9800pro Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 18 hours ago, am350z said: The ea1 is pretty cool for the price with remote. However, is anyone else underwhelmed by the ea5? It is double the price as the 800 and doesnt seem to be a big upgrade. The ethernet switching is pointless for most that have dedicated switches. The 1080p gui is nice. One more audio source over the 800. I am sure the ea5 processor is faster but I have never noticed any lag on my system. Better wifi but I have never had a wifi issue. Not sure I understand need for high res audio. Yes the more i/o is nice. We just got new prices for Europe yesterday and both ea5 and ea3 are some 10% cheaper then hc800/hc250. I'm talking msrp prices so i don't know how do you figure that ea5 is twice the price of hc800... Also double the processing power, gigabit switch, more ir/serial, better zigbee strength, new gui, better internal parts and enhanced cooling... It's a no brained here, for both ea5 and ea3. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
am350z Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 4 hours ago, 9800pro said: We just got new prices for Europe yesterday and both ea5 and ea3 are some 10% cheaper then hc800/hc250. I'm talking msrp prices so i don't know how do you figure that ea5 is twice the price of hc800... Also double the processing power, gigabit switch, more ir/serial, better zigbee strength, new gui, better internal parts and enhanced cooling... It's a no brained here, for both ea5 and ea3. Great for EU. The usa price of ea-5 is double the original hc-800 msrp and just over 30% more than the most recent 1500 price. More processing power and more i/o are always better. The rest of the upgrades are meh. They also got rid of the component video out. Interesting you say the ea-3 and 5 are no brainers. I think the ea-1 is the real no brainer for the price. Again, not trying to be critical just not convinced the upgrade is worth 2k. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
9800pro Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 Curently HC800 is some 2500 usd in EU, EA5 is 2200 usd... And you are right for ea1, that bundle for 600 usd is really great step from C4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggzlot Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 If you have an HC-800 with a functioning system I cannot see upgrading just so your icons are in a straight line vs in a ribbon or circle or whatever the old GUI is called. Unless of course you need 1080p icons on your TVs ;-) For a new install that is different but I cannot see a reason now to upgrade with a functioning system. Should 2.9 or 3.0 bring such huge changes and leave the HC-800 in the dust then maybe I'd consider. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Leeds UK Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 Agree, will be interesting to see how 2.9 goes, looks and feels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SMHarman Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 On 1/27/2016 at 2:12 AM, Gary Leeds UK said: Looking at the spec on these controllers, it looks like they have a fan to keep them cool. Could this be a bit noisy in Bedroom ? The spec sheet has fan noise <40db. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SMHarman Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 How similar is the ea3 and HC250 form factor. Can they both use the same rack mount? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Lowe Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 There are numerous reasons to upgrade to the new EA series. More memory More Ram Hi-Res Audio Better Zigbee performance Better IR performance Better Wifi performance more IO Money of course will always be the first factor in deciding, and everyone will have their opinion here, just know control4 spent a lot of time to make sure these new controllers met every single expectation, they even delayed release twice to resolve everything before release. For the money i think they really nailed down the specific needs for each of these controllers. Technically any one speced to install an HC800 just got a $500 discount swapping that to an EA-3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mandiola Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 13 minutes ago, Matt Lowe said: There are numerous reasons to upgrade to the new EA series. More memory More Ram Hi-Res Audio Better Zigbee performance Better IR performance Better Wifi performance more IO Money of course will always be the first factor in deciding, and everyone will have their opinion here, just know control4 spent a lot of time to make sure these new controllers met every single expectation, they even delayed release twice to resolve everything before release. For the money i think they really nailed down the specific needs for each of these controllers. Technically any one speced to install an HC800 just got a $500 discount swapping that to an EA-3 Except it's odd that if the EA-3 is similar to the HC-800.. why make the EA-1 less than the HC250? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Lowe Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 price price and price ea 1 is almost as capable as running a single room solution as an hc250 and an hc250 is overkill behind a tv EA 3 is just as powerful as a hc 800 and $500 less EA 5 will be the new power house for large systems and is priced accordingly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegreatheed Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 25 minutes ago, SMHarman said: How similar is the ea3 and HC250 form factor. Can they both use the same rack mount? No. The EA-1 and 3 have new wall-mount brackets (the ea-3 comes with the bracket in the box) and new rack-mount kits (1 or 2 controllers in a 1U shelf). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Lowe Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 the ea 5 also comes with the rack mount in the box as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eggzlot Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 46 minutes ago, Matt Lowe said: There are numerous reasons to upgrade to the new EA series. More memory More Ram Hi-Res Audio Better Zigbee performance Better IR performance Better Wifi performance more IO Money of course will always be the first factor in deciding, and everyone will have their opinion here, just know control4 spent a lot of time to make sure these new controllers met every single expectation, they even delayed release twice to resolve everything before release. For the money i think they really nailed down the specific needs for each of these controllers. Technically any one speced to install an HC800 just got a $500 discount swapping that to an EA-3 again if you have a functioning system (ie good coverage, and it works) there is no reason for "better" wifi performance or zigbee performance if your current set up is stable and works. If you do not have a proper functioning system you may want to upgrade. Furthermore, the Hi Res Audio is over stated. This is coming from someone with what an audio phile would call a modest setup, but I have an above average 3.1 set up. 90% of C4 users have in wall speakers and the music is mostly background music. So hi res audio makes zero difference. if you want a dedicated theater room you likely have some expensive gear and need that involved anyways. so though on a spec sheet it sounds great, in practicality I am not sure its worthwhile to upgrade over high res audio. And would be more flexible to add 1-2 sonos connects and a matrix vs swapping in a new controller. Just my $.02 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Lowe Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 People are going to upgrade if they have a non function system because they have a non functioning system. But people don't upgrade most of the time because something isn't working, its because they want the new features. Adding sonos into the equation and a matrix is several more components in the system that could fail or have limited integration. Control4 is continuing their pursuit to give the most feature rich home automation experience possible Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
