Honeywell VISTA: Upgrade Old System & Get Total Connect 2.0
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Description
Once you’ve located your control panel and removed the cover, the next step is to determine if your system can be upgraded to Total Connect 2.0. To determine the type of system you have, the video instructs you to take a look at the inside of the control panel’s cover. A sticker on the inside of the cover will have a wiring diagram which explains what each terminal is for. The video then shows you what to look for so you can identify if you have the type of system that can usually be upgraded to Total Connect 2.0.
If you do in fact have a Honeywell VISTA panel, you’re likely in luck, as the Honeywell VISTA security systems are often easily upgraded to Total Connect 2.0. In order to definitively identify if your system can be upgraded, the video explains how you can examine the PROM chip located on the green circuit board inside the panel to see if it’s the type of chip which can be upgraded.
The PROM chip is a black chip with a white sticker that has some identifying information printed on it. The video explains that the sticker will start with WA-V, followed by the model number for the control panel. That model number should be 10p, 15p, 20p or 21ip, as those are the most popular Honeywell VISTA systems that are employed by most alarm service companies.
The video further explains that if your chip says 10p, indicating that it’s a Honeywell VISTA 10p model, it cannot be upgraded. For all other VISTA systems, you’ll be able to upgrade to Total Connect 2.0 if the number following the model number is 9.12 or higher.
For example, if your PROM chip reads WA-V15p-9.2, it can be upgraded to Total Connect 2.0. If you’re using a 15p, 20p or 21ip VISTA system and your prom chip features a number below 9.12, it can still be upgraded. However, the PROM chip will have to be switched out for a more current model.
As you’ll see in the video, the process for identifying if your ADT Safewatch or Safewatch Pro system can be upgraded is very similar. With an ADT branded system, the PROM chip will begin with WA followed by either 3000 or 3001 to indicate the model number of the system. Following the model number is a number that indicates the type of PROM chip that’s in use.
As a general rule of thumb, any Safewatch PROM chip that’s 3.0 or higher can be upgraded. If your Safewatch PROM chip is below a 3.0, Sterling explains that there are some programming steps you can take on your Safewatch keypad to determine if a chip lower than a 3.0 can be upgraded. In the video, Sterling shows us a Safewatch PROM chip which reads WA-3001-5.4. Since the PROM chip’s number is higher than 3.0, this system can definitely be upgraded.
Transcript
[MUSIC PLAYING] Once you've done the legwork to find your control panel, and you have the cover removed, the next thing to do is identify the control panel and what system do you really have. On the inside of the panel door, you'll often find a wiring diagram, which has a description of what the screw terminals are for. And you'll find on an ADT branded Honeywell system the word "Safewatch" of "Safewatch Pro." That's your indication that you have a branded Honeywell Vista panel that was put in by ADT. Those are the systems that are most easily upgraded.
Both of these panels are Safewatches, and both of these panels can be upgraded to Total Connect 2.0 services. To find out if your system can be prom upgraded, you have to locate the black prom chip in the middle of the green circuit board, which has a model number and a revision printed on the white sticker. When it's a regular Honeywell system, you'll see W A-- William Alpha-- followed by V 10P, 15P, 20P, or 21IP. Those are the most popular Honeywell regular systems non-branded for any kind of dealer or alarm company.
On those systems, the 10P panels cannot do Total Connect 2.0. So that's the easiest way to rule those panels out. On a 15P or a 20P, if you want to be able to do Total Connect, you need to have a chip that's dash 912 or higher, so V 15P dash 912 or V 20P dash 912 or higher. Currently, they're up to 10.23 or 10.24. So of course, those do Total Connect as well. But if you happen to have a Vista 15P dash 2.0 chip, well, that system, as it stands with that chip, can't do Total Connect. You simply pop out the prom, put in a new prom, and now your system can do Total Connect.
Same idea on the ADT systems. On the ADT systems, it will say W A 3,000 or W A 3,001 dash a number. ADT systems are slightly different than their Honeywell counterparts, so we don't have the exact number of a dash 2.0 or higher that will work. There is some programming that you can look at from the keypad if you have something that's around a 2.0 version on ADT to find out if it will work or not. But typically, anything above a 3.0 chip will be able to be prom upgraded. In our case, we have a W A 3,001 dash 5.4, and this can definitely be prom upgraded.
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