Low ⚡Voltage at the Real ReBuild
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- Опубликовано: 9 июн 2024
- Check out Voltek!
voltekinc.com/
The Sonos + Sonance equipment I'm using:
Speakers: www.sonos.com/en-us/shop/wall...
Arc: www.sonos.com/en-us/shop/arc....
Brackets: www.sonance.com/home-theater/...
Antenna Web:
www.antennaweb.org/
Links to low voltage products (or similar) that I'm using:
Cat 6 cable:
amzn.to/3y5wSg9
14ga Speaker Wire:
amzn.to/2QkYxbS
Kohler SoundTile:
amzn.to/3bmDTiT
OnQ Panel Box:
amzn.to/3uNdtP3
Outdoor Antenna:
amzn.to/33GNwV9
Oatey Access Panel:
amzn.to/3tL4QmM
Coax cable:
amzn.to/3hwVVmx
The TV I'm going to use:
Samsung Frame TV: amzn.to/33Uqavr
Follow Matt on Instagram! / risingerbuild
or Twitter / mattrisinger
Be sure to checkout our new Podcast!
buildshownetwork.com/search?c...
For more great video content check out Matts new site! buildshownetwork.com/
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Build Show Network on Instagram / thebuildshow
Huge thanks to our Show sponsors Polywall, Huber, Dorken Delta, Prosoco, Rockwool & Viewrail for helping to make these videos possible! These are all trusted companies that Matt has worked with for years and trusts their products in the homes he builds. We would highly encourage you to check out their websites for more info.
www.Poly-Wall.com
www.Dorken.com
www.Huberwood.com
www.Prosoco.com
www.Viewrail.com
www.Rockwool.com
You should add a flexible conduit vs a proprietary cable from the TV to your media cabinet. Proprietary cables come and go. You can always run a new cable in a conduit.
+1 for the conduit. Change your TV and you may need to change out that wire. I would hate to have to dig into the walls and ceiling especially with all that Rockwool.
Agreed with a nice pull cord just in case.
@@Ampacityelectric The head on that Samsung cable would need a 1 1/2" Dia opening or 2" conduit..
@@FJB2020 Yep, should just drop a 20" can and put the OneConnect behind the TV
@@Niccodemure Then you have to run a bunch of HDMI and they don't play nice over 35' at 4k 60 fps..
Wireless systems can easily saturate in large families and have coverage problems in large or unusual homes. Having a wired backbone for offices, stable media locations and possible repeaters/hot spots is a great idea. I am an IT professional and have six kids, the oldest 4 are voracious high def media consumers. I actually run two separate wireless networks in my home now to keep it under control.
Not really, your "saturated" when you run out of TDM on a band and frequency or channel. You can run on about 12 devices per frequency before taking hits on "speed". Even though I absolutely hate ubiquity, they do well on the AP points. They can auto channel hop thats how you can get that mythical 240 devices on a AP point though your prob going to be saturating the cat for it. Hope he is running POE with these.
Agree. For simplicity and reliability keep everything you can wired... televisions and desktop computers especially.
I have 6 Cat5e drops and I’d easily love to double that amount. I agree with you VT ..I don’t want to endure WiFi routers degrading over time. All stationary devices need to be hardwired leaving the mobile devices and appliance on the WiFi. It’s never going to get any easier to drop in cables before the drywall goes up.
@@hmurchison8123 honestly it wouldn't be better to run more drops that just saturates the channels more. That's what I was trying to get at. Its better to run a managed wifi network vs multi-networks. Only time its beneficial is when security separation is needed. I run 3 vlaned wireless networks for that reason. Public wifi, Private wifi, and Utilities with the later two not broadcasting thier ssid. Also you can take advantage of mu-mimo and beamforming between your ap points. But those vlaned wifi networks are ran from the same ap ppints through the managed network
@@JavaZombie power over ethernet
During a remodel, everywhere I wanted an Ethernet jack, I pulled two cables instead of one. Haven't regretted.
Also, another great place to run Ethernet and speaker cable is just above the kitchen cabinets. You can't see the jacks and it can be a good spot for a wireless access point and speakers.
Matt, may want to run Ethernet to a few strategic ceiling locations in case you decide to install multiple ubiquity access points. (wifi)
^ this
Agreed, I have a commercial ceiling mounted WiFi access point in a closet in the middle of my house. Those are far better than the all in one modem router the ISP provided, or the blue bunny ear box next to your computer desk.
You can have a personal WAP and a guest WAP, better coverage, have the guest WAP shut off during certain hours and strict firewall restrictions.
its so cheap and easy to run now when there is no drywall its futureproofing it really.
The higher the frequency, the higher the bandwidth, the lower the range. This means that 5Ghz Wi-Fi already penetrates through walls less than 2.4Ghz does, and future technologies will likely even have less range. Not necessarily of course, but who can predict the future. I think it makes sense to have a ceiling ethernet access point at least on every floor, and if you've got a big house, at least every 15m's or so, or maybe every other room.
Yeah, when I bought my current house, I spent weeks running Ethernet to all the major rooms and to the corners for cameras. The idea of not taking advantage of the open walls to run Ethernet everywhere boggles the mind. When we had to build a half wall around the basement of my rental house, I had them run Ethernet every 20 feet. Who knows where someone will want a desk, an access point or a TV.
With Ubiquiti, you can put in fairly cheap wall mounted access points anywhere you can get an Ethernet cable and get uniform coverage.
Working in commercial low voltage (audio/video) it's always interesting to see what LV choices builders are making in residential construction
I agree it is very interesting. Not exactly the same choices I would make ( I tend to overbuild out things) but I think it will work well. Going with unifi is very smart.
I'm slightly disappointed that Matt wouldn't support fellow contractors and instead go the DIY route. I get it, but it's a common battle we face... "Well, Sonos is good enough... or we can just use WiFi and multiple apps on our phones..."
Same here. I cringed listening to his choices and kept saying to myself. "Why don't you hire an actual Low Volt company?" This is definitely a "DIY Smart Home". I didn't even finish the video, and I like Matts videos usually.
@@newdaytechllc8798 It is no smart home. Its a home with stuff.
@@MntneerWVUhe is probably also learning the tech--will specify more A/V with his clients that he definitely won't do.
Thank you for going back and adding conduit.
I hope that you ran a conduit from the attic down to your media closet. I find the vertical path from attic to first floor is a fun challenge too much of the time... to say nothing of a few key horizontal paths on the first floor...
18:37 I'll be interested to see the entire Ubiquiti install.
