a time.
- Weight: 41oz / 910g (size L + Balance Pockets)
- Price: $349
- Materials: Robic UHMWPE Gridstop
- Frame & Back: metal piping with suspended mesh back panel
- Load Capacity: 33 lbs
- Internal Volume: 43L
- External Volume: 7L
- Recommended Add-ons: Lasso Lock Straps
- Compare to our favorites: Zpacks Arc Haul, ULA Ultra Circuit, Durston Kakwa, HMG Unbound
- Pros: Keeps weight off shoulders. Balances center of gravity for more ergonomic efficiency. Easy access to all day-use gear and food. Aerated back panel.
- Cons: Complex system increases component failure potential. Higher learning curve. Front mesh pocket too small. Not made with composite waterproof fabric. Sternum strap slider bar sag. Lighter options exist. Unusual looking.
Compare the Aarn Mountain Magic 50 Pro to more great options in our guide to the best ultralight backpacks, and the best fastpacks.
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Balance Pockets Multi Pro filled with 2L of water each + snacks
Expanded Pros of the Aarn Backpack System
Keeps Weight Off Shoulders: My Grand Canyon trip started with a 6L water carry, five days worth of food, and all of my normal backpacking gear, which added up to about 40 lbs of total weight. The Aarn Mountain Magic 50 Pro did an almost unbelievably good job of keeping that weight on my hips and off my shoulders, despite exceeding the rated capacity limit by seven pounds. No Aarn backpack review is complete without mention of just how how well this pack transfers weight.
It achieves this through the combination of a stiff metal frame piping, free floating shoulder straps, and the uniqueness of front mounting 4L of water (~9 lbs). With any normal pack, front mounting that much weight would create major shoulder strain, but with the Aarn backpack system, the front pouches transfer weight to the front of the hip belt via a stiff metal stay (rather than hanging off of the shoulder straps.
It’s also worth mentioning how comfy the U-Flow shoulder harness is. Giving some play to the shoulder straps prevents rubbing and hot spots while moving, and just makes it fit and feel better while you hike. All in all, the weight on my shoulders felt more like carrying a 15lb pack than it did like carrying a 40lb pack.
Balances Center of Gravity: By front mounting 4L of water, which adds up to ~10 lbs of weight (factoring in the pouches themselves and a few snacks), I was able to improve my center of gravity for superior ergonomics while hiking. When hiking with other backpacks, there is always a subtle “pull-back” effect that requires compensation via your stance, and subtly decreases the efficiency of your hiking on every step.
By subtracting ~10lbs from the back and moving them to the front, there is a highly desirable offsetting effect that improves ergonomics. It’s hard to quantify, but once again, balance-wise, if the front-mounted 10 pounds offsets 10 back-mounted pounds, then a 40 pound total carry in an Aarn backpack balances like a 20 pound carry in any other backpack.
Easy Access to Day-Use Gear and Food: The large, interchangeable balance pockets add a total of 7L (3.5L each) of front storage. This is a great place to store water bottles, snacks, sun screen, lip balm, knife, map, compass, charger, more snacks, hat and gloves, headlamp, bug mesh head net, etc. For the purposes of long water carries, each pouch can store two one liter sized bottles, or a two liter bladder, plus a few small items.
There is an outer mesh area that can be cinched down, and is a particularly good spot to store food. Lastly, while they do offer more front storage than any other, it’s not all that much more when you factor it a fully accessorized pack. In any traditional pack, you can front mount two 1L bottle sleeves, have two 1L hip belt pouches, and add on a 2L fanny pack for 6L of total storage. The main difference between the Aarn Backpack system and the traditional system is that all of the weight in the balance pockets transfers to the hip belt, while the shoulder strap bottle pockets on a traditional backpack do not; ergo the Aarn backpack system makes front mounting more comfortable on your shoulders.
Aerated Mesh Back Panel: The back panel of the Aarn Mountain Magic 50 Pro a tautly suspended mesh grid that offers good airflow and an overall cooler and less sweaty experience.
Balance Pockets Multi Pro filled with 2L of water each + snacks
Expanded Cons of the Aarn Backpack System
Complex system increases component failure potential: There’s simply no denying that the Aarn backpack system is more complex than any other. The free-floating shoulder straps and balance pockets combined add a litany of additional straps, adjusters, shock cords, stays, cinches, buckles, and toggles. All of this adds up to increase the likelihood of tangling, snagging, catching, and overall breakage. To be clear, I used the pack in a very challenging, abrasive desert ecosystem with the pack weighted beyond its recommend limit, and had no durability problems besides one very minor fabric tear. But it’s fair to say that simpler packs are less likely to suffer component failure in the field.
Higher learning curve: Fitting the Mountain Magic 50 Pro to your back and adding the balance pockets involves adjusting and fine tuning straps. Prepping for my Aarn backpack review involved watching a greater number of YouTube videos than any other pack.
Adding to the learning curve is that the balance pockets create a different gear storage system than you will be used to, whether you are coming from a top compartment (AKA brain) or a traditional roll top ultralight pack with accessories stored in the front mesh and side pockets. In the course of adjusting to the Aarn backpack system, you may forget where you put something, or lose track of it all together and be forced to yard sale while taking a break. All of this fades and becomes second nature with use and experience, but adapting to a new system can be frustrating.
Front mesh pocket too small: I repeatedly found that the front mesh pocket located on the lower exterior of the Mountain Magic 50 Pro was too small. I like to store bulky items in there, like a rain jacket, rain pants, a fleece, and toilet paper. But there was only room for one of those. Furthermore, it is not sufficiently pleated or volumized, and if the lower interior compartment of the pack is full, it will expand into the front mesh pocket’s space, leaving very little room for this pocket to be filled as it does not stretch or expand. A top zipper pocket adds additional small item storage, but doesn’t help with bulkier items, and that box is already checked by the front balance pouches.
