Configuring a Victron MultiPlus Inverter/Charger

This post was originally published in 2021. We think that the content in this blog is still useful, but some things have changed just a little bit: new GUI, new features, same great powerful capability!

Check out our refreshed blogs like Setting up Victron's Remote Monitoring, and inviting Vanlife Outfitters to your system and Configuring your Victron system with VRM for a updated take on these important features. 

Why Program?

In most cases you’ll need (or want) to program/configure your Victron MultiPlus inverter/charger after it’s installed into your van. For instance, since the MultiPlus comes from the factory setup to charge AGM type batteries, if you have lithium batteries, you’ll want to, at least, change the charger functionality to charge your batteries correctly.

If you have a system that uses Victron Energy Smart or NG lithium batteries with a Lynx Smart or NG BMS, such as ones like our secondary alternator kit example, DVCC will take over and make sure your batteries are charged correctly from the MultiPlus and any other Victron charger that is digitally connected to a Cerbo GX/BMS such as a Smart Solar MPPT charge controller that is connected via VE.Direct. This includes

Let’s Start With The Defaults

The table below shows how the settings are configured by default when you get the unit.

What You’ll Need

1) A Victron MK3-USB interface. This small device allows you to connect to the VE.Bus on the MultiPlus with your computer (or compatible mobile device) using USB. You’ll (of course) need the computer or mobile device. I recommend a computer if you have it. You’ll connect a standard ethernet cable with RJ45 connectors (must be a “straight-through” not “crossover” type cable which most are) from either of the two VE.Bus connections on your MultiPlus to the corresponding connection on the MK3-USB interface and then connect the USB connection on the MK3-USB to your computer/mobile device.

One small tip, it’s really difficult to remove the RJ45 connection on the ethernet cable from the VE.Bus connection on the inverter/charger. So, you might consider breaking off the “clip” on that connector so it can pull out without releasing the clip. Chances are you have a broken one laying around anyway!

Another thing to know is that you’ll want to be sure that the MK3-USB connected to computer/device you’re using for the configuration is the ONLY device on the VE.Bus. If you have your MultiPlus connected to a remote panel or Cerbo GX you’ll want to disconnect those during the configuration.

Windows ships with a compatible driver for both the MK3-USB interface so you typically don’t need to install a driver. In case you do have issues connecting via USB, we recommend manually installing the device with the driver you can download from their software downloads page.

2) VictronConnect software which you can either download from the Victron website or install from the Play Store for Android or Apple App Store for iOS.

Note: iDevices does not support USB OTG (On The Go), so you must use either a Windows PC or an Android device with the MK3-USB interface. Other Bluetooth devices work well using iDevices using VictronConnect.

Note: Victron also makes a VE.Bus Smart Dongle that basically adds Bluetooth connectivity/control to the MultiPlus interter/chargers. It connects to the same VE.Bus with an ethernet cable. When you connect to the inverter with VictronConnect via Bluetooth using this dongle you can see all of the same reporting information as well as control the state of the inverter (on/off/charger only mode, etc.) but the advanced settings (configuration) is not available unless. Because of this, you need the Mk3-USB interface for the kind of programming this post discusses. However, you might want the Smart Dongle to control and monitor your inverter/charger when you’re using your van on a day-to-day basis.

Are these dongles and interfaces confusing? Check out our blog post for Victron Energy Dongles: Explained!

Alternatively, if you have a Cerbo device such as the Cerbo GX that is connected to Victron’s cloud service (VRM) and it’s configured correctly, you can actually use VRM’s remote configure option as shown in this video.  (2026) And here's a newer blog post covering how to remotely  Configure your Victron system with VRM 

The following screenshot from Victron shows the 3x ways to connect to a Victron product (including the MultiPlus)

If You’re Configuring an old-version (“compact”) MultiPlus 12/2000/80…

There are some “dip switch quirks” when configuring the older-style “compact” MultiPlus 12/2000/80 unit. You must make sure that the #2 dip switch is “on” (switched to the right) and the others are off (switched to the left). The switches are located under the cover toward the top right of the circuit board. They are numbered from the top down. So the #2 dip switch is the second from the top as shown in the photo. You don’t need to bother with this on newer MultiPlus units including the newer version of the 12/2000/80 that begins with part number PMP (the older, “compact” version part number begins with CMP).

Using VictronConnect & Updating Settings

Now that everything is connected, be sure that your MultiPlus is powered on using it’s DC power connection to your battery bank and in “inverting” mode. Next launch the VictronConnect app. It should search the VE.Bus for devices and find your MultiPlus. When it does, you can click on it to open up the reporting. From there you click on the “gear” (settings) icon in the very top right part of the interface.

A message will appear telling you that the settings are disabled with what amounts to a warning not to screw things up. It’s good advice… proceed with caution and be sure to reach out to a qualified electrician/engineer or your distributor/dealer with any questions or if you don’t feel confident programming the device.

If you’d like to proceed, you can click on the “enable settings” link and enter the password zzz.

If you’ve made it this far you’ll see five main “sections” of settings: general, grid, inverter, charger and AC input control. In the video below, we’ll go through some of the settings we normally change/set in our installations. You can refer to the built in “help” inside the VictronConnect for details on all the settings and what they do. 

Firmware Updates

While you’re in these settings, you can click on the “three dots” menu at the very top right and then click on “product info” this will display the unit’s firmware version with a link to “update” if you’re not on the latest version.

Lithionics or SOK Batteries

The video shows the charging parameters recommended for Victron Energy SuperPack or Smart lithium batteries.

Each battery maker has slightly different recommendations for charging their specific batteries.

Additional Configuration Required When Using Victron Smart Lithium Batteries

If you’re using Victron’s Smart batteries that do not have built in BMS, you need to have an external, VE.Bus BMS and, more than likely, some type of Smart BatteryProtect device on your “dumb” loads which are those 12 volt DC loads that don’t have any kind of “data bus” (no VE.Bus) or way to be “triggered” by the BMS to turn on/off discharging/charging. You can check out this blog post that details an example power system that uses the Smart batteries. In addition, you’re MultiPlus needs to be “aware” that it’s in a system that is using a VE.Bus BMS which requires the addition of what Victron calls an “assistant”. At the time I’m writing this post (April 2021), this additional programming/addition of “assistants” cannot be done with VictronConnect. Instead, you need to use the older VEConfigure software with the same MK3-USB interface. You can download VEConfigure as part of the VE Configuration Tools package (Windows only) on this page of Victron Energy’s website. I detail this extra programming for Victron batteries in another post.

Using batteries that require an external BMS adds complexity so many DIY van builders prefer so-called “drop in replacement” type lithium batteries such as SOK or Epoch. This blog post details an example of a system using batteries with a built-in BMS. There are some pros and cons to the Victron approach vs. the “drop in replacement”/built-in BMS approach that I write about in this post.