EI September 2020

SEPTEMBER 2020

THE ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE FOR THE AV AND SMART HOME INDUSTRY

LIGHTING AND AMBIENT LIGHT FOCUS ON THE VERY LATEST

GAMES IN AV

HOW TO BE A GAMES MASTER

CASE STUDY

BIO ROYAL III: HIGH PERFORMANCE HOME CINEMA

16x16 4K 18Gbps MATR IX SU P P OR TING

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J Supports 4K UHD video up to 4K 60Hz 4:4:4 (18Gbps) over HDBaseT™ using Colour Space Conversion up to 70m at 4K 60Hz 4:4:4, or up to 100m at 1080p J 16 x analogue L/R audio inputs which can be embedded onto corresponding HDMI / HDBaseT™ zone outputs J Audio breakout board with line-level volume control J 3rd Party drivers available for major commercial & residential control brands

Blustream_EI_MAY_2020.indd All Pages

4K HDR up to 40m

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Custom Pro 8x8 HDBaseT™ CSC Matrix (4K 60Hz 4:4:4 up to 40m) Supports 4K HDR, IP Control, PoH, 2-Way IR, 4 x Simultaneous HDMI outputs , Audio Breakout with volume control J Advanced Colour Space Conversion (CSC) supports HDMI 2.0 18Gbps specification over HDBaseT™ J Supports 4K resolutions including HDR (4K 60Hz 4:4:4) to a distance of 40m

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J Advanced HDBaseT™ technology offering CSC scaling with zero latency J Supports 4K UHD video up to 70m (3840x2160 @60Hz 4:4:4 and @60Hz 4:2:2 including HDR)

J Advanced Colour Space Conversion (CSC) supports HDMI2.0 18Gbps specification including HDR support

M U L T I C A S T

IP200UHD-RX/TX Multicast 4K UHD Video Receiver / Transmitter J Supports up to 4K HDR UHD video sources (3840 x 2160 @30Hz 4:4:4, 4096 x 2160 @24Hz 4:4:4 and 4K @60Hz 4:2:0) J Advanced signal management for independent routing of IR, RS-232, USB/KVM, audio and video

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C44-KIT Contractor 4x4 HDBaseT™ Matrix Kit J Includes 4 x HEX70B-RX HDBaseT™ Receivers

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LE14 3QG United Kingdom.

27/05/2020 17:45

14

44 27 CONTENTS REGULARS

September 2020 32 CEDIA: ANDY BULL, LIGHTING AUDIO VIDEO PROJECTS Investigating human centric lighting

4 FROM THE EDITOR’S CHAIR Time to play the game!

44 CYBERCRIME

Habitech’s resident cyber sheriff Justin Martin Lawrence speaks

7 ESSENTIAL NEWS What’s going on?

14 HABITECH AND LUTRON

47 ESSENTIAL CASE STUDY

The power of Lutron’s RA2 Select

Bio Royal III: High Performance Home Cinema

16 PULSE CINEMAS

55 ESSENTIAL CASE STUDY

The search for home cinema perfection

18 HDANYWHERE

RTI sets sail with a dragon

uCONTROL - Exceedingly Good At Exceeding Expectations

58 ESSENTIAL PRODUCTS Practically perfect propositions

YOUR DISTRIBUTOR F www.avoke.co.uk | av@avoke.co.uk

31 18 58 INTELLIGENT LIGHTING AND AMBIENT LIGHT CONTROL 21 THE HUMAN TOUCH

The thoughts of Chhaya Landschultz, Marketing Director at install company IndigoZest

24 A NEW DAWN FOR LIGHTING CONTROL Rako to the rescue

34 GAMING IN AV AND HOME CINEMA 34 GAME PLAY

Chris Mullins, Home Cinema Product Manager at Sony, going up a level

36 A DIGITAL CANVAS FOR HIGH END GAMING

Tim Sinnaeve, Managing Director for Barco Residential provides a glimpse of the future

27 SMART LIGHTING FOR SMARTER WORKING LEDVANCE lights the way

38 PLAY TIME!

Pulse Cinemas’ Simon Schino, why games are becoming films

31 LED LIGHTS THE WAY Guy Singleton, The Lighting Designer Inventor looks at LEDs

41 GAME MASTERS

Inside the mind of a games creator

R FOR Smart Home www.avoke.co.uk | av@avoke.co.uk

SEPTEMBER 2020

THE ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE FOR THE AV AND SMART HOME INDUSTRY

pages 14-15

Graphics and game play have moved on from the early days, and installers are well placed to benefit LIGHTING AND AMBIENT LIGHT FOCUS ON THE VERY LATEST

SEPTEMBER

GAMES IN AV

HOW TO BE A GAMES MASTER

CASE STUDY

BIO ROYAL III: HIGH PERFORMANCE HOME CINEMA

GAMES MASTER?

GETTING IN TOUCH

We are taking our very first official look at the world of gaming this month with a dedicated section on the subject. We have of course talked about the subject many times, but the world of gaming has carved out such a significant niche in recent times in the world of install and of course in the wider world of culture and entertainment, we thought it was high-time it got a dedicated section of its own.

EI has to say, the team has been blownaway by the response, with all sorts of people from inside and outside of our industry wanting to comment.

It’s a subject very close to EI’s heart growing up in the 70s and the 80s as home gaming and the exciting world of arcades began to take hold of the consciousness of the UK (mostly kids at this point), it’s been a delight to see how the sector has expanded to be the planetbestriding behemoth it is now.

Being given 50p to go and spend in the arcade as EI’s parents ‘went shopping’ in the small town in North Norfolk near where we lived, was the highlight of the week, enjoying classics like Space Invaders, Galaga, Defender, Gorf and so on.

Later, EI’s generation was one of the first to be able to enjoy home gaming, first via home computers like the Commodore 64 and ZX81 and then later with systems from Sega, Sony Playstation and Microsoft

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

04 SEPTEMBER 2020

X-Box. Arcades we still there of course in the earlier days of the home machine, but became less popular and had to do more to provide ‘an experience’ - 3D games, games with that seats that moved, bigger screens, more sound, more music, more lights. You can still visit an arcade today, but their number is nothing like the hight of the 70s and 80s.

Gaming itself has also moved to a different level. E-sports and the growth of on-line gaming has created a worldwide phenomenon that spans generations, gender, culture and location. But what does this mean for the installer? Well thankfully, loads.

As consoles have got better and games have increased in quality, the opportunity to create family game playing spaces where everyone can enjoy the latest games individually or together has increased hugely. Who else has the skills to accommodate that type of enjoyment into a home cinema or AV environment? Also, for the really dedicated gamer who wants a pro set up to practice their specific skills, who else is going to able to deliver the sort of bespoke environment these fans will love?

Some of the gaming tweaked cinemas and AV sets ups EI has experienced of late have really brought back memories of those early days and how exciting it was to see those little pixels react to what you were doing. It’s really powerful stuff and we are the only industry that can deliver it!

Daniel J Sait Editor

Daniel Sait, dan@allthingsmedialtd.com

SALES DIRECTOR

Ian Kitchener, ian@allthingsmedialtd.com

GROUP AD MANAGER

Claire Talty, claire@allthingsmedialtd.com

PUBLISHER

David Kitchener, david@allthingsmedialtd.com

GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Mark Weller, mark@allthingsmedialtd.com

ACCOUNTS

susan@allthingsmedialtd.com

BUSINESS SUPPORT ADMINISTRATOR carol@allthingsmedialtd.com

Essential Install magazine, Suite 14, 6-8 Revenge Road, Lordswood, Chatham, Kent ME5 8UD T: +44 (0)1634 673163 F: +44 (0)1634 673173 www.essentialinstall.com

SOCIALS /INSTALL_MAG /ESSENTIALINSTALL Whilst we make every effort that everything printed in Essential Install magazine is factually correct, we cannot be held responsible if factual errors occur.

All articles are copyright and remain the property of Essential Install magazine.

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21/08/2020 13:29

NEWS

NEWS EI LIVE! POSTPONED UNTIL 2021 As the COVID-19 pandemic is still making an impact in the UK across many business sectors, show organisers have been consulting with all EI Live! exhibitors and visitors, with regards to running the show in October 2020 as planned or postponing until 2021.

Following several very well-attended Zoom conference calls with exhibitors and after looking at correspondence from those unable to attend the Zoom calls, show organisers have taken the decision to postpone the show until 2021.

The overwhelming consensus of opinion was that exhibitors did not want to run the risk of putting their staff in danger of catching the virus. The show’s organisers also surveyed all pre-registered visitors with a simple question – ‘Should the show go ahead, would you attend, Yes or No’ – and the response was 70% / 30% in favour of not attending.

EI Live! Event Director, David Kitchener, said, “The message from the industry has been that a postponement was the best option. What was coming over loud and clear, was that the industry is desperate to showcase its products and services to the industry, but safety comes first. Also, given recent experiences, if we went ahead with the show and the country experiences a spike with the virus, the Government could lock down again, scuppering any plans for this year.

“So, the decision is to postpone the show until early 2021, and we are negotiating with the venue

now to secure dates for next year. Those dates will be communicated to the industry as soon as they are confirmed.”

However, there will still be a chance for exhibitors to showcase their products and services with the launch of ‘EI Live! Interactive week’, a virtual event in late October (around the dates the live show would have taken place over the entire week).

EI Live! Interactive week will be a week-long series of events taking place online to provide a chance for EI Live! exhibitors to demonstrate their latest designs and products. Details are being finalised now and more information will reach exhibitor’s inboxes in the coming weeks.

EI Live! contacts Event Director, David Kitchener +44 (0)1634 673163, david@allthingsmedialtd.com EI Live! eiliveshow.com

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

The show will now take place in 2021

CUSTOM AV DISTRIBUTION ANNOUNCES TWO NEW ADDITIONS Summer 2020 at CAVD has brought a time for change. The showroom is undergoing equipment upgrades plus a facelift to accommodate its latest signings, Pro Audio Technology and Audio Control.

Pro Audio Technology, one of the world’s leading home cinema speaker manufacturers, will compliment lines from Nakymatone and Dynaudio at CAVD. Pro Audio Technology’s horn-loaded, high-sensitivity loudspeakers deliver an authentic cinema audio experience. Its systems include matching, powerful, light-weight DSP amplification. CAVD is on hand to demonstrate the power of Pro Audio Technology and support dealers every step of the way with their home cinema projects.

Again, to especially complement CAVD favourites, LODE Audio, Dynaudio and Nakymatone, new recruits AudioControl have a range of AVRs, AVPs and amplifiers. This means there’s never been a better time to specify solutions from the CAVD arsenal, says the distributor. AudioControl’s home cinema products boast 7.1.6 processing, Dolby Atmos, Auro-3D, DTS:X, IMAX Enhanced and immense audio tuning with Dirac Live. Amplifiers are either Class AB or H and are loaded with DSP for maximum flexibility during installation.

Jamie Pullen, MD of CAVD, said, “For our integration partners across the UK, this means better

sound for their client’s projects, ultra-reliable product life and great integration with control systems.

I couldn’t be more pleased to have Pro Audio Technology and AudioControl onboard with CAVD.” Both brands are on demonstration at the CAVD showroom in Marlow, Buckinghamshire.

CAVD cavd.co.uk

New brand addition at CAVD

SEPTEMBER 2020 07

Altitude Altitude3232

Immersive ImmersiveSound SoundUnlimited Unlimited AAunique uniqueset setofoffeatures featuresfor forcinema cinemadesigners designers • 32 • 32 discrete discrete channel channel with with Dolby Dolby ATMOS ATMOS and and DTS:X DTS:X Pro. Pro. • Supports • Supports any any speaker speaker layout layout with with upup toto 6464 channel. channel.

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NEWS

CEDIA ANNOUNCES EMEA FINALISTS FOR 2020 CEDIA AWARDS CEDIA has announced the list of 2020 CEDIA

CEDIA Awards

Awards finalists for projects in the EMEA region.

The finalists in the EMEA region include:

Selected through a meticulous process taken on by a panel of industry expert judges, this year’s EMEA region finalists hail from a varied geographical footprint that includes the UK, India, France, Cyprus, Pakistan and Portugal.

In total from the EMEA, Americas, and Asia Pacific regions, 51 CEDIA member companies

• Awicon Technologies (Hyderabad, India) • Clarke Infinity Ltd (Billericay, UK) • CUST’HOME (Saint Laurent Du Var, France) • Cyberhomes Ltd (Thame, UK)

representing 12 countries are competing to win

• HENRI (Vincennes, France)

in their respective categories and be honoured on

• Intelligent Abodes Ltd (Exeter, UK)

October 8 at the 2020 CEDIA Awards events.

“The quality of work represented by these projects

• Intuitive Homes & Ultamation (Manchester, UK)

is second-to-none and shows CEDIA members are

• Life Emotions (Lisbon, Portugal)

continuing to raise the bar to new heights,” said

• M.E.G.A. AV Installations Ltd (London, UK)

CEDIA EMEA Managing Director, Matt Nimmons.

“From top home cinemas and media rooms to wholehome integrations to other innovations, the results are simply stunning. We’re excited to share these outstanding solutions with the entire world during the 2020 CEDIA Awards ceremony on 8 October.

“We’re working hard to deliver a virtual experience that will pay proper tribute to the work representing the very best of what our industry can offer.”

