security installer here. Alarm systems arent marketed to people without money. they want to lock in people with money. also most people want someone else to do all the work. But this video is amazing! very interested to what you come up with please continue making videos like this!
You are pretty much on fire this year. When my son was born, instead of spending time out in the workshop, I dove in to Home Assistant, as it meant I was in the next room over, and could easily help my wife out when our son woke up and she needed a break in the early night. We have a DSC system that we no longer use, and have been thinking about trying to integrate it in to home assistant, so this is timely, and awesome. Thank you
I stumbled upon this exact architecture a year or so ago when my friend with a PC1832 installed Home Assistant and I happened to see there was an Envisalink integration. I ended up going down this same rabbit hole. IMO, having the alarm system be its own "walled garden", while HA can interface with it is the ideal architecture from a security and functionality standpoint. Sure, you can build an alarm system in HA itself with zigbee/z-wave sensors, but the reliability of a purpose built system like the PC1832 is a hell of a value proposition. "Local Push" communication is HUGE. I've installed a handful PC1832's with HA layered on top and I can safely say it's one of the most rock solid integrations out there. Looking forward to future HA content!
please please PLEASE make more about this and home automation and the various gadgets that exist. You bring a level of practicality and realism that most discussions about home automation just don't have. The applications for automation are something else I would love to have more videos of. Ryan's skank alarm was the moast obvious answer but I really like the water detection and counter-top illumination. My dad had something like that last one I had forgotten entirely about until you mentioned it.
Here's to hoping you guys can make this happen with your own security line! I work tangentially in the home wiring industry and would love to set up a fresh start automation/security business with that kind of open mindset! So you'd have one commercial customer at least lol.
On my home-grown automation/security system I used off the shelf sensors but find there's always something lacking. Now I'm considering getting a couple of wolf pups and raising them myself.
I have that same configuration; DSC panel, Envisalink, and a local home automation hub. I replaced a professionally-installed panel because it didn't have any home automation integration capability. The process wasn't too hard, especially for people that have tackled something like Home Assistant. It's nice to have a stand-alone security system and the ability to leverage that platform for home automation of my own design. Best of both worlds.
The sad thing is HAI was the go to for home automation in the 90's/00'/early 10's. I put hundreds in in the 00's, they were a automation system with an alarm built into it. We were on their testing board and then Leviton bought them out and within two years or so basically killed it. You can find them on Ebay for "cheap", great cross platform ability.
Thank you for this great tutorial. This may be the only UA-cam video that addresses the possibility of using the DSC Alarm System with Home Assistant. I just purchased the DSC-1832 series with an Envisalink 4 and hope to get it to communicate with Home Assistant. If you or anyone knows of where I can find more information on interfacing the DSC to HA, please let me know. 👍
I really appreciate your approach to security - a 2-wire contact closure can't really be a point of entry into the greater network. Too often these days people are all about wireless everything.
After using my DSC power series 1832 for a few years now. I can say hands down this is a rock solid enterprise grade security system. And I agree it's critical to have a stand alone hard wired system that will still perform even with no power or Internet. I've installed very loud sirens that my neighbors would easily hear if I have a security event. And with the envisilink interface I will be notified by text that my security system is off line. And interfacing with Home Assistant takes it to another level of infinite possibilities. But again even if all power is lost and Internet down this thing will drive the would be burglar deaf with ear piercing sirens and flashing strobe lights.
Wendell's smile when he is talking about the possibilities! Nice video, I need some time to digest it. Looking forward to implementing something like this really soon.
I started off with HomeSeer in the 90s and for awhile it was awesome. I think I paid $24.99 for the software. I purchased a Caddx NX8 security system but spent a small fortune interfacing it with HomeSeer. I could then self monitor and it even would text SMS notifications. But HomeSeer got greedy along the way and started charging for every little upgrade and any integration you needed. I bailed. I Went with Home Assistant and now have added the DSC PC1832 alarm panel and with Envisalink it's very robust. I'm super impressed with the features and possibilities. Especially the Free Self Monitoring feature from Envisalink. I can arm , disarm remotely and get instant notifications if the alarm goes off. Getting ready to implement some automations with HA. Since my entire house is already hardwired with door, window sensors and motion detectors with the DSC PC1832 panel it should be easy to automate turning on lights as I enter the house without a bunch of WiFi motion and sensor devices. And I agree that the DSC Power Series Alarm System is rock solid.
I built a DSC 832 alarm system about 10 years ago, all I have to do is change the main battery every 3-4 years. I can highly recommend using the EyesOn internet interface - takes the place of monitoring system, and notifies me in less than 5 seconds of the alarm going off. Many zones lot of wires. I installed DSC alarm systems in banks back in 95. Only had one DSC motion sensor go bad in this time. rarely have a false alarm
Just bought a house with this exact system (at least the keypad and the board look the same, haven't closely inspected model #s yet). Was thinking about tearing it out to go with something known, but know that you've posted this, I'm keeping it. Would love to see a deeper dive video.
You joke about this but with an HAI system I could actually get it to say this over the intercoms in a house. We setup a buddies to sense when the washer and drys went off, it would then yell at his wife to get off her ass and do her job. This was all a joke, but boy did we get an ass chewing for it.
Yeah and Konnected Alarm panel project, is just this with a crappier board design and a communicator board built in. That doesn't work with as many sensors. And no fire or CO. And no lightning protection. I've had a few newer wireless systems for apartments I've lived in over the last 10 years… all have gone under and turned into bricks. Best one was iSmartAlarm. But the panels… still going strong.
