Daikin Zena Vs MHI Avanti Plus (Wi-Fi)

buckethat on 12/03/2025 - 15:33
Last edited 12/03/2025 - 17:16

Hey guys,

After some advice. Looking to get a couple of split systems to be installed.

3.5KW for Master Bedroom
6KW for Lounge

Torn between Daikin Zena and MHI Avanti Plus (Wi-Fi model), price is pretty much the same.

Efficiency wise, MHI is a bit better across the board.. though in saying that, its such a small difference when it comes to real world cost that it doesn't really matter to me that much.

Daikin v MHI

3.5KW
EER: 4.29 v 4.73
COP: 4.53 v 4.78

6KW
EER: 3.26 v 3.57
COP: 3.81 v 4.12

I've talked to a couple of installers and some are very adamantly against MHI for some reason.. while online reviews & OzB sings praises for it. Daikin on the other hand seems to get good reviews all around, but im still unsure.

Does anyone have real world experience they could chime in with? Realistically, both are top brands so.. does it not really matter?

Followup question for anybody who might know..

If I source the unit myself and get plumber & sparky to do the install.. how do I make sure I still get my manufacturer warranty? Or is it best to avoid the headache and just get it sourced & installed by the installer.

Electrical & Electronics Air Conditioner

Comments

  • sumyungguy on 12/03/2025 - 15:53
    +3

    I stayed in a tiny house/cabin that had a Zena; the design forward aesthetic would tip me towards Daikin. Disclosure: all my splits are Daikin

    • buckethat on 12/03/2025 - 16:47

      Do agree that Zena is a lot prettier to look at.. for an aircon haha.

    • lgacb08 on 12/03/2025 - 21:55

      until you got a roach or gecko deciding to take a nap on your outdoor unit's pcb

  • Ozbar Gain on 12/03/2025 - 16:00
    +2

    MHI and some other Japanese manufacturers apparently coat their pcbs with some resin to protect it from shorting when critters crawl over it (like geckos). I've had 2 of my (Daikin) ACs blown that way

    • buckethat on 12/03/2025 - 16:21

      Oh interesting.. Daikin is actually a Japanese brand as well, but they dont coat their PCB though you reckon? I have read briefly about that being an issue in general but not pertaining to any specific brand, might do a bit more research.

      • Ozbar Gain on 12/03/2025 - 16:25

        I should maybe add that my comment is based on internet hearsay but it sounds plausible

      • sumyungguy on 12/03/2025 - 16:30

        I've owned six Daikin splits over 24 years in SE Qld, house overrun with Hemidactylus frenatus and haven't lost any to vermin attributed PCB failure.

        • buckethat on 12/03/2025 - 16:46

          Oh boy, those geckos remind me of my childhood in SEA.

          I’m glad we don’t get those down in Vic. Thanks tho, that’s good to know.

        • RMBC on 13/03/2025 - 09:27

          Those little guys really do get in everywhere

  • mskeggs on 12/03/2025 - 16:00
    +1

    Aircon guy we used a few months ago ago said they were both ones he was happy to recommend, for whatever that is worth.

  • Archi on 12/03/2025 - 16:02

    i'm in the market to replace a 16 year old 16kw daikin ducted system, OMG this is one expensive replacement

  • tabz on 12/03/2025 - 16:25
    +2

    If you're looking at MHI Avanti Plus, have you already considered the Mitsubishi Electric AP series?
    I'm in the same boat and was comparing MHI and ME units.

    • buckethat on 12/03/2025 - 16:45

      I have not, but will look into it.

      My issue is I’ve got only 95CM space to work with for the lounge. That’s the only space that works for me between window frame and wall. So I’m pretty restricted in terms of what I could put.

      Zena is 80cm so that’s easy
      Avanti Plus is 93cm so it’s tight but would still work

  • buckethat on 12/03/2025 - 17:16

    Followup question for anybody who might know..

    If I source the unit myself and get plumber & sparky to do the install.. how do I make sure I still get my manufacturer warranty? Or is it best to avoid the headache and just get it sourced & installed by the installer.

    • DoctorCalculon on 12/03/2025 - 20:47
      +1

      If I source the unit myself and get plumber & sparky to do the install

      OP, just curious is this the first time you are installing split system RCACs?

      To answer your question. You need a plumber when installing an electric heat pump HWS (as well as a REC).
      For RCACs, you should look for a REC who also holds an ARCtick license.

      • buckethat on 12/03/2025 - 21:37

        Yup first time - I'm a new first-home owner and I'm clueless about pretty much everything. Grew up on OzBargain pretty much so I always come here to consult the brain trust before I do anything ahahaha.

