Can you show us? They are easy to work on. What component failed?
NEWS: New Midnite Solar DIY Series - SCC's & Inverters (great $ too)
- Thread starter Steve_S
- Start date
Yup, just disappointing.......The Best Sun aka Fution powerwall I have sitting on my bench has the same inverter/charger as the one in @Will Prowse you tube video, it is a different model but the layout, display, external ports are identical. Im trashing the whole unit except for the LFP cells. Just looking at it i knew it was low quality, There was no original manufacturer sticker, just a vanilla label with a Best Sun label glued on it.
Mahendra Gomanie
New Member
Yesi I will. Even ordered a replacement part
Mahendra Gomanie
New Member
Mahendra Gomanie
New Member
Mahendra Gomanie
New Member
Well I must agree here because like you I was optimistic of their wind turbine. I don't know how much this forum thread is saying but I still support a full one test
Robin Gudgel
MidNite Solar
- Joined
- Aug 23, 2020
- Messages
- 53
I wrote directly to Will, but have not heard a reply yet. I really like this forum. I plan on being on it a bit in the future. I would like to make a few comments though about MidNite and the DIY series.
Some say this is a game changer. I disagree. These products and a few more to come next year are made for MidNite by SRNE. They fill a gap where we cannot compete. They re not low quality crappy Chinese products at all. We have been testing them for years. You will see over time the big divergence between SRNE standard products and the MidNite DIY versions. More and more of our engineering suggestions are making it into the DIY series. One other difference is that you have the backing and tech support of MidNite Solar. We have also designed special E-PAnels to go with the DIY all in one inverters since they now will be coming in with ETL approval. It is usually not possible to connect any Chinese inverter to meet NEC without something like our E-Panels. The E-Panels must be made to fit the specific inverter. (No exposed wires or cables).
Someone was concerned that this might be the beginning of the end for MidNite. No, it is not!! We have many new (made in America) products being introduced into the marketplace this year and into next. 600V 90, 120 and 200 amp charge controllers (Barcelona and Hawke's Bay). 15000W B17 hot swappable inverter/MPPT. 10KWH B17B lithium hot swappable battery system. Rosie stand alone inverter/charger. Sunspec compliant module and string level Rapid Shutdown system components. Bluetooth dongle for Classics, Linux based ComBox for internet connectivity.
DIY 5KW split phase with high voltage MPPT next March.
Thanks,
Robin Gudgel
President
MidNite Solar
Some say this is a game changer. I disagree. These products and a few more to come next year are made for MidNite by SRNE. They fill a gap where we cannot compete. They re not low quality crappy Chinese products at all. We have been testing them for years. You will see over time the big divergence between SRNE standard products and the MidNite DIY versions. More and more of our engineering suggestions are making it into the DIY series. One other difference is that you have the backing and tech support of MidNite Solar. We have also designed special E-PAnels to go with the DIY all in one inverters since they now will be coming in with ETL approval. It is usually not possible to connect any Chinese inverter to meet NEC without something like our E-Panels. The E-Panels must be made to fit the specific inverter. (No exposed wires or cables).
Someone was concerned that this might be the beginning of the end for MidNite. No, it is not!! We have many new (made in America) products being introduced into the marketplace this year and into next. 600V 90, 120 and 200 amp charge controllers (Barcelona and Hawke's Bay). 15000W B17 hot swappable inverter/MPPT. 10KWH B17B lithium hot swappable battery system. Rosie stand alone inverter/charger. Sunspec compliant module and string level Rapid Shutdown system components. Bluetooth dongle for Classics, Linux based ComBox for internet connectivity.
DIY 5KW split phase with high voltage MPPT next March.
Thanks,
Robin Gudgel
President
MidNite Solar
Steve_S
Offgrid Cabineer, N.E. Ontario, Canada
PING at @Will Prowse as we now are hearing directly from the Boss @ Midnite, let's have at it and rip one open and do a forensic review.
I honestly hope that everything coming out of Midnite is the same reliable quality as my Classic-200 which is quite a Champ in its own right! But also hopefully not as Clay Footed ...
