Aquastream XT Ultra Pump Flow Results

[Snyxxx]

I broke down and bought two of these pumps since I was bitten by the control & monitoring bug with the Aquaero.

There is very little information on the web on the performance of these pumps except for one set of results from an Italian site.

I did some simple flow tests, but have a question for Shoggy.

If I just plug the pump into the PSU as in the below pictures, is the pump going at 100%? No jumper is being used. I am not sure since the instructions mentions an "automatic" mode and I am not sure what Power % this pump runs at by default.

The flow rate with the pump alone is Avg. 5.93 l/m = 1.57 gpm. Less than half of a DDC 3.2 with an aftermarket top.

I will test some more with several blocks in the loop to better represent a true flow rate under some back pressure in the future. Also, I will need to confirm what % this was performing at for these tests.

The main thing this pump is famous for is being quiet. I can verify it is MUCH quieter than the DDC.



Here is the size compared to a DDC. Much smaller than I thought it would be.

http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/67de851a.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/be525200.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/d23fe4bf.jpg

Here is the electronic interface.

http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/e0e0a04c.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/6a34caf7.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/567d1313.jpg

Impeller Details

http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/16f6d3d7.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/1ee2274b.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/ae0aa874.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/6a31f0ef.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/2c4ee0a9.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/2dc0c07e.jpg

G1/4 Adapters to G1/8 Outlet and G3/8 Inlet

http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/6305473a.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/c9def545.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/81cad8b6.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/356f3985.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/839105da.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/9b333294.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/bcaed807.jpg
http://i418.photobucket.com/albums/pp269/Snyxxx/Flowmeter%20Tests/f395482c.jpg

[Shoggy]

Testing that pump without a resistance like a real loop is worthless because of the automatic frequency determination. That mode is active right now. There is no way to tell if it is running 70% or 90% etc. - it depends on your loop. The more restrtictive your loop, the more pressure that pump will generate.

You should also connect it to USB to be able to reset the frequency if you do some experiments. It will also allow you to see the current frequency. Maximum is 100Hz so you will get a better idea if there is still some room for more power or if it is already running at its limit.

edit: try to use a ball valve to simulate higher restrictions. I'm pretty sure you will be surprised how the pump will handle that :) HESmelaugh will be able to confirm that :D

[Snyxxx]

Thanks Shoggy. I guess I do not understand the "automatic" nature of this pump.

What does it base this frequency on? To be the most quiet? I thought the pump would have a typical flow vs. pressure curve for each frequency, but figured just plugging it in would have a fixed frequency.

I will get around to doing a full test when my rig is put back together.

P.S. Is there anyway to open this pump up to see the mechanical guts like a Liang D5 or DDC. I took off the back plastic yellow cover and saw the electronics and the front part you see in my pictures. Is that it? It seems sealed to me and a person cannot go any further. No problem if that is the case, just curious.

[Shoggy]

The automatic frequency determination just starts to increase the frequency as long as an evaluated error count for the engine is below a specific limit. If the limit is reached the pump will stop and starts the whole thing again, but this time the frequency where it stopped last time will be the maximum limit. After around three runs the highest stable frequency has been detected.

The pump itself is an immersion pump so it is completely sealed and you can not open it (without violence *g*).

[Snyxxx]

The automatic frequency determination just starts to increase the frequency as long as an evaluated error count for the engine is below a specific limit. If the limit is reached the pump will stop and starts the whole thing again, but this time the frequency where it stopped last time will be the maximum limit. After around three runs the highest stable frequency has been detected.

The pump itself is an immersion pump so it is completely sealed and you can not open it (without violence *g*).

I assume the error count is based on heat? It would seem that a non-restrictive situation like my flow test would allow it to max out the frequency. :shrug: As you say, sometimes pumps need some back pressure to shine.

I like the pumps and will try series as well. Thanks again for you support.

P.S. I did not know they were able to be submerged. Makes perfect sense now why I could not get into it more than what I did. :p

[alejo]

So is each Aquastream different in how much it will "overclock" from default? Or will two Aquastreams tested in separate but identical loops each reach the same maximum frequency?

[alejo]

You could sumberge the old-style Aquastreams but not the XTs.

[Shoggy]

Aaaaaaahhhhhh!!! Only the pump can be submerged but not with the electronics on the back!

