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    LED Blinking really fast (Line noise?)

    Ok i finally got insteon working great after a fresh install of win2K but here is my next question.

    The PIM has to be pretty close to the CPU since it is attached via usb. With that being said, I plug in the interface, no blinking led, I plug the computer into an outlet kind of close by and the LED flashes like crazy without even turning the computer on. The only way I got it to work was plugging the interfcace into a switched outlet which I really dont want to do.

    Whats up with this? Is the fast flashing an indicator of line noise? If so how am I expected to use this when it has to be close to the puter? Do I need a filter ???

    #2

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      #3
      This was a question I was going to ask earlier. Do the Filterlinc's cut noise on the lines for both X10 and Insteon implimentations? Based on the doc you referenced it looks like they do but I wasn't sure how the insteon devices communicated over the powerline.

      On a side note, I have an Elk ESM1 X-10 Signal Meter and see the bar graph does respond to insteon messages. (About twice the signal of my X-10 equipment I am slowly phasing out.) Of course the X-10 command received LED doesn't do anything but I wouldn't expect it to.

      Comment


        #4
        I saw that in the guide, BUT its not an issue of absorbing commands, well it may be but I cant even access it through the computer while its blinking really fast. So is the fast blinking just a line noise indicator or something else?

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          #5
          Well, I can tell you that I experieced extremely rapid flashing when excessive noise was present. I do not know what other factors can cause the rapid flashing.

          If simply plugging the computer in causes the PLC to flash rapidly, I'd say it's a pretty good indication that a filter is needed.

          Comment


            #6
            Yes, the rapid randomish flashing is indicating that the PLC is picking up noise close enough to the actual Insteon frequency to make it have to try to process it. This greatly increases the likelyhood of having the PLC lose it's mind at this point (corrupt SALad) and give you the slow blink of death.

            There is a noise source somewhere near the PLC on the line. You can try a filterlinc on the PC's power connection. They will filter Insteon and X10 PLC signals. I have found that Insteon can not travel in my house when I have any of the Halogen LV lights on. Unfortunately I will need about a dozen filterlincs.

            Jon




            Originally posted by jhimmel
            Well, I can tell you that I experieced extremely rapid flashing when excessive noise was present. I do not know what other factors can cause the rapid flashing.

            If simply plugging the computer in causes the PLC to flash rapidly, I'd say it's a pretty good indication that a filter is needed.
            Jon Ort
            JonOrt@The--Orts.com
            (Remove the dashes in the address, spam is getting out of hand)

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by Oman
              I have found that Insteon can not travel in my house when I have any of the Halogen LV lights on. Unfortunately I will need about a dozen filterlincs.

              Jon
              I guess this is the achilles heel of Insteon.
              My problem was low-voltage under-cabinet "puck lights".
              I am changing them out for line-voltage equivelants.
              The thing is, the types of lights we are talking about are not uncommon, and will likely cause Smarthome a lot of headaches.

              Comment


                #8
                Get these:

                Originally posted by amblix auto
                Whats up with this? Is the fast flashing an indicator of line noise? If so how am I expected to use this when it has to be close to the puter? Do I need a filter ???
                Yep... I had the same problem with my powerlinc until I put a filtered power strip on all my PC equipment. As soon as I added a "filter", little green light stopped going blinky blinky all the time.

                Get those credit cards out and prepare to warm them up..... Here are the devices I used at a fraction of the cost of anything out there designed for HA.....

                My PC's filtered power strip:
                http://www.surgemax.net/productpage.php?key=167567

                Everything else that has a motor or produces noise (i.e. refridgs, tv's, dishwasher, clothes washer, etc...):
                http://www.surgemax.net/productpage.php?key=309691

                At these prices, everyone can afford LOTS of them! hehe:
                http://www.cablegear.com/productdeta...567&cats=99109

                http://www.cablegear.com/productdeta...691&cats=99109

                Enjoy!
                -Don

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by Dtperk
                  Get those credit cards out and prepare to warm them up..... Here are the devices I used at a fraction of the cost of anything out there designed for HA.....
                  Are you saying that these do the same job as a filterlinc? Do they work as good as a filterlinc?

                  Comment


                    #10
                    At that price I'm curious enough to buy a few and use my scope to see how well they do.

                    Jon


                    Originally posted by jhimmel
                    Are you saying that these do the same job as a filterlinc? Do they work as good as a filterlinc?
                    Jon Ort
                    JonOrt@The--Orts.com
                    (Remove the dashes in the address, spam is getting out of hand)

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Yup!

                      Originally posted by jhimmel
                      Are you saying that these do the same job as a filterlinc? Do they work as good as a filterlinc?
                      I have not used the actual "FilterLinc"s but I have wired in a couple of the leviton noise blocks.

