Installation Question

[GarethKeenan]

First off, I'm new to posting on this forum, but have reading it for over 6 months. I researched C4, Savant, and Crestron and did a lot of reading on this board when I was deciding which way to go. I went with C4 because we use Crestron at work and I'm not overly impressed with that system. Savant looks very nice but was incredibly expensive...that left C4 which looked like a good product for a decent price.

With that said, I have been getting my C4 system installed for nearly 2 months and it still isn't finished. This installation was originally supposed to take 2-3 days but has just dragged and dragged. Not only is it not finished, my wife has given up hope that it will ever get done or done correctly and is ready for me to sell off the pieces. I'm not there yet, but getting very close. The main problem I have with C4 is that is seems very unreliable. We have nothing but problems getting the system to work consistently day to day because every day a new bug pops up.

Basically, I'm wondering if other people have constant reliability issues with their C4 system or is this an installation issue?

[ILoveC4]

My system is rock solid reliable.

Find a new dealer/installer. Why is it taking so long? If it isn't complete, how can you expect it to be reliable? Take two parts off the engine of your car and see how well it runs...

[Letran]

Gareth Congratulations and Welcome,

Without having more details sounds like your situation is the same frustration I had with my dealer (inexperienced, unprofessional, expensive and slow). Without an experienced dealer your c4 pieces could be as you said unreliable annoying pieces of technology.

I would recommend 2 things; One: be specify your issues(specially your network equipment router & switch), and Two: change your dealer. Two months of installtion is way too long. IMO

Be patient and with the right dealer your problems should get resolved. Good Luck

[GarethKeenan]

The installation is taking so long because every step of the way there has been one unforeseen problem after the next. Every time the installer has come over to finish up, there is always one more part that needs to be ordered and he will have to come back and finish. This last time he was supposed to finish, he still was unable and when he left I didn't bother ops checking everything in the house....huge mistake. Now my home phone doesn't work, none of the components in 2 rooms work. One of my HC200's isn't responding when I select the "4" on my remote. The audio in my wife's office switches randomly from source to source and she can't control it. There is a bad component cable somewhere because one my sources is only green and red. One of my blu-ray players doesn't work at all, the other blu-ray display is tiny when selected to any room besides where it physically resides and lastly, my media player can't read any files from my HTPC anymore. That's all I can think of right now, but I'm sure there is more I haven't found yet.

So it sounds like my installer is the problem then, not C4?

[Letran]

WOW. Most definitely, I didn't thnk I'd find a more incompetent installer but you certainly prove me wrong in this one. It was expensive to cut off ties with my initial installer but I still think it was worth it. Cut off your losses and find another one please. If you are nearby anyone in this forum you'd be lucky to get one of them. Unfortunately that is not the case in mine.

Installer issues => C4 issues => Wife issues.

I feel bad. Guys this one needs some help urgently.

[matt4gps]

The install on my system has taken two months as well. (Still not done.) I feel your pain. Once we think we got it licked, some other bug pops up. Now its my SR-150 that inconsistently controls the HC-200. My install is my dealer's first, so he was up front on the time it was going to take to install. I tried to buy C4 certified components to help make things easy. Event the "certified" drivers have their problems however. (my Denon 3310ci driver, latest build, doesn't even emulate the Denon remote properly. ei channel up and down doesn't change presets A1, A2, A3 etc.) All in all though, if I can get the 5% of the stuff that isn't working to work like the 95% of the stuff that is working, I will be very happy. If the dealer hasn't planned properly and is adding and deleting and re-associating video and audio end points, I think the code of the project may have a tendency to get corrupt and fragmented. My dealer ended up taking every thing learned from the first two attempts and re building the project from scratch. Once that happened most everything seemed to work.

I would give your dealer a deadline to finish the project. If he fails then hire a new dealer and back charge the original one.

[Letran]

In my case, My dealer was not upfront with me. I'm not sure about being the first time but he certainly needed a refresher course. I caught him watching video tutorials while he was charging me per hour to do the job.

He seems to be always asking me for spare cables to connect equipment.

A few features he said can be done no problem is no longer possible.

He initially said a week for a completed project (most of my physical wiring installs are 90% done), then extended it two weeks.

I did not mind the lenght of time that it was taking but when he gave a revised qoute doubling his price.

I told him not too come back.

Now, I'm still loooking for one, a competent, professional, experienced. Learn from my mistakes do not take their word on their experience. They might be experience with HA, or wiring etc. but might not be knowledgeable enough on Control4.

Get references, I did not I will now.

I'm very sure there are very good dealers out there. Sometimes you have to weed through the bad to get to the good ones.

Good Luck

[NkySpike65]

If he can't just get the basics working right, then I doubt he get it "all" working right... Just my 2cents... I too traded up installers...

[GarethKeenan]

Yep, I've abandoned hope on my dealer and contacted another dealer (who I should have gone with in the first place). I gave them the list of things that weren't working and they were shocked at what my experience has been like so far. I can't wait to get them out here and have this thing up and running right.