PEOPLE LIKE IT LOUD AND CLEAR

Ekin Binal, Product Line Manager, Audio Solutions at Crestron provides some sound advice.

If you looked around the last time you took public transport, walked through a city or been close to anyone alone in public, you’ve without a doubt noticed that many of the people you encountered had headphones on or earbuds in. We all love to immerse ourselves in music and if we could, most of us would likely do it all the time. Yet, walking around with headphones on at home is impractical (and not terribly polite, especially if others are home). So instead we turn to multi-room audio distribution coupled with high-quality speakers for accessible, immersive and engaging audio at home.

For obvious reasons, we’ve all spent a lot more time at home the past year and a half. We are also spending more of that time in key functional and recreational areas around the house – time spent cooking in the kitchen replaced dining out, and the backyard became its own vacation destination. These fundamental changes in how we live drove a desire for an elevated listening experience at home. Those changes have driven consumer awareness and demands, too. Open and outdoor spaces like these can require a lot of power and clarity to produce a satisfying listening experience. Fortunately, high quality, robust speakers with world-class components such as ceramic tweeters and carbon fiber woofers allow us to fill these spaces with clear and dynamic outputs.

A great loudspeaker is just one part of the signal chain, however. With advances in streaming technology changing the expectations of audiophiles, it is critical to properly plan out entire audio delivery solutions. So, when we invested heavily into Crestron DM NAX, our highly scalable audioover IP-distribution platform, we started out by building new amplifiers with integrated media streaming and Digital Signal Processor (DSP) technologies, new audio-over-IP technology and in partnership with Origin Acoustics) new speakers. We chose to collaborate with Origin Acoustics – well-known for their refined architectural speakers – because of their experience in providing both the installer and the homeowner the optimal experience. By building the full audio chain, from source to DSP to amplification with DM NAX to our new speakers made by Origin Acoustics, we have created a comprehensive end-to-end listening experience that is unparalleled in terms of versatility and performance. These components all come together seamlessly for a state-of-theart home audio distribution system that can meet the needs of even the most demanding post-quarantine audiophile.

Another important reason to look at speakers as part of the complete audio solution – and not just a single, specialized element – is the rise of multi-channel music. While twochannel solutions in the custom integration arena are still the most popular audio format among our customers, that will not always be the case. Apple, for instance, is now offering Spatial Audio in its Apple Music subscription music service. Suddenly it’s entirely possible to not just listen to your favorite song in stereo, but in a truly immersive multi-channel format. Only with a whole end-to-end multi-channel audio solution with will you be able to take advantage of that listening experience. Obviously, at Crestron we are very interested in supporting these immersive, new technologies.

It’s remarkable how audio is such a critical part of our lives at home, and how it’s continuously growing in importance. It impacts how we entertain, relax and work. The quality of the sound installation in all the different spaces in and around a home is integral to the listening experience, so we’ve made it our goal to provide the best way to ‘live inside the music.’