2gig from Monitronics

We just bought a house with a 2gig control alarm system already installed. I believe the last owner had used monitronics as the service provider. I am interested in switching service to you guys. What are the steps i need to take? what is the installer code I would use to reset the system? do I need to purchase a firmware update cable and possibly a new cellular module, the ATT version?

thanks for your help,

Josh G.

Hi Josh,

The first thing to do is figure out whether your cell module is still locked by Monotronics. If it’s not then you can use it and you won’t need to buy any equipment. Just enter your cell module’s serial number into this page and it will tell you whether it’s locked.

There are 2 ways to find your cell module serial number. If you know your installer code then you can get it from the screen on your 2GIG panel. From the home screen, press the logo in the bottom right corner and enter your installer code. Then press the “radio status” button and it will show you the module serial number. The default installer code is 1561.

If you don’t know your installer code, you can still get the serial number from the sticker on the cell module inside your panel. Depending on which module you have, the number might be labeled differently. Odds are it’s an older 2G module since it was there when you moved in. Is the SIM card white or yellow? White is T-Mobile, yellow is AT&T. If it doesn’t have a SIM card then it’s a Verizon 3G module and the label will say ADC number.

it appears there may not be a cell module in this panel. did 2gig ever make just a pots system? I’ve looked in the panel I’ve looked in the box in the back closet…nothing with these needed numbers. would it be possible to private message or email images to you so u could verify what I’m looking at? would love to try and this up and running this week. I’ve heard monitronics can be proprietary and never get to their system over to another monitoring service. no default codes seem to be working. any help would be great. thanks

Yes, older 2GIG control panels had a built in POTS dialer. Newer 2GIG panels don’t have it built in but you can add a POTS telephone dialer module. Can you attach a pic of the inside of your control panel to your post?

should be able to see a few pictures. let me know if this helps and what I need to do next.

we’d like to use cell service, as we do not have or want a land line setup. could we install a cell module and fix that?

You don’t have a cell module. It goes in the upper corner on top of the big silver plate. You should be able to get one and install it though. You’ll have to update the firmware first using a firmware update cable. This kit has everything you should need.

After you update the firmware and install the new cell module we should be able to reset your installer code and get you into programming.

thanks. here’s hoping it does the trick. I ordered the kit this evening. So when I update the firmware and install the cell module, will u have to reprogram all of the existing sensors that are currently in place?

We won’t have to reprogram any sensors. Good luck!

It’s up and working. I updated the firmware and installed the cell module. The surety cam logo is showing in the icon position on the control panel. I was able to confirm a successful radio test from the user menu. I was able to change the master user code.

The only thing left undone is updating the installer code. The default of (1561) does not work. I know that my master user code does not work as the installer code. Is it possible for you guys to reset the installer code remotely so that I could have the freedom to add/change sensors, etc. in the future?

Let me know what can be/needs to be done. Thanks!

All set. Your new installer code has been emailed to you.

Thanks. One other question for now: I noticed that whoever setup this system previously grouped several window sensors as the same sensor on the control panel…for example 6 windows on the back of the house going from a back bedroom to living room to the master bedroom are all considered “master bedroom” when opened. likewise two front bedrooms and a window out in the garage is considered all “bedroom” the one in the garage is a little loose and falsely was recognized as open at 4:30 this morning. Would it be possible for me to go in and reprogram the garage window so that it is on it’s own sensor number and if need be, I could bypass that if problems arise rather than end up bypassing all 4 windows considered “bedroom”?

What would be the easiest way to go in and re-program that one sensor?

Thanks again for your help.

Those are wired sensors that are all wired into the same wired “zone” and then translated to a wireless sensor in order to communicate with the 2GIG panel. From the control panel’s perspective that is just 1 sensor. In other words, those sensors are grouped together by being physically wired together, not by any programming in the control panel. There is no reprogramming you can do to separate them. If you want to separate them you will need to find where the wireless translator device is that is converting that wired zone into a wireless sensor and you would have to re-wire it to remove the garage window sensor from that zone.

The wireless translator device could be a 2GIG super switch takeover module

or it could be a door/window contact that has a wired sensor input

Are you able to see where the wires from those window sensors go? What are they wired into?

I did find a take over module in the back panel (opposite side of house to the garage) with the old system where all of the wires are…I think I will leave as is for right now instead of trying to trace all of the wires back to that one sensor in the garage window.

Last problem before I am able to take the monitoring off of ‘test’ mode: Since this old system was originally installed without a cell module and worked only on a landline phone, it is currently sending communication trouble errors to the central station. Is there an easy way to go in and disable the landline dialer so that it no longer causes this problem?

Thanks again.

I think I found my answer in the 2gig installation guide: if I disable Q8 for the dialer that should fix it, right? I am assuming the dialer only controls the phone line and that my cell module monitoring would still function properly?

The dialer is only for the POTS line so yes you should disable Q8 since you’re using cell as primary. Also make sure Q63 is disabled so the panel won’t complain about the phone line not working.

Wondering if I could learn in a couple of old DSC WS4939 key fobs on the 2gig control panel? I am having a hard time finding if that is possible, and what would be the correct equipment code.

Ah. Unfortunately, DSC wireless equipment is not 2GIG compatible.

That’s what I was thinking…thanks for confirming.