Victron Cyrix-CT battery combiner (2 Viewers)

[terrx]

Hi all,

I've been looking at the Victron Cyrix-ct line of combiners and wondering how they stack up compared to others, and what others experiences have been +/-.

I bought a hell roaring combiner years ago and only now getting around to installing a house battery in combination with the starter battery. I don't need to combine when starting or winching, only charging when traveling or parked with solar deployed.

The Victron is bi-directional and has protection from cycling. That seems good. And price is only around $50 for 120 amp model which is the one I'm considering.

Muchas gracias!

 

[LC4LIFE]

I almost went with the Victron as well. Seems to have good reviews (although not many out there) and the functions I wanted. I ended up going with the Bluesea 7610 for a couple of reasons, namely the IP67 rating and what seems to be much broader use. I was worried about the Victron being under the hood and dealing with weather, heat, etc. and I never really found a material amount of installations using Victron. The price is definitely cheaper than the Bluesea, but only by $15-20, and for that price difference I'd have something a bit more proven.

 

[terrx]

Thanks, that's a good suggestion on the blue sea, I'd forgot about it. There wasn't as many folks using last I looked many years ago, but that's changed and now seems well used and recommended. I ended up going with the 7710 AKA SI-ACR. Here's a few pros/cons of the two in case anyone is interested, just for reference.

Similarities:
- The cyrix-ct is also IP67 rated.
- Both are bi-directional so that's the same.
- On/off switching delays to prevent cycling seem similar.
- both are 120 amps

Differences:
- Edit: Cyrix-ct is only IP-54 vs. SI-ACR IP-67. (thanks @LC4LIFE)
- Cyrix-ct doesn't appear as well made as the 7610. I haven't seen them yet; going by other's comments.
- Cyrix-ct disconnects and remains disconnected if there's no voltage on either battery. That's good if a battery is removed. Blue sea would combine #1 battery to non-existence #2, so don't forget to insulate the + cable lug if the #2 battery is removed.)
- Blue sea 7710 can be hooked up so it disconnects when starting. That seems like a plus. Don't think the victron can be wired that way, but could be wrong. Of course it may not matter.

 

[LC4LIFE]

- The cyrix-ct is also IP67 rated.

Yeah, I really like my BlueSea, but can't find the IP67 on the Cyrix anywhere. The manual states IP54 - Manual

 

[terrx]

You're absolutely right, I missed that. That's a big difference between the two.
Thanks!

 

[JCruse]

They say that the starting pause is for very finicky electronics commonly on boats. Like radar, sonar, perhaps some ship to shore radios etc.
Because of this I left mine without. (It's only one wire.)
Ive had the 7610 for three years and never a problem. I do wish that I had ultimate control over it. Sometimes I disagree with its choice and would like to override it. For that reason I would get the one with the dash switch today.
But there are ways of coping. The two circuit breakers come in handy. Thats why I advise against fuses in this area.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

They say that the starting pause is for very finicky electronics commonly on boats. Like radar, sonar, perhaps some ship to shore radios etc.
Because of this I left mine without. (It's only one wire.)
Ive had the 7610 for three years and never a problem. I do wish that I had ultimate control over it. Sometimes I disagree with its choice and would like to override it. For that reason I would get the one with the dash switch today.
But there are ways of coping. The two circuit breakers come in handy. Thats why I advise against fuses in this area.

You could still control it to some degree. If you took the small ground and ran it to SPST switch in the cab, you could prevent the ACR from combining if you wished. Not sure why you would do that, but you could. The one thing you can't do for the 7610 is a "force combine"., though you can use a marine switch and easily bypass if you wish to do that.

I have three 7610s in use and think it's the best bang for $ out there, but it is nice to have lots of choices. One thing to watch carefully is the amount of power consumption the device uses when combined. BlueSea seems to recognize that their customers may operate in a power challenged environment like solar generation and their devices are very efficient electrically.

And one thing to correct for @terrx - If you don't have a second battery installed, it will not close the relay. Each side has to have something like 9 volts (don't remember exact spec) or it will not combine. You can also keep it from combining by pulling the fuse in the small ground reference wire.

I'm a huge fan of the 7610 becasue:

-Inexpensive
-Very easy install
-100% reliable (at least so far, but 3 years experience)
-Very sophisticated for the $
-Electrically very efficient which is nice when both batteries are combined by the solar charge
-When not combined (ie relay not closed) the device uses a trivial amount of power

 

[JCruse]

Awesome answer Drew.
Im going to reread and look stuff up when I get home.
Oh but I mostley want them to combine - quickly. Not isolate.
Wish it had variable voltages too. But it is a great little piece, the BlueSea.