If you are getting herb in your mouth you can always use organic cotton on top. Also don't grind your material so fine. The vapor taste is really awesome, I've been setting my temp at 385 degrees and gradually work my way up to 400 or a little higher. Using 7 or 8 glass flowers and getting great clouds.
The Ascent does a great job of thoroughly extracting the goodies from your herb. My herb is too dark for edibles. Thats OK I don't use ABV from my Ascent because I don't want to accidentally ingest shards of tiny pieces of glass if they break off from the flowers due to the high heat.
I have the black stealth, it's been a great little unit since I received it around the middle of October. It took me a while to get the hang of it, I was ready to sell it until several FC members helped me out with some tutoring.
The learning curve can be mastered if you stick with it and you get a quality unit and it's not faulty. My session is usually about 12 min. Even though it has a fairly large bowl with the glass flowers you don't need much herb. Slow and steady with the draws, wait 30 seconds before taking another draw. The heat needs time to recover.
Try getting the gong to use as a mouthpiece. It has a sturdy feel to it.
The Ascent does a wonderful job of medicating along with a goooooooood vapor taste.
Fuckcombustion!