Recent content by tisserda

I'm putting together my home theater and plan to put black velvet drapes around the screen.  I have a Cinemascope (2.35:1) screen and would like to put in motorized drapes to mask off the screen when watching 16:9 sources.  I'm not sure where to start.  Any recommendations?  If you've got a...

DEL, As always, thanks for the advice.  Most of my use of the streaming is on the local network which is gigabit.

I'd like to replace my Swann DVR with something a little better.  Main feature I'm interested in beyond the basics is compatibility with eKeypad and streaming video support (mjpeg or h264) via a standard protocol like RTSP.   I've searched through a bunch of the ones listed on ekeypad's site for...

I've got 6 speakers mounted in the ceiling of my back porch.  The ceiling material is concrete board and creates lots of reverb/feedback.  The speakers mount with a screw/clamp style lock.  I was thinking about cutting out some MDF in a 2" wide ring around the speaker to provide a more secure...

I've got HTD inwall/inceiling speakers and very happy with sound and support. Mike and Co. are great group of folks.

I'm trying to mount some in ceiling speakers on my back patio. The ceiling material is masonite board. Is there a better way to cut the holes besides a sawsall? Any suggestions?

DEL, as always, thanks for all the feedback and responses! You keep prompting to peel back another layer, which I really appreciate. My initial thought was to use motion detection only in the kitchen (central hub of the house) to trigger events based on time of day and other events. For...

Any recommendations on wiring the glass break detectors and brand/model? I have 1 large room (20x36) with glass windows/doors the length of one of the long walls. I'm assuming I need 1-2 sensors mounted on the opposite side. The master bedroom is 16x16 with windows on 1 wall, so 1 sensor for...

I'd like to trigger both security and HA events by motion detection. Can I use a single sensor tied to either M1, or to ISY994, or do I need a sensor for each system? If just one sensor, do I tie it to the Elk and feed events to the ISY, or the other way?

All, thanks alot for the feedback. i had definitely forgotten a couple of things I need to go refigure: smoke detectors and glass break sensor(s). DEL, my original intent was to put a glass break sensor in the main living area that has almost a whole wall of glass windows facing the back...

This may be difficult to grasp without seeing the floor plan, but hopefully I can describe enough to make sense. Below are the proposed zones I plan to setup/route: Z1 - front door Z2 - back doors (I have 2 sets of double doors leading onto the backporch that are side by side so I was going to...

What is the advantage or running a zone from the local keypad vs. having all tied back to the central controller? Other than ease of wiring, nothing stood out to me in reading the manuals as an obvious advantage/disadvantage.

Well after numerous hours spent surfing and researching here and many of the HA vendor sites, here is what I've ordered to get started: Elk M1 + ISY994 package from smarthome which includes the ethernet module for the Elk. 1 extra keypad so there will be one at the front and the garage door...

I've used fabDVD.com with great luck. I think I've only had 1 disc with issue copying. It is very easy and staight forward. As far as playback of blurays, there are several options depending on what you are using for clients. I've got a PS3 and WD LiveHub and use PS3Mediaserver to stream to...

Hello Cocoon'ers. I'm a long time lurker, first time poster. Just wanted to take a moment to introduce myself and give some background on my 'project' as I'm sure I'll be polling the community for help regularly. I'm about to break ground on a new home construction. After reading about all...