My Elk M1 Gold is here today in my apartment

[GraysonPeddie]

Like the subject said, my Elk M1 Gold has been delivered in my house and I got so excited to open the package. I got an Elk M1XSP, Insteon 2414S PLC, a 5-conductor wire for GE/Caddx wireless receiver, and Elk M1 Gold! It is very well packaged and Elk did a very great job packaging Elk M1 Gold. Okay, this is just my initial impressions, so with that out of the way, I have a few questions to ask.

Is there anything I can do to hide the wire nuts? I don't want to keep it exposed since I'm not going to hardwire through the wall in my rental apartment. This is just a temporary installation.

Another thing that's very important is that 2 unused wires for the zone must be terminated with a wire nut. Am I correct (just a very short yes/no)?

That's all for two questions and this is my first time purchasing a security system, but for right now, I'm using Elk M1 Gold for the wireless doorbell and automating the lights.

Anyway, the reason why I wanted Elk M1 Gold is I don't want an all-in-one security system, such as Ademco Lynx, Visonic PowerMax+, Rokonet WisDom, GE Simon III/XT (XT looks really nice, but still need to hide it in the closet, which defeats the look of the keypad ). By buying Elk M1 Gold outright instead of an all-in-one security system, I could avoid the hassle of trying to sell an all-in-one security system if there could be a possibility that no one (or maybe some) will buy an all-in-one security system from me. My predictions can be wrong, but this is the way how I see it in terms of cost, like a secondary wireless keypad, for example.

 

[Steve]

Is there anything I can do to hide the wire nuts? I don't want to keep it exposed since I'm not going to hardwire through the wall in my rental apartment.

I don't have a single wire nut in my whole system. Most connections like keypads are done with 'Beenies' (B-Connectors), but yoi can use anything. If your goal is to have it look very neat, you can inline solder the wires and put a small piece of white heatshrink tubing so it just looks like plain wire. Not the fastest or best, but it will keep it neater than connectors.

Another thing that's very important is that 2 unused wires for the zone must be terminated with a wire nut. Am I correct (just a very short yes/no)?

I think no. A zone only requires 2 wire and if you use 22/2 there are no spares. In any case if a wire is not connected at either end it does not need to be capped or terminated. I may not be understanding the question.

 

[lpott6]

I could be wrong, but I read the question as "how do I short a zone so it appears to the M1 as not violated?"

If that assumption is correct, all that is needed is to place one of the provided resistors across the terminals of the zone.

 

[GraysonPeddie]

Well, I don't have a solder ion, but I'd just use wire nuts for connecting wires together and cap the unused wires that came out of the keypad.

Thanks!

 

[Spanky]

Zones on the M1 can be terminated with the included 2200 ohm resistors or reprogram the zone hardware definition from EOL to normally closed and short across the zone.

If you are running the wire up the wall on the outside, you can get a plastic wire duct material in which you can put the wire in and it looks nice on the wall going upto the keypad. Most distributors carry the plastic wire duct material.

Wire connections are always better if soldered and use heat shrink or electrical tape. Cap off any unused wire with electrical tape, wire beenies, or even small wire nuts.

 

[RobWalker]

Zones on the M1 can be terminated with the included 2200 ohm resistors or reprogram the zone hardware definition from EOL to normally closed and short across the zone.

Just curious since I didn't short any of my unused zones ... is there a benefit to this approach rather than just reprogramming them to normally open and/or disabling ones you aren't using?

 

[Spanky]

If you are using the zones, program the zones for Disabled. Normally open also works.

 

[GraysonPeddie]

Well, I just got it working! I connected the wires to the approperate terminals and I am able to try out the security system for the first time!I left the M1XSP alone during the test.

When I go to the siren volume options in the Global Settings area, the siren is very loud at first, which got me nervous and turned off Elk M1 Gold (my left leg got shaken because of that). I'm trying not to be nervous, but I don't want to disturb the neighbors. So, I saw that I can adjust the volume for the siren, so I set it to 1 to hear how it sounded. But before I go into that option, I hold the siren against my lower stomach (very funny) so that I won't disturb the neighbors upstairs in the apartment (I live downstairs). I also saw that the date and time had already been set(!), which is kind of interesting...

Okay, I have a question:

Is it possible to keep the siren very low like when I if I am getting used to arming/disarming a security system? When arming in away mode and open the entry door, I want to be sure I can make it and disarm the security system on-time before the alarm goes off. Well, I know that I can increase the entry delay time, but I really wanted to get into the habit of turning off the security system before the alarm.

 

[rrockoff]

When I go to the siren volume options in the Global Settings area, the siren is very loud at first, which got me nervous and turned off Elk M1 Gold (my left leg got shaken because of that). I'm trying not to be nervous, but I don't want to disturb the neighbors. So, I saw that I can adjust the volume for the siren, so I set it to 1 to hear how it sounded. But before I go into that option, I hold the siren against my lower stomach (very funny) so that I won't disturb the neighbors upstairs in the apartment (I live downstairs). I also saw that the date and time had already been set(!), which is kind of interesting...