Notably, you don’t want to store rain gear or fleece in the front pockets, since they don’t offset weight much and you won’t be able to take them on/off without taking your pack off, thereby rendering the on-hand-ness of front pocket storage unhelpful.
Not made with composite waterproof fabric: From a performance analysis perspective, UHMWPE gridstop nylon is unexciting at best, and way behind the curve at worst. As composite fabrics like DCF, ULTRA, and ALUULA offer waterproofness, increased durability, greater structure, and lighter weight. All said and done, we find composites to be strictly superior. Any pack that is not made with composite fabrics is sacrificing performance for a lower price tag.
Lighter options exist: With the balance pockets and added Lasso Lock compression straps, my size Large Mountain Magic 50 Pro weighs a bit shy of three pounds. That’s not heavy per se, but most ultralight packs come closer to two pounds, with some options as light as 1.5. The good news is that the benefits of the Aarn backpack system largely offset that additional weight in terms of recentering center of gravity, and improving balance for greater ergonomic efficiency.
Sternum strap slider bar sag: I’ve never loved sternum strap slider bars because they tend to move around over the course of the day. And unfortunately, the slide effect occurred frequently when I had the front pockets fully loaded with 2L of water each. They tended to get pulled down multiple times per day, and needed to be reset. Recommending Aarn switches to a higher friction system.
Unusual looking: I can confirm that the front balance pockets don’t interfere with trail visibility and were barely even noticeable while scrambling on class III terrain. But they certainly looked unusual compared to traditional setups. Some crass jokes were made, but we’ll leave it up to you to decide if that matters.
Mountain Magic 50 Pro with Lasso Lock Straps
Who Should Choose It
After reading my Aarn backpack review, I hope you’ll have a better idea of whether or not to choose this pack.
Choose an Aarn Backpack like Mountain Magic 50 Pro if:
- Keeping weight off your shoulders is a high priority
- You suffer back pain while wearing a traditional pack
- You expect to carry 30 lbs or greater but still want to hike efficiently
- You expect long water carries
- You like trying innovative gear
- You hate the sensation of a heavy pack pulling you backwards as you hike
Don’t Choose an Aarn Backpack like Mountain Magic 50 Pro if:
- You value simplicity (this has a complex network of cords, tensioners, straps, etc)
- You already have an optimal ultralight kit with a base weight of ~10 lbs (lighter loads actualize less benefit from the Aarn system)
- You aren’t carrying excess food and water (lighter loads actualize less benefit from the Aarn system)
- You don’t want to learn a new system, and don’t like experimenting with new gear (use a traditional pack)
- You’re hiking in extended wet weather (choose a waterproof pack)
- You’re canyoneering, mountaineering, using your hands a lot, taking the pack on/off a lot, and/or dragging the pack over rockfaces (choose a more durable pack with fewer dangling pockets and doodads)
Aarn Mountain Magic 50 Pro Vs The Competition
As part of our Aarn backpack review, we compare Aarn Mountain Magic 50 Pro to top of the line ultralight backpacks. And in doing so, trends emerge. Compared to all of them, the Aarn backpack system does a better job of transferring weight off of the shoulders and to the hips while also improving balance and center of gravity. However, all of the best ultralight packs are: lighter weight; have simpler designs and fewer components that could break; have superior composite fabrics that are lighter, more waterproof and more durable; and offer larger and overall superior front mesh and side bottle pockets.
Vs Zpacks Arc Haul: The Zpacks Arc Haul is significantly lighter weight and more waterproof due the use composite ULTRA fabric, but is also much more expensive. It has larger front mesh and side pockets, with front and hip belt pockets sold separately. The Aarn Backpacks are less expensive do a better job of transferring weight from shoulders to hips, and improve your center of gravity by transferring front mounted weight to the hip belt via their balance pockets.
Vs ULA Ultra Circuit: The ULA Ultra Circuit is more waterproof, and significantly more durable (due to use of 200/400 composite ULTRA fabric) and has larger side and front mesh pockets. The Aarn Backpacks do a better job of transferring weight from shoulders to hips, and improve your center of gravity by transferring front mounted weight to the hip belt via their balance pockets.
Vs HMG Unbound: The HMG Unbound is more waterproof and more durable (thanks to DCF), lighter weight, and has larger side bottle and front mesh pockets. The Aarn Backpacks do a better job of transferring weight from shoulders to hips, and improve your center of gravity by transferring front mounted weight to the hip belt via their balance pockets.
Vs Durston Kakwa: The Durston Kakwa is more waterproof, more durable, lighter weight, and has larger side and front mesh pockets. The Aarn Backpacks do a better job of transferring weight from shoulders to hips, and improve your center of gravity by transferring front mounted weight to the hip belt via their balance pockets.
Aarn Backpack Review Conclusion
If you want to feel the least amount of weight possible on your shoulders while carrying loads in the 30-40lb range, the Aarn Mountain Magic 50 Pro would be a great choice. Especially so if you intend to use it for long water carries. Compared to traditional backpacks, the Aarn system improves your center of gravity by front mounting additional weight onto your hips, thereby improving both balance and hiking efficiency. The cost for all of those amazing benefits? Adapting to a more complex backpack system with a steeper learning curve and a bevy of additional straps/adjusters, thereby increasing the potential for tangling and number of breakable components.
