GyreXF330 vs Ecotech MP40?

[OpenOcean33]

Hey guys I am looking to add some flow to the redsea max E 260. Looking fo recommendations for some extra flow to the tank. I always wanted to get the Mp40 however, I found the Gyre and it looks like it could do some work as well. What do you use and how do you like it or recommend it? Also which would be more appropriate for my tank?

 

[wtac]

If I were to choose one for your system, I suggest the Gyres as it's clean looking with no "earbud" poking out the side with the MP40...just the low profile magnet.

With what you have in mind in aquascaping and livestock, the following are my opinions between the Gyre and MP40 and etermine what will work best for what you have in mind. I'm sure others will chime in.

Flow pattern: Gyres' laminar and can position one half pointing in one direction and the other half in another. MP40 fixed conical.

Placement: Gyres you can place anywhere horizontally, vertically or askew. MP40's either at the back or front half of the side panes.

Noise: MP40's are significantly quieter at higher power settings as Gyres will have quite a hum.

Maintenance: MP40 hands down as Gyres you can lose a ceramic bushing in the DT if you dont place a tray that will span the top while working on it. MP40's impeller not only is it expensive to replace but you have to make sure no grit is in the wetside as the scoring will in time go through the thin plastic casing and the magnet rust and swell.

Need more flow? Gyres you can add another "bare bones" PH to the controller where MP40 you have to buy another MP40 package.

HTH

 

[OpenOcean33]

This was an amazing response and very informative thank you so much !

 

[Chris Spaulding]

I run 2 FX330 on my Redsea Reefer 250, one on each side. They are totally silent. A big plus is only one power supply and controller for 2 pumps.

I just ordered another set from MD for my new build . MD has the Maxspect on sale right now . with the sale going on buy the individual with the controller and add a pump only. Do not buy the bundle as if you buy the bundle it will cost you $15.00 more than buying the two pieces seperatly.

 

[Kyl]

I had the pick of any power heads when I upgraded and expanded my tanks. I went with gyres for the main flow on my DT, and have finally upgraded to the same for my frag system. I still have a vortech MP10 from my nano days, it's in a box now after being replaced with gyres in the frag tank, and might just be put on the salt mixing tank which sounds expensive, but would actually work awesome to whip things up and keep heat out of there for mixing precipitation.

In my opinion the only minus for a gyre is a cord in the tank, in every other way operationally they are superior to vortechs. The profile is slim and doesn’t encroach anymore than a wet side cage, is usually near the top of the tank and out of a potential sight line and has no bulky, easy to knock off motor housing sticking off the side of the tank. Connection wise there are more options now, including one to run four gyres off a single controller and power supply, another thing that once you get large enough can be a blessing. As for cleaning them, I am not sure what is so difficult or if I've just had exceptional luck, but I clean my XF230’s maybe once every two months, and they have been running for almost two years without skipping a beat, in a tank that's had numerous algae issues over that time. My parents place has a first gen XF150 still going strong, and I will tell you that thing never gets cleaned in a softy tank and still works fine, quietly.

In summary, I won’t go with vortechs over a gyre in almost any normal situation. I do have traditional power heads as well on back glass of the DT just to keep things really ripping, and help food disperse among the tank while feeding, but the gyres are doing all the heavy lifting.

 

[OpenOcean33]

I had the pick of any power heads when I upgraded and expanded my tanks. I went with gyres for the main flow on my DT, and have finally upgraded to the same for my frag system. I still have a vortech MP10 from my nano days, it's in a box now after being replaced with gyres in the frag tank, and might just be put on the salt mixing tank which sounds expensive, but would actually work awesome to whip things up and keep heat out of there for mixing precipitation.

In my opinion the only minus for a gyre is a cord in the tank, in every other way operationally they are superior to vortechs. The profile is slim and doesn’t encroach anymore than a wet side cage, is usually near the top of the tank and out of a potential sight line and has no bulky, easy to knock off motor housing sticking off the side of the tank. Connection wise there are more options now, including one to run four gyres off a single controller and power supply, another thing that once you get large enough can be a blessing. As for cleaning them, I am not sure what is so difficult or if I've just had exceptional luck, but I clean my XF230’s maybe once every two months, and they have been running for almost two years without skipping a beat, in a tank that's had numerous algae issues over that time. My parents place has a first gen XF150 still going strong, and I will tell you that thing never gets cleaned in a softy tank and still works fine, quietly.

In summary, I won’t go with vortechs over a gyre in almost any normal situation. I do have traditional power heads as well on back glass of the DT just to keep things really ripping, and help food disperse among the tank while feeding, but the gyres are doing all the heavy lifting.

Yes my only concern I the wire in the tank, but honestly now that I think of it its not really a big deal my big concerns was the Noise levels, but thank you for this info !!!!!

 

[Hemmdog]

I have 2 230’s. They are ok, not enough flow for sps. I’m looking to add 2 mp40’s into the mix. This is for a 90gal.

