First of all glass is soo important when it comes to bongs as far as taste goes. Cleaning of your bong is also important(as far as filtration goes), if your bong has any acriic, clay, plastic, metal even rubber plugs you will taste it. I have been smoking bongs all my life from making them to seeing the newest technology in bongs. Roor, PHX, Molino, and Volcano(bongs not vaps.) are some of the leaders in bongs and bong technology, they all are glass on glass, all have options of percolators, difusers, Ice, and different bowls(most with the exception of molino are well over $200 usd. When it comes to clean clear tastey hits you dont what much air to mix with your smoke so any bong with a carb/rush hole is not a good choice( their are carbs desigen to compenstate for this flaw, however they are all well over $300 USD. When it comes to cool well filterd hits you want a percolator and a Difuser and ice of coars(all are forms of filtration even the ice). I know pepole who spend over $2000 on their bongs and their great works of hand blown art. However for the rest of us who want the best in technology and basicaly the best hits and smoking pleasrue with out selling a car to pay for it. Are kinds stuck looking at all the nice stuff on the net. I like you reb live where the man has closed alot of cool spots such as smoke shops and am forst to look on the net. That is when I found this jem for $105 USD you too can have the Molino Mad Scientist deliverd to your door. Check out the demo vid I made. In the middle of the vid there is a slow motion shot so you can see how the bong works. You will see how the smoke moves under the water and into your mouth. I will explain it a more if you dont get it just ask. And yes to your question you do want the water line over the down steam, not over the bowl but over the down steam. Oh and every bong needs water or eles it would not be a bong it would be a water pipe. imp: imp: imp:

YouTube - weed The Mad Scientist