3 way switch circuit --> Lutron dimmer replacement issues
Hello -
Pretty much at my wit's end with this problem. My entire house is Lutron Maestro MA-600 and MA-1000 dimmers, so I'm familiar. I have a 3 way circuit controlling a 120v rope lighting feature, as well as a halogen MR16 uplight on a fireplace mantel. The rope lighting plugs into a hidden outlet which is switched by the circuit. I replaced the LED rope light with a new strand (old one had burnt out sections). Circuit works fine with original rocker switches.
Both rocker switches were wired exactly the same: each had a black wire connected to the black screw; white to the same-side brass screw, and a red wire connected to the opposite side screw.
I have two different Lutron switch options: the MA-153M dimmer, which I intended to use with one of the existing rockers, or a MA-600 with a MA-R slave.
Neither option worked. I'm aware that the wiring is different for each option (using the 153M requires two wires be joined at the original switch location), and I've tried variations, all with no effect. No green LED has ever lit up on either the MA-153M or MA-600 master; the LED rope lighting lights up dimly, however - and if I pull the FASS switch on either side of the MA-600 master/slave option (which I tried only to eliminate the possibility that I was dealing with a defective MA-153M), the LED rope light turns off.
Holding down the main button on the MA-R results in slight brightening of the LED rope; that's the only effect either switch has on the rope other than using the FASS. I've tried swapping the white and red wire locations, first only on one, and then both: no effect; behavior is the same.
Testing the wires into each gang box results in finding that only one of the gang boxes has a hot black; as I would have expected. Continuity testing between switch locations verifies both the white and the red as traveler wires; red to red and white to white.
I'm stumped. Something must be wired oddly at the MR16/outlet which powers the LED rope which is preventing these dimmers from being wired in place of the rockers - but I don't know what. I would expect that the wiring of the circuit looks like this:
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/5f/cb...fc711220c3.gif
...other than the fact that there are two lighting sources, rather than one bulb as the diagram pictures. I cannot get to the wiring to actually see how it is wired, however.
Ideas?