luvness Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 Im renovating my home in DC the walls are open and would like to pre wire for the following:All my power has been installed1. I would like to control my lighting through out the house, its my understanding that the dimmers/switches are wireless as no additional wiring needed. i also have a 4way switch. Does C4 have a switch to support that? also re the dimmer compatible with cfl/led light bulbs?2. A/V what to run to my TV locations? coax? cat6? hdmi? how many cables or each? I plan on having Comcast, Apple Tv and 3. Sound system for 4 zones 16/2 or 16/4 how do I wire them to pair them with a zone? what speakers work best with C4... (affordable) what devices do I need?4. Thermostat, what to i need to run to the wired thermostat? Cat6? how many lines?5. Security cams and ADT system? what ADT system is compatible with C4? what to run for the cameras?6. Blinds, what blinds work with the system? what are the wiring requirements?7. Garage door control? what are the wiring requirements? Special parts?what hardware should the dealer price up?i will get a dealer to install and program the system i will just be doing the wiring. i have contracted a dealer but they follow up on these guys suck... i think ill give a few guys on here a shot. i just want to get my wiring in and get feed back on what the system should look like from a 3rd party thats not see my ignorance and seeing dollars signs by pricing for a lot of unnecessary stuff.i plan on getting started on the prewire this weekend (my time line is short sine i got my deployment papers) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvness Posted February 17, 2011 Author Share Posted February 17, 2011 oh don't plan on having and touch screens i will use ipads.how user friendly is the system once its set up as far as setting up configurations... ie a lighting setting for parties, quite nights etc. will i have to call a dealer overtime i want to change how my system works? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannyboy Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 Hope this helps,I found a lot of this info on the forums, and ran all my own cabling too. It gave me a sense of achievement.. Good luck and hope some of this helps1. Control 4 lighting control is wireless, For your multiple-way switches just use keypads which send a wireless signal to the c4 switch to turn the light on/off. Just need power to the locations you want keypads.2.av you want to think about a little, everyone will say run conduit, so you can run extra cables easily in the future, but having done this, I wish I had run more cables and had not been tight with one hdmi to each locationI have a central rack to distribute the antenna quad shield rg6, 4xcat6 shielded, hdmi v1.4, cat5, component and stereo audio.3. Google awg and distance to determine wire thickness for speakers, but get the thick stuff, run a set of speaker wires to each room from the closet where you will have the matrix amp.4. If only running heating need 4 core wire, with heat& cooling need 5 core from heater to where the Tstat will be. Need one run per zone/Tstat. Not sure about cat 5/6, there is 4 and 5 core wire for Hvac.5. I've got Poe switches, so ran cat 5e for ipcams.7. Run figure 8 cable(2 wires) from garage door to closet and from motor to closet, alternatively can use card access wireless solution Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvness Posted February 17, 2011 Author Share Posted February 17, 2011 Hope this helps,I found a lot of this info on the forums, and ran all my own cabling too. It gave me a sense of achievement.. Good luck and hope some of this helps1. Control 4 lighting control is wireless, For your multiple-way switches just use keypads which send a wireless signal to the c4 switch to turn the light on/off. Just need power to the locations you want keypads.2.av you want to think about a little, everyone will say run conduit, so you can run extra cables easily in the future, but having done this, I wish I had run more cables and had not been tight with one hdmi to each locationI have a central rack to distribute the antenna quad shield rg6, 4xcat6 shielded, hdmi v1.4, cat5, component and stereo audio.3. Google awg and distance to determine wire thickness for speakers, but get the thick stuff, run a set of speaker wires to each room from the closet where you will have the matrix amp.4. If only running heating need 4 core wire, with heat& cooling need 5 core from heater to where the Tstat will be. Need one run per zone/Tstat. Not sure about cat 5/6, there is 4 and 5 core wire for Hvac.5. I've got Poe switches, so ran cat 5e for ipcams.7. Run figure 8 cable(2 wires) from garage door to closet and from motor to closet, alternatively can use card access wireless solution2. ok so what is all that cable for exactly? why not 5Xcat6?4. ok so just basic Tstat wiring??? This is in place already.5. can i run cat5? (i have a box of this stuff)7. what AWG is that? 18/2?? from the motor to the closet i understand but to the door??? What will it be connected to?also what type of hardware do you have? