Dan:
I have not yet used the 3S. I have installed a number of Mate3s with and without FN-DC units. I have experienced a fair number of glitches and problems with the Mate3 and Optics. I have a list of incidents in a spreadsheet and I am intending to publish them to a web site. It is my general belief that the Outback Mate3 and the Optics system are not as reliable as they should be and were released prematurely. It seems every time they release a new version a new set of problems emerges. Here is but one example that illustrates the frustration: I was encouraged by a top level engineer to use firmware version 003.315.003. Apparently that version was Beta and never released I experienced problems with the display of KW being consumed and was instructed to upgrade to .005. Afterword I noticed the Mate3 was rebooting frequently. Then it was revealed that an auto-reboot function that I had been urged to enable in previous versions never really worked until version .005. I understood the reboot would only occur if the system was locked up but apparently it reboots every 4 hours (or period it is set to) and sends a notification. Why would one want to reboot equipment every 4 hours unless it was locked up? I request a lot of notices from my Optics systems (because it is unreliable) and I don’t need more. Also, it is quite lame, IMHO, to recommend using a function that does not work. Argh!!! (Then I learned that .005 does not solve the incorrect display of kw consumed…Waiting for that to be resolved.) I have been guilty of not reading the release notes. Read them carefully! I will say I have not had any problems interfacing the FN-DC with a Mate3. In spite of the problems with the Optics and Mate3 systems, I am desperately in need of the functionality these systems promise. We have more and more remote sites, more pressure to provide reliable power and better access to broadband internet. The remote reporting and monitoring is essential. I am sticking with Outback for the foreseeable future but I am in constant communications with them to encourage them to fix the many problems. We are all invested in them succeeding. I hope this information is what you were hoping for. William [image: Gradient Cap_mini] Lic 773985 millersolar.com <http://www.millersolar.com/> 805-438-5600 *From:* RE-wrenches [mailto:[email protected]] *On Behalf Of *[email protected] *Sent:* Thursday, September 21, 2017 9:24 AM *To:* [email protected]; RE-wrenches *Subject:* Re: [RE-wrenches] OutBack Power MATE3 to MATE3S Upgrade Umm, anyone? anyone? Dan Brown Foxfire Energy Corp. Renewable Energy Systems (802)-483-2564 www.Foxfire-Energy.com NABCEP #092907-44
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