Just bought a house, it has one of these panels/controllers in the basement and I have 3 of those keypads throughout the house ... thought I need an expensive service to run it. Well thank you for this video. I’ll definitely look into it now that I know how versatile it could be. Damn wifey had me remove some sensors already and stuff the wires back into the wall ;) ...
When I moved into my current home, they had a GE Interlogix based system, which is all wireless over 319.5MHz. I purchased a SDR usb stick, installed rtl_433 to mqtt into hass.io, and configured all the devices in home assistant. Works great, not tied LibertySecurity or whatever the company selling the solution was called.
GE Interlogix Concord 4 panel I installed myself in 2009 (might have been 2010). It can open garage with a relay panel. Lights turn on and off using Z-wave. GSM cellular / Internet module gives me and monitoring company multiple ways to send and receive signals. I've got carbon monoxide, smoke, motion, and contact sensors. I can add additional sensors any time I want. My system. Also has 6 partitions, so I can have storage building or rooms on different panels. Another words I can arm and disarm sections independent of others. My server room is on its own partition that gets armed independent from the rest of the house. You could have one on a gun safe or work shop. Don't forget the voice module - it talks to me man. "Front Door Open"
Yes and no. His level of expertise is beyond most mere mortals. There is nothing wrong with Ubiquiti for example for the audience over other brands recommended in the past. Not to say I don't get exactly where he is coming from.
Installer here , all the big alarm companies make products with a common base , we can use 3d party io devices (radars , , magnetic switch etc ) via general inputs outputs and have limitations only to bus devices . Today with IOT some companies give options to use zigbee or z wave protocols but with an extra cost . Its a security product with cert, like grade 2 or grade 3 so no reason to non encryption . As a installer preffer a standalone alarm and seperate system for IOT is safest and more reliable
I wish this video existed about 5 years ago... Basically, I tore out my home's original alarm control board & replaced it with a DSC Neo board thinking that I'd be able to interface it w/ the Envisalink or something similar. I learned everything you mentioned here the hard way. SO I ditched DSC and replaced it w/ an Elk M1 panel instead. It's overpriced IMO, but it's way more open in design, even if it's still crusty technology compared to the things I'm running HA & ESPHome on. It has interface modules for a variety of things which use RS-485 and an ethernet interface which plays nice w/ ISY / Universal Devices and Home Assistant. Using one of these older DSC boards + Envisalink probably would have been far cheaper, but I couldn't return my old panel and the thought of giving them MORE money made my eye twitch. It's also worth noting that some of the better motion sensors use a combination of microwave + PIR and are VERY fast, sensitive yet immune from false alarms.
@@wishbone1138 Yup, it's been totally reliable as both an alarm & a HA sensor perspective. Elk has some new E27 control board... can't seem to find the price online, but might be worth it since it has ethernet onboard. Seems like a base M1 board is ~ $450 and the M1XEP ethernet module is an additional $205 these days. Yikes. They also have a new lower priced control board called the M1EZ8. Fewer zones. Requires a serial interface board to use the M1XEP, but pretty similar.
@@xyvyxthanks for the response. I was looking at the new board as well. Haven’t checked prices but I’m also interfacing with c4 and there’s no driver yet. Are these worth the cost over competitors? Hardware appears to be slightly more ‘modern’ but the bar is low with security systems.
Look into Konnected - Konnected is an open source solution for connecting wired sensors and switches to home automation platforms including SmartThings, Home Assistant, Hubitat & OpenHAB.
So I looked and looked and then looked for good local solution to interface with home assistant. I eventually gave up and purchased Ring wireless system which I know is terrible idea and some day it’ll turn into paper weight! At least it works great with home assistant, for note that is 😓
Awesome video! I have most of my home automation system planned out but was hung up on finding a good way to do the alarm system part. So many sensors out there, some proprietary, some use freaking coin cell batteries, could buy a 3d printer and esp8266 everything... Really like how this is more robust too, not some kind of keypad and siren that just sits on the coffee table and looks fancy. And its a good way to not feed the internet of shit, it survives on money!!
Love this.. One of the worse things someone can do for home security and I don't know why is a trend is use a damn! Wi-Fi IP based Camera.. 🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️ These are what you should do and wire everything up!
Satel integra. European, has working home assistant integration, they literally have the protocol described in detail on their website and you can add your own encryption keys for the bus
I agree. I built a house a few years ago and was like yes I want to install a hard wired Honeywell old school panel alarm system. I don't want to deal with 50 wireless sensors that need batteries and that can be jammed with a old garage remote. Plus I can add a add on communicator board that lets me use any sensor in any home automation platform from home bridge to homekitt to homeassistant to control4 and savant. I only wish I had got them to install shielded alarm sensor wire. And more sensors. I would have put more motion sensors in and water sensors anywhere there was a wet location. I've had lightning near strikes which have taken out the Envisalink board twice but the panel board Vista 20 because of it's lightning protection survived. It even traveled down the ethernet cable into the unifi switch and took out a Apple TV. All just from the EMP of a nearby strike. The house has surge protectors on the meter, on the panels, and a online UPS in the wire closet. Only way in I had was the exposed alarm wires. Oy.
Always funny seeing the patreon early access comments when a video launches! Side note: would love a level one tux plushie at some point from the store!
It might be worthwhile to take a look at Konnected.io Sensor inputs and output, works with Noonlight monitoring, expandable, integration with Home Assistant.
