New apex is junk

[FishM8]

Solved?

 

[Shaddow_wolf169]

Sucks they held my money for a month

 

[Shaddow_wolf169]

Works now

 

[tastyfish]

Already so had to take off a day from work to work with apex to figure out my issue. They came to a conclusion it's a dead unit and will be sending me a new one. Only cost me a 300 dollar deposit which I will get back in 10 to 15 days.

This is what gets me about the RMA procedure. They tried to do this for a DOS issue I had which required an RMA (I would have needed to pay to get it back to the US also). Luckily the local distributor sorted it out and replaced my unit with no deposit or delay.

I'm glad your issue is resolved though!

 

[landlubber]

any electronic device is susceptible to failure (I personally had a faulty DOS pump) and it can be frustrating but the fact that they replaced when the issue was realized it is the part people should be focusing on here.

 

[danreefman]

Have you reached out to Neptune support? They are very helpful and should be able to get the problem resolved.

Maybe now since everyone is complaining

 

[crs751]

I have to say they were a big help with my issues and this was with used equipment I bought on this forum.

 

[danreefman]

I don't trust it at all. Sometimes i turn on my lights can't turn them back off. Even manually. One time while this was happening it decided it wanted to turn both 1000 watt heaters on at the same time. I only knew this cause i was looking at display module trying to turn off lights and watching my temperature climb pretty fast. I bought the display in case wifi was out i could still control. Nope!! Just look around all you see is complaints about neptune. It works for some people for now. Even if they handled all there problems. There products have a lot of problems. Its like fords, tons of problems but still number one selling truck. I'm going old school. Just ordered timers and controllers. As soon as I get them apex is out.

 

[clover128]

Just got off the phone with at&t they are sending me a new top of the line route. Let hope then if not I will contact neptune.

They used to have a free app that you can run on your cell phone to detect wifi signal strength. It's useful when you're trying to see what kind of wifi coverage you have throughout your home. Anyway, before you totally blame the apex, it could be any component in the apex --> router --> cell phone path on your home wifi.

my bad, you did say that it doesn't even work hardwire, didn't you. Did you do a software update once it was connected to the internet? maybe that didn't go right. anyway, go through the apex support, you'll get it straightened out and working and it will be worth it. Is there a better controller out there? I think not.

 

[crs751]

FWIW I don’t like to use any component on a WiFi network. I always try to wire it direct to a switch or router. Things go wrong with all electronics but when possible I find the best policy is to hardwire it.

 

[Sleepydoc]

RMAs are a pain, but I honestly can't fault Neptune for their procedures as they are pretty standard and the manufacturers unfortunately need to protect themselves from dishonest consumers. I had to do the same thing when I returned a printer to HP. Going through a local distributer will almost always be easier, if that's an option. THat's part of the reason I tend not to shop online if I can avoid it, or shop online retailers that also have physical stores.

I don't trust it at all. Sometimes i turn on my lights can't turn them back off. Even manually. One time while this was happening it decided it wanted to turn both 1000 watt heaters on at the same time. I only knew this cause i was looking at display module trying to turn off lights and watching my temperature climb pretty fast. I bought the display in case wifi was out i could still control. Nope!! Just look around all you see is complaints about neptune. It works for some people for now. Even if they handled all there problems. There products have a lot of problems. Its like fords, tons of problems but still number one selling truck. I'm going old school. Just ordered timers and controllers. As soon as I get them apex is out.

Something's up with either your controller or your programming. Were you connecting through fusion or directly to the controller?

If you look, there are certainly complaints about Neptune, but there are also a lot of happy customers as well. I don't have numbers, but I'm guessing they are the most common controller out there right now, so that also means you will see proportionally more complaints about them. Most people are happy with their controller and the support. In this case, the OP started a thread stating the controller was junk before he had even contacted Neptune. He apparently had a bad unit and within a week Neptune arranged for him to get a new one.

FWIW I don’t like to use any component on a WiFi network. I always try to wire it direct to a switch or router. Things go wrong with all electronics but when possible I find the best policy is to hardwire it.

WiFi has definitely been something they have had issues with with the new model. The difficulty with wifi is that it introduces many other potential points for failure. I had some issues with repeated short disconnects followed by the controller immediately reconnecting. As near as I can tell it was a strange interaction between the Neptune and my WiFi router. I had a new router and when I put the old router back, the issues disappeared. Regardless, hardwire is always more reliable. Neptune even states this themselves. Even if your wifi connection is out, the controller should still work normally, you just won't be able to connect to it from your phone.

 

[count krunk]

I get these controllers are expensive, but a $300 deposit? Seems very steep. Especially when they determined that the first APEX was a dead unit.

