Operation of Wakespeed 500Pro in DVCC Mode - alternator visibility in Cerbo

DIY
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1

I have installed a Wakespeed 500Pro alternator regulator with Cerbo GX mk2 and smart Lithium batteries to operate in DVCC mode with the alternator info visible on the Cerbo. and am struggling to get it working fully. I have two scenarios as follows:

  1. I can get the system to work nicely in DVCC mode if the 500Pro and batteries are both connected (& properly terminated) to the Cerbo at 500bps baud rate (500Pro LED flashes orange indicating slave mode and the charge current is controlled by the battery bank) BUT the 500Pro is not visible on the Cerbo device list or touch screen. I can monitor the alternator using the 500Pro app but not the Cerbo, which is not ideal but it works!

  2. However, if I connect the 500Pro to the other Cerbo port and set its baud rate to 250bps (on 50-0Pro & Cerbo) the alternator is now visible on the Cerbo BUT the 500Pro doesn’t receive the battery data and goes into fault code #42 “Battery not detected via CAN”.

Is there something I need to set up in the Cerbo to ensure the data is exchanged between the two CANbus ports or am I missing something?

Any help gratefully received!

Regards,

Kevin

2

Do you have the Lynx Smart BMS.

You should have the Lynx BMS, the Cerbo GX and the WS500 all on one VE CAN port with everything set to 250 kbps. You should have a basic chain like Wakespeed terminator - WS500 - Wakespeed cross over cable - Lynx BMS - Victron cable - Cerbo GX - Victron terminator.

3

You should have these settings in the system tab of the WS500 app.

Screenshot_20260423_144127_Wakespeed
Screenshot_20260423_144127_Wakespeed1080×1758 171 KB

4

Have you seen the Wakespeed Victron guide here.

There is also a good Facebook group.

5

No I don’t have the Victron BMS. My batteries are Titan with integral BMS operating at 500bps and that baud rate can’t be changed (they advise me that 500bps is the requirement placed on them as battery suppliers).

6

Thanks for highlighting this. Yes I have that and have followed it in details several times. Unfortunately between that Wakespeed and Victron guides there are a few anomalies but I think I’ve tried every combination! Anyway, the only way I can ‘see’ the 500Pro on Cerbo is if it’s set to 250bps but I can’t change the battery’s bps from 500bps.

7

The trouble is you have an unusual setup, I can not help further as I have Lynx BMS and Victron batteries and it just works. In your first post you said “Lithium Smart batteries” so assumed you meant the Victron Lithium Smart batteries as that is the name Victron use. I do not think that the GX communicates between the 2 CAN buses. I suggest the Facebook group as that is not Victron centric.

8

As I don’t have the Lynx BMS I selected “CANbus” alternator CAN/BMS protocol. I might have also tried the “CANbus w/Zero Output Technology” but can’t be sure.

9

Hi. Sure, it’s not fully Victron but I would hope that shouldn’t be an issue. One odd thing is that Wakespeed has a 500bps baud rate option and yet its then isn’t then ‘visible’ in the Cerbo although it does operate in slave DVCC mode so it must be receiving CANbus information. I’m on the Facebook group and reached out here in case others can help. I really don’t understand why there isn’t a way of getting the the Cerbo to communicate between the two CANbuses - it seems odd to me.

10

I’m stuck in the same situation. I blame Wakespeed for not fully documenting how their product works.

In my case, my batteries send the required BMS data to Cerbo GX via bms-can port. This allows DVCC to work perfectly with the MPTT chargers and the inverter/charger.

Now we add the WS500 into the equation.

The WS500 is connected to the Cerbo GX via ve.can port. (terminators on either end). The Cerbo GX sees the alternator and displays it’s data, but does not send any commands (voltage, current, battery warnings) to the WS500.

So basically, in the Wakespeed documentation under “requirements”, it lacks an important detail. You require either a Lynx or a CAN BUS battery that communicates directly with the WS500. …

So this is the part I don’t get. … How in the heck is WS500 DVCC compatible if it doesn’t take guidance from the CerboGX but directly from the battery’s BMS ? I realize the Cerbo GX will manage the rest of the loads not to exceed the request max charge…

Maybe someone with a bit more knowledge of the integration can explain how to wire and configure and what is possible with:

WS 500, Cerbo GX, CAN-bus conected battery, DVCC enabled

Ws500, Cerbo GX, BMS-CAN connected batty, DVCC enabled

Wakespeed support has been less than useful, telling me I must have a Lynx BMS (although that’s not listed in their Victorn integration guide or their prorgramming manual)…

Can someone say wether this integration works better with the Arco reg? I’m considering tearing everything out and sending it back to the vendor for refund due to false advertisement by the product manufacture.

(Shunt is on the alternator, DVCC enabled in the WS500, N2K is enabled in the WS500, WS500 stays in master mode, doesn’t slave itself to the CerboGX).

11

Just curious if you made any progress on this? I seem to have hit the same wall…