Roku Ultra or Apple TV 4K, Plex

[antneed]

We are getting ready to move into our newly constructed house which will have Control4! Super excited! 
keep in mind, I currently do not have C4 or have any previous experience with C4. I am doing a lot of reading to learn more prior to moving in.

I have a few questions:

1.  I currently have all my media, movies, music & pictures on a Mac Mini running Plex. Will incorporate 2 TV, 3 zones of audio.

Purchased a new Sony smart Android TV X900H.

Would I need to buy a Roku Ultra? I read that Roku is much easier to integrate into C4.

or

an Apple TV 4K.

Or

will it be ok to use the apps from the TV?

I currently use a Apple TV 4 (non 4K).

2.  Also what is the best way to integrate my Plex server into Control4? The Roku Ultra.or the Chowmein driver, isn’t the only difference with the Chowmein driver: I can launch media directly from the C4 menu. And with the Roku, I simply need to open the Plex app? Is this correct?

3. With Plex integrated into C4 I still will be able to view all my movies (all non iTunes), music (all mp3s and non iTunes), and my pictures?

 

thank you.

[joecheech]

Roku

[OceanDad]

Go with Roku if you are choosing between one or the other.  All round integration is better (mini apps etc)

On Plex, it depends what you are trying to achieve.  If you want to be able to view cover art, details etc on a touchscreen (say), then Alan's driver is very good.  It's overkill if all you need to do is navigate to the Plex app within Roku on your TV.  Using the Plex mini app, you can have Plex shown as a 'Watch' source on your remote, and open Plex with one touch.  You will be able to view everything that you do now, all that C4 changes is the means by which you navigate to/around Plex.  Your Roku/NAS (Mac Mini) will do all the heavy lifting.

[antneed]

7 hours ago, OceanDad said:

Go with Roku if you are choosing between one or the other.  All round integration is better (mini apps etc)

On Plex, it depends what you are trying to achieve.  If you want to be able to view cover art, details etc on a touchscreen (say), then Alan's driver is very good.  It's overkill if all you need to do is navigate to the Plex app within Roku on your TV.  Using the Plex mini app, you can have Plex shown as a 'Watch' source on your remote, and open Plex with one touch.  You will be able to view everything that you do now, all that C4 changes is the means by which you navigate to/around Plex.  Your Roku/NAS (Mac Mini) will do all the heavy lifting.

thank you for your response.
 

If I go with Roku running the Plex app , I still will be able to listen and select my music via my phone and not on the TV?  
I have audio in 2 other rooms that I want to able to listen to without having to mess with turning on a TV.
 

[OceanDad]

I’m not sure that I completely understand this question.  Are you talking about music stored on your Mac Mini ?  How do you want to listen to it ?  

[antneed]

44 minutes ago, OceanDad said:

I’m not sure that I completely understand this question.  Are you talking about music stored on your Mac Mini ?  How do you want to listen to it ?  

Yes correct, music stored on my Mac Mini (plex server).

Can I access it from an iPhone or tablet using the Roku > Plex app in another room, I would not need to turn on a TV to access my music etc.

forgive me if my questions are not that accurate ,like I stated I do not have a C4 system and have no previous experience with C4.

thanks

[zaphod]

You are probably better off playing music directly from the C4 UI rather than using Plex to play music.  With C4 you can point the controller to hard drives on your Mac Mini with MP3 or other types of music files.  C4 will then read the music files in and provide you with direct playback control with a nice UI with album art, etc.  But fewer people are doing that these days as people are moving to music services like Spotify, Apple Music or Tidal or whatever to play music.  Is there a specific reason why you don't use streaming services, like your music isn't available on those services?  You may want to consider subscribing to a music service that integrates well with C4.  Tidal is one example of that and they provide lossless music.  There are about a half dozen streaming music services that integrate directly into C4 and a few others with partial integration, like Spotify (via Spotify Connect) and Apple Music (via Shairbridge).

For more info on how to use a few music streaming services in C4 see:  https://www.control4.com/help/c4/user/userguide/content/topics/entertainment/basics-listen.htm

[antneed]

48 minutes ago, zaphod said:

You are probably better off playing music directly from the C4 UI rather than using Plex to play music.  With C4 you can point the controller to hard drives on your Mac Mini with MP3 or other types of music files.  C4 will then read the music files in and provide you with direct playback control with a nice UI with album art, etc.  But fewer people are doing that these days as people are moving to music services like Spotify, Apple Music or Tidal or whatever to play music.  Is there a specific reason why you don't use streaming services, like your music isn't available on those services?  You may want to consider subscribing to a music service that integrates well with C4.  Tidal is one example of that and they provide lossless music.  There are about a half dozen streaming music services that integrate directly into C4 and a few others with partial integration, like Spotify (via Spotify Connect) and Apple Music (via Shairbridge).

For more info on how to use a few music streaming services in C4 see:  https://www.control4.com/help/c4/user/userguide/content/topics/entertainment/basics-listen.htm

Thank you. I like the idea of playing music directly from the C4 UI. Thanks!

[OceanDad]

 

1 hour ago, zaphod said:

You are probably better off playing music directly from the C4 UI rather than using Plex to play music. 

^^^ This.  But if you want to use Plex on your phone, then you can do that as well.  Your Plex Server is running on your Mac mini.  You can use any number of different Plex clients (Roku app, Apple TV, iPhone app etc) to access it.

[antneed]

21 minutes ago, OceanDad said:

 

^^^ This.  But if you want to use Plex on your phone, then you can do that as well.  Your Plex Server is running on your Mac mini.  You can use any number of different Plex clients (Roku app, Apple TV, iPhone app etc) to access it.

Thanks! Cant wait to get into this in month or so!! 

Can alot of this integration be done by myself ?  Or do I need a dealer?