 

[Sleepydoc]

The retail price of the head unit is $400. When I had to exchange my HP printer the deposit was actually for the full price of the printer, so while it is a lot of money, I don't think it's out of line with industry practice.

 

[danreefman]

Its not a lot of money compared to what i have in my tank. Not worth the risk to me.

 

[danreefman]

RMAs are a pain, but I honestly can't fault Neptune for their procedures as they are pretty standard and the manufacturers unfortunately need to protect themselves from dishonest consumers. I had to do the same thing when I returned a printer to HP. Going through a local distributer will almost always be easier, if that's an option. THat's part of the reason I tend not to shop online if I can avoid it, or shop online retailers that also have physical stores.



Something's up with either your controller or your programming. Were you connecting through fusion or directly to the controller?

If you look, there are certainly complaints about Neptune, but there are also a lot of happy customers as well. I don't have numbers, but I'm guessing they are the most common controller out there right now, so that also means you will see proportionally more complaints about them. Most people are happy with their controller and the support. In this case, the OP started a thread stating the controller was junk before he had even contacted Neptune. He apparently had a bad unit and within a week Neptune arranged for him to get a new one.



WiFi has definitely been something they have had issues with with the new model. The difficulty with wifi is that it introduces many other potential points for failure. I had some issues with repeated short disconnects followed by the controller immediately reconnecting. As near as I can tell it was a strange interaction between the Neptune and my WiFi router. I had a new router and when I put the old router back, the issues disappeared. Regardless, hardwire is always more reliable. Neptune even states this themselves. Even if your wifi connection is out, the controller should still work normally, you just won't be able to connect to it from your phone.

People sell a lot of things, they have a hard time delivering. They are doing it for the buck. They really dont care. There products don't work as they say. Im not blind or dumb. There controller is garbage.

 

[danreefman]

I've never seen a product with so much bad. I bet if you look hard enough bad is equal to good. Not really a good ratio.

 

[ilyad]

I don’t own an Apex, but I was recently in the market for a controller. I spent months comparing various ones. I have seen more than enough complaints and crash stories to scare me away from the controller. When I was doing the comparison, I also had two LFS owners who are also good friends confide in me that they would not trust them on their personal systems and in fact don’t use them. One of them has many service accounts and a lot use Neptune. He agrees that it makes things easier when functioning fully, but that he’s seen/dealt with too many of them that were troublesome or caused a crash. Not worth it.

And the whole idea that it’s the most popular = better is completely wrong. Apex has one of the best entry price points for a controller and a great marketing team because they are shown/advertised everywhere. But doesn’t mean it’s the best.

And for what it’s worth, ecotech had me put a $1 deposit with a cc when I had to replace a pump, which would allow them to charge me the full amount if I didn’t return the broken one. This day and age, there is no excuse for a company to hold almost full retail price to do repairs to a product that is defective.

 

[Shaddow_wolf169]

I love the new apex they sent me does everything I need I would not want to have a reef tank without one. Yeah I got a dead one I could not turn it into a store I'm a wholesaler so I got it at almost cost.

 

[clover128]

I get these controllers are expensive, but a $300 deposit? Seems very steep. Especially when they determined that the first APEX was a dead unit.

If you look at it from the mfg perspective. They have 2 units out. The customer could be scamming them and never return the old one, etc. I dont think its a big deal - use your credit card for it and it cancels out before your bill. What’s the issue then?

Conversely, you can ship your unit back, and theyll ship out a replacement once they get the original.

 

[Pelagic One]

I love the new apex they sent me does everything I need I would not want to have a reef tank without one.

‘Looks like the Neptune team took care of you; so I’m glad to know they’re capable of resolving a very typical new customer issue as yours!

I’m five months into my Apex 2016 install, adding most of the typical modules and components, but I had some WiFi connectivity issues in the beginning that I worked through with R2R members’ guidance and Neptune support assistance.

I’ve worked for Netgear in the past, and helped troubleshoot customer configurations from time to time, so I may be a little more patient with typical IT installations. I am confident that Neptune’s product line is ever-evolving and maturing with every firmware/software revision. But like HP LaserJet printers...no matter how mature the line may get, someone will always call it ‘junk.’

But as owners of Classic, Jr and other previous models can tell you, it’s probably inevitable that 2016 will also be replaced by a newer model some day, too. So if Neptune were to announce their MAR (Magical Aptasia Remover) module someday, we’ll be bummed that it’s only supported by Neptune Apex 2020 (or whatever they’ll call it).

So let’s all enjoy our 2016 models while they can still hold a WiFi signal, shall we!?