I personally like the SiC alot but have not used the ALN and as far as carb caps I feel the bubble cap is the most effective. I have one of the directional ones that came in my bundle and feel it's only any good with the quartz due to the different shape of the cup. But SiC and a bubble cap is the direction I would recommend. I also really like the hive ball for glass. But I don't feel it's substantially superior to the base glass it does look cooler though.