CEDIA will host three, region-focussed and virtual CEDIA Awards presentations on Thursday, October 8. The EMEA, Americas, and Asia Pacific ceremonies will place the highly commended finalist and award winning integrators on the industry’s most prominent

• New Wave AV (Golden Green, UK) • NV Integration Ltd (London, UK) • Perfect Integration (London, UK) • Prestige Audio (Watford, UK) • S.K. Lifestyle Technologies Ltd (Nicosia, Cyprus) • SONA (Warrington, UK) • Sound Sense (Ahmedabad, India) • Tera Generation Solutions Pvt Ltd (Lahore, Pakistan) • TwentyTwo Integration Ltd (London, UK)

global stage in a well-produced, compelling event that will honour individuals, the industry and innovative

CEDIA

hardware and software products, says the association.

cedia.net/membership/get-involved/awards

The finalists for the CEDIA Awards have been revealed and include this project by Clarke Infinity

SEPTEMBER 2020 09

Introducing next generation

Majik DSM

A first step into authentic hi-fi performance A powerful combination of network music player, pre-amp and power amp, all in one box, Majik DSM lets your customers enjoy music streaming and connected home entertainment sources at a higher quality than ever before.

4 HDMI inputs - an ideal hub for all AV sources

Built-in MM hybrid analogue / digital phono stage

Wireless streaming via WiFi and Bluetooth

USB Type-B for using as high quality standalone DAC

New amp designed for high quality headphones

Next generation Majik DSM is the latest addition to Linn’s Whole Home range, which includes rack-mountable, multi-zone streamers; digital and analogue sources; complete systems and wireless speakers‌ all offering quick and easy installation, seamless integration, full configurability and are reliably robust.

Find out more: linn.co.uk

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28/08/2020 08:29

NEWS

SONUS FABER AND MCINTOSH JOIN FORCES IN THE UK McIntosh Group, a grouping in the high-end audio sector which boasts brands including McIntosh Laboratory, Sonus faber, Audio Research and Sumiko, has launched Fine Sounds UK, a new audio distributor set up to specifically focus on developing McIntosh and Sonus faber in the United Kingdom.

Fine Sounds UK is a joint venture between McIntosh Group and McIntosh Laboratory’s British distributor of 15 years, Jordan Acoustics. Fine Sounds UK will be headquartered in Great Britain, where it will have warehousing and customer service facilities.

Starting life with two brands that value hand-made craftsmanship, uncompromising quality and ultimate performance, Fine Sounds UK says it will be actively investing in the UK audio industry by developing an unrivalled portfolio of world-class audio brands, broadening both McIntosh’s and Sonus faber’s dealer base and expanding its world-famous foundations.

Fine Sounds UK’s formation has been timed to facilitate a raft of new product launches from both McIntosh and Sonus faber in the second half of 2020; Fine Sounds UK plans to make both brands more accessible to UK consumers than ever before.

Commenting on the creation of Fine Sounds UK, McIntosh Group CEO and McIntosh Laboratory President, Charlie Randall, said, “After 15 successful years of working with Jordan Acoustics in the UK market, we felt this venture of creating Fine Sounds UK was the next logical step to strengthen our position in the market.”

McIntosh Group co-CEO and Sonus faber President, Jeff Poggi, added, “Combining together with McIntosh under one business will enable us to expand the reach of Sonus faber to more UK

customers, including our new line of home theater and custom installation products.”

Mr. Randall and Mr. Poggi will be directors of the new company.

Tim Jordan, owner of Jordan Acoustics, has also been named a director of Fine Sounds UK and said, “To have these two world-class stablemates alongside each other as the foundation of our new venture is incredibly exciting. Both brands offer sensational looks, build quality and performance and we look forward to growing their footprint in the coming months.”

Andy Oattes, previously Sales Director at OneAV and Head of Sales at Naim Audio (along with over a decade of experience at Linn), has been appointed as Fine Sounds UK’s Sales Director. He will work with both existing and new specialist retailers, as well as custom installers in the UK, to develop and grow the McIntosh and Sonus faber brands.

Fine Sounds UK finesounds.uk

A new power in the quality audio world has been launched

RING TEAMS WITH AWE FOR X-LINE Global automation brand Ring has announced that its new pro install focused X Line will be available in the UK from September via a new relationship with UK distributor AWE. X Line is billed as a premium-level group of Ring devices and subscription bundles designed specifically for professional installers and their customers.

The maker says Ring X Line is tailored for professional installers who are looking for ways to provide better value and a more seamless installation process for clients. Each X Line bundle is built around a Ring Video Doorbell or Security Cam and includes a Ring Protect Basic subscription for the lifetime of the device, along with a four-year limited warranty.

Ring says it is always looking to bring the best possible experience to customers and so now offers six unique bundles to make the professional installation process an even better, more affordable and more efficient experience for both installers and their customers.

Ring device bundles will include Ring Video Doorbell Pro X (£329), Ring Video Doorbell Elite X (£449) and Ring Video Doorbell 3 Plus X (£299).

Other available bundles include: Ring Stick Up Cam

Elite X (£279), Ring Spotlight Cam Wired X (£299) and Ring Floodlight Cam X (£349).

The Ring Partner accreditation programme which will be marshalled by AWE, launched on August 4 via a special live online announcement and includes a comprehensive online training program and partner approval process.

Shipping of the X-Line through AWE Europe begins from September 2020.

AWE awe-europe.com A new pro install initiative for Ring in the UK

SEPTEMBER 2020 11

NEWS

ESSENTIAL PEOPLE

Technological Innovations Group (TIG), the audiovisual sales agency offering integrated automation and control solutions for smart spaces, is pleased to announce the appointment of Matthew Bailey as Regional Sales Manager UC for the United Kingdom.

Matthew will work with the TIG sales division to bring his extensive experience of the unified communications market to the team and will be responsible for driving the development of new business for TIG’s ecosystem of brands that integrate with Crestron’s UC portfolio.

Discussing this new role Matthew said, “I’m really looking forward to embarking on this new journey at TIG in the Crestron UC space. With my experience, drive and passion for UC technologies, both company and ultimately client success are on the horizon - I simply cannot wait to start, meet everyone and get going at TIG!” Commenting on Matthew’s appointment, TIG’s CEO, Robin van Meeuwen added, “I’d like to welcome Matthew to TIG. In the unusual circumstances that 2020 has presented we’ve all had to find new ways of working, and we’ve seen that Unified Communications are crucial business technologies.

Matthew’s role will be to help businesses invest in UC to futureproof their working practices.”

Collabtech, a global provider of collaboration and AV enablement solutions has appointed Jon Sidwick as President, as part of a growth and innovation strategy designed to help people work better together.

As the largest independent solutions business in the market, Collabtech provides best in class, physical and virtual enablement services in over 110 countries. Working through the channel to support integrators and end users, Collabtech’s clients include manufacturers, distributors and platform partners as well as integrators in UC, IT and AV. Jon will spearhead the innovation and growth strategy for the business which includes establishing a European headquarters in the UK. Maverick Collaboration lead Jane Hammersley will also join the business as Senior Vice President Global Alliances, with the mission to work with the business’s clients to develop solutions to suit the rapidly evolving world of collaboration.

Jon explained, “Over the past few years, we have watched Collabtech evolve into one of the exciting and agile businesses in the market right now. They have a unique set of skills deployed with care and the highest quality for the channel. I am so pleased to be able to work with Shawn and the team to take the business to the next stage. This moment is pivotal for the market as companies adjust to a new normal and Collabtech can help scale enablement like no-one else.”

Formerly at Maverick AV Solutions, Jon and Jane created a world leading AV and collaboration business delivering innovation, channel partnerships and multi-vendor solutions to the market. The business grew to the market leader in the merging AV/IT space, deploying solutions for thousands of meeting spaces annually.

Jon Sidwick, Shawn Leonard (company founder) and Jane Hammersley

SEPTEMBER 2020 13

ESSENTIAL HABITECH

THE LIGHT FANTASTIC

Simple to install, preconfigured for rapid setup, and with an upgrade path targeting every smart home customer on the planet, Lutron’s RA2 Select is a reliable wireless alternative to traditional automation, says Habitech MD Jonathan Pengilley.

When Joel Spira emerged from his lab with a solid-state dimmer that could replace the light switch in a standard residential wall-box, he radicalised home lighting control. His simple rotary device, still in widespread use, marked the birth of a desire to ‘paint with light’ in fine increments. It was, literally, revolutionary. Sixty years on and with hundreds of innovations to its name, the company he founded has a new breakthrough, as simple and as innovative as the first.

Lutron’s RA2 Select wireless lighting and blind control system is a stroke of genius. It’s

versatile, easy to deploy and programme, priced for wider appeal but with higher margin elements, and perfect for retrofit and new build scenarios.

In fact, RA2 Select is so accomplished that an experienced integrator can transform the average home with the luxury of fully automated lights and blinds in a couple of visits and be remunerated properly for their time. What’s more, fingertip control over the perfect blend of daylight and electric light comes from a brand that many of your customers will recognise. In other words, RA2 Select delivers the mood music from a famous name with minimum fuss but with opportunities to earn a decent return. It ticks all the boxes.

snap into screwless one or two gang wall plates in a choice of designer colours, or into little white or black desk pedestals. No messing. The batteries have an average lifespan of 10 years, as do those inside RA2’s wireless occupancy sensors, which automatically trigger lights on or off when you enter or leave a room.

EASY WIRELESS MAGIC

For starters it’s completely wireless, so you’re not running cables or cutting holes. RA2 runs on Lutron’s proprietary ‘Clear Connect’ network from little plugin repeater modules, which means that if the Internet goes down, the house isn’t plunged into darkness. And you can expand the system in 9m wireless jumps by adding repeaters.

To add individual LED lights, slim profile in-line dimmers/switches install in the ceiling through a typical downlight cut-out, making new build or retrofit upgrades an absolute doddle.

PICO POWER

System config is through a free mobile app and you get a choice of control from the app or via a wide range of wireless battery-powered ‘Pico’ keypads, available in matte white or black. These

14 SEPTEMBER 2020

/Essentialinstall

Control is from the RA2 Select mobile app or through desk or wall mounted Pico ‘scene’ and ‘remote’ keypads.

The scene Picos are preset by Lutron for different rooms while the remote versions (pictured) offer custom control over lights, blinds and audio, designed via the app

@Install_mag essentialinstall.com

ESSENTIAL HABITECH

For peerless control versatility the Pico keypads are available in two types. Five ‘scene’ keypads come pre-configured by Lutron for typical room scenarios: ‘entry’, ‘bedside’, ‘kitchen’, ‘living room’ and ‘any room’. Designed via the app, fully customised control is available from three programmable ‘remote’ keypads for ‘lights’, ‘blinds’ and ‘audio’. Rather beautifully the system also hooks up with Sonos to weave daylight, electric light and music together from the same wall plate or pedestal, creating just the right ambience in any space The app also offers global control features such as ‘Scheduling’, which programs lights and blinds to operate at set times of the day; ‘Geofencing’, which controls lights based on phone location, and ‘Smart Away’, which randomly turns lights on and off in the evening to simulate occupancy. It’s all engineered to be easy for you and effortless for your customers.

SYNC LIGHT AND SHADE FOR A BIGGER RETURN

Once you’ve demonstrated the power of RA2’s light touch lighting control, transform the value of the job with the companion window treatments.

Pre-loaded with CI exclusivity and a fatter margin to match, RA2 Select’s compatible window tech offers daylight control in every room with the same easy efficiency and completes a system upgrade that will prove irresistible to customers. Lutron’s range is smarter than rivals: better looking, quieter and easier to maintain (replacing batteries for instance is a synch), and it’s backed by Habitech’s legendary value-added support. We’re ready with beautiful Sivoia QS Triathlon honeycomb models and Triathlon rollers (battery powered or hard wired), complete with a choice of fascia options and supported by a new web-based design tool.

The new configurator allows you to turn around a professional looking quote in ten minutes. Simply register an account with Habitech, load your configurations for a project, get the MSRPs for your customer and Habitech’s buy price in return.

It’s the ideal sales back-up for a smart home market that’s always on the up.

Specifying Lutron honeycomb or roller blinds is easy via a new web-based configuration tool

Driven by a tide of IoT functionality, the UK’s smart home sector is predicted to almost double in size from £3.2bn in 2020 to £5.7bn 2024, according to Statista.com. This is especially good news for RA2 Select, because Lutron’s wireless game-changer generates a longer shopping list for every customer. In the average smart home you might have a couple of smart locks and as many smart cameras and speakers, but there are ten windows and perhaps fourteen light switches ripe for transformation. On top of this, only around 15% of the UK’s window treatment market is currently automated, chiefly because you can’t get motorised blinds at a competitive price and most of them are infrared. Even when smart functionality is fitted, the battery options are limited. This spells big opportunities for RA2 integrators.

The system’s light/shade double whammy not only gives CI installers a foot in the door of every smart home, it offers access to generous rewards in a fraction of the time normally invested in automation. RA2 Select is as simple and appealing to the mainstream as its trailblazing IoT counterparts, but it also provides a decent return and a compelling upsell proposition.

WORKS WITH C4 ETC

And if you’re worried that RA2 might just be a little too select when it comes to integration, the good news is that it works beautifully with automation systems such as Control4, Crestron, Elan, iRule, ProControl, RTI, Savant, URC and smart tech including Alexa, Apple HomeKit, The Google Assistant, IFTTT, Bang & Olufsen and Sonos.

On its own or integrated with other systems, RA2 Select’s magically easy automation offers you the chance to paint with light and shade for a significant cohort of new clients and be properly rewarded for your time. What’s not to love?

Habitech habitech.co.uk

‘Scene’ Picos, such as this one for the kitchen, arrive calibrated with a range of lighting and blind presets for typical room scenarios.

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SEPTEMBER 2020 15

ESSENTIAL PULSE CINEMAS

THE SEARCH FOR HOME CINEMA PERFECTION

Pulse Cinemas is very proud to provide our install partners with the best ingredients available to allow installers to cook up a storm when creating home cinemas customers will love. A huge part of that process is supplying and supporting the best screen manufacturer on the planet, Screen Research.