The Software Certificate has failed for years (see auto update function) no LFP Default Profile, the fans are a PITA to replace (that sounds worse than it is but still a PITA) .. Have to replace mine very soon and may just go with ball bearing versions so they will be quieter and last a lot longer. I'm also still a tad ticked off that I had to BUY a WinzBangJr even though I mailed in the certificate for a free one which was never acknowledged.
I honestly hope that everything coming out of Midnite is the same reliable quality as my Classic-200 which is quite a Champ in its own right! But also hopefully not as Clay Footed ...
The Software Certificate has failed for years (see auto update function) no LFP Default Profile, the fans are a PITA to replace (that sounds worse than it is but still a PITA) .. Have to replace mine very soon and may just go with ball bearing versions so they will be quieter and last a lot longer. I'm also still a tad ticked off that I had to BUY a WinzBangJr even though I mailed in the certificate for a free one which was never acknowledged.
Robin Gudgel
MidNite Solar
- Joined
- Aug 23, 2020
- Messages
- 53
Steve in Ontario, I don't know what happened regarding your free Whizbang? Since you had to buy one, I would like to give you a free SPD or something like that to help make up for it. E-mail directly. robin@midnitesolar.com
We switched fan manufacturers about 3 years ago on the Classic. They have always been dual ball bearing, but some companies are just better than others. (This forum is great at pointing things like that out). The Pelonis fans we generally use now just don't fail. They are a PITA to replace though. Sorry, that was my design. Fifty some years of designs have shown me that some are better than others. The Classic fans work, but they are not the easiest to replace. All upcoming products have much easier fan replacement. We also do not run the fans at such a high voltage, so they should not fail too. I do not understand the issue about certificate failure. Please contact ryan@midnitesolar.com. Ryan will get you results. I don't think there will be a default lithium battery charge setting on the Classic though. It is extremely flexible and will allow you to properly charge any battery made. Different Lithium chemistries require different charge parameters, so making a default might cause real trouble. We are trying to get some default battery chemistries built into the new MPPT's and chargers, but this will have to be a long list of defaults to get it right. We had to yank boB off the Classic development a few years ago. I figured twelve years is long enough for one project. We had to have him and a dozen other engineers get serious about inverter development. The remaining engineers are also busy on the projects mentioned in my last post. If anyone here gets to come to the SPI solar conference in New Orleans this September, you can see all this new stuff working.
I enjoy talking to real customers like here since I rarely get to do this anymore. We aren't perfect, but we strive to improve all the time. It is tough though as parts are extremely hard to get. We struggle to hire people too. There are 90 employees at MidNite. 22 of which are in engineering. We will need to hire another 50 people within the next year. This worries me. Anyone want a job? We aren't going anywhere! All of our competitors are made offshore now. We still do our manufacturing in Arlington, WA. That is where Trace Engineering started 36 years ago. Now Schneider who bought Trace/Xantrx is made in India and China. OutBack, a company I founded, was also made in Arlington, but now is made in India. Magnum Energy was built ten miles away in Everett. I did a lot of engineering for Magnum on the side as MidNite was getting going. Magnum is now made in Mexico. Samlex has never been made here and neither has Morningstar. The Chinese companies are getting better and better and at this point we decided to partner with SRNE. They are very adaptable for our needs. As I mentioned, we will be able to influence the DIY designs more and more over time, but we need to build up a good relationship. That takes time, so please work with us.
We switched fan manufacturers about 3 years ago on the Classic. They have always been dual ball bearing, but some companies are just better than others. (This forum is great at pointing things like that out). The Pelonis fans we generally use now just don't fail. They are a PITA to replace though. Sorry, that was my design. Fifty some years of designs have shown me that some are better than others. The Classic fans work, but they are not the easiest to replace. All upcoming products have much easier fan replacement. We also do not run the fans at such a high voltage, so they should not fail too. I do not understand the issue about certificate failure. Please contact ryan@midnitesolar.com. Ryan will get you results. I don't think there will be a default lithium battery charge setting on the Classic though. It is extremely flexible and will allow you to properly charge any battery made. Different Lithium chemistries require different charge parameters, so making a default might cause real trouble. We are trying to get some default battery chemistries built into the new MPPT's and chargers, but this will have to be a long list of defaults to get it right. We had to yank boB off the Classic development a few years ago. I figured twelve years is long enough for one project. We had to have him and a dozen other engineers get serious about inverter development. The remaining engineers are also busy on the projects mentioned in my last post. If anyone here gets to come to the SPI solar conference in New Orleans this September, you can see all this new stuff working.
