What is the best controller?

[okie1]

I am looking for opinions on what is the best controller for the money? Reefkeeper, AquaController, ect...

Looking for ease of use and programming as well as reliability. Thinking about taking the plunge, and this will be my first experience with a controller, any input is appreciated!

 

[pitogo]

Re: What is the best controller?

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9708488#post9708488 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by okie1
I am looking for opinions on what is the best controller for the money? Reefkeeper, AquaController, ect...

Looking for ease of use and programming as well as reliability. Thinking about taking the plunge, and this will be my first experience with a controller, any input is appreciated!

Me too, its a toss up between neptune and digital aquatics.

 

[dougchambers]

A lot of depends on what you want to do with the controller, how hung up you are going to be on aesthetics, and what you need in the way of expansion.

I'd start here: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/s...threadid=997688

There is a tremendous amount of information and data to review. Take a look at the vendor forums for support and a wealth of information.
Neptune: http://reefcentral.com/forums/forum...?s=&forumid=368

Digital Aquatics: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=329

We run our system with an ACIII controller. It monitors and controls everything from our lights, chiller, heaters, Kalk Reactor, Calcium Reactor, Top-Off, and alarm conditions. It sends us a page/email once per day with the current parameters. If I get a page or email at any other time, it's alerting me to an alarm condition based on the parameters I've defined. We also have full access to the controller from any web browser to check conditions and make changes as needed.

They really are a great system. Take a look at the comparison chart and ask questions...

Doug Chambers

 

[tcmike64]

here is the best controller thread on the net, IMO

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=997688

 

[pitogo]

Thanks for the links! Looks to be ACjr (not sure about ACIII yet, tempting) with Serial Port and DC8, and aquanotes lite is a good choice for me. I have a ton of X10 modules as well..

 

[reefknight]

I bought a AC Jr. last summer, and I love it. I can't live without it now. I would love to upgrade to the AC III in the future because I am planning another tank. It has many advantages over the AC Jr. The long and short of it, if you can afford the AC III buy it. After you use the AC Jr. for awhile and you can see all of the other things you can do with the other you will end up wanting one. Well if your a tech junkie at least. It is a great investment for your tank. I can't say that it is any better than any of the other controllers made because I have no experience with those. Hope this helps!
Bill

 

[generalee]

I just finished programming my ACJr. and the functionality is amazing. If I were to do it again, I'd buy the ACjr. again w/o a doubt!
Programming is easy and you can make it as complex as you need it. The DA doesn't allow half the things to happen as the ACJr.