Micron Z6L alarm features

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ald

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SimWorks

#268253 8-Mar-2020 13:43

Hi all, I'm investigating installing a Konnected.io system interfaced with my existing Micron Z6L alarm. The usual route is to simply replace the existing alarm panel entirely with the Konnected alarm panel. However, I'd like to retain the use of alarm keypads etc, which can only be done if you instead use the Konnected interface module to connect the two. After chatting with the nice folk at Konnected they've indicated that for this to work I'll need to ensure that my alarm supports both "programmable outputs" and "key switch" capability/zones. Not an alarm guy myself, and there is scant technical information online about this alarm. Just wondering whether there is anyone here with knowledge of alarm systems and whether this particular alarm system has these features or any suggestions as to how I may be able to find out?

Best regards,

Aaron.

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#2434921 9-Mar-2020 11:28

Honestly, you're flogging a dead horse there. The Micron alarms were never good, and that's confirmed by the fact that they're not around anymore

The Microns were old when they were new, and an absolute pain to work on also

Best bet is to upgrade and use an AAP alarm, they're more accommodating with what you want to do

ald

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SimWorks

#2434974 9-Mar-2020 12:37

Thanks for your thoughts Peter. What is an AAP alarm?

Yabanize

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#2435065 9-Mar-2020 14:58

ald:

Thanks for your thoughts Peter. What is an AAP alarm?

Arrowhead Alarm Products, made in NZ

ald

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SimWorks

#2435086 9-Mar-2020 15:24

Hi Peter, thanks for the link. I've had a look at their products but they look far more capable than I need. In reality I'm looking to almost completely gut the very basic alarm system I have and push all the smarts to Smartthings. It would be a real shame to buy a shiny new and by the looks of things very capable alarm system only to immediately lobotomise it, relegating it to the role of the thing that still lets me use my keypad. I appreciate the suggestion though!

technician14

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#2435354 9-Mar-2020 19:44

Hey,, what are you trying to achieve with the micron and konnected? Why do you need it really basic? Most Alarms have outputs and Keyswitch others are easier to program, depends what you are after really?

ald

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SimWorks

#2435411 10-Mar-2020 01:07

Originally I wasn't planning on keeping the Micron. As Peter mentioned, its old and pretty crappy. I was just going to drop the Konnected panel in and reuse the wiring for my existing sensors and siren. Konnected will essentially turn the existing sensors and siren into things which Smartthings can see and use. Smartthings Home Monitor will then be the alarm system. However, as my wife mentioned, we do have occasional visitors, and they use the alarm panel to set and unset the alarm. It would be nice not to have to add them into Smartthings for Home/Away purposes. Konnected enables this through its interface module which as I understand it uses the "key switch" zone to command the old alarm to arm or disarm, and "programmable outputs" to work out whether the old alarm is currently armed or disarmed. So the short answer is that all I need the alarm to do is talk with the keypad and listen to Home Monitor, any other alarm functionality would be superfluous.

Some discussion here would appear to suggest that it does have the required "key switch" functionality, albeit referring only to arming, but I think it can be implied that it would also disarm (ok, that's a pretty bold assumption I know). The discussion also refers to the alarm having two programmable outputs, but not really in the context of communicating whether the alarm is armed or disarmed, but rather the zones that will activate the alarm output, which doesn't sound like the same thing. So that may be a bust, or perhaps they are the same thing just talked about in different terms, and I can't see it because I know next to bugger all about alarms?

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petercad

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#2435553 10-Mar-2020 11:39

With the Arrowhead alarms, buy an IP module and have complete smartphone control of the alarm, saves having 2 devices doing one job (Alarm panel and Konnected)

ald

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SimWorks

#2435556 10-Mar-2020 11:48

Hi Peter, the Arrowhead alarms certainly have impressive capabilities and their mobile phone stuff looks great. At this stage though I'm just looking at staying within the Smartthings ecosystem, fewer things to manage the better.

Cheers,

Aaron.

technician14

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#2435620 10-Mar-2020 12:49

So you want a programmable output to indicate it's armed or disarmed, Keyswitch arming and disarming controlled from konnected, a keypad for your guests and or you?

ald

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SimWorks

#2435630 10-Mar-2020 13:10

Yep, that pretty much seems to be what Konnected requires.

technician14

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#2435787 10-Mar-2020 16:21

Pretty easy to achieve, what part nz are you in?

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ald

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SimWorks

#2435893 10-Mar-2020 18:33

Auckland.

technician14

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#2435899 10-Mar-2020 18:52

Bit far away, I'm in Welly, what's the konnected module and relay do you have? And how many?

ald

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SimWorks

#2436745 12-Mar-2020 11:59

Apologies for the delay in getting back to you! I haven't ordered anything from them yet, I've been wanting to finish digging around to try and find out whether my existing Micron Z6L will support the features necessary to use Konnected's interface module. If it doesn't look likely that the Micron supports the necessary features I will just have to sacrifice the use of the keypad and just order the Konnected Alarm Panel 2.

If your interested there is a lot of information on the product at www.konnected.io

neb

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#2580672 7-Oct-2020 14:18

petercad:
Honestly, you're flogging a dead horse there. The Micron alarms were never good, and that's confirmed by the fact that they're not around anymore

The Microns were old when they were new, and an absolute pain to work on also

Best bet is to upgrade and use an AAP alarm, they're more accommodating with what you want to do

Thanks for this, was just about to ask the same thing, upgrade an existing alarm with a Konnected panel vs. go to a new alarm, for which an AAP had been recommended. Then I went to check the existing alarm and it's a Micron (sigh), so it's pretty much a no-brainer.

So that leads to the follow-on question, there's a bewildering range of products all of which seem mostly identical, I'm looking for Internet-connected, able to track movement through the house by seeing which sensors are activated (useful for the downstairs area), not fussed about zones but needs to handle maybe ten sensors.

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