I had looked at the Multiplus compact before I got my IP22 chargers but I just do not have enough room anywhere close to my batteries that I could install anything that big. I see that the
VE-Direct is not offered in a 1600VA in the same case as the 1200VA. I will need to do some rearanging but think I can get this one to work. The reason I am leaning towards this invertor is because it is a low frequency invertor which is much more effeicent at 91% than the cheaper high frequency units. In standby, it only uses 14W. You can also set it to ECO mode and the standby current will drop to 1w.
I think you have that backward. In general, line frequency inverters that use a single large transformer are less efficient and use more idle power than high frequency inverters. It is just the physics of keeping that large iron core saturated.
ECO mode does bring the standby draw down, but I rarely find it useful in practice. It works by sensing for a load. If it doesn't find a load, it drops back to a square wave of lower power, thus saving energy. However, if you have anything plugged in that presents a small load, like device chargers, a microwave with a clock, etc, it always sees that load and stays on. If you adjust the set points for ECO to accommodate these small loads, then it never leaves ECO mode and nothing works until you turn it off.
Of course, any comparison of these numbers has to be like-like, and not a Victron Phoenix vs a $100 Amazon no-name. Also, the Phoenix is a very efficient line-frequency inverter compared to others, so I don't doubt that it compares favorably to high frequency units.
The advantage of a line frequency inverter is that it can handle much higher startup loads, and is very robust.
Mark