Great video. Would you still recommend a DSC 1864 in 2024, along with a Envisalink 4 to work with Home Assistant? I'm looking to replace an existing hard wired system, an HAI Omni Pro II and am thinking a standard alarm panel with added smarts is the way to go, leaving the automation to Home Assistant and the security to a tried and tested security panel. Your video came up as part of my research.
I believe that the Permaconn can be set up so that the monitoring is done by you instead of a 3rd party. So it will alert you if your alarm system is set off. You can control your alarm system by your phone. So you do not have to pay a company to shut off you alarm when it goes off.
Wendell, you are asking about well engineered alarm systems, but have you checked out the trigboards by Kevin Darrah? They are very well made. Actually you can see they are well explained with examples on his youtube channel.
Great video series Wendell! Trying to look into some sort of commercial hardwired system for temperature/humidity sensing and potentially ambient light level sensing that I can then integrate into home assistant. I assume there must be something for temp humidity for use with commercial airconditioning systems that we can integrate. Any ideas?
Stuff of nightmares. Every panel I see has EOL resistors installed in box. ADT installers adamant that's where they go. How do they expect to detect shorts if EOLs are installed beginning of line?
Have you looked into PLC’s as basis for home automation? Im an industrial engineer so for my home i used a beckhoff PLC. It natively supports mqtt and modbus tcp. Its easy to expand and you can add cards for other homeautomation protocols like knx. It seems like it would be a better solution and just as stable/reliable since its built for industrial use and has great support. Ofcourse i could also be massively biased since I use PLC’s daily
I have an IOT system based on Unitronic vision PLC and honestly think that an esp8266/raspberry with some i2c i/o expanders would do a better job at controling some relays. The PLC is expensive, forces shitty ladder programing, is extremally slow at TCP, and has not been reliable at all.
@@micher60 good to know, Ive never encountered a plc from that brand so wouldnt know. The brands that i use: beckhoff,siemens and allen bradley dont force you into ladder logic Just programs and functions with ‘if then else’, loops, timers, counters and several librarys premade for things like dimmers etc.. As for price, i think it probably lands in between a raspberry pi/esp setup or a one of the full blown home auto solutions like loxone.
I've have begun "The Project". Ripping out legacy Radionics D2112 system and direct replace with the DSC 1832. Hoping that all my legacy devices work (sensor, motion and smoke/fire, siren), we shall see. Still deciding on whether to go with Home Assistant or Homekit. My goal is to have all my data (video and doorbell ) stay local with alarm able to be sent to monitoring service. It is beyond me why no manufacture has made components that stream locally with storage locally. I have terabytes on NAS devices available so why allow my video data go upstream to a cloud company I don't know and definitely don't trust.
Personally use konnected.io. It runs on an ESP8266 (NodeMCU) and is fully open source, so you can even roll your own very easily if you want to. Connect your sensors directly to it. Replaces the entire base/alarm panel, and then talks to Home Assistant (or whatever you want to use.) There are no limits on the sensors you use. If you need more "zones" then just add another board and keep growing. Because it's all open source, you can add pretty much any kind of sensor you want. No limits. And it's cheaper than getting your hands on a DSC system + a board to connect to your network.
I have used an Elk M1 Gold in the past for work. It was great but I can't remember how open it was. EDIT: Looks like you can control one from Home Assistant.
Hi. i Have a Device like that. I want to use the PGM1 to detect when the Alamr is ARMED. So i can use Home Assistant to act as im not at home. Like Turn Off light, Turn of the heating system. and when i back to home, i can turn on All again. Do you know if i can use a Arduino Sensor, to know when the PGM1 is on. I use Tasmota and ESPHome. Thanks in Advance.
I personally used HomeSeer for years in the early 90s and early 2000s. But gave it up because they charged for any I integration or upgrades. Got to pricy for me. But DSC and Envisalink together with Home Assistant is amazing. Can't think of anything it can't do.
Dsc keypads with dsc panel Vista keypads with vista panel Door / windows sensors don’t care what the panel / keypad is as in motions or other sensors. IMHO dsc panels rock vista ok but dsc is better. Also use the EOL resistors it will save you later if lightening is around you. Seen way too many switches frozen shut because someone set up alarm system without the EOL resistor.
Do you know of any security systems that use a digital packet method of communications between the sensors and the panel as opposed to analog wired sensors?
You need to tie this to your home systems to make life really unpleasant for every intruder. Like this car alarm that vents brake pressure if it is triggered and the car is moving
is there a way to manually let the police department or agency to handle the cameras and sending the appropriate resources during vacation or when your out of house from long periods of time? other then that, the installing the wires and configuring the nodes with the brain shouldn't be too hard.
if I'm getting an alarm system with Home assistant I would most likely choose something that is a little bit more integrated with the rest of my home assistant than such a old system could ever become.
@asdrubale bisanzio This is covered in the vid. I showed a 2002 panel that is electrically compatible with its 2020 counterpart. ESP32 based systems will not achieve the same level of reliability and robustness, sorry. "End of life" is in this context is way different than what your picture seems to be.
@asdrubale bisanzio It's about as long-lived as the national electric code. New versions are tweaked but basically the same. The neo system is the one that grifts. But because commercial customers are smarter than that, they still make the older open systems. The older panels are electrically compatible with the new panels making upgrades easy. Kind of like how you can get afci or smart breakers to replace standard breakers even for an electrical panel installed as far back as the 1980s. Parallel product lines because no one wants to be locked in. Im sure they were hoping it'd take over, but from what I can tell it hasn't because no compatibility.
so many things are anti competitive now with anti trus and right to repair not evening meaning a thing anymore if your a large company and can buy your way out.... like look at the new windows 10 for example, you cant get rid of edge or any other things they integrated into it now a days...
