Electronic Alarms and Home Security Devices - Replacing Brinks with Vista 20P or ITI Concord

I have been lurking around the forum for a while and have learned a lot of from reading many of the post. I have searched extensively but have not been able to answer my question definitively. I will be replacing a brinks 2000f panel and 2 2000 series keypads. The brinks install has four hardware zones monitoring 5 doors. When I replace the system can the existing door contacts be used (some are Recessed Contacts and some are surface mounts) or do the currently installed contacts need to replaced with contacts compatible with either the Vista or the Concord system?

I am ready to order a product and parts and am leaning toward the Vista but opinions could persuade to another panel.

My goal is to have the following:
All 5 exterior doors monitored
2 glass break sensors installed
X10 Compatibility

I want to power on the lights during the duration of an Alarm or panic. Additionally after a disarm I want to leave the same lights on for a short period of time to enable me to power on other overhead lights if needed at night.

At present I do not want monitoring but I may add that down the road. If I do add the ability it would be required to be via the internet as I do not have nor will I ever have a home phone. I may also want to add a wireless sensor on the Garage Door that I could have email me if it was not closed when the rest of the system was armed.


In short do the contacts need to be replace and which of the two systems (or another type in the same price range) best suited to meet my design goals.

Thanks in advance for help and opinions.

With rare exceptions, hardwire door and window contacts are just switches, and are interchangeable.

For what you want to do, while the Concord is easier to program for most DIY, it will be easier to pull off your desired configuration with the Vista-20p. The output control programming is simply a lot more flexible for the Vista panel.

Make sure you add EOL resistors, as Brink's does not use them.

I have been lurking around the forum for a while and have learned a lot of from reading many of the post. I have searched extensively but have not been able to answer my question definitively. I will be replacing a brinks 2000f panel and 2 2000 series keypads. The brinks install has four hardware zones monitoring 5 doors. When I replace the system can the existing door contacts be used (some are Recessed Contacts and some are surface mounts) or do the currently installed contacts need to replaced with contacts compatible with either the Vista or the Concord system?

I am ready to order a product and parts and am leaning toward the Vista but opinions could persuade to another panel.

My goal is to have the following:
All 5 exterior doors monitored
2 glass break sensors installed
X10 Compatibility

I want to power on the lights during the duration of an Alarm or panic. Additionally after a disarm I want to leave the same lights on for a short period of time to enable me to power on other overhead lights if needed at night.

At present I do not want monitoring but I may add that down the road. If I do add the ability it would be required to be via the internet as I do not have nor will I ever have a home phone. I may also want to add a wireless sensor on the Garage Door that I could have email me if it was not closed when the rest of the system was armed.


In short do the contacts need to be replace and which of the two systems (or another type in the same price range) best suited to meet my design goals.

Thanks in advance for help and opinions.

Actually, Concord 4 can do your lighting (I'm assuming X-10 since it was mentioned in your earlier post) with no output programming at all. X-10 light modules flash for the duration of the siren time during an alarm and will stay on after the siren time expires. In addition X-10 light devices with a unit number of "1" will come on and and stay on for 5 minutes during entry and exit delay times...No programming of outputs required...

As for your no landline issue, most panels out there (Concord included) have cellular options for reporting..

I sell both the Concrod and the Vista 20p to residential customers. They both have their strengths, but for a DIYer the Concord is my pick--hands down.

Thanks for the input and fast replies everyone.

GEGUY, based on your comments it sounds like the Concord can handle the x10 lights out of the box(w/ a new transformer and X10 module) in the manner you describe. Is it possible to adjust this? I don't want the lights to flash during the alarm I want them to remain on.

Presently I don't have any x10 hardware so I am not married to this method if there is a better way. I am not easily able to access all of the lights I wish to control so x10 was the first thing that came to mind. If another protocol for light control is better I am all ears (well eyes...)

For what you want to do, X-10 is the simplest solution.

Really, the two panels are pretty equivalent: Look at the specs, do a websearch and download and read over the install manuals and pick the one that you think you can work best with.

Our concord kits come with the X10 transformer.

I have reviewed both manuals. The GE document is far better than Honeywell product. While I find little mention of lights in the Vista document lighting is peppered all over the Concord document (which is backwards from their respective marketing of the x10 features).

Can someone confirm the ability to modify the Concord default Police Panic alarm from flash the lights. I want the lights to remain on during a Police Panic alarm even after the siren timeout. It looks like the Aux Panic Alarm performs this lighting function I want but it includes other undesirable features such as alarms from interior sirens only.

If this pesky issue can be resolved I think my decision is made.

Thanks

I have reviewed both manuals. The GE document is far better than Honeywell product. While I find little mention of lights in the Vista document lighting is peppered all over the Concord document (which is backwards from their respective marketing of the x10 features).

Can someone confirm the ability to modify the Concord default Police Panic alarm from flash the lights. I want the lights to remain on during a Police Panic alarm even after the siren timeout. It looks like the Aux Panic Alarm performs this lighting function I want but it includes other undesirable features such as alarms from interior sirens only.

If this pesky issue can be resolved I think my decision is made.

Thanks


As I mentioned previously, during a police panic, the lights will flash until the siren time expires (4 minutes by default), or you disarm. They then will STAY ON when the alarm is over until you turn them off. This is not changeable...The thought process in doing this is for exterior lighting to scare off intruders or let neighbors know that something is up...

As for Aux and medical, the lights will come on ("Light the way to safety") and will not flash. You can easily change interior siren sounds via programming to pretty much anything you want (or don't want) to hear.