Our 2GIG GC2 panel is now 7+ years old and was the perfect replacement for the original alarm system that came with the house I purchased in 2013. I was able to utilize all the existing wiring in the mud room for the GC2 Panel and the existing wiring in Master Bedroom wall for secondary panel and was also able to tap in the original Ademco speaker in the foyer (has worked flawlessly) into the back of the GC2 panel.
With 3G close to being turned off, I’m revisiting my options again for the 3rd time. It seems like we would not utilize most of the features in the new displays so I’m having a hard time justifying the investment in a new panel and secondary panel.
We no longer use Z-Wave devices (moved to Philips Hue), no longer use the Alarm.com cameras, thermostat, smoke detectors (moved to Google Nest/Google Home) and wouldn’t really use the built in camera in the primary panel since the our 2GIG GC2 is mounted behind a utility cabinet door and certainly don’t want a camera peaking into our master bedroom ( IQ Remote Secondary Panel).
Besides the ability to run secure door sensors and the panel being more modern and faster, what else would the new panels provide us?
If you arent using any of the features mentioned, there isnt much of a reason to switch to a new system overall, so long as your current setup is doing what you want. The biggest benefit to switching to a newer system would be regular software updates for fixes, improvements, and compatibility with newer equipment.
2GIG discontinued the GC2, GC3 and GC3e. They still have the GC2e and the EDGE both of which would be compatible with existing 345MHz sensors and eSeries (encrypted) 345MHz sensors.
Qolsys has a 345MHz version of the IQ Panel 4 coming out (with no ETA just yet) that works with legacy 345MHz sensors and DSC brand PowerG.
Alarm.com will support 3G modules until their sunset dates. For AT&T 3G that is soon, end of February 2022. For Verizon 3G (and T-Mobile 2G) thats end of 2022.
Users may notice a drop in signal before that as local infrastructure is reallocated.
Thanks for the quick reply Tyler! I currently have 2 x 2GIG panels, 3 door sensors, 1 garage tilt sensor, 2 motion sensors, 2 Honeywell glass break sensors (work really well - home theatre will set it off sometimes) and a Honeywell water sensor. It looks like that would be a hefty cost to replace. A couple of questions, does the Qolsys IQ panel provide access to the sound/speaker plug similar to the 2GIG? If I upgraded, I’d want to continue to use my Ademco speaker in the foyer since the panel is located behind a door.
A couple of questions, does the Qolsys IQ panel provide access to the sound/speaker plug similar to the 2GIG? If I upgraded, I’d want to continue to use my Ademco speaker in the foyer since the panel is located behind a door.
No the IQ Panel 4 does not have a speaker wire that you can unplug like you have on the GC2, nor does it have an internal terminal block like the GC2.
The EDGE has a built in terminal block, similar to the GC2 but the speaker cannot be accessed in the same way.
The Bell outputs would be for an external solid state siren, but this would only activate on alarm (see page 17 of the manual for more info).
While the GC2 runs all sounds (announcements, voice, chime, siren) our of the one Piezo, the EDGE has an internal 85-dB Piezo Sounder for the alarm siren then it has two speakers for 2-way, voice announcements/chime, etc hardwired in (on either side of the hand strap in that photo). It doesnt look like there is a way to have the sounds play through an external speaker.
Since Surety doesn’t sell the 2GIG Edge, it looks like we’d need to buy one on eBay. Is there anything I should look out for when going down this path? Is the 4G/LTE cards included with the 2GIG Edge? 2gig edge | eBay
The Edge has a built in 4G LTE module. I would refrain from buying used as you never know what its been through or if its module is even unregistered. If its already registered, theres nothing we can do to get it to work with your account as only the dealer who has the module number registered can do anything about it typically.
Additionally, the TS1 secondary panel is not compatible with the 2GIG Edge , only 2GIG-EDG-RK Secondary Panel and the 2GIG-PAD1-345 keypad are.
Also, the EDGE panel only works with the 2GIG-IMAGE3 Image Sensor and it needs the XCVR3-345 transceiver to work with that Image Sensor.
Thanks for the part numbers, I noticed that after I corrected the link. Does Surety have any plans to stop supporting the 2GIG GC2 panel through it’s security plans? I don’t want to purchase an LTE card to discover the panel is no longer supported in the near future.
So long as the 3G module is currently installed and signaling, yes. Any TS1s connected to the Go!Control will update during this process as wel
Currently, your panel is on 1.10 which is fairly out of date. It will take 2 separate firmware updates to get your panel from there to current. The first would take your panel from 1.10 to 1.12. The second, scheduled for the day after would take the panel from 1.12 to 1.19.3.1. Each OTA can take up to 24 hours to complete.
During this time, your panel should not be powered down or reset, nor should programming mode be entered. Doing so can cause damage to the panel.
The panel will continue to function as normal during the process, save for a brief reboot at the end, signifying the process is complete.
You can confirm locally by navigating to Security > Menu > Toolbox > Enter Master or Installer Code > Version
We can proceed with the OTA during normal business hours, Monday through Friday.
Just let us know when you would like to proceed and we can get started.
Commands have been sent at this time to start the OTA process. During this time, your panel should not be powered down or reset, nor should programming mode be entered. Doing so can cause damage to the panel.
The panel will continue to function as normal during the process, save for a brief reboot at the end, signifying the process is complete.
You can confirm locally by navigating to Security > Menu > Toolbox > Enter Master or Installer Code > Version
A second OTA scheduled for tomorrow will take the panel from 1.12 to 1.19.3.1. We will follow up once the second one has been sent.
