DSC Security System - Tying into C4

[Jakelay]

Hi all. Just wondering how reliable the DSC powerseries and IT100 are for sending sensor readings to the C4 controller?

I have some door sensors, water sensors, motion sensors and garage door sensors that I can see programming off of with C4.   I'm getting the DSC installed next week and was trying to determine if it makes sense to have those wires split or 'jumped' into C4 (i.e. an IO extender) or just leave them all in the alarm panel and hope the signal is reliable and fast enough to be used for programming in C4.

Easy example, garage door rail sensors. Those are hardwired into my current security system. Showed the open/closed state just fine in our Crestron system.  Assuming I don't need to waste extra IO ports in C4 itself with the module that connects the two systems. Should be easy to tell if the door is open or closed from the DSC communication to C4 correct?

Motion sensors - I may want to tie in the security motion states for some programming to keep lights on or shut them off after a period of time. Recommended? Not recommended? 

Water sensors - may want to tie into a system that shuts off the water main at some point down the line.

Door sensors - would be nice to get a text alert if one of the doors is open for more than 30 seconds. Also. would like my Yale and August locks to only auto-lock if the door is open so the strike doesn't bang against the door frame and then lock when the door is closed (or send an alert if it can't)

Is the interface between the DSC and C4 able to handle all of this with the certified driver or should I jump/split the wires so the states are read in both systems and only have C4 respond to programming states on the attached wires?

Anything else I'm missing?

Thanks!

[ejn1]

9 minutes ago, Jakelay said:

Hi all. Just wondering how reliable the DSC powerseries and IT100 are for sending sensor readings to the C4 controller?

I have some door sensors, water sensors, motion sensors and garage door sensors that I can see programming off of with C4.   I'm getting the DSC installed next week and was trying to determine if it makes sense to have those wires split or 'jumped' into C4 (i.e. an IO extender) or just leave them all in the alarm panel and hope the signal is reliable and fast enough to be used for programming in C4.

Easy example, garage door rail sensors. Those are hardwired into my current security system. Showed the open/closed state just fine in our Crestron system.  Assuming I don't need to waste extra IO ports in C4 itself with the module that connects the two systems. Should be easy to tell if the door is open or closed from the DSC communication to C4 correct?

Motion sensors - I may want to tie in the security motion states for some programming to keep lights on or shut them off after a period of time. Recommended? Not recommended? 

Water sensors - may want to tie into a system that shuts off the water main at some point down the line.

Door sensors - would be nice to get a text alert if one of the doors is open for more than 30 seconds. Also. would like my Yale and August locks to only auto-lock if the door is open so the strike doesn't bang against the door frame and then lock when the door is closed (or send an alert if it can't)

Is the interface between the DSC and C4 able to handle all of this with the certified driver or should I jump/split the wires so the states are read in both systems and only have C4 respond to programming states on the attached wires?

Anything else I'm missing?

Thanks!

Personally, if installing new, I would install  DSC Neo panel along with a TL280 ethernet card for C4 integration.   For me I would leave the traditional alarm sensors (door sensors, motion) on the DSC system and put the Garage, water sensors on C4.   I dont do it but maybe others can comment on programming variables of for C4 in the DSC driver.   I think there are many.

[South Africa C4 user]

3 hours ago, ejn1 said:

Personally, if installing new, I would install  DSC Neo panel along with a TL280 ethernet card for C4 integration.   For me I would leave the traditional alarm sensors (door sensors, motion) on the DSC system and put the Garage, water sensors on C4.   I dont do it but maybe others can comment on programming variables of for C4 in the DSC driver.   I think there are many.

I agree with the above comments (if I was doing this again). That said, I have an older DSC panel with the IT100 and it has worked flawlessly for me apart from one lightning strike which fried the IT100.

There are many different DSC drivers out there.  I am using the Domosapiens one and yes, you can program off zone states and there is no need to split the wires.  One advantage of the Domosapiens driver is that it has a number (6, I think) of zone groups so you can create a group called doors (and link all the door sensors to this) and then know whether all doors are closed or at least one is open easily and without additional programming.

[Jakelay]

Great - thanks for the perspective. I was hoping the integration between the two would be robust enough to program off of. Dealer likes to keep things on certified drivers and I’m good with that. Coming from a bullet proof Crestron system I’d rather have some of the more basic functions work off of certified drivers and then I can always customize by trying others out after we’ve used the system for a while.

Appreciate the input!

[ejn1]

7 minutes ago, Jakelay said:

Great - thanks for the perspective. I was hoping the integration between the two would be robust enough to program off of. Dealer likes to keep things on certified drivers and I’m good with that. Coming from a bullet proof Crestron system I’d rather have some of the more basic functions work off of certified drivers and then I can always customize by trying others out after we’ve used the system for a while.