The company has just updated its product guides and brochures so the whole Pulse team thought it was high-time we delivered a reminder of just how comprehensive and highperformance Screen Research is.

Simon Schino, Brand Manager for Screen Research at Pulse Cinemas, says, “Screen Research provides the most well rounded and versatile family of screens on the market. As the demands on the screen sector increase as installers are asked to cope with a wider range of environments - from dedicated rooms to hidden cinemas in living spaces with high-ambient light - you need a brand that can cope with it all. Whatever the question, Screen Research always has the answer.”

THE SCREEN RESEARCH STORY

All of Screen Research’s products are handcrafted in Europe and are engineered to meet even the most challenging design and installation requirements. As well as standard designs, the company of course also offers a large choice of customised products, creating the perfect individual cinema experience for every project.

16 SEPTEMBER 2020

Acquired from the original French owners in 2010 by Adeo Group from Italy, all manufacturing activities were transferred by mid-2011 to a new facility in Poland which boasts a building surface of 4,500 square metres in a highly-impressive facility packed with innovative technology and production tools. Additional and ongoing investment has resulted in higher quality products, and by diversifying suppliers, shorter production lead times have also been achieved.

A rigorous programme of continuous development ensures that Screen Research stays ahead of the game, bringing the best fabric for any application. The company continues to work with the industry’s leading certification bodies, like THX and ISF, to achieve reference performance into every aspect of the fabrics it produces.

A genuine innovator, Screen Research holds several international patents. These include for the company’s acoustically transparent ClearPix woven fabrics, for its unique masking system DécorMask (which offers the chance to hide the screen surface when not in use with imagery of the clients choosing) and for the TFX floating tab-tensioning system.

The maker offers a whole range of screen surfaces that match every use case scenario installers are likely to encounter. Whether it’s coping with high-ambient light, or delivering the best in acoustic transparency, Screen Research has an option for you.

Screen Research Surface Options ClearPix Ultimate White 0.75 ClearPix 4K White 1.0 ClearPix 2 White 1.0 MultiPix 5 White 1.6 FusionPix Grey 0.95 SolidPix White 1.0 LightStop White 1.0 DoubleFace White 0.8 Sonic White 0.9 SolidPix 2 Grey 0.9 SilverPix 3D Silver 2.5 Sonic 2 Silver 2.4

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ESSENTIAL PULSE CINEMAS

Finally, Screen Research has one of the best configuration tools of the industry, which is available on the company’s website.

XLR3: FLAT FIXED FRAME + TWO-WAY LATERAL MASKING

THE SCREEN RESEARCH FAMILY X-MASK

Another option in the fixed screen with masking class, this family also delivers full closure, for screens up to 160in and the same leather housing finish as its cousin, the X4R3.

The XLR3 also delivers the increasingly popular option of a DécorMask which can be printed with any image the client wants on a separate acoustic transparent roll down surface; so, while the screen is not in use, it can disappear behind a painting or favourite image.

This feature is available in screens up to 160in image width.

The XLR3 comes in standard sizes from 100in to 260in of image width and is available in standard native image ratios of 2.35 and 2.40.

Achievable masked image ratios are from 1.33 to 2.35, respectively 2.40.

Under the flagship Reference X-Mask range, Screen Research has developed a new generation of innovative and technically efficient fixed frame screens with four-way and two-way adjustable motorised masking systems, offering a variety of amazing features for the highest possible performance.

With the choice of these flat and curved top-of-the-line screens, the brand delivers products of unique value for the most demanding customers aiming for uncompromised quality and great style.

Just a few of the highlights here include an innovative glide masking system, equipped with new carts and new wheels for high-performance bearings, providing very quiet performance and smooth movement. The range also boasts a frame structure with a smart stiffeners’ anchoring system, ensuring stability and fast assembly.

There is also a reduced gap between masking and fabric, resulting in no-shadow effect during projection and the screens delivering improved perceived image depth - ideal for projectors with anamorphic technology.

X4R3: FLAT FIXED FRAME + FOUR-WAY MASKING This option delivers optional full closure for screens up to 160in of image width. There is also a stylish optional leather housing finish from the finest Italian craftsmen up to the same size.

This variant can come in sizes of 80in to 260in in width and delivers native image ratios of 1.78 (16:9), 2.00 and 2.40. The technology delivers achievable masked image ratios of 1.33 to 2.76.

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T-XLR3: CURVED FIXED FRAME + TWO-WAY LATERAL MASKING Again, this product comes with optional full closure, for screens up to 160in of image width and is available in standard sizes from 80in to 260in of image width. Available standard native image ratios here are 2.35 and 2.40 and achievable masked image ratios go from 1.33 to 2.35, respectively 2.40.

XTR3: FLAT FIXED FRAME + TWO-WAY TOP-BOTTOM MASKING This version comes with the optional leather housing finish for screens up to 160in of image width and is available in standard sizes from 100in to 200in of image width. Available standard native image ratio is 1.78 (16:9) and achievable masked image ratios go from 1.78

FS3 FLAT & T-FS3 CURVED

Amongst the company’s most popular fixed screen models, these options come with a black flock frame finish. They also offer an E-Grip fabric attachment system for constant tensioning of the projection surface. All of the company’s surface families (ClearPix, SolidPix, MultiPix, FusionPix and SilverPix) are available with the FS3 and T-FS3 fixed frame screens.

Standard sizes go from 80in to 280in image width and standard native image ratios delivered are 1.78 (16:9), 2.35 and 2.40.

MS2 ON-CEILING & MS3-IS IN-CEILING WITH SLOT

These top selling motorised drop-down screen models boast the patented TFX floating tab-tensioning system delivering smooth, quiet and durable operation with thermal overload protection. Both variants are fitted with high-performance Somfy motors.

Surface options include ClearPix, FusionPix, MultiPix and SolidPix in standard sizes from 80in to 160in of image width. The available standard native image ratios are 1.78 (16:9) and 2.35 and standard screen drops are 10in with format 1.78 (16:9) and 20in with format 2.35. Longer screen drops are available as a bespoke option.

A wall switch is included with every screen and different motor control system interfaces are available to drive the screens depending on the chosen technology: 12V trigger, RS232, low voltage relay, IR, radio frequency or IP. This really is the most versatile drop down family you will find. Get in touch for more details on the range and get a copy of the new brochure.

Pulse Cinemas pulsecinemas.com

to 2.40.

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SEPTEMBER 2020 17

HDANYWHERE

uControl - EXCEEDINGLY GOOD AT EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS HDANYWHERE’s Justin Fothergill wants to talk about uControl - HDA’s free, award-winning control app.

I just love seeing the raised eyebrows and nodding approval of installers when that moment of realisation hits them and they comprehend just what uControl can do.

Especially as it’s a value-added, included feature of every MHUB matrix system. uControl has a thoughtfully-designed user interface that not only controls the MHUB but also the functions of connected sources and displays, together in a simple, consistent user experience. uControl transforms the MHUB product from being a dumb video switch to being a powerful whole-home AV system the delivers slick, fullycontrollable, unified room-to-room entertainment - all from a single brand right out of the box.

Because of uControl, MHUB has no necessary reliance on third-party add-on control systems to bring it to life. uControl puts ‘u’ in Control and furthermore, no other “matrix” brand can currently offer such a stylish, comprehensive and capable software and hardware solution for simplifying the installation, management and use of a multi-zone AV distribution system with such unrivalled ease.

HDANYWHERE has evolved the uControl platform to include adding value to integrators too, helping them achieve more in less time and cost.

All of this from a zero-additional cost / zero-programming platform with all IR hardware already supplied with each MHUB. HDANYWHERE are renowned for their powerful 3rd-party, deep integration drivers that can even deliver capabilities some of the best control brands don’t otherwise have without an MHUB, but the most seamless and powerful control of ANY MHUB-powered system is still from uControl.

As an example, using a flagship MHUB PRO 2.0 Video and Audio system with uControl, you can deliver a solution that • Can call audio from any HDMI source or 4 audio-only sources and also ARC from any display, downmixed to stereo to play through the amplifiers to loudspeakers in any zone • Can overlay audio from any HDMI or audioonly sources with any video content being routed to a zone • Delivers up to 18Gbps 4K to up to 100m with managed downscaling for every video output

• Allows an (almost) infinite number of sequences, each with an (almost) unlimited number of commands to simplify daily system operation for the end-user • Facilitates simple integration of one Amazon Alexa voice interface into any zone for seamless voice control of the system, including triggering any of the Sequences created in the MHUB HDANYWHERE are confident you won’t find anything offering at least everything mentioned in the list above for a better price, with only three devices required in the rack and around 30 minutes of setup time (even from a mobile phone, no less?).

A lot of AV matrix manufacturers have an app now, but they don’t have an app akin to uControl so they are not the comprehensive, expandable and free control and automation experience (designed entirely with end-user and integrator ease-of-use in mind) that is uControl.

Why not check it out for yourself? There’s no need to actually own an MHUB - just download uControl onto your Android or iOS mobile or tablet now and take it for a test drive in Demo Mode. Scan this code to learn how to use Demo Mode.

uControl HELPS INTEGRATORS...

• Set up an entire HDA system (from the smallest to the largest and everything from network and HDA Cloud connectivity to EDID management, device control and even Sequences) off just their mobile • Troubleshoot and verify the installation for commissioning and handover • Manage system functioning and integration (before and after handover) • Deliver a comprehensive but simple enduser control experience with minimum time and cost budgets (rather spend the available budget where it counts and deliver better value) • Automate key and regular system functions with single button presses and/or voice activation*, helping end-users enjoy peace of mind and their content without needing to be ‘tech savvy’.

18 SEPTEMBER 2020

HDANYWHERE hdanywhere.com • Delivers 10/100 ethernet to every zone • Includes app control of all sources, TV’s and the multi-zone amplifier(s) connected to the MHUB and controls all possible video and audio routing combinations (incl ARC from any display)

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MHUB

U

The MHUB MINI made for u, made for the many Packed with the power of uControl at zero additional cost. Perfect for the many homes, businesses and meeting rooms with 2 zones and up to 4 sources. All the tech you could need and a price you can afford.

WiFi MHUB U (4x1+1) 40

AV A I L A B L E N O W HDANYWHERE.COM

Patented GB 2548668

Picture cour tesy of Matt Livey and dpa lighting consultants

RAKO LIGHTING CONTROLS MAKING THE SMART HOME DREAM A REALITY. Designers and installers can specify projects with confidence knowing that Rako can control all light sources including smooth dimming of LEDs. System integration is easily achievable, linking lighting to audio-visual, security systems and curtain and blind control.

Rako’s scope of projects is far reaching, from hotels and spas to churches, residential and luxury MDU developments.

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With users enjoying the ability to recall a scene, or mood of lighting at the touch of a button, a swipe of a smartphone or by voice command.

Designed and manufactured in the UK, Rako offers an unparalleled range of products backed by a project planning and support service that is second to none.

ESSENTIAL LIGHTING AND LIGHT CONTROL

THE HUMAN TOUCH

Chhaya Landschultz, Marketing Director at install company IndigoZest, takes a look at the hot topic of human centric lighting.

Working as an integrator, we saw the demand for lighting and I myself have just completed a two year online Lighting Design Diploma so that we can offer it as a genuine service to our customers.

Lighting Control has really defined what a lighting designer can do and the bigger spend is on control now rather than fittings.

Our biological systems are programmed, at the deepest level, to respond to changes in our environment as we move through the 24 hours of day and night. This ‘body clock’ (or circadian rhythm) takes many of its cues from the visible light around us and adjusts the hormones in our body to control things like alertness, hunger, and stress. When someone is denied the proper levels of light and dark throughout the day, they find their sleep patterns, mood and appetite become increasingly erratic and unpredictable.

The quality of light in our homes should not be overlooked or underestimated for its importance. Some well-considered adjustments or upgrades to household lighting could have a huge impact on how we experience our daily lives. The advancement in control technology

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means that we’re no longer limited to either on or off, light or dark. Home lighting can now be a truly immersive experience, transforming and maximising the potential of every room.

This modern appreciation of lighting design is being referred to as ‘human centric lighting’ and its implementation can vastly improve our relationship to the home, lighten our mood and promote healthy sleeping patterns at night.

SEEING THE LIGHT

In our eyes, we have an abundance of light-sensitive cells, most of which act as the image forming mechanism for sight. But there are also retinal neurons known as ‘intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells’ (or ipRGCs to their friends) that aren’t helping us see, but are very much still responding to the light around us. Interestingly, these ipRGCs are especially responsive to the kind of light found outdoors around midday, the blue end of the spectrum that can be up to 10,000K. This part of the spectrum is known to suppress melatonin (the sleep hormone) and encourages dopamine, cortisol and serotonin instead. In short, this means that exposure to this kind of light makes you more alert and productive during the day, as well as cause major disruptions to sleep patterns if too much is present in the evenings.

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SEPTEMBER 2020 21

ESSENTIAL LIGHTING AND LIGHT CONTROL

HUMAN CENTRIC LIGHTING FOR THE HOME

Balancing lighting systems, to increase comfort and productivity in the workplace has been a growing area of concern for employers for many years now. A happy and enthusiastic workforce is the holy grail of any progressive business after all! But these same principles of

balancing light and mood are only just making their way into the home. These days people are doing an incredibly wide range of activities in their homes, with more people taking up small offices and studios in spare rooms. Then you have the time for homework or play with the kids, entertaining for the parents, movie nights, not to mention 3am toilet breaks. A dynamic lighting system that provides the appropriate spectrum and intensity for all these different activities would improve the way we feel and go about our daily routines, not to mention the synchronicity we’d find with our natural, circadian rhythm.

