Teken

Michael, Your contribution to this effort is also greatly appreciated - more the merrier I say! I should add the bulk of this deployment is *Local First* as I'm trying to reduce my reliance on other outside factors like a loss of Internet, 3rd party services, etc.

Ah got it - Sadly, I won't be using the Sonos for such a use case so the *Cut In* will be more than fine in this application. For me its trying to find a network speaker that allows tight integration with the ISY Series Controller to alter the volume when and if required. Bumbershoot has already offered this critical piece of information so unless someone can offer a comparable alternative system it may very well be the Sono's is the speaker of choice.

Can you offer a little more insight to the high lighted portion. Was the deal breaker a pro vs con for you? As I see great benefit in *Cutting In* when an alert message is present. I have no problem using a smart application to resume audio . . . RE: RPI, I have considered going the central amplifier route already and may entertain this if a viable and straight forward solution is present. I won't lie to anyone at this juncture trying to balance *Time Suck* projects with life is something that drives much of the projects I have undertaken. I love to learn and take on new endeavors but sometimes the amount of time to learn, read, and accomplish the same just takes away the joy I'm after. I fully realize lots of this requires work, effort, and resources but right now my life is at that tipping point. Like others have said before me - Sometimes you just have to throw money at it! My problem is trying to accomplish that on a KD (Kraft Dinner) budget . . . LOL . . .

Bumbershoot, Really appreciate the over view and detailed NR's for future use. I am quite sure this same information will help those who already have a Sonos player in place. Right now I am still on the fence about laying out all this expanse for multi-room speaker (PA) system. Just trying to justify the real world cost(s) of moving forward with this or any speaker solution. There are probably more pros' vs con's spinning around my little head right now and the only single one is just plain cost. I was really hoping after five years the market would have released something like the Sono's. The major stumbling blocks I seem to run into is either no open network API, no zoning, grouping, to what I consider basic no need for a 24-7-365 PC! I am sure once all of the relevant competitor products that I am reviewing are done. It will more than likely be the Sono's players given it meets all of the requirements and ease of access etc. Thank You Sir!

Understood, I wasn't trying to store the audio files as so much as assigning zoned speakers to play specific files when required. The bulk of this conditional logic would of course be embedded into the ISY Series Controller and relies on me crafting the appropriate programs to meet this need. I just wanted to make sure each speaker could be addressed individually or as a group when and where required. This will be the next step in my home automation system which seems to have taken years to accomplish. I rather ask all the relevant questions to those who know so I can do this right the first go round. Rather not waste time, money, and resources in something that won't meet my current and future needs. As an aside there have been a few network PA speakers in the security field from Axis which initially caught my eye. If only they made this thing smaller and visually more pleasing it would have been my go to product. They also have a larger ceiling speaker that is POE and network enabled out of the box - but again it was too huge for my current project. I may consider this option later down the line but it also requires a 24/7/365 PC to be running which totally counters my energy conservation goals.

Bumbershoot, Excellent, please correct me if I am wrong since all of the speakers have an assigned IP address. I can assign what ever speaker(s) to play what ever WAV file along with setting its independent volume, correct? The initial plan(s) are to define quiet hours for less important announcements with a lower volume so its broadcast-ed to all zones speakers. Any important voice announcements would be set to the volume of choice say fire, co, weather, etc.

Hello, I would like to hear from those who own a Sonos player if this devices volume output can be manipulated via the ISY Series Controllers Network Resources. If so can you offer the required Network Resource (NR) to accomplish the same. I am in the midst of selecting a whole house PA system for my voice announcement system which you can see the details here: http://forum.universal-devices.com/topic/21106-brultech-green-eye-monitor-has-a-sexy-voice/ I was really hoping to find a hardwired speaker solution that offered tight integration with the ISY Series Controller and that which didn't exceed my modest budget. The project goals are to deploy several networked speakers such as the Sonos variety through out the home and property. The aim is to allow me to preset lower volume output for the sleeping hours for such things as when the refrigerator / freezer go into defrost mode. Currently my test bench has a very modest USB speaker directly attached to the RPi which handles the reactive Julie U.S. voice announcements. Unfortunately, its cranked wide open to allow me and the family to hear the voice messages which isn't ideal during sleeping hours. The girl friend was startled a few times when Julie U.S. started speaking in the wee hours. The ensuring result is she went into security mode and placed the entire home in lock down. Better safe than sorry for sure but it high lighted the fact people are not expecting to hear strange voices at 3:25 AM in the morning! Any insight as to the Sonos volume question is greatly appreciated. Also, if others know of a comparable (cheaper) network speaker system that has been field proven to be integrated with the ISY Series Controller please do let me know. I have no preference over one or the other and simply went this route because it was common, well supported, and had mass adoption from the HA enthusiasts. I must stress the network speaker must fall with in the Sonos price point or below along with having the ability to be connected in unison to send the same broadcast message.

