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andys avatar image
andys asked

Multiplus 12/3000/120 Zero Load Power too high?

The spec sheet says 20W. On the unit I received today I measure 29W at 13V and 32W at 14V. This is a critical parameter for me. 50% higher than advertised is absolutely unacceptable. Any insights out there? Do I have a defective unit?

Updates:

My induction cooktop in standby mode (i.e. plugged in) disables AES even though it's a negligible load of a couple of Watts. Likely because of its input power supply stage - but still - AES can be and should be engineered to work properly under this conditions.

My AC current limit is off by a factor of 2. When I set it to 12 Amps it's activates at 24A. When I sent it to 6.3A it activates at 'about' 12A but it's still a bit all over the road.... Victron quality!? Wonder what I will find next......


All in all this is a significant disappointment.







aes
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2 Answers
Mike Dorsett avatar image
Mike Dorsett answered ·

Do you have AES enabled? This needs to be set up to get the lowest idle power.

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andys avatar image andys commented ·

The manual says 20W for normal, 15W for AES and 8W for search. My unit is showing 30W normal sinusoidal output with no load which is 50% higher than advertised (i.e. the datasheet).


Edit: It's 22W with AES on at 13V which is also 50% more than the specification in the datasheet. AES also seems to be 72VAC RMS which won't work for all needs. I have no idea why they don't mention this detail in the manual and/or offer a much more efficient 120VRMS tri-state (aka modified sine or square wave) at low power.


For a moment there I was thinking this Victron stuff is the cat's meow. Now not so much.






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nickdb avatar image nickdb ♦♦ andys commented ·
How are you measuring this?
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andys avatar image andys nickdb ♦♦ commented ·

1) With my calibrated Rhode and Schwarz power supply which says 2.2 A at 13.00V and 2) with an inline fluke current meter which says 2.2A and 3) with a fluke clamp on meter which also says 2.2A.

It's frustrating because this is this 20W parameter is *the* reason I bought this product. +-10% I can understand but but +50% is not the same product.

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nickdb avatar image nickdb ♦♦ andys commented ·
Thanks for confirming. Appreciate the frustration.
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andys avatar image
andys answered ·

@mvader (Victron Energy) do you have any explanation on this higher-than-specified Zero Load Power loss from your end?

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