Kitchen lighting is one of the main areas where lighting control should be more considered. Traditional on/off switching just doesn’t serve us adequately anymore. For most households, the kitchen is still the main social hub, where everyone mingles and comes together to do all sorts of things. Dimmable LED technology with pre-set controls that can change this environment to suit different moods at the touch of a button, offering a clean, effective solution that also allows for custom setting changes – when the mood takes you!

KEEPING YOU ILLUMINATED

By understanding specific lifestyle patterns we can control lighting in any home to work with any natural habitat. At IndigoZest we’ve been designing intricate and intelligent lighting solutions since day one. Lighting control allows for a nearly infinite number of ways to creatively illuminate the home and we love nothing more than developing a unique and satisfying solution for our clients. We can control and dim lighting both inside and outside of the house to varying degrees dependent on the time of day, circumstance, one-off events or mood.

Of course, with multiple systems inside and out, it’s important that everything can communicate reliably with any control and monitoring devices. In any lighting control system that links several components on a network, the signalling between the units needs to conform to a recognised ‘protocol’; i.e. each system component must understand the data language being used. The protocol used within any given lighting control system might be specific to that supplier, or it might conform to an internationally recognised standard.

We offer a number of lighting control options to suit any solution and interior. KNX, Lutron, Control 4. We’re not tied to any one provider.

Attractive and human centric lighting continues to grow in use and popularity

22 SEPTEMBER 2020

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T EX E N SU IS

Smart Lighting Control & Wireless Audio Decorative Wiring Accessories

Brookmans Park, Hertfordshire.

SPEAKERS Also in this issue…

Add the finishing touches with

A Coordinated Look!

Office & Boardrooms

Touch Screens & Programming

One smart lighting control & audio system Multiple control plates Multiple wiring accessories One designer look!

Matching control plates and wiring accessories are available across 13 Hamilton collections.

Alternatively, use Hamilton’s iOS/Android App.

Free System Training Available Scan to view Smart Lighting Control info.

To get involved, contact Claire or Ian on 01634 673163/ claire@allthingsmedialtd.com ian@allthingsmedialtd.com

Essential INSTALL MAGAZINE

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+44 (0)1747 860088 info@hamilton-litestat.com

ESSENTIAL LIGHTING

A NEW DAWN FOR LIGHTING CONTROL

As lighting control professionals, it is important not to lose sight of the true function of a lighting control system. Put plainly it is simple, effective, usable control to enhance the user’s experience of the installed lighting. Peter Broome, Director at Rako Controls elaborates.

With technology in lighting still changing at an ever rapid pace and control becoming second nature to a wider customer base, attempting to keep to those principles is becoming ever more challenging. The plethora of fittings lighting manufacturers have developed means installers and designers have no excuse for bad lighting design, which is the forefront of a lighting control system. Without good lighting design, a lighting control system has no chance of enhancing the user’s experience, even with all the bells and whistles the lighting control system will give you. These include the use of smart devices with Apps, whole house control to turn all your lights off at night or when leaving the property, the ability to control from voice control devices as well as third party AV systems. The customers’ use of the space will be massively detracted if the lighting cannot create the effect they require.

24 SEPTEMBER 2020

Many of us have experienced the lighting designs of yesteryear comprising solely of low voltage downlights and lots of them, with the one dimensional aspect of light descending, the only effect you can create would be to make the room dimmer, dimmer and dimmer. Thankfully, things have moved on, in both design and product.

Now the challenge is how to manage the array of different lighting effects and methods thrown our way, small niche constant current lighting LED’s, cool running recessed trailing edge spotlights, neat surface lights with 1-10V drivers, constant voltage LED strip both single colour or RGBW colour changing or indeed both. The moods and experiences that can be created by using some or all methods available to installers and designers can be quite spectacular, all accentuated by the use of the lighting control system. As the market progresses, the use of colour temperature control is something that is being utilised more and more within designs.

Human Centric Lighting (HCL) is now becoming the new buzzword in lighting. There is still much research being carried out on this subject and deals with the circadian rhythm or ‘inner clock’ of the human body. Essentially we rise with the sun and go to sleep when it sets. Our exposure to daylight and in particular the blue

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ESSENTIAL LIGHTING

light spectrum regulates the level of the hormone melatonin. It is the production of melatonin that makes us feel sleepy. Since many of us spend a lot of time indoors by controlling the artificial light we are exposed to we can enhance our performance and improve our wellbeing. Exposure to more blue light in the morning for example can get the biological clock going making you more alert and ready for the day. In the evening you may wish to reduce the level of blue light exposure providing a warm white light allowing the body to rest and ready for sleep. Using a control system we can control the HCL environment by adjusting the relative levels of warm and cool white levels. The manipulation of those different colour output LEDs can be achieved in many different ways, direct multi-channel constant voltage dimmers for strip lighting, via digital signal dimming for some tunable downlights or even mains dimmable fittings that change colour temperature as they dim down. When adding this next dimension to the lighting control system, further management of the customer expectation and experience needs to be accounted for. From uplift in cost for this new technology to how to program it to give any of the perceived benefits, a new dawn is presenting itself for the residential market.

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LEADING PROGRESS

With that in mind, as control manufacturers we must be at the cutting edge of this progression from both a user interface point of view and a behind the scenes one. Using the analogy of choosing a car in today’s market it is often difficult to see what engine a car now has or how fast it goes etc. The marketing is now purely on the user interfaces and gizmo’s the car has. Lighting control systems are no different. Whilst the dimmers and other source controllers often sit in a cupboard or ceiling doing all the work, it is the user interface that is becoming the most important sales tool.

You will get more questions from an end user about an App than our beautifully designed high spec dimmers with 4K resolution, providing 4000 discrete steps allowing for ultra smooth dimming and compatibility with LEDs. Which is why it is so important to choose a lighting control system that can do it all. With the careful choice of control system manufacturer, the solutions can be offered as both a wireless or centrally hard wired schemes or even better, being able to combine the two, whilst, and most importantly, giving the user simple, effective, usable control, enhancing their experience of the installed lighting.

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SEPTEMBER 2020 25

ESSENTIAL LIGHTING AND LIGHT CONTROL

SMART LIGHTING FOR SMARTER WORKING

Lots has been said on human centric lighting for the home, however, its impact in the workplace could be even more significant.

Steve Stark, Sales Director Trade UK & Ireland, LEDVANCE, explains.

Even before lockdown, LEDVANCE has gradually seen more and more workplaces moving over to smart automated lighting systems.

The choice of products available to choose from is amazing – smart lamps in a wide variety of shapes, smart luminaires, products for indoor and outdoor use or plugs for integrating conventional light sources into more advanced systems.

Using Bluetooth, ZigBee, an app or simply their own voice, office lights can easily be adapted to suit the changing workplace, especially as many more of us now have an office at home.

The ‘unprecedented times’ we are living in have already shone a light on the hygiene hazards that come from multiple hands touching a shared light switch, but there’s even more reasons for workplaces to adopt these smart systems.

Firstly, automated systems provide managers with the valuable opportunity to adapt workplace lighting to workers’ circadian rhythms. The

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circadian rhythm is our 24-hour body clock that governs natural cycles of activity and rest by managing hormone levels. Humans are known to be heavily influenced by variations in natural light throughout the course of the day. A human oriented lighting concept such as BIOLUX uses smart controllable LED lighting systems to simulate the characteristics of natural daylight, combining the visual and non-visual biological effects of light. Artificial light that synchronises with our circadian rhythms is proven to make us happier, healthier and more productive not only in office scenarios, but also classrooms, warehouses and health facilities. Once the timings of the workday have been touchlessly programmed, an automated lighting system can co-ordinate with our own natural rhythms, providing an optimum workspace. It has been scientifically proven that workspaces which use human centric lighting systems have improved employee wellbeing, concentration and reduced staff sickness.

Furthermore, smart lighting installations require offices to transition their lighting to LED luminaires, which are significantly more efficient than traditional incandescent or fluorescent lights. Too many workspaces are lagging behind

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and still using yesterday’s inefficient energyhungry lighting, at the expense of reduced financial cost. Moreover, the fluorescent lighting that many workspaces and facilities are settling for contains harmful mercury gases and produces a yellow-tinged lighting, which can cause migraines and eye strain amongst workers.

SEPTEMBER 2020 27

ESSENTIAL LIGHTING AND LIGHT CONTROL

An upgrade to smart lighting brings an office up to date with 21st century technology, improving employee health and wellbeing in the process.

In addition, lights that are not switched on all the time and tailored to the individual requirements of an office provide excellent energy

savings.

Luminaires

can

be

programmed with the start and end times of a working day to illuminate the office only when necessary. They can be further programmed to turn themselves off when a room or floor of an office is unoccupied. Besides convenience, these systems eradicate unnecessary cost caused by a light being left on accidentally overnight, consequently saving employees time when they leave and need not check for this sort of mistake. Smart lighting systems achieve ultimate energy efficiency by protecting themselves against our own human inefficiency.

When considering the benefits of automated lighting systems to their workplaces, facilities managers will generally note convenience and cost benefits. However, these systems can have an additional positive impact on employee wellbeing and productivity as well. In short, an upgrade to automated lighting can quite simply revolutionise how we work.

28 SEPTEMBER 2020

HOW TO ACHIEVE HUMAN CENTRIC LIGHTING

A human-oriented lighting concept known as human centric lighting (HCL) uses smart controllable LED lighting systems to simulate the characteristics of natural daylight with brighter, bluer light during the day which reduces in brightness and blue content in the evening. The easy controllability of LED lighting makes it possible to replicate and even idealise natural light, to better support human circadian rhythms. This enables everyone to be happier, healthier, and more productive.

Traditional electric lighting has typically allowed dimming but provided few, if any, other practicable options to adjust the light to suit the users’ needs. Now, with simple electronic or software control and the right combination of emitter types, an LED light engine can manage the spectral content with great precision to produce almost any colour or adjust ‘white’ light throughout a range of correlated colour temperatures (CCT) expressing ambiences from warm, to cool, to daylight white. At any desired dimming ratio.

Arising from this new-found flexibility, concepts such as colour quality, mood lighting, and human-centric lighting have gained traction. Each offers an approach to creating a more comfortable, compelling environment.

Large lights from above that imitate a sunlit (blue) sky have the greatest biologically activating effect. Therefore, at the start of the day until lunch time and after the lunch break, bright, cold white light with a high blue component (such as 6500 Kelvin at an illuminance of 300 lux at the eye) should be used. Indirect light which includes both ceilings and walls is ideal for this. Towards the evening the lighting should be changed to direct warm white light without blue components (such as 2700 to 3000 Kelvin) to help our bodies relax and prepare for the night.

The BIOLUX HCL Controller has been designed to automatically adjust the intensity and spectral content throughout the day in keeping with current knowledge about human responses to natural lighting. The controller is easy to install, with automated self-configuration and is designed to apply correct circadian timing to let users begin applying human centric lighting without any prior knowledge. A simple rotary switch and display allows advanced users to optimise the lighting for individual needs or specific situations. Wirelessly connected luminaires such as LEDVANCE‘s 4000lm HCL Panel and 2000 lm HCL Downlight convert the settings into optimised light that complements the effects of natural light throughout the day.

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FULL RANGE, FULL BENEFITS. OUR NEW PRODUCT PORTFOLIO.

LEDVANCE.CO.UK

APPEALING. DISTINCT. FUNCTIONAL. From shops and hotels through to industrial production halls – LEDVANCE’s expanded selection of lighting solutions offer the right solution for various environments. This is because our entire range for standard applications combines technological and design innovations with proven strengths: great value for money, simplified installation and a guarantee of up to five years.

perpetual innovation New Crestron Home features keep coming. Now, support for LutronÂŽ and DALIÂŽ lighting control. Password protection of sensitive subsystems. Audio interrupts and assignable sound files from touch screens. And a steady stream of new features to come.

Learn more at crestron.com/home All brand names, product names, and trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Certain trademarks, registered trademarks, and trade names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming the marks and names or their products. Crestron disclaims any proprietary interest in the marks and names of others. Crestron is not responsible for errors in typography or photography. Š2020 Crestron Electronics, Inc.

ESSENTIAL LIGHTING AND LIGHT CONTROL

LEAD BY LED Guy Singleton, The Lighting Designer Inventor and owner of install company Imagine This, on lighting with LED. Effectively, lighting hasn’t changed much in the last hundred years.

The biggest evolution in lighting has been LEDs, as this has caused everyone to rethink lighting control. Incandescent lamps, halogen lamps and tungsten filament lamps were fairly predictable when it came to dimming them. The dimming process was smooth – from 1% all the way up to 100% and back down to 1% - whereas LEDs are a bit of an unknown quantity.

The change in lighting loads and fixtures was initially driven through Building Regulations Part L, which focusses on power consumption and power requirements for lighting in dwellings.

In the past, LEDs were predominately used on Christmas trees – they weren’t credible load sources and didn’t give enough light for tasks such as reading a book. As these load sources have become more credible – and the need for energy efficient lighting has increased – LED’s are now being used for task and accent lighting.

As a result, we’ve had to get more creative, imaginative and technical with lighting control to ensure LED’s can be dimmed smoothly.

So, when we talk about market trends in lighting, the trend comes with the fixture and everything else – the control and programming – has to fall in line.

QUALITY OF LIGHT

Human centric, bio adaptive, circadian rhythm, biophilia – call it what you like – they are all steering towards the same thing, where a light fixture has the ability to create a moving target of temperature with a very high rendering index. Meaning that the temperature doesn’t just stay at 5,000, 4,700 or 3,500 Kelvin, but it moves throughout the day and eventually reaches 2,700 or 3000 Kelvin to create a warm environment for the evening.

