Which Victron VE.Direct to USB interface do I need, USB-A or USB-C, and what is it actually for?

Answered by RV Parts Giant · Upland, CA · October 10, 2026

Short answer: There are two: the VE.Direct to USB interface (ASS030530010) with a USB-A plug and the VE.Direct to USB-C interface (ASS030530030). They do the same job, connecting a VE.Direct device to a computer, or adding more VE.Direct devices to a GX unit through its USB ports. Choose by the socket on your laptop or GX device.

The two versions

Part	Victron number	Computer side
VE.Direct to USB interface	ASS030530010	USB-A
VE.Direct to USB-C interface	ASS030530030	USB-C

Electrically they are the same adapter: a VE.Direct plug on one end, a USB plug on the other. Victron's description of the product is that it connects VE.Direct products to devices with a USB port, such as a computer, and that it also lets you connect more than two VE.Direct products to a single GX device. Pick the plug that matches the port you have; a newer laptop with only USB-C ports wants the USB-C version, an older one or a GX device's USB-A ports wants the original.

When you need one

Programming from a computer. VictronConnect on a Windows or Mac machine has no Bluetooth path to a VE.Direct device; the USB interface is the connection. That is how you update firmware or change settings on a BlueSolar MPPT with no Bluetooth, or on any VE.Direct product when your phone is not to hand.

The RS products. On the Inverter RS, Inverter RS Solar and Multi RS, the VE.Direct port cannot talk to a GX device; it exists only for programming through a VE.Direct to USB interface. Those units connect to the GX over VE.Can instead.

More VE.Direct devices than ports. A Cerbo GX has a fixed number of VE.Direct sockets. Each SmartShunt, small MPPT or VE.Direct inverter needs its own, with no daisy-chaining. When you run out, a VE.Direct to USB interface into one of the GX device's USB ports adds another.

When you do not need one

If the product has Bluetooth, which includes the SmartShunt, SmartSolar MPPTs and the BMV-712, your phone does everything in VictronConnect. And if you are connecting a VE.Direct device to a GX device that still has a free VE.Direct port, you want a plain VE.Direct cable, not the USB interface. The cable comes in lengths from 0.3 m to 10 m, with a right-angle plug option for tight bays.

Not the same as an MK3-USB

The MK3-USB is the USB interface for VE.Bus products, the MultiPlus and Quattro family. It has an RJ45 plug and will not fit a VE.Direct socket, and the VE.Direct to USB interface will not program an inverter/charger. A system with both a MultiPlus and a SmartShunt may need both adapters if you configure everything from a laptop.