Control4Savant

On 4/10/2020 at 1:13 PM, C4Newbie said:

I have 3 of these and they all have become dim and are out of warranty.  This is very unfortunate and is a known problem and a costly issue for us homeowners.

Since Control4 won't take responsibility for it, this should really be a class action lawsuit.  

Yes this is a know issue on Control4s end. No people shouldn't sue, the company solved the production problem as soon as it was figure out. They have a good warranty and took extended replacements. This IS a dealer problem in a way...  A quality and established C4 dealer should be able to take care of this for you on their own whether it is fronting the cost or talking directly with the company and their sales rep about it. Professionals still have ways to get equipment taken care of when "out of warranty".

Generally speaking, the trick with Alexa and Control4 is the verbiage. You have to "direct" Alexa in a way that she knows to associate with the Control4 system. Most things besides native lighting and comfort are more complicated and may even require actual programing based on a "keyword on" "keyward off"  type command similar to a button press on a custom keypad. 

You would be able to separate the different audio "sources" from the different Echos to the audio distribution but the Echos themselves do not have any spacial understanding inside the Control4 system. There is also a voice delay factor to consider when hooking up and Echo though distribution depending on the audio gear and how it is set up. 

Perhaps you should look at JoshAi if you have the budget. 

12 minutes ago, JSTRONG said:

 

Just a reminder that this device doesnt really doing any controlling or steering assist. It is basically a central mangement hub for mulitple wap configuration

 

 

Yup. 

Sounds dead to me. Can you ping it? Does it show LAN activity on the switch? Do you already have newer Pakedge WAPs in play, why the NK1? 

19 hours ago, bdo21 said:

This is the first time I have set it up since the electrician installed the wiring - it has never been working before. I have tried different outputs on the amplifier. Would people agree that a cable kink or similar could cause this? Is there no way for an electrical test to show this?

Thank you

4 hours ago, Crustyloafer said:

You mention in your earlier post that the stuttering only seems to happen at a volume of around 40% and higher. This would tend to suggest there may be a small short in the cable somewhere along its route, perhaps a nail or screw, which at low volumes/wattage output will not be enough to present an issue but any higher and the amplifier will detect this shorting on its output and go into protection mode repeatedly.

No, a kink would not likely do this. Neither would a knot. Since its not the amp or speakers, it's either an actual damaged line which the electrician can test with one device or it was ran close to high voltage for an extended period of length. 

With the speaker unplugged have the electrician test continuity. If it has a light nail or screw in it the wire that will indicate it. If the wire was broken, the speaker would not play. If, it's a major short the whole amp would protect and no zones would work.

This isn't a grounding issue because you would likely experience this across multiple zones of the amp. but you are welcome to try some of the traditional work around like swapping the power cables with non-grounded 2 prong cables or connecting directly to a wall outlet or unfiltered power distribution. 

You can get some speaker wire, take the speaker out of the ceiling and hook it up directly to that zone on the floor in front of the gear and see as well, but hooking up different zones to that output and testing as you have already done is virtually the same thing.

I have 2 260s laying around that are in good condition and also do not have the failing LCD issue. $99 ea. 

PM sent. 

18 hours ago, drmark12pa said:

I was just reading specs on it... Looks great but the price seems a bit high at roughly $700?

Eh... 192 kHz / 24 bit WIFI capable streamer with integrated 100wpc amp. Thats a fully integrated Control4 audio zone with 2 IR control ports and local audio inputs for digitalization... its a good buy even at the cost. 

22 hours ago, bdo21 said:

It happens with every source. I have swapped the sources on the matrix and the amp. I have swapped the actual speakers and different speakers still stutter. I put the same speakers on different cables and switch the stuttering cable for the other cable and it works fine. I am 95% sure it is cable.

I don’t expect the electrician to troubleshoot the system (I need to use the same electrician as did the original wiring and he is definitely not going near my system!). That’s why I’m hoping he can find a faulty cable with pure electrical tests - ie he doesn’t need any AV knowledge (which he doesn’t have). If the cable tests fine for him, I am going to get into an argument about whether he has to fix it.

Thanks

Could be voltage interference. Your electrician likely won't be able to do anything besides check for continuity as sonic30101 stated... but I doubt that will come up with anything considering the speaker does function even under louder volume. If the line was shorted or damaged the amp would likely protect. Have you swapped output zones on the amp? Is this a newer occurring issue or a problem from the initial installation?  

5 hours ago, tekki70 said:

if you can run a cat wire from your controller to the the actual garage doors and install these magnets to track the the state of the door 

https://www.amazon.com/Honeywell-Ademco-958-Overhead-Contacts/dp/B0006M1I1W/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=honeywell+garage+door+magnet&qid=1586687809&sr=8-1

or you can buy the a Z2io and use the them on the contacts, but thats added costs

you could also buy the tilt sensors 

then you can buy the garage door remotes to solder onto or the piece listed above with wires already soldered

https://www.amazon.com/LiftMaster-893Max-1-Pack-Black/dp/B00IA2RXUU/ref=sr_1_6?crid=33YD0AOIHKCKW&dchild=1&keywords=liftmaster+remote+garage+door+opener&qid=1586687988&sprefix=liftmaster+%2Caps%2C181&sr=8-6

doing this you will never have to worry about a 3rd party driver

you will also be able to use an experience button to control and show status of your garage door

 

and yes you could go back to os 2 if you truly wanted to, its tedious but you can, however why would you? the enhancements os3 offers are very nice. sounds like your dealer is lazy, or not very knowledgeable. its your system, and it needs to be tailored and customized to your usage and enjoyment.

