Early Season Recalls on Avalanche Transceivers from Mammut and Pieps

I mailed two beacons back to their makers in the past week thanks to early-season product recalls on these critical safety devices.

Both Mammut and Pieps (distributed by Black Diamond in North America) issued recalls on avalanche transceivers over the past two weeks: Mammut’s Barryvox S2 and Barryvox 2 and Pieps’ Pro IPS. Both are voluntary recalls initiated by the companies and both brands will continue to sell the devices.

Mammut Barryvox 2 and S2 Recall

Mammut announced their recall on November 8th and the official announcement with information on how to check if your device is affected can be found here. The Barryvox 2 and Barryvox S2 had been on the market for less than a month so it’s likely not many recall units were actually in the wild, but Mammut declined to share specific numbers.

Mammut says the potential issue is, “based on an assembly issue. As a result, the main switch on the affected devices may be misaligned leading to unintentional switching from Send to Search mode with lateral pressure, or possibly even turning the device off completely.” Obviously, not good.

At this point, the devices for sale on Mammut.com have been checked and are not subject to the recall. I asked Mammut if products sold elsewhere might still be subject to recall and they said they are in the process of getting checked inventory back out to retailers. I wasn’t able to confirm if the transceivers I saw for sale online at third parties were definitely checked products.

Pieps Pro IPS Recall

Pieps explains the issue with their Pro IPS device in detail and how to check if your product is affected by the recall on this official page. Because the recall potentially impacts any device sold between Oct. 1, 2023 (when they first went on sale in the EU last year) and Nov. 22, 2024 (a day after the recall was issued), it’s likely yours will be, but you can check via the serial number following the directions at the link. (The Pro IPS had only been on-sale in North America since Oct. 24th.) The company declined to share specific numbers on affected devices as they were still in the process of filing the official voluntary recall notice with the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

The issue with the Pieps Pro IPS was first identified by a US customer whose device wouldn’t turn on after replacing the batteries. Follow-up testing by Pieps revealed that “unexpected behavior” of the battery housing material once assembled into the device resulted in a battery housing 0.2mm larger than expected from the design phase. With the allowed variance in the size of AAA batteries between brands, this means that smaller AAAs might not make proper contact with the battery terminals. Again, not good, and Pieps is recalling to swap in new battery contacts that resolve the issue.

I had been testing the Pro IPS on and off since last spring and was impressed with what I had learned about how the device blocks electromagnetic interference from devices such as smartphones and the non-fiddly search/send antenna in place of a switch. The Pro IPS had been a nice comeback for the brand after a recall on their DSP Pro, DSP Pro Ice, and DSP Sport transceivers back in 2021 which WildSnow chronicled here. Former WS Editor Jason Albert also did a two-part series on backcountry equipment recalls with a focus on transceivers starting with Part One here.

Do These Recalls Mean These are Bad Brands/Devices?

Mammut, BD/Pieps, BCA, and Ortovox have all issued transceiver recalls at some point in their history. (To my knowledge, Arva is the one major transceiver brand that hasn’t.) In part, the apparent frequency of these recalls is because even minor or infrequent issues are unacceptable in Personal Protective Equipment as critical as a transceiver. If a ski jacket has a few instances of cuff Velcro failure, it doesn’t put lives at risk.

In their recall FAQ, Mammut directly addresses the question of why quality control didn’t catch the issue: “We set the highest standards for performance and safety for our products. The Mammut Barryvox 2 and S2 are complex technical products, assembled by our long-term partner in Switzerland. Unfortunately, the issue arose during the assembly process and is now fully resolved.”

I don’t see recalls as a condemnation of the engineering, design, production, and testing processes that went into these complex devices. And it’s probably a sign of progress that recalls were issued this early in the season and didn’t require widespread customer complaints to be triggered.

While both brands appear to have responded quickly by making the issues public and pulling all inventory from shelves (real and virtual),  I wish I could offer more clarity for folks still considering buying the products. I asked Mammut if the affected model products I found for sale online at retailers such as Evo and Cripple Creek Backcountry could be subject to recall and haven’t gotten answers yet.

I wasn’t able to find the Pieps Pro IPS for sale online a day after the recall and they told me all physical retailers had been notified to pull the product, though it was new enough in North America that some retailers hadn’t even received their inventory yet. Pieps says checked products will be marked in three places with a white dot, though that will obviously be easier to confirm at physical retail than online.

If you’re considering one of these Mammut or Pieps models, I’d stick to purchasing direct from the manufacturer to ensure you’re getting a product that won’t have to be sent in for recall check and rebuild.

Or, let the dust of these recalls settle for a few months to minimize the possibility a pre-recall model ends up in your hands.

Or, treat avalanche transceivers like I do automobiles and don’t buy new models until they’ve been in circulation for at least a couple of years and any major flaws have been exposed.