        Thanks for letting me know!

        I've got a sparky that has done some work for me, he's an REC but doesnt have ARCtick license. If I source the units myself, he'll do the wiring & he'll get a fridgey he works with to do the install. I dont know the fridgey but he works for a bigger company, so I assume he would hold an ARCtick license?

        Otherwise, I have gotten a quote from another guy who, as I just looked up, is an REC that also holds ARCtick license. However, he only seem to get good price on MHI.

        That said, I prefer to go with the sparky I've worked with before cause he's done some stuff for me in the past and I like him, and if I want Daikin, it looks like I'll have to go that route anyway.

  • p1 ama on 12/03/2025 - 21:13
    +2

    I've talked to a couple of installers and some are very adamantly against MHI for some reason.. while online reviews & OzB sings praises for it. Daikin on the other hand seems to get good reviews all around, but im still unsure.

    One of my family members works for a commercial A/C distributor - basically, the straight answer is that Daikin products have very high margins, and Daikin do a lot of paid marketing where they will "sponsor" distributors and retailers to run ad campaigns for them, to recommend their products…etc.

    Out of the big manufacturers, MHI are usually the worst at the marketing game, which is why installers, distributors and retailers will not recommend them as often. However, as a result of this, they are often much better value than the competition.

    What my family member told me when I was shopping for A/C units was that out of all the big manufacturers (e.g. Daikin, MHI, ME, Fujitsu, Panasonic…etc.), they are practically all the same in terms of reliability. Just go with whatever is the best value, and readily available when you want to install.

    • buckethat on 12/03/2025 - 21:41

      Thanks for that - great insight!

      Geez, I guess it might really just come down to aethetics and features then.. since price will be pretty similar.

  • jjjaar on 12/03/2025 - 21:25
    +1

    We have a bunch of the Avanti plus and they’re extremely energy efficient. We chose that range because of that reason, but it was stilll better than expected.

    In terms of wifi, we opted to use Sensibo vs the additional MHI modules.

    Ask your sparky if they have anyone that can source it for you too and if there’s anyone they work with for installs.

    • buckethat on 12/03/2025 - 21:45

      I've read about Sensibo - they're basically just Smart IR blaster right?

      They're quite pricey.. looks like $150-$200 a pop. From the quote I've gotten, the WiFi models are barely more expensive than the old non-WiFi model, so I figure I'd just get the WiFi one if I went Avanti Plus.

      The Daikins only got WiFi models.

    • buckethat on 12/03/2025 - 22:21

      Did a bit more reading.. looks like Both the Daikin and MHI Apps are garbage.

      Might be better to invest in Sensibo either way I go..

      • jjjaar on 12/03/2025 - 23:56

        There’s definitely other cheaper IR blasters you can use if you’d prefer to save some money. But you can also just get the wifi model if it’s the same cost and then add Sensibo later. We got ours in a decent sale where they were about $110 for the Sky and $135 for the Air.

        • buckethat on 14/03/2025 - 20:35

          Hey - been doing a bit more research on Avanti Plus the last couple days.

          Seems to be a fair bit of report of them making ticking noises. You experienced any of that with your units?

          • jjjaar on 14/03/2025 - 21:42
            +1

            @buckethat: Yeah we have actually - on our 2.5, but never on the 5. It’s not clicking all the time, it’s intermittent. It bothered us at first but I barely notice it anymore and when I do, I just raise the fan a little so it’s not directly funnelling the sound. I’ve noticed it maybe twice or three times throughout this last summer and it’s been on about 24/7 for the last month alone.

            • buckethat on 14/03/2025 - 23:33

              @jjjaar: Oh boy, that fuels my hesitancy a bit honestly haha. Would you still recommend it?

              Also - I planned on putting the 3.5 unit in my bedroom, do you think it'll be too annoying?

              • jjjaar on 15/03/2025 - 15:35
                +1

                @buckethat: So I will start with I am one of those people who tunes into noises and they can aggravate me to no end. And at first they absolutely did frustrate me until I realised that just tilting the fan up a bit would redirect the sound and it would become almost more of a bouncing sound rather than a clicking sound. (Though there were one or two instances where a hard whack on the side of the unit fixed the issue for a while. For legal and warranty purposes, I do not recommend doing this)

                One of our 2.5s is in the bedroom and the other in the home office. If anything, it bothered me more in the home office when I was wanting to get some work done and need dead silence vs the bedroom. As I said above, redirecting the fan makes it more of a bouncing sound, which if anything is almost soothing and helps me fall asleep. But yes, when it was the clicking noise, it did bother me for a bit.