I enjoy talking to real customers like here since I rarely get to do this anymore. We aren't perfect, but we strive to improve all the time. It is tough though as parts are extremely hard to get. We struggle to hire people too. There are 90 employees at MidNite. 22 of which are in engineering. We will need to hire another 50 people within the next year. This worries me. Anyone want a job? We aren't going anywhere! All of our competitors are made offshore now. We still do our manufacturing in Arlington, WA. That is where Trace Engineering started 36 years ago. Now Schneider who bought Trace/Xantrx is made in India and China. OutBack, a company I founded, was also made in Arlington, but now is made in India. Magnum Energy was built ten miles away in Everett. I did a lot of engineering for Magnum on the side as MidNite was getting going. Magnum is now made in Mexico. Samlex has never been made here and neither has Morningstar. The Chinese companies are getting better and better and at this point we decided to partner with SRNE. They are very adaptable for our needs. As I mentioned, we will be able to influence the DIY designs more and more over time, but we need to build up a good relationship. That takes time, so please work with us.
Steve_S
Offgrid Cabineer, N.E. Ontario, Canada
Hmmm, Samlex = Taiwan no ?
A free what ? I'm all fitted out with epanel and such already with my Samlex EVO4024 hanging on the other side of it. I'll ponder it, was actually contemplating another smaller SCC for the workshed but I'm not going deep on that setup, simple 12V for a few lights and yard equipment battery charging.
I worked out a good LFP profile that works without tripping HVD that works a treat and it was a slog to get there and luckily the Hard Thrash testing provided that solution. I've posted the related info to the Midnite Forum, if anyone uses it or looks, who knows.
Interacting at this level can be quite a positive thing for any company wanting an "on the ground general reference" and as it happens, several of us here have worked collaboratively with Manufacturers to develop, enhance & update their product to better suit our DIY usage & varied use cases. You may be quite surprised to find that some of the users here are Electrical engineers and Knee Deep into this ;-) BUT it is a time consuming this to interact & work with folks on an open forum, as innevitable "chaff" get's tossed in and threads wander. But you would find folks quite willing to participate and dag nabbit, it's great PR too !
Fans can be a serious problem, especially with heat... The folks over at AC-Infinity have some of the best fans going in numerous varieties & flavours and not crazy prices either (retail or wholesale) and silent too, they paid a LOT of attention to that. I'll drop you a line after I'm done coralling the critters who've gone on a "Walkabout"... Always something with critters....
The Certificate, open up your Midnite Status Panel software, goto Config & hit Update. This is what you get,
View Cert Details:
A free what ? I'm all fitted out with epanel and such already with my Samlex EVO4024 hanging on the other side of it. I'll ponder it, was actually contemplating another smaller SCC for the workshed but I'm not going deep on that setup, simple 12V for a few lights and yard equipment battery charging.
I worked out a good LFP profile that works without tripping HVD that works a treat and it was a slog to get there and luckily the Hard Thrash testing provided that solution. I've posted the related info to the Midnite Forum, if anyone uses it or looks, who knows.
Interacting at this level can be quite a positive thing for any company wanting an "on the ground general reference" and as it happens, several of us here have worked collaboratively with Manufacturers to develop, enhance & update their product to better suit our DIY usage & varied use cases. You may be quite surprised to find that some of the users here are Electrical engineers and Knee Deep into this ;-) BUT it is a time consuming this to interact & work with folks on an open forum, as innevitable "chaff" get's tossed in and threads wander. But you would find folks quite willing to participate and dag nabbit, it's great PR too !
