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Which lighting contol system to use with Harmony One?

18K views 21 replies 10 participants last post by  scw02102 
#1 ·
I recently purchased a Harmony One controller and have been pleased thus far. I have a wall box which contains 3 dimmer switches in my room. One switch controls the ceiling fan, one controls my spots, and the last controls wall sconces.


Is there a lighting control system that could fit in that space that the Harmony One could control? Also, would this item be available at Lowes / Home Depot, or would I have to go to an supply house?


Thanks for any advice!
 
#2 ·
I can personally vouch for the Lutron IR controllers available at Home Depot and Lowes. Works like a charm with my Harmony One. That said, not sure about ceiling fan.


Go to Logitech's website and search for the IR dimmers/controllers you're looking at on the One's product page for compatibility.
 
#3 ·
Does each Lutron IR switch have it's own IR setting? I thought I read somewhere that if you had lights on two dimmers that would only operate in unison . . . .


Also, is there any problem fitting them in the same space in the gang box on the wall that the other normal dimmer switches are in?


Thanks for your advice!
 
#4 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by WAR_GA /forum/post/15395384


Does each Lutron IR switch have it's own IR setting? I thought I read somewhere that if you had lights on two dimmers that would only operate in unison . . . .


Also, is there any problem fitting them in the same space in the gang box on the wall that the other normal dimmer switches are in?


Thanks for your advice!

Greetings!


You're correct in that the Lutron style IR dimmers are linked, so that if two are within a line of site of each other then they will copy each command sent to it by its controller. Similarly, if your Harmony One sends a command to one Lutron dimmer, it sends the same command to all.


This works for me because I have two spots that shine on the side wall that my monitor is on, and I have 6 directional cans in the ceiling that I use for additional ambient lighting. I have them on separate dimmer switches so that I can manually control them separately if I want to tweak the levels or just need bright light in a separate area of the room but still want dim light on my monitor wall.


Unless you go radio frequency - in which case the Harmony One does not work - I'm guessing most of the IR dimmers out there will link. I could be wrong though, but my only experience is with the Lutrons.


As for the size of the dimmers fitting into one gang box, I wouldn't see it being a problem just so long as your box normally accommodates 2 light switches. The Lutron's are large but still conform to standard ratings.


Cheers!
 
#7 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by mdavej /forum/post/15396757


On the low end, X10 units are individually addressable and work well with just about any universal remote, including harmony, and an IR543 controller. However, it's difficult to dim them smoothly using harmony.

I was looking on the Lowe's website. This would not be the Maestro IR600 dimmers would it? Can multiple Maestro's be controlled by a Harmony One?

Quote:
Originally Posted by herdfan /forum/post/15397025


Take a look at the Lutron Spacer system.

http://www.lutron.com/CMS400/page.aspx?id=16400&mn=1729


You can set each dimmer to 4 scenes.

This looks interesting. As far as I can tell, it doesn't look like it is available at Lowe's, but only through a lighting supply company. Do you have any idea on it's cost?


Thanks!
 
#8 ·
#10 ·
I know this is an old thread but I don't think the answer was resolved.


I have a 4 gang box that I'm gonna put dimmers in. Each dimmer would control different lights.


Is there any dimmers out there preferably at Home Depot that I can control separately with my Harmony one??


Thanks!
 
#14 ·
They work fine for the most part and are individually addressable, just like I said earlier in this thread a few years ago. Just add an IR543 and you're good to go. But that's not that good a deal. There are several ebay vendors that are cheaper. And keep in mind that model doesn't work with fluorescent lights. If you need any to be 3-way, you'll need a different model switch.


Lutron is far better than X10, but 4 switches and a remote will set you back about $400. Add a RadioRA IR interface and repeater for another $700, and you can theoretically even use it with harmony.
 
#15 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by mdavej /forum/post/18749958


They work fine and are individually addressable, just like I said earlier in this thread a few years ago. Just add an IR543 and you're good to go. But that's not that good a deal. There are several ebay vendors that are cheaper. And keep in mind that model doesn't work with fluorescent lights. If you need any to be 3-way, you'll need a different model switch.


Lutron is far better than X10, but it won't work with harmony, and 4 switches and a remote will set you back about $400.

So what would be the cheapest way to to get individually addressable dimmer switches that connect directly to a harmony one (IR)?
 
#16 ·
I wanna keep it simple, I wanna use my harmony one to turn light on/off and if possible at least set each dimmer to its own scene and then use harmony one to trigger the one scene.


Thanks so much for your help man, im in a hurry to buy and I appreciate your time!
 
#17 ·
I edited my post. I forgot about the lutron IR interface system. So a harmony interface IS possible with lutron.


The cheapest is your 4 X10 switches from ebay (x10express, for example) plus an IR543. Probably under $60 for the whole package.


Scenes aren't easy with X10. They don't store preset levels like lutron. You need to add a computer interface ($100) at least so you can store macros there that you trigger from your activities (the presets are essentially stored in the interface). And even then, they aren't 100% reliable. You could also try to build it all into your activities/sequences using a series of bright and dim commands (each bright/dim is about a 7% change). But for that kind of thing, you're really better off with a more expensive system.
 
#19 ·
Those lutrons probably won't work very well with fluorescent. Both X10 and Lutron have fluorescent dimmers, but they're at least twice as expensive, plus you need dimmable flourescent bulbs, which are very expensive as well. Are those lutrons individually addressable?


Anyway, I use incandescent in all dimming applications to avoid all this extra cost.


Good luck
 
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