The error count has nothing to do with the heat. It is based on the rotation of the impeller. I do not really know how to explain it... The pump can detect if the impeller is running smooth or "unstable".

[Langer]

It uses a vibration sensor? I didn't realize this feature, is it a transducer of some sort Shoggy?

[Snyxxx]

An accelerometer maybe? The flow was smooth for the 60 seconds it took to push through all my fluid.

[Gazmtk]

Snyxxx what is the noise like from the pump? silent I am guessing...??

[Shoggy]

It uses a vibration sensor? I didn't realize this feature, is it a transducer of some sort Shoggy?
There is no sensor. It is calculated based on several operating data. The power consumption for example changes in a specific way when the pump is running unstable.

I don't know in detail how it works since my job is sales and support and not developing that crazy stuff :D

[HESmelaugh]

Ok, I can see that I'm a bit late joining in here.
As Shoggy pointed out, I did a bit of testing with this pump once, too. I don't know how the pumps automatic determination of maximum rpm works but using a ball-valve, I could observe that the higher the restriction (i.e. the further closed the valve) the higher the pumps maximum frequency would go.

I marked off the ball-valves handle at six different positions going from fully open to fully closed, to be able to do some repeatable testing. This isn't Martin or Skinnee style rocket science, but it can give you a picture of how the frequency adjusts.

http://www.abload.de/img/graph2newost7.png
The scale on the left shows flow in l/h, the scale on the right shows the pumps maximum frequency in Hz. As you can see, as I close down the valve, the maximum frequency moves from something around 73 Hz to about 85 Hz.
I mus also add that I didn't do an actual measurement with the valve completely shut off. I know that flow would be 0 at this point, but the curve of the frequency is probably wrong since it should reach 100 Hz in this case.
This is the first time I've noticed this...:o

Here is a simple comparison of flow rates with the same method of gradually closing the ball-valve, comparing several pumps:
http://www.abload.de/img/graph1new1qhu.png

Hope this helps.

[Septim]

auto sensing of restriction in a pump, more restriction in flow, the more juice it uses to overcome said restriction, well up to a point...

[Cutless009]

So this pump < DDC 3.2? So really the only benefit you get then is the controlability of it.

[Shoggy]

A comparison from a German forum:

http://img2.abload.de/img/pumpentestv2pv8.png

http://img2.abload.de/img/pumpentestscalingv2ydb.png

Source:
http://www.forumdeluxx.de/forum/showthread.php?t=511621

[Snyxxx]

Ok, thanks everyone for the comments. Great info there HESmelaugh and Shoggy. I guess I will need to put the pump with a full system and attach the pump to USB and try to see what is going on within the software.

This pump is much different than what I am used to with the Liang pumps.

Next project I am currently working on is my version of a Shoggy sandwich to kill vibrations.

[HESmelaugh]

So this pump < DDC 3.2? So really the only benefit you get then is the controlability of it.

The controlability of the pump, while being very cool indeed, is not it's only advantage IMO.
I found the aquastream XT to be remarkably quiet. With the DDC, the noise level depends heavily on the top used with it. Also, the aquastream only emits a very low frequency humming, even at full power. This blends into the backround more easily than the high-pitched whirring of a DDC.
Obviously, this is only an advantage for silent-PCs. If you have high-rpm fans buzzing away all over your rig, the pump noise is probably the last thing you'll hear.

The only downside I see with the aquastream XT is it's size. In a small case, a DDC can be tucked away somewhere much more easily than an XT.

[Shoggy]

Next project I am currently working on is my version of a Shoggy sandwich to kill vibrations.

Hehe :D

http://ac.shoggy.de/pcgh_extreme_shoggy_sandwich.jpg

Already famous ;)

[Langer]

Hahaha, that's great!

[Odin Eidolon]

nice pump! all those control functions are great, but it costs a lot more than a dcc3.2 and this is quite important to me :(

[andersson.j]

I'm kinda hoping that one of my orange impeller DDCs will die like everyone elses so I'll have an excuse to get a couple of Aquastreams and an aquaero.

I'm not sure about the model the Aquastream is built on but some of the Eheim models are like 20 years old. Damn they must have made money on those pumps over the years! :)

[keshavcharya]

Awesome.