I bought an Israeli made system 433mhz wireless. And then I bought the newer version. And same with them the new systems much more closed. Name eludes me but I'll check my eBay later and let you know.
I'm still doing the first fit stuff so ha stuff will be later. But I bought all the lights that are ESP8266 downlights of eBay 6 months ago that were under £5 like 40 of them and I have plenty of ubiquiti WiFi gear and experience with pfsense vlans to make a nice iot network for all the cheap junk to live on. Can I suggest as a little side project. Wled and a nice 16x16 RGB addressable panel. They are like $15 BOM of AliExpress with the nano 8266 and the modes are hypnotic. Also will work with all your other solutions.
So I thought I’d add some more knowledge. Why do alarm companies charge more than $5 per month? Because they’ll send a car out if you have a break in where the 5$ one won’t. There is a cost involved to having feet on the ground.
On the hardware side of things, the control panel and keypad are the only 2 core things that are really locked together (I don’t know the Dsc neo so excl that) - you can use any sensor with an alarm panel as it’s just a contact (connected or not - you can also add resistors for additional features*)
On the wireless side, you want the sensors to be locked to the panel as it’s really for security. If the sensor doesn’t check in, it’s an alarm. If the sensor is unencrypted or open, then it’s hackable
I personally dislike dsc because the system is too simple. I deploy texecom and paradox systems - core is texecom though. We’re a fully partnered reseller and developer for them and have the ability to communicate with the alarm control panel. What I’ve personally done at home is deployed the texecom elite series. It gets firmware updates which is nice and is very expandable. So I tapped into the alarm and used the sensors to trigger my home automation system actions or arm or disarm the system. On the plus side if I am not at home, every single room gets a sensor so extra protection on top of the home automation system. On the integration side, we developed our own module for our clients to manage their alarm remotely.
I recommend having a peek at texecom elite - look at the 88 chan upwards. If you don’t have direct integration with it, you could easily use the inputs or outputs into an arduino to trigger or receive alerts from the sensors or alerts. This means you get the full uptime of the alarm and the flexibility - note this can usually be used with any alarm system
If you really want to look into developing a system or integration platform more suited for home automation. Very doable while utilizing the existing systems pros and just expanding them further... also would be a lower upfront investment for a higher ROI than building one from scratch. Happy to work with you if you want to push a level1 alarm system
not that I've found. maybe one of the euro systems. It's "mostly" safe to have the unencrypted bus in this scenario, I think. at least its nbd for my threat model.
There aren't any good monitored home alarms that have good smartphone or remote management integration. I've been longing for something that works with up to date technology. This is an area with huge potential for growth and modernization. I am a DSC system owner and their app is shit.
Look at Kantech Entrapass, the special edition (entry) should be obtainable by any one and its going to open up way more than what the DSC can on its own it integrates to just about all DSC panels. Keyless entry video cameras etc. There are also APIs that you may or may not be able to get online but those are more commercial level features
security installer here. Alarm systems arent marketed to people without money. they want to lock in people with money. also most people want someone else to do all the work. But this video is amazing! very interested to what you come up with please continue making videos like this!
You are pretty much on fire this year. When my son was born, instead of spending time out in the workshop, I dove in to Home Assistant, as it meant I was in the next room over, and could easily help my wife out when our son woke up and she needed a break in the early night.
We have a DSC system that we no longer use, and have been thinking about trying to integrate it in to home assistant, so this is timely, and awesome. Thank you
I stumbled upon this exact architecture a year or so ago when my friend with a PC1832 installed Home Assistant and I happened to see there was an Envisalink integration. I ended up going down this same rabbit hole. IMO, having the alarm system be its own "walled garden", while HA can interface with it is the ideal architecture from a security and functionality standpoint. Sure, you can build an alarm system in HA itself with zigbee/z-wave sensors, but the reliability of a purpose built system like the PC1832 is a hell of a value proposition. "Local Push" communication is HUGE. I've installed a handful PC1832's with HA layered on top and I can safely say it's one of the most rock solid integrations out there. Looking forward to future HA content!
please please PLEASE make more about this and home automation and the various gadgets that exist. You bring a level of practicality and realism that most discussions about home automation just don't have. The applications for automation are something else I would love to have more videos of. Ryan's skank alarm was the moast obvious answer but I really like the water detection and counter-top illumination. My dad had something like that last one I had forgotten entirely about until you mentioned it.
Home Assistant, YEAH!
Here's to hoping you guys can make this happen with your own security line! I work tangentially in the home wiring industry and would love to set up a fresh start automation/security business with that kind of open mindset! So you'd have one commercial customer at least lol.
On my home-grown automation/security system I used off the shelf sensors but find there's always something lacking. Now I'm considering getting a couple of wolf pups and raising them myself.
I have that same configuration; DSC panel, Envisalink, and a local home automation hub. I replaced a professionally-installed panel because it didn't have any home automation integration capability. The process wasn't too hard, especially for people that have tackled something like Home Assistant. It's nice to have a stand-alone security system and the ability to leverage that platform for home automation of my own design. Best of both worlds.
Ryan had the American way of "DIY home security" with his emergency toolbox. lmao
The sad thing is HAI was the go to for home automation in the 90's/00'/early 10's. I put hundreds in in the 00's, they were a automation system with an alarm built into it. We were on their testing board and then Leviton bought them out and within two years or so basically killed it. You can find them on Ebay for "cheap", great cross platform ability.
