Digital Aquatics Archon Owners Thread
- Thread starter skripo
- Start date
The exchange program was not "concealed" in any way. Posts were made here on RC, on *********, and on several other local forums that I at least frequent. I know there were several posts on these boards because I, along with DA, posted them. This went on for at least six months.
I frequent RC and several other national forums and I know of two people that have voiced their concern over not knowing about the exchange program and missing the cutoff. I hardly think it is fair to call this "warranty related problems". Your inference is that they purposely do this all the time. Everybody in the world knows about the problems that DA had taking forever to fix the SL2 issue. To my knowledge that is the only module that has had an issue that required it to be sent in for replacement.
I have no idea why they have not resolved this issue with you. I think it is an example of terrible customer service and I have told them so. I have specifically called to their attention your particular concern in the past couple of days and I will continue to try to convince them to make things right with you. I am sure it will be too little, too late, but that doesn't change the fact that they should address your concerns.
Completely untrue. No they did not call people on the phone or send them an email, but the information was in fact put out all over the web. I have no idea if they even had a database to do this. I imagine that they did not because even warranty repairs required a copy of your purchase receipt for verification.
This is such a ridiculous statement. You are in no position to know why their sponsorship has been cut off. Maybe they felt that they weren't getting their money's worth. Or thought it was an unnecessary expense (a big one at that) since they have their own forum and do a lot of communicating via Facebook (which I hate with a passion). Or maybe it is a glitch and they didn't pay their bill on time. Either way speculating that they are broke and cutting costs is irresponsible and just shows that you are on a mission to make them look bad any way you can, even with bad information. You have expressed your displeasure in how they have handled the SL2 exchange and your specific concerns. I agree 100% that they have not handled it right. Going out of your way to try to further discredit them is childish.
Certainly valid concerns coming from your point of view. I would probably feel the same way if I was in the same situation as you.
I hope and am pretty sure that you will be happy with the change. It is DA's loss due to how they treated you and that's what happens in the marketplace.
A couple of notes here:
First, my usual disclaimer...I am NOT an employee of DA and do not get paid a single penny for anything I do for them. I am a beta tester and have been since the RKE first came out.
Literally all of the employees currently at Digital Aquatics did not work there upwards of two years ago. They have all walked into the trauma of dealing with getting the SL2 fixed. One of the guys there owns at least two tanks, one of which is a 400g tank I believe, and is a hobbyist like us and truly understands what we want in a controller.
I am one of the several people who have an Archon currently and I can honestly say, it is a massive improvement to the RKE/RKL line. It is simple to program, which can be done from any web-enabled device, so no more issues with myReef and needing a Windows machine to use it.
I am not a programmer so I can honestly say, I do not really understand anything about the I2C bus, but I was told that once DA releases the firmware update for all of the current modules to make them "Archon modules" the bus communication will be different. The current RKE family of modules are compatible with Archon with no updates needed, but eventually they will be updated via firmware. This will also allow them to communicate faster and future firmware updates will not require disconnecting the modules and updating them individually. I was sent only the Archon base unit and connected it to my current PC4's and all of the other modules with no updates at all.
The Archon isn't going to change the face of aquarium control the world over, but it is definitely a huge step up from the current DA line of controller. Programming is much easier, and there are a lot of nice little improvements that we all will put to good use. One example, you can assign multiple alarms to a channel with alarm #1 taking precedence over the others. This adds a lot of possibilities. You can name Alarms, timers, standbys, and modules/channels. The base unit has 4 virtual channels built in. 0v - 10v and PWM built in. I believe people making the switch will be very happy. Archon was designed from the beginning by a hobbyist and it really shows.
A couple of notes here:
First, my usual disclaimer...I am NOT an employee of DA and do not get paid a single penny for anything I do for them. I am a beta tester and have been since the RKE first came out.
Literally all of the employees currently at Digital Aquatics did not work there upwards of two years ago. They have all walked into the trauma of dealing with getting the SL2 fixed. One of the guys there owns at least two tanks, one of which is a 400g tank I believe, and is a hobbyist like us and truly understands what we want in a controller.
I am one of the several people who have an Archon currently and I can honestly say, it is a massive improvement to the RKE/RKL line. It is simple to program, which can be done from any web-enabled device, so no more issues with myReef and needing a Windows machine to use it.
I am not a programmer so I can honestly say, I do not really understand anything about the I2C bus, but I was told that once DA releases the firmware update for all of the current modules to make them "Archon modules" the bus communication will be different. The current RKE family of modules are compatible with Archon with no updates needed, but eventually they will be updated via firmware. This will also allow them to communicate faster and future firmware updates will not require disconnecting the modules and updating them individually. I was sent only the Archon base unit and connected it to my current PC4's and all of the other modules with no updates at all.
The Archon isn't going to change the face of aquarium control the world over, but it is definitely a huge step up from the current DA line of controller. Programming is much easier, and there are a lot of nice little improvements that we all will put to good use. One example, you can assign multiple alarms to a channel with alarm #1 taking precedence over the others. This adds a lot of possibilities. You can name Alarms, timers, standbys, and modules/channels. The base unit has 4 virtual channels built in. 0v - 10v and PWM built in. I believe people making the switch will be very happy. Archon was designed from the beginning by a hobbyist and it really shows.
A couple of notes here:
First, my usual disclaimer...I am NOT an employee of DA and do not get paid a single penny for anything I do for them. I am a beta tester and have been since the RKE first came out.
