Solar Charge Controller Distributor: MidNite, Morningstar, Victron, OutBack, Schneider
Direct-distributor coverage of 5 stocked charge controller brands — PWM and MPPT — across RV, marine, cabin, off-grid home, hybrid backup, and commercial applications. Contractor pricing, string sizing, battery-voltage matching, and real product SKUs from the PES Louisville warehouse.
PES Supply is a direct-distributor for 5 solar charge controller brands. Our Louisville, KY warehouse stocks 287 controller SKUs across PWM and MPPT, from 6-amp RV controllers up to 200-amp / 600 Vdc commercial units. Every controller ships with the full manufacturer warranty and dedicated tech-line escalation. This hub covers the PWM-vs-MPPT decision, off-grid vs grid-tie applications, system voltage matching, an application matrix from RV to commercial, and contractor pricing — so an installer can walk from "48 V off-grid cabin with 4 kW of PV" to a signed PO in one session.
The three deep-dive controller guides linked below (Victron vs MidNite MPPT, Morningstar TriStar vs OutBack FLEXmax off-grid, and the sizing selector) branch off this pillar. Registered contractors get the interactive tooling — string sizing, compatibility, and voltage drop — inside the PES contractor portal.
Every DC-coupled solar system routes PV array current through a charge controller before it hits the battery. The controller's job is to prevent overcharge, extract useful power from a variable PV source, and match the array voltage to the battery voltage. The two dominant regulation topologies are Pulse-Width Modulation (PWM) and Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT), and they behave very differently.
| Topology | How it works | Efficiency | Voltage matching | When to spec |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PWM | Rapid on/off switching pulls array voltage down to battery voltage; unused voltage headroom is lost as heat. | 65 – 80% at partial charge; near 100% at bulk when Vmp ≈ Vbatt. | Requires PV Vmp within ~2–3 V of battery bulk voltage. Small 12/24 V systems only. | Small 12 V / 24 V RV, marine, and cabin loads under ~400 W of PV. Cost-optimized, no MPPT premium. |
| MPPT | DC-DC converter tracks the array's peak power point, then buck-converts to battery voltage. Extracts full V×I product. | 96 – 99% at all irradiance / temperature; ~30% more usable harvest vs PWM in cold weather. | Accepts any array voltage below the controller's Vdc-max (up to 600 Vdc). Full string-design flexibility. | Any array above ~400 W, any 48 V system, any string longer than 2 modules, any off-grid production optimization. |
The rule of thumb is: PWM only where the array is one 60-cell or 72-cell module tied to a 12 V or 24 V battery. Everything else — cabin loads, off-grid homes, industrial telemetry, RVs with 3+ panels — should be MPPT. The efficiency delta pays for the controller within a season on any array over 400 W nameplate.
The matrix at the top of this page maps each stocked brand to the controller topologies, voltage ceilings, and application tiers they cover. Below is the same picture in table form with the model families PES stocks against each brand. Every model listed here is a real SKU in our Louisville warehouse — this is what your PO clears against.
| Brand | PWM | MPPT | Max Vdc input | Max amps | Battery bus | Flagship model families |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MidNite Solar | ✓ (Brat 30 A) | ✓ | 250 – 600 Vdc | 96 A (Classic-96) · 200 A (Barcelona) | 12 / 24 / 48 / 60 V | Classic 150/200/250, The Kid, Hawke's Bay, Barcelona 200A |
| Morningstar | ✓ (SunSaver, ProStar, TriStar-PWM) | ✓ (ProStar MPPT, TriStar MPPT, GenStar) | 150 – 600 Vdc | 60 A (TS-MPPT-60) · 60 A (GS-MPPT) | 12 / 24 / 48 V | SunSaver, ProStar Gen3, TriStar TS-MPPT-45/60/600V, GenStar GS-MPPT-60M |
| Victron Energy | — | ✓ (BlueSolar + SmartSolar) | 100 – 450 Vdc | 200 A (SmartSolar RS 450/200) | 12 / 24 / 36 / 48 V | BlueSolar 75/15 → SmartSolar 100/50 → 250/100 → RS 450/100 → RS 450/200 |
| OutBack Power | — | ✓ (FLEXmax family) | 150 – 300 Vdc | 100 A (FLEXmax Extreme) | 12 / 24 / 36 / 48 / 60 V | FLEXmax FM60, FM80, FLEXmax Extreme FM100 |
| Schneider Electric | — | ✓ (Conext MPPT) | 150 – 600 Vdc | 100 A (Conext MPPT 100-600) | 24 / 48 V | Conext MPPT 60-150, MPPT 80-600, MPPT 100-600, XW Pro 865-1030-1 |
Three patterns worth flagging: (1) Victron owns the residential Bluetooth-configurable segment — every SmartSolar unit pairs to a phone in seconds; (2) MidNite and Morningstar own the 600 Vdc off-grid cabin and telecom market — long strings, long conductor runs, deep-cycle batteries; (3) Schneider Conext is the OEM controller for Conext XW Pro hybrid stacks, which changes how you spec it (part of a power center, not a standalone). See the individual brand sections below for full model breakdowns.
