Control/Dimming Trying to understand ETCs Architectural offerings

[JChenault]

I am trying to understand the ETC architectureal offerings, and to see if there is anything that is simple enough for a residential installation.

I want to use the Iredion on a track - ( and that part is pretty well explained ) but I can't suss our the difference between Paradigm ( probably way to much for what I need. ) Mosaic, Echo and EchoFlex. I 'think' that Foundry is distributed power control. IE power relays - which is not applicable to the Iredion on a track.

Anyone understand these different families of products and what they are trying to do?

( And no - I have not yet contacted ETC - Thought it made more sense to post here first so anyone else who has questions could have an easy resource)

 

[SteveB]

I would not be looking to ETC for home solutions, much too complicated a d expensive. Many companies offer control systems, Leviton, Hubbel, etc.... Home Depot and Lowes, or your local electrical supplier likely has simplified solutions. I use X10 stuff, which works just fine on 2 rooms

 

[Amiers]

Control 4 is another home automation that works if you are trying to stay away from internet smart home solutions. Easily controlled and adjustable as it runs through a web GUI.

 

[EricE]

As others point out, ETC for home is total overkill. There are plenty of home automation systems that do not need any connection to the internet or cloud. Homeassistant is an open source project to provide local control for Homekit compatible devices.

Personally I'm a bit old school. I haven't had X10 in quite a while (now THAT is old school) - I do have a ton of zwave switches and outlets. They all talk over a wireless mesh network that is NOT in the wifi range - a lot less crowding. I find the zwave (or zigbee - similar mesh tech, different protocol) mesh networks to be FAR more reliable and responsive than wifi based gear. The best thing about mesh networks like zwave or zigbee is the more devices you have that have repeaters (most do, especially if they are hardwired and not battery operated) then the more reliable your whole system gets.

For control, I use HomeSeer - it's been around forever. They have pre-built appliances (plug and play) or you can roll your own (example: throw it in a VM on your NAS). The UI on it can be a bit clunky at first, but the learning curve is worth it. HomeSeer can talk to just about ANYTHING - it has native support for X10, Insteaon, Zwave and Zigbee - and plug ins to cover just about anything else you can think of. Some plugins are free or bundled with different editions of HomeSeer, some are third party and sold on their store - think the App Store on smartphones - but started a decade before smartphones existed

Love my Homeseer system - my house looks and feels like a normal house. The automation is an extra layer that doesn't require anyone who enters it to have specialized knowledge about how to control every day things (No stupid apps to turn a bulb in a lamp on or off), but yet it's still there when I want or need it.

I bought most of the dimmer switches I have from the Homeseer folks - their dimmers in particular have some useful lights on them you can use to send you status messages (like a red light for if I leave the overhead garage door open again!). However if I were to rebuy switches today, the Lutron Caséta line is pretty amazing. I believe it's based on Zigbe - so if you didn't want to go down their path with their hub, it looks like there is a plugin that will integrate it.

Indeed, the biggest plus I have for HomeSeer is the awesome community and forum - this is the Caseta plugin forum: https://forums.homeseer.com/forum/l...ry-technology-discussion/lutron-caseta-donmor

 

[JChenault]

my problem is fixtures. we need a good framing projector ( a bunch of them) to light art. the two fixture options I have found are the S4 mini and Iredion. If we are using a track ( necessary because pictures move around) I either use the S4 on line voltage ( 2 dimmers max) or I use a track with DMX. I would like finer control than just two channels. So the question becomes how to generate tje DMX for the iredion. i could end up with something like the fleanour preset 10. Just looking for options,

now if anyone knows of a good framing projector that would work with one of the recommended systems, everything might suddenly change

thanks for the comments.

 

[almorton]

If all you want to do is generate DMX for the track, couldn't you just use a USB DMX adapter and a laptop? Or even a 12 channel manual 2-preset desk - that won't break the bank.

 

[microstar]

Times Square Lighting has tons of architectural lighting.... framing projectors, track, etc. www.tslight.com. Don't know about the quality but they've been around a long time.
They have SpecTrack, which is 2-circuit 120v plus a data track. Could you use wireless DMX to accomplish what you want to do?

 

[RickR]

https://www.lightingservicesinc.com/product/bpm-series makes the best track and lights out there. Preferred by museums and art galleries everywhere! Check out Control Track and BPM fixtures. Everything I've seen from Times Square is far below them.

Echo flex is the only ETC product I would consider for general residential work as it basically replaces wall switches. (Not UL residential) But I did do a large display room that used Mosaic and interfaces with Lutron Homeworks and the sound system. The thunder storm is amazing!

If you are doing a gallery project I would question the need for DMX. Real time control is not ideal for static scene jobs. Fixtures with individual controls are better suited as they remove a failure point. How important is interactive control? (Makes me think of Interactive Technologies, Scene Station has more features than a DFD P10)

 

[JChenault]

as usual I ask a question, and someone points me in a different ( better ) direction.

the lightingservicesinc looks very interesting.
thanks to all for the suggestions and your expertise