Seconded, and the cameras and Sonos!
Great products!!!
Ubiquiti gets out of hand really quick. They don't have any support, and if you are not an IT guy they can be a PITA to troubleshoot. Making sure to get the firewall and weekly reset configured right off the bat is really important. My Ubi system is really reliable, but it took a lot of work. Luckily for me I'm in IT, and so I have an idea of what I'm doing, but Matt may have an issue on cut over.
This was the most surprising video yet! Great to see, finally, a discussion on technology. I'm a certified Microsoft Engineer, own my own IT company and my own building company. My IT company does all of the work for my new builds and we have fine tuned much of our thinking over the years. Matt did more than most builders in his house which is great but most builders' achilles heels is technology. They don't understand it. Complain about the costs, etc. etc. But my thinking is 180 from Matt's. I've only got one shot to prepare a house while it's open to get it ready and keep it ready for what technology brings and that is at least as important as air sealing to me. What I've learned over these past 20 years is that one can NEVER know what technology is coming. Never. So, you need to do what many suggested here: run raceway (not the crappy electrical flex conduit) to every location that you can think of. For sure, runs from the outside to the rack, from the rack to the attic and basement, from the rack to all critical areas in the house like tv locations but ceilings and floors, and anything else you can think of. And I would never run just 3 wires from the outside. I run (3) Cat 6a, (2) RG6 and (2) naked fiber and 1 terminated. That should cover most of what we need for the foreseeable future. Oh, and take a video of everything you did before insulation. I cannot tell you how many times I've had to refer to a video after a build.
If I was a betting man, I'd say fiber will make dramatic strides in residential work in the next decade. It just solves so many problems with high traffic media like video and video, games, video calls, etc. are going to increase the load on our networks.
You got that mostly right and I generally agree. But the "certified Microsoft" part is a big minus, not a plus. When Microsoft gives a "certification" it only means a person has been thoroughly indoctrinated with the Microsoft way of doing things. The rest of the technology world is often significantly different. But those people with Microsoft certifications often have great difficulty doing anything outside of the Microsoft system/mess. Hence the reason why I say that's a minus, not a plus.
100% on getting video of everything you did! That has helped me a lot after doing anything behind the walls.
@@laughingone3728MS certifications are typically a single two hour exam requiring 20-80 hours of studying, so sure how "thoroughly indoctrinated" one could be after learning enough to pass a test on a single MS product
I totally agree with you most builders don't understand the technology side of things and it's often missed or over looked, and they rely on wifi too often, but even then they leave that to an electrician or the home owner who probably don't know much either. I also see those structured media cabinets all the time and I really don't like them, no standard networking equipment actually fits, you need a proper 19" rack, even if you have a desktop switch, ISP provided modem/gateway, etc.
Here, I wouldn't prewire fibre from the outside because Bell Canada (the local telco) likely will ignore it and run their own fibre into the house, sometimes to the basement and sometimes wherever their tech decides, which is rarely a good choice, and Rogers (the local cable company) will want to run their own coax into the house, or their own fibre if in an area served by their FTTx network, but I find their techs are a little more flexible with where they will run the cable to for their demarc. Do you use a low voltage cabling specialist or an electrician to run your ethernet? I prefer working with a LV specialist over an electrician.
running a 1 1/4 pipe from the tv box to media closet is always a good idea. also a pipe to the attic and to basement if there is a dropped ceiling.
2" if you are using that Samsung cable.. The head on it is 1 1/2" wide..
Definitely agree about the ceiling runs for access points. It also may be beneficial to consider a way to make sure your getting conditioned air in the media closet. Depending on what and how much equipment with that rock wool you may build up heat.
good point regarding the a/c in media closet, we ran into that cause our closet would overheat things.
Right on! Air flow/exchange is critical for equipment. Heat is a serious issue even with only a little equipment.
CAT6 If you used CCA (Copper Clad Aluminum) wire which is in the link you provided. Also looks likely to be the same type of box you showed at the beginning. Many people use CCA cable for POE devices both access points and cameras. You should run only coper wire not CCA for POE devices. The voltage drop and interference caused by CCA will create nothing but intermittent connection issues for many devices and packet drops at the bare minimum.
Reference sited. www.flukenetworks.com/content/application-note-copper-clad-aluminum-cables
www.belden.com/blogs/smart-building/cca-cable-5-reasons-to-stay-away/
www.truecable.com/blogs/cable-academy/cca-vs-solid-copper
But, but, but...CCA is CHEAP! Lol. #LiveLearn
I agree never buy CCA its crap
He needs more physical internet connections to avoid over saturation of wireless signals. He also should have run conduit/smurf tube where he’s running Ethernet in case he needed to upgrade in the future. Missed chance in my opinion.
I have 2 lines running to every time and even I am considering adding more. Wifi is the worst and should only ever be used for mobile devices. TVs, sound systems, and everything else should be wired.
@@JohnNeville617 exactly the reason I mentioned the smurf tube. Everyone runs into this issue unfortunately. Or worse yet, a wire gets damaged during installation. I’ve seen that happen many times.
2 cables per location should be the minimum now with 3 being a nice hedge for future
I am a wireless networking pro. I run Cat6 everywhere. Wireless is a finite resource - use it for stuff that can only be wireless - if you can plug a network cable into a piece of equipment, plan to cable it..
1in" smurf tube from the demark to the media closet/home run is cheap insurance for years to come.
Absolutely. With an accessable, clean, conditioned attic, just running pipes up into the attic is good too.
@@JavaZombie shitty conduit that is impossible to pull stuff through.. just use normal pvc
@@JavaZombie blue plastic flexible conduit. Basically an easy way to run a cable
Later. It’s blue color like smurfs
are you doing ceiling mounted access points? or the little wall mount ones in major areas? even mounted POE security cameras? I also highly suggest running a smurf tube from your LV area to the attic area now. in the future it will be much easier to fish another run in to anywhere in the house.
I’m an install manager for a low voltage alarm company. Doing access control, cams, alarm systems, cat6, WAPs, home theaters, etc. i see a lot of interest in this. I may have to start recording my team and installs!!! Thanks for the vid
I really liked this one, a few thoughts:
As others have mentioned, running extra CAT lines to places you might want future wifi makes sense. Both for data and/or just POE. Think decks, outside entertaining, relocating an office to a bedroom, any place you might want better coverage in the future and be prepared for the next couple releases of technology (WIFI-7 or -8 maybe).
Think about mechanical controls and where you might want to run ethernet to them. Thinking water heater, solar controller, battery management system, additional security cameras or motion sensors (if not for data, for power), etc.
