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Thread: RA3 - Feedback and areas to improve

  1. #21
    Quote Originally Posted by AABCI-LLC View Post
    I was asking the question of Tech support and they tell me that for the SeeTouch keypads (RRD-H6BRL) to work you need the RR-AUX-REP-WH so it can work with RA3. The issue is that they do not have anything like that combination dimmer/keypad available (promised it is coming), so this is only way to use a single location switch/gang box to accomplish objective.

    I have tried to read and understand the "support" sites and used email into tech support - answers are all over the map. Only real answer is to see who has figured it out via trial and error.

    If you do the math, that is over $600 of product, and all of it is functionally obsolete or close to it. I think I will suggest using the old fashion walk over to the switch for retro fit installations for now, or drop an Alexa device nearby.

    The joys of being on the bleeding edge of technology and having demanding clients.
    F bleeding edge. It's literally communicating with all other existing RF devices. Why wouldn't it be the same for hybrid keypads??? I swear....Lutron is starting to really starting to miss the ball! You think with the more experience than anyone in the lighting control game, they would release a completely half baked product with half the product sku's needed to make it viable.

    As mentioned, my keypad originally didn't work (worked with Ra2) with the first version of Ra3. I factory reset it and it started worked. Then after a software update, it stopped working again.

  2. #22
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    Quote Originally Posted by AABCI-LLC View Post
    I was asking the question of Tech support and they tell me that for the SeeTouch keypads (RRD-H6BRL) to work you need the RR-AUX-REP-WH so it can work with RA3.
    This seems incorrect, the Aux Repeater should not be required unless the hybrid keypad location was out of range of the RadioRa3 processor. The hybrid keypad is still a valid part that should work fine. Even when they launch a new Sunnata hybrid keypad, I would suspect a seeTouch part would remain available/supported to match other Maestro/seeTouch parts.

    The required online training course is honestly the best reference I've found for any of this. The Ra3 course breezed over a lot of the older Ra2 stuff, so if you wanted to track down the old Ra3 L1 qualification videos some of those could be helpful filling in some gaps, especially around the older parts.

  3. #23
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    I agree, but searching for basic information is needle in haystack. The worst part is you get conflicting answers from documentation and tech support. The R3 training was ok, but telling me I completed it doesn't mean knowing where to get factually correct answers. That is what support is for as a last resort.

    As for the Aux repeater, that was my thinking too, not needed. However, given the cost for buying everything to get a device that was last made in 2011 by some reports to work is wrong. The 30 foot rule I can understand, but with the RA3 hidden 20 feet away it should just work. At this point $400 for a keypad device is not going to happen for most customers, even a $150 dimmer is high.

    The cost for a small home automation setup with a minimal number of switches installed and configured is going to be in the $3K ballpark with RA3. I was able to do the same with Insteon in a home for third that number. The company however was not standing behind products or have the support that Lutron does. It is also far easier to tell a buyer it is Lutron, the same company you have on all your switches in the house today. Everything has a price.

  4. #24
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    Buy once, cry once, as the saying goes.

    I'm sure there's a spreadsheet/powerpoint combo somewhere that justifies the price-points and artificial market segmentation. But I keep thinking those same schemes are literally paving the way for an incredible amount of competition that would never have gotten off the ground if not for such pricing/market practices.

    Get rid of Caseta, price Ra3 at that point and you'd suck all the air out of the room for all but the most DIY of alternatives. But it seems the margins and market are satisfying enough that allowing the other market players to encroach is being ignored.

  5. #25
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    I'm a homeowner with a lot of DIY experience planning a new house with RA3. I'll chime in that the ability to control the keypad LED including the integration to control it from Control 4 or HomeKit would be extremely valuable as some of the keypads are modes as well as initial scene changes. I'm thinking of adding a few Control 4 keypads in mainly due to the status LED functionality and really don't want to mix different keypads into the house just so Home / Away and Bedtime/Morning LED lights show the status regardless of subsequent lighting changes.

  6. #26
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    @lucasec do you have a reference on how the occupancy sensors can be enabled via time clock event? I would like to do this exact thing. Would like to make bathroom lights come on to a more dim state between certain hours and full brightness at other hours.

    Quote Originally Posted by lucasec View Post
    Glad it was helpful. Since I got the post reminder, thought I'd add a few updates based on recent changes Lutron has made.

    Issues fixed in more recent software releases:
    - Occupancy sensors can now be enabled/disabled via a timeclock event.
    - I realized you actually can enable/disable each independent "timeclock" from a keypad button, so this is effectively the same as switching timeclock modes in RA2.
    - They added the Natural Light Optimization feature for wood blinds. Just experimenting with a fake set of blinds in the app (not activated to a real shade device), the feature seems well-designed and something many end users will find neat. The one missing part is it would be nice if NLO could be toggled by a keypad press so it could be easily toggled off and resumed in multi-use rooms e.g. bedrooms where sometimes extra privacy is desired.

    I also finally received a Sunnata dimmer (still waiting on some more + keypads in satin finish), and am pretty happy with the build quality. The light bar adjustment is very fluid and slick, but I have noticed visitors have a tendency to activate it unintentionally, e.g. if you touch near the top right edge of the switch the light will jump instantly to 100% instead of taking the normal fade time it would have if they had figured out to click the top of the rocker.



    Yeah, Lutron has never had a "smart outlet" product. I think the supported path here would be either to use the plug-in module (RR-3PD-1 or the equivalent non-dimming part), or install an additional Sunnata/Maestro switch wired to either one half or all of the receptacle. If you use a dimming switch with the outlet, note that most codes require a special "lamps only" receptacle (e.g. CAR-15-HFDU-WH) to prevent non-lamps from being plugged in to the dimmer. If only switching is desired, the LMJ-16R-DV-B softswitch module could also be hidden somewhere in line to the outlet.

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