In my old club we traded an ASK21 against a Janus CE to have better ship for XC and advanced training. In my opinion it worked out very well. The later Janus models are very similar to the Duo Discus at a far lower price. The Duo has an edge on best glide but the Janus will climb better and has similar performance in high speed glides. I flew a competition in the Janus against a fleet of DG1000 and Duo Discus and did not notice a big disadvantage.. The Janus handles water well and has better short landing capabilities than a Duo due to having flaps.

The Duo is more agile and has lighter aileron forces than the Janus, but if well maintained the Janus stick forces are not a problem. Ground handling and rigging is identical to the Duo except for the non-automatic control linkages. With a good trailer and the right technique and some practice rigging is easily done with 3 people and a wing stand.

In my opinion a Janus is suitable for club operation. The flap lever will add extra complexity over a non-flapped ship which may be problem for low time pilots. On the other hand you can fly the Janus with flaps in +8 from takeoff to landing. The Janus will spin nicely depending on flap position and cg but nothing particularly critical. Being a heavy modern two seater my also may also overburden some low time pilots especially when outlanding on short or difficult field – but that also counts for all other comparable gliders.

I only have experience with a well maintained Janus CE built shortly before the first Duos were introduced. As far as I know there were some considerable changes to the older 18m Janus models. The Janus CE is as far as I have experienced very similar to the Duo and definitely the better deal in terms of price.