Literally all of the employees currently at Digital Aquatics did not work there upwards of two years ago. They have all walked into the trauma of dealing with getting the SL2 fixed. One of the guys there owns at least two tanks, one of which is a 400g tank I believe, and is a hobbyist like us and truly understands what we want in a controller.
I am one of the several people who have an Archon currently and I can honestly say, it is a massive improvement to the RKE/RKL line. It is simple to program, which can be done from any web-enabled device, so no more issues with myReef and needing a Windows machine to use it.
I am not a programmer so I can honestly say, I do not really understand anything about the I2C bus, but I was told that once DA releases the firmware update for all of the current modules to make them "Archon modules" the bus communication will be different. The current RKE family of modules are compatible with Archon with no updates needed, but eventually they will be updated via firmware. This will also allow them to communicate faster and future firmware updates will not require disconnecting the modules and updating them individually. I was sent only the Archon base unit and connected it to my current PC4's and all of the other modules with no updates at all.
The Archon isn't going to change the face of aquarium control the world over, but it is definitely a huge step up from the current DA line of controller. Programming is much easier, and there are a lot of nice little improvements that we all will put to good use. One example, you can assign multiple alarms to a channel with alarm #1 taking precedence over the others. This adds a lot of possibilities. You can name Alarms, timers, standbys, and modules/channels. The base unit has 4 virtual channels built in. 0v - 10v and PWM built in. I believe people making the switch will be very happy. Archon was designed from the beginning by a hobbyist and it really shows.
We have two RKL we have been running for three and four years respectively. They work great for us, but I do have to say that when we have had a question customer service is not good. I thought that when our units fail we would change to the Neptune system but they keep on going. We have always wanted to get the net module but have heard the problems.
Is this something Archon will help? Does D.A. Sell the Archon head unit separately?
IMHO if D.A. Had a good customer service team this would be the MFG'r to have, hands down!
Is this something Archon will help? Does D.A. Sell the Archon head unit separately?
IMHO if D.A. Had a good customer service team this would be the MFG'r to have, hands down!
The NET module itself has been fine, albeit not the easiest to understand. Most of the issues that people have had involving the NET module have been dealing with their home network or their ISP. The Archon makes the NET module totally unnecessary. Networking is built into the Archon and getting it to talk to your home network is extremely simple.
I believe they will since it is compatible with the modules for the RKE/RKL head units. While it hasn't been pushed as an "upgrade" that is essentially what it will be.
I could not agree with you more. It has been a very weak spot for them and hopefully they will be improving on that very soon. They have hired a lot of people and I know certain things are in the works. Time will tell...
That is the current plan. It will basically turn your RKE or RKL head unit into a simple user interface with limited functionality I imagine. I haven't been told what it will be able to do or when they plan to implement that feature. I know the idea is to make it so that your current investment in modules will not become obsolete when switching over to an Archon system. The Archon specific modules will communicate much faster, but the old modules will still work. I think the head units will work sort of like the RD1 does now.
A little update in regards to the DA support forum here on RC going away. As I suspected, it is merely a billing issue and will be resolved as soon as the accounting folks at DA can get a hold of accounting folks here at RC. I am sure it will be resolved in a few days.
As reported in the Archon thread on the DA support site, they are targeting January 20th as a ship date for the Archon system. Unfortunately for DA but fortunately for all of the users of the Archon, the beta testers have come up with a lot of cool features that we want added into the Archon software. Most, if not all of these improvements are being added in, along with a few bugs that we found being corrected. With this system being Linux based, something I know very little about, it seems like a great deal of features can be added over time via a software update. It really is a powerful system.
janes_mw
Active member
Thanks for the update Dave! That is the second source I have heard the 20th date on so hoping that it's true.
Beware of Digital Aqautics:
I bought the Reefkeeper Lite in late November and it had problems so I decided to upgrade to the Reefkeeper Elite rather than exchanging the RKL, which showed up defective..the clock didn't work on it so it is useless. I contacted customer service and they told me that they would send another one. It has been over a month and nothing so far and all of my calls to their sales and support numbers go straight to voice mail with no return calls. I have also sent emails with no replies so here I sit with a Reefkeeper Elite head unit in the box and can't get a hold of them to replace it. I have filed a Better Business Bureau complaint against them, which they have a C- rating because there are plenty of complaints about the same thing...terrible customer service and warranty support. If they don't respond to that, small claims court is next but since I just bought the RLE in mid-December, I called the credit card company and disputed the charge due to defective equipment. I have lot of unanswered emails to provide to them as evidence of the lack of support but my attempt to resolve it.
I bought the Reefkeeper Lite in late November and it had problems so I decided to upgrade to the Reefkeeper Elite rather than exchanging the RKL, which showed up defective..the clock didn't work on it so it is useless. I contacted customer service and they told me that they would send another one. It has been over a month and nothing so far and all of my calls to their sales and support numbers go straight to voice mail with no return calls. I have also sent emails with no replies so here I sit with a Reefkeeper Elite head unit in the box and can't get a hold of them to replace it. I have filed a Better Business Bureau complaint against them, which they have a C- rating because there are plenty of complaints about the same thing...terrible customer service and warranty support. If they don't respond to that, small claims court is next but since I just bought the RLE in mid-December, I called the credit card company and disputed the charge due to defective equipment. I have lot of unanswered emails to provide to them as evidence of the lack of support but my attempt to resolve it.
