Cor15 V Cor20 V Vectra S2 V Vectra M2

[Dominic Prezwanski]

Hey People,

So I work away for periods of time and as I was leaving for a trip this morning my Jebao DCT8000 decided to work - Fortunate that it happened about 20 minutes before my Uber to the Airport. A quick problem solve didn't help so I replaced it with an old AC pump I had.

QUESTION: (50G DT and 30G Sump)

I have ordered both the cor15 and cor20 from BRS hoping it arrives in time ( I have 20 hours at home in 4 days before my next trip)

Is the new Vectra any better than the Cor's? I like the idea of having it integrated with my APEX however it's not necessary if it's a better product.

I have watched all the reviews and know that all the pumps are more then powerful enough to run the system.

Thanks for the wisdom!

 

[User1]

Probably going to need people who have owned both. I think both are good pumps. When I was building my 210 I originally had a Jebao DCT16000 but unfortunatly it didn't make it past the leak and plumbing test. The body of the pump is weak and felt about the thickness of a hostess cupcake holder if you know what I mean. The neck broke or separated so that was that.

I was reading about the Vectra's and that was going to be my return pump. Then I started to read about the failures and decided it wasn't for me (I was also in a heavy work travel window so needed something reliable). I was reading about the Cors, already had a Apex, so caught a Cor 15 on the second or third batch that was available after the initial rush. Solid pump, built like a F150 pickup, heavy, and it runs. Seamless iteration and one less power cord. I was sold. It worked well and has since February of last year. In fact it worked so well that I picked up a second to run my skimmer. This way if something did happen and since they are plumbed the same way I figured I can swap skimmer to return in a few minutes. Few months back I picked up a Cor 20 on sale and added it to my return so now I have a 15 and 20 each running a 1" sea swirl. Great setup and I'm happy.

So I am a bit biased towards the Cor's since I own three but honestly I've had no troubles with them. Now with regards to Vectra. I decided to not buy them during the height of their issues with the one pump. Lots of threads with regards to failures. They have an incredible support system and took care of everyone or so I've read. One lad I talk to frequently had 6 different failures and each one was replaced. Can't beat that. Also they have gone through a redesign to address it.

So my point is that I'm trying to be fair and while I didn't buy one I have read countless times that it has been fixed and that their support is great. And also that they don't have those issues anymore. I just have since bought the Cor line and happy so I do not see myself changing. Hopefully that helps somewhat and not biased.

 

[TheHarold]

All mediocre pumps with 1 year warranty IMO.

Tunze has 5 year for a reason. But if you are in it for a color scheme, spend away!

 

[User1]

All mediocre pumps with 1 year warranty IMO.

Tunze has 5 year for a reason. But if you are in it for a color scheme, spend away!

Lol - and the Abyzz has a 10 year.

Worthy point though and something that should be considered. Although some believe those long term warranties are actually because they are needed because of failures. Glass half full, empty debate. But yeah - good point you raise.

 

[Trickman2]

Following along, I just picked up a Vectra L2. Was running a Dolphin ampmaster but decided it was time to replace it as it kept giving me issues. We will see but so far it is quiet and seems like a solid pump. It annoys me Apex is playing games with them in my opinion. Both companies are pointing fingers at each other. Still seems like Apex has more interest in not controlling others products. Time will tell https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/trickman2s-280-gallon-upgrade.369124/

 

[TheHarold]

Lol - and the Abyzz has a 10 year.

Worthy point though and something that should be considered. Although some believe those long term warranties are actually because they are needed because of failures. Glass half full, empty debate. But yeah - good point you raise.

I disagree.

Offering a 1 year warranty implies that you can only guarantee the product to be defect free for one year. Or else, they will pay for the repair.

Aka Ecotech, reef octopus, and Neptune are not confident that their device can perform for over 1 year. They can’t provide a longer warranty or they would lose too much money on repairs.

Offering a 5 year implies that the product will be defect free for 5 years, or else the manufacturer will eat the cost of the repair.

Companies these days are selling $250-$500+ return pumps with a 1 year warranty. It’s really seems like a joke to me- if I want 1 year of guaranteed lifespan, I’ll buy a jebao.

 

[Dominic Prezwanski]

Thanks for all the input! You all have very good points.

I’m from overseas and when I was younger I worked at a hardware store whilst in college. The el cheapo power tools were the ones that were offering the longest warranties by far and there business model was built on sheer numbers. Sure they replace a ton more but they also turn over a considerable amount more.