am350z Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 21 minutes ago, Matt Lowe said: Adding sonos into the equation and a matrix is several more components in the system that could fail or have limited integration. Control4 is continuing their pursuit to give the most feature rich home automation experience possible Huh? Even with the new controllers you need a matrix switch. And Sonos is rock solid hardware and integrates very nicely. I agree the hi res audio is not that important especially with streaming services. Have not had a problem with zigbee. The wifi is dual band so a slight improment but if you have a solid network, which you should, there shouldnt be much if any improvements. The built in switch is not necessary. I am interested to see how new interface is developed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Lowe Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 Matrix switch if you are using a fairly large system of course, but with an 8x8 and a ea 5 you have 5 potential streams through out the home albeit only one more than the hc800. doubtful that it will happen but sonos is developed and ran seperately from control4 so if they made some major change the integration could break and no longer work with control4 or even just a breakdown of communication to the sonos system. the benefit here is control4 is working to have this all inhouse and no needed equipiment break it down to price ea-5 msrp $2000 5 streams available HC-800 4 streams $1500 2 sonos connects $700 together and then you have mismatch audio for for only a total of 6 zones of audio they really did make these controllers cost effective in my mind Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcavinstall Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 i Have an hc 250 with no home site license. Can i get E1 bundle add it to my system to get the my home site? I am currently running 2 room system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msgreenf Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 12 minutes ago, jcavinstall said: i Have an hc 250 with no home site license. Can i get E1 bundle add it to my system to get the my home site? I am currently running 2 room system. If the EA1 becomes the primary in the system, yes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Lowe Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 The EA-1 is only supposed to be able to run a single room, i do not believe you can have any secondary controllers. I have not tested this to see if this is a fixed measure by control4 as of yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 21 hours ago, Bubben said: 13 minutes ago, Matt Lowe said: The EA-1 is only supposed to be able to run a single room, i do not believe you can have any secondary controllers. I have not tested this to see if this is a fixed measure by control4 as of yet. You CANNOT run secondary controllers with an EA1 as the primary - this is for ALL 'true' controller (so no multiple EA1's either EXCEPT -if you want to count it as such- the i/o extender Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanchow Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 I see a lot of people utilise the hc250 for large projects which in my opinion is a big no no. Those people should really take the opportunity to upgrade to at minimum an EA-3. The speed difference is definite noticable. Eg boot time after power outage on a HC controller is approx 5 minutes. On an EA controller it is approximately 30 seconds to a minute. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
9800pro Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 1 hour ago, alanchow said: I see a lot of people utilise the hc250 for large projects which in my opinion is a big no no. Those people should really take the opportunity to upgrade to at minimum an EA-3. The speed difference is definite noticable. Eg boot time after power outage on a HC controller is approx 5 minutes. On an EA controller it is approximately 30 seconds to a minute. What would then be max acceptable project for hc250? We have one with 13 sonos amps on it with no problems... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyknight Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 4 minutes ago, 9800pro said: What would then be max acceptable project for hc250? We have one with 13 sonos amps on it with no problems... C4 has charts for that on the dealer documents page, including an updated one for EA controllers. It's not always easy to judge though, as it depends on what, how many of each devices (drivers) you have, what the client is doing with the system and what is programmed on there, timers, schedules, media........ A single HC250 simply overseeing a Sonos setup of 13 AMPs may be fine, a single HC250 doing 1 Sonos Connect fed into audio in for distribution to a 4 zone amp, doing media management for a move player, onscreen to a screen and 10 lights using motion control from a security system may be an issue... It's unfortunately not always set in stone what you CAN pull off - and C4's charts are set to be well within margin for that very reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanchow Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 2 minutes ago, 9800pro said: What would then be max acceptable project for hc250? We have one with 13 sonos amps on it with no problems... Its hard to say as different factors contribute to CPU and memory usage. Control4 had a calculator at one stage to determine this but i haven't used it in a while. Though since your project is already commissioned you could possibly monitor the load average on your system. The closer the load average is to 1 the more resources it is using at that point in time. If it is over 1 then you the system is waiting for other processes to finish before handling the next item which is really bad. Most systems should idle at 0.1 load average. If you system is idling at anything higher than 0.4-0.5 then i would be concerned. Note the information about only effects HC class controllers as load averages changed in the EA series. Personally i would never specify a system running that many Sonos zones using a HC250 master. Its just a recipe for disaster in the long run as you grow the system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
9800pro Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 Well the system won't grow anymore. Problem was that the customer didn't want to pay for hc800 and later he kept adding sonos amps throughout the house. Luckily he only uses C4 for controlling one sonos connect in living room, for the rest he is using sonos app.What can i say, people here have no problem cashing out for stone marble walls or some fancy water cooling systems but 2000 bucks for controller is a big no no...it sucks to be us Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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