01
Basics, covered
12 / 24 / 48 V universal. P-type and N-type alternators. Three-stage charging (bulk / absorption / optional float) with intelligent tail-current detection and re-bulk logic. Third-party BMS integration.
Open-source alternator regulation for lithium battery systems
Launch Pricing
$390
MSRP: $590
Order now →
02
Industry's lowest price
$390 launch / $590 MSRP. Far less capable options land north of $700–$1,200.
03
Open hardware, Open software, Open everything
Schematics, source code, design documentation. No black boxes, no secrets.
04
Live telemetry
Your phone, tablet, or laptop dashboard streams 34 control-loop values at 10 Hz, plus >400 diagnostic values every 5 seconds.
05
Deep history — on device and in the cloud
80 hours of high-resolution data stored locally; infinite cloud history on top. Long-trend plots across years of cruising.
06
Strava-style fleet community
Global leaderboards for distance, days at sea, alternator and solar output, speed by boat type, and much more. Public fleet stats page.
07
First-class control architecture
Three cascaded PID loops with position-form PI, anti-windup, slope-aware integrator bleed, predictive rate-of-rise overvoltage protection, and bumpless transfer on every mode change. Smooth charging that won't spike, oscillate, or hunt.
08
Safety focus
Multi-layer thermal, voltage, and current protections. Redundant hardware safety that cuts output even if the firmware fails. Battery load-dump detection, sensor cross-validation, and staleness detection. Conformal-coated, EMI-hardened, reverse-polarity-protected hardware built for the marine environment.
09
Charging-system health monitoring
Learns the alternator's output for a given RPM, field, battery voltage, and temperature — then flags when performance deteriorates. A physics-based life model predicts time-to-failure. How it works →
10
Motoring & sailing performance monitoring
Tracks boat speed and comfort against wind and sea conditions — compare live data to your best polars to optimize sail trim, flag fouled bottoms, and more. A rich database of fleet data allows many unique case studies to be made. How it works →
11
Motion comfort scoring
On-board 6-axis IMU tracks heel, pitch, wave period, and slams. Computes a standardized Motion Sickness Index plus anchorage and passage comfort scores.
12
NMEA 2000 + Victron + WiFi + cloud
CAN, VE.Direct serial, WiFi (AP and client), Supabase cloud sync, secure OTA updates. Optionally pulls wind, GPS, heading, and other data from your boat network.
13
Built-in battery monitor
20-bit voltage and current resolution (TI INA228). Benchmarked against Victron. No second device required — use your existing shunt.
14
Premium sensor suite
Digital alternator temperature sensor, Hall-effect alternator current sensor, 6-axis accelerometer + gyro, precision barometer.
15
Easy installation
No proprietary harnesses — splices into your existing wiring. WiFi
access-point mode for first-time setup with no boat network required.
Auto-discovery at alternator.local. USB-C programming.
Cruising Intelligence Network
Each regulator optionally contributes to a shared, anonymous dataset of real-world vessel performance, conditions, and energy use, going far beyond the alternator.
- Anchorage and Passage Comfort — motion-based scoring derived from onboard accelerometer data
- Speed & Efficiency — real-world performance comparisons across similar boats (vessel performance monitoring)
- Energy Production and Use — alternator and solar output across different climates, seasons, and usage patterns
- Exploration History — track ports visited, passage lengths, and fleet cruising patterns
- Leaderboards and Records — highlights top performance across the fleet
Tech
GitHub
Hardware and software source.
MkDocs
Installation guide, engineering notes, technical deep dives.
Unboxing
What's in the box, and what else you'll need for a complete installation.
About
X Engineering exists because alternator regulation turned out to be harder, more interesting, and more fun than expected — and because modern AI tools arrived at exactly the right time.