 

[EBNewbie]

Would you consider 2xMP10? I went the MP10 route but was also considering the Gyre. I think the Gyre has better patterns but I went with the 2xMP10 for a few reasons:
- Integration with my Apex. I have a pushbutton "feed mode" and it reduces the powerhead flow. Then for the last 5 minutes, it goes into "nutrient export" mode. The Gyre cannot be fully controlled with a Neptune Apex I think.
- The battery option. I ended up making my own battery backup (twice the capacity, half the cost). UPS are terribly inefficient doing DC->AC then back to DC for the pump. The MP10 can be powered directly from a 12V battery and last for days. It also switches on automatically when there's a power outage
- No wires in the tank. No salt creep on the wire, nothing can nibble on the cable, 0 chance of having stray voltage in the DT
- No motor in the tank.That means no heat in the DT (I live in California and Summers are challenging).
- Cleaning. We never clean as much as we should and 90% of the reason is the annoyance of disassembling something. The wet side is attached magnetically so it can be removed from the tank in a millisecond. Then opening the wet side to expose the propeller takes 1 second (a 1/8 twist). I'm pleasantly surprised with myself on how I've been able to clean 1 powerhead per water change and not be annoyed. Now please don't ask about my other items that are more annoying to disassemble

So with all these pros, I went with 2x MP10. I went with 2 for the redundancy since it's so critical to the survival of the tank.

 

[fcmatt]

Tunze if you plan to run the tank for several years. Buy once and done.

But if you like toys that are fancy and often break after a couple of years by all means. Roll the dice.

 

[User1]

But if you like toys that are fancy and often break after a couple of years by all means. Roll the dice.

Lol - let us all place nice But you do sort of raise an rather interesting point.

I'm an owner of 2 XF250's and have run them off and on in my 210 gallon tank. It is 54" L x 30" W x 30" H and was an upgrade from my 40 breeder. One thing to keep in mine with the Gyre's is the flow patterns and how they are affected by placement to the surface, cage direction, blades in use, controller, and lastly placement on the side. So vertical or horizontal. There really is no other product on the market that is as versatile as the gyres outside the icecaps. With this in mind you also "MUST" factor in your coral growth, maturity, and placement all in relationship with your aquascape, palcement of gyres, and again blade rotation. If you do not factor any of this in they you will only be frustrated, believe they don't work, and start over. They can go from too much flow because nothing can mitigate or break the force of water movement or not enough because of setup or placement issues. This is, of course, just my experience after owning them.

MP's have a pretty good track record although I've never owned them. Reading, watching videos, and considering them they bring a unique set of features to the table that shouldn't be ignored. Different flow patterns, wet / dry side, and to some degree a smaller form factor yet still packs a punch.

Gyres are larger and visible. Mp40 may be smaller and no cord. The only thing I can think of is see about placement in the tank and what that may look like for you. Or, if you add one of the items you suggested here can you upgrade one to a larger and remove something else. Maybe sort of like a regulation. Instead of adding one you add one but remove one

 

[OpenOcean33]

Would you consider 2xMP10? I went the MP10 route but was also considering the Gyre. I think the Gyre has better patterns but I went with the 2xMP10 for a few reasons:
- Integration with my Apex. I have a pushbutton "feed mode" and it reduces the powerhead flow. Then for the last 5 minutes, it goes into "nutrient export" mode. The Gyre cannot be fully controlled with a Neptune Apex I think.
- The battery option. I ended up making my own battery backup (twice the capacity, half the cost). UPS are terribly inefficient doing DC->AC then back to DC for the pump. The MP10 can be powered directly from a 12V battery and last for days. It also switches on automatically when there's a power outage
- No wires in the tank. No salt creep on the wire, nothing can nibble on the cable, 0 chance of having stray voltage in the DT
- No motor in the tank.That means no heat in the DT (I live in California and Summers are challenging).
- Cleaning. We never clean as much as we should and 90% of the reason is the annoyance of disassembling something. The wet side is attached magnetically so it can be removed from the tank in a millisecond. Then opening the wet side to expose the propeller takes 1 second (a 1/8 twist). I'm pleasantly surprised with myself on how I've been able to clean 1 powerhead per water change and not be annoyed. Now please don't ask about my other items that are more annoying to disassemble

So with all these pros, I went with 2x MP10. I went with 2 for the redundancy since it's so critical to the survival of the tank.

According to the website my glass is too thick for the MP10 its 1/2 inch thick. I have been leaning toward the MP40 but they both seem so great to be honest, like I can't really go wrong. Maybe Ecotech and Maxspect can send me some to test out .

 

[OpenOcean33]

Tunze if you plan to run the tank for several years. Buy once and done.

But if you like toys that are fancy and often break after a couple of years by all means. Roll the dice.

I will have to look into Tunze I use them for my ATO

 

[wtac]

I put 2x XF150 on an 8'x2'x3'H mounted vertically in either side on the inside back centred O/F and gives plenty of flow for an LPS dominant system and easy SPS @50% as they do get hummy above that. IMHO, a design flaw but a delicate balance of esthetics and performance as if it was another 1/4" radius/ 1/2" larger diameter will achieve the same flow rates with a lower RPM...just the Achilles heel of the design.

If the client wanted to have an SPS dominant system, I would be confident that another pair of XF350's on the ends would do the trick or a pair of 6105's with wide cage on

LOVE Tunze PH's. A pair of 6055 (LPS dominant) or 6095 (SPS dominant) should work.

Now that you know the devil in the details, the ball is in your court

HTH