Always make sure you leave a good service loop on your cables. Keystones can break, as you mentioned interfaces can evolve, something else might happen, its always better to be able to open up a jack and find a nice loop to give you some working length rather than only a couple of inches which often gets shorter when you cut out the bad and try to finesse the new in.
Running conduit to the attic is smart. You might not "need" it now, but as thing evolve you might really want to connect two locations and being able to do it in the attic without cutting into a wall is good planning. Might cost a little bit now, you might never use it, but if you do it will save you lot in time/energy/money.
Matt: Considering all of the equipment your putting into you media closet, do you have adequate cooling? All that equipment is going to generate a lot of heat. You may need to provide some type of cooling.
Poe switches generate some BTUs
Absolutely, some ventilation will be necessary. However, I think he's already done with this stage and these videos were filmed a while ago.
@@nathanddrews I haven't seen it. and in the clip of Matt showing the media closet I didn't see any Air vents for cooling. I am pretty sure he didn't plan for cooling the media closet.
I came in here to ask the same thing. Even if he puts passive vents in it may over heat.
He can get one of them wall mounted AC units. Not a window one.
I also wired my house with full cat 6 and used the ubiquity UniFi dream machine and peripherals rack mounted in my IT closet. Absolutely love it, very user friendly. Love their ceiling mount wifi units.
I’d like to learn about how you’re handling the Ubiquiti install - should be interesting!
Ubiquiti is super easy the only downside is you have to have a software controller on your network for any configuration changes. Also they don't have as many features as something like a meraki would have but for home environments it's typically good enough.
@@captaink118 the device he mentioned, the Dream Machine includes the controller and (potentially) a DVR for his cameras.
@@nickbernhardt1756 was he getting the pro?
@@brandonv8721 I’d imagine so since he mentioned it being rack mounted.
Learning about how you did the wireless access point and how the Ubiquiti is set up would be great information!
The newenglander in me has to constantly remind myself your house is on a slab
@Matt Risinger You have a virus on your phone. You are posting messages about cryptocurrencies in your comments.
@@Dragonited That is a fake account, not a virus.
Jesus, who else remembers when Tivo came out? When I was a kid if you had Tivo you were one of the coolest kids in the school
I still own one
Tivo is what my cable company uses. I have 3 DVRs and 3 of the Tivo minis. Love the fact that most of my TVs are on my network and I don't have to do COAX everywhere.
I'm still a TiVo user. But once my Roamio dies, I'll ditch cable and go with internet TV. No point buying another DVR. Renting one from the cable company is a terrible move and I'd not consider that.
Tivo was a true "game changer". Hard to give up old habits that worked well. Maybe ATSC 3.0 will usher in a new Tivo box for OTA?
"I've got a brick in my wall now"
Well, yea, that is where they tend to go Matt
:)
I was actually expecting him to say that the 12/3 wasn’t for the lighting and that he was going to wire all of his lights with low voltage.
if you want low voltage wiring using awg 20/2 instead of 12/3 - see atxled.com
@@atxledconsultantsinc.9997 I'll check that out.
Four 'twisted pair', not stranded. The category 6 is a solid wire cable.
You can have stranded Cat6 cable. Its used for short runs like patch cables that require flexibility. For the long runs he did in his house I hope he used solid.
If you get a HDHomerun from Silicondust and connect to the antenna you can watch on your phone or TV or anything else on your home network
@Matt Risinger I think your RUclips account may have been hacked.
@@DonovanSexton it's not a hack, a scammer just creates a channel with the same looking name.
They need to be reported as spam and YT removes them.
I use a Tablo network DVR. Works with my phone and AppleTV. Can add a big USB hard drive for capacity. Also have an HDHomeRun which I use for live events (and I sell an app to use the HDHomeRun to point your antenna.)
@@ke6gwf ah it looked exactly the same. Same name and picture it seemed. Didn't think about a separate channel and I sure wasn't going to click on anything to find out. I did report them as well, but after about 6 of them I stopped haha.
I have one and it works great. I get it on my phone, table, Amazon device, Google devices.
5:06 don’t forget to think about “heat” dissipation from your “media cabinet room” from all the Tech going in there. Will put off some heat, and really wanna make sure have good air flow moving that hot air out and filter dust would be a bonus, imo.
Matt you mentioned wired connections to each room. I did just that in my old house as it was being built, what I forgot to do was spider it out.Definitely put the wire to each room, but trust me you want to run 3 wires from the "room" box to the other walls. No matter how you think your teens may arrange there room its better to have a wall plug close to where its needed. I laughed every time I went into my teens room and saw the cat5 wire runing along the base board so the table he was using (and kept moving) had a wired connection. Nice videos on the built, I love the new materials your using it helps me with my upcoming post frame build.
I wonder if anyone makes a small patch panel that you could install in each bedroom closet or something.
@@prototype3a Not worth the trouble. You could easily mount a 1U panel on the wall inside the closet to use as a room-level demarc, but then you end up needing a switch, and for many use-cases today you can easily find a single 1G Ethernet run to be a bottleneck if you're a heavy data user. For the cost and complexity of doing that you might as well just run drops to every outlet location.
A much simpler approach is to just drop one or two Ethernet into a single main box, and then use a 6x keystone jack decora insert as a DIY patch panel, with each jack wired to another outlet on another wall in the room. Or just drop Ethernet to every high voltage outlet. It's cheap to pull Ethernet when the walls are already open, more doesn't hurt. Then just patch in your main network closet if you don't have enough switch ports to light up every drop simultaneously.
@@prototype3a HI Drew, I'm just a little cheaper I would just used a straight RJ45 end to end plug (like 2 bucks) in the main room box and treat the wires as an extension to the other wall. It may not be the best or fastest but it gets the job done.
-MG
@@haphazard1342 I seriously doubt you'd have bottlenecks with a single 1g link to a room. Nothing really uses that much bandwidth and I know as I have a 10g link between my server and NAS and regularly move large amounts of data around at 300mb/s or more.
Having lived through all the copper conductor / connector plug changes in the last 20 years I thought it obvious that my house plans specified Smurf tube (flex conduit) to be installed throughout the house so new tech cables could be fished through the walls.
The Six P's :
Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance
I would love if you could get into the tech and wiring side of things for a bit. Would like to hear more about sonos
Yes please. I geek out on this stuff.
Sonos works in a constant state of broken... It's honestly not worth the frustration or the immense loss is sound quality... If you are a lover of audio and its accurate reproduction sonos is a crime...