This is an exciting development in the world of lighting – we are going to get there, but I don’t believe that we are there yet. We shouldn’t overlook the fact that it’s still fairly complicated to design and control and still fairly expensive to implement, so I think that we’re still some way off seeing it becoming mainstream.

Aside from the 10%-15% of projects where human centric lighting is being implemented, the focus for every other lighting project should be about working with a good quality of light with a really high colour rendering index. A light fixture of 90 and above will replicate daylight very, very well.

Using good quality LEDs is extremely important to achieve this. With LEDs being batched manufactured, you could potentially see some colour shift in them. And while you could argue that our eyes aren’t so susceptible to colour, if there’s a 30 Kelvin colour shift, you will see that shift.

Once you’ve ticked the box of selecting the right LEDs, it’s just as important to focus on how they will behave, how you will control them, and how they will dim, so you need to match the right fitting with the right driver and the right control equipment.

Some drivers are only capable of dimming down to 5%, but if you dim a light to 5% in a really dark room, this is actually quite bright. You need a driver that dims down to 1% smoothly and goes all the way up to 100%.

Of course, you need to test it all. You don’t want to buy 500 LEDs, fit them on a job and then realise that they don’t dim properly. You may have experienced something called ‘popcorning’ where you press the ‘on’ button and 10 lights in one room come on in a thousandth of a second at different intervals. You may think that no one will notice that, but if you stand there and turn them on, it’s like popcorn in a pan – the lights go pop, pop, pop. This happens when you haven’t done your homework - you haven’t selected the right drivers and you haven’t bench tested them. We use a phrase called designing up a ladder. You don’t want to be designing these jobs on the top of your ladder, you want to be designing them before that point.

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ESSENTIAL CEDIA

Highly experienced lighting designer, Andy Bull from CEDIA member Lighting Audio Video Projects, takes a look at the issues around human centric lighting. (Part 2 next month) Human centric lighting is lighting that matches, improves, or corrects your circadian rhythm. It’s a way of bringing the natural changes of light intensity and colour temperatures indoors using artificial light.

The main properties of light to consider are: • Intensity • Timing • Pattern • Light history • Wavelength If we could create an equation to take account of these factors, then we should be able to work out how to get people’s circadian rhythm on track, right? Sadly, it’s not that simple.

According to the International Commission on Illumination (2019), “…non-visual responses are subject to the complex signal processing in the central nervous system and influenced by as-yet-unresolved interactions of photoreceptive units. The missing understanding of the inputoutput characteristics between light stimulus and the resulting non-visual response seems to

make tailored light application for desired lighting effect impossible.”

In April 2019, The Society of Light and Lighting (CIBSE) also made a statement. ‘The Society recognises the need for additional properly designed and monitored field studies of this kind, along with further laboratory research in order to recommend or advise the use of circadian lighting.

Additionally, whilst research is ongoing, certain questions should be asked with regard to the validity of products or services claiming to offer the suggested benefits of circadian lighting.’

This means that we don’t really know the full interactions, so it’s, therefore, impossible to actually control it, drive it and run it that way.

ETHICS OF CIRCADIAN LIGHTING

Should we even be using lighting to enhance behaviours and physiology when we don’t really know exactly how it works or what it is going to do?

Research that was conducted six years ago by Lucas et al suggested that ‘light can be considered a drug, having the potential for both beneficial and deleterious effects. These conflicting effects can occur concurrently, and in a single individual and context.’

Many scientists, bodies and associations are more supportive of circadian lighting. I find myself in between the two. I do trust a lot of what the authority’ bodies say, but at the same time, we don’t need research to tell us everything.

When you go to the cinema in the afternoon, you come out to the daylight after sitting in the dark for two hours feeling a bit strange. Your brain

has detected that it’s been dark for a couple of hours and it’s began to think, ‘This must be nighttime. I’m now going to start to prepare this body for sleep.’

We have all experienced this feeling. The challenge is quantifying it.

WELL BUILDING STANDARD

The WELL Building Standard is a useful reference point, advising that we should aim to, ‘Minimise disruption to the body’s circadian rhythm. Requirements for window performance and design, light output and lighting controls and task appropriate illumination levels are included to improve energy, mood, and productivity.’ This can be achieved by: • • • • • • • •

Light exposure and education Visual lighting design Circadian lighting design Glare Control Enhanced Daylight Access Visual Balance Electric Light Quality Occupant control of lighting environments

From a technical perspective, these are the key areas that integrators should focus on.

My advice is: do your research with humancentric lighting, before you start to sell it. There’s plenty of information out there and much to consider. Once you are comfortable with your understanding, then you can start selling it to clients – a topic that I’ll cover in my next EI column.

The relationship between humans and light is very complex

32 SEPTEMBER 2020

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GAMES IN AV AND HOME CINEMA

GAMES GAIN THE UPPER HAND

Many games like Red Dead Redemption 2 have stunning 4K environments to explore

Chris Mullins, Home Cinema Product Manager at Sony comments on and answers some of the key questions when considering high-quality gaming.

Video games are predicted to generate $159.3 billion dollars in 2020 and they continue to grow in popularity, forecast to surpass $200 billion in revenue in 2023. The film industry achieved $101 billion dollars in revenue in 2019, but is predicted to take a hit given closures to cinemas, restrictions on filming and delays in film releases. The COVID-19 pandemic also made us all spend a great deal more time indoors and many people turned to games for entertainment, socialising and to relieve stress.

There’s clearly a huge opportunity here for the AV industry to gain significant revenue from the games industry market, by delivering unique gaming experiences and focusing on an unrivalled cinematic experience.

WHAT ARE YOUR TOP TIPS FOR CREATING THE ULTIMATE GAMING ENVIRONMENT?

With an increasing number of people looking for a projector set-up that will be flexible enough to cover a wide range of usage scenarios, there are a number of key features to look for that will make all the difference to your ultimate gaming experience.

• 4K is key – it is the current gold-standard for image quality, with a 4096 x 2160 pixel resolution, resulting in an incredible 8.8 million on-screen pixels. In addition to displaying huge, cinematic images, high

34 SEPTEMBER 2020

resolutions and screen size also really suits split-screen multiplayer gaming.

• Frame-rate is something that serious gamers have always been aware of. With most video games now being able to run at 60 FPS (Frames Per Second) and more, allowing much smoother image transitions for fast moving action scenes, having a projector that supports high frame rates is crucial.

• Connectivity is also key – to provide such dynamic, entertaining gaming, modern 4K consoles and devices need to transfer ever increasing amounts of data to the projector.

Having 18Gbps HDMI bandwidth enables games to be played in 4K 60 FPS in HDR without a loss in image quality.

HOW DOES SET UP NEED TO BE DIFFERENT FROM WHEN PLAYING A MOVIE?

Image processing speed is key, which can result in a lag between your controller inputs and what is happening on screen if not done correctly; not great if you really want to survive long in action games like Call of Duty: Warzone.

With the input lag reduction function, enabled image processing is optimised to minimise lag with 4K 60 FPS content without loss in image quality. Projectors with an 18 Gbps HDMI bandwidth, ideally combined with input lag reduction technology should also be part of your chosen specification.

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE BEST TITLES YOU HAVE SEEN THAT RENDER WELL OVER A PROPER AV OR HOME CINEMA SYSTEM?

What a large screen can offer gamers is a completely immersive experience for narrative driven games such as Death Stranding, or games that encourage exploration like The Last of Us Part 2, or titles with stunning environments such as Red Dead Redemption 2.

What we are starting to see in all these titles is the culmination of gaming and films into interactive experiences, ideal for the home cinema environment. Many triple AAA titles have budgets in excess of Hollywood blockbusters that enable them to create stunning immersive 4K HDR images.

WHERE WILL GAMING GO NEXT?

Current generation consoles typically run at 4K 30P and next generation consoles like the PS5 will run native 4K content without upscaling at 60P as target benchmark performance. We can expect higher smoother frame rates and a move to 8K in the future, however in the near term it is about creating an optimal 4K 60P HDR performance for games.

One of the other big aspects of the next generation is immersive audio and there is no better place to have an immersive audio experience than in a home cinema installation.

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GAMES IN AV AND HOME CINEMA

A DIGITAL CANVAS FOR HIGH END GAMING

Titles such as Star Wars Battle Front have highly impressive imaging

Tim Sinnaeve, Managing Director for Barco Residential, provides his take on the future for high-quality gaming in the AV and install sector.

High-end gaming is a topic that our industry has been interested in for many years, but not really something we have pro-actively offered as a core experience to our clients, at least not in the same way as home cinema.

There is no time like the present. The number of gamers has been steadily growing, and some games have rivalled the success of the biggest Hollywood blockbusters. Grand Theft Auto V had a production budget of $266M, generated over $6Bn in profits, and has been called the ‘most profitable entertainment product ever’. Covid-19 has only accelerated that, with gaming one of the few industries seeing a major revenue boost. This crisis has awakened the casual gamer in all of us, and our clients have never been more receptive.

Also, in terms of content and technology, the time is right. Gaming technology has been making enormous strides, both in terms of the capabilities of gaming engines like Unreal used to create the games themselves, but also in terms the of the gaming hardware that

36 SEPTEMBER 2020

CREATING THE IDEAL DIGITAL CANVAS

is finally capable of running these games in 4K at 60+ fps at the highest quality settings, all-important for the high-end gaming experience we will be talking about. Features like real-time Ray Tracing (long used in movie CGI where render farms can spend hours on rendering each frame), take things to the next level, but make even today’s fastest GPUs stumble. The next months should see the next generation of GPU’s which should finally enable us to achieve 4K 60fps+ at the highest quality settings with Ray Tracing enabled. The next generation of gaming consoles that support Ray Tracing is also almost upon us, but on the high-end, we believe PC gaming is still where it’s at.

While the latest gaming engines deliver photo-realistic and movie CGI quality visuals, even older games like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (now also the basis for a popular Netflix series) look stunning now that we can finally run them in 4K resolution with all quality settings maxed out. As with movies, it’s amazing to experience your favourite games ‘like you’ve never seen them before’.

All of the above gives our industry an exciting opportunity to offer our clients realistically rendered gaming environments in 4K at 60+ fps for a gaming experience most of them have never seen or even imagined.

Most gamers even with the most powerful gaming rigs are condemned to gaming on a 27in or 32in computer monitor (or a few of them stitched together). There are also a few dedicated OLED 65in gaming displays, but even those don’t come close to cutting it in our opinion. For our clients, we want to deliver truly immersive gaming. What is more immersive than life size?

High-end gaming is a great example of how the different technologies we use to create our architecturally integrated digital canvases can enable different experiences. We could again ‘Push over the Wall’ by projection mapping a whole wall for instance, but this time instead of creating a Window on the World, we are creating a portal into the ultimate gaming experience.

Here we will focus on projection as the base technology for our gaming digital canvas, as it offers a lot of flexibility and advantages for gaming and also tends to be the preferred technology for professional simulators.

So where do we start? As per above, when we tailor our Digital Canvas for the ultimate gaming experience, we want to go as close to life-size as we possibly can. This means high brightness is going to be very important, especially as gaming tends to take place with more ambient light. We also want 4K resolution and HDR capability at 60+ fps, so we can take full advantage of the

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GAMES IN AV AND HOME CINEMA incredible visuals of the games that are being created today. We want sharp and detailed images during fast motion for fast-paced games.

But the most important specific requirement for gamers is low input lag, which refers to the delay between the display receiving a signal and it being displayed on the screen (display lag), or the delay between pressing a button and seeing the game react.

There have been a few articles on gaming websites in the past months about using projectors for gaming. They usually identify Texas Instruments’ DLP technology as the most suitable projection technology, as it has important advantages over competing technologies like LCD and LCoS where gaming is concerned. Since most integrators will already be familiar with some of these, such as superior brightness and motion blur performance, we’ll focus on input lag as being the most important specific gaming requirement.

It all begins with the imaging device itself.

DLP uses a DMD imaging device that has a response time that is measured in microseconds versus LCD and LCoS panels which have response times measured in milliseconds. The implementation of any technology by a specific manufacturer can make a huge difference, but this means any LCD or LCoS based projector starts with a significant disadvantage where gaming is concerned. Any image processing (such as upscaling or motion smoothing) takes time and therefore adds further input lag.

To overcome this and get closer to DLP performance, many LCD and LCoS projectors feature a gaming mode. In practice this means disabling most of the aforementioned image processing. Doing so however introduces other limitations. These can include no HDR in gaming mode, lower resolutions and deteriorating motion blur performance, all of which are inconsistent with the high-end gaming experience we are looking to create.

In DLP projectors, these compromises are largely unnecessary. But in addition to the natural advantages of the DMD device, processing can be further optimised. As it happens, the requirements for high-end gaming line up very well with the requirements of the professional simulation market, where often they are mission critical. A market leader in

simulation, Barco for example has developed some cutting-edge technologies, used in the iconic BMW Motorsport Simulator for instance, with Barco Residential projectors benefiting from these innovations. One example is Single-Step-Processing (SSP), a unique feature that combines several key image processing steps into a single step, not only avoiding loss of detail, but resulting in sharper images and less latency. This further cuts down processing

controls that disappear when watching a movie.

All of this enables us to offer clients even more additional value from their existing investments.

For many integrators, their existing experience centres can therefore be a great place to start giving clients a feel for the ultimate gaming experience. Some recommended games with incredible visuals are Star Wars Battlefront, Battlefield V and Call of Duty Modern Warfare, or Forza Horizon 7, F1 2020 and Project Cars 2 if you want to show off sim-racing. The newly

time, and consequently input lag, resulting in significantly better gaming performance.