You are absolutely correct. Its a real shame. Now looking at raspberry pi with GPIO as an alternative....
5 minutes after DCS watches this video, all the Open Systems are "Discontinued" - Thanks Wendell :D
Love the joke but honeywell works just as well and due to the fire panels they have the Vista series isn't going anywhere any time soon
Thank you for this great tutorial. This may be the only UA-cam video that addresses the possibility of using the DSC Alarm System with Home Assistant.
I just purchased the DSC-1832 series with an Envisalink 4 and hope to get it to communicate with Home Assistant. If you or anyone knows of where I can find more information on interfacing the DSC to HA, please let me know. 👍
I really appreciate your approach to security - a 2-wire contact closure can't really be a point of entry into the greater network. Too often these days people are all about wireless everything.
After using my DSC power series 1832 for a few years now. I can say hands down this is a rock solid enterprise grade security system. And I agree it's critical to have a stand alone hard wired system that will still perform even with no power or Internet. I've installed very loud sirens that my neighbors would easily hear if I have a security event. And with the envisilink interface I will be notified by text that my security system is off line. And interfacing with Home Assistant takes it to another level of infinite possibilities.
But again even if all power is lost and Internet down this thing will drive the would be burglar deaf with ear piercing sirens and flashing strobe lights.
Wendell's smile when he is talking about the possibilities! Nice video, I need some time to digest it. Looking forward to implementing something like this really soon.
I started off with HomeSeer in the 90s and for awhile it was awesome. I think I paid $24.99 for the software. I purchased a Caddx NX8 security system but spent a small fortune interfacing it with HomeSeer. I could then self monitor and it even would text SMS notifications. But HomeSeer got greedy along the way and started charging for every little upgrade and any integration you needed. I bailed.
I Went with Home Assistant and now have added the DSC PC1832 alarm panel and with Envisalink it's very robust. I'm super impressed with the features and possibilities. Especially the Free Self Monitoring feature from Envisalink. I can arm , disarm remotely and get instant notifications if the alarm goes off. Getting ready to implement some automations with HA. Since my entire house is already hardwired with door, window sensors and motion detectors with the DSC PC1832 panel it should be easy to automate turning on lights as I enter the house without a bunch of WiFi motion and sensor devices.
And I agree that the DSC Power Series Alarm System is rock solid.
I built a DSC 832 alarm system about 10 years ago, all I have to do is change the main battery every 3-4 years. I can highly recommend using the EyesOn internet interface - takes the place of monitoring system, and notifies me in less than 5 seconds of the alarm going off. Many zones lot of wires. I installed DSC alarm systems in banks back in 95. Only had one DSC motion sensor go bad in this time. rarely have a false alarm
Same. It's as sophisticated as $$$$ systems I've seen from others, but simpler and cleaner upstream interfaces
Just bought a house with this exact system (at least the keypad and the board look the same, haven't closely inspected model #s yet). Was thinking about tearing it out to go with something known, but know that you've posted this, I'm keeping it. Would love to see a deeper dive video.
"Honey, turn off the security system"
I'm sorry Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that
You joke about this but with an HAI system I could actually get it to say this over the intercoms in a house. We setup a buddies to sense when the washer and drys went off, it would then yell at his wife to get off her ass and do her job. This was all a joke, but boy did we get an ass chewing for it.
Yeah and Konnected Alarm panel project, is just this with a crappier board design and a communicator board built in. That doesn't work with as many sensors. And no fire or CO. And no lightning protection. I've had a few newer wireless systems for apartments I've lived in over the last 10 years… all have gone under and turned into bricks. Best one was iSmartAlarm. But the panels… still going strong.
"Some ones using too much hot water, turn the water off." LOL
Just bought a house, it has one of these panels/controllers in the basement and I have 3 of those keypads throughout the house ... thought I need an expensive service to run it. Well thank you for this video. I’ll definitely look into it now that I know how versatile it could be. Damn wifey had me remove some sensors already and stuff the wires back into the wall ;) ...
When I moved into my current home, they had a GE Interlogix based system, which is all wireless over 319.5MHz. I purchased a SDR usb stick, installed rtl_433 to mqtt into hass.io, and configured all the devices in home assistant. Works great, not tied LibertySecurity or whatever the company selling the solution was called.
GE Interlogix Concord 4 panel I installed myself in 2009 (might have been 2010). It can open garage with a relay panel. Lights turn on and off using Z-wave. GSM cellular / Internet module gives me and monitoring company multiple ways to send and receive signals. I've got carbon monoxide, smoke, motion, and contact sensors. I can add additional sensors any time I want. My system. Also has 6 partitions, so I can have storage building or rooms on different panels. Another words I can arm and disarm sections independent of others. My server room is on its own partition that gets armed independent from the rest of the house. You could have one on a gun safe or work shop. Don't forget the voice module - it talks to me man. "Front Door Open"
Wendell smoke alarm (sensor 4) went off at 7:00 , he was fuming so much
When it comes to this stuff, when a guy like Wendell says; "That's what I would do..."
Do that.
Yes and no. His level of expertise is beyond most mere mortals. There is nothing wrong with Ubiquiti for example for the audience over other brands recommended in the past. Not to say I don't get exactly where he is coming from.
