I'm just wondering how many people bagging on Sunsun filters in this thread have actually owned a newer model in the last couple of years?
If your opinion is based on personal bad experience with the brand fair enough, but I'd still be curious to know exactly which Sunsun model canister filter(s) you had issues with.
My definition of quality is pretty much the same as anyone else's I assure you -- it's simply my opinion (and of many, many other people around the world) that Sunsun gives way more value for the investment. Let it also be said that despite the experience of some on this thread, hundreds of thousands of people have had Sunsuns filters and had no problems.
If you want to get a FX or Eheim, more power to you and your wallet -- I and many others are likewise happy to get a Sunsun and take the substantial amount of left over money and buy other accessories, nice fish, pay bills etc. Of course we're all free to express our opinions & relate our experiences, but imho there's no reason to outright condemn or vilify either product line/approach.
And from what I understand the HW-5000 is selling like hotcakes, Fluval is going to have up their game as well and/or substantially lower their prices or they will continue losing market share to Sunsun and other SEA brands that are slowly but surely catching up quality-wise.