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[J S M]

I have an ADEMCO LYNX alarm system on my house which works w/up to 8 x-10 devices. I already have one 12v strobe that I had hell to get working. I used a step
down Radio Shack device w/cigarette plug to wire the strobe, then plugged eveything into an appliance module. For the most part it works; put I had to change the house codes on my outdoor EAGLE EYES(which are used for lamp turnons) which were activating the strobe which is plugged in inside, but mounted outside. This tells me my strobe hookup is flawed . Also, the step down device's L.E.D. flickers in the off mode, which means this hookup is not totally compatable w/X10. Ive ordered an UM506, which thought was my answer. But now Im reading that this module wont power anything, only turn it on. Will the UM506 power a 12v strobe or do I plug it into an appl. module? Is my thinking right? I can see the UM506 has the housecode/unit screws on it, so it should turn on/off by the commands of the alarm system(?). If I get this working, I have 2 more 12v siren /strobes(which wouldnt work w/the current strobe setup) I want to mount outside that I want x-10 to shut on/off as the alarm commands. Thanx for any help.

[Brian H]

The UM506 has an isolated switch in it as you said.
What you can do is plug the power supply into the wall so it is always powered up.
Then add the UM506 into the wiring from the supply to the siren. By cutting one of the wires from the supply to the siren and adding the UM506 switch in series with the wires.

Are the appliance modules new or older ones? The LED flashing was most likely from the Local Control Sensing Circuit in the module or the small current from the On Off sensing. You may have been able to add a small 4 watt night light to the modules output and the LEDs may have then been fine.

[J S M]

Thanx Brian, I think I understand. Im plugged into an old Radio Shack plug'n power appliance module(no LED). The LED is on the R.S. converter that's plugged into the module. The converter has a car-lighter style socket on top, in which I plug in a male plug that has the strobe wires. So, the converter takes the 120 current and breaks it down to 12 for the strobe. This is the only combo that worked. I have 2 more strobe/sirens that wont shut off after the x-10 commands are given. I just wish someone made a siren/strobe that plugs directly into house current. The Eagle/Active
eye issue(s) I had was that even though they were sending signals to different unit #s on housecode F, they were setting the strobe off. That ended when I changed the eyes to different h.codes.(I had extra transceivers.)
So w/your explanation; Im not going to use  the appl. module; Im going to plug the converter directly into the socket. One of the strobe wires will go to the UM506, cut it and put each end on the screws. The UM506, which will be plugged in also will receive x 10 commands and complete the circuit and cut it also. Sounds like basic DC stuff; hope I got it.....

[Brian H]

It sounds like you have it. Basically the UM506 will switch the DC on and off to the strobe.

One thing with Motion Sensors. Most have a Dusk Dawn Feature that sends an On at dusk and an Off at dawn. To the next Unit Code.
Like motion sensed on M1 automatically used M2 for Dusk Dawn. Strange things can happen if you where using M2 for another function and didn't expect the motion sensor to control it.

[MANOWAR©]

Just so you know, some horn strobes need a steady 12VDC and some need the temporal pulse signal to work. Some can do both with jumper settings. Also there are 120VAC horn strobes out there. They were the norm years ago when fire alarms operated on 120VAC. Keep in mind that strobes themselves throw off a ton of noise when they operate which is why shielded wire on strobe circuits helps block noise.

[J S M]

Thanx to both for your info. When I finally get my UM506 , I'll know what to do. My main problem was the modules dont want to work w/converters; the 506 should work. These are the same siren/strobes(piezo) and strobes that wire into house alarm systems. The ADEMCO LYNX
has one set of screws for a siren at 120ma max, which why I want to X-10 a few more devices...

[Brian H]

Well with the switched output from the console. You could have used a heavy duty relay of the proper coil voltage and an external power supply capable of supplying the needed current for all the devices.

If the AC adapter you are using is a switching type. It also can be making enough power line noise to make X10 signals unreliable.