Fans can be a serious problem, especially with heat... The folks over at AC-Infinity have some of the best fans going in numerous varieties & flavours and not crazy prices either (retail or wholesale) and silent too, they paid a LOT of attention to that. I'll drop you a line after I'm done coralling the critters who've gone on a "Walkabout"... Always something with critters....
The Certificate, open up your Midnite Status Panel software, goto Config & hit Update. This is what you get,
View Cert Details:
Robin Gudgel
MidNite Solar
- Joined
- Aug 23, 2020
- Messages
- 53
Steve, please email me. I bet I can come up with a slightly used KID for you.
I just need your address.
I just need your address.
houseofancients
Solar Wizard
they are, sunsynk is also the same unit
so what justifies the price difference between your units and renogy's I RIGHT NOW? Is it just that yours comes with midnite tech support or did you fix some of their issues? because this unit as renogy has been marketing it is considered the worst of it's type (china all in one mppt)
I've done business with you and BoB for years, but I have to admit I was disappointed to see the midnite name on these. Especially at the pricepoint you chose there are so many better options out there.
carleriksen
New Member
- Joined
- Aug 28, 2021
- Messages
- 22
Hmmm...............
First - Wow! Excited to see a name brand all in one, within reach, competitive with overseas scary stuff! - Happy!
Second - awwwww.....made in china, oh well, understandable. - A little disappointed
Third - awwwwww.....ONE year warranty.....vs FIVE for other stuff. - Worried...but I want to believe...
Fourth - Is it....just a rebrand of...... - Much more disappointed!
Fifth - searching for answers and getting more worried...then....involvement from the CEO! wow! - Excited again! I want to believe! ?
Sixth - there is engagement and a critical question is asked..... then......crickets! - Worry and disappointment at all time high!
I think this sums up the collective experience.
Midnite....Don't sleep on this, you snooze you lose -
First - Wow! Excited to see a name brand all in one, within reach, competitive with overseas scary stuff! - Happy!
Second - awwwww.....made in china, oh well, understandable. - A little disappointed
Third - awwwwww.....ONE year warranty.....vs FIVE for other stuff. - Worried...but I want to believe...
Fourth - Is it....just a rebrand of...... - Much more disappointed!
Fifth - searching for answers and getting more worried...then....involvement from the CEO! wow! - Excited again! I want to believe! ?
Sixth - there is engagement and a critical question is asked..... then......crickets! - Worry and disappointment at all time high!
I think this sums up the collective experience.
Midnite....Don't sleep on this, you snooze you lose -
syclonedriver
New Member
- Joined
- May 16, 2021
- Messages
- 96
I was really excited to see the CEO on here. I was researching the MidNite DIY series AIO when I found this thread.Hmmm...............
First - Wow! Excited to see a name brand all in one, within reach, competitive with overseas scary stuff! - Happy!
Second - awwwww.....made in china, oh well, understandable. - A little disappointed
Third - awwwwww.....ONE year warranty.....vs FIVE for other stuff. - Worried...but I want to believe...
Fourth - Is it....just a rebrand of...... - Much more disappointed!
Fifth - searching for answers and getting more worried...then....involvement from the CEO! wow! - Excited again! I want to believe! ?
Sixth - there is engagement and a critical question is asked..... then......crickets! - Worry and disappointment at all time high!
I think this sums up the collective experience.
Midnite....Don't sleep on this, you snooze you lose -
I had been very happy with my existing AIO until a week ago. Error 56, it powers up from the batteries but won't power the inverter from the batteries. It is NOT a battery, breaker or cable issue. It has a 5 year warranty, awesome. I've called the vendor for the last week and I keep getting told they will call me back. The owners manual doesn't have any contact information in it. I looked up the manufactures tech line and called it today. I got a recording to call the exact number that I have been calling for the last week. The warrant appears to be useless. If I can get my money back through my credit card company I'll probably buy a MidNite AIO, one year warranty or not.
