How Long Should a System Last

[K3NA]

13 minutes ago, Gary Leeds UK said:

The HC200 will need to be replaced with the EA1 

Thanks Gary

[koxkp]

I believe the EA1 is the more future-proof upgrade, but similarly to the HC800 you *could* do an HC250 behind the TV to replace the HC200

 

Those being your two options, I think you’re still better off getting the newer EA1

 

[Gary Leeds UK]

Do not buy a HC250 these will at some point be unable to upgrade 

[K3NA]

I'm on a limited budget. Once i have located a competent dealer i will see how much the upgrade will cost before I decide what to do next.

[therockhr]

36 minutes ago, K3NA said:

I'm on a limited budget. Once i have located a competent dealer i will see how much the upgrade will cost before I decide what to do next.

What audio and IO ports are you using on the HC300?

[K3NA]

18 hours ago, therockhr said:

What audio and IO ports are you using on the HC300?

I'm not sure. I haven't really looked.

For audio the only item we have is the TV and the audio for that is from the SAT TV box through the BOSE surround sound, I think.

Couldn't tell you about I/O ports.

I know how to use it but after that my knowledge is limited.

I think if it isn't broke don't try to fix it so I rarely tamper with the system except to put the odd movie on the media data base with composer HE.

So I don't really know what is connected to what in the system.

[K3NA]

Would an EA3 or EA5 bought off eBay be able to replace my HC300 and be integrated into my system without any problems 

[eggzlot]

12 minutes ago, K3NA said:

Would an EA3 or EA5 bought off eBay be able to replace my HC300 and be integrated into my system without any problems 

more than likely yes but find a dealer to review your current system to make sure no hiccups.  what OS are you on?  There may be some old drivers or hardware that will be defunct.

[K3NA]

8 minutes ago, eggzlot said:

more than likely yes but find a dealer to review your current system to make sure no hiccups.  what OS are you on?  There may be some old drivers or hardware that will be defunct.

2.5.3

[therockhr]

3 hours ago, K3NA said:

I'm not sure. I haven't really looked.

For audio the only item we have is the TV and the audio for that is from the SAT TV box through the BOSE surround sound, I think.

Couldn't tell you about I/O ports.

I know how to use it but after that my knowledge is limited.

I think if it isn't broke don't try to fix it so I rarely tamper with the system except to put the odd movie on the media data base with composer HE.

So I don't really know what is connected to what in the system.

I can't say for sure but I am thinking an EA-1 and SR-260 (which can be bought together) would be perfect for you.

[K3NA]

2 minutes ago, therockhr said:

I can't say for sure but I am thinking an EA-1 and SR-260 (which can be bought together) would be perfect for you.

At the moment my system consists of the following:

HC300 in main rack

HC200 behind TV

7" touchscreen on wall in living room

6 button touch pad

8tb Dlink Nas drive

4tb Buffalo Nas drive

DUNE HD media player

Sat TV system

1 x Samsung TV in living room

BOSE surround sound system.

Heatmiser 4 zone heating system with Heatmiser touch screen thermostat in each zone.

The HC300 controls all of the above plus all the lighting in the house and several outside lights in the garden. The lighting downstairs in the house also includes several LED strips.

I have all the necessary cables installed and coiled up should I wish to install TVs in any of the upstairs bedrooms.

Would the EA1 or EA3 control that comfortably.

[eggzlot]

36 minutes ago, K3NA said:

At the moment my system consists of the following:

HC300 in main rack

HC200 behind TV

7" touchscreen on wall in living room

6 button touch pad

8tb Dlink Nas drive

4tb Buffalo Nas drive

DUNE HD media player

Sat TV system

1 x Samsung TV in living room

BOSE surround sound system.

Heatmiser 4 zone heating system with Heatmiser touch screen thermostat in each zone.

The HC300 controls all of the above plus all the lighting in the house and several outside lights in the garden. The lighting downstairs in the house also includes several LED strips.

I have all the necessary cables installed and coiled up should I wish to install TVs in any of the upstairs bedrooms.

Would the EA1 or EA3 control that comfortably.

EA3 has enough horse power without a doubt from a pure spec point of view.

that said there are other factors like zigbee coverage, how the wiring is terminated, what drivers you are using, etc.  so get a dealer involved to have a bit more confidence.

[K3NA]

1 minute ago, eggzlot said:

EA3 has enough horse power without a doubt from a pure spec point of view.

that said there are other factors like zigbee coverage, how the wiring is terminated, what drivers you are using, etc.  so get a dealer involved to have a bit more confidence.

Oh I will be getting a dealer once I have found one and satisfied myself that they are competent after the problems caused by the last one.

I have to mention that I was contacted by someone direct from Control 4 yesterday evening. They must read this forum. 

They are sourcing me a dealer and will be speaking to them on my behalf to make sure I have a good working system if and when the upgrade is done.