Warranty is nice for sure but I won’t let that pull the wool over my eyes!

SAF1, thank you for the lovely response. Did you run the 15 on the 210 solo?

Trickman, Would love to hear what you think when you plumb the L2 in!

 

[User1]

SAF1, thank you for the lovely response. Did you run the 15 on the 210 solo?

Yes, I did. For about 6 to 7 months. It worked perfectly fine but please note I have a tank that is still maturing so not a lot of coral growth. So limited corals that I moved over from my 40 breeder. Cor 15 is using 1" plumbing routing to a pair of 1" sea swirls. A few months back I added the random flow nozzles and noticed the sea swirl with the longest plumbing line was not generating the flow I wanted so that is when I started to look at add another Cor pump. It just so happened the Cor 20's went on sale so I picked one up. It uses the same union so figured why not use that one the longest plumbing line.

But yes - to answer your question it worked perfectly fine. It just works better now that I added the nozzles - I did that to remove my Gyre's so very happy now. They are nice pumps but like I said I think the Vectra's are also respected around here. Both are at a good price point and will probably last longer than the knock offs that are cheaper. There are higher prices pumps both AC and DC which will work equally well. Since you have an Apex there is the ecosystem thing to consider but I think if you do what your doing, reading up some more before you buy, you can't go wrong with most recommended so far.

 

[justingraham]

I disagree.

Offering a 1 year warranty implies that you can only guarantee the product to be defect free for one year. Or else, they will pay for the repair.

Aka Ecotech, reef octopus, and Neptune are not confident that their device can perform for over 1 year. They can’t provide a longer warranty or they would lose too much money on repairs.

Offering a 5 year implies that the product will be defect free for 5 years, or else the manufacturer will eat the cost of the repair.

Companies these days are selling $250-$500+ return pumps with a 1 year warranty. It’s really seems like a joke to me- if I want 1 year of guaranteed lifespan, I’ll buy a jebao.

I will say Ecotech has warrantied multiple pumps of mine well out of warranty one second handed with no receipt so it’s not just a color scheme

As for the original post I do not have the new vectras so I can’t comment on them but I have two M1s and 2 L1 a solid all are solid pumps so is the cor 20 it’s actually the same interior it at least looks like it is

Now down to why I would pick the vectras over the Cor
Vectras are easier to clean then the cor every time the cor’s O ring is hard to keep in place have to take it apart Mutiple times so it seats properly
The Cor makes a annoying humming sound from the pipe and I’m not the only one with this problem it has to do with what I believe the back pressure of the pump if I remove the penductor no hum
The cor uses more watts for the same GPH as the vectra
Now the cors a nice pump and if it wasn’t for the hum I’d be happy dealing with all the other problems for the apex integration but it hums and is annoying

But in all honesty they are both great pumps hopefully if u get the cor it doesn’t hum ur piping

Also check out reef octopus man they are easy to clean but the do seem to have a problem losing gph over time something with the controller I think

 

[User1]

I will say Ecotech has warrantied multiple pumps of mine well out of warranty one second handed with no receipt so it’s not just a color scheme

As for the original post I do not have the new vectras so I can’t comment on them but I have two M1s and 2 L1 a solid all are solid pumps so is the cor 20 it’s actually the same interior it at least looks like it is

Now down to why I would pick the vectras over the Cor
Vectras are easier to clean then the cor every time the cor’s O ring is hard to keep in place have to take it apart Mutiple times so it seats properly
The Cor makes a annoying humming sound from the pipe and I’m not the only one with this problem it has to do with what I believe the back pressure of the pump if I remove the penductor no hum
The cor uses more watts for the same GPH as the vectra
Now the cors a nice pump and if it wasn’t for the hum I’d be happy dealing with all the other problems for the apex integration but it hums and is annoying

But in all honesty they are both great pumps hopefully if u get the cor it doesn’t hum ur piping

Also check out reef octopus man they are easy to clean but the do seem to have a problem losing gph over time something with the controller I think

The O-Ring is a piece of work for sure.

Hum - I hear some have it, some do not. I do not. Actually, that isn't true. My return pumps do not have it because they are using the recommended plumbing. The Cor 15 that is powering my skimmer though while using the recommended union it is using a smaller diameter hose to connect to the skimmers venture. I can at times hear a hum although it gets ignored rather quickly. Early morning though is when I notice it.

Good feedback btw.

