DAlter01

Thank you Tom. Was afraid of that.

Thank you. This is a new house that has an existing Lutron system but no ISY device or other logic system. My prior house has the ISY994i I was/am hoping to use an ISY based platform for the logic since I'm reasonably proficient in programming it. But, I haven't yet picked a logic system. I think I'll explore the native Lutron RA3 logic systems first and then if that isn't sufficient figure out a new solution.

It seems I'll need to find that I need to source a good logic system for RA3 using LEAP ....... assuming Lutron's expanded RA3 programming is insufficient. Probably the first place to start is to definitively know how capable the RA3 programming has become. I know it is expanded from RA2. But, once someone has had a fairly robust HA logic system with the ISY software, it gets a little hard to settle for something less.

Was afraid of that. Thanks

So, I did learn that when converting to RA3, you eliminate the processor and bridge (telnet) for RA2 and replace it with the RA3 processor which has its own built-in bridge (LEAP). So, it will be 100% LEAP. The telnet aspect of RA2 is completly eliminated. It becomes an RA3 system. The RA2 part is the processor and bridge and those items are eliminated and the rest of it is just switchgear which is using their clear connect RF system to communicate between the switchgear and the RA3 (or previous RA2) processor. That clears up the path for integration with an outside logic system as long as that logic system can communicate with Lutron's LEAP API. There are a few legacy devices that are not RA3 compatible but regular wall switches, motions, drapes, companions, all of that is compatible.

I'm going to research that further. RTI may also be a good logic system for it. Though, I am hopeful that Lutron itself has sufficient programming options for if/then lighting control. I did learn that companion dimmers in Lutron do not count against the 200 device limit. With this benefit, I do not expect to approach the 200 device limit. Many of my devices will end up being companions.

Thanks. I will likely want to us RA3 for any new equipment to make it a little more future proof and take advantage of the increased device count within RA3. There is a fair chance I'll go above the RA2 lmit which I think is 200 devices if my memory serves me correctly from several years ago. After getting your comment I looked at Home Assistant and on the surface it looks like it might do what I want. Though, based on what @bpwwer mentions with the use of different technologies between RA2 and RA3, it may not work, or it might not work as well as one might hope.

Good point on the different technologies. Lutron makes them compatible with each other natively but that doesn't mean an integration can work with both systems operating seemlessly as one. And, thanks for letting me know the ISY platforms are not going to be an option. I figured that was my go to solution as I have some experience with programming within it. Darn. Do you know anything about the new native Lutron programming options in RA3? I understand it is more capable than what could be done with RA2 but RA2 couldn't do much so doing "more" isn't necessarily saying much.

I just bought a house that has a 2016 era Lutron RadioRA2 system of about 50 devices, a couple repeaters, and 8 keypads that control about 1/2 the lighting and fans in the house. It is a "dumb" lighting system in that it is just button control of the scenes it has and there isn't any HA if/then logic, voice control, etc. I am leaving a house that has a highly automated Insteon house (over 200 devices) controlled by an ISY994i where I rarely have to touch a switch and it uses motion sensors, time of day/sunset offset, and voice control through Alexa to control my scenes with a lot of if/then programming. It is a highly reliable system and makes for convenient living. I did the install and programming a few years ago but my knowledge is stale as I haven't stayed current with technology changes and have forgotten half of what I learned implementing and programming the system. My current belief is the best path to automate the house is to finish the install of Lutron devices with RA2/3 hardware for the switchgear, repeaters, and keypads and do any upgrades that may be necessary to make the RA2 system front end systems work with the RA3. But, the question becomes one of what HA logic system to use. I'm familiar with ISY994i and it seems installing the new EISY to control Lutron is probably a viable path forward. However, it sounds like Lutron can work with other HA logic systems also that may, or may not, be a good control solution. And, maybe even Lutron's native logic system is sophiscticated enough now to allow good automation with the RA3 system using geofence and time of day/sunset offset for scene toggling and voice integration with Alexa or some other system. I will not likely want to integrate more systems than lighting and ceiling fans into my HA system as my alarm and thermostat systems already have good standalone solutions that seem sufficient for my purposes. I might attempt control of the alarm, thermostat, or some other systems (Sonos) but this is going to be a lighting control automation and anything else that gets controlled is of zero consideration on choosing the best way to control the lighting. I don't mind taking the Lutron class(s) to allow access to their programming functions and I may even be fine with having a Lutron integrator do the bulk of the heavy lifting on programming the system if the Lutron RA2/3 logic systems are sophisticated enough to do a fair amount of if/then programming. I believe that back when I did the Insteon/ISY install a few years ago that RA2 native software was lacking in its sophistication and I would have needed Homeworks. Though, I may be wrong on that memory. Can some of the HA pros on the forum provide a little guidance on what might be a good path (or path options) to consider as i determine how to integrate the homes lighting control?

Well, hopefully it's someone's brother in law and has been demoted to refilling staplers? One can hope.

I'm sure they don't even know when things will be back in stock. Order sizes, vendor relationships, negotiations, production times, all of that will need to be worked on. I'm sure there is thoughts on all of this already and the old vendor relationships may be revivable, but it will be a minimum of 1-2 quarters I'm sure and probably more. I'd venture that some items will be over a year.

Might take more than a couple, maybe in 5 and in 10 for sure.

Nailed it, history can be very repetitve. Z-wave will linger on forever, much longer than Insteon. Device cost is so low and market pentration is wide enough there will be some demand for a couple more decades. Even if demand drops to just a trickle, a few manufacturers will kick out product to fill that low demand. The one difference, Z-wave continues to evolve and is improving with each iteration. If that incremental improvement continues, they may be just one or two iterations away from being a very good technology IF they can work out just a couple of shortcomings. Come to think of it, I guess the same can be said for Insteon with its incremental improvement. The brand got tarnished with their attempt at wide distribution a few years back. In my view the name had to be changed with their desire to go to a wide distrubtion model. They had to make a "break" from Insteon for a fresh launch to improve the odds of success with the updated technology and to keep the easy money coming in with the continued sales of the legacy Insteon line. But, with the new improved version being launced (if it is improved), it may end up being a great HA option at some point. I don't think version 1 of Nokia will be what this forum's users are looking for given Nokia's lack of desire to embrace power users, but version 2, if there is one, might be a winner. On the surface, it looks like the tech has the potential to be markedly better than insteon. So, are we just one or two iterations away from seeing the next great HA tech and the name is Nokia, a lineal descendand of Insteon? Probably not but it is entirely possible and I will not be suprised if it happens. I think both Z-wave and Insteon/Nokia both have the potential to be very good HA lines that can work for both low tech users and power users. But, by the time that happens, our standards may have changed and what we fantasize about being "good" today will likely seem crude 10 years from now.

@Michel Kohanim, That is an amazingly low failure rate on the ISY. Your firm is to be congratulated for that. Considering that low failure rate and since the Polisy will follow behind the ISY994 as its replacement in the near/middle future, I agree that having a spare ISY994 isn't necessary for my one install. Thank you for some clarity on the future. I do see why you suggest picking up a 2413U should be considered.

Considering your "inside" tknowledge I'll take your word for it. I had a 2413U in my Smarthome cart at 30% off when I got your post. Thanks for saving me $56++. I will, however, probably pick up another 2413S if/when they come back in stock.