                      So far, everything that caused issues on my lines (like the entertainment system) was resolved with these little guys. I bought 6 of the "pucks" and one strip for my computer gear. The second I moved my computer gear over to the strip, I got 100% reliability from my powerlinc. Yes, they were on the same physical circuit; albeit one outlet away from each other.

                      These guys seem to get the majority of crud off the lines.

                      I'm interested to hear what others have to say.... Buy a couple and give 'em a shot... got $10 bucks burning a hole in yer pocket!?!?!

                      SPECS:
                      EMI/RFI Noise Filtration:
                      Frequency Range: Greater than 52dB
                      Attenuation: 100Khz ~ 50Mhz

                      -Don
                      Last edited by ; January 3, 2006, 09:14 PM. Reason: My bad.....

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Originally posted by Dtperk
                        EMI/RFI Noise Filtration:
                        Frequency Range: Greater than 52dB
                        Attenuation: 100Khz ~ 50Mhz
                        X10 is centered at 120 kHz. INSTEON is at 131.65 kHz.

                        Would be interesting to put a FilterLinc and one of these on a scope. Maybe I'll do that and post the results.

                        Eric

                        Comment


                          #13
                          I was looking at the design of a FilterLinc vs. a power strip noise filter. There appears to be a significant difference in how they work. The power strip filter appears to be working to attenuate noise using ground, which certainly is a valid way to get rid of it. The only problem is that it is going to attenuate (absorb) wanted signal as well from both ends.

                          The FilterLinc appears to be working to block noise from passing through rather than attenuate it to ground. This would effectively keep the noise from reaching the lines but not actually absorb valid signal that is on the lines.

                          Jon


                          Originally posted by ehill99
                          X10 is centered at 120 kHz. INSTEON is at 131.65 kHz.

                          Would be interesting to put a FilterLinc and one of these on a scope. Maybe I'll do that and post the results.

                          Eric
                          Jon Ort
                          JonOrt@The--Orts.com
                          (Remove the dashes in the address, spam is getting out of hand)

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Originally posted by Oman
                            The power strip filter appears to be working to attenuate noise using ground, which certainly is a valid way to get rid of it. The only problem is that it is going to attenuate (absorb) wanted signal as well from both ends.

                            The FilterLinc appears to be working to block noise from passing through rather than attenuate it to ground. This would effectively keep the noise from reaching the lines but not actually absorb valid signal that is on the lines.
                            Jon
                            Jon,

                            You are probably 100% correct on your theory. In the rare case that you would want the signal (X10 or Insteon) to pass through the filter, you would need the true Filterlinc or a comparable device. In my case, I wanted to *BLOCK* all the noise from getting onto the powerline. These devices seemed to do the trick nicely; as they start attenuating the signals at 100Khz and up.

                            If I had a scope, I would check their effectiveness; but I don't. I'd be interested to hear what the findings were if someone were to check with a scope.

                            The way I looked at it, at $5.00 a piece, I could afford to put every noise generating device in my house on one of these. They seem to do the trick.

                            -Don

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Actually that's my point. The filterlinc's don't pass Insteon or X10 or noise, they block it.

                              The power strips don't pass it either, they attenuate or absorb it shunting it to ground.

                              The difference is that a Filterlinc between a TV and the wall will block the noise from the TV and not absorb X10 from the wall.

                              A filtering power strip between the TV and the wall will block the noise from the TV and also absorb all the X10 signal coming from the wall.

                              See what I mean? Each FilterLinc will not absorb wanted signal from the wiring, but each power strip filter will.

                              Adding a FilterLinc will remove noise and not reduce the overall signal quality in the home, but using the filtering power strips will actually reduce the overall signal available throughout the the house to X10/Insteon devices.


                              Jon


                              Originally posted by Dtperk
                              Jon,

                              You are probably 100% correct on your theory. In the rare case that you would want the signal (X10 or Insteon) to pass through the filter, you would need the true Filterlinc or a comparable device. In my case, I wanted to *BLOCK* all the noise from getting onto the powerline. These devices seemed to do the trick nicely; as they start attenuating the signals at 100Khz and up.

                              If I had a scope, I would check their effectiveness; but I don't. I'd be interested to hear what the findings were if someone were to check with a scope.

                              The way I looked at it, at $5.00 a piece, I could afford to put every noise generating device in my house on one of these. They seem to do the trick.

                              -Don
                              Last edited by Oman; January 4, 2006, 12:54 PM.
                              Jon Ort
                              JonOrt@The--Orts.com
                              (Remove the dashes in the address, spam is getting out of hand)

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