Our Wayne-Dalton iDrive quit -- although the motor was supposed to have
a lifetime warranty, they are no longer made and no parts available.

I read the reviews of the German-made* Sommer Synoris 550 opener and
decided to buy one. Lowe's and HD both sell them for the same price
($228), but only on line: not in the stores. Adding the wireless keypad
gets the total price into the free-shipping category. (Amazon also sells
them, but there is no free shipping option.)

The design is very simple: a 24V DC motor with a sprocket travels along
a fixed chain inside a metal C-channel. A metal arm connects the door to
a carriage containing that motor. It is very quiet but significantly
slower than the iDrive (which was claimed to be much faster than other
drives).

Cons: a) the wall station is not wireless as the iDrive's was, so there
is additional wiring to run; b) the iDrive had a delayed-closing
feature, so that I could press the button and walk out through the
still-open door, which would then close behind me; c) no staples were
included, so I had to make a special trip to the store to buy some to
staple the wiring in place.

*It really does seem to have been made in Germany, not in China with a
German company's name on it. Those poor German workers! Fancy being paid
even less than Chinese workers so that they can keep their jobs!

Perce

In article ,
"Percival P. Cassidy" wrote:

the iDrive had a delayed-closing
feature, so that I could press the button and walk out through the
still-open door

some openers will let you walk out first, then reach only an arm in to
push the close button.

The Sommer Opener that Lowe's and Home Depot carry is not the Synoris 550. It is the retail grade model so they can fit it all in one box. The Synoris 550 is the dealer model that comes in 2 separate boxes, one for the rail and one for the motor head and accessories. The biggest difference is that the retail direct drive is a 3 piece rail that is not as strong as the actual Synoris model which is a 2 piece rail. You can purchase the dealer Synoris 550 at www.diy-garage-door-parts.com


On Friday, April 1, 2011 3:46:07 PM UTC-4, Percival P. Cassidy wrote:
Our Wayne-Dalton iDrive quit -- although the motor was supposed to have
a lifetime warranty, they are no longer made and no parts available.

I read the reviews of the German-made* Sommer Synoris 550 opener and
decided to buy one. Lowe's and HD both sell them for the same price
($228), but only on line: not in the stores. Adding the wireless keypad
gets the total price into the free-shipping category. (Amazon also sells
them, but there is no free shipping option.)

The design is very simple: a 24V DC motor with a sprocket travels along
a fixed chain inside a metal C-channel. A metal arm connects the door to
a carriage containing that motor. It is very quiet but significantly
slower than the iDrive (which was claimed to be much faster than other
drives).

Cons: a) the wall station is not wireless as the iDrive's was, so there
is additional wiring to run; b) the iDrive had a delayed-closing
feature, so that I could press the button and walk out through the
still-open door, which would then close behind me; c) no staples were
included, so I had to make a special trip to the store to buy some to
staple the wiring in place.

*It really does seem to have been made in Germany, not in China with a
German company's name on it. Those poor German workers! Fancy being paid
even less than Chinese workers so that they can keep their jobs!

Perce

You are responding to a message I posted a little over three years ago!
I am almost certain that it came in two boxes, and if I wrote that it is
a Synoris 550, then that is how it was described. But it is quite
possible, of course, that the Synoris garage door opener that Lowe's and
HD sell *now* is not the Synoris 550 but a lesser model.

But, since you brought up the subject of this garage door opener, let me
add a couple of points to my additional report.

First, it is working fine, but on one occasion it seemed to get confused
and I had to reprogram its settings.

Second, the remotes that came with ours are apparently not the "rolling
code" variety.

Third, some long very thin black plastic pieces have fallen out of the
track but without obvious effect on its operation.

Fourth, guests have commented on its quietness.

Perce


On 05/24/14 07:32 am, wrote:
The Sommer Opener that Lowe's and Home Depot carry is not the Synoris 550. It is the retail grade model so they can fit it all in one box. The Synoris 550 is the dealer model that comes in 2 separate boxes, one for the rail and one for the motor head and accessories. The biggest difference is that the retail direct drive is a 3 piece rail that is not as strong as the actual Synoris model which is a 2 piece rail. You can purchase the dealer Synoris 550 at www.diy-garage-door-parts.com


On Friday, April 1, 2011 3:46:07 PM UTC-4, Percival P. Cassidy wrote:
Our Wayne-Dalton iDrive quit -- although the motor was supposed to have
a lifetime warranty, they are no longer made and no parts available.

I read the reviews of the German-made* Sommer Synoris 550 opener and
decided to buy one. Lowe's and HD both sell them for the same price
($228), but only on line: not in the stores. Adding the wireless keypad
gets the total price into the free-shipping category. (Amazon also sells
them, but there is no free shipping option.)

The design is very simple: a 24V DC motor with a sprocket travels along
a fixed chain inside a metal C-channel. A metal arm connects the door to
a carriage containing that motor. It is very quiet but significantly
slower than the iDrive (which was claimed to be much faster than other
drives).

