Pictured here is the Porto Primo loader and the DYE LTR loader. The Primo loader is gravity fed, whereas the DYE LTR is electronic and force feeds paintballs into your marker.

What’s The Difference Between A Gravity Fed Hopper And Electronic Paintball Hopper?

A gravity-fed paintball hopper is precisely what it sounds like: a basic paintball hopper attached to the feed neck of a paintball gun that feeds paintballs into it by allowing them to drop into the gun’s breech simply by gravity. They work just fine but only feed so fast: ten to twelve paintballs per second at most. Players wishing to shoot faster than a gravity fed hopper is capable of feeding will find themselves chopping paintballs or shaking their hopper every few shots. The solution to this problem is an upgrade- an electronic hopper. Electronic hoppers use battery powered motors spinning paddles, fins or feed trays to feed paintballs into paintball guns much more quickly than gravity could, enabling players to shoot fifteen or even twenty paintballs per second and faster!

What is better a gravity fed hopper or an electronic hopper?

While both types of hoppers have their place in the sport of paintball, the general rule of thumb is if you have an electronic marker, you should use an electronic hopper. This helps to ensure that you will not out shoot your hopper and find yourself shaking the marker. While there are some mechanical markers that will work best with an electronic hopper, most of them provide adequate kick or recoil to knock paint around in the hopper and prevent you from having to shake it too often.

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