Games like Grand Theft Auto V have huge budgets and production values to match

GAMING IN A HOME CINEMA

Let’s not forget many of our customers already have a great Digital Canvas for gaming with their existing dedicated home theatre.

With the emergence of gaming as a spectator sport (e-sports), it can even be your own private gaming arena to share with friends and family. Gamers can benefit from Cinemascope capability, as most games can natively render in this aspect ratio and higher resolution for an even more immersive experience. Theater design also offers opportunities. Some theater seating manufacturers, for example, are adding gaming specific features, cleverly integrating gaming

released Microsoft Flight Simulator is an incredible feat and also makes for an impressive demo. Even Real Time Strategy games can look incredible on a High-End gaming canvas. Just fire up Ubisoft’s ‘Anno 1800’ on the big screen and you will see what we mean. Be sure to use a high-performance PC gaming rig so you can max out all the visuals.

And the future? We’re edging closer and closer to Star Trek’s Holodeck. Let’s start by taking one small step for our custom integration industry, one giant leap for our client’s gaming experience!

Games crossover with titles like The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt finding success as games and TV series too

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GAMES IN AV AND HOME CINEMA

GAMES MASTER!

Laszlo Vincze, Lead Audio Designer at Creative

in creative sound design too, so creating the

up in our recording studio which we struck

Assembly, one of the oldest and largest games

sound effects for an in-game monster or animal,

with various weapons to simulate the sound

developers in Europe, gives an insight into the

for example, is one of the tasks I routinely handle. A few keywords that describe the life

of shields and armour taking a pounding from

world of game production and the inside track on some of the best titles around.

of a sound designer: audio recording, lots of

Tell us a little about your work creating games. What exactly is your role?

implementation, mixing and playtesting.

I’m a Lead Audio Designer, which means I’m responsible for the overall sound of the game. I coordinate my team and assign tasks

microphones, processing, effects, sound libraries, My colleagues are all specialists in a range of disciplines which contribute to the overall soundscape in one of our games, such as VO recording, music composition, foley recording and so forth. Foley recording can be a lot of

for specific audio disciplines, mentor junior

fun. For one of our previous titles, Total War:

members and more. On top of that I’m involved

ROME II, we had an old washing machine set

blunt weapons, edged weapons, speartips etc.

It was barely recognisable by the time we’d finished, I think we may just have invalidated the warranty on that one…

What sort of equipment do you test your games on?

We use high quality audio equipment and acoustically treated rooms for achieving the best possible results, and we use as many different equipment setups, speakers and headsets to check our in-game audio on as possible. We need to make sure the game sounds good on

Creative Assembly is responsible for creating popular titles such as Total War: Three Kingdoms, Total War: Warhammer II and Total War: Troy

everything from high-level audiophile gear to a £10 headset. This requires a lot of sessions of active listening to the game in progress and a ton of mixing.

Online gaming obviously is huge, how do you see this developing over the next few years?

Well, nothing is impossible in online games that is possible with regular single-player games.

As processing power and network speeds increase, we’ll always see visual quality improve, and new trends and genres are appearing all the time in multiplayer and social gaming.

38 SEPTEMBER 2020

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GAMES IN AV AND HOME CINEMA

often ground-breaking. What I really like is their immersive ‘in your face’ weapon audio, which sounds amazing in battlefield environments, not to mention all vehicles, tanks and airplanes (the A10 tankbuster really goes BRRRRRRRT!).

DICE’s foley-recording is world class, as they work closely with the Swedish military to record livefire exercises in a range of environments. So, the same rifle report will be recorded in woodlands, urban environments, open fields etc, at a range of distances, to create an incredibly realistic audio simulation for the player.

My other favourite is Assetto Corsa Competizione. It’s simply the best-sounding racing simulator to date, with its raw engine

E-sports has shown massive growth in recent years, do you have a view on where is will end up, will it cross over and be accepted as a mainstream sport?

I think it’s already happening. Here’s a recent example of real-life sports and e-sports shaking hands and working together. Due to the COVID pandemic situation, many real-life motorsports events were cancelled this year, including the Le Mans 24-hour endurance race. However, the official Le Mans (FIA) team organised an online event where real drivers and sim-racers had the opportunity to race against each other in a simulated version of Le Mans. It was covered by the usual TV teams with commentators, official race marshals and judges and broadcast on terrestrial TV and online streaming services.

There’s crossover in other areas too. Today’s more advanced racing sims use physical trackmapping data to recreate every bump, camber and section of rucked-up tarmac where cars brake into bends in the game. This translates to feel through force-feedback, which is great for immersion, but also gives real-life racers

a test-bed for learning the character of every bend they’ll be tackling in an upcoming race.

Will gaming ever leave behind the flat-screen or virtual reality headset and be able to create truly immersive environments that surround the players?

Who knows! As technology gets more and more advanced, I can well imagine we might be directly jacking into machines and experiencing super-lifelike simulations at some point, just like in the movies.

What, in your opinion, is the best video game of all time and why?

It’s hard to pick one, and hard to pick a platform even. Retro-gaming is cool, modern gaming is cool, everything that you have fun with is cool!

What are some of the best titles out there to demonstrate how good high-end gaming can be?

The Battlefield series from the Swedish developer DICE. The audio quality is fantastic and

sounds and environmental effects, which are spectacular in the TV-cam view from the trackside. Sitting in the car and driving is awesome, you can hear all the details of the engine, transmission, tyres and all the various different sound-emitting components of a real car. It’s hugely immersive.

Is there anything specific that our readers should take into account when trying to create a world-class gaming audio environment?

Obviously, you want to start with quality equipment but in my opinion, the acoustics of the room are of equal if not greater importance.

Reflections in the room can ruin even the best-sounding amplifier and speaker. There are various tricks to improve your room’s acoustics if you’re on a budget, but of course proper measurements and using absorbers, resonators, bass traps, etc. will give you the best results. Your seating position is also important, the ideal position being an equal distance from each speaker.

Assetto Corsa Competizione is reckoned to be one of the best sounding games ever created

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ESSENTIAL GAMES IN AV AND HOME CINEMA

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Simon Schino, Internal Sales Manager at Pulse Cinemas is a keen gamer, here he has his say on the growing relationship between home cinema and gaming.

Before we get into this, I have to declare I am a big game fan myself, and in fact so are others in my family. My Dad has just about every classic gaming console you could think of plugged into an AV matrix in his house and I love playing some of these games with him. Its a relevant point because if you think games and gaming might be a niche market, it isn’t, with the history of video games stretching back from the 70s and 80s to the present day, its multi-generational and very popular and has big potential to add even more enjoyment to a well put together home cinema.

Now its important to underline a distinction here, there are hard-core gamers out there, who would argue a home cinema is not a totally correct environment to do full justice to some of the highly techie aspects of what they get up to, peripheral vision with wrap around screens perhaps.

However, we are not overly concerned about the hard-core niche gamer here, we are talking to everyone else, anyone who loves their Xbox or PlayStation experience or even those who have fallen away from gaming and want to get back involved, will love what we can do with a full blown home cinema system and their favourite games.

It’s important to remember that these days for many, many people, game franchises hold the same power and level of loyalty as people’s favourite film franchises. Often having gone through several different versions, it’s as much about the story contained in the game and its development over the years that holds people in as much as the game play itself. Millions of people already have a very strong relationship with these experiences, what they probably haven’t experienced is playing these already popular platforms on a system that actually does them justice.

Most people are used to playing games on a pretty standard set up, maybe they have a little bit of a boost these days with a large screen TV

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The Stig enjoys a bit of high-end gaming at Pulse Cinemas HQ

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Loads of top games are crammed full of the formats that a home cinema can really get its teeth into, 4K, Dolby Atmos, killer sound tracks, it’s all out there, games are not popular because people have nothing better to do, they are popular because many of them are just that good. Take Dolby Atmos for example, Call of Duty: Warzone, Borderlands 3, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Gears 5 and Star Wars: Battlefront are just a few of the global spanning franchises that include the codec and do it well. As for 4K, the story is the same, The Witcher 3, DiRT: Showdown, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, BioShock Infinite and Tomb Raider are just a few of the best examples.

The production values, imaging and game play achieved really is stunning. Whether it’s a game that promotes fun through on-line competition or playing someone sat in the same room, a scary title or an exciting racing game, every aspect of those experiences are enhanced hugely by playing them via a proper home cinema.

Gaming is often portrayed is some parts of the media as a solitary anti-social affair, this does not bare close examination as in my experience it’s a friends and family affair, especially as the world of on-line gaming opened up the possibility of playing anyone you like, anywhere. Also, the home cinema with gaming included becomes the fun hub of the house, with all generations playing together and creating much needed bonding time. It’s also worth remembering that the COVID-19 situation has, for many people, underlined the opportunity that playing games together at home can be a valuable experience. Older clients who maybe grew up visiting arcades get to recreate the social aspect of gaming that began their relationship with video games, and everyone else gets to experience something they already knew was hugely enjoyable, but with the volume turned up to 11!

We have great fun with games in our demo home cinemas here at Pulse HQ, we have had FIFA Tournaments and I often include games like Star Wars: Battlefront when appropriate in demos just to show how good they look and sound.

So, time to play the game indeed and get more value out of a multi-billion-pound industry that is just waiting for us to take it to a whole new level!

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42 SEPTEMBER 2020 EI Strip Ads September.indd 2

and some audio additions, but the simple fact is most gamers will never have seen their favourite titles writ large in a home cinema. That’s the key thing here, games are becoming more like films all the time and so a home cinema is their natural environment and as an industry we should be shouting this from the roof tops!

21/08/2020 13:29

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IF YOU’RE UNPROTECTED, IT WILL BE YOU… Cybercrime is now a machineto-machine numbers game organised

to

exploit

millions of IoT devices and cameras. And if you don’t react, your number will be up sooner or later says Justin Martin Lawrence, Habitech’s Technical Manager.

Would you leave your house without locking the door, or your car unlocked in a supermarket car park? Didn’t think so. Even though the chances of a break-in are slim, you’d be foolish not to protect your property. So why should it be different for data, especially when the consequences are potentially far more damaging? The scary truth is that the risk of having your most intimate data stolen is bigger and more immediate than you think, because in 2020 cyber theft is a systematically opportunist crime organised on a global scale.

Today the opportunist at your door is not the local miscreant with a crowbar trying his luck, but a terminator in cyberspace, programmed to execute. The hacker’s custom-automated scanner bot is trained by algorithm to target many thousands of IoT devices and security cameras with known vulnerabilities in a single sweep.

And when its unblinking gaze finds a breach in a local network that just happens to hold your

44 SEPTEMBER 2020

data, that’s when things can take a turn for the worse. Relative obscurity will not protect you.

Cybercrime is no longer a sporadic lottery but a machine-to-machine (M2M) numbers game and if you or your customers are vulnerable, sooner or later, yours will be up.

SO MANY TARGETS

The problem is manifest in the ballooning number of potential targets available; the most prolific weapon of choice for hackers being the gazillions of IoT devices entering homes and businesses. Recently ZDNet reported that the number of global M2M connections is expected to reach 14.6bn by 2022, growing at 19% a year. That’s 14.6bn possible paydays for the cybercrime industrialists. Earlier this year a so-called ‘bot list’ of Telnet details for over 550,000 servers, home routers and smart devices appeared on a hacking forum, providing IP addresses and Telnet usernames

and passwords for each device. By the hacker’s own admission the list was compiled through a typical ‘botnet’ operation by scanning the internet for devices with an open Telnet port, then using a bot to probe with default usernames and passwords, or pre-defined, easy-to-guess password combinations. This information makes it easy for criminals to install malware custom-designed to pillage at will. And because cyber criminality has become industrial in scale, free tools proliferate on open source if you know where to look.

INTERNET OF SH.T

A chilling expose in E&T magazine entitled ‘How to hack an IoT device’ describes the method by which these tools might be coordinated to launch a typical botnet attack.

In the first instance the hacker would go to a publicly accessible site like CVE.mitre.org (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures) to

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ESSENTIAL HABITECH

acquire a list of device vulnerabilities. Then they’d pick a target and search the internet using a port-scanning site like Shodan.io for the location and IP addresses of all those compromised devices across the globe. Next they would systematically test specific devices for the vulnerability with a free distribution tool like Metasploit. If successful, Metasploit will offer up the device for control. And because the said device, a camera for instance, is always talking to a server M2M, the big prize is server access, especially if it sits on the network of a bank or a rich family. It works like a pyramid.

From a base scan involving six figure device numbers, the targets are whittled down to a juicy few, and then the hacker needs just one to get lucky. For those in the know, it’s child’s play.

YOU NEED TO BE FIRMWARY

Cybercrime’s little bot sentinels are not only sniffing for open network ports or patch code vulnerabilities, they also love the smell of old firmware. And this is a growing problem due to the sheer number of connected IoT devices.

Sure, those from the likes of Google and Amazon receive push updates, but most IoT devices lack a secure firmware update mechanism. Since the IoT vendor imperative is to be cheap and quick to market, device security is invariably compromised.

Consequently, the IoT airspace has become a chaotic riot of platforms and standards, ripe for plunder by the cyber subversives. Many of your customers will own at least a handful of smart devices but do they know or care how they upgrade? And what about those obscure white label products that crop up on discount sites or on ebay at irresistible prices, ostensibly smart but without an upgrade path? Connect the dodgy fridge-freezer to a router and throw open the door to data theft. How do you control that?

TIME TO DEPLOY WATCHGUARD

The answer is WatchGuard. It’s a relatively effortless plug-in solution that should be mandatory in every network you design.