Robin Gudgel
MidNite Solar
- Joined
- Aug 23, 2020
- Messages
- 53
Hi, We are into the DIY series for two months now. All sold out, so we are trying to get a planeload of them flown in. The world wide shortage of parts and shipping is crazy! The next batch coming in will have ETL listing. We will have our own USA built E-Panels for them too. One new model is a 5000 watt all in one with a 500V MPPT. We have submitted our first engineering and firmware wish list of changes for the SRNE products to the manufacturer.
Some of these will take a fair amount of their engineering time, but we want our DIY product line to become more of a MidNite product. We do understand the shortfalls of other companies products. Heck, we also understand the shortfalls of our own! This all takes time and we are just getting started. Our tech support is now spending 25% of their time answering calls regarding the DIY series and customers asking us how to design their system. Our tech support doesn't really like giving out system design related information due to certain liabilities, but I have instructed them to do it anyway! We must make sure that we are not confusing the customer though, as that could then become a liability.
We also need to make sure you all get the help you need from us. That is a main difference between us and them. There are lots of inexpensive products coming out of China. Some are crap, but some are extremely good. SRNE is not crap as has been stated here. We know what will last and what won't. Don't be surprised to see longer warranty times on the DIY stuff in the future too. All this just takes time, but in the meantime, these DIY units are a great value. I would not hesitate to have one in my own house. Unfortunately I now live in a condo and do not have anything related to solar! I have a plan for that though. Like I have said in the past, if you can't get satisfaction from your dealer or our tech support, feel free to e-mail me directly. I get a few hundred e-mails a day, so what is a few more?
robin@midnitesolar.com
Some of these will take a fair amount of their engineering time, but we want our DIY product line to become more of a MidNite product. We do understand the shortfalls of other companies products. Heck, we also understand the shortfalls of our own! This all takes time and we are just getting started. Our tech support is now spending 25% of their time answering calls regarding the DIY series and customers asking us how to design their system. Our tech support doesn't really like giving out system design related information due to certain liabilities, but I have instructed them to do it anyway! We must make sure that we are not confusing the customer though, as that could then become a liability.
We also need to make sure you all get the help you need from us. That is a main difference between us and them. There are lots of inexpensive products coming out of China. Some are crap, but some are extremely good. SRNE is not crap as has been stated here. We know what will last and what won't. Don't be surprised to see longer warranty times on the DIY stuff in the future too. All this just takes time, but in the meantime, these DIY units are a great value. I would not hesitate to have one in my own house. Unfortunately I now live in a condo and do not have anything related to solar! I have a plan for that though. Like I have said in the past, if you can't get satisfaction from your dealer or our tech support, feel free to e-mail me directly. I get a few hundred e-mails a day, so what is a few more?
robin@midnitesolar.com
Thanks for the update Robin.
It's not every day that the CEO of a respected company comes on the forum with replies and news. The ETL listing and longer warranty should provide some level of differentiation as well.
A month or two ago I sent in a form to purchase a beta unit at a discount and received no reply whatsoever. I would like to suggest that the person who intakes those forms for Midnite can at least take a moment to respond that an application is received and denied in the future.
Your upcoming 5 kW unit with 500v MPPT sounds like a great addition. Phocos has something similar but I don't see much information about any of them in the field. I will follow Midnites developments here with interest.
Joe
It's not every day that the CEO of a respected company comes on the forum with replies and news. The ETL listing and longer warranty should provide some level of differentiation as well.
A month or two ago I sent in a form to purchase a beta unit at a discount and received no reply whatsoever. I would like to suggest that the person who intakes those forms for Midnite can at least take a moment to respond that an application is received and denied in the future.
Your upcoming 5 kW unit with 500v MPPT sounds like a great addition. Phocos has something similar but I don't see much information about any of them in the field. I will follow Midnites developments here with interest.
