Aquatronica ACQ140 (Touch Controller) Review

[mrhasan]

Originally Posted by Aquattro

Great write up. Glad to have members here that put this level of effort into the hobby.

Thanks Brad Happy to put effort into the hobby!

[Tiansho]

I recently bought mine and I am loving it. My aquarium is balanced n you can actually see in the corals. It was worth the $$$. Now juat trying to figure out what lights to use for my upgrade.

Sent from my SGH-I747M using Tapatalk

[mrhasan]

Originally Posted by robbyG

Yes there certainly was a EU focus factor when Aquatronica worked on the units of measurement. They first made sure the most common units used in the EU worked properly.

As for the email I actually had no problem with the Test function, but I know others have, it seems to depend on which ISP you use. I am pretty sure it's a simple fix since the email itself works properly.

They had these same kind of bugs when the ACQ110 first came out. Aquatronica always focuses on the Core functions first and foremost. They absolutely do not want your controller to crash or lockup or turn on something when it should not be turned on. Once they have that in place they fix these kinds of problems. We are at the point where they are fixing these remaining small issues. Next comes the fun part when they ask for requests for new features. They pretty much gave us everything we requested for the ACQ110 and ACQ115.

The new version of firmware for the Touch is supposedly coming out at the end of this month and should fix those problems. I did point them out to Massimo a couple of months ago and he said they were being fixed.

The SG unit problem you are having is strange because I am not having that issue at all. As you might have seen in my review on Reefcentral the SG is right there on screen #1

It also stores the Data and Graphs it. The only problem is that the Graph auto scaling is not working properly, so you cannot see small changes for example from 1.024 to 1.025 on the graph. That is something that they say will be fixed.

The FAT lines on the graphs are also a major issue that I was assured would be fixed.

Also Graphing Data is stored on internal memory, I asked them about having it moved to external memory so that we could just stick a USB key or SD card into the PC to archive it.

Yah hopefully the new firmware addresses all those issues. Not a deal breaker but definitely should be looked into.

Regarding the SG issue, the controller shows the graph fine in SG but it is over the web and the excel export that shows error in the rows. Other units work fine and exports properly. Probably another isolated issue and something to do with our ISP here.

Originally Posted by smokinreefer

Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences with this controller, it's quite informative.

I have no experience with controllers and my research has been minimal, but Atleast now I can comfortably consider this for my next display tank.

Sounds like a reliable product with great potential.

Glad that it was helpful. Definitely a reliable product with great potential but in this hobby, there's always the personal decision component that you will have to make before making a purchase. Lots of options out there and every controller in the market has their pros and cons. I like trying new stuffs and so far, I am pleased.

[robbyG]

Originally Posted by Tiansho

I recently bought mine and I am loving it. My aquarium is balanced n you can actually see in the corals. It was worth the $$$. Now juat trying to figure out what lights to use for my upgrade.

Sent from my SGH-I747M using Tapatalk

If your using the Touch controller you might want to look at the Aquatronica LED lighting systems. They have 9 models some for FW and some for SW all in various sizes and power levels. The best part is that you have full programability via the AQT and can incorporate them into other programs.

They can also work independently. Just download the PC software and hook up a USB cable to a port on the module and connect via a laptop. You can program all your daily settings and then disconnect the Laptop and the lights will work on their own.

The two other things that I like about them is that they use top of the line CREE LEDs and they have beefy aluminum heatsinks that don't require fans. IMHO while I like Echotech Radion LEDS I think they are always going to be plagued by Fan issues. I have never had a computer type fan last longer than 1-2 years when exposed to salty air. I even bought $40 industrial chemical Fan that is internally coated against corrosive gas and it also failed within 3 years. When those fans fail and you don't realize it for a few days, it will really heats up the LEDs and shortens their life.

[Tiansho]

I love my aquatronica controller. I just ordered their dosing pumps as well. Im really pumped. Hehehehe

Sent from my SGH-I747M using Tapatalk

[Tiansho]

I will see if they sell them on the website. I did see them in their european store. I guess i need to shoot another e-mail to Eric from aquatronica.

Thank you...

I talked to aquarium concepts and they recommended the new Kessils AP700.

Sent from my SGH-I747M using Tapatalk

[mrhasan]

So this is going to be a rant update.

The new firmware of the touch controller still has LOADS, and I mean LOADS, of work to be done to make it a reliable controller. The two primary issues that I have faced with the new firmware:

1. My ATO is programmed such that if the reservoir is low (via float switch), the ATO turns off and I get an email notification to refill. The ATO has turned off for no apparent reason, twice until now, despite the water level is above the sensor and the sensor reading ok. To start the ATO, I had to revisit the programming, go through all the steps once again (no editing; just Next Next Next...) and save the program to reset and turn on the ATO.

2. The display froze again! The other day, I noticed that despite the temperature being high, I didn't get an email notification. When I tapped on the screen, all the tabs went grey and froze. Had to restart the controller to get everything running. The controller was showing the right time so it froze when I clicked on it. After restarting it, things went back to being normal and I got the temperature notification.

My verdict: Not happy with the controller; wish I saved my money for an Apex or the new Vertex.

[robbyG]

Originally Posted by mrhasan

So this is going to be a rant update.

The new firmware of the touch controller still has LOADS, and I mean LOADS, of work to be done to make it a reliable controller. The two primary issues that I have faced with the new firmware:

1. My ATO is programmed such that if the reservoir is low (via float switch), the ATO turns off and I get an email notification to refill. The ATO has turned off for no apparent reason, twice until now, despite the water level is above the sensor and the sensor reading ok. To start the ATO, I had to revisit the programming, go through all the steps once again (no editing; just Next Next Next...) and save the program to reset and turn on the ATO.

2. The display froze again! The other day, I noticed that despite the temperature being high, I didn't get an email notification. When I tapped on the screen, all the tabs went grey and froze. Had to restart the controller to get everything running. The controller was showing the right time so it froze when I clicked on it. After restarting it, things went back to being normal and I got the temperature notification.

My verdict: Not happy with the controller; wish I saved my money for an Apex or the new Vertex.

When you say new firmware are you talking about the Beta version that they are now finalizing or are you talking about Ver 4.0.B which has been out for awhile? I have not had a freezing issue since I turned off the screen saver and thats with both 4.0.B and the Beta. I wonder if something else is causing the problem?

I agree with you that they need to get their act together on fixing the issues, but keep in Mind the Apex also freezes and they have never seemed to rectify that problem. So far I know that the ACQ115 can run for years without ever freezing. My tank went for at least 4 years on complete auto pilot. I don't trust the ACQ140 enough yet to do the same but I keep monitoring it and so far it has not frozen or misbehaved.

I suggested you take a second look at your ATO program and make sure it is not conflicting with another program.

[Myka]

Bummer. Hopefully there is some sort of fix. It sounds like a promising product.

[mrhasan]

Originally Posted by Myka

Bummer. Hopefully there is some sort of fix. It sounds like a promising product.

It is but they need to put in more effort; it is not a brand new product and they have selling it for couple of years now. But unfortunately, it still behaves like a beta release.