Appreciate the input!

The DSC Neo system has certified C4 drivers...  If you install the IT100 and want more functionality,  thats were you need the third party driver.  

[Jakelay]

Understood - thanks for the clarification. Still trying to figure out a lot of moving pieces with all of the system parts so I decided to go with dealer’s choice on the security system - finally got research fatigue when it came to this decision

 

[eggzlot]

agree with the others, i'd get a more updated Neo panel if possible. That said, I moved into a house with an older DSC system that worked perfect.  I got the IT-100 module and a 3rd party driver and its been flawless, lots of programming options, etc.  

For sensors - the stuff you want on an alarm (especially if you are monitoring it) then keep on the DSC panel.  I have windows and exit doors (Front door, basement door to garage and patio door) on my DSC panel along with alarm motion sensors (for break in), glass breaks and water sensors.  I have NYCE and Axxess motion sensors and window/door sensors for controlling lights in rooms, monitoring my wine fridge, turning on lights for closets/attic spaces, etc - not really "alarm monitoring" level type stuff.  Is that the best method, no idea.

[Jfizzle]

I have an IT-100 and *now* it works fine, but I ran into problems along the way with the IT-100 getting fried, connections coming lose b/c installer had put it in a janky project box and it was near the Xbox so my kids kept bumping it and stressing the connections, etc. If I were doing it over again I'd either go with the ethernet solution or not bother tying the alarm into C4 at all and just selecting one that had its own robust app. 

 

 

My trials and tribulations here: 

 

[Jakelay]

1 hour ago, Jfizzle said:

I have an IT-100 and *now* it works fine, but I ran into problems along the way with the IT-100 getting fried, connections coming lose b/c installer had put it in a janky project box and it was near the Xbox so my kids kept bumping it and stressing the connections, etc. If I were doing it over again I'd either go with the ethernet solution or not bother tying the alarm into C4 at all and just selecting one that had its own robust app. 

 

 

My trials and tribulations here: 

 

Yikes - your installer put the IT100 in a food takeout box?!?! Thanks for sharing that link. Sorry you had so many issues.  We have everything in the basement and a lot of room for everything to get connected since it's replacing another box so hopefully we'll avoid some of the 'janky' install issues but I will definitely keep an eye open. Thanks again!

[C4 User]

Quick question for those that have integrated DSC NEO into C4 using the TL280. Is the functionality between Serial and Ethernet Integration the same? Or is one preferred over the other?

I am in the process of removing the TL880 originally used for Alarm.com integration. Unfortunately there is not a C4 driver for the TL880 yet so I am going to make the switch and install the TL280 so I can integrate with C4.

[HomeAutomationNerd]

On 7/13/2020 at 9:47 PM, South Africa C4 user said:

There are many different DSC drivers out there.  I am using the Domosapiens one and yes, you can program off zone states and there is no need to split the wires.  One advantage of the Domosapiens driver is that it has a number (6, I think) of zone groups so you can create a group called doors (and link all the door sensors to this) and then know whether all doors are closed or at least one is open easily and without additional programming.

Which drivers have you tried, and which ones seems the best? 

I'm torn between updating to a newer NEO panel, or just moving to a different DSC-IT100 driver. My real goal is to be able to automate the basics, such as "Arm the panel, but exclude Windows #3, #4 and door #5". I would like to be able to do that from a T3 / IOS App / or NEEO remote (and ideally a keypad button). 

[ejn1]

On 7/19/2020 at 5:46 PM, C4 User said:

Quick question for those that have integrated DSC NEO into C4 using the TL280. Is the functionality between Serial and Ethernet Integration the same? Or is one preferred over the other?

I am in the process of removing the TL880 originally used for Alarm.com integration. Unfortunately there is not a C4 driver for the TL880 yet so I am going to make the switch and install the TL280 so I can integrate with C4.

I havent heard of anyone installing a TL280 and using serial.   It seems most have (and me) connected via ethernet.   The C4 driver says both serial/IP so assume functionality would be the same.

[South Africa C4 user]

4 hours ago, ChrisM said:

Which drivers have you tried, and which ones seems the best? 

I'm torn between updating to a newer NEO panel, or just moving to a different DSC-IT100 driver. My real goal is to be able to automate the basics, such as "Arm the panel, but exclude Windows #3, #4 and door #5". I would like to be able to do that from a T3 / IOS App / or NEEO remote (and ideally a keypad button). 

