After all the hassle and frustrations ive had with GHL is Apex any better?

[windemerejack]

I have had nothing but hassle and frustration with my GHL products and GHL, so im in the process of planning my new tank, I want it to be fully controlled and simply refuse to give GHL any more of my money, so is the Apex system more up to date ie not antiquated like the Profilux 4 system, is it easy to use, is it easy to set up, is connecting it to wifi and receiving alerts and emails a breeze to do, if I want to do something specific is it easy to find out how, is it unnecessarily complicated.
TIA

 

[Michael Gray]

What's wrong with your GHL. have you tried to reach @Ditto or anyone for help.
mine works flawlessly. Bummer. I'm sorry

 

[SuncrestReef]

I have never used the GHL Profilux, so I can't compare. With that said, I am extremely happy with my Apex and am very active in the various forums (here on R2R, Neptune Community Forums, Facebook Apex forum, and my local reefing club forum) with helping other reefers get the most from the Apex. See my 8-part Apex Programming Tutorial series for examples of Apex programming: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/neptune-apex-programming-tutorials.700483/

Personally I find the Apex very easy to understand and program. Many people may disagree with that assessment, but every product has its own nuances. If you follow Neptune's Getting Started guides from their website, it is very easy to get started. I think many people make the mistake of winging it without following the instructions, and then trying to un-do those mistakes makes it more difficult than necessary.

 

[windemerejack]

I have never used the GHL Profilux, so I can't compare. With that said, I am extremely happy with my Apex and am very active in the various forums (here on R2R, Neptune Community Forums, Facebook Apex forum, and my local reefing club forum) with helping other reefers get the most from the Apex. See my 8-part Apex Programming Tutorial series for examples of Apex programming: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/neptune-apex-programming-tutorials.700483/

Personally I find the Apex very easy to understand and program. Many people may disagree with that assessment, but every product has its own nuances. If you follow Neptune's Getting Started guides from their website, it is very easy to get started. I think many people make the mistake of winging it without following the instructions, and then trying to un-do those mistakes makes it more difficult than necessary.

Thanks for the link, ill take a look

 

[AquaLifeStudio]

Im going to take a stab and say that it's likely not your GHL components giving you problems, it's you as the user who is having trouble using your GHL components. Switching to Apex will just introduce you to a whole new environment of frustrations for you.

Why dont you share with us what your problems are and perhaps we can work through them? It's your time or your money and if you are like many of us these days, you likely have more time than money to spend.

-Dan

 

[windemerejack]

Im going to take a stab and say that it's likely not your GHL components giving you problems, it's you as the user who is having trouble using your GHL components. Switching to Apex will just introduce you to a whole new environment of frustrations for you.

Why dont you share with us what your problems are and perhaps we can work through them? It's your time or your money and if you are like many of us these days, you likely have more time than money to spend.

-Dan

Thank you for the response but im really just after info on the Apex, as stated above I will not entertain GHL any more.

 

[AquaLifeStudio]

Let me know when you want to give away your GHL gear, I'll be happy to take it. Good luck to you.

-Dan

 

[Bob The Reefer]

Thank you for the response but im really just after info on the Apex, as stated above I will not entertain GHL any more.

Having battled Apex salinity probe drift for nearly a year and run out of patience waiting for a release in EU for the Trident I'm close to ordering a KH Director.

The Apex is very easy to setup but is very US centric, the nice PSUs are not available in EU or UK format for example.

I think as one post above states you are probably swapping one bunch of frustrations for another.

 

[windemerejack]

Yeah ive decided to not go with any controller, ive survived without one and my father before me so its just not worth the hassle and frustrations.

 

[Bob The Reefer]

Yeah ive decided to not go with any controller, ive survived without one and my father before me so its just not worth the hassle and frustrations.

What GHL gear do you have and do you want to sell the generic bits and pieces?

 

[DangerDave]

Ive only used apex, so I don’t have a comparison for you. Apex cloud portal and software are great. The hardware not so much. I’m not leaving apex but I wish they would employ better hardware, I would be willing to pay the higher price for it.

 

[Plecosam]

Fair call!

 

[windemerejack]

What GHL gear do you have and do you want to sell the generic bits and pieces?

I have a P4e with additional expansion card for redox and temp.
KH Director and slave doser plus a few bits and bobs on my office tank, which I am keeping as its cost a lot of money just to sell cheaply, I was looking forward to the ion director but ill give it a miss as it probably will be just more hassle to set up.
My intention was to try GHL and then get it to run my new build (when it happens) and another one to control my Discus tank but I will give it a miss and keep my money in my pocket instead of GHL's and go without any controller.

 

[Bob The Reefer]

I have a P4e with additional expansion card for redox and temp.
KH Director and slave doser plus a few bits and bobs on my office tank, which I am keeping as its cost a lot of money just to sell cheaply, I was looking forward to the ion director but ill give it a miss as it probably will be just more hassle to set up.
My intention was to try GHL and then get it to run my new build (when it happens) and another one to control my Discus tank but I will give it a miss and keep my money in my pocket instead of GHL's and go without any controller.

That's good feedback thanks ... guess it can't be such bad kit then

 

[windemerejack]

That's good feedback thanks ... guess it can't be such bad kit then

Don't quite follow your reasoning.

 

[Mark]

I've used Neptune since the Aquacontroller days. And I have to say I find it to be a very straightforward controller. The Fusion portal for cloud access to the controller is great, and the language is intuitive and natural, aka: "If Tmp > 81.0 Then OFF". The salinity probe calibration was a bit of a PITA until I found some good documentation around it. I'm also not a fan of their optical sensors, as I've had a few fail and also the magnets have swollen/cracked/rusted. But I simply use a breakout box with old school float switches instead and those work great. I would also like to give kudos to SuncrestReef and his tutorials. I used his tutorial to program the Apex to turn stuff off and reduce my return pump speed while on battery backup in a power outage.

On my smaller tank, I tried a GHL doser as a standalone. I was not impressed. I swapped it out for a Kamoer F4 pro which was way easier to manage and program. On the larger tank I use a Neptune DOS.

 

[Brew12]

I have a P4e with additional expansion card for redox and temp.
KH Director and slave doser plus a few bits and bobs on my office tank, which I am keeping as its cost a lot of money just to sell cheaply, I was looking forward to the ion director but ill give it a miss as it probably will be just more hassle to set up.
My intention was to try GHL and then get it to run my new build (when it happens) and another one to control my Discus tank but I will give it a miss and keep my money in my pocket instead of GHL's and go without any controller.

It sounds like you have made up your mind, and I admire the people who maintain their systems without a controller. If you can do it, I think that is a great option.
I have owned both the Apex and Profilux. I can tell you the Apex is easier to use and program. The interface feels more modern. I also found it less reliable. The GHL isn't as easy to set up but once it is set up it just works.
I typically tell people in the USA that if they want easy, to go with Apex. If they want robust, go with Profilux. But nothing is as easy or reliable as not using a controller at all.