Sonos is overrated. Their products are overpriced and you can find similar Bluetooth devices for way cheaper.
@Matt Risinger FAKE ACCOUNT! Your so screwed!
Please no.
Yes please ...you asked us if you should do more videos on your low voltage, sonos, etc installation and setup. I’m remodeling my house and your tips are informing my decisions. So please yes post some and soon!!
Thanks for the great video on low voltage wiring and strategy. I would love to see you do more on this type of work. I believe there are a lot of people out there who would benefit from your research and experience with this subject. I am really enjoying your videos, thanks again. 🇺🇸
Wired is great for fixed locations. Wireless can have interference, reflections, competition from other devices, line of sight issues, etc. If your TV, desktop, whatever can be plugged in, go with it. lol. A lot of stuff works wirelessly until it doesn't - like when you turn on your microwave or put a mirror or metal filing cabinet on a wall the wifi used to go through. lol.
Love the ideas you bring up in the build - I think low voltage DC lighting is probably the future. I've seen some implementations of it, but nothing standardized yet.
The current wiring for lights is serious overkill for LEDs and has some inefficiencies with lowering the voltage and converting AC to DC at each socket... yet, we still need the AC high voltage for ceiling fans, so there's likely always going to be a mix throughout the house - and for or due to conversions from fans to lights and/or plugs.
Hi Matt. FYI: The Frame from Samsung comes with the one connect box and one connect wire, in the box. But it's only 5m/15feet. For the long 15 meter or 30 meter, you do need to buy the longer cable separately. Also, make sure you get the "The Frame 2021". Big upgrades from 2020 models. Regards, a Samsung engineer.
Yes you are correct I would actually keep the one connect box close to the TV and recommend a Versabox from SnapAV behind the TV to house the one connect and anything else and he could always run a HDBaseT for the TiVo over the Cat6
Also, a colab seems appropriate with @Lawrence Systems or @Crosstalk Solutions
This would be an awesome collaboration!
Yes - a video on the equipment install is a must!
I keep telling everyone I know at my college how your build is one of most legit passive house in every aspect every since the beginning of the build, every single detail on your build is top notch and all the new tech all around the house completely tops it off... just like RUclips Viewers, Half of em love it and the other half always has something to say.. and at the end of the day they all watched your video 😴💪 haha. Thank you for introducing me to passive / green style building, this is truly the future and will be standard everywhere one day as we all know. Anyone with something negative to say is literally just behind the ball... And last thing do electrical work with my uncle and have terrible ocd... every low/high voltage detail is on point, including the wiring gauge! Never stop following your intuition(spending the extra dollar haha) #GodBless #Build
That's a LOT of cables run into that 16x16 box! I've got half of those cables and a 24in tall low voltage box next to the 220v main service panel. Plus a secondary hidden location for my network storage drive and security camera footage recording server. Any burglary would assume the footage is on my desktop or inside my locked low voltage box, but it's not. All my personal data is stored on my personal Synology cloud drives along with the security camera footage server, along with their own UPS battery backup. With UPS battery backup the internet, WiFi, security cameras, and my network storage cloud will still run for over an hour without power from the grid or generator running.
You might want to think about keeping those storage devices in a gun closet if you're going to build one of those security closets again, like you did in a video ~2 years ago.
Exactly. That 16in. box is like 75 lbs. of potatoes in a 50 lb. sack! 42in. MINIMUM.
There’s no downside (well, yeah, cost) to oversizing your copper wiring. Extra capacity for unexpected future loads, better conductors for existing loads, cooler circuits.
…..but the breakers are still on rated for 20amps…..
Love the idea of hiding all of those RF leaking transformers far far away from where you are going to use them. Thanks for making great videos and bringing new things to the build.
Excellent video! I rarely comment on any of these. But I did wanna acknowledge your attention to detail you’re doing an excellent job with the house as well as with the videos. I would love to see more on the low-voltage and tech stuff as I will be doing my own as well.
I would love to hear more about the smart shades you plan to install. Wiring, controls, sizing, etc.
Glad to see you using over the air television. If that were any more exposed or any bigger of an antenna, lightning protection is a serious consideration.
As far as the rest of the network goes, looks like you did well with consideration for cameras, doorbells, thermostats, etc, as more an more devices being sold want to a way to 'phone home'
You're a wealth of info and we appreciate you sharing your journey with us
Your videos are awesome -- you're my go-to for learning about latest homebuilding tech. Thanks!
Matt, what's the maximum wire lenght for those Voltek outlets? Since low voltage DC power tends to lose power with distance.
I was wondering the same thing, pretty sure they must have a maximum distance in their documentation. I would also expect they recommend a central location for the unit to minimize long runs. The actual wire gauge they list on the website is 16/18 gauge and rate it for 60 watts. The website lists nothing about max length which in itself I find a bit weird. Personally I have installed electrical outlets with built in USB connections that work fine for charging devices(Leviton Decora USB Charger Tamper-Resistant 15A Receptacle 5.1A Type A/Type-C). Would end up being cheaper using those.
You are right that the longer the lengths, the more likely issues would manifest in the form of voltage drops. With low voltage DC power, you will need to factor in both the "to" and "fro" lengths.
Let's say you're putting am outlet 30ft away (roughly from basement to upstairs master bedroom), that is a total of 60ft.
The more DC current you try to draw through that long of a run, the more your voltage will drop at the receptacle end.
Typical MacBook 13" USB-C power brick rates at 60W, right at Voltek's limit. So for full power draw, the laptop expects to draw up to 3A of current at 20VDC.
With the BlueSea Systems Circuit Wizard app that I use for designing and spec-ing new DC power installs on boats, if we consider 60ft of cable, 3A of current draw and accounting for 2% voltage drop (I'm not sure yet how sensitive laptops charging circuits are to voltage drops before dropping to "slow charging"), you'll need to run 14AWG.
Good thing is those green phoenix connectors should be able to accept stranded 14AWG just fine.
I was curious about this too. I think Voltek is neat, but not the great solution they try to claim it is.
Looks like the central device outputs 36vdc. Presumably the wall plates are responsible for power negotiation and converting down to (5, 9, 12, 15, 20) volts. Converting down also allows it to mitigate even large voltage drops. You still lose the power over the long cable runs, but even you lose 6v in transmission the plate can still convert down to the highest USB voltage (20v).