Joe
I have called MidNite for support and robin answered the phone and said “ robin can i help you” , I was suprised and the only thing that came to mind to say was “the robin” , he said “yes, i was just down here and i grabbed the phone“ just like it was an everyday thing.......Now do you know why i advocate MidNite Solar......they stand by their stuff.....1000%
Robin Gudgel
MidNite Solar
- Joined
- Aug 23, 2020
- Messages
- 53
Joe, I do not think we usually respond to installers who sign up for beta units. We have sent out a few Beta Hawke's Bay controllers. Mario is still messing around with tracking. Some of the other guys are messing with menus. We have Tony Boatwright (formerly from Trace, Xantrex and Magnum) now in charge of menus on our MNGP2. It is a daunting task as the goal is to have all the menus figured out for the Hawke's Bay, Barcelona, Rosie, B17 and B17B. The system level stuff gets quite complicated as you want to see all that is happening with all the units. Systems can get quite large. So, if you signed up for a beta, I will ask about it and make sure you are on the list. We will be shipping more Barcelona's and Hawke's Bays before long. We shipped our first ones just before Christmas last year. We are still not ready for production. That is really frustrating, but we are very close. We had our first ETL design review today. Should finish the construction review this Friday. Then we can schedule the electrical testing with ETL. The picture is a cart of lithium B17B battery modules. I thought I had pictures of the Barcelona production line on my computer? Guess not.
Attachments
Midnite Beta Tester
Just Testing
Great Forum! Disclaimer: I don't work for Midnite, I've purchased several BETA products from them. A KID, A Brat and 1 or 2 that didn't make it to market.
First post...Long post.....
JoeHam, you won't get any replies unless Midnite has a BETA program/product that is active. The Brat was the last one they did. I am impatiently awaiting BETA programs for all the new Inverters and Charge Controllers. The Rosie, The B17, Hawkes Bay and Barcelona. If you signed up, they will contact you once under way. You get a great deal cost wise, extended warranty and of course first in line + they listen to feedback, suggestions, concerns etc. I'm not aware of any other RE company that does this? Or any RE company that the Owners/Engineers etc. reply to questions on open forums, theirs, Midnites, or any others like this one! That's Customer Service!!!!
OK, back on topic. I've ignored the DIY line from Midnite since they are not made here in the USA. I am a few hours drive from their factories in Arlington, Wa. I stop in once in awhile to see what's going on. They have an open door policy. Give them warning and a tour is guaranteed either by the President, Robin, whom you already know from his posts here, or his brother boB, Midnites V.P. and Chief Engineer.
This thread, found it when googling around, motivated me to stop in yesterday at Midnite and get the lowdown on these DIY series products they have put their name on.
I took pics, asked questions. I see Robin beat me to the punch answering some of them! Mostly that is. I asked why they did not do a BETA program on these DIY AIO and CC's? Well, Robin said they have been stress testing them in house for the past few years trying to kill them. They did not have much luck! On grid/off grid they just were not failing. As already stated, there are cheap junk Chinese products, and there are some that are made very well.
Note: The same factory in China can make quality stuff in one shift, and crap the next shift. It's all about who's footing the bill, and or how greedy a factory manager is! You can have identical units with night and day differences in quality. Firmware is a big deal, but so is quality control....
So far, it looks like the factory/manufacturer for the Midnite branded DIY series are on the very well made side of the coin. They wouldn't put their name on them otherwise. Plus support them! A 5 year warranty is mentioned in this thread about one of the clones or similar. As they said, worthless if you get no reply or any type of support....
I told Robin a 1 year warranty is on the lame side, even with outstanding support from Midnite. How about 2 years at least? He has already stated here longer warranties are most likely coming. Yes, they hammered on these units a long time. But now they are out in the wild with their name on them. If the warranty claims remain very low, they have had only 1 or 2 so far and both due to installer/user error, not any defects etc. then they will lengthen the warranty.
So, yesterday I asked Robin if I could pull the covers off a DIY and take some pics? Go for it he said!
Two point or three point mounting? Three point! At least on the MN3548DIY I opened up. I'm going back up to Midnites factory this Thursday. Anything you want to know concerning the DIY series not answered here, ask away! I'll report back in this thread. Or Robin might beat me to it again!
