Reef Controller Question

[DaveMorris]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14502721#post14502721 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by luisagos

Then you got those that get frustrated easy and go to the other spectrum of things. They think what they just brought is junk and feel the only way to solve the mistake they made is to think its junk and move on.

I would imagine that this is exactly what happened to the people (or person) that you have quoted that didn't like the RKE.

I been following every thread at their forums and they answering very fast, they got some knowledgeable players in there.

I, too have seen negative threads disappear. You question DA's ethics on releasing a controller prematurely, what about hiding negative reviews? Read some of the threads on DA's company support forum and see how many of them have responses from DA at 11pm at night on the weekend. I have never seen a company respond as they do.

http://forums.digitalaquatics.com

Has RKE catch up to them, yes that have.
But RKE releasing products unfinished is very troublesome, something to consider when owning expensive stock.

You keep saying that, but it is based on a few bad reviews and your perception of how things are. Like I said before, I have experience exactly ZERO troubles that would concern me on the stability of my tank since the day I got my RKE and mine was in the first batch that DA shipped. Have you seen the positive reviews in amongst those negative threads that you quote? Do they mean nothing?

I fully expect to be doing firmware updates on my system for as long as I own it. You see it as a negative, and I see it as a positive. This unit is far more expandable than almost every controller out there. Users have asked for a salinity probe. Well, in a couple of months or so, we will have a salinity probe. All DA has to do is update firmware for new software features and release new modules for hardware features. There is no limit to what this system is capable of. Is it perfect? No, but no controller out there is, including the Profilux.

As Harry mentioned in another post, we all are very passionate about what we buy. I obviously am very happy with my RKE. I have a friend who is very happy with her AC3. We all have our observations that we make and sometimes we should stick to the things that we actually know about. I am excited to see what capabilities will be coming up next for the RKE.

 

[luisagos]

Dave your missing the point.

When you install a controller is to monitor and control the Aquarium so you when are not around you can have peace of mind.

When your spending all your free time, updating and reporting bugs, waiting for fixes whats the point?

There is no debating that when DA release RKE and its line of modules, it was unfinished product.
ITS A FACT !
Stop dancing to that issue!

I plan to have my controller to monitor and control my aquarium to a high level.
This is the point Dave.

Everytime i add a module or buy a new product from DA, in the back of mind I will be thinking, I hope they didn't release this too early and was not tested like it should of been.

Controller are suppose to give you peace of mind and DA track record does not give me that peace.

 

[luisagos]

Harry,

Not everyone is going to need to upgrade to the P3.
I bet a lot of P2 units out there that would like to have a old board P2 plus ex.

Someone that upgrades to a P3 can sell theirs on Ebay or even here, both the seller and buyer will make out.
Everyone makes out.

Hmm....Harry I thought you said you had RKE already?

About the warranty guidelines .
This a copy and paste from their site.
"If the controller goes down a new board will be sent to the user on a 24 hour response, the user will then get a phone call on how to fit it. In the unlikely event of this happening the user should not be down for more than 2 days max.
If the controller is damaged then a new board is replaced at cost no retail or distribution mark up"


I do not like getting into Politics , but i am seeing more and more of these statement.

We must support the USA, buy USA!

Wake up people, we are part of a global market.
As Americans we support Capitalist markets, not socialist ideas.
If a American Manufacture is producing junk, its suppose to fail.

Only a socialist country would you be force to continue to buy it.

If USA company is producing something better then the global market is doing, SUPPORT IT !
If it doesn't LET IT FAIL, its the American way!

 

[DaveMorris]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14508064#post14508064 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by luisagos


When your spending all your free time, updating and reporting bugs, waiting for fixes whats the point?

Nice way of distorting facts that you know nothing about to make a point. When did I say that I spend all of my free time updating and reporting bugs? I have spent very little time doing that. In fact, I could run my entire system on the original firmware that came with the system when I first bought it. Firmware updates have fixed bugs that other people have had problems with and have added features. Like I said before, the RKE is not perfect, but I seriously doubt that the Profilux was perfect when it was released either.

There is no debating that when DA release RKE and its line of modules, it was unfinished product.
ITS A FACT !
Stop dancing to that issue!

Actually, that is not fact...that is simply your opinion. Bury the hatchet already.

I plan to have my controller to monitor and control my aquarium to a high level.
This is the point Dave.

Everytime i add a module or buy a new product from DA, in the back of mind I will be thinking, I hope they didn't release this too early and was not tested like it should of been.

Controller are suppose to give you peace of mind and DA track record does not give me that peace.

My RKE does for me exactly what you are saying that you want a controller to do. I have 100% confidence in it and perhaps I just got lucky.

If you want to be useful to the person who originally sought out information, why not stick to providing insight into the controller that you actually know about instead of bad mouthing the one that you have no experience with. I don't know anything at all about the Profilux controller except for what I read here or on their website. That is why I will never try to point out bad things about it. I have a tremendous amount of first hand knowledge of the RKE system as well as the RKL and that is what I speak to.

 

[divewsharks]

Raven-
I was in the same boat as you about a month back. Prior to buying a controller I preferred to not use one, but with my frequent travel, it just makes life a little easier. I received my RKL a last week. I bought it because the RK2 was discontinued -- but is/was very popular product and seemingly quite well regarded.
I chose the RKL, because I don't need the controller to do much, just some things to make my wife's life easier while I am away on business. The thing I liked most about the RKL was that it is modular, I can keep adding/switching modules as my needs/wants grow/change.
So far its running like a champ but has only been a short while. One thing I did not like was being that this was my first controller, I thought the documentation was quite weak; however after a little stick time, I found the controller very easy to use/program.
I will say that even though the price on the RKL starts low, it can add up very quickly.

 

[Raven63630]

After a lot of research I decided to go with the RKE, it seems to be more in line with my current needs(tank and wallet :lol: ).
All of the controllers mentioned in this thread seem to be very good choices, they all have their strong and weak points.

Thanks to everyone who contributed to this thread, your input greatly helped in making my decision.

Danny

 

[DaveMorris]

Make sure that you visit the DA support forum at http://forums.digitalaquatics.com. There is a lot of information exchange going on there and you can find lots of help. With something that can do so much, it can be overwhelming. The documentation is a little weak, but I know that a rewrite is in the works to address that.

 

[NeveSSL]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14502549#post14502549 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jimmy n
I have the aquatronica. I've had the ACpro. Both are good units. Apparently there were issues with the old aquatronica, but I'm using the new one and it seems solid. A tad pricey, but I like the option to monitor salinity.

I have an Aquatronica as well. I had one of the earlier ones with problems and they have always taken care of me. Good customer service.

As far as RK v. AC, I've always voted AC because they were much more programmable. That may have changed with the RKE, though. I'm not sure because I've not researched it much since I got my Aquatronica.

Brandon