[zaphod]

If you buy Composer HE you can do a lot of this yourself.  Composer HE is a $150 one-time purchase and includes one year of 4sight.  4sight is normally $100 per year and you will want to have that as well.  C4 has also made it possible to add music services without a dealer.

[Amr]

11 minutes ago, zaphod said:

If you buy Composer HE you can do a lot of this yourself.  Composer HE is a $150 one-time purchase and includes one year of 4sight.  4sight is normally $100 per year and you will want to have that as well.  C4 has also made it possible to add music services without a dealer.

Providing that add music driver is installed by dealer first!

[antneed]

23 minutes ago, zaphod said:

If you buy Composer HE you can do a lot of this yourself.  Composer HE is a $150 one-time purchase and includes one year of 4sight.  4sight is normally $100 per year and you will want to have that as well.  C4 has also made it possible to add music services without a dealer.

Do I buy Composer HE from my dealer or directly through C4?

And, what exactly is Composer HE, just a program / app where I can program into C4? 

Also, any good websites where I can read further on Composer HE? 

thanks

[OceanDad]

You sound like an ideal user for Matt Lowe's new video series.  Buy HE from your dealer.

 

 

[zaphod]

You buy Composer HE from your dealer.  It is a program that allows you to program in Control4 in a simplified form.  It is a slightly altered version of Composer Pro - the Pro version is only available to dealers.  It allows you to do almost everything that a dealer can do, except you cannot add in new hardware items, like a new TV, light switch, etc.

The programming is based on events.  As in, if {something happens} then {do something}.  The something happens can be pushing a button on a keypad, a light turning on, a specific time of day, a temperature reaching a etc.  The do something can then be turning on a light, turning on music, etc.

For example,

If {Sunset} then {Turn on outdoor lights}  (Control4 is smart enough to know the sunset time for your city.)

If {TV turns on} then {dim lights and close blinds}

So you can do all of this programming yourself and change it as frequently as you would like.  Many (most?) Control4 users will never do any programming.  Most of us on these forums are geeks and like to do this sort of stuff ourselves and we wish we could do everything ourselves but that is not how the C4 model works.

[OceanDad]

All of what Zaphod said... plus this.  If you want to save money and get a much better end result, then you are likely to be better off with a remote dealer chosen from the people who hang out on here.  They are some of the best at wringing out every drop of capability from your system.  You won't be waiting two weeks for your dealer to roll a truck, and you will only pay for what you need.  You are not limited to the dealer that installed your equipment - you can change as many times as you like, and your original dealer won't even know (unless he comes back and looks at your project).

[antneed]

1 hour ago, zaphod said:

You buy Composer HE from your dealer.  It is a program that allows you to program in Control4 in a simplified form.  It is a slightly altered version of Composer Pro - the Pro version is only available to dealers.  It allows you to do almost everything that a dealer can do, except you cannot add in new hardware items, like a new TV, light switch, etc.

The programming is based on events.  As in, if {something happens} then {do something}.  The something happens can be pushing a button on a keypad, a light turning on, a specific time of day, a temperature reaching a etc.  The do something can then be turning on a light, turning on music, etc.

For example,

If {Sunset} then {Turn on outdoor lights}  (Control4 is smart enough to know the sunset time for your city.)

If {TV turns on} then {dim lights and close blinds}

So you can do all of this programming yourself and change it as frequently as you would like.  Many (most?) Control4 users will never do any programming.  Most of us on these forums are geeks and like to do this sort of stuff ourselves and we wish we could do everything ourselves but that is not how the C4 model works.

Thats awesome!! Thank you for the detailed explanation! Certainly something to look into once we're settled in.

I would consider myself a geek!! lol!! techy etc!!! 

[zaphod]

Here's a link to the latest User Guide for Composer HE.  https://www.control4.com/docs/product/composer-he/user-guide/latest/composer-he-user-guide-rev-u.pdf

[joecheech]

5 hours ago, zaphod said:

Most of us on these forums are geeks

Not inaccurate by any means, Mr. President! 

[joecheech]

5 hours ago, OceanDad said:

you are likely to be better off with a remote dealer chosen from the people who hang out on here.  They are some of the best at wringing out every drop of capability from your system.  

Could not agree more.  You definitely came to the right place.

[antneed]

Thank you all! Appreciate the advice and answers....I’m sure I’m going to have a million more once we move in!

 

[antneed]

15 hours ago, OceanDad said:

All of what Zaphod said... plus this.  If you want to save money and get a much better end result, then you are likely to be better off with a remote dealer chosen from the people who hang out on here.  They are some of the best at wringing out every drop of capability from your system.  You won't be waiting two weeks for your dealer to roll a truck, and you will only pay for what you need.  You are not limited to the dealer that installed your equipment - you can change as many times as you like, and your original dealer won't even know (unless he comes back and looks at your project).

Who are the remote dealers here on the forum that you all recommend? Is there a list ?

[eggzlot]

18 minutes ago, antneed said:

Who are the remote dealers here on the forum that you all recommend? Is there a list ?

Plenty of reviews here

https://www.c4forums.com/forum/26-looking-for-an-integrator/

[zaphod]

I agree regarding the remote dealers, but I would see how things go with the dealer who you buy the equipment from and does the initial hardware installation.  The best case scenario is that this dealer is very good, he can do your install and can quickly help you with any other issues by logging on remotely.  That dealer is in the best place to help you, especially if it requries some physical work in your house.  If I were you I would try to get everything up and running with this initial dealer and if that dealer isn't responsive then switch to an online dealer.

[Matt Lowe]

Something to check out is our premium tier we offer 5 hours of free remote programming each month. I know a lot of the other dealers here as well and they are all great guys so you can not go wrong with any one of us here.

patreon.com/waltstv