- Joined
- Jul 27, 2019
- Messages
- 11,581
- Location
- Midlothian, VA
- RV Year
- 2017
- RV Make
- Newmar
- RV Model
- Ventana 4037
- RV Length
- 40' 10"
- Chassis
- Freightliner XCR
- Engine
- Cummins 400 HP
- TOW/TOAD
- 2017 Chevy Colorado
- Fulltimer
- No
In my 2017 Newmar Ventana Newmar chose a basic inverter/battery system "ME-RC50". As I added solar I improved many systems related to battery management, however, adding the ME-ARC50 (A is for Advanced) really has nothing to do with solar, it's simply an advanced battery/inverter controller for the Magnum series Inverters. You can review the ME-ARC50 manual which I uploaded to the Resources area here. The ME-ARC50 will get the most benefit if you also add the ME-BMK (Battery Monitor Kit) but again this is not required but highly recommended.
In the recent attendance of the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta I helped quite a few people get a better understanding of their Magnum remote settings particularly in setting up AGS (Automatic Generator Start). Also helping setup quiet hours but noticed the ME-RC50 basic remote has a very limited capability for quiet hour settings as it has predefined windows. Quiet hours were from 10 PM to 5 AM yet the ME-RC50 has a fixed window of 10 PM to 8 AM so balloon fiesta attendees would lose 3 hours of AGS potential due to fixed quiet hour windows. On the ME-ARC50 you set the quiet hour start and end times separately giving much more control.
The ME-ARC50 is a direct replacement, i.e. remove the old (record your settings first) and then install the new and connect the cable and that's it. Then set your battery config from the recorded settings. Some features won't be available without the ME-BMK and it also has functionality for the Magnum solar controller which I don't use as I went with Victron instead.
We can discuss the ME-BMK installation and use in another thread but for any RVer that wants a little more fine grained control of your battery management and inverter control along with AGS I highly recommend swapping out the ME-RC50 with the ME-ARC50 remote.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0074T148C/?tag=rvf01-20
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DG5SSH8/?tag=rvf01-20
Note. Some users such as in 2016's and prior coaches reported having compatibility issues with the Progressive Industries EMS (Energy Management System) which may be corrected with a firmware update. I have not seen issues nor heard of problems in 2017 coaches and later.
In the recent attendance of the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta I helped quite a few people get a better understanding of their Magnum remote settings particularly in setting up AGS (Automatic Generator Start). Also helping setup quiet hours but noticed the ME-RC50 basic remote has a very limited capability for quiet hour settings as it has predefined windows. Quiet hours were from 10 PM to 5 AM yet the ME-RC50 has a fixed window of 10 PM to 8 AM so balloon fiesta attendees would lose 3 hours of AGS potential due to fixed quiet hour windows. On the ME-ARC50 you set the quiet hour start and end times separately giving much more control.
The ME-ARC50 is a direct replacement, i.e. remove the old (record your settings first) and then install the new and connect the cable and that's it. Then set your battery config from the recorded settings. Some features won't be available without the ME-BMK and it also has functionality for the Magnum solar controller which I don't use as I went with Victron instead.
We can discuss the ME-BMK installation and use in another thread but for any RVer that wants a little more fine grained control of your battery management and inverter control along with AGS I highly recommend swapping out the ME-RC50 with the ME-ARC50 remote.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0074T148C/?tag=rvf01-20
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00DG5SSH8/?tag=rvf01-20
Note. Some users such as in 2016's and prior coaches reported having compatibility issues with the Progressive Industries EMS (Energy Management System) which may be corrected with a firmware update. I have not seen issues nor heard of problems in 2017 coaches and later.
