Honeywell VISTA-20P Ademco Control Panel, PCB in Aluminum Enclosure

This was easy to set up for fire and security. It replaced an older panel that was just being used for security and was not communicating with a central station..Connected the existing security zones and changed the end of line resistors. I added two wire smoke detectors and then connected it to a central station. It works really good and we are very pleased. I added a siren driver and speakers for the audible alarm. I also used the 6160RF keypad just in case in the future we would want to add some wireless devices. We used a regular 6160 keypad for the timed entry-exit door. We did not try the voice feature as my wife didnt want it activated. This is a good cost effective fire-security panel for most homes or a small business.

Great Control panel.

Once I reviewed many You Tube videos I was able to do the setup. I still do not know how to connect a panic switch.

Honeywell alarm panel. Extremely versatile! Can be fitted with 5881enh wireless receiver to make a wireless alarm system as well as wired. Can be used with a variety of control pads. Includes a telephone interface to call for help. 100% professional. Not really intended for a casual do-it-yourselfer. If you understand alarm system technology and can run the wires, or mount the wireless sensors you can use this. With any alarm system youll want to have it monitored. Alarm Relay in El Segundo will monitor the panel and help you program it - but you must know the basics. You will need to have it working before they do the final programming.

I got this to replace an old 1980s Radio Shack security system in our new home. Talk about a huge upgrade! Pairing this with an RF enabled keypad such as the 6162 RF makes it easy to add additional RF security sensors, without the hassle of running wires through existing construction. The gauge of the sheet metal is a little on the flimsy side, but I suppose its thick enough. The door pivots on metal tabs in slots, a real hinge would have been nice. The firmware version I got was the newer 9.18, which seems to have the new VIP menu driven programming interface that work with the 6162. As an embedded engineer, it was still a bit tedious to figure out how to program it. Im sure an alarm technician could navigate the menus much faster than I. Still learning the conceptual details of zones, modes, partitions, etc. But that gives me assurances that it will be very configurable for future plans. As others have said, these products are meant for installation by professionals bearing expensive monitoring contracts. The panel came with a good wiring diagram, but the programming guide assumes a little prior knowledge specific to Ademco control panels. It is not written for the DIYer, but you can figure it out. It seems from searching the Internet that there are additional programming features and options not described in the included manual. I intend to keep the system hooked up to a little chime siren for a few months while we ensure we dont have false alarms. Next phase will be adding networked control with AD2USB or Envisalink 3. Overall a great value for the price.

Perfect

A+

After my second home was broken into, and the front door left open for who knows how long, I decided I wanted an alarm. After much research, and not wanting to deal with contracts, salesmen and high monthly fees, I ended up with this panel and a totally expandable professional system that texts me when the alarm is disarmed, armed, fire, trouble, flood, and of course if a break-in occurs. The basics of the system are the 20P panel, the 15P would be fine for most,unless you have more than six wired zones, the EVL-4 Eyezon IP communicator, which requires a hardwired connection to the router, and mounts inside the cabinet, 12 volt back up battery, required as it drives the siren as well as power failure back-up, siren, and dont go for anything less than the 6160RF keypad. The RF denotes that the keypad is capable of receiving and transmitting to wireless devices. Even if you dont think youll want or need wireless, once you read up and see all the endless possibilities of the wireless devices and sensors, youll be glad you spent the little extra to go RF. If you dont own a drill, wire strippers, or maybe even a soldering iron, and willing to roll up your sleeves and learn a little about all the well thought out and time proven nuances and actually read the manual-then this is probably not the system for you. Just looking at the manual and all the options are a bit overwhelming, but once you dig in, only a few of the actual programming prompts need to be changed. Each zone needs to be told how to react to the sensor, but just read and check out a few youtube videos. You dont need to be a computer programmer or rocket scientist-Just be willing to invest a little time and energy during the install, and you wont need to touch it again unless you want to do some upgrades and enhancements, which Im sure most techie types will be fascinated by the possibilities. Im working to install an electric water valve in the main water line, so the water is shut off when armed in away mode-no flood worries!

Great panel good price

New in box just as described, Works great.