WatchGuard Technologies’ cost-effective Firebox Series of Unified Threat Management (UTM) appliances offers integrators and their customers an easily installed, automatically updated defence against advanced malware, ransomware, botnets, trojans, viruses, drive-by downloads, data loss and phishing.

Plugged into the LAN backbone as a router (or after the router) WatchGuard’s UTM firewall boxes are capable of scanning in real time at over 10Gbps (M470 and up). At entry level the new T Series T20, T40 and T80 firewalls, which scale to accommodate up to 50 users and up to 5 wired Gigabit network connections, will dovetail perfectly with current Internet speeds and consumer use.

RAPID REACTION FORCE

The new firewalls have comprehensive VLANning built in, multi-WAN traffic management, and traffic-shaping: all the bells and whistles. There’s also configuration control at an amazing level of detail, allowing the client, for instance, to prevent a family member from posting pictures on Facebook while still having access to feeds.

Another huge advantage is an ability to react quickly to boost the defensive arsenal.

WatchGuard is built around expertise in each area (akin to most car brands using Bosch injectors for example). This means that when an element from one provider proves to be more

effective, WatchGuard can turn it on seamlessly in a silent automated update. For instance, WatchGuard has switched from Kaspersky to Bitdefender. Bitdefender is better. It’s selfimproving gold.

Total Security Suite packages are available on all Firebox solutions offering protection against advanced malware, ransomware, and the loss of sensitive data. WatchGuard also offers a full suite of network visibility and management services from its WatchGuard Dimension solution, packaged with every firewall.

ADD WATCHGUARD TO THE TEAM

This is no time to leave your data doors unlocked. The need for a comprehensive, managed and proven plug-in solution, backed by one of the world’s foremost security technologists has never been more of a no brainer. And it might just protect you from getting sued by Mr. Big Guns customer when his ventures on Ashley Madison go south, or someone uses “password123”. In such a dynamically threatening scenario, WatchGuard is a priceless defence against a risk you cannot afford to take.

Habitech habitech.co.uk

WatchGuard’s plug-in firewalls are a priceless defence against the cybercrime risk to every network you design

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SEPTEMBER 2020 45

ESSENTIAL CASE STUDY

BIO ROYAL III: HIGH PERFORMANCE HOME CINEMA EI presents a case study of this special cinema creation by a true team of experts from around the globe who came together to make this ambitious customer’s home cinema dreams come true combining Trinnov power and Procella precision.

Gerard Brouwer, Sales Agent, Consultant and Project Manager for Home Cinema Projects (distributor for Procella in the Benelux region and Germany) explains that the cinema is located in a new-build property and is in fact the owners’ third high-performance home cinema involving Procella products. This beautiful home is located near the sea just to the south of the city of Gothenburg, Sweden, with the cinema itself set in a building separate from the main home, which used to be the pool room.

The space itself measures 6 x 12 metres (70 metres square approx.), however, after the concealed custom acoustical treatments were added, the cinema proper measures 6 x 8.5 metres. The equipment room is located to the rear of the cinema in a separate space.

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Gerard says, “Mats (the client) had a very clear plan: state-of-the-art, anything else would not do. Whilst we contributed with the speaker selection and positioning, it was renowned home cinema expert Ingemar Ohlsson (founder of Audio Data Lab) that designed the room. The room is unusually large, at least with Scandinavian measurements, but the owner also had a great vision for the interior design and lighting.”

Ingemar delivered the acoustical design for the cinema, providing construction and acoustical treatment drawings as well as a 3D computer model of the room, which was used to run acoustical simulations before making the final specifications.

Benoit Munoz, Marketing Manager for Trinnov, explains his company’s involvement:

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“We were involved from the ground up, through NSHT, our Swedish distributor. They were instrumental in the project and joined by Anders Uggelberg, founding partner at Procella Audio – both long time Trinnov audio users and supporters. This team has worked together in the past on other high-performance projects and is well-versed in the capabilities of our Altitude platform, particularly over such a large number of speakers.”

Gerard adds, “The Trinnov processor opened up the possibility for a full, 24ch immersive sound system. Procella speakers are straightforward modular, with a clear room size designation for all models to achieve full THX and Dolby compliance. We knew the partnership would be a strong one in this project.”

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ESSENTIAL CASE STUDY

Key to a project like this of course, is a huge amount of planning so the team reports that no particular challenges were encountered during the build phase. The only major change was that there had been a plan to include a pair of balancing subwoofers, but the room acoustics turned out so well, they were not needed.

Benoit is keen to underline just why a project like this needs the power of a product like the Altitude32.

“The Trinnov Altitude32 is essential to the performance of this system in at least three levels.

“In terms of playback, it takes full advantage of the 11.3.8 speaker layout, discretely rendering the decoded audio to each and every channel. Indeed, only the Altitude can render the full number of available decoded channels, from every immersive audio format. That level of flexibility ensures that there is no limitation to the designer’s ability to position speakers to provide the most consistent sound reproduction across the entire listening area without compromise in regard to what’s contained in the source material.

That’s true not only for native Immersive audio soundtracks but also for legacy 5.1, 7.1, and even stereo material played through an up-mixer.”

Benoit adds, “Next, the processor plays a critical role in ensuring that all the speakers

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work well together. The system includes three different speaker models, and even though Procella speakers are designed specifically to deliver the same sound quality and sonic signature with different output capabilities, once you place them in different locations around the room, they will no longer sound exactly the same. This reduces the impression of being in a seamless sound field or sound bubble. Even in a very good acousticallydesigned room like this one, the Optimizer’s electronic correction builds on what is achieved passively, using sophisticated digital filters that correct in both the amplitude and time domains, as well as performing the expected level and time alignment of all speakers with a very high degree of accuracy.”

Benoit concludes, “Finally, as sound is very subjective, the Altitude is a powerful tool for acoustic tuning, which is not only used to meet reproduction standards but also to meet the client’s expectations and preferences. To summarise, acoustic optimisation is the icing on the cake. It turns an already excellent home cinema into an even more immersive, powerful and finely controlled audio system.”

Like all top end processor makers, Trinnov has been keen to keep its platform fully up to

SEPTEMBER 2020 49

ESSENTIAL CASE STUDY

date, so recently introduced a software upgrade that delivers DTS:X Pro. Benoit said, “This software upgrade is yet another example of the added-value Trinnov brings as a manufacturer to the industry and its customers. Indeed, we were in contact with DTS as early as the end of 2014, working with them to help bring about the first version of DTS:X. Our software implementation not only benefits Altitude owners but also presents interest for Codec providers as the best go-to-market solution.

“Because we are not limited by processing power, we can not only implement new technologies faster but also implement them to their maximum capability, fully demonstrating their benefits. That was the case with Dolby Atmos, when, in 2015, we released a processable to render up to 32 discrete channels of a Dolby Atmos stream, a capability that is yet to be matched.

“Getting back to DTS, we were the first to release DTS:X in 2016, as a free update to all our customers. However, even though the core technology supports up to 32 discrete channels, this first implementation enabled rendering of only 12 discrete channels.

Removing that limitation was our primary focus through 2019; not only working closely on this new implementation with DTS engineers, but also promoting DTS:X Pro around the world.”

Benoit adds, “Increasing the number of discretely rendered channels provides significant improvements, not only in terms of object rendering but also in terms of bed playback and up-mixing. Indeed, the Neural:X up-mix engine maximises speaker usage in a

50 SEPTEMBER 2020

unique and powerful way, making the whole experience more consistent throughout the listening area.

“In early 2020, we delivered the result of this hard work, as another unrivalled implementation: DTS:X Pro fully unlocked and made available to all Altitude owners at no cost.”

The cinema also includes JVC’s flagship Z1 projector which is housed behind a port sealed off behind optical glass and mounted on a slight tilt to prevent reflections. Seating is from the Stressless Legend recliner line from Ekornes, with two rows delivering a total of nine seats.

FAVOURITE ASPECTS OF THE CINEMA?

Gerard enthuses, “The attention to detail in this home cinema is absolutely stunning! Most important is that the owner is very happy with the outcome!

Benoit observes, “Encountering a life-size C3PO and his R2D2 friend upon walking into the cinema tells you immediately that you are not in your usual home cinema! We were highly impressed by all the original Star Wars memorabilia. Then, entering the cinema itself, the volume of the room was the first big impression, followed by the sense of comfort and performance that comes from the selected fabrics and overall design. Everything is hidden and nicely lit as expected, but even before seeing or hearing anything, one senses that this cinema was conceived by experts to reach for the ultimate experience.

“And what an experience it is! Playing first the infamous Mad Max: Fury Road clip from the Dolby Atmos demo disc, we could not believe

our ears, hearing even the smallest detail of the soundtrack while feeling completely immersed in the sound stage.

“Combining this with impressive dynamics and a perfectly tuned low end, this cinema can certainly reach very high sound pressure levels without you even noticing it. In such an environment, the precision of placement and movement of the soundtrack’s audio objects draw you even deeper inside the movie for an incredible experience.

“In conclusion, the most impressive thing we remember is perhaps the project itself - its ambitious scope, and how professionally it was executed and completed, from the design phase through its installation and commissioning.”

A full year in the making, this home cinema cuts a very impressive rug and whilst it’s a dream to have such an enthused and engaged client with the vision to create something like this, the technical team have done a fantastic job bringing it all together.

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ESSENTIAL CASE STUDY

Essential Kit List

Media server: Egreat

Specifications: 11.2.8 Dolby ATMOS, DTS X Processor: Trinnov Altitude 32 Power Amplifiers: 12 x Procella DA05-DSP, 2x600W 2 x DA07. 2x2800W Screen speakers: 3 x Procella P815 Surround speakers: 8 x Procella P6 and Procella P6V Atmos speakers (Ceiling): 8 x Procella P5 Sub-woofer: 2 x Procella V18

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Projector: JVC Z1 Screen: 1: 2,40 Screen Research XLR3 isf THX 180in 4,45m wide side and height masking Mains power: Furman Control system: Control 4 Room acoustics: SMT AD40 Diffusers on walls, Ecophon absorbers in ceiling, bas traps in floor and booth Climate control: A/C with FTX, AC 10kW, control by Control 4

SEPTEMBER 2020 53

It’s official...

Lyngdorf makes the world’s best surround processors “The Lyngdorf MP-50 processor and SDA-2400 amplifiers are now in a class of their own.” Widescreen Review “The Lyngdorf MP-60 delivers the best performance I’ve heard from any processor to date and I’ve heard them all.” AVForum “After living with the MP-60 for quite some time, I’ve come to the conclusion is the best processor money can buy.” Home Cinema Choice “With RoomPerfectTM, the MP-60 produces the best sound quality heard for the lowest cost so far. You get SOTA surround sound performance for much lower cost than with other top tier contenders.” Widescreen Review “I can categorically state that I have never heard such pristine home cinema audio outside the mixing suites at Skywalker Sound.” Home Theatre Forum “In my opinion the MP-60 exists in a class of its own with performance that is best described as perfect.” AVForum

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ESSENTIAL CASE STUDY

MY DRAGON SETS SAIL WITH RTI!

RTI Control and Automation Solutions Bring reliability and ease of use to MY Dragon Luxury Yacht.

A 37m luxury yacht built by Chantier Naval Couach and captained by Michael Deliezas, MY Dragon is a spectacular vision to behold at sea. Until recently, however, its on-board technology was a different story. Some of its systems were no longer functioning properly and needed to be replaced, while network equipment, TVs and speakers required an upgrade to deliver higher performance and support today’s video resolutions and sound formats. In addition, AV components had been installed locally in each cabin instead of a central rack — an arrangement that not only provided inadequate ventilation, but restricted access for maintenance. Finally, the yacht’s systems were difficult to use; requiring an upgrade to a control and automation system simple enough for anyone to operate — from the captain to the crew, to the guests. To address all of these issues, London-based Advanced Integration Ltd. was called on to provide MY Dragon with a technological makeover, including an RTI control system.

Advanced Integration replaced the yacht’s lighting and shading systems with new solutions from Lutron. For powerful connectivity, a 10Gb Ethernet network was installed, with access points featuring AC technology covering the whole vessel with fast Wi-Fi. To provide guests with the ultimate on-board entertainment experience, MY Dragon’s AV receivers were

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updated with 4K models that support Dolby Atmos, while the yacht’s HD displays were swapped out for 4K TVs, including waterproof displays in the lower master bathroom and on the aft deck. MY Dragon’s outdoor speakers were also upgraded to premium models with digital amplification.

INTEGRATION AT SEA

Instead of relying on local AV components in each cabin, Advanced Integration outfitted the yacht with a seven-zone movie server and Apple TV — powered by an 8x8 4K HDBaseT matrix switcher — that allows guests to watch movies and other content on any display and a CasaTunes music server for streaming Pandora,

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Spotify, and other services throughout the yacht from any device. All of MY Dragon’s systems and components are centrally located in a retractable swivel rack in the lower master cabin, allowing the crew to perform maintenance without disturbing guests. For intuitive control over the yacht’s AV and environmental systems, Advanced Integration designed, programmed and installed an RTI control and automation system.

“We chose RTI for this project because we required a robust, reliable system that is easily upgradeable as new components and technologies are added,” says Marios Tsiftis, CEO of Advanced Integration. “We also needed to provide the crew and guests with a completely

SEPTEMBER 2020 55

ESSENTIAL CASE STUDY

customised interface to make operation of MY Dragon’s various systems as simple as possible. The RTI Integration Designer APEX programming software made it easy to meet both of these objectives.”

