Beneteau Antares 12 Coupe tested: the capable cruiser for offshore and family fun
We put the Beneteau Antares 12 through its paces on twin 425hp Mercury V10 power, to see how this offshore…
Known for their innovative autonomous power solutions, Mastervolt’s new lithium-ion battery range offers impressive power reserves. The MLI Ultra 12/3000, the MLI Ultra 12/6000 and the MLI Ultra 24/6000, boasting lighter weights and smaller footprints than their predecessors, make the concept of autonomous DC domestic power more realistic for lighter vessels.
Lithium-ion batteries are known for their high-energy density, offering fast charging rates and savings in volume and weight compared to traditional lead-acid batteries. These new models are no exception, providing greater energy density, 15% more capacity in amp hours and a greater battery cycle than Mastervolt’s previous flagship models.

The MLI connects to an advanced battery management system.
Available in 12V for the MLI Ultra 3000, and both 12V and 24V for the MLI Ultra 6000, they weigh 20% less than previous models. The MLI Ultra 3000 weighs just 25kg and the MLI Ultra 6000 comes in at 47kg. The MLI Ultra 3000 and MLI Ultra 6000 both have a realistic life span of over 3,500 cycles and can safely use up to 80% of their capacity before needing to be recharged. In many cases, this is up to five times more energy storage than conventional lead-acid batteries, which can only safely use up to 50% of their capacity before needing a charge. The MLI Ultra 3000 and MLI Ultra 6000 can be recharged from 20% of their capacity within 60 minutes. They both feature a unique battery management system, which ensures that the battery is safely and correctly charged. The system is equipped with a self-learning balancing algorithm, which predicts the behaviour of each individual battery cell. Consequently, the battery charge balances proactively, resulting in a faster and more efficient charge cycle. Mastervolt use lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4), the safest form of lithium battery chemistry.
These batteries have been designed in order to simplify set-up and reduce the specialist skill level required to do this. The MLI Ultra 3000 and MLI Ultra 6000 can be connected in an unlimited parallel configuration, and the built-in common-rail technology offers easy series connection of multiple MLI Ultra batteries. All feature CZone ports as standard, making it easy to fully integrate the batteries into an electrical system through the CZone platform, as well as Mastervolt’s MasterBus and NMEA 2000 protocols.




We put the Beneteau Antares 12 through its paces on twin 425hp Mercury V10 power, to see how this offshore…


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