RHowren Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 this is my first time posting here, been reading a lot of topics on security systems and whole home audio on the forum, but it all seems a bit foreign to me right now. We're in the middle of building our new house, and a basic Control4 system came standard with it. i ended up only paying extra to prewire for everything since most of the equipment appears cheaper if i buy and install it myself instead of doing everything through the builder. This will be my first truly integrated smart home on one system, i really only have experience with Alexas, Nest Thermostats, Arlo Cameras, and Smart Locks connected to our Security System; all ran from separate apps which was cumbersome. i really could use help on all the additional equipment i will need to get up and running. right now all i have that came with the house is surround sound in the living and media rooms, 3 zones with 2-channel audio all wired to the living room, an EA3 controller and 260 remote in living room, 7" touch screen by back door, prewiring to a control box for 2 WAP, 10 cameras, and 10 ethernet/cable media outlets throughout the house. speakers, internet, thermostats, light switches, are all easy enough i can figure those out on my own. where i'm lost really is how to control the multi room audio and building out a proper camera system to where i'm not paying the local dealer north of $5K for parts and install! for audio control i was considering a Denon multi-zone AVR to control the living room TV, 5.1 surround sound, and the other 3 rooms with audio, but open to suggestions on what you guys suggest. the 3 zones with just audio don't HAVE to be capable of playing different streams at once. one goes to the back patio which i'll want to be able to run our outdoor TV audio to, but the other 2 are purely for music and can be considered 1 zone. so i need an AVR to control at least 3 zones total if that all makes sense lol. for security cameras, i really want ones that record both audio and video, if possible. looking at Amcrest 8MP turret cameras vs Hikvision ColorVu 4MP turret cameras, but open to suggestions if there's anything better for $100-$200 per camera. the Amcrest ones are cheaper with apparently better video resolution, but they (Dahua) isn't on the list of supported brands by Control4 and from what i read i'd have to purchase a driver separately, right? does that void any warranty i get from the dealer that installs my control4 system? the whole software driver install thing is really new to me and unfortunately the system doesn't get installed until mid-September so i'm at a loss on what to buy ahead of time. for NVRs, i'm really don't know what i need and how to set it up with the cameras i select. do the cameras need to plug directly into the NVR or can i hook them up to a POE switch and place the NVR down in the living room so i can view the video stream on the TV? if you read this far, thank you in advance, i tried searching for the answer to all of this, i'm sure its been covered before, but i couldn't find it. just wish there was a book... Control4 for Dummies! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAutomationNerd Posted August 13, 2020 Share Posted August 13, 2020 Your first step is to make a choice: Do you want a local dealer or a remote dealer? There are a ton of awesome folks here who can help you remotely, but then you'll be on the hook for all the physical stuff. Once you pick a dealer, they can help with pretty much everything you mentioned. I will add the Denon / Marantz combo works beautifully with C4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neo1738 Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 Also from the sound of your post it doesn't seem like you know that Control4 is a dealer only model. That means any c4 equipment like their light switches, audio matrix, etc has to be purchased from a dealer. Likewise to add anything into your project requires a dealer with Composer Pro. An end user can do just about all of the programming with Composer Home which includes a 1 year 4sight subscription so it's basically only $50 for Composer Home 1x fee. Just want to make sure you understand that aspect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RHowren Posted August 14, 2020 Author Share Posted August 14, 2020 So it sounds like if I want to save $$$, let the local dealer do the initial install of the system I already get with the house and find a remote dealer to help out with the rest of the add ins I want to do myself? I suppose I still need to get the AVR equipment ahead of time because the c4 controller will be installed in the same location? also, the local dealer said I had to buy a fiber hdmi from them to stay within warranty. Are they blowing smoke at me or is this accurate? $200 for a 15ft cord is absurd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OceanDad Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 9 minutes ago, RHowren said: also, the local dealer said I had to buy a fiber hdmi from them to stay within warranty. Not a good sign for a happy future. I'd be really interested to see that 'warranty' HomeAutomationNerd 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HomeAutomationNerd Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 23 minutes ago, RHowren said: [...] the local dealer said I had to buy a fiber hdmi from them to stay within warranty. Are they blowing smoke at me or is this accurate? $200 for a 15ft cord is absurd Your dealer sound like it might be worth looking around more. I own HDMI Fiber cables (from Monoprice), and they're great. They enable 4k, HDR, 60fps, over long runs (50'+). I've never heard anything about needing them to stay within a warranty. For a 15' run that seems like.. .well, smoke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RHowren Posted August 14, 2020 Author Share Posted August 14, 2020 yep as soon as i heard that, i was done with them. they can set up my controller and panel, but the rest i'll figure out on my own or with someone else. i'll head over to the need an integrator section now to find some help! thanks guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gcook Posted August 14, 2020 Share Posted August 14, 2020 $200 for a "standard" 15ft Fiber HDMI is steep. However if they quoted you an 8K at 120HZ with 48Gbps in order to future proof the install....$200 would be a great deal for that cable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neo1738 Posted August 15, 2020 Share Posted August 15, 2020 On 8/13/2020 at 9:53 PM, RHowren said: So it sounds like if I want to save $$$, let the local dealer do the initial install of the system I already get with the house and find a remote dealer to help out with the rest of the add ins I want to do myself? I suppose I still need to get the AVR equipment ahead of time because the c4 controller will be installed in the same location? also, the local dealer said I had to buy a fiber hdmi from them to stay within warranty. Are they blowing smoke at me or is this accurate? $200 for a 15ft cord is absurd No fiber for me that's ridiculous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnGordon Posted August 16, 2020 Share Posted August 16, 2020 On 8/14/2020 at 9:46 AM, RHowren said: yep as soon as i heard that, i was done with them. they can set up my controller and panel, but the rest i'll figure out on my own or with someone else. i'll head over to the need an integrator section now to find some help! thanks guys! Where are you located? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
therockhr Posted August 17, 2020 Share Posted August 17, 2020 On 8/13/2020 at 4:30 PM, RHowren said: for audio control i was considering a Denon multi-zone AVR to control the living room TV, 5.1 surround sound, and the other 3 rooms with audio, but open to suggestions on what you guys suggest. There is not a Denon (or any other brand AVR for that matter) that will (at least properly) multiple different audio zones. Get a Denon Receiver for your living room and then you are going to have to get a matrix amp to power those other zones. If you want Denon, you can get the Heos Drive (https://usa.denon.com/en-us/shop/amplifiers/denonheosdrive_d?varId=). Russound also has one that will work or you can get the ones from Control4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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