The single most useful frame is: what is the daily kWh load, is there a grid tie, and what battery bus voltage is the system built around? That collapses the 287-SKU catalog into a shortlist of three or four controllers in under a minute.
| Application | PV size (W) | Battery bus | Best-fit topology | Volume PES SKUs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RV / trailer | 100 – 800 W | 12 V or 24 V | PWM if 1 module 12 V; MPPT otherwise | Morningstar SunSaver-6, ProStar-30 Gen3, Victron SmartSolar 75/15, MidNite The Kid |
| Marine (sailboat / yacht) | 200 – 1,200 W | 12 V or 24 V | MPPT (marine-grade) | Victron SmartSolar 100/50-MC4, MidNite Kid Marine, Morningstar SunSaver Duo (dual-bank) |
| Off-grid cabin | 800 – 3,000 W | 24 V or 48 V | MPPT 150 Vdc | Morningstar TriStar TS-MPPT-60, MidNite Classic 150, OutBack FLEXmax FM60/80, Victron SmartSolar 150/70 |
| Off-grid home | 3,000 – 15,000 W | 48 V | MPPT 250 Vdc, often paralleled | MidNite Classic 250 (×2–3), Victron SmartSolar 250/100 (×2–3), OutBack FLEXmax Extreme FM100 |
| Hybrid backup (residential) | 5,000 – 20,000 W | 48 V | MPPT + hybrid inverter integration | Schneider Conext MPPT 100-600 with Conext XW Pro 6848, Victron RS 450/100 with MultiPlus-II |
| Telecom / off-grid industrial | 3,000 – 20,000 W | 48 V | MPPT 600 Vdc for long conductor runs | Morningstar TS-MPPT-600V-60, MidNite Barcelona 200A/600V, Schneider Conext MPPT 100-600 |
| Commercial off-grid (agriculture, mining) | 10,000 – 50,000+ W | 48 V, sometimes 96/120 V custom | MPPT 600 Vdc, multi-controller parallel | MidNite Barcelona 200A, Morningstar GenStar GS-MPPT-60M in parallel, Schneider Conext MPPT 100-600 stacks |
Determine grid interaction — grid-tie only, hybrid + backup, or off-grid.
Grid-tie only PV rarely needs a dedicated charge controller — a string or hybrid inverter handles regulation. Hybrid + backup needs a battery-coupled controller only if the hybrid inverter lacks a native PV port (rare — most modern hybrids like Sol-Ark, EG4, Schneider XW Pro have integrated MPPT). Off-grid always needs a dedicated controller: MidNite Classic, Morningstar TriStar, Victron SmartSolar, OutBack FLEXmax, or Schneider Conext MPPT.
Match system voltage — 12 V, 24 V, 48 V, or 60 V nominal battery bus.
12 V RV / marine: Morningstar SunSaver, ProStar-30, MidNite Kid, Victron SmartSolar 100/30. 24 V cabin: Morningstar TriStar TS-MPPT-45, Victron SmartSolar 100/50, MidNite Classic 150. 48 V off-grid home: MidNite Classic 250, Victron SmartSolar 250/100, OutBack FLEXmax FM80, Schneider Conext MPPT 100-600. 60 V industrial: OutBack FLEXmax family (specifically supports 60 V bus).
Size the array voltage — Voc × 1.25 must stay below controller Vdc-max.
