Every project brings with it a unique set of challenges. While no two jobs are alike, the accumulative knowledge and experience gained from each venture provides the proficiency that only a firm like the Sound Room in Chesterfield, Mo., can bring to a project.
“We excel at designing and implementing complex systems that are easy to operate for the end user,” says Steve Cole, a systems designer for the Sound Room. “Our interfaces for integrated electronic systems are intuitive, simple and aesthetically pleasing.”
A recent job was so extensive it required customization of an entirely new graphical user interface to meet the client’s requirements. The clients wanted all the luxury features such as controlled lighting, distributed audio and video systems throughout the residence but without the operational complexities. They wanted the technology simple to use, yet hidden from sight.
The Sound Room design team had several meetings with the clients to understand how they interacted with their current systems and how they would like operations to improve. The homeowner’s initial vision was a simple music playback system for inside and outside the home, with some extra TV jacks placed around the house for viewing cable TV. Once they were exposed to what was possible from the experts at the Sound Room, they wanted a complete audio/video distribution system and lighting control.
By the time they were completed, the final system consisted of 16 zones of distributed audio, eight zones of distributed video, 192 loads of lighting, two surround systems, six touch panels, a waterproof remote and over 100 keypads installed around the house. The equipment alone ran almost $300,000.
Like many large projects of this scope, the Sound Room worked closely with a number of other trades, such as the general contractor, the lighting designer, electricians, a landscape designer and cabinet designer. A lot of management was needed to insure a timely and accurate job completion.
Some of the Sound Room’s interaction with other trades included creating the specifications of a custom frame to the contractor, which would conceal a 65-inch plasma TV. The cabinet designer had to customize the finish of the speakers to match the wood in the office cabinets so they would blend in. The lighting designer’s hand-drawn electrical plans were needed to decide where to place the various keypads. Lighting loads and power requirements for all the equipment was provided to the electrician. The landscape designer helped trench and conceal all the wires and outdoor speakers. In fact, there was a major gutting of the home just to allow for pulling wires throughout the home, which took two weeks.
Using simple keypads for lighting and basic audio control, the newly created graphical user interface for touch panels proved to be extremely intuitive, providing greater enjoyment of a luxury lifestyle without a complex operational system. The layout of the keypads and touch panels provided intuitive control over the whole system, and the main system components are hidden from view in racks downstairs, allowing the aesthetics of the home to be unimpeded by the technology.
Related: Distributed Audio, Distributed Video, Kim Wilson, lighting control, Sound Room, surround sound, The Sound Room 70 inch tv fireplace, fireplaces with flat screen, flat screen fireplace, 65 inch tv fireplace, flat panel over fireplace, panasonic 65 inch tv installation contractors at residence
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