                It seemed to be a lot more frequent and louder last June/July which was not long after we first got them (April 2024) vs now. I’ve been reflecting on this and I wonder whether it’s actually gotten less frequent and quieter over time, whether it’s just a sound we’ve gotten used to over time so we don’t notice it anymore, like when you get a new fridge and have to adjust to its humming. Or… whether it has something to do with the mode, winter=heat vs summer=dry/cool. So now I’m curious to see what happens when we move back into heat mode.

                All that being said, yes I am still glad we have these units purely because of the energy efficiency of them. This past month has been hot in Melb and we’ve had all three of them running from like 8am til 10pm, then only the bedroom running all night. When comparing to a day without them on at all (but still home and working/cooking/etc) it uses approx. 10-12kWh for the 24 hour period to keep the house at like 22° on a 35°+ day. And the setting on the remotes is actually more like 25/26° AND they’re on eco mode.

                • buckethat on 16/03/2025 - 18:44

                  @jjjaar: Hey, thanks for such a thought-out response!

                  I did some more research and apparently the ticking sound is mostly caused by the plastic brackets that holds in the copper coils. The plastic piece in some spot is pretty tight fitting, so when the coil expands in heating mode, it causes ticking noses until it gets to temperature. I guess similar to how you always hear popping sound with panel & oil heaters. Apparently teflon lube could help, but may also void warranty.

                  tilting the fan up a bit would redirect the sound and it would become almost more of a bouncing sound rather than a clicking sound

                  Still unsure how this sound to be honest.. But I assume its because of the long panel that direct the air? Hopefully it wont drive me crazy. The 6KW unit will be in living room so slight noises wont bother me, but just bit worried the 3.5kw in the bedroom will.. but I do like having white noise while sleeping so maybe like you, the bouncing sound might help me sleep too.

                  I'm just going to pull the trigger on them, been doing so much research that I am stuck in a bit of analysis paralysis. Unfortunately, due to space constraint, I dont really have too much options anyway but at least these are one of the most efficient ones.

                  • jjjaar on 17/03/2025 - 09:11
                    +1

                    @buckethat:

                    But I assume its because of the long panel that direct the air?

                    Yes. Our bedroom system is above the bed, so when the fan angle is at the lowest angle it directly hits us, both air and sound. But when it is at the second lowest angle, that bottom panel that directs the air will raise the air flow up, and will shield the sound as well. (Many other splits don’t have that bottom panel).

                    I'm just going to pull the trigger on them, been doing so much research that I am stuck in a bit of analysis paralysis.

                    Yeah it gets a bit like that. No matter which device you get, you’ll find faults. At least the electricity bills for these ones won’t be part of it!

                    Hey, thanks for such a thought-out response!

                    No worries at all. Feel free to shoot me a PM if you do have any follow up questions.

  • R0b on 13/03/2025 - 09:28
    +1

    I had the same choice as you although I did not care for the ascetics as much being I was putting splits into spare rooms. Take a look at the Daiken Cora if you do not mind it looking like a normal split system. One thing I can tell you from an energy efficiency point of view the Daiken Cora 2.5 (I have plenty of home energy monitoring setup) I have never seen them pull over 300w even when first turned on in a 3x3 room in FNQ. We set them to 25 which some will say is to high but to be honest here in FNQ set to 25 they are freezing cold in the rooms. In hindsight I probably could have even gone the 2kw model however with an EER of 5.1 rated input of .49 and a 6 star energy rating I have never looked back. The only other option I considered was the Advanti plus.

    • buckethat on 14/03/2025 - 00:00

      I was actually recommended the Cora by one installer but it only fits one spot in my living room which isnt the most efficient placement. I also didn't love how it looked compared to other options.

      It does seem to be the most efficient line for Daikin though. Think I might go with MHI Avanti Plus.

  • r4pd4z on 13/03/2025 - 09:41
    +1

    My ac installer said that with after sales service daikin has dropped the ball abit lately and to go with mhi (I had a 8kw daikin replaced after 14yrs with mhi).
    A friend of mine who is a builder recommends mhi also.

  • SlickMick on 13/03/2025 - 11:19

    bookmarked for when time comes to replace aircon

  • 2esc on 13/03/2025 - 11:47
    +1

    Both Daikin and MHI are your best options. I have a Fujitsu and will never buy their products again very hard to deal with warranty wise. I also have a Daikin and no real problems just a tic tic noise till it warms up(exspansion) the installer i used reakons both Daikin and MHI are the best options. I think when i replace the Fujitsu i will go with MHI though.

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