buckeye

Thanks for all the info. Really helpful. Sounds like placement is key and a lot of use cases I hadn’t really considered vs keypads. Checking what zones are on makes a lot of sense as I do run into the scenario where All Off isn’t specific enough when I want certain zones to still be on. Thanks again, all.

I am genuinely interested in hearing from other folks who have implemented Control4 Touchscreens around the usage they get. In my situation, I hesitated on adding them in the initial install even though my dealer recommended them back in 2012 when my house was first setup. I opted instead a year or two later to go a cheaper route and mounted an iPad to the wall and ran the C4 app. For me, being a Sonos user having both the C4 app and the Sonos app was nice but I found my situation to be one where music browsing/selection became the primary--almost only use of that iPad. Certainly that is the case when entertaining as music is a big part of our parties. Neither I not other family members use the touchscreen for lighting/shades/TV or other control we have integrated as that is almost always done via C4 engraved keypads and the TV's are strictly SR260's. Occasionally I will check our IP cameras just to make sure they are working but for most camera functionality I end up using the BlueIris app on my phone. The main floor iPad I is mounted above a bank of light switches of which 2 are 6 button keypads so maybe that's one of the reasons the C4 app doesn't get a lot of use. I definitely think the Control4 touchscreens look sleeker and is a more polished look but I've never pulled the trigger on one as I'm not sure the usage it would get. I've considered going all native C4 for music instead of Sonos which might make a better case for a touchscreen but it's not the top of my list. I should also note that I don't have any door/intercom integration which I would guess is one of the bigger use cases. I'm wondering if that's a similar experience for others where music is the primary usage of the T3/T4 or if becomes a "can't live without" device that is used for other control functionality?

I’m interested

I block any outbound traffic from the IP cameras so they couldn't phone home if they wanted to. So far, I haven't seen them try but share the concern based on other articles.

+1 for Dahua with Blue Iris as the NVR. I also saw some performance issues when I first stood up the server but the linked information below was very helpful and I now have 9 cameras and the server (Windows 10 i5) stays below 50% CPU even when viewing all 9 streams concurrently. https://ipcamtalk.com/wiki/optimizing-blue-iris-s-cpu-usage/ .

Gotcha. Thanks for the responses.

I didn't see this on any of the other threads but for anyone who has Josh with an audio matrix switch can you tell Josh to add a room to the current room's audio? For example, if I ask Josh to play music in the kitchen and then want to add the Living Room to that stream is that a native command that he understands or accomplished with some other programming?

PM Me if anyone has a set to sell

Another +1 for point to point. Even if you don’t have line of sight you could try radios in the 2.4 or 900 bands that I’ve used for many situations at work where a network needs to be extended through trees or sometimes even buildings. Since you already have familiarity with ubiquiti I’d try that first to avoid hassle and monthly fees of cellular/VPN. They are easy to setup.

I pm’d @chopedogg88 and he was able to quickly get me a battery/back cover ordered and I was good to go in a few days. Recommend reaching out to him for help.

I just added a Tidal subscription so I have: Control4 audio from C4 controller and other sources into a Triad Matrix and Amp And have had 2 Sonos Connects as inputs into a Matrix/Amp for several years before that so also fall into: Third party streaming sources (Sonos, HEOS, etc) and other sources into a Triad Matrix and Amp I'm really trying to migrate to the all C4 Native Tidal setup but the household is pretty trained on Sonos and prefers the search/queue/music services/alexa integration better. I don't really mind the two app user experience to switch to the Sonos app once we start listening to music except for volume control. I wish there was a way to control the volume via the Sonos app. There might be a way to do this but it's not setup on our system so we either switch back to C4 app or use keypads/SR 260.

Just wanted to add my plug for these guys as well. I reached out for some help with remote setup of new TV’s and some drivers and these guys were quick to respond and very easy to work with. They have the remote programming process down and know exactly what questions to ask and provide detailed instructions for how to work with them. Highly recommend.

I fall squarely in the 3rd category and would gladly pay an annual fee much higher than $200-$300 for the ability. On the other hand I would probably be divorced because I would be spending a lot more on new equipment and the system wouldn't always work because its in the middle of an upgrade

Think I found it: when When Sonos Connect Device Variable Play_Status Changes --> If CURRENT SELECTED DEVICE != Connect Then Select Connect as the Audio Source

Apologies if this has already been answered but I didn't see it when I searched the forum. I have a C4 8 zone Amp C4-16AMP3-B and a Sonos Connect as one of the inputs. We also have an Alexa with the Sonos skill and tied to the Sonos Connect as the default speakers. We primarily listen to music in the room where the Alexa is and the family has been "trained" to start music by simply saying "Alexa, play XXX". When this occurs, the room automatically is set to Sonos Connect as the source for "Listen". It works great and we love the setup. I recently added a Tidal subscription and added it and Pandora as native music services that can be streamed via C4 and also love that integration however if we are streaming one of the C4 options in the room and someone says "Alexa play XXX" we need to change the source for Listen in that room to the Sonos connect manually. Is it possible for C4 to know that Sonos Connect was just activated and change the source of an active Listen to Sonos when Alexa triggers it to play? Also, can that be programmed via Composer HE or need my dealer to configure?