60 watts is nice, but it's already been surpassed by even "regular" Macbook max consumption of 87 - 96 watts. (Note that this is for charging -- simply running the machine with no battery loss should be much less.) But, USB C max is 100w and on its way up to 240 watts. So, Voltek's solution is almost outdated already. (
They make a big point to claim environmental benefits over high-voltage cable, and that's true so long as you're running LV *instead of* HV. But nobody is replacing HV with LV, so you end up running both, which completely negates their claims. One day, hopefully, but not today.
Run conduit everywhere you have or want tech. it will futureproof your house
Underrated comment. I learned my lesson immediately after finishing my first basement renovation in the early 90's. Had 'futureproofed' by dropping dual phone jacks on every wall so I could flexibly do fax and dialup internet, lol. Now we are 4+ generations of cable technology later.
I had a custom home built in 1998 that had the expansion conduit installed between the circuit box location and the attic. Another was run from the attic to the crawlspace to allow for future expansion if needed.
For me anyway, this is the best, most useful comment section I've seen on this channel. And great video!
Love this. I am always scared of advancements in technology. That is why if I ever built a house I would be running conduit. That way I can always update or add a technology.
You might consider the HD Homerun receivers it takes OTA TV and routes it over the Internet cable. Then you can access from any PC/Phone/Most Smart TV's.
I know this is an older Vid, but two quick points. As an Electrical Engineer, this is def in my wheelhouse. 1) If you are going to pull Coax, make sure it is the high bandwidth coax or it will not support digital cable, frequencies are much higher and you need more than 2 GHz. 2) At least one other person mentioned this. I ALWAYS pull two Ethernet cables to each TV Drop. Yes I use WiFi, but 4K just streams much much better over a Cat 6 or higher. Especially with multiple kids, gaming and streaming. Also, Apple TV is much better. and this will help you eliminate a Router at your TV. I run 1 Ethernet into the TV and one is available for Game consoles, Apple TV, etc.... As always Matt is amazing!
I’m starting my low voltage apprenticeship next week on Monday. I’m super excited. I know that I will have to work from the ground up and do hard work but I’m excited for the future and working towards something. I can’t wait.
good choice on the unifi line of products its what i use in my own home.
@Matt Risinger Did you get hacked? This does not seem normal for you.
@@tibbified it’s a duplicated account not a “hack” necessarily.
@@jesseh2302 That is crazy. I did not know that was a thing. Pretty messed up.
Loved watching this - when worlds collide I guess as this is largely what I do for a living! That Voltek thing is very cool. A few thoughts, as I love seeing fine buildings that include Home Automation things of this nature.
First off, skip CAT6, go straight to 6A. Minimal if any cost difference but tons of future proofing. Second, two CAT6A and one solid copper RG6 Coax per room. Either all to the same plate or split one of the CAT runs to an opposing wall. Same three cables + SM fiber to any location where you expect a TV (fiber is useful for HDMI and other things like you said). At a minimum, 1 CAT6A in the ceiling for every room, if you're feeling fancy do two though. (If you think this is excessive: WiFi has been trending towards higher frequencies in every iteration. Having an AP per room may become a reality in the very near future especially as WiFi6E becomes more common. Higher end APs use multiple Ethernet uplinks to support the increased speeds, or at a minimum you can use the second ceiling run for IoT and home automation sensors). And if you're doing speakers, some stranded 14 or 12GA CL2 speaker wire up there too. Then Homerun *everything* to a central location as close to the center of the house as possible, and ideally in the basement (for noise and heat) - make sure HVAC plan includes the tech closet, very important one that I see overlooked even in commercial all the time. Label every cable as you go so you're not toning things out later. Skip the OnQ stuff, go straight to a regular 19" wall mount rack & patch panels, cheaper and easier to manage. Now you have all technology infrastructure in one location; router, switches, AP controller, server, amps, you name it. Final touches: SM fiber from tech closet to whichever external wall has other telecom dmarcs - useful for fiber ISP service. 2-3 solid-copper RG6 coax + CAT6A to a roof location for satellite, HDTV, or WISP. CAT to soffit locations for IP Cams. CAT to doors for IP Doorbell(s). I also never bother with dedicated phone runs any more; just bring the service in from the DMARC to the closet and if needed in the future simply patch a RJ11 phone plug into whichever RJ45 jack in the closet and that port will be active as phone instead of Ethernet without making any changes to the port wiring.
Looking forward to seeing more like this, and thanks again for introducing me to Voltek!
I love this comment!
Took the words out of my head!
@@zenginellc holy cow I forgot all about this - I think the only thing I'd add 2 years later is MicroDuct for ALL the things!
@@brodie7838 @brm That stuff looks like fantastic stuff!
Where would I get that? I cannot seem to find a supplier.
@@zenginellc that I'm not sure, I usually see it arrive at construction sites on gian spools but not sure who the supplier is , I'll try and look at the jacket next time I see some.
EDIT - I apologize - your solutions are bleeding edge and reliable. I love you content and even those I am way north - in cold country - your solutions merit attention. Thank YOU!
So - I am a bit of an old geek. 30 yrs ago - I built 400 kbyte networks - in a day when 56K modems were the top of the heap. Before 56 was 33.8 back to 300 baud. So - I have been on a T1 - some 25 yrs ago. Fiber - old fiber modems gave us 25 to 50 Mbps - some 12 yrs ago. The current fiber I am typing on - is a WIRED 1 Gb network - running at 176 Gbps - from here to the internet. Wireless - clamps the top speed to a multiple downward of the theoretical top speed. Wired connections give you top speeds. Use them where you need that fat pipe. Like a 24 inch AC pipe - verses 12 or 6 inch. Cheers!