I am just waiting to hear back from then. 

Restores a little bit of faith back in me now..

[K3NA]

Just an update regarding my situation.

Control 4 have sorted me with a local dealer who is coming out next week to inspect and hopefully correct my system.

I am replacing the HC300 & 200 with a EA3 & EA1.

I must say a big thank you to Derrick from C4 for the help and the tremendous offer on the new kit.

[K3NA]

I was going to create a new thread but decided to expand this one and keep everything together.

As part of my system my lights are wired through the Mode/C4 8 & 4 channel lighting modules.

I also have spring loaded wall switches whereby 1 press and release operates the light and if you press and hold the switch the light will dim until the switch is released. I think these are controlled through C4 I/O modules and operate on 0 volts.

My new dealer was out yesterday installing a new EA3 and EA1 to replace my HC300 & HC200.  He got everything working via apps (Mac, Iphones, Ipad, Touchscreen) but he can't seem to get these wall switches functioning. He was on the phone to C4 several times but eventually ran out of time. He is coming back this Friday to complete the installation. He said he will try and research this before he returns.

Do any of you guys have any idea what he should do/try. Some pointers that I can tell him.

From what he has said regarding my system the HC300 was dying hence all the problems recently. I am now up to 2.10.5, I think, and everything seems a lot slicker :-)

Thanks again in advance.

[david@berto.co.uk]

I had the original Mode kit, eDin Control4 etc.

I've had this running on OS 2.4 without problem using the TCP MBus module, mode NPU unit, as opposed to the serial module.

I used the I/O modules for momentary switches which sounds the same setup as you have along with the 8 channel dimmer modules.

I can't see why there should be an issue on 2.5.

Can you control your modules from the built in web interface on the Mode NPU unit?

You can actually setup the control of all your lights etc. from the NPU unit via the web interface without the need for Control4 which I originally did so that in the event Control4 went down your lights would still work.

The Mode kit is good and reliable so I would not rush to replace it unnecessarily.

[K3NA]

11 hours ago, david@berto.co.uk said:

I had the original Mode kit, eDin Control4 etc.

I've had this running on OS 2.4 without problem using the TCP MBus module, mode NPU unit, as opposed to the serial module.

I used the I/O modules for momentary switches which sounds the same setup as you have along with the 8 channel dimmer modules.

I can't see why there should be an issue on 2.5.

Can you control your modules from the built in web interface on the Mode NPU unit?

You can actually setup the control of all your lights etc. from the NPU unit via the web interface without the need for Control4 which I originally did so that in the event Control4 went down your lights would still work.

The Mode kit is good and reliable so I would not rush to replace it unnecessarily.

Thanks for the reply.

The system is now running 2.10

The part in bold you have lost me with. I have no idea. If possible it would be a big help as like you say when the C4 system is down we have had no lights.

How would I do this.

I will also ask my dealer when he returns on Friday.

[david@berto.co.uk]

7 hours ago, K3NA said:

Thanks for the reply.

The system is now running 2.10

The part in bold you have lost me with. I have no idea. If possible it would be a big help as like you say when the C4 system is down we have had no lights.

How would I do this.

I will also ask my dealer when he returns on Friday.

The NPU unit is a module from Mode/eDin that allows an ethernet connection to the Mode/eDin modules. It converts IP to MBUS, http://www.modelighting.com/products/edin/modules/din-npu/. 

Control4 have their own badged version but it is identical. This unit gives you a web interface to allow you access to your other Mode/eDin modules so you can program the entire lighting system outside of Control4.

My entire lighting system, both lights and keypads, were visible and controllable from Control4 but in the event Control4 went offline the NPU would take over.

 

[K3NA]

1 hour ago, david@berto.co.uk said:

The NPU unit is a module from Mode/eDin that allows an ethernet connection to the Mode/eDin modules. It converts IP to MBUS, http://www.modelighting.com/products/edin/modules/din-npu/. 

Control4 have their own badged version but it is identical. This unit gives you a web interface to allow you access to your other Mode/eDin modules so you can program the entire lighting system outside of Control4.

My entire lighting system, both lights and keypads, were visible and controllable from Control4 but in the event Control4 went offline the NPU would take over.

 

Yes I have one of those NPUs but there is no ethernet cable plugged in, only the 2 mbus cables.

I am unable to find an IP address for it to log in to it.

Should I connect a cable from this unit to a port on my LAN switch ??

[david@berto.co.uk]

If it was not plugged in to your switch previously then you must have your Control4 system connected via the RS-232 interface. I removed my RS-232 interface from the setup, plugged the NPU into my switch and then used the TCP Mbus Interface driver, modelighting_tcp_mbus.c4i, as the interface to the system.

This needs to be setup properly in Composer, it actual as serial control as well as IP so it may be setup already. 

Your dealer should be able to advise on how this is used.