NEC 690.7 requires string Voc to be multiplied by 1.25 for cold-temperature safety before comparing to the controller's max input voltage. A 5-module string at 40 Voc each = 200 V × 1.25 = 250 V — that clears a Classic 250 (250 V ceiling) with zero headroom, so drop to 4 modules or move to a Classic 200 (well, doesn't exist at 250) — instead move to a 600 Vdc controller (TriStar TS-MPPT-600V, MidNite Barcelona).
Size the array current — Isc × 1.25 must stay below controller Isc-max.
The controller's rated PV Isc is the maximum short-circuit current from the array. Multiply the array total Isc by 1.25 (NEC 690.8) and compare. A 60 A controller like MidNite Classic 250 or TriStar TS-MPPT-60 will accept up to ~40 A array Isc into a 48 V bus (60 A × 48 V ≈ 2.88 kW controller ceiling).
Confirm communications and integration — Bluetooth, GX, MATE3s, InsightHome.
Victron SmartSolar family pairs to VictronConnect app via Bluetooth for solo installs, or to a Cerbo GX / Color Control GX for whole-system telemetry. MidNite Classic uses the local display + optional MyMidNite cloud. Morningstar TriStar uses TS-RM-2 remote meter + Live View Local via Ethernet. OutBack FLEXmax integrates with MATE3s system controller + HUB4/HUB10 for parallel stacks. Schneider Conext MPPT integrates with InsightHome gateway.
PES Supply operates on a three-tier contractor pricing model tied to registered installer status, monthly volume, and pallet-quantity purchase. Retail list price is not the price you pay — installer-verified accounts get access to Tier 1 pricing across the entire charge controller catalog at registration.
| Tier | Who qualifies | Discount vs public list | Freight | Payment terms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 — Contractor | Verified installer, EIN + resale certificate on file | 5 – 12% | Ground or LTL, quoted at checkout | Net-30 on approved credit, or card |
| Tier 2 — Volume dealer | $25k+ per calendar quarter across categories | 8 – 18% | Freight offset on qualifying orders | Net-30 standard, Net-45 approved |
| Tier 3 — Pallet / EPC | Full pallet or container quantity, single PO | 12 – 22% + custom freight | Pallet freight quote (LTL / FTL) | Net-30 to Net-60, EPC terms case-by-case |
Tiers apply across the entire controller catalog — MidNite Solar, Morningstar, Victron Energy, OutBack Power, and Schneider Electric. Small controllers (SunSaver, Brat, SmartSolar 75/15) ship UPS ground; mid-range (Classic 150/250, TS-MPPT-60, SmartSolar 250/100, FLEXmax FM80) ship UPS or LTL; commercial units (Barcelona 200A, SmartSolar RS 450/200, Conext MPPT 100-600) always palletize LTL freight class 85. To open a contractor account: register at axis.pesdistribution.com/portal-registration. Verification typically completes inside 4 business hours during Eastern business days.
The distributor-facing shorthand for each of the 5 brands — one paragraph each — so an estimator can move from job type to shortlist in a single scroll.
MidNite Solar
Spec when: Off-grid and hybrid solar with 30 years of North American installer trust — Arlington, WA-manufactured.
The Classic 150/200/250 (150/200/250 Vdc MPPT with 96 A charge current) is the workhorse — 12/24/48/60 V bus, three MPPT modes (Solar, Wind, Hydro), and the industry's most robust temperature de-rating. The Kid (30 A) is the marine / small-cabin standard. Hawke's Bay (90 A / 120 A) is the 600 Vdc high-power off-grid controller. Barcelona 200A/600V is the flagship commercial off-grid unit — 200 A charge current, dual MPPT inputs, 48 V nominal. MidNite Solar Classic 250 SKU: Classic CLASSIC250-SL at PES contractor pricing.
Morningstar Corporation
Spec when: The 30-year US off-grid specialist — Newtown, PA. Every controller carries a 5-year warranty and passes MIL-STD environmental testing.