Okay, I have a question:

Is it possible to keep the siren very low like when I if I am getting used to arming/disarming a security system? When arming in away mode and open the entry door, I want to be sure I can make it and disarm the security system on-time before the alarm goes off. Well, I know that I can increase the entry delay time, but I really wanted to get into the habit of turning off the security system before the alarm.

If you are concerned about disturbing your neighbors, a possible compromise would be to skip using the siren all together. The keypads make noise when the alarm is tripped, and your ELK-M1 will still dial out. If you choose to do this, you will need to put a resistor across the siren contacts. Check the manual for details.

Best Regards,

Rod

 

[elcano]

I added a 10 Ohms, 10 Watts resistor in series with the OUT1 output to the speaker. The sound is about 50% of the sound without the resistor. Actually, I installed it with a relay so that the sound is suppressed during the nights only. If an alarm is triggered, the resistor is bypassed too. I would have desired to be able to control this by rules only, but the M1 cannot control the volume with rules.

 

[GraysonPeddie]

When I go to the siren volume options in the Global Settings area, the siren is very loud at first, which got me nervous and turned off Elk M1 Gold (my left leg got shaken because of that). I'm trying not to be nervous, but I don't want to disturb the neighbors. So, I saw that I can adjust the volume for the siren, so I set it to 1 to hear how it sounded. But before I go into that option, I hold the siren against my lower stomach (very funny) so that I won't disturb the neighbors upstairs in the apartment (I live downstairs). I also saw that the date and time had already been set(!), which is kind of interesting...

Okay, I have a question:

Is it possible to keep the siren very low like when I if I am getting used to arming/disarming a security system? When arming in away mode and open the entry door, I want to be sure I can make it and disarm the security system on-time before the alarm goes off. Well, I know that I can increase the entry delay time, but I really wanted to get into the habit of turning off the security system before the alarm.

If you are concerned about disturbing your neighbors, a possible compromise would be to skip using the siren all together. The keypads make noise when the alarm is tripped, and your ELK-M1 will still dial out. If you choose to do this, you will need to put a resistor across the siren contacts. Check the manual for details.

Best Regards,

Rod

And forget about the voice annoucements? My system will not be monitored until I get all the wireless devices and move to another city and be able to have a security system myself.

So, I really wanted the voice announcements like when a doorbell button is pressed (wireless doorbell), but I wanted to quiet down the siren.

 

[rrockoff]

When I go to the siren volume options in the Global Settings area, the siren is very loud at first, which got me nervous and turned off Elk M1 Gold (my left leg got shaken because of that). I'm trying not to be nervous, but I don't want to disturb the neighbors. So, I saw that I can adjust the volume for the siren, so I set it to 1 to hear how it sounded. But before I go into that option, I hold the siren against my lower stomach (very funny) so that I won't disturb the neighbors upstairs in the apartment (I live downstairs). I also saw that the date and time had already been set(!), which is kind of interesting...

Okay, I have a question:

Is it possible to keep the siren very low like when I if I am getting used to arming/disarming a security system? When arming in away mode and open the entry door, I want to be sure I can make it and disarm the security system on-time before the alarm goes off. Well, I know that I can increase the entry delay time, but I really wanted to get into the habit of turning off the security system before the alarm.

If you are concerned about disturbing your neighbors, a possible compromise would be to skip using the siren all together. The keypads make noise when the alarm is tripped, and your ELK-M1 will still dial out. If you choose to do this, you will need to put a resistor across the siren contacts. Check the manual for details.

Best Regards,

Rod

And forget about the voice annoucements? My system will not be monitored until I get all the wireless devices and move to another city and be able to have a security system myself.

So, I really wanted the voice announcements like when a doorbell button is pressed (wireless doorbell), but I wanted to quiet down the siren.

Thanks Grayson,

It's been a while since I have tested my M1 alarm. I forgot that it does have a loud siren. I just remember the talking part when the alarm is tripped.

Best Regards,

Rod

 

[GraysonPeddie]

Well, it looks like I'm gonna have to put in a 10 ohm resistor, sacrifacing the voice volume...

Thanks!

 

[fitzpatri8]

Doesn't the device offer a switched relay output on alarm also? Could you set up an additional wirepair so that when the alarm went off, it would add the resistor to the keypad output?

 

[GraysonPeddie]

Question about the 10 Ohm resistor: Will it work if I wire the resistor from the positive terminal to the wire that leads to the positive terminal of the speaker/siren?

I plan to buy this:
10 Ohm 10W 5% Wirewound Resistor (2-Pack)