I did a remodel of my house, myself and it was a 1930 house. I did brand new AC wiring as well as DC wiring. House is about 2000sq ft. But with older houses you usually had one central light with AC. But since i did not wanted to rip out lath and plaster i decided to increase lighting with LED pucks. Since lath and plaster had cracks in the ceilings i decided to mesh and skim coat the ceiling and walls, but under that i grinded channels and berried 18 AWG wires for 2 inch led pucks (normally can by on amazon for under cabinet lighting) so in bedrooms i berried between 6 and 8 of those kitchen got about 18 and living room got about 12. Each of those pucks would consume 2w at full blast if dimmed can go as low as 0.5w. All the 18AWG runs to switch on the wall right besides the AC or main light switch. But the DC gets its own DC dimmer that costs from 2 to $12 of sleek ones (also amazon). Than i ran a 14 AWG dc cable to my little DC panels which are on each floor so 3 total, which runs to a AC to DC converter about the size 2*3*8 that plugs in AC 15 amp outlet in my attic. Also bought amazon for about $40 bucks. this can handle about 75W max output so meaning I can ran 40 of these pucks at maximum to light up my whole house. The whole system cost me about $200. and i have been running this paralel to my AC lighting, Last year we had a 4 day black out I plugged this in to my portable goal zero battery and had lights through out the house for the entire time and still had half battery left after 4 days. This is a labor intensive to install, but otherwise its only 12V system. My 6 year old is playing with it and helping me. And all the old school 6 inch cans are so outdated but the 2" look great. Did not pull permits on this so im sure when i go to sell this might be an issue with the home inspectors. I used 14awg from panels to switches because in DC system power does drop on longer runs. You could run for charging your phones using car USB plugs which im sure are cheaper too. But all lighting for sure can be run on this system. you can even get sensor switches and or human sensing switches for dirt cheap in comparison to any AC system equal task parts. Enormous savings in total, especially on the visual or finishing touches and capabilities including smart home and voice activated stuff. Hard to recommend due to the fact that no inspector would ever pass this. But due to new technologies the W and V we can use for smart homes LED lighting and sensing and all that the 15amp breaker is and overkill where I can run my whole house light up to max for 200W which used to be only 2 light bulbs. Blows my mind. Would love to here if you think this will take off eventually.
Some links from amazon
GETINLIGHT Dimmable LED Puck Lights Kit, Recessed or Surface Mount Design, Soft White 3000K, 12V, 2W (12W Total, 60W Equivalent), White Finished, ETL Listed, (Pack of 6), IN-0102-6-WH
BINZET Wall-mounted Glass Touch Panel LED Dimmer Switch Brightness Controller DC 12-24V for Single Color LED Strip Light Lamp-White
Hiletgo 3pcs DC12-24V 8Amp 0%-100% PWM Dimming Controller for LED Lights, Ribbon Lights,Tape Lights,Dimmer is compatible with Hilight, LEDwholesaler, fillite, and others' strips
12-Way Fuse Block With ground, 12 Circuit ATC/ATO Fuse Box Holder with negative bus, Protection Cover & LED Light Indication, Bolt Terminals, 70 pcs Stick Label, For Auto Marine, Boat,With 24 pcs Fuse
LightingWill Waterproof IP67 LED Power Supply Driver Transformer 100W 110V AC to 12V DC Low Voltage Output with 3-Prong Plug 3.3 Feet Cable for Outdoor Use
I would also run Ethernet to: refrigerators, ovens, stoves, thermostats, and any other location where an appliance/future IoT device may be. Internet froze, so I may be duplicating what he already mentioned. Definitely run Ethernet to doorbell. UniFi makes a real nice doorbell.
Good video, deciding where and how much cat 6 to run is hard. But as you mentioned, hard wired is going to have its advantages over wireless. The more you can have hard wired the better.
WiFi signals are being "hacked" all the time. Google was caught with a WiFi "sniffer" that was installed in their "Street View" vehicle: they had mentioned it in their U.S. Patent application (DUUUH!). Wired SOHO LANs are much more secure (or can be made much more secure) than SOHO WiFi networks.
thank you for sharing! always looking forward to seeing you're videos ...
Even though you have probably moved on from this stage before publishing this video, wired connections throughout the home are still super important for maintaining maximum performance and flexibility. Don't skimp on the CAT5E/6/6A/7/whatever wiring. It is so much cheaper over time than upgrading WiFi every couple years while offering superior performance across every metric. Not just connecting a computer, but power-over-ethernet for WiFi access points, distributed A/V, security cameras, audio, powered window blinds... so many things can be connected, controlled, or powered over "network cables" it's really fantastic. Also, assuming you're dealing with runs of 30-100ft, you can easily get 10GbE without overpaying for 7A or fiber runs. Obviously, needing more than 1GbE is pretty niche, but just know that it's possible as long as the cables are well managed with quality terminations.
would love to see your choices on internet through the house -- and your experience deploying it.
He said unifi
Ya he said Ubiquiti Unifi. It's a pretty cool system. More prosumer or low grade enterprise. They also have security cameras and other features all integrated.
@@persistentwind dont feed the troll.
@@siegeperry expensive system as well.
Thought: use shielded cat6.
As an IT dude by trade, I can appreciate how technically correct you are with the low voltage stuff. Great channel. Thanks
Did you catch that he said CAT 6 stranded? I was holding back my full IT nerd self back, its not stranded for structed cable like he was showing. I do a lot of WiFi engineering, but I run wires everywhere and try to rely as little as possible on WiFi. I have two story plus basement with three Unifi NanoHD waps.
@@nellermann he’s just a salesmen, he doesn’t really know what he’s talking about.
thank you for sharing, I really like the look of the voltek system
that tv antenna appears to be 4 monopoles inside a plastic case... so it'll probably get the best reception when oriented vertically, and worst when pointed like a cannon at the tv tower.
Agreed. The EE in me shuddered when Matt seemed to "point" the antenna at the station from the end of the unit. TV transmitter antenna orientation is vertical, and you maximize signal to noise ratio (SNR) with the home antenna in the same orientation (parallel antenna patterns couple well). AKA: Use this antenna "side-on" to the station and it will capture with better digital accuracy, vertical will help even more. Cheers!
So excited you went with Ubiquiti and Sonos. I have both in my home, I installed Unifi in my parents home, and they love it. They're moving and we're planning to do a big install. This whole series is so cool, Thanks Matt!
"A lot of you commented about my overkill wiring and it got me thinking..... But never mind that, check out this thousand dollar replacement for the free power brick that comes with your device that I got for free"
😂😂BAHAHAHAHAHA😂😂
How do they work though? Low voltage dc needs somewhat of a wire guage, to pass the current to charge/power larger devices - unless it's converted down from higher voltage in the output-unit itself(which would result in more heat at the output-unit). Even 3.5A or whatever that laptop needs, requires a semi-hefty wire, if that rack power supply is far away from it, I'd think.
@@fezdk I didn't look into the product, but I'd assume the power supply is putting out a higher voltage DC and the wall boxes are using DC/DC converters to step it down to 5V. Then a lighter guage wire is okay.
@@fezdk A larger laptop would likely draw the maximum allowed for the USB-C Power Delivery spec, which is 5 amps at 20 volts. I don't know for sure, but I suspect in that outlet setup the rack mounted converter is outputting 48v DC to the outlets and the outlets are using DC-DC converters to supply the required 5-20v range to plugged in devices. That would reduce the amps on the long run from the box to the outlets to around 2 amps, which would be doable on a thin wire. Personally, I think the setup is a bit of overkill. The best traditional AC outlets with USB ports in them top out at 36 watts these days. Not ideal, but it's enough to keep most laptops topped up on a slow charge.
