Victron Off-Grid System Wiring Diagram for Beginners

A Victron off-grid system wiring diagram looks scary because of all the communication cables. Will Prowse makes this point at the start of his 1.4-million-view beginner video: pull out the comms cables and the power wiring is simple. This guide walks the diagram in the same order, battery outward, so you can read any Victron schematic, including the free system schematics Victron publishes on its product pages.

Electrical work can be dangerous: follow the manual, fuse and size every cable correctly, and use a licensed electrician for anything connected to household wiring.

Will Prowse walks through a full Victron system and its communication cables.

The Victron Off-Grid System Wiring Diagram, Layer by Layer

Layer	Components	What connects
1. Battery	LiFePO4 bank, main fuse, disconnect	Battery to the shunt and the positive busbar
2. DC bus	Lynx Shunt or SmartShunt, Lynx Distributor or busbars	Every DC device gets its own fuse
3. Charging	SmartSolar MPPT, MultiPlus-II charger, Orion (vehicles)	Fused to the DC bus
4. AC	MultiPlus-II AC in (grid/generator), AC out to loads	AC in/out through breakers to a subpanel
5. Communication	Cerbo GX, VE.Bus, VE.Direct, VE.Can	Data only: no power flows here

Layer 1: Battery and Main Protection

In Will Prowse’s build, three 12V batteries in parallel feed a Lynx Shunt 1000, which contains the main fuse on the positive side and a 1,000A shunt on the negative side. In a smaller system, a class-T fuse near the battery plus a SmartShunt does the same job.

Layer 2: The DC Bus

The Lynx Distributor bolts onto the Lynx Shunt and provides four fused outputs; Victron describes it as a modular busbar that monitors each fuse’s status. The large cables go to the inverter, the smaller fused cables go to the solar charge controller. Distributors can be chained, but Prowse reminds viewers the total limit is 1,000A.

Layer 3: Charging Sources

Solar: panels go to a PV breaker or disconnect, then to the SmartSolar MPPT; the MPPT output is fused at the DC bus.
Grid or generator: the MultiPlus-II charger. The 12/3000/120 model charges at up to 120A; the 48/3000/35 at up to 35A (Victron datasheet).

Layer 4: AC Side

The MultiPlus-II has two AC outputs. Per Victron, the main output has no-break functionality (under 20ms switchover), while the second output is live only when AC input power is present, which is ideal for loads like water heaters that shouldn’t drain the battery.

Layer 5: Communication

The Cerbo GX connects to the MultiPlus over VE.Bus, to the MPPT over VE.Direct, and to the Lynx Shunt over VE.Can. This lets the system share battery data and send everything to VRM. Wrong cable types here are the most common setup headache: VE.Bus and VE.Can both use RJ45 plugs but are not interchangeable.

12V, 24V or 48V?

Higher voltage means less current for the same power, so thinner cables. For the MultiPlus-II 3000VA, Victron lists the same 2,400W continuous output at 12V, 24V and 48V, but the 48V model reaches 95% maximum efficiency versus 93% at 12V. Commenters who built at 24V often say they wish they’d gone 48V for home-size systems.

Official product pages: Victron MultiPlus-II, Victron Lynx Distributor, Victron Cerbo GX.

For full specifications, see Victron’s pages for the Victron Lynx Shunt VE.Can and Victron SmartSolar MPPT 150/35.

Example Parts List for a Beginner 12V Build

Part	Example pick	Notes
Battery	2 × 12.8V 200Ah lithium in parallel	About 5kWh
Main protection	Lynx Shunt 1000 or class-T fuse plus SmartShunt	Fuse at the battery
DC bus	Lynx Distributor or busbars	Fuse every output
Inverter-charger	MultiPlus-II 12/3000/120	2,400W continuous
Solar	SmartSolar MPPT 150/35, about 500W of panels	Fused at the DC bus
Monitoring	Cerbo GX	VE.Bus, VE.Direct and VE.Can

Example build; follow each manual for fuse and cable sizes.

Build Order That Avoids Mistakes

Mount everything on a board or wall before you connect any cables.
Wire the negative side first: battery to shunt, shunt to busbar.
Wire the positive side, with every fuse in place but the main disconnect off.
Connect the communication cables.
Turn on the main disconnect, then set up each device in VictronConnect.

Checking Your Work Before First Power-Up

Check every fuse is the right rating and type.
Check polarity on every DC connection with a meter.
Torque every terminal to the manual’s value.

Reading Any Victron Schematic

Victron’s system schematics follow the same layers as this guide, with power cables and communication cables drawn differently. Start at the battery, follow the heavy DC cables to the bus, then trace each charger and the inverter, and leave the communication cables until last.

Communication Cables at a Glance

Cable	Connects	Plug
VE.Bus	MultiPlus-II to Cerbo GX	RJ45
VE.Direct	MPPT or SmartShunt to Cerbo GX	VE.Direct (JST)
VE.Can	Lynx Shunt, Lynx Smart BMS, and VE.Can MPPTs to Cerbo GX	RJ45, with terminators at each end

VE.Bus and VE.Can both use RJ45 plugs, so label them during the build.

FAQ

Do I need a Lynx system?

No. A SmartShunt, busbars and individual fuse holders do the same job electrically. Lynx is neater and adds fuse monitoring.

Where do I find official Victron wiring diagrams?

Victron publishes system schematics as PDFs on product pages such as the Cerbo GX page.

Which cables are communication only?

VE.Bus, VE.Direct and VE.Can cables carry data, not power. They need to be the correct type but are not part of the fused power wiring.

Can I add a generator later?

Yes. Generator AC goes into the MultiPlus-II AC input. A Quattro adds a second AC input if you want both grid and generator connected.

Can I build this in stages?

Yes. Many beginners start with the battery, shunt and solar, then add the inverter-charger and Cerbo GX later.

Do VE.Can networks need terminators?

Yes. A VE.Can network needs a terminator at each end; Victron supplies them with many VE.Can products.

Sources: Victron datasheets for MultiPlus-II 120V and Lynx Distributor product page (victronenergy.com); Will Prowse, “Victron Made Easy! Design and Communication, Step-by-Step”; Mobile Solar Consulting, “Victron Systems EXPLAINED in 3 Minutes”.