Installer here , all the big alarm companies make products with a common base , we can use 3d party io devices (radars , , magnetic switch etc ) via general inputs outputs and have limitations only to bus devices . Today with IOT some companies give options to use zigbee or z wave protocols but with an extra cost . Its a security product with cert, like grade 2 or grade 3 so no reason to non encryption . As a installer preffer a standalone alarm and seperate system for IOT is safest and more reliable
I wish this video existed about 5 years ago... Basically, I tore out my home's original alarm control board & replaced it with a DSC Neo board thinking that I'd be able to interface it w/ the Envisalink or something similar. I learned everything you mentioned here the hard way.
SO I ditched DSC and replaced it w/ an Elk M1 panel instead. It's overpriced IMO, but it's way more open in design, even if it's still crusty technology compared to the things I'm running HA & ESPHome on.
It has interface modules for a variety of things which use RS-485 and an ethernet interface which plays nice w/ ISY / Universal Devices and Home Assistant.
Using one of these older DSC boards + Envisalink probably would have been far cheaper, but I couldn't return my old panel and the thought of giving them MORE money made my eye twitch.
It's also worth noting that some of the better motion sensors use a combination of microwave + PIR and are VERY fast, sensitive yet immune from false alarms.
Are you still happy with the ELK? The M1 looks like a really nice board.
@@wishbone1138 Yup, it's been totally reliable as both an alarm & a HA sensor perspective. Elk has some new E27 control board... can't seem to find the price online, but might be worth it since it has ethernet onboard. Seems like a base M1 board is ~ $450 and the M1XEP ethernet module is an additional $205 these days. Yikes. They also have a new lower priced control board called the M1EZ8. Fewer zones. Requires a serial interface board to use the M1XEP, but pretty similar.
@@xyvyxthanks for the response. I was looking at the new board as well. Haven’t checked prices but I’m also interfacing with c4 and there’s no driver yet. Are these worth the cost over competitors? Hardware appears to be slightly more ‘modern’ but the bar is low with security systems.
Look into Konnected - Konnected is an open source solution for connecting wired sensors and switches to home automation platforms including SmartThings, Home Assistant, Hubitat & OpenHAB.
well ive seen some KNX (open bus standard) alarm systems atleast ABB i know make some, and KNX works with home assistant also :D
So I looked and looked and then looked for good local solution to interface with home assistant.
I eventually gave up and purchased Ring wireless system which I know is terrible idea and some day it’ll turn into paper weight!
At least it works great with home assistant, for note that is 😓
Awesome video! I have most of my home automation system planned out but was hung up on finding a good way to do the alarm system part. So many sensors out there, some proprietary, some use freaking coin cell batteries, could buy a 3d printer and esp8266 everything...
Really like how this is more robust too, not some kind of keypad and siren that just sits on the coffee table and looks fancy. And its a good way to not feed the internet of shit, it survives on money!!
Love this.. One of the worse things someone can do for home security and I don't know why is a trend is use a damn! Wi-Fi IP based Camera..
🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️🤦🏻♂️ These are what you should do and wire everything up!
I love these IoT and home automation done properly videos I hope this series is long a detailed can't wait to do some of this for my own house.
Satel integra. European, has working home assistant integration, they literally have the protocol described in detail on their website and you can add your own encryption keys for the bus
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I agree. I built a house a few years ago and was like yes I want to install a hard wired Honeywell old school panel alarm system. I don't want to deal with 50 wireless sensors that need batteries and that can be jammed with a old garage remote. Plus I can add a add on communicator board that lets me use any sensor in any home automation platform from home bridge to homekitt to homeassistant to control4 and savant. I only wish I had got them to install shielded alarm sensor wire. And more sensors. I would have put more motion sensors in and water sensors anywhere there was a wet location. I've had lightning near strikes which have taken out the Envisalink board twice but the panel board Vista 20 because of it's lightning protection survived. It even traveled down the ethernet cable into the unifi switch and took out a Apple TV. All just from the EMP of a nearby strike. The house has surge protectors on the meter, on the panels, and a online UPS in the wire closet. Only way in I had was the exposed alarm wires. Oy.
Ehm ehm, panic room? You meant torture chamber.
There fixed that for you, no need to thank me Wendel.
Wendell, take a look at Elk M1 Gold, if you haven't already. We integrate our smart homes with those over IP. Very capable systems
About time, and long time since I heard someone say (and know what it means), the "five 9's"
Always funny seeing the patreon early access comments when a video launches!
Side note: would love a level one tux plushie at some point from the store!
we got the stress l1 tux! closeish! :D
@@Level1Techs He's great for stress at the desk- but need something for exhausted depression at the end of the day!
Love the IOT vids! Keep em going!
Level1 Alarm system? I'm in 😁
Excellent video.... More HA stuff please!
id invest in this home security system. also i work in construction and would be interested in these if they were to ever come to market
Consider GE/ Interlogix Concord 4 panel. I noticed I can still purchase it in my local Anixter equipment store. Forgot to mention have a thermostat
I cannot wait to buy a house and start going crazy with things like this...
I’ve got a replacement DSC panel I really need to get installed. This may just get me inspired :)
I use sonoff zigbee sensors coupled with a tuya siren mated up within home assistant, they work really well for motion...
It might be worthwhile to take a look at Konnected.io
Sensor inputs and output, works with Noonlight monitoring, expandable, integration with Home Assistant.
Great video. Would you still recommend a DSC 1864 in 2024, along with a Envisalink 4 to work with Home Assistant? I'm looking to replace an existing hard wired system, an HAI Omni Pro II and am thinking a standard alarm panel with added smarts is the way to go, leaving the automation to Home Assistant and the security to a tried and tested security panel. Your video came up as part of my research.