I would imagine that any of the paid for DSC (IT100) drivers can do all of these things.  I use (and am very happy with) the Domosapiens driver and it can do everything you mention and more.  The trickiest part is the bypass zones. If you are always going to always bypass these 3 windows then I would set this up on the DSC panel itself. If you are wanting to bypass them programmatically then I achieve this by using the key press functions.  If I recall correctly *1xx# will bypass zone xx so *103# will bypass zone 3.  You will need to put delays between each keypad press and after the last press before arming in order for the DSC to have time to process each command and not get flooded.

I created a macro called ZoneBypass to do the above for any zone, so my bypass code now is something like:

       BypassZone = 15

       Execute ZoneBypass

       Delay 15 seconds 

 

[C4 User]

@South Africa C4 user can you elaborate a little on the differences between the C4 DSC driver and the Domosapiens DSC driver. What functionality do you get with Domosapiens driver over the C4 driver? Appreciate any input you have. Thank you!

[eggzlot]

4 hours ago, C4 User said:

@South Africa C4 user can you elaborate a little on the differences between the C4 DSC driver and the Domosapiens DSC driver. What functionality do you get with Domosapiens driver over the C4 driver? Appreciate any input you have. Thank you!

Here are the features on the paid one (I use it too and it’s been rock solid)

https://drivercentral.io/platforms/control4-drivers/security-systems/dsc-powerseries-serial-driver-it-100-by-domosapiens/

[South Africa C4 user]

5 hours ago, C4 User said:

@South Africa C4 user can you elaborate a little on the differences between the C4 DSC driver and the Domosapiens DSC driver. What functionality do you get with Domosapiens driver over the C4 driver? Appreciate any input you have. Thank you!

@eggzlot has posted the features.  It is a long time since I looked at the free driver, so I can’t give a fair comparison.  Pros include: rock solid integration, great service and zone groups (a really neat feature that I have not seem on other security drivers).

[C4 User]

1 hour ago, eggzlot said:

Here are the features on the paid one (I use it too and it’s been rock solid)

https://drivercentral.io/platforms/control4-drivers/security-systems/dsc-powerseries-serial-driver-it-100-by-domosapiens/

Thank you. Recalling now that this is for the IT100. Does anyone know if it supports the TL280?

[C4 User]

@pbir any chance you will update your DSC IT100 driver to work with the DSC Neo TL280?

[pbir]

23 hours ago, C4 User said:

@pbir any chance you will update your DSC IT100 driver to work with the DSC Neo TL280?

Unfortunately not, as DSC have decided that they did not want competing drivers.

[C4 User]

1 hour ago, pbir said:

Unfortunately not, as DSC have decided that they did not want competing drivers.

@pbir how about your Security Enhancements driver, does it by chance work with the DSC TL280 driver?

[gte123]

On 7/13/2020 at 5:53 PM, Jakelay said:

Hi all. Just wondering how reliable the DSC powerseries and IT100 are for sending sensor readings to the C4 controller?

I have some door sensors, water sensors, motion sensors and garage door sensors that I can see programming off of with C4.   I'm getting the DSC installed next week and was trying to determine if it makes sense to have those wires split or 'jumped' into C4 (i.e. an IO extender) or just leave them all in the alarm panel and hope the signal is reliable and fast enough to be used for programming in C4.

Easy example, garage door rail sensors. Those are hardwired into my current security system. Showed the open/closed state just fine in our Crestron system.  Assuming I don't need to waste extra IO ports in C4 itself with the module that connects the two systems. Should be easy to tell if the door is open or closed from the DSC communication to C4 correct?

Motion sensors - I may want to tie in the security motion states for some programming to keep lights on or shut them off after a period of time. Recommended? Not recommended? 

Water sensors - may want to tie into a system that shuts off the water main at some point down the line.

Door sensors - would be nice to get a text alert if one of the doors is open for more than 30 seconds. Also. would like my Yale and August locks to only auto-lock if the door is open so the strike doesn't bang against the door frame and then lock when the door is closed (or send an alert if it can't)

Is the interface between the DSC and C4 able to handle all of this with the certified driver or should I jump/split the wires so the states are read in both systems and only have C4 respond to programming states on the attached wires?

Anything else I'm missing?

Thanks!

 

LGSpullingthestrings.pdf

[OceanDad]

27 minutes ago, gte123 said:

 

LGSpullingthestrings.pdf 232.99 kB · 1 download

As confusing as alarm system integration can sometimes be, I'm not sure that an introduction to Dutch local politics will be of much help to the OP...  

[South Africa C4 user]

4 hours ago, C4 User said:

@pbir how about your Security Enhancements driver, does it by chance work with the DSC TL280 driver?

My understanding is this should work with any security driver running the V2 proxy.  I have it at my beach house and it works great with a Paradox security driver from another development house.