 

[justingraham]

O I have also had a cor controller stop working lucky I had my back up vectra so I didn’t loose anything but some time

I also run two return pumps which started as 2 M1s went to 1 m1 1 cor then when the cor broke went back to 2 M1s never had a problem with the vectra m1s

 

[justingraham]

L1s are a different story haha

 

[Dominic Prezwanski]

Is there a physical size difference between the cor15/20?

 

[ca1ore]

There really is no way to answer your question because the gen2 versions of the Vectra have only been out for a few weeks. Hard to draw any useful conclusions after such a short time. I have had a gen1 Vectra M1 since the day it first came out and have had no issues at all - but it is on a closed loop so less urgency to replace should it fail. I've not seen the kinds of issues with the COR that have plagued the Vectra (mostly the L1), but I have not used one personally. Even if I did not have material head height on my system, I'd be loath to use any of these DC pumps as my main return. I value reliability over everything else, so an Iwaki or Panworld is my return pump of choice. That the Vectra is not apex compatible is old news at this point - I've no idea which of the two companies is most to 'blame', but it is pretty clear that if you buy a Vectra you should also account for the cost of a reeflink - that is what I did.

 

[RobW]

Lol - and the Abyzz has a 10 year.

Worthy point though and something that should be considered. Although some believe those long term warranties are actually because they are needed because of failures. Glass half full, empty debate. But yeah - good point you raise.

I like companies that offer long warranties. Usually means that they are pretty confident in their product and will back that warranty up with service if their product were to fail. No profit in warranting a garbage product imo! I'm am an electrical contractor and home automation guy. The company I use exclusively for my home automation products offers lifetime warranties on their lighting controls and motorized shading solutions. If I had a failure in the past, it has always been a no questions asked replacement of the product. However, a just a little higher priced than competitors products. It defin5comes with peace of mind and is a large selling point over the competition. With that said I am building a new 280 gallon system and have been debating back and forth between the cor pumps and the vectras myself. I will be using an Apex controller so I have been leaning towards the cors. But I'm open to suggestion. I know the abyzz pumps are awesome but considering the amount of money I'm dumping into the build from the start, I can get a few pieces of equipment that I need along with pumps for the price of the abyzz pumps. In the future, once I am up and running the abyzz could definitely be an option.

 

[User1]

Is there a physical size difference between the cor15/20?

No. Same size(Pump dimensions: 120mm x 98mm x 165mm). They use the same plumbing also so easy to swap out. The Cor 20 does come with a power brick though whereas the Cor 15 does not require it.

Per my earlier comment Vectra's after their initial launch have been solid and fewer issues. They fixed the earlier issue and took care of their customers. I cannot say how one works vs the other again like I noted because I do not own one. It was originally on my list but I changed. Again from a few people I talk to that own the earlier Vectra's with the reported issues, and also after the replacements, Ecotech took care of the issues without any issues. So while I've not experienced it everything I've read says they support their product and customer.

The warranty bit - it doesn't matter to me. I didn't bring it up other than when it was noted above about the 5 year warranty and I mentioned the 10 year with Abyzz. I'm not talking bad about a warranty just saying some people see it differently. Like I noted it was not something that was important to me but understand why they may be important to others.

So I think both are viable and solid products - it is just up to you to see what checks the requirements you have.

 

[Dominic Prezwanski]

It’s the same size?! dang, one of the pros was going to be that the 15 is smaller. But if it’s only cost and the power brick that’s different...

 

[User1]

It’s the same size?! dang, one of the pros was going to be that the 15 is smaller. But if it’s only cost and the power brick that’s different...

The Cor 20 also has more flow.

 

[Dominic Prezwanski]

Decided to stick with the COR20, If it's the same size. more flow potential is always welcome. I like to future proof myself.

Thanks for the input people!

 

[ReefingwithO]

I know this is older but I'm swapping my Cor20 for a Vectra S2 for a couple of reasons

1. Battery Backup - The Ecotech Battery backup is simple and easy to use - I live in NYC and I lost power for 18 hours and lost a couple of fish. There were 2 that were given to me by a friend that passed (Dave's Nano Tanks) and I felt bad that I lost them. A battery backup for powerheads and return pump would've saved my fish. I thought I didn't need battery backup as it was the first time I lost power where I am in Brooklyn since 2003.
2. Ecotech Support is better - They are a day away in PA from where I am and I trust their support better. They've treated me better for 5 years and I have no issues going back to them.
3. Yes the COR20 has more flow but I only run it at 33% so a lot of the capacity is un-used.