@@BrentLandrum your correct most laptops require at least 45W to charge and 20V the standard AC outlets with USB-C only work on a max of 15V 2A which isn't enough for laptops. The Voltek system goes up to 60W @ 20V, I agree its not for everyone but its cool seeing where things are headed. This could start being real efficient when you talk about solar and battery supplies becoming more popular supplying 48V DC around the house.
@@DigitalBenny Probably 24V DC or thereabouts. A lot like the control wiring you'd see in a factory.
Good point on not making things too permanent. I've spend the last month drywalling removing intercoms from every room in my 1950s house. Intercoms were the "state of the art" home technology back then.
Nice setup. Perfect timing for me. Yes, more detail on the equipment.
First off, I would say you haven't run enough CAT6. Wherever you have a computer or a TV, I'd run at least two CAT6. You may have a "smart TV", which would need one CAT6, but if you get a Fire Stick or something similar, those run better when cabled. Any device that isn't going to move should be wired, in my experience. Sonos is fine, but if you're doing in-ceiling speakers, the architectural speakers are way over priced for what they are. Couple that with the cost of the amplifiers, and it gets insane for a house. Maybe they're donating them all to you? You may not be into the tinkering, but you can get much more cost-effective Sonos results with Symfonisk and modifying those to run less expensive ceiling and in-wall speakers. Lastly, I'd suggest you revisit your decision to use Ubiquiti security cameras. That is a closed system - you can only use their cameras with it. Much better to get e.g. a Lorex / FLIR system where you can use any camera that is ONVIF compatible. It will give you much more flexibility in the long run.
Good points. I would say that hacking Symfonisk is not a good "professional" approach either: you're repurposing a product for an unintended purpose and will find unpleasant limitations and edge cases. They're not certified to mount in-wall or in any plenum or other inaccessible space, and if you're running speaker wire to normal passive in-wall speakers then there's really nothing special about hacking Symfonisk units to be the driver/amp compared to using a designed for purpose system.
Sonos Port amps add up fast at $400/ea for a single stereo zone, but at least they support dual mono out on the amp and they have analog and digital stereo out if you want to expand the size of one of their service zones with more speakers.
I guess what I'm saying is "Even if you want Sonos, don't use smart in-wall speakers because smart tech changes and you don't want to have to do drywall all over your house just because Sonos discontinued your product or went out of business". Run passive speakers in-wall everywhere you want them, and you can use the same ones for decades vs the likelihood single decade lifespan of a Sonos smart system. And if you want to Sonos them, you can run Sonos Port amps in the closet. If you change streaming audio systems you can easily swap the amps without having to modify the in-wall speakers or anything else.
@@haphazard1342 That's what I said! Don't use Sonos' overpriced speakers, and also consider driving them with cheaper amps (aka Symfonisk). I agree the aesthetics of the Symfonisk in your rack may be off, but you can always disassemble them and put them in 3D printed cases!
+ 1 on the double CAT runs, -1 on the lorex cameras. Im in CCTV and I cringe when I see them. Going Wisenet (aka Samsung) is a much better choice, you can get them in IP and Siamese, they are built like tanks, and support ONVIF. Way better way to fly. Also, +1 on not using Ubiquiti cameras, they are proprietary, have zero support, and they are extremely expensive, bordering on overpriced.
Cat6 is magic you can run anything over it: IR, network, HDMI, USB....
You need wired POE wireless access points on each floor running back to that ubiquiti equip.
You can run anything over ethernet cable with the right media converter.
Coax is really important to me for OTA (over the air) TV. One primary reason is the higher quality signal - a must have for sports and now, the rollout of ATSC 3.0 broadcasts.
I am installing coax now in unfinished 1948 garage, which is my man cave 😎
Yes, please make a video on the actual install of all the low volt and internet equipment. Great video!
That antenna looks like a dipole or smething similar to me - if you will point it to the tower, that is the only orientation it will get completely NULL signal - please check the manual before doing so. Most likely the antenna is to be mounted vertically not horizontally, and most certainly NOT with pointy end pointing to the broadcast station.
Look into POE lighting. It's not cost efficient in remodels generally, but lots of schools and industrial new builds are using CAT 6 etc. to power IoT light fixtures. Super cool!
I agree with you. CAT6 and POE is the standard that is never going to die. 20 years from now there will be a POE to what ever Apple proprietary stupid "standard" of the month is being used at the time. Even with the move to POE+/POE++ Type 3 or 4 the cables stay the same, its just the end hardware that is different.
Yup I’m checking out vendors like dmf lighting, lumencache, Environmental Lighting, Colorbeam and more for DC lighting. It’s highly doubtful that if I were to build a new home I’d do line voltage lighting. I can do 0-10v and DMX until my hearts content from a fraction of the cost of a spec grade fixture.
Ubiquity had a POE LED panel. Not sure how popular it was/is.
@@BretBerger Pretty sure they still have it but it’s basically built as a drop in replacement for 24 x 24 roof systems I believe. I still may look that way when I redo the lighting in my garage.
100% be interested in the install as looking to install a very similar system in my own personal re build very interesting video as as always
Best thing I did in my remodel was to run flex conduit from my media/network closet to every TV location and also my office and a few other spots. Tech changes, and if needed, I can pull some new wire type to where it’s needed without drilling holes or patching sheet rock. I’ve already run one new cable this way. Matt, I’d encourage you to run a flex conduit to your TV location at least!! BTW, you’ll like the Ubiquiti gear. It’s really nice.
Great choice with going with Ubiquiti! I've installed it in multiples business and homes and haven't had a single issue. Make sure you get their POE switch to power cameras and wireless AP's.
Matt how are retuning the audio from the Samsung frame tv to the sonos Arc sound bar? The one connect box will be in the comm closet and you’re sound bar will be by the TV, you need to double check your connections
Bluetooth (or WiFi) will do it...no cable required.
@@skynetlabs I've found the biggest problem with using WiFi or (especially) Bluetooth to connect to speakers or headphones is lipsync. It's a royal PITA to get the delays perfect and even if it's only 3 to 5 frames off it will be _VERY_ annoying when watching a movie. Then again, it may be that I'm too picky about that after working in broadcast television for 20 years.
