New XW gear by Xantrex

nigtomdaw

Hi, Ive noticed than Xantrex has launched there new XW range of inverters and MPPT XW 60 charge controller. I say launched in respect than they have a new micro site www.xantrex.com/xw/index.html and indications that the 6 kw inverter and charge controller will ship later this month, as I live in Spain Ive imported all my stuff from USA primarily Xantrex gear and I was wondering if anyone knows when any supplier will be in stock of the new Xw Mppt Charge controller, also has anyone had any dealings or tested the new MPPT controller in beta testing

My current set up is Sw3024E 2 x C40s Solar 1600 watts, Isophoton Mono Panels 8x200w and a 2100 ah 24volt battery bank 3 strings of 12 x 2v Varta 700ah. Ive only used my genset for 2 hours in last 87 days.

Windsun

We cannot yet get a firm delivery date on the new XW stuff. Apparently some items are ready to ship, but not some of the main items so they are holding off.

niel

i can't answer your xantrex concerns, but in reading what you have i ran a rough check on the approximate charge % you have and it looks that it may be on the low side at about 2.2%. there is a better probability of undercharging and thus sulphating your batteries when the rate is low so please keep an eye on that so that your batteries do not go without a full charge for too long (if you don't draw that much power per day it could work). this could be done by using a generator say at least once a week to bulk charge and then allow the pvs to finish the charging. having them reach full charge will give longer life to your batteries, but also watch that the batteries don't slide to under 50% capacity(soc). also know that it takes much longer to charge when the % rate is low. we usually agree that about 3% minimumly without loads is doable with 5% or more being better as long as the higher charge rates aren't exceeding the battery manufacturer's recommendations. generators running periodically can be a pain, so maybe more pvs could be a viable answer in the future for you, but as i had stated, if you don't use as much power as the pvs are outputting this could maintain the full charge on your batteries.

nigtomdaw

Niel thankyou for you quick rundown on my system. I currently have 1600 watts installed with a further 4 (800) watts of the same panels to be errected. but not untill Ive finished building the house apparently, However Im harvesting arround 250 /300 watt hours a day and Im only using about 200 a day. My batteries are often fully charged by 3 oclock with one C40 going to float mode. During the day usually the only load is our Amercian fridge freezer. My system has very little wiring losses as I built a Cheese wedge shape solar shed using the panels as the roof with the batteries and inverter built inside with attention paid to system cooling therefore my main solar wiring to the charge controller then to the batteries is only 4 meters using 35mm2 wire. I am regulary putting 45 to 50 amps into the batteries between 12 and 3 oclock with a day time draw of about 8 amps, On top of the other 4 x 200 Mono Crystalline cells which will be up before end of September I have another 8x 100 monocrystalline cells which will not fit on the shed and Im considering a tracker pole mount just out of interest as in my opinion they arnt very cost effective. Plus I also have a Cylone 1kw windturbine to errect subject planning permission . I also have a Solar Converters desuphator fitted to the batteries.:cool:

BB.

Just to be clear, it sounds like you are charging 250-300 Amp*Hours per day... Not Watt*Hours...

Watt*Hours = V*I*Hrs = 300 Amp*Hours * 12 volts (assuming bat volts) = 3,600 watt*Hours per day...

Or 3.6 kWatt*Hours per day... Not bad.

-Bill

nigtomdaw

Hi I checked my meters and your right amp hours, Xantrex CMR's Im getting less now the weather is getting hotter Im averaging 220/270 a day and its a 24 volt system I set my panels at lattitude 41 degrees for optimum spring and autumn collection in May I was regular hitting the 300 mark:roll:

Windsun

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

Latest word on the new XW stuff is that some will start shipping the end of July, so we expect to have it around the first week of August.

We will be testing out the new charge controller as a top priority and will post our findings here then.

nigtomdaw

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

The manual for the XW MPPT 60/150 charge controller is available as a PDF download from www.xantrex.com

http://www.xantrex.com/web/id/252/p/1/pt/5/product.asp

Windsun

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

Just an update..

As usual, Xantrex seems to be running late on deliveries of the new XW line. It was originally posted on the Xantrex board that they would start shipping some of it in July.

Here it is half-past August, and we have yet to see a single item available.

halfcrazy

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

any update on shipment dates?

Windsun

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

Nope, as of the end of August, we don't even have an estimated ship date on any of it.

The word "vaporware" is starting to come to mind.

I heard a rumor that something like 30,000 inverters had to be sent back to China because of something to do with wiring or a circuit board, but that might be total BS also, nobody will confirm it.

And lately the Xantrex forum seems totally dead, so much so that the spam messages are starting to pile up there.

Starting to have serious doubts about that company.

halfcrazy

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

well the fact they want to discontinue there good inverters seems like a dumb idea to me not many of my customers can afford a cadillac inverter specially if it doesnt exist time will tell but i think they are going down a bad road on there batery backed up stuff. I will keep my eyes on MidNite and Magnum also boB is over there doing some good stuff and there new 120/240 inverter seems to be a nice rig it has a kickbut battery charger in it. Coupled with a Epanel it is a sweat install and a Whole lot chaeper the the XW vaporware

nigtomdaw

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

Somebodys hoovered up the Spam but havent addressed any XW issues, starting to get a little concerned... expected my XW MPPT CC to be installed by now after a spring launch date,,, bob o.... hows your Classic boiling is it close to being served *salt and pepper ready*

halfcrazy

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

still no xw stuff????????????????????????????????????????

