cnicholson

I currently use SecuritySpy by Ben Software (Mac based, but connects to any standards-based camera or “virtual camera” from another NVR). Works great in my non Control4 context for exactly what you want (does live, multiplexed and captured footage review). Apparently there is a Control4 driver that people seemed happy with (based on postings from few years ago), but I don’t know the current state of the world. I might even use as the core NVR in my new Control4 house— it has pretty decent AI detection, etc, etc. Anyway, you might want to check it out and see if it might work for you. Just to be clear, the Apple TV app talks to the local server, not directly to cameras, so you’ll need and old Mac Mini (or new one for H.265 streaming and/or lots of cameras) to run the server software on. Server can get a bit pricey if you have tons of cameras, so this might be overkill if you’re NOT going to use as main NVR. Let me know what solution you pick since I want to do the same thing.

My understanding is that, for best integrated music experience with Josh, you would go all Sonos (either all-in-one speakers or "Amps" for built-in speakers. Voice feedback "just works" and music "deep" (specific song from any service Sonos is connected to) voice selection "just works." Barring that, it looks like adding a Sonos "Port" or two or three to the matrix is best for Music, but, with a matrix, you need to route feedback analog audio from Core through your matrix. My expectation is that this will also "just work"--- but Core/Nanos haven't shipped so TBD how easy/robust it is. I assume Josh will try very hard to nail this, as it is the key feature that makes Nano/Core so attractive. On the video side, it sounds like Roku is best (only?) game for "deep" content discovery via voice. Like "OK Josh, play latest episode of Ozark" (and it will play on the TV in the room your are in, with audio via your in-ceiling speakers. Since I am wedded to Apple Ecosystem, I will probably end up buying a Roku AND an Apple TV per TV and use Apple TV for "on screen" content discovery. You could still use Josh to "Hey Josh, let's watch Apple TV," but not to go to a specific app, let alone a specific piece of video content. Also, I think Josh's deep integration (content specific) with video sources is somewhat limited (Netflix and a couple others, with YouTube as the "all other" source for stuff not discovered on premium streaming services)--- so I expect to use onscreen browser on Apple TV for general viewing. I may hold off on Apple TVs for secondary TVs and see if I can live with just Ruku for everything. Another thing I learned is that, unless you are all-Sonos, you are limited to two simultaneous voice response sessions with Nano/Core. Buying a second Core *ONLY* gives you redundancy--- not four simultaneous feedback streams. Probably not a big deal in real world (how many people are going to be simultaneously expecting a response from Josh?). I asked what happens if you exceed two, and was told that responses would be queued (a bit of delay) and not just dropped. I figured I can live with that, but hope they address in the future.

Back to the OP's question, If you wanted to simulate "Josh asking me a question" (at least simple Yes/No questions), I assume you could tell Josh to speak arbitrary text (to "ask" the "question"). The issue is whether you can hardcode the "context" and have Control4/Josh take the appropriate action. Example: 1. Your "Good Morning" event could do what it normally does and, as final step 2. have Josh say the arbitrary text "Would you like to open the door?" (Josh doesn't "know" it asked a question) 3. You say to Josh "OK Josh, Yes," can you have the system 4. know the state/context and respond accordingly. (i.e., interpret the "OK, Josh yes" (in specific context) as meaning the same as "OK Josh, open the [appropriate] door." This all seems plausible-- but I don't know how easy/hard it would be to implement reliably. For a small handful of special cases, it seems doable. But is it?

Bummer. Not saying I'm NOT wrong, but can you help me understand why my logic is bad? Suppose I have 40 inputs and 40 zones, and two 24x24 Matrix switches (call them A and B). On each Matrix, inputs 1-20 are unique and used for actual source input (40 total, 1A-20A and 1B-20B). On Matrix A, line-level outputs 21A-24A are plugged into inputs 21B-24B (and outputs 21B-24B are plugged into inputs 21A-24A). Suppose I want to listen to Source 1A on Zone 2B. Of course Source 1A is not (directly) plugged into Matrix B. But, with the right programming, why couldn't the obvious solution be implemented: Tell Matrix A to "play" Source 1A in Zone 21A (which is plugged in Source 21B), then tell Matrix B to play Source 21B in Zone 2B? The logic would be: if you are asked to play a Source that is NOT plugged into the Matrix into which the desired physical zone is wired, see if there are any zones in the 21-24 range that are NOT playing anything. Grab one of those and route to it and then tell the other Matrix what to do. If all four are playing, the request fails. As long as C4 is aware of the state of all of this at all times, what I proposed seems doable, no?

