Cor-20 vs Vectra M1: my experience with both

[Burrito]

these are often compared but real world opinions on both are slim so here is my take.

I recently started my first "real" tank with a sump vs AIO systems, a 100g IM INT tank, animal style drain which is drilled middle bottom of tank 1" drains, .75" return.

picture for reference on how my tank is plumbed.

the cor-20 is built well, does not feel cheap at all, although the controller is a bit flimsy feeling. its native output is 1.25" and comes with a union for setup along with 1" and .75" connectors. i decided to use 1.25 and then reduce to .75 this caused quite a bit of noise coming from the reducer area, not sure why but it was by far the loudest part of my tank. I also do not have much distance or friction, just 2 90s into the tank and a 90 to the locline. i had to run the pump at 100% and dial the gate valve down ALOT, i dont have flow numbers but movement was slow in the sump. Apex integration as you can imagine is awesome, feedmodes, flow patterns (if you choose), all work great and setup is a breeze.

I did re-plumb the pump to be ,.75" the whole way to see if it fixed some issues, the sound went away, and is virtually silent now but still needs to run 100%

i got a great deal on a vectra M1 and swapped it into the tank recently, all plumbed .75" (native output), it is as quiet, meaning i cannot hear either but handles pressure much better. i changed nothing else in the plumbing as i was connecting to the first union and could run the pump at 40% without changing the gate valve setting the cor20 was using. i have now upped the pump to 80% and opened the gate valve a bunch, have alot more flow too.

trade off, no apex integration besides turning it off or on with feed modes. i usually dont turn off my pumps anyway so not a biggie for me, fish like to chase the food around. the controller is better build on the M1, and i have reeflink anyway in case i want to use the feed mode(or just push the controller button)

i wanted to the apex to work but i have to say the M1 is the better pump in my application.

hope this helps anyone deciding between the 2

 

[gcarroll]

Interesting. Goes to show why people should research more before making a pump choice. GPH should not be the only deciding factor when making a pump purchase.

 

[Burrito]

Exactly why I posted this. Both are nearly the same in gph but very little reviews (honest reviews) exist from my research. If the cor worked as well as the vectra I would have stuck with the cor for the integration into apex.

 

[Vivid Creative Aquatics Verified Sponsor]

Interesting - since they have similar specs

Looking closer though, it seems the Vectra-M1 has a max head of 21.5ft, while the Core-20 is listed at around 20ft. Not much of a difference on paper but maybe enough to make a difference in real world scenario.

We get asked all the time which pump is best for specific situations, so thanks sharing your experience. with the two pumps

 

[Oshengems]

We need more reviews like this not from paid sponsors, not bitter users, not users with OCD just a plain comparison let the reader interpreted to their application for the product, hope this doesn’t get buried deep down in searches

 

[DCR]

i had to run the pump at 100% and dial the gate valve down ALOT, i dont have flow numbers but movement was slow in the sump.

I am curious why did you have to run the COR at 100% and dial gate valve down you needed more flow? Noise?

 

[Burrito]

Yes. The pump couldn’t keep up with the drain unless I really choked down the gate valve to almost nothing. This was also needed for a full siphon and quiet. If not I’d have way too much gurgling

 

[DCR]

OK. I thought you were talking about the valve on the discharge of the pump, but I now see the gate valve is only on the siphon drain.

 

[Mr V]

I have 3 vectra m1 and 3 apex cor-20. I never have both on one system so I can't tell which one stronger or handle more head pressure (they are both very strong imo).
One thing I can tell is that I have had 4 incidents with the vectra m1. I have 1 that fail twice. I had fail power supply, fail controller, and the pump fail itself.
This morning the apex alarm waked me up because my sump was high and the vectra fail again! There was a problem with the AC power supply again. It was only $75 to purchase the new power supply but I decide not worth it, I will just gonna switch to different return pump. Although Ecotech customer service is great, but a return pump randomly fail is very risky.

 

[TX_Punisher]

I have 3 vectra m1 and 3 apex cor-20. I never have both on one system so I can't tell which one stronger or handle more head pressure (they are both very strong imo).
One thing I can tell is that I have had 4 incidents with the vectra m1. I have 1 that fail twice. I had fail power supply, fail controller, and the pump fail itself.
This morning the apex alarm waked me up because my sump was high and the vectra fail again! There was a problem with the AC power supply again. It was only $75 to purchase the new power supply but I decide not worth it, I will just gonna switch to different return pump. Although Ecotech customer service is great, but a return pump randomly fail is very risky.

Never heard of that many failures with an m1. My varios 8 has been solid for 2 years. Only cleaned twice.

 

[jpas]

Thanks, great review. It seems all of these DC pump manufacturers over rate the zero head flow rates.

You should add a flow meter, it would be interesting to see how much it is actually pumping.

 

[kkiel02]

Never heard of that many failures with an m1. My varios 8 has been solid for 2 years. Only cleaned twice.

Yes I’ve looked at running all three of these pumps but I’m going with the varios as well I don’t feel like the cor and Vectra are quite there yet with reliability from what I’ve read so far.

 

[ca1ore]

I know this is an older thread, but the native output for the M1 is 1.25 not .75. This makes a sizable difference to the flow rate.

 

[User1]

I also believe the issue with the Cor noise is the plumbing. I believe it is recommend to use 1or 1.5 inch. If you did reduce that is your issue. I have a pair of 15'5 and they have zero issues with 1 inch plumbing.