I believe that the Permaconn can be set up so that the monitoring is done by you instead of a 3rd party. So it will alert you if your alarm system is set off. You can control your alarm system by your phone. So you do not have to pay a company to shut off you alarm when it goes off.
There needs to be a Grifted counter in this video
Wendell, you are asking about well engineered alarm systems, but have you checked out the trigboards by Kevin Darrah? They are very well made. Actually you can see they are well explained with examples on his youtube channel.
Been waiting for this, looking forward to seeing more.
Can you provide some links to where you bought the products from? Having trouble finding some for purchasing and sending to Australia.
Great video series Wendell! Trying to look into some sort of commercial hardwired system for temperature/humidity sensing and potentially ambient light level sensing that I can then integrate into home assistant. I assume there must be something for temp humidity for use with commercial airconditioning systems that we can integrate. Any ideas?
Are there any follow up videos to this?
Have you tried OpenHAB? Really keen to see a video on comparing both!
Up this if you want Wendell to do such a video
Stuff of nightmares. Every panel I see has EOL resistors installed in box. ADT installers adamant that's where they go. How do they expect to detect shorts if EOLs are installed beginning of line?
Have you looked into PLC’s as basis for home automation? Im an industrial engineer so for my home i used a beckhoff PLC. It natively supports mqtt and modbus tcp. Its easy to expand and you can add cards for other homeautomation protocols like knx.
It seems like it would be a better solution and just as stable/reliable since its built for industrial use and has great support.
Ofcourse i could also be massively biased since I use PLC’s daily
We are on the same bus, but for general population plc's are a bit too complicated and expensive.
@@goodiezgrigis hmm yeah that may be right, tho i wonder how much this alarm system costs in comparison
I have an IOT system based on Unitronic vision PLC and honestly think that an esp8266/raspberry with some i2c i/o expanders would do a better job at controling some relays. The PLC is expensive, forces shitty ladder programing, is extremally slow at TCP, and has not been reliable at all.
@@micher60 good to know,
Ive never encountered a plc from that brand so wouldnt know.
The brands that i use: beckhoff,siemens and allen bradley dont force you into ladder logic
Just programs and functions with ‘if then else’, loops, timers, counters and several librarys premade for things like dimmers etc..
As for price, i think it probably lands in between a raspberry pi/esp setup or a one of the full blown home auto solutions like loxone.
You know this is a rather old video when you see lysol still in the background.
I've have begun "The Project". Ripping out legacy Radionics D2112 system and direct replace with the DSC 1832. Hoping that all my legacy devices work (sensor, motion and smoke/fire, siren), we shall see. Still deciding on whether to go with Home Assistant or Homekit. My goal is to have all my data (video and doorbell ) stay local with alarm able to be sent to monitoring service. It is beyond me why no manufacture has made components that stream locally with storage locally. I have terabytes on NAS devices available so why allow my video data go upstream to a cloud company I don't know and definitely don't trust.
Personally use konnected.io. It runs on an ESP8266 (NodeMCU) and is fully open source, so you can even roll your own very easily if you want to.
Connect your sensors directly to it. Replaces the entire base/alarm panel, and then talks to Home Assistant (or whatever you want to use.) There are no limits on the sensors you use. If you need more "zones" then just add another board and keep growing. Because it's all open source, you can add pretty much any kind of sensor you want. No limits.
And it's cheaper than getting your hands on a DSC system + a board to connect to your network.
Amber must be begging Wendell for more B-roll clips at this point, having to repeat the same clip so often while he just keeps talking.
This is an awesome series!
I have used an Elk M1 Gold in the past for work. It was great but I can't remember how open it was. EDIT: Looks like you can control one from Home Assistant.
Awesome video! Taiwan better get working on this 👍😉
...if you do decide to bring 'em in...sell them as cat toys....to skip the tariffs 😉🤪
Hi. i Have a Device like that. I want to use the PGM1 to detect when the Alamr is ARMED. So i can use Home Assistant to act as im not at home. Like Turn Off light, Turn of the heating system. and when i back to home, i can turn on All again. Do you know if i can use a Arduino Sensor, to know when the PGM1 is on. I use Tasmota and ESPHome. Thanks in Advance.
Good vid
Is the next video about this up? I am curious... Thanks!
Thank you for this!
Hmmm i understand why you chose this but why not Vera (or homeseer, or iris (lowes) or ...........) They are open and programmable and interchangable.
I personally used HomeSeer for years in the early 90s and early 2000s. But gave it up because they charged for any I integration or upgrades. Got to pricy for me. But DSC and Envisalink together with Home Assistant is amazing. Can't think of anything it can't do.
great content thanks for sharing
Has anyone tried raspberry pi security measures?
"Powered via battery for a day"....DIY solar guys said hold my beer!
Very good info.
Dsc keypads with dsc panel
Vista keypads with vista panel
Door / windows sensors don’t care what the panel / keypad is as in motions or other sensors.
IMHO dsc panels rock vista ok but dsc is better.
Also use the EOL resistors it will save you later if lightening is around you. Seen way too many switches frozen shut because someone set up alarm system without the EOL resistor.
love this vid. works grate with @DrZzs
Where can we buy DSC motion for $14.95 or $7-8 wholesale?
< former commercial security system installer for banks, and commercial buildings back in 2004
Wait a second!
If this is part 5...
And I can only find part 3....
Where is part 4?