I have the same question. I think I will end up with >36 audio zones and plan to get two 24x24 boxes. In terms of inputs, about 15 of them will be audio-return from TVs. I had assumed that "universal" sources (available to any zone) would require Y-cables to split sources and use up a source input on EACH Matrix, and then I would have sources that could only play on the zones coming out of one matrix (like maybe TVs on upper level can only play on upstairs speakers). Then I got to thinking--- is C4 smart enough to let me dedicate a few inputs/outputs to intelligently shift sources around? I mean, it's a matrix switch (or, rather, two of them)! So like use 20 source inputs on each matrix (40 total sources) and reserve four sources and four zones on each for double-switching of a source on Matrix 1 to a "virtual zone output" that goes into a source on Matrix 2 and then switched again to the desired zone off of Matrix 2. Assuming no more that 4 (or however many you choose to wire like this) "Cross Matrix" source-zone pairs at any time, I should be golden, right? Basically a virtual 40x40 matrix. I was thinking of using the same approach to bring access to all 30+ main house zones to a guest house 200' away (with a local 8X8 matrix over there) without having to pull a long wire for each channel. Is this kind of thing a native capability of C4 audio routing logic? Am I thinking about this right?

Thanks guys. Is ceiling mounting preferred or is this an aesthetic requirement that hurts performance? I am doing new construction with mostly 10' and 12' ceilings and figured wall mounting was better, and not too obtrusive with Nanos. I can see how wifey would object to a bunch of Micros on the walls.

If I wanted to put Nanos in every room with several areas where your voice might be heard by more than one Nano, does the system have a means of deciding which one you are intending to speak to (for purposes of location awareness and voice feedback)?

You guys have convinced me. I'm going to go for it. It would be cool in the future if they add some sort of Alexa pass-through feature for non-automation queries. Like "OK Josh, ask Alexa how many ounces in a gallon" Or just listen for both triggers and route accordingly on the backend. A smart house should be smart, and smart things know random trivia! Breaks the "maximum privacy" value proposition, but I'd still use it all the time.

Replying to old thread to ask if the Nano is shipping and if anyone has deployed it in Control4 environment. In particular, I'm trying to figure out how the voice feedback will work in a system with, say, 12 Nano's and one Core (with only two analog audio outputs). It would seem that the driver integration would need to be pretty tight so that the existing audio matrix would know that Core voice output #2 needs to get routed to zone XYZ at the same time that Core voice output #1 needs to go to zone ABC and then, a few seconds later, maybe Core voice output #1 needs to go to zone 123. And for this to happy in a snappy and reliable manner. If that makes sense.

I assume you mean installing the iOS app on the M1 mac, right? So all works well? I was worried about network issues for iOS apps running in "virtual iPad / iPhone" mode. But no problems for you so far I take it?

Hi All. Is there a publicly available "demo mode" in the iOS app (controlling a "fake" system)? I just want to play with and explore a generic configuration / UI. Thanks!

That's coo! How's the total latency of that? Low enough that you can use the Apple TV navigation without too much pain? Could you provide more details of the audio and video signal paths?

Thanks. I assume this makes DLNA source appear in My Music? By implication, then, you're saying no advantage to third-party streaming/serving boxes? I was thinking maybe they might let me do a blended queue of songs (from different sources). Like queue up Song 1 from Tidal, Song 2 from local (NAS/DLNA), Song 3 from Spotify, etc. Maybe that is also native to Control4 already.

Hi All. What is the advantage (if any) of having a standalone music server in a Control4 system? It looks like the EA-5 has native support for (certain) streaming services and can also handle local music ("My Music")--- although maybe just via direct connection to storage and not via network? My spec calls for a Fusion Duet box, which looks cool, but not sure what it adds. Would the user experience (in terms of navigating music and building playlists) be better than the native integrations? Apologies in advance is this is a naive question. I have searched the archives, but much of the discussion is very old and I wonder if the current versions of Control4 HW/SW now subsume this functionality and will cover me.

You'll need lot of PowerWalls to run your whole house for very long-- and they will never keep your A/C going in summer for extended outages in hot areas. Plus, batteries will need to be replaced much more frequently than generator. I think an ideal solution is to have Solar+Battery+Generator, all integrated (control + power) working together. It seems that this is just now becoming an off-the-shelf solution with the new Generac inverters and transfer switches. That's what I am hoping for in my current home build. CA (PG&E at least) won't let you arbitrage TOU rates with batteries if you have solar (can't charge at night off-peak and discharge during peak daytime hours). Bummer because this kills a big chunk of the ROI from batteries.