100%.  If you can, get sensors for both top and bottom per door you want to know if its partially open versus fully open... and you can hardwire power for the remotes as well so you don't have battery failures. 

9 hours ago, chiAVguy said:

I have multiple vanco splitters being constantly used for a few years with no issues. 

Glad to hear it. As a professional I have used Vanco over the last decade and they unfortunately don't always hold up in comparison to some other brands. 

4 hours ago, isight said:

How has the AVPro been working out? 

Most AVPro products are stellar. I spec them over Atlona. 

On 4/9/2018 at 11:58 PM, chiAVguy said:

I was gona suggest a vanco I picked up at ADI. Works great 

Unfortunately Vanco does not last. 

No

On 4/3/2020 at 1:01 PM, casperspooks said:

Have extensive experience installing Ub, Ruckus, Araknis, and Zyxel in residential environments over the years and Ruckus has provided not only the best performance but the best reliability over all the others. I don't care who the manufacturer is, it just has to deliver reliable good performance over the LONG run; not just a couple of years. Ruckus has been the only one to do that. Do what works best for your business AND clients.

I do whats best for my clients specially first before my "business" because clients are my business. I have extensive experience with these to in residential and commercial environments for more than just a couple of years. I do whats best for my clients by providing top performing networks that aren't extremely overpriced. 

Have you reset it? Have you tried the default 2N (non C4) login? As of 2020 newer firmware has initial password requirements.. 

44 minutes ago, eggzlot said:

It’s very modern looking and my house is northeast traditional.   The original DS1 was more of a generic look that could work with many house styles.  Just my opinion.  

It's a shame, I think that based on how it pieces together it wouldn't be complicated to make additional face plates.

55 minutes ago, eggzlot said:

Everyone’s options and needs are different.  Personally for the ascetics of my house the DS2 is way too futuristic and not to be rude, but I think its ugly.  

Prior to the DS2 even being an option, I had a Holovision 424 model that used their own VIO hardware as a SIP server.  Houselogix had a driver that went belly up with support after Houselogix shut down and C4 made a big SIP change in 2.7 or 2.8 (I forget which exact upgrade).  Holovision wanted to try and support old sales in the field, so they sold me a 2n Helios video kit, which replaced their VIO hardware, and I connected it to the Holovision face plate and camera and it works just fine.

I am not affiliated with holovision, but they have probably close to 60-70 models and in dozens of finishes, so its easy to find something that works with your size/style house. The DS2 is very limited in color options and as far as style goes, would not work at all with my house.

You are not the first person to find it ugly lol and they certainly are lacking in options. 

What are the button behaviors for the other buttons

Old. never mind. 

On 1/22/2020 at 9:25 PM, eggzlot said:

2n helios

it works on t3s.  Support for intercom anywhere app is coming soon I think but they have their own app anyways so it’s still a 2 app solution that works fine.  I use 2n Helios video kit tied into a holovision doorstation. Works fine. 
 

at Cedia they announced these 3: Comelit, 2N and Akuvox

 

The DS2 is a 2n... so it would be easiest to purchase it from C4 preconfigured for the needs of director and the intercom app.  Wondering why the helios?

Triad are current C4 amps/audio switches... hasn't been a "combo" in a while.

Control4 4zone and 8zone matrix amps are solid units if they are working. The have a pretty reliable power supply but tend to have RCA inputs fail. I believe the 4zone still sells new. 

Previous Control4 AMP104 and AMP108 are not great. Poor performance, horrible signal noise issues and the 108s have a defective power supply design. 

Previous C4 matrix performed fine but had failing RCA paired groups as they age. Processor also wasn't the best. 

4 hours ago, Mjhill1234 said:

Hello

I have an audio matrix feeding a number of stand alone non-intelligent amplifiers that are powered by a Pakedge PDU. What sort of triggers do you use as best practice to power the amplifier on for a room when there is audio playing and off when it’s not?

Thanks

 

It would help to know what the amplifiers are. Do they have auto sense? Do you use announcements? Trigger control connections can be done via a C4 controller and some programming.  

What speakers are you pairing this sub with? Do you have a budget? There is no need to spend $900+  with Triad. 

On 3/31/2020 at 7:54 PM, cohnhead said:

@chopedogg88 Close -- I'm using Win10 Home on VirtualBox on a Mac... do you think that is the root of the problem? Win10 seems to be operating fine on the network. 

This is probably the problem. I have used Parallels on a Mac for years and it has to be set up correctly just like any VM. I haven't used VirtualBox myself but I know professional technicians who have switched because of the problems they have had.

25 minutes ago, mstafford388 said:

haha I'm not sure what point you're trying to make that is actually helpful to the OP.  new controllers don't roll back.  Ok, he doesn't need to do that anyway.  I get it, everyone needs to point out all the things they know.  Welcome to the forum.  

I am trying to help him as asked. Are you going to?