Also to add to what Andyf0 provided you may consider adding a time frame to act as a *Watch Dog*. Not only does this ensure the device is turned off it will help reduce your energy consumption. Towel warmers are one of the largest vampire draw appliances a person has besides in floor heating.

========================= The highest calling in life is to serve ones country faithfully - Teach others what can be. Do what is right and not what is popular.

I agree with Jtara that supporting a device which offers the most flexible protocol support just makes sense. I too have the Bleu Station USB iBeacons - can't say much use has been seen by them. More than likely I will purchase the Mobilinc add on which should make them more useful. As the various tools for this product is just terrible and doesn't allow the user to change the major vs minor power output levels with out a blasted password! Why would that matter one would ask?!?! Well, if the blasted thing is out of sorts and the so called hard reset doesn't work. You have absolutely no method to gain access to change those parameters and many more! I've had mine sitting on the shelf for what seems like forever because I had high hopes for these little things but got quite frustrated with the two I had that couldn't be hard reset. The other two are working fine but again I give up because the RPi kludge that would allow me to make full use of them was just a huge time suck. Having more than 16 Alpha / Beta trials under way I didn't want to spend more precious time on this silly thing. Until things settled down and the market had some real and serious products that just worked. There are just too many products on the market today that offer vaporware performance when compared to the literature. My use case is for hyper local identification so reactive elements can be initiated along with gaining secure access to various systems in the home. Since this didn't pan out *Thank God* I didn't go this route because I would have been really boned and locked out using this method. With lots of past experience in other security related trades I opted to use proven technology even (IF) it was more expensive. Well, not really because it was FREE to me due to being decommissioned hardware! LOL . . .

Hello John, Sounds like a nice back up plan for sure - keep in mind you should ensure the HL2 PC is not active during the ISY Series Controllers regular operations. On a quick tangent I am not sure what FPS means?!?

Hello John, I can tell you from personal experience having two controllers / managers isn't a good idea. If you have a isolated Insteon network like I did its not an issue. I did this more for beta testing and lab trials as I didn't want to impact my production network. Only you can decide if the risk vs rewards is worth the heartache . . .

Hello John, My apologies I thought you intended to use two separate 2413S PLM's. One for the ISY Series Controller and the other for the HL2 software. If you intend to use it with your existing HL2 software it needs to be connected to the PC. When the new PLM arrives you can install it back to the ISY Series Controller as it was before. To be clear you can only have one PLM connected to a specific controller like the HL2 / ISY.

Hello John, Yes, you can use the 2413S PLM to connect to HL2 software.

In the same 4.5.4 thread is a link to the new Admin Console - Download and go.

If a person was on a limited budget they could always use a black sharpie, electrical tape, or filter paper. ========================= The highest calling in life is to serve ones country faithfully - Teach others what can be. Do what is right and not what is popular.

LED Dims ========================= The highest calling in life is to serve ones country faithfully - Teach others what can be. Do what is right and not what is popular.

Hello Smokegrub, I would encourage you to adapt this fantastic program from Belias: http://forum.universal-devices.com/topic/11566-leak-sensors-a-suggested-complete-program-package/ As noted previously the heart beat node offers two critical points which is (IF) the battery has enough power to send the heart beat signal (approx) every 24 hours. The other is - Is the device with in RF distance to the closest Insteon dual band hardware in the home. The reason for adapting the *Leak Sensor* program is that it uses variables and basic math to track the actual heart beat. If you already have the this fantastic program in place you need only add the open close sensor to the applicable line of code. Ultimately, those who use this program are assured of robust tracking and notifications . . .

