Yeah i know this is a dated thread and you found an alternative, but since I own an EMAX with the whisper system I can at least add some color for anyone in the market. I've had mine since 2017 so currently about 4 years in on this unit and I couldn't be happier.
- the whisper system is very quiet. If you don't have a dedicated compressor room, it makes the noise level just fine.
- Yeah its not a rotary, but on the off chance i need to throw it into continuous run mode, I can and its just fine. No issues with it keeping up with 3 people actively using it. If you are doing a lot of media blasting, air sanding, welder cooling, plasma cutting, etc, just throw it in continuous and let it run instead of having it start/stop. This will outperform any name brand I have used before.
- The motor is high end with a slow start and they use a larger compressor so it runs less compared to a lot of the new brands that use a smaller compressor means less wear and tear on high usage.
- Not sure what the newest EMAX units are rated but mine was rated at 19.2 SCFM so you have plenty of air volume while its running.
- Don't undersize the output, its 3/4" out, so i have mine regulated with a Norgren regulator and 3/4" rapid air plumbing. Drop in filter/regulators on the outlets for water separation and it freaking rocks.
I looked at Quincy, IR, etc, and while they are great machines, I landed on EMAX and couldn't be happier. It's been a solid purchase. The auto discharge for the tank drain is kind of overkill and definitely plumb that to the outside ASAP.