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mongo Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 of everything you posted here, the glaring part for me was the issues you are already having getting in touch with your dealer. It doesnt matter what kind of equipment you install, if your dealer sucks, your c4 experience will suck! You are going to have some bugs/issues right after your install -- finding a dealer that is easily reachable, and helpful will make every dollar you spend worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFUG Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 So true. You can be crack at what you do on the job but all it takes is some obscure snag in the project to ruin your day. Of course, some the C4 product has not "made my day" either... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strange_brew Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 of everything you posted here, the glaring part for me was the issues you are already having getting in touch with your dealer. It doesnt matter what kind of equipment you install, if your dealer sucks, your c4 experience will suck! You are going to have some bugs/issues right after your install -- finding a dealer that is easily reachable, and helpful will make every dollar you spend worth it.Huge +1. If that is how you are being treated pre-install, your post-install experience (i.e., after you've paid), is not likely to be positive. When it comes to C4 dealers, its definitely a caveat emptor situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILoveC4 Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 Im renovating my home in DC the walls are open and would like to pre wire for the following:All my power has been installed1. I would like to control my lighting through out the house, its my understanding that the dimmers/switches are wireless as no additional wiring needed. i also have a 4way switch. Does C4 have a switch to support that? also re the dimmer compatible with cfl/led light bulbs?2. A/V what to run to my TV locations? coax? cat6? hdmi? how many cables or each? I plan on having Comcast, Apple Tv and 3. Sound system for 4 zones 16/2 or 16/4 how do I wire them to pair them with a zone? what speakers work best with C4... (affordable) what devices do I need?4. Thermostat, what to i need to run to the wired thermostat? Cat6? how many lines?5. Security cams and ADT system? what ADT system is compatible with C4? what to run for the cameras?6. Blinds, what blinds work with the system? what are the wiring requirements?7. Garage door control? what are the wiring requirements? Special parts?what hardware should the dealer price up?i will get a dealer to install and program the system i will just be doing the wiring. i have contracted a dealer but they follow up on these guys suck... i think ill give a few guys on here a shot. i just want to get my wiring in and get feed back on what the system should look like from a 3rd party thats not see my ignorance and seeing dollars signs by pricing for a lot of unnecessary stuff.i plan on getting started on the prewire this weekend (my time line is short sine i got my deployment papers)You really need to plan this with your dealer. The system will work better, and the install will be cleaner if he plans out the wiring. If you just call him in and tell him to do it, he's going to take half a day just to figure out what wire is ran where, and try to figure out how he's going to do it all. My bet is he has a standard way he does all installs, so at this point him telling you what to run won't take long at all and it will lead to a much cleaner/faster installation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cvlboy Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 To make your job simpler, I would use all cat5e/6, no need seperate hdmi/coaxial, these can be tweaked by adapters at monoprice.just to remember, don't skim on the number of wire in each location, you don't know in the future if you need sr-232 serial or hdmi at that location. So I would run at least 3 cat5e/6 to each of the location. ADT - I use concord4, don't forget to run at least 2 cat5e/6 to the security panel, 1 for serial, 1 for phone line..hope that help.Edited to add.. Learn from experience: you can also add a thread to each location for the future if you need to add/pull more wires. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannyboy Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 2. ok so what is all that cable for exactly? why not 5Xcat6?Dan- 2 for hdmi, 1 for tv Ethernet, 1 for hc200. 1 cat 5e for IR, and wii4. ok so just basic Tstat wiring??? This is in place already.Dan- yes5. can i run cat5? (i have a box of this Dan -I'd use the 5 for phone lines, and use cat 5e or 6 to tvs and Poe ip cams. Google the difference. It's not that expensive compared to your other costs.7. what AWG is that? 18/2?? from the motor to the closet i understand but to the door??? What will it be connected to?Dan- relay to motor, contact to door to detect if open or closed. I actually have figure 8 security cable going to all windows and doors for this same purpose with little reed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvness Posted February 21, 2011 Author Share Posted February 21, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvness Posted February 21, 2011 Author Share Posted February 21, 2011 Take a look at what I'm putting in place in the house...