We install Sonos systems professionally in the Houston area, I really hope someone has something to return the audio back to that Sonos Arc, I’ve seen many customers do the same thing and not realize until after everything is done now they have to cut the sheet rock
He needs an hdmi from the Samsung one connect box back to the tv arc location. Personally, I don’t like a soundbar below a Samsung FrameTV. Kinda takes away from the look. Id do a sonos amp near one connect box and sonance inwall/ceil spks.
I watched matt’s drywall video, it looks like he installed in-wall speakers in the wrong spot if he is attempting to pair a Sonos arc and Sonos is in wall speaker system.
Hearing old school tv show recording reminds me of back when we had VCR+ codes to record shows. That was cutting edge for a while.
Matt, yes, please put out more content on the nitty gritty of the tech installs. We would love to see it!
im curious how much voltage drop you get by using dc, id think a dc power supplies inside the outlet would be a lot better :D im also curious if it negotiates the higher voltage that usb-c can use
Quick glance at their website, the power supply is outputting 36dvc and they suggest 16/18 gauge wire. Meaning the wall outlets are not just passive, which makes sense as USB-C requires some smarts to negotiate the levels.
As for the current draw of mobile devices, the drop even for 75 feet one way (150 round trip) shouldn't be a factor, < 5% at max output. Although I would bet they list a maximum length of cable somewhere around 100 ft, but I didn't see it on the site.
@@davismwfl alright interesting :D yeah i guessed it would be 48 vdc so 36 seems somewhat reasonable, the 5% though not that large is still something considering all the efficiency requirements going up, however any usb device consumes so little power its almost negligible :D
USB-C uses low voltage... Most high end network devices use 48v. The reason is line transmission. That's why USB only can go about 12 feet.
@@SimanSlivar the reason for 48V isn't line transmissions but lower current allowing for a smaller gauge wire. USB C goes up to 20V per the PD spec.
@@davismwfl love seeing people post information that is accurate! Thanks for doing the research.
The first time you need a 20 amp service, you won’t regret the heavier wire ( no one puts 20amp service in because they’re worried about lighting). Also, not all laptops can charge off of the USB-C
Super video! Very interesting subject. Keep them coming!
YES we need a whole-home LED low-voltage power retrofit system - that's the dream Matt
I bet commercial vendors have something already for hotels and the like but we need a small scale version for retrofitting old homes
It's sad with the pandemic you couldn't connect with Linus Tech tips. He was doing home renovation last summer, and you need a home network design and hookup.
I was going to suggest this as well. If I had a media closet like that I would probably mount a network rack or even half height server rack. Having onsite backup server, plex, and home assistant would be awesome with some of the features he has been putting in.
Matt you should look at Crosstalk Solutions channel. really good info on Ubiquiti products and installs.
Dream machine is amazing! Would love to see how you integrate it! It handles cameras, power over Ethernet, everything.
Matt,
I’ve been in Telecom for 32 years, so glad you placed some conduit for future needs looks much better than IW stapled to the baseboard.
It sounds like you nailed the intranet side of things well, one thing you didn’t mention was your voice needs. Unless you have VoIP phone system and you or someone wants a hard wired phone a second Ethernet cable can be used for this purpose (cheap insurance). Enjoy the channel.
5:50
I'm waiting for Linus Tech Tips to enter the room. :p haha
Linus Drop Tips. :)
Btw, he recently moved into a new house so there is going to be quite a few interesting episodes coming.
@@nexusyang4832
Oh Linus moved again?
I wonder if he has any short, cute Asian neighbor girls that are looking for a husband he can introduce me to. :p haha
A smurf tube from the TV to the closet for when that TV dies and new tech needs to go in is missing.
I think others have mentioned it already but Ubiquiti makes a PoE LED panel which is really great. Only has the one light spectrum so not ideal for home use but I am planning to use it for the garage. I use Ubiquiti and Sonos for all of my installs. Have used Ubiquiti for years with great success. My home Reno plan includes Tesla batteries for whole home power backup (I know it’s a lot but everything we purchase is as energy efficient as we can get). Great low voltage video, it’s always overlooked in new builds!
Absolutely more in-depth low-voltage videos, especially on the Unifi system!
Matt, check out Plex. It's a website for home media servers with support for antenna tv. Just add a NAS on your rack that supports it. Way better than TiVo
Plex is the shit. Love how it organizes all my Tor Media
Plex îs good
You have some good taste in electronics. Been using Ubiquity and Sonos products for a while. You won't be disappointed. (Ubiquity's wireless is very reliable also, btw, and you can just run a home run from the AP's to the dream machine and put the AP's anywhere if you don't think there will be enough coverage).
Is it better than a mesh router system?
@@10tenman10 If you ask me, yes. With mesh you have to deal with bandwidth sharing, etc... Too many cons. I'd rather have full switchport bandwidth (and POE) available to/from each AP. And Unifi can treat all the AP's as the same SSID, btw, in case anyone was wondering.
Matt, I built my own 3000ft sq house and wired it in about 2008. I wired for those ipod ports all over the house. I wired it for intercoms too. Moved in and that technology was obsolete. I also ran coax everywhere and lots of runs to the attic too for satellite dishes. Never connected any of them either. Well one to the main TV for a couple years. I just drywall patched over 2 of the ipod port boxes and one of the intercom boxes. With many more to go as i repaint. LoL. Right now they have blank plates over them.
Hello Matt,
Really love you’re channel. Here in the Netherlands i can not find a builder who makes videos like you do over there.
There are a lot of things we could us here also but the electrical installations are so different over here(regulations,etc.).
But i do understand what you’re idea is behind you’re setup.
Like the see many more of these video’s.
other connections to think about: adequate wiring for smart thermostats, wiring for a smart doorbell camera with proper wattage, and putting in a cellular frequency booster from a roof mounted antenna. For that matter, be prepared to run a connection for a StarLink dish into your network closet.
Why didn't you use conduit for your ethernet runs?
Conduit isn't required for low-voltage in residential applications. We typically only run conduit from the media panel to the attic.
@@skynetlabs I guess I should have expanded on my thought, he is running a single cable of CAT 6 and his intention is to grow old in this house, at some point CAT 6 may not meet his needs and it might be a lot tougher to upgrade without using conduit.
One thing about the USB in wall plugs to take care of is that I find the little "brick" adapters die relatively often. If the little transformer in the wall dies, then you have to replace the plug. One reason I am just looking at using all duplex receptacles.
You'll love the Dream Machine and the Sonos system. I have both in my home. One thing to make certain is to use the Ubiquity design program to plan out the best locations for your Wifi access points. Don't forget that you will want coverage for the patio and the garage.