I believe more important than filtration, are water changes.
Filtration takes out visible stuff that has more to do with aquarium aesthetic perception, than water quality reality and the bacteria in the filter reduce toxic nitrite and ammonia to lesss toxic nitrate.
What filters don't do is remove invisible toxic stuff that in the long run cause chronic health problems for fish. Regularly cleaning of your filter helps, but regular partial water changes are more important.
I kept a log whenever starting a tank, and whenever I noticed a pH drop, I knew it was time for a water change. (pH drop indication acidification from metabolism by-products, and excess fish urine)
Whenever I saw nitrates rise to above my goal level, I did a water change, and by keeping a log I soon found I needed to changes about 30% to 40%of the water every other day for large species like adult cichlids, to maintain my goal of 2-5ppm nitrates.
The larger your fish get, the more volume of "invisible" urine they produce thru gills, so the more toxic the soup of an aquarium gets.