The HC-800 is a component-size unit that can also be rack-mounted. Beyond offering more processing horsepower, it has external ZigBee and Wi-Fi antennas for improved reception, and features more IR, serial, contact, and relay connections to handle larger systems. The HC-800 also features an eSATA port to connect an external hard drive, and it can handle four simultaneous audio outputs (2 analog, 1 digital coax, 1 HDMI) to drive a housewide music system. I installed the HC-800 in my main/theater system, connecting it via USB to a 4-TB Western Digital hard drive containing approximately 9,500 songs.
The HC-250 can either be powered traditionally or via Power over Ethernet (PoE), a standard that enables a single Cat-5/6 cable to carry audio/video and control signals and power to the unit. This is a pretty big deal from a wiring/installation standpoint. For my tests, I used the unit’s AC power connection and built-in 802.11n/g Wi-Fi to hook up to my network.
The HC-250 has enough control ports to handle most systems — up to 8 IR devices if using minijack splitters — along with a contact and relay connection. It can also control a nearly unlimited number of IP devices. This means that its capabilities will actually expand as more components offer this type of control. It also features a USB port, audio outputs, and audio inputs so that the HC-250 can digitize and route music to other listening zones.
Control4 systems can be controlled via iOS, PC, or Android devices. Users purchase either a $199 MyHome license for a single device or a site license (which supports up to 50 devices) for $499. Since I had at least two devices — an iPad and a PC — to use as controllers, I opted for the site license. The Control4 touchpanels also have an optional intercom feature that allows them to communicate with one another as well as with a new Control4 door station. An additional $399 license covers all capable devices at a site.
Hi, I recently had a Control4 system installed. I had two 3-terabyte hard drives installed one into the HC-800 and the other in HC-250. The installer couldn't get the system to recognize the hard drives or its contents and later said he received confirmation from Control4 that the hard drive limit is 2terabytes. How did you get the 4 terabyte hard drive to work?
I would also like to get Pandora streaming to work but it seems like the only option is with Grace Digital or Sonos and also purchasing drivers from Extra Vegetables and purchase the Control4 app as well. I have DirecTV and have the Pandora app through DirecTV and I noticed there's a DirecTV app for Control4. Can I control Pandora through this DirecTV app through the 7" in-wall touchscreens?
Thank you so much!
Thanks for reading and sending your question!
My 4 TB drive is actually configured in a RAID array, so the Control4 system sees it as a 2 TB drive.
I've used the Extra Vegetables app for Sonos and it is great. (Along with the Extra Vegetables "Pandonos" app available in the Control4 app store.) It is a great way to get Pandora on your system, but it requires an installer to come out and add the drivers to your system. I haven't used the DirecTV app, so I can't comment on how it would be to use with Pandora. I will try and get an answer on this for you and post it here...
Best,
John
From Control4:
"The customer would be able to “control” the DirecTV box through the touch screen, but the touch screen wouldn’t show the Pandora specific content – this is analogous to the program guide for DirecTV – I can only see it on the television, but I can use the touch screens to navigate (up, down, left, right, play pause…)."
John
Thank you very much! This was very helpful! Great timing since the Control4 installer is here today. He said he hasn't integrated Pandora with the Control4 system yet.