MSR Hubba NX: first impressions
US brand MSR’s Hubba series has been one of the world’s bestselling and most well-known tent lines since it first hit the market in 2004. Revolutionizing the ultralight backpacking tent space, the Hubba series was one of the first models to offer good rigidity and plenty of room in a package that was light and small enough to carry multiple miles.
• Price: Around $500 (US) / £500 (UK)
• Style: Freestanding dome tent
• Weight: 1.3kg / 2.8lbs
• Waterproofing: 1,200mm
• Rooms: One bedroom, one vestibule
• Compatibility: One person and gear
Since then, many brands have tried to imitate its design, yet few have had the success of the Hubba. Over the years, MSR have made incremental updates to its design – all to make the tents lighter, more liveable and stronger in poor conditions. This version, the MSR Hubba NX, has been available for almost a decade, yet still commands a ton of respect in the space. So what is it about the tent that’s so good? Or is this simply smart marketing?
The MSR Hubba NX is a one-person tent built by the same team that brought us the recent Tindheim. The Hubba is available in one-, two- and three-person versions, as well as a bikepacking-specific model that comes with some extra features for more easily carrying the tent on your bike.
Weighing only 1.3kg / 2.8lb, the Hubba NX is super light and tiny to pack away, all while being remarkably sturdy in the wind thanks to the high-quality DAC Featherlite poles and smart geometric construction. The Hubba NX tends to cost between £450 and £500 if you shop around online, though thanks to the tent’s popularity and reputation, you seldom see these at bargain prices anywhere on the internet.
MSR Hubba NX: in the wild
I’ve had my hands on this latest sample for quite some time now, and I’ve been lucky enough to use it on a handful of adventures up and down the UK. But my history with the Hubba series goes back a little further than that.
Over the years, I’ve used the original iteration of the Hubba, a couple of different Hubba Hubbas (the two-person version) and a range of different MSR lines, such as the cracking Tindheim series, MSR’s more budget-friendly Elixir line and their ultralight Freelite range. So I kinda know where I am with MSR tents.
However, this means that I approached my tests of the MSR Hubba NX with a certain degree of bias. You see, my one criticism of MSR over the years is that their tents never feel that exciting. They do the basics really well – perhaps better than most other brands out there. They keep you reliably dry, safe and comfortable and are a cinch to set up. But they often feel devoid of pioneering innovations, eschewing game-changing features for tried-and-tested tech. Amazingly, however, the Hubba NX seems to achieve the impossible: it’s a tent that makes tried-and-tested tech feel game-changing, and an age-old design feel like the next best thing.
As with the excellent Tindheim, that’s most likely down to how effortless everything feels about the Hubba NX. It goes up in a matter of minutes, can be taken apart just as easily, and looks great in a photo. Inside, the Hubba NX comes with more than enough space for one person, and the functional little vestibule offers ample room for kit. Coming with a 3,000mm hydrostatic head on the fly, the tent is also more than capable of keeping you dry in three-season storms and lower-level camping conditions.
The thing I love most about this tent, however, is its sturdiness. For a freestanding, three-season backpacking tent that weighs 1.3kg, it’s remarkably solid. On an impromptu camping trip up on Dartmoor’s windy Yes Tor in south west England, for example, it easily butted off gusts of around 30mph, and it performed on par with the ever-impressive Wild Country Helm 1 Compact, a tent that is substantially bigger and heavier than the Hubba NX.
In winds, it stays quiet, sturdy and surprisingly comfortable, and does a much better job than you’d ever expect considering its size and weight. In fact, in this class, I’d even go as far as to say that it’s the sturdiest lightweight one-man three-season backpacking tent I’ve ever used, easily beating the likes of the Naturehike Cloud Up series and Big Agnes’ cracking little Fly Creek UL1.
Honestly, this thing is tougher than it has any natural right to be, and my experiences with it have totally flipped my interpretation of MSR on its head. Now, instead of the brand with a phobia of ‘newness’, it’s the brand that gets the basics right before investing in unnecessary tech. And with the Hubba NX, they absolutely nailed the basics.
MSR Hubba NX: durability
For a lightweight backpacking tent that’s designed to be compact and light, the MSR Hubba NX is reasonably durable. The 20D ripstop silnylon fly is on a par with flysheets from other brands, so you’ll certainly need to treat it with a certain degree of care, whereas the cord peg-out points are remarkably robust, as are the DAC Featherlight aluminum poles. Therefore, I think this tent is surprisingly durable considering its pack size and weight and is certainly more durable than most ultralight three-season backpacking tents in this class.
Overall, I think MSR’s Hubba NX is an excellent shelter. It’s durable, easy to use and stronger than it has any right to be. It excels at the very things you want your tent to be good, all while leaving any unnecessary bells and whistles at the door. For me, it might be one of the best options out there for those three-season trips where you just want things to work – as long as you’re willing to part with around £500 for the privilege.
