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Control4 Equipment Dilema


johanasoo7

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Hi all. I am new to the site so excuse me for the extended first post and if I fail to grasp all of the lingo. I am trying to obtain a new Control4 system and have been a little confused after looking over my dealer's quote. I am hoping I can gain some insight on hardware performance and hardware reccomendations. My current system is very simple and is listed below. However, I love the system and really don't want to replace pieces and prefer to add on.

Rotel RSX-1056 Receiver

Rotel RB-1070 2 Channel Amp (running front left & right speakers in living room)

Rotel RMB-1048 8 Channel Amp (running four zones of audio, eight speakers, all zones have volume controls)

Dish Satelite Receivers (ViP622 HD DVR in living room & ViP211 HD in master bedroom)

Sony ES DVP-CX777ES 400 DVD Player

Sony KDS-R50XBR1 50" in living room

Sony KDL-40V3000 40" in master bedroom

Panasonic TC26LX70 26" in basement

All B&W speakers

My dealer is reccommending the HC-1000 which I realize may be overkill but I certainly like the fact that I can grow with the system over the next few years. I also am very impatient with items taking a long time to react, so I really don't mind paying extra for the enhanced response time. I use Itunes for my digital music as I use my Ipod often. I probably have around 5-6 thousand songs that I would like to be able to integrate into this system. I really never have a need to play more than two different sources in the four audio zones. I would also like to be able to watch DVDs from my Sony that is located in the living room in the bedroom and basement. I want to be able to control 3 seperate zones of HVAC, 90% of the lighting in my 3500 sq.ft. home, and possibly the ADT security system. I really like the thought of having the 10.5 LCD in the living room with the wireless mini touch screen in the master bedroom and basement. However, I have read that scrolling channels on the 10.5 is cumbersome. Other than that, I am open to ideas from any dealer, owner, C4 employee.

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated and I thankyou for any response.

John

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You should definitely use a video switch, also if you are an iTunes user integrate an Apple TV into the mix. Plug it into the switch, you will LOVE it much more than trying to migrate all of our music to C4.

Dan, I am not sure I agree with the Apple TV suggestion if the plan for John is to have more then one zone. We use the C4 ability to listen to different music in different rooms at the same time regularly. Also party mode with music is much easier and dynamic media scenes for end users to use. The real question is what format is the music in and how hard would it be to get them to MP3? If most of it is in protected MP4 files from the itunes store then I agree with you as converting to MP3 files is hard, if the files are not protected then it is worth thinking about building a collection of MP3s for the system. (Hey, Control 4, how about supporting formats other then MP3 )

Jeff

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Plus, I'm hearing rumors that Apple is going to DROP the Apple TV all together... but are trying to find a "tactful" way to get out (so not to have too much egg on their face). With only 500,000 units sold - it's a disgrace for Apple (they had projected sales in the first year of 8-10 million units).

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Dan:

Thanks for the suggestions. The quote actually has the following included which I really have no idea what they do. I realize a video switcher changes the video source but other than that it's a mystery. I looked at the 8 to 3 component online and it appears to push video to three seperate video sources which makes me wonder what happens when I put in the fourth TV. The quote also has the C4 multi channel amp and switch which I am wondering why I need if I already have the Rotel amp running the four music zones. The dealer is a friend and a very thourogh individual so it's not that I think he is pushing more than I need. I am just trying to understand the items so I can be a bit more educated when talking to him. Thanks again to all with any input!

8 to 3 Component & RGBHV Matrix Key Digital

Balanced Component Video Driver Audio Controls

Balanced Component Video Receiver Audio Controls

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If you are worried about the 4th output, insist on the 8x4 matrix switch from key digital. I just installed the KD-MSW8x4PRO and it works great via IR.

It has a driver for serial built into C4 but I was out of serial ports. I used the remote to build the driver and have had zero problems with it. It switches very quickly. One note though, the KD-MSW8x4PRO only has BNC connections so unless you want to use RCA to BNC adapters or have the installer build custom cables you will have to go with a different switcher. I checked KD's website but didn't find a standard version with RCA connections. The adapters are only around 30 cents though. There are several other excellent switchers on the market also. We use Key Digital because we find it the most reliable and easiest to install.

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Thanks Schlepp, I will discuss this with my dealer. He answered a great deal of my questions last night so I think we are on the right track. I look forward to getting the base system in and see how it performs. I will most definately be posting more in the future to learn from everyones expertise and pass along knowledge as I obtain it.

John

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