Hello John, http://forum.universal-devices.com/topic/19331-my-plm-died-and-i-bought-a-new-one-what-should-i-do-next/ NOTE: Should you feel compelled to get some more use out of the 2413S PLM please follow this resource link: http://forum.universal-devices.com/topic/13866-repair-of-2413s-plm-when-the-power-supply-fails/?hl=%2Bplm+%2Bfail

I'm going to assume for just a moment you mistaken the heart beat node for a low battery alert. The open-close sensor does not have a low battery node. The Motion Sensor and Hidden Door sensor has a low battery node . . . There are three possible reasons for this to happen even a forth. The battery is low, the device is not with in RF range of another dual band device, the programs logic is incorrect (variable state), there is RF interference. I would check the current state of the heart beat program logic and see what value its set at. Sometimes when the controller is rebooted some programs do not come back up as expected. If you don't find any program logic in error. You can certainly hard reset the device and complete a restore device in the console and sit and wait to see what happens. For reference how many times has this happen is there a pattern?

Given the 2406H is fairly cheap adding this specific device to the sub panel is fine. I know lots of people use this device for personal reason(s). But, I am of the opinion that using a plugin dual band device offers more benefits. As noted the passive 2406H does not repeat, strengthen, or offer RF signaling. It also takes up a breaker slot which I am not a fan of either along with offering no secondary benefit vs a plugin device like a On-Off Relay plugin module. If you have need for a dimmer vs relay to control lamps or appliances then that is a excellent route to take.

LOL! Glad the *How To* helped you track down the little evil under score. This high lights, one can not take what the terminal window says literally. Meaning just because it returned a successful 200 Ack it doesn't mean X will operate as expected. You noted in my *How To* the only proof in the puddling is when Julie U.S. speaks! Now, your next step is to take advantage of the fantastic *How To* from Blueman 2 in making the Amazon Echo *Alexa* offer you two way vocalization. This is what I am working on right now and its been simply fantastic . . . Please let me know if you are needing any help in this area also . . . Best Regards

Hello Dalter2, The following reply is intended as informational feedback so your understanding is complete. - The passive 2406H simply bridges the two sides of the split single phase electrical system in your home. This device couples both sides of the 120 VAC feeds of the homes electrical system. This device does not repeat or bolster the Insteon signal nor does it offer any RF Insteon signaling. - Best practices is to have a plugin dual band device on all four corners of the home. This encompasses all floors of the home from basement, main, second level etc. If a plugin device is to be used I always opt for using and buying a lamp linc, on-off relay module as it offers dual use vs the dedicated Range Extender (RE) which replaces the Access Point (AP). The benefit of the On-Off Relay module is that it has the ability to turn the RF vs Powerline signaling on vs off. It also includes other features not seen on the dual band lamp linc. - 4 tap beacon test: This test simply indicates three critical points when the test is initiated. A) That both sides of the electrical feed is coupled / bridged. That the device is either on the same leg vs opposite leg of the split single phase electrical system. C) That the RF signal can indeed reach another dual band device in the home. If a specific device does not respond it simply indicates its not with in RF reception of the beacon test. - Hop Count: The topology limits the hop count to three to reduce the possibility of communication *Fire Storm*. Meaning if the system was allowed to continue to send signals the entire Insteon network could be brought down due to over flow of data flow to complete that single request. This is why its limited to three attempted hops or attempted signals . . . - PLM vs HUB: The HUB II offer a stronger RF signaling vs the 2413S PLM. Specs range from 200 - 250 feet vs the 2413S PLM's *Up to 150 range. As you noted if your *Initial Insteon Mesh* is still in the mist of being deployed its important to have the 2413S PLM open and exposed to allow the enrolling process to be completed. - Noise makers / Signal Suckers: No matter how much coupling - bridging you have in the home along with how much dual band devices you have in the home. No power line technology will over come these issues so proper use and deployment of filters are a must if you seek to have a robust and reliable Insteon network. Please ensure all electronics are placed on a Insteon Filter Linc or similar . . .

Hello ELA, At the gym right now so will offer you a comprehensive *how to* link with lots of pictures to follow and troubleshooting steps upon my return. EDIT: I just sent you a PM with the *How To* which indicates the trouble shooting steps to follow. Please let me know if it solves your issues. If not all of us can go through the next steps to accomplish the same.

I didn't know the entire mail box was encased inside of the brick housing. Regardless, you could still insert a two conductor wire through a small hole around the lip of the mail box door area. I would need a side view of the mail box to see if this is possible. Could you offer an alternate view from the side (profile) to see what it is we are working with in terms of space / entry point?