Cons: a) the wall station is not wireless as the iDrive's was, so there
is additional wiring to run; b) the iDrive had a delayed-closing
feature, so that I could press the button and walk out through the
still-open door, which would then close behind me; c) no staples were
included, so I had to make a special trip to the store to buy some to
staple the wiring in place.

*It really does seem to have been made in Germany, not in China with a
German company's name on it. Those poor German workers! Fancy being paid
even less than Chinese workers so that they can keep their jobs!

Perce

On Saturday, May 24, 2014 8:27:53 AM UTC-4, Percival P. Cassidy wrote:
You are responding to a message I posted a little over three years ago!

I am almost certain that it came in two boxes, and if I wrote that it is

a Synoris 550, then that is how it was described. But it is quite

possible, of course, that the Synoris garage door opener that Lowe's and

HD sell *now* is not the Synoris 550 but a lesser model.



But, since you brought up the subject of this garage door opener, let me

add a couple of points to my additional report.



First, it is working fine, but on one occasion it seemed to get confused

and I had to reprogram its settings.



Second, the remotes that came with ours are apparently not the "rolling

code" variety.


That's interesting. I would have thought that all garage remote
controls sold in the last 10+ years have been the rolling code
variety. How does it work then? The only other security system
I know of is where you set the code by dip switches, in which case
it's short and never changes. That's not very good, but then maybe
it's good enough. I've heard of a lot of burglaries, but haven't
heard one where they entered by breaking a garage door code, to
get into a house. There are easier ways to get in, eg, use the
remote someone left in their unlocked car, punch out a garage door
window, etc.

On 05/24/14 08:44 am, trader_4 wrote:

You are responding to a message I posted a little over three years ago!

I am almost certain that it came in two boxes, and if I wrote that it is

a Synoris 550, then that is how it was described. But it is quite

possible, of course, that the Synoris garage door opener that Lowe's and

HD sell *now* is not the Synoris 550 but a lesser model.



But, since you brought up the subject of this garage door opener, let me

add a couple of points to my additional report.



First, it is working fine, but on one occasion it seemed to get confused

and I had to reprogram its settings.



Second, the remotes that came with ours are apparently not the "rolling

code" variety.


That's interesting. I would have thought that all garage remote
controls sold in the last 10+ years have been the rolling code
variety. How does it work then? The only other security system
I know of is where you set the code by dip switches, in which case
it's short and never changes. That's not very good, but then maybe
it's good enough. I've heard of a lot of burglaries, but haven't
heard one where they entered by breaking a garage door code, to
get into a house. There are easier ways to get in, eg, use the
remote someone left in their unlocked car, punch out a garage door
window, etc.

No DIP switches. We had to "train" the remotes and the opener unit to
recognize each other, then use one of the remotes to train the HomeLink
function in our car. But the code is fixed: it does not change each
time. A "rolling code" version of the Sommer remote is available, and
perhaps it is standard by now.

Perce

wrote:
The Sommer Opener that Lowe's and Home Depot carry is not the Synoris 550. It is the retail grade model so they can fit it all in one box. The Synoris 550 is the dealer model that comes in 2 separate boxes, one for the rail and one for the motor head and accessories. The biggest difference is that the retail direct drive is a 3 piece rail that is not as strong as the actual Synoris model which is a 2 piece rail. You can purchase the dealer Synoris 550 at www.diy-garage-door-parts.com


On Friday, April 1, 2011 3:46:07 PM UTC-4, Percival P. Cassidy wrote:
Our Wayne-Dalton iDrive quit -- although the motor was supposed to have
a lifetime warranty, they are no longer made and no parts available.

I read the reviews of the German-made* Sommer Synoris 550 opener and
decided to buy one. Lowe's and HD both sell them for the same price
($228), but only on line: not in the stores. Adding the wireless keypad
gets the total price into the free-shipping category. (Amazon also sells
them, but there is no free shipping option.)

The design is very simple: a 24V DC motor with a sprocket travels along
a fixed chain inside a metal C-channel. A metal arm connects the door to
a carriage containing that motor. It is very quiet but significantly
slower than the iDrive (which was claimed to be much faster than other
drives).

Cons: a) the wall station is not wireless as the iDrive's was, so there
is additional wiring to run; b) the iDrive had a delayed-closing
feature, so that I could press the button and walk out through the
still-open door, which would then close behind me; c) no staples were
included, so I had to make a special trip to the store to buy some to
staple the wiring in place.

*It really does seem to have been made in Germany, not in China with a
German company's name on it. Those poor German workers! Fancy being paid
even less than Chinese workers so that they can keep their jobs!

Perce

Hi,
When Genie Blue Max went South after 20 yeears good service, I looked
at Sommer Stnoris but I did not buy one. It is slow compared to other
openers. I went back to another Genie. This time Power Max 1500.
Installed myself in less than half a day, been working fince since.
Very quiet, pretty fast open/close speed(adjustable).