Windsun

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

Not a thing yet. Some of this stuff is months overdue now. Starting to wonder if they might have some serious problems...

Solar Guppy

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

I'm running a production XW-6048, I had it for about 2 months but didn't get around to hooking it up until last week. I can say with a straight face, this inverter is the real deal. When I got the inverter and charger, I was told the holdup was the BIG balance of system box, that is the wiring and breaker compartment, they had plenty of inverters and chargers but would not start selling until there was full stock of everything

My delays were bulding the battery racks, wiring and putting it all together old school ( seperate breaker boxes ect ).

It has an optional control panel that is great, easy to use and is fully graphical, shows load, battery state ect. I can now trip the mains and the AC still runs!, which is a 4.5kw load and the inverter has no problem with the startup surge. Its a generation ahead of anything on the market. It's also gridtie with 95% peak efficency, on par with the best gridtie only units

Its been a 5 year effort for Xantrex to get the XW system ready for market and it is much more than a standalone box, its EVERYTHING to have a true split-phase power center that does everything. when ever it makes it to the sale channels, it will be worth the wait IMHO.

I think Xantrex should do a much better job on communications and what is causing the delays, but its not because of any technical reasons to my knowledge.

Windsun

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

Finally - an Update!!!

* we shipped over 30 units back in Sept 2006 for field trial deployment
(just prior to Solar Power 2006)
* at Solar Power 2006 we did not launch XW, however we did show it as we
were getting close...having just dispatched field trial units. (Launch
means that it is available from our distributors.)
* while field trial hardware has worked flawlessly, we did uncover
software bugs (particularly around grid tie and parallel operation) that
needed to be solved prior to commercial shipments (they are solved now
with lots of bug-free run time). As the XW uses all digital controls
this proved to be a more difficult undertaking than we
thought...BUT...we will not release this product without it being ready.
We do apologize for the delay.
* we began commercial shipments in July of this year once we got our
final regulatory approval in June. Quantities have been very small (~
20 XW Inverters with BOS and MPPT) as we work through the production
ramp up phase.
* prior to Solar Power 2007 we will fulfill many distributor orders so
we can truly launch XW in our booth...and indicate to dealers that it is
available from distribution. ( http://www.solarpowerconference.com/ is Sept 24 to 27)

As far as the XW MPPT being "me too"...(sarcasm noted (-: ), there are
some differences like; no internal cooling fan (passive cooling via
large heat-sink), dynamic MPPT (like a grid tie inverter) not 10 minute
sweeps, integrated ground fault detection, 5 year (vs 2) standard
warranty, fully networked with XW so config can be done off a single
display (without requiring a "hub").

To add to that about the XW MPPT, it is also FCC part 15 compliant, which means a lot less radio noise from the PWM.

machineman

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

Will the XW be sold as an all-in-one (Inverter + breaker box+Charge controller) with possibly a cheaper price than buying the parts individually?

Windsun

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

Not sure yet, and we are not sure if all items will be available or just some.

They do list a "set", but it appears to be just the breaker box + inverter.

System2

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

OK, I had lost hope for the old Trace legacy!

But I am Sold on this unit!

The biggest was the ability to have both AC from Genny And Grid without separate transfer.

Do the Smaller XW's have this capability?

Is this thing available for purchase with SCC, Inverter and Distribution?

Any one wanna Buy a New In Box MX60?

Windsun

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

Right now nothing is available. All we have is a promise from Xantrex that they are going to start shipping "before the 21st". And no idea if that means all products or just some.

We won't know until they actually show up on our doorstep.

nigtomdaw

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

I attended the online open office meeting today by Xantrex on the new Xw MPPT 60 cc at the end of the presentation it was confirmed that as of today units had shipped out to the the distribtors and should be available for purchase soon, he didnt mention what else was shipping as this was a XW60 MPPT presentation only.

Interesting each and every XW60 is bench tested before shipping and has an expected 22/23 year life expectancy bff.

niel

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

nigtomdaw,
how did you get to sit in on that?

nigtomdaw

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

Hi Neil, I subscribe to Xantrex news letter they provide and last week one arrived with a open invite to all to sign up for a two hour live open online meeting presentation of the new XW controller.

I responded via the online registration and was confirmed and given an access number for the meeting. I was sent 2 reminders and clicked the link in the email to join the presentation. I struggled to get on as I didnt have the correct software and all my system warning messages on my new Microsoft Vista Pro operating system are in Spanish and cant be changed.Warning dont buy a pc with vista in a forgien country the core lanuage cannot be changed. Anyway I digress, after downloading the correct MS open meeting attachment I was online in the meeting. With like a powerpoint display with pointers ect, you had to ring a toll free number to hear audio which I did and a real person was taking the meeting live. I got on 15 minutes late and audio about another 15 minutes. Questions were taken from callers at the end and were answered live. Surprisingly only 10 guest, but I think they are also doing one on either the new grid tie or the new Xw soon HTH

nigtomdaw

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

Anything on your door step this morning ?

niel

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

who are your asking? and no.

nigtomdaw

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

See WindSun Last post Neil

halfcrazy

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

my supplier has some of the xw stuff now they said it was air frieghted to them. no xw charge controllers yet but xantrex promised the 3rd of october?

System2

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

Anyone get their stuff in?

niel

Re: New XW gear by Xantrex

http://forum.solar-electric.com/showthread.php?p=8793#post8793