SunSaver (6 – 25 A PWM, 12/24 V) is the RV / small-cabin standard. ProStar Gen3 (15 / 30 A PWM or MPPT, 12/24/48 V) is the light-commercial workhorse. TriStar family covers PWM 45/60 A + MPPT 45/60 A at 150 Vdc, plus the flagship TriStar TS-MPPT-600V-60 at 600 Vdc / 60 A. GenStar GS-MPPT-60M (60 A, 200 Vdc) is the newest all-in-one with integrated genset control and 4G cellular. Morningstar wins on install ruggedness — the ProStar and TriStar have zero moving fans, passive convection cooling, and 20-year field service history. TS-MPPT-600V-60 at PES.
Victron Energy
Spec when: Bluetooth-native, modular, and the strongest residential + marine ecosystem. Netherlands-engineered, US-distributed.
Every SmartSolar model has native Bluetooth and pairs to the free VictronConnect app for configuration and monitoring. The BlueSolar family (identical hardware minus Bluetooth) is the OEM / mass-market variant. Range: 75/10 → 75/15 → 100/20 → 100/30 → 100/50 → 150/35 → 150/45 → 150/60 → 150/70 → 150/85 → 150/100 → 250/60 → 250/70 → 250/85 → 250/100. Flagship SmartSolar MPPT RS 450/100 and RS 450/200 (450 Vdc input, up to 200 A charge current, 48 V nominal) unlocks high-voltage string design in a small enclosure. Pair with a Cerbo GX + Color Control GX for whole-system telemetry. Victron SmartSolar 250/100.
OutBack Power
Spec when: Rugged off-grid inverter/charge controller stack — telecom, oil & gas, remote residential. EnerSys owned.
FLEXmax FM60 (60 A / 150 Vdc) and FM80 (80 A / 150 Vdc) are the volume off-grid controllers — MATE3s system controller integration, HUB4/HUB10 for parallel stacks, and full integration with the OutBack Radian and VFXR inverter/chargers. FLEXmax Extreme FM100 (100 A / 300 Vdc) is the higher-power version. OutBack wins on ruggedness — the FM60/FM80 has field-swappable power boards (SPARE-036 replacement power board) that let you service a controller in the field without swapping the whole unit.
Schneider Electric (Xantrex / Conext)
Spec when: Premium off-grid and Solar+ESS with the deepest AHJ acceptance for high-end backup projects.
Conext MPPT 60-150 (60 A / 150 Vdc), MPPT 80-600 (80 A / 600 Vdc), and MPPT 100-600 (100 A / 600 Vdc) are the volume controllers. Every unit integrates with the Conext XW Pro 6848 hybrid inverter/charger via Xanbus, delivering a fully-communicating Solar+ESS stack. InsightHome gateway is the cloud monitoring platform. Schneider wins on installer confidence for high-end residential backup and light-commercial ESS — the XW Pro power center concept (SW 4048/4024 with integrated Conext MPPT 60-150) simplifies bill-of-materials. Conext 865-1034 100 A / 600 Vdc at PES contractor pricing.
| Brand | Standard warranty | Extendable to | RMA path (US) |
|---|---|---|---|
| MidNite Solar | 5 yr standard (Classic) | 5 yr (Kid / Brat 2 yr) | MidNite direct (Arlington, WA) |
| Morningstar | 5 yr standard (SunSaver / TS-MPPT: 5 yr) | Extendable via registration on select SKUs | Morningstar RMA — advance ship available |
| Victron Energy | 5 yr standard (SmartSolar / BlueSolar) | 5 yr (industry-standard) | Victron USA RMA via authorized distributor |
| OutBack Power | 5 yr standard (FLEXmax) | 5 yr (limited extension) | OutBack Power / EnerSys service network |
| Schneider Electric | 5 yr standard (Conext MPPT) | 5 / 10 yr extended | Schneider Solar US service |
Two patterns to flag: (1) 5 years is the industry standard on charge controllers — nobody offers longer baseline, because controller failure modes are dominated by MOSFET stress and thermal cycling, both of which manifest inside 5 years or not at all; (2) PES auto-registers eligible warranties at the point of shipping for verified contractor accounts, so the warranty clock starts from install date, not purchase date.
The four commitments that matter to installers
- Stock — Louisville, KY. Controllers ship same-day for orders placed before 2 PM ET on in-stock SKUs. Commercial 600 Vdc units (TriStar TS-MPPT-600V-60, MidNite Barcelona 200A, Schneider Conext MPPT 100-600) palletize into LTL freight class 85; residential (Classic 250, SmartSolar 250/100, FLEXmax FM80) ships UPS ground with insured packaging.