Patreon :)
@@Level1Techs Fucking patreon-walled videos. 🤦♂️🙄
Would like to see videos 1-6.. in order also.
Hahaha - what do you do when the Panic Room alarm goes off? (and you aren't in it)
Do you know of any security systems that use a digital packet method of communications between the sensors and the panel as opposed to analog wired sensors?
Check out our past videos. Iot series. Dsc panel and modules for a t
is this series finished? :(
You need to tie this to your home systems to make life really unpleasant for every intruder. Like this car alarm that vents brake pressure if it is triggered and the car is moving
@asdrubale bisanzio wow i didnt know that
is there a way to manually let the police department or agency to handle the cameras and sending the appropriate resources during vacation or when your out of house from long periods of time?
other then that, the installing the wires and configuring the nodes with the brain shouldn't be too hard.
I kind of get the feeling Wendell doesn't like DSC Neo.
Is Bosch a good security system ?
Home breaker and Panels are lock in by Brand they are not compatible whit all brands ....
if I'm getting an alarm system with Home assistant I would most likely choose something that is a little bit more integrated with the rest of my home assistant than such a old system could ever become.
Like what?
@asdrubale bisanzio This is covered in the vid. I showed a 2002 panel that is electrically compatible with its 2020 counterpart. ESP32 based systems will not achieve the same level of reliability and robustness, sorry. "End of life" is in this context is way different than what your picture seems to be.
@asdrubale bisanzio It's about as long-lived as the national electric code. New versions are tweaked but basically the same. The neo system is the one that grifts. But because commercial customers are smarter than that, they still make the older open systems. The older panels are electrically compatible with the new panels making upgrades easy. Kind of like how you can get afci or smart breakers to replace standard breakers even for an electrical panel installed as far back as the 1980s. Parallel product lines because no one wants to be locked in. Im sure they were hoping it'd take over, but from what I can tell it hasn't because no compatibility.
how is this no diff than what like john deer does?
so many things are anti competitive now with anti trus and right to repair not evening meaning a thing anymore if your a large company and can buy your way out.... like look at the new windows 10 for example, you cant get rid of edge or any other things they integrated into it now a days...
Ajax is pretty good
I bought an Israeli made system 433mhz wireless.
And then I bought the newer version.
And same with them the new systems much more closed.
Name eludes me but I'll check my eBay later and let you know.
Risco WisDom
I'm still doing the first fit stuff so ha stuff will be later.
But I bought all the lights that are ESP8266 downlights of eBay 6 months ago that were under £5 like 40 of them and I have plenty of ubiquiti WiFi gear and experience with pfsense vlans to make a nice iot network for all the cheap junk to live on.
Can I suggest as a little side project.
Wled and a nice 16x16 RGB addressable panel.
They are like $15 BOM of AliExpress with the nano 8266 and the modes are hypnotic.
Also will work with all your other solutions.
So I thought I’d add some more knowledge. Why do alarm companies charge more than $5 per month? Because they’ll send a car out if you have a break in where the 5$ one won’t. There is a cost involved to having feet on the ground.
On the hardware side of things, the control panel and keypad are the only 2 core things that are really locked together (I don’t know the Dsc neo so excl that) - you can use any sensor with an alarm panel as it’s just a contact (connected or not - you can also add resistors for additional features*)
On the wireless side, you want the sensors to be locked to the panel as it’s really for security. If the sensor doesn’t check in, it’s an alarm. If the sensor is unencrypted or open, then it’s hackable
I personally dislike dsc because the system is too simple. I deploy texecom and paradox systems - core is texecom though. We’re a fully partnered reseller and developer for them and have the ability to communicate with the alarm control panel. What I’ve personally done at home is deployed the texecom elite series. It gets firmware updates which is nice and is very expandable. So I tapped into the alarm and used the sensors to trigger my home automation system actions or arm or disarm the system. On the plus side if I am not at home, every single room gets a sensor so extra protection on top of the home automation system. On the integration side, we developed our own module for our clients to manage their alarm remotely.
I recommend having a peek at texecom elite - look at the 88 chan upwards. If you don’t have direct integration with it, you could easily use the inputs or outputs into an arduino to trigger or receive alerts from the sensors or alerts. This means you get the full uptime of the alarm and the flexibility - note this can usually be used with any alarm system
If you really want to look into developing a system or integration platform more suited for home automation. Very doable while utilizing the existing systems pros and just expanding them further... also would be a lower upfront investment for a higher ROI than building one from scratch. Happy to work with you if you want to push a level1 alarm system
Maybe a stupid noob question: Is there an open alarm system that uses encrypted communication between the various devices?
not that I've found. maybe one of the euro systems. It's "mostly" safe to have the unencrypted bus in this scenario, I think. at least its nbd for my threat model.
envisalink will notify you if the panel looses connection to the internet.
It obeys the overall panel programming for that!
Why is kreestuh never doing any reviews and stuff?
@asdrubale bisanzio i know, but there's probably related topics that concern her from a webdesign point of view?
You should check out dmp they have direct integration for a lot of things.
There aren't any good monitored home alarms that have good smartphone or remote management integration. I've been longing for something that works with up to date technology. This is an area with huge potential for growth and modernization. I am a DSC system owner and their app is shit.
Look at Kantech Entrapass, the special edition (entry) should be obtainable by any one and its going to open up way more than what the DSC can on its own it integrates to just about all DSC panels. Keyless entry video cameras etc. There are also APIs that you may or may not be able to get online but those are more commercial level features