The most Askoll motor blocks such as the Fluval SP4 and 6 have built in circuitry. It’s not new they have been doing this for a while. I think most manufacturers have decided to add a power supply and controller to make it low voltage and controllable . The issue with the Sicce SDC is that they are not the smoothest running pumps unlike the other well known Asian manufacturers . The Fluval on the other hand is a very quiet and doesn’t have the vibration issues as the Sicce.Ok yep, I definitely hear you on the traditional style of bidirectional 'dumb' reluctance blocks and concede their inherent lack of efficiency. But I do have to disagree on the point about not being able to take advantage of a directional impeller in a bump start or electronic start design. (Btw the pump whose impeller I posted a pic of is definitely a 2 pole reluctance motor and does not have a bump start- it's electronic). If we go with your assertion that there's no advantage to using a directional impeller on a fixed speed AC pump - assuming you can bump it or electronically start it in 1 direction, why does nearly every pump that turns in 1 direction use such an impeller? And I'll take it one step further and argue that a DC pump impeller and volute, while optimized, are less efficient in their peak efficiency point than a comparable fixed speed impeller and volute precisely because they have to be somewhat of a compromise across the whole range of the pump's operating rpm.
The ADV pumps are actually the first 'AC' pumps I suspected might be a bldc motor with on board controls- hence my keen interest in them. Do you think the onboard bldc controls will last as long as a traditional reluctance block would? I'd consider giving them a trial run if the potted components are going to last for 5+ years.