Bottom line: Looks like Midnite wants to sprinkle some of their years of Engineering know how on these DIY units to make them better and stand apart from all the clones out there. They will compete in this area of the market. But, they are hard at work on Made in U.S.A. Inverters and Charge Controllers that will blow away any and all of the competition that have gone offshore completely, Asia, India, Mexico....
Robin and boB are active on the Midnite forum. There is a link on their homepage. You have questions? They have the answers.
Now some DIY pics....First few are the 3524DIY & 3548DIY next to the USA made Rosie Inverter. These are from the trade show booth Midnite is putting together for future shows. That's Robin taking a break to see how it's going. He's hands on and rarely in his office. The Barcelona production line pic he was referring to I actually took that. It's from about a third of the way in from the start.
First post...Long post.....
JoeHam, you won't get any replies unless Midnite has a BETA program/product that is active. The Brat was the last one they did. I am impatiently awaiting BETA programs for all the new Inverters and Charge Controllers. The Rosie, The B17, Hawkes Bay and Barcelona. If you signed up, they will contact you once under way. You get a great deal cost wise, extended warranty and of course first in line + they listen to feedback, suggestions, concerns etc. I'm not aware of any other RE company that does this? Or any RE company that the Owners/Engineers etc. reply to questions on open forums, theirs, Midnites, or any others like this one! That's Customer Service!!!!
OK, back on topic. I've ignored the DIY line from Midnite since they are not made here in the USA. I am a few hours drive from their factories in Arlington, Wa. I stop in once in awhile to see what's going on. They have an open door policy. Give them warning and a tour is guaranteed either by the President, Robin, whom you already know from his posts here, or his brother boB, Midnites V.P. and Chief Engineer.
This thread, found it when googling around, motivated me to stop in yesterday at Midnite and get the lowdown on these DIY series products they have put their name on.
I took pics, asked questions. I see Robin beat me to the punch answering some of them! Mostly that is. I asked why they did not do a BETA program on these DIY AIO and CC's? Well, Robin said they have been stress testing them in house for the past few years trying to kill them. They did not have much luck! On grid/off grid they just were not failing. As already stated, there are cheap junk Chinese products, and there are some that are made very well.
Note: The same factory in China can make quality stuff in one shift, and crap the next shift. It's all about who's footing the bill, and or how greedy a factory manager is! You can have identical units with night and day differences in quality. Firmware is a big deal, but so is quality control....
So far, it looks like the factory/manufacturer for the Midnite branded DIY series are on the very well made side of the coin. They wouldn't put their name on them otherwise. Plus support them! A 5 year warranty is mentioned in this thread about one of the clones or similar. As they said, worthless if you get no reply or any type of support....
I told Robin a 1 year warranty is on the lame side, even with outstanding support from Midnite. How about 2 years at least? He has already stated here longer warranties are most likely coming. Yes, they hammered on these units a long time. But now they are out in the wild with their name on them. If the warranty claims remain very low, they have had only 1 or 2 so far and both due to installer/user error, not any defects etc. then they will lengthen the warranty.
So, yesterday I asked Robin if I could pull the covers off a DIY and take some pics? Go for it he said!
Two point or three point mounting? Three point! At least on the MN3548DIY I opened up. I'm going back up to Midnites factory this Thursday. Anything you want to know concerning the DIY series not answered here, ask away! I'll report back in this thread. Or Robin might beat me to it again!
Bottom line: Looks like Midnite wants to sprinkle some of their years of Engineering know how on these DIY units to make them better and stand apart from all the clones out there. They will compete in this area of the market. But, they are hard at work on Made in U.S.A. Inverters and Charge Controllers that will blow away any and all of the competition that have gone offshore completely, Asia, India, Mexico....
Robin and boB are active on the Midnite forum. There is a link on their homepage. You have questions? They have the answers.
Now some DIY pics....First few are the 3524DIY & 3548DIY next to the USA made Rosie Inverter. These are from the trade show booth Midnite is putting together for future shows. That's Robin taking a break to see how it's going. He's hands on and rarely in his office. The Barcelona production line pic he was referring to I actually took that. It's from about a third of the way in from the start.
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