- Warranty registration handled at ship. For Victron, MidNite, and Morningstar, PES auto-registers the S/N to the installer account of record so the full warranty term banks from install date.
- Manufacturer tech-line escalation. Direct-distributor status gets us a named technical escalation contact at every manufacturer. Contractor accounts flag tickets through the PES portal and we route L2 / L3 issues without a call queue.
- Compatibility guaranteed at spec time. The Compatibility Checker on the contractor portal reads live manufacturer approved-vendor lists — controller, battery, inverter, RSD device — so you spec the controller and the tool verifies the rest of the BOM will actually commission.
Registered contractors — free calculators on the PES portal
- String Sizing Calculator — Voc/Vmp string voltage vs controller Vdc-max, temperature-corrected per NEC 690.7.
- Compatibility Checker — controller + battery + panel compatibility against manufacturer-approved lists.
- Solar System Calculator — end-to-end kW-DC / kW-AC / battery sizing for a target daily kWh load.
- Voltage Drop Calculator · Load Balance Calculator
Register for the contractor portal → Free. Verified installers only.
Which charge controller brands does PES Supply distribute directly?
PES Supply is a direct-distributor for MidNite Solar, Morningstar, Victron Energy, OutBack Power, and Schneider Electric (Xantrex / Conext). Combined we stock 287 charge controller SKUs across PWM and MPPT topologies, from 6-amp RV controllers up to 200-amp / 600 Vdc commercial units.
PWM or MPPT — which controller should I spec?
PWM only for very small systems where the PV array is a single 12 V-nominal 60-cell module tied to a 12 V or 24 V battery — RVs, small cabin loads under ~400 W. Everything else should be MPPT. The efficiency delta (96–99% for MPPT vs 65–80% for PWM at partial charge) pays back the controller premium within a season.
How do I match array voltage to a controller?
NEC 690.7 requires string Voc × 1.25 (cold-temperature safety factor) to stay below the controller's max input voltage. A 5-module string at 40 Voc = 200 V × 1.25 = 250 V, which exactly hits a Classic 250. Design for headroom — either drop to 4 modules or step up to a 600 Vdc controller like the TriStar TS-MPPT-600V-60, MidNite Barcelona 200A, or Schneider Conext MPPT 100-600.
What battery voltages do the top controllers support?
Morningstar TriStar: 12 / 24 / 48 V. MidNite Classic: 12 / 24 / 48 / 60 V. Victron SmartSolar: 12 / 24 / 36 / 48 V (auto-detect on install). OutBack FLEXmax: 12 / 24 / 36 / 48 / 60 V. Schneider Conext MPPT: 24 / 48 V (paired with XW Pro 48 V bus).
Can I parallel multiple charge controllers on one battery bank?
Yes — MidNite Classic supports up to 10 controllers on a single bank via a shared Whiz Bang Jr battery-current sensor. Victron SmartSolar RS + Cerbo GX supports 25+ controllers. Morningstar TriStar MPPT supports up to 16 units via HUB. Schneider Conext MPPT integrates via Xanbus with up to 4 XW Pro power centers. Always match battery-voltage set points across paralleled controllers.
What warranty terms should I expect?
5 years is the industry standard baseline across MidNite, Morningstar, Victron, OutBack, and Schneider. Schneider offers extended 10-year on Conext MPPT via registration. Failure modes (MOSFET stress, thermal cycling) manifest inside 5 years or not at all, which is why nobody offers longer baseline.
How do I open a contractor account with PES Supply?
Register at axis.pesdistribution.com/portal-registration — you'll need an EIN, a resale certificate, and your installer credentials. Verification typically completes inside 4 business hours (Eastern) and gives you Tier 1 contractor pricing across the entire charge controller catalog plus access to the portal's String Sizing, Compatibility, Voltage Drop, and ROI calculators.
Open a PES Supply contractor account
Direct-distributor pricing on MidNite, Morningstar, Victron Energy, OutBack Power, and Schneider Electric charge controllers. Louisville-warehoused, pallet-freight quoted at checkout.
Register for contractor pricing
