Personal review of the new MP40wQD!

[RandoReefer]

The amazing opportunity I've had with being an EcoTech Product Test Team member, thus far, had proved itself to be even more honoring!

This arrived this weekend and my schedule finally cleared up to allow me to play with it today!

I'll be testing it as a standalone system and I'll go through the different "upgrade" scenarios we have all been discussing. Once I've given it a good once-over, I'll share with you my findings and answer any questions that I can.

Stay tuned folks........

Randy
EcoTech Product Test Team

 

[RandoReefer]

Here it is! (PART 1)

Out of the box and in my hands, this new QuietDrive looks and feels great! The cosmetic upgrade alone is a huge plus with the new pump....And who doesn't like black?!?








EcoTech has changed the way you adjust for glass thickness (THANK GOD!). Instead of the awkward and confusing adjustment pin and thickness selector of the old VorTechs, we now get three options that cover all aquarium thicknesses. Simply choose the spacer that matches the glass thickness range of your aquarium and clip it on*! Simple!

(*Match the tabs of the spacer to the fins on the dry side. There is a small cutout that lines up with the cord.)






Let's compare them on the tank!

There is no change in the footprint of the two. They size up fairly equally.


Dry Side vs Dry Side (cosmetically, I get a Batman vibe from the new QD! )


Wet Side vs Wet Side .... You'll see there is no more closed "flange" area on the new QD as well as a stronger braces on the very front of the prop housing. If you weren't careful during cleaning these housings (old VorTech) these were easily cracked. Seems less likely with the new prop housing.

BREAKING THIS UP INTO A FEW PARTS.....

 

[RandoReefer]

Review (PART 2)

The infamous new QuietDrive Driver! It sports white LEDs for intensity lighting, instead of the blue. To me it feels like the selection knob LED is less intense and thus less "intrusive". I did feel that the old VorTech drivers LEDs were a bit too bright and could be seen through the back of my tank stand. If they did indeed lower the intensity, I would be a happy reefer.



Driver vs Driver: No change to the size and feel of the two drivers. The knob on the new Quiet Drive feels a bit more sturdy, almost to the point it is slightly difficult to turn, but nothing worth being alarmed about. The power cord receptacle is MUCH more secure. As you can see in some of these photos, I've had to zip-tie my old cords near the tip in order to discourage gravity from pulling my cord out. Not the case with the new QuietDrive.





ARE YOU READY TO HEAR THE DIFFERENCE?!?
(Hopefully these videos come through. They were made for Instagram. Check me out there @RandoReefer)

Ok, for this quick video, the old MP40wES was running at 100% Constant. It is quickly unplugged, followed by the MP40wQD being powered on to the same 100% Constant. (click the link to take you to my photobucket)

http://vid1345.photobucket.com/albu...C-FC6A-4058-9EA8-706F11C004B6_zpscusdzllw.mp4


PART THREE ON THE WAY.... !

 

[RandoReefer]

Upgrades (part 3)

There is a lot of talk of the upgrade options for those of us with the VorTech ES series. Many people may be confused as to what an upgrade can do for them. So I will first offer the following link to the QuietDrive Information Packet. It breaks down all of the combinations you can create between the old and the new. There are less upgrade options for the MP10/MP60, than there are for the MP40s.

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/blog/QD_Information_Packet.pdf/at_download/file


First, the most simple upgrade... Old MP40wES dryside with the new MP40wQD wetside. This combination provides more durability. That's all.




Give your old dryside a tune-up!! Here is the BIG ONE in upgrades! Buy a new driver upgrade, for under $100, and get your existing VorTech as QUIET AS A MOUSE ! I was very impressed with the noise reduction from swapping out the old/new drivers...only. The swap takes literally a minute or two, and you start running nearly completely silent! ****Do not put the new QD dryside on the old ES driver and expect it to work...it just won't. )

Here's how to do it, and what it sounds like afterward!

Remove the three screws that hold the driver housing together:



Carefully turn the motherboard over...(Don't forget to pull off the knob from the front):



Unplug the dryside cord from both drivers (old:green) (new:blue).


Plug old driver cord into new driver... (close it up, and THAT'S IT! )


Old dryside on new driver.




And now.... The results. (I shot this with everything OFF with pump on 100% Constant. Toggle back to my first video to hear what the old one sounded like. The difference is astonishing! )

http://vid1345.photobucket.com/albu...2-70B0-40F3-8D49-32FCF58A555B_zpsqkg2c62n.mp4




CLOSING THOUGHTS:

All-in-all, it is a great upgrade to the revolutionary VorTech "ES" product line! I'm was leaning more towards only purchasing the upgraded drivers, but once my wife saw the whole package, she's decided that we'll be getting the whole system.