(pics above) is this right?... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILoveC4 Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 It is impossible so far as I can tell to know how long those runs are, but I would not put in HDMI. I would a pair of CAT6 instead, and use baluns. It will make it much easier to upgrade in the future, and you can have issues with long HDMI cables.Just curious, who drew that up? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvness Posted February 21, 2011 Author Share Posted February 21, 2011 1.3 hdmi bulk cable???http://www.pacificcable.com/Picture_Page.asp?DataName=MCC-HDMI-5P4-500 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mercedes Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 It is impossible so far as I can tell to know how long those runs are, but I would not put in HDMI. I would a pair of CAT6 instead, and use baluns. It will make it much easier to upgrade in the future, and you can have issues with long HDMI cables.Just curious, who drew that up?+1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvness Posted February 21, 2011 Author Share Posted February 21, 2011 the house it 47' X16' its a dc row house.. the longest run is 40' the A/V rm is centrally locatedalso is the cabling type hat i am running for each item right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILoveC4 Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 It's incredibly difficult to tell. It looks like you have several pieces of equipment in one place (with no interconnects?) and then a single HDMI pulling out to each TV?Doesn't make much sense to me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvness Posted February 21, 2011 Author Share Posted February 21, 2011 interconnects?? duct?whats wrong with 1 hdmi ran to every tv location? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILoveC4 Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 interconnects?? duct?whats wrong with 1 hdmi ran to every tv location?Nothing, as long as you have something where all the equipment is to route the proper signal down that HDMI cable.Plus, like I said, I would NOT use HDMI cable. I would run 2 X CAT6 and use baluns. Trust me on this one. I'd even say run conduit if you can. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvness Posted February 21, 2011 Author Share Posted February 21, 2011 any dealers in DC?... i need to get this thing wired ASAP.. so i can get these walls closed in... the house has to be livable at least before deploy to AFG... dealers or very good DYI'ers post here or inbox me anyone that have give me full help as to what to put in my walls i have to close up no later than 2wks!!!ps thanks for the info given danny Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ILoveC4 Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 Please, don't call me Danny....Dan is fine.Thanks, and no problem.Getting a dealer to help with this is the best idea. Then he will know what's in place when it comes time to install. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannyboy Posted February 28, 2011 Share Posted February 28, 2011 1.3 hdmi bulk cable???http://www.pacificcable.com/Picture_Page.asp?DataName=MCC-HDMI-5P4-500Braver person than me if you are going to terminate your own hdmi cable.This cable is also thin, better to get 24 or 22 awg. For the lengths you need they are only 30 dollars or so at monoprice.I agree with the other Dan and run cat 6 pairs, but for a few dollars extra, whilst the walls are off, adding a hdmi cable or two makes life easier and gives you another simple option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrettB0727 Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 I used the Professional 22AWG HDMI High Speed Certified from Monoprice, running 25' from Blu-ray player to receiver, and another 25' from receiver to TV, and the quality is fantastic.http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?p_id=3990Only thing to worry about they 22AWG cable is that it is challenging to make a right angle into a wall plate with it, so I ended up using some flexible keystone inserts from Vanco:http://www.hometech.com/hts/products/wiring/wall_connect/quickport/inserts/va-820490.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CFUG Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 ^look at this crazy parthttp://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2989800 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvness Posted March 2, 2011 Author Share Posted March 2, 2011 Thanks guys... I'm ordering my hdmi cables today.Question how did u guys test ur lines? Cat6 coax and hdmi... I'd hate to find out later that I gave a bum cable installed. Also can I run my cat6 coax and hdmi in th same holes, will I have any interference?I post pics tonight of the diagrams from the dealer I got thus far, let me know your thoughts. I will also begin posting install pics this weekend Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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