Personally, I won't go selling my trusty old VorTechs just yet. Even if I end up purchasing the new QuietDrive pumps, for only $150 I can have two almost virtually silent MP40wES!! (Because, as with many of us obsessed junkies, there's always a new tank coming in my future..... )


Thanks everyone for reading!

Randy
EcoTech Product Test Team

 

[eg8r210]

I love the look of the new dry side much better than old style. The pic to link to video is not working for me.

 

[RandoReefer]

I love the look of the new dry side much better than old style. The pic to link to video is not working for me.

How about now?

 

[rsuplido]

Great review Randy!

 

[RandoReefer]

Great review Randy!

Thanks Reggie! Can't wait to see the rest of yours on your site.

 

[GlassMunky]

Am i understanding thsi correctly?
In order for the added flow capability of the new QD pumps, for the MP40 you would need a new driver, new wet side and new dry side.
But for the Mp10, you only need the new driver to get the added flow??

 

[RandoReefer]

Am i understanding thsi correctly?
In order for the added flow capability of the new QD pumps, for the MP40 you would need a new driver, new wet side and new dry side.
But for the Mp10, you only need the new driver to get the added flow??

Here is the statement from the QuietDrive Information Packet about upgrading the MP10. If I'm reading it correctly, yes that is the case, with no increased flow from the MP60 upgrade.

"The MP10wQD and MP10QD benefit from greatly reduced motor noise and more output asa result of the new QuietDrive driver. The motor, wet side and power supply on the MP10QDremain unchanged. Upgrading an existing MP10ES with a QuietDrive driver provides accessto all of the improved performance."

 

[RandoReefer]

Am i understanding thsi correctly?
In order for the added flow capability of the new QD pumps, for the MP40 you would need a new driver, new wet side and new dry side.
But for the Mp10, you only need the new driver to get the added flow??

From EcoTech:

"For MP10's- the driver upgrade alone gives about 10% more flow. No other upgrades necessary."

 

[GlassMunky]

I'm sold. When can i order the new drivers? lol

 

[RandoReefer]

I'm sold. When can i order the new drivers? lol

That's the spirit! [emoji106] Websites have already started the pre-orders. Get to it!! [emoji23]

 

[Reef4you]

Great comparison review Randy very informative

 

[eg8r210]

How about now?

That worked. . It really is great to hear how quiet it sounds.

 

[mfinn]

Is there a release date on the complete new pumps?

 

[Fish76]

Did they change the feel of the buttons? I felt the old buttons where sometimes difficult to press.

 

[TJ's Reef]

Nice write up Randy and have peaked my interest enough here to actively search out a working model once on display out my way. In general I have not been a fan of Ecotech products as do not buy into any hype marketing and was not impressed with the build quality or design of the 1st generation MP40 I had. Seems these new generation pumps may actually meet expectations of a product at this price point so will keep an open mind when giving the once over. I'm curious to see if they have upgraded the drive magnets or not, to Neodymium would be a sure improvement to go along with upgraded electronics of Driver. If you'd prefer my comments to not be here in this thread just pm me and I'll delete them.

Cheers, Todd

 

[RandoReefer]

Did they change the feel of the buttons? I felt the old buttons where sometimes difficult to press.

No change to the the buttons. The knob seemed to be a bit more stuff, but it could be the newness.

Is there a release date on the complete new pumps?

The last I heard, production shipping should be out next week. I'm sure we'll hear more after ReefStock this weekend.

Keep a watch on here, because yours truly will be there! [emoji4]

Nice write up Randy and have peaked my interest enough here to actively search out a working model once on display out my way. In general I have not been a fan of Ecotech products as do not buy into any hype marketing and was not impressed with the build quality or design of the 1st generation MP40 I had. Seems these new generation pumps may actually meet expectations of a product at this price point so will keep an open mind when giving the once over. I'm curious to see if they have upgraded the drive magnets or not, to Neodymium would be a sure improvement to go along with upgraded electronics of Driver. If you'd prefer my comments to not be here in this thread just pm me and I'll delete them.

Cheers, Todd

Thanks Todd, it's an open forum for all opinions! No worries. Glad to have convinced at least one person to look into them.

Have you seen the Reef Builders interview with Tim? He explains the technologies pretty well, although he doesn't really delve into the inner workings of the dry side itself.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oi4xCZq5vkE

Randy

 

[mfinn]

The last I heard, production shipping should be out next week. I'm sure we'll hear more after ReefStock this weekend.

Keep a watch on here, because yours truly will be there! [emoji4]


Randy

I called them this afternoon and was told that maybe next week the complete pumps might be shipped, but it will likely be longer ( 4-8 weeks) before the upgrades will ship.
If a person gets his or hers shipped next week, depends on how many ahead of you have already ordered ( from that particular website) and how many that company gets.