MY Dragon’s control system is powered

by RTI XP-6s, XP-8v and XP-3 Advanced Control Processors, with drivers providing seamless integration of Lutron lighting and shading systems, the CasaTunes music server, and an Apple TV. The yacht is outfitted with 10 iPad minis running the RTiPanel app with a completely customised GUI — one for each cabin and other areas of the boat, in addition to a master controller for the captain. With the iPads, users have simple control over each

area’s lighting, shades, air conditioning and displays and can play video content from the movie server or Apple TV. In addition, they

Essential RTI Kit List

can stream music from the CasaTunes system, including their personal libraries on iOS devices

1 x XP-6s Control Processor

via Bluetooth.

1 x XP-8v Control Processor

“MY Dragon’s RTI system has been a big

1 x XP-3 Control Processor

hit,” adds Marios. “The crew loves having control over the yacht’s myriad systems via

RTiPanel License

mobile devices they are already familiar with,

4 x PCM-4 Port Control Modules

and guests get excited over how easy it is to enjoy such a high-tech luxury experience. It’s also proven to be exceptionally reliable, which is a very important quality when out at sea.”

The ship’s systems were in need of a total overhaul

56 SEPTEMBER 2020

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The Gramercy & Nero

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PRODUCTS

SAVANT AND NETGEAR ANNOUNCE EXCLUSIVE S-LINE PROGRAM

Stay protected with the Artnovion MedLine series Artnovion’s range of MedLine-Cleanable products are specifically designed to protect against infection whilst providing high-quality acoustic treatments for any workplace.

Available in a range of solutions and antimicrobial materials, the MedLine series provide protection against all other agents and can also be cleaned with COVID-19 killing disinfectants.

For further information on Artnovion, contact the industry professionals at RGB Communications.

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enabling integrators to deliver best performance while improving efficiency on nearly any job size.

George Katsiris, VP, Product Evangelist at Savant, says, “The NETGEAR S-Line is an ideal networking solution to pair with Savant’s Smart Audio product family that delivers superb clarity and detail for any entertainment application along with built-in smart home functionality, all controlled from a single, award-winning user experience.”

Savant savanteurope.co.uk

‘NETGEAR is thrilled to solidify our partnership with Savant, the leader in home control and automation,’ says Vikram Mehta Sr. Vice President, SMB at NETGEAR

A NEW DESIGN ARC FOR FLEXSON Flexson, Sonos accessories specialist, has launched a range of new products to accompany the new Sonos Arc, to ‘harness the sonic power of Sonos and Dolby Atmos surround sound’, in the home.

The SAR-WM Wall Mount for Sonos Arc is engineered to securely position the new Sonos Arc soundbar on the wall. A 30mm step in the mount’s design means the soundbar is positioned in front of the TV, allowing listeners to get the full effect of the upward-firing Dolby Atmos drivers and immerse themselves in movies, music or the latest TV drama. Flexson mounts are also optimised for Sonos Trueplay, ensuring the Arc is tuned to the room it is in.

Like all Flexson products, the Wall Mount for Sonos Arc is designed to be easy to fit and comes equipped with all the fixings needed for installation.

The SAR-TVMA TV Mount Attachment for Sonos Arc is designed to securely hold the Arc and fit onto an existing TV bracket (including full-motion cantilever television mounts), neatly unifying the audio and the vision. A good partner for TVs from 40-80in, vertical and horizontal adjustment options allows alignment with the screen, while the included extension arms helps to fit with the largest TVs. Much

like the SAR-WM Wall Mount, the TV Mount Attachment has a 30mm step, positioning the Arc in front of the television.

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New support options are available for the Sonos Arc

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Savant has enhanced its existing partnership with network products and services provider NETGEAR to offer the S-Line, a suite of networking solutions, enhanced programs and support services exclusive to Savant integrators.

S-Line products include Routers, Switches, Access Points, Mobile Hot Spots and their Meural digital canvas artwork. The S-Line networking platform is ideally suited for Savant’s smart home ecosystem and is available now.

The companies say NETGEAR’s S-Line represents an important opportunity for integrators seeking to deliver a robust, businessgrade residential networking platform to their clients. Available exclusively from Savant, the S-Line offers key benefits such as access to design and support services, a six-year warranty and the licenses needed for NETGEAR’s cloudbased management platform, called Insight.

Additionally, as part of this program, Savant techs have been trained to provide Tier 1 support on the S-Line networking platform, with fast access to NETGEAR Tier 2 support when required. The S-Line program will expand over time to include new innovative products, deeper integration functionality and high-value support services,

21/08/2020 13:29

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PRODUCTS

LINN WORKS ITS MAJIK AGAIN Linn has launched an evolution of its popular Majik DSM digital streamer, an integral part of Linn’s range since introduction in 2009.

Linn’s best-selling streaming product of the last decade has been reimagined to deliver a new look, an all-new feature set and a big boost in performance.

Improvements made throughout the product enable the new Majik DSM to outperform both its predecessor and, argues the maker, the competition too. Updates to the DAC implementation, power amplification and volume control are all underpinned by a new, higher power processing platform.

The DAC architecture is derived from the development of Linn’s Katalyst technology, including improved up-sampling, a lower noise reference voltage and an ultra-low jitter clock for greater timing accuracy throughout.

The bespoke, Linn-designed Class D power amplifiers offer better performance thanks to lower noise and distortion and more efficient signal conversion, allowing even greater musical detail to be extracted. The Majik DSM also benefits from digital volume control which removes a lossy component from the signal path for lower noise and distortion. These technical improvements alongside Linn’s

own Space Optimisation technology, which optimises performance for an individual room and speaker, ensure the stand-out performance of Maijk DSM, says the maker.

Linn adds that the Majik DSM is the ideal entertainment hub as it contains all the analogue, digital and wireless connectivity needed to connect any source, from TV to turntable and make it sound better.

Four HDMI 2.0 4K-compatible inputs make it a good central point for AV sources, with no compromise on high res audio discs or movie soundtracks.

An innovative flexible analogue input is configurable to either Moving Magnet (for turntables) or Line Level (for other analogue sources).

For a complete system, Linn is suggesting the Majik DSM is partnered with a Majik LP12 and Majik speakers with a look that can be personalised for every individual as customers

Gilad Tiefenbrun, Linn Managing Director, “…with the brand new, next generation Majik DSM, we have the perfect one box solution to outperform the“…with competition Gilad Tiefenbrun, Linn Managing Director, the brand new, next generation Majik DSM, we have the and offer thebox ideal first step into authentic perfect one solution to outperform the Hi-Fi.” competition and offer the ideal first step into authentic Hi-Fi.”

can choose any high gloss colour finish for their speakers and LP12 plinth.

Linn linn.co.uk

STAY IN TOUCH WITH iROOM iRoom, the global Apple-certified manufacturer of premium iPad docking and smart control solutions has unveiled the touchDock, its new flagship motorised docking station.

The touchDock reveals exquisite craftsmanship with its high-quality scratch resistant tempered glass for all 10.2in iPad or larger screen sizes and its in-wall flush mount flexible installation capability (vertical or horizontal mounting).

The new touchDock integrates iRoom’s cutting-edge docking technologies as iPad anti-theft protection and hands-free unlocking of the iPad screen. The touchDock offers simple motorised removal when the iPad is needed for mobile use. With a built-in control processor, touchDock offers AV control independent of the iPad and Smart Battery Management to prolong and increase the iPad battery life.

The touchDock system is compatible with Professional Control Systems such as Crestron, Control4, Lutron, RTI, EnOcean, Savant and others. touchDock connects to all popular IoT services – Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, EnOcean, or Apple HomeKit. All iRoom products include an Apple-certified charging connector and electronics.

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Key features on the product include Apple-

iPad, hands-free unlocking of the iPad via

certified with Smart Battery Management,

motion sensors and can be PoE+ powered or

Code-protected, motorised removal of the iPad when it is needed for mobile use and horizontal or vertical in-wall flush mount installation.

110-240V.

The unit also comes with a built-in control

iRoom

processor for AV control independent of the

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The touchDock comes with high-quality scratch-resistant tempered glass

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SEPTEMBER 2020 61

HVAC Control the Sensible way

Sensible Heat offers a full backup service to resellers, including design advice, supply and commissioning.

We can work with you to create a fully integrated solution – don’t worry, you won’t need to become an HVAC expert! Do the sensible thing and contact us now.

> Control any form of heating; radiators, underfloor etc. and any form of comfort cooling > wired or wireless schemes > Make each room a zone: better comfort and efficiency > iPhone / Android access via App > HVAC controls always provided with independent/ backup user interface > Building size or complexity of HVAC plant is no problem > Custom Control Panel for plantroom if required > Interfaces to AMX, Crestron, Control4, Savant, RTI with pre-written, proven “drivers” > Interfaces to most major aircon systems (Daikin, Mitsubishi, Toshiba, Sanyo etc.)

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PRODUCTS

GET SMART WITH LEDVANCE With Professional Smart for Residential and the new LEDVANCE Parathom portfolio, LEDVANCE is supporting professional users to achieve the full potential of connected lighting for their customers, says the company.

The LEDVANCE Parathom portfolio for residential and garden areas can be controlled by voice command or app and offers a suitable solution for a wide range of requirements.

The portfolio has been made to offer a combination of quality, innovation, reliability and user-friendliness and is complemented by easy

installation, good value for money and features such as colour and colour temperature change or dimming capabilities.

Professional Smart for Residential is available with either ZigBee or Bluetooth and allows voice control with digital assistants such as Alexa from Amazon, Siri from Apple or Google Assistant.

Parathom ZigBee’s smart lighting can be integrated into existing or preferred independent, compatible smart home systems, allowing control via app or smart speakers such as Amazon Echo or Google Nest.

The compatible gateways include Philips Hue Bridge, Deutsche Telekom QIVICON, Schwaiger Gateway, Samsung SmartThings or Smart Home by hornbach. No external gateway is necessary if the device is controlled via Alexa with Amazon Echo Plus, Echo Show (second generation) or Echo Studio.

The Professional Smart for Residential portfolio enables the creation of different light scenarios – dimmed, from warm to cool white and multicolour for choosing from 16 million colours.

The Parathom Bluetooth portfolio can be set up easily in less than one minute and no gateway is required. It allows lighting products to be controlled either via the LEDVANCE Smart+ app for Android and iOS, the Apple Home app or voice control via smart speakers such as Apple HomePod or Amazon Echo.

The Parathom Bluetooth portfolio can also be integrated into a Bluetooth mesh network.

Users of the LEDVANCE Smart+ app therefore benefit from the new Bluetooth 5 standard.

New smart lighting options from LEDVANCE

LEDVANCE ledvance.co.uk

NAD LOOKS TO MASTER AUDIO DELIVERY NAD Electronics has unveiled a new Masters Series product: the M28, a seven-channel high performance amplifier that can serve as an engine for a state-of-the-art multi-channel system for music or home cinema.

NAD says the product is the first multi-channel amplifier to use Purifi’s Eigentakt (selfclocking) amplifier technology.

First embraced in the NAD M33 Masters Series BluOS Streaming DAC Amplifier, the Masters M28 uses the Eigentakt amplifier, manufactured by NAD under license from Purifi, a Danish technology company that brought together several of the industry’s leading engineers to take performance to the next level.

In common with previous generations of NAD HybridDigital technology, the M28 is not only able to easily handle long cable runs, but is impervious to the loudspeaker load it is presented with, maintaining the same wide and even bandwidth response irrespective of the speaker’s impedance and provide

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high current capability. On tap is 200W into 8 Ohms of continuous power for all channels driven at the same time and 560W of dynamic power into 4 Ohms.

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NAD says that Eigentakt technology is very analogue-like in behaviour in the unlikely event the amplifier is driven into clipping. Whereas many Class D designs can become unstable, Eigentakt behaves like the benign way of clipping with instant recovery of well executed traditional Class A/B amplifiers.

For ease of installation in a variety of systems, the M28 accepts both single-ended RCA and balanced XLR inputs, the latter being the same audio interface as used by professional studios to provide the highest level of signal integrity with the lowest noise floor.

NAD nadelectronics.com

“NAD has always been known for great sounding amplifiers that punch way above their weight and the M28 does this at a reference level and then some,” states Cas Oostvogel, NAD’s Product Manager.

SEPTEMBER 2020 63

PRODUCTS

MERIDIAN ADDS SOME OOMPH! Meridian Audio’s new DSW600 digital active in-wall subwoofer has been announced, with the manufacturer claiming it is the perfect addition to any home cinema system.

“The new DSW600 is a revolutionary product designed to handle bass-heavy music and movie soundtracks, delivering incredible, immersive audio with ease,” comments Barry Sheldrick, Meridian’s Director of Sales.

“It provides deep, impactful bass with perfect timing down to 24Hz, thanks to Meridian’s unique Digital Signal Processing (DSP) and Enhanced Bass Alignment technology. Its on-board Class-D amplifier with low output impedance is capable of delivering over 600W of power and its low-profile driveunit is designed to displace large volumes of air, delivering low frequencies effortlessly. It is the ideal solution for our dealers to create a complete home cinema setup for their clients that really is a cut above the rest.”

On-board DSP technology in the DSP600 provides thermal and dynamic bass protection, meaning that even when the subwoofer is played at high levels or over prolonged periods of time, it should always deliver precise sound.

Meridian’s Enhanced Bass Alignment technology uses two different technologies to time-align differing frequencies, resulting in audibly improved bass and added clarity when the subwoofer is combined with other Meridian loudspeakers.

Meridian’s own proprietary bass protection is employed to ensure the subwoofer is not damaged from over-excursion, which is handled invisibly in the digital domain. This electronics pack is designed to be installed in the wall with the subwoofer, reducing both heat and space required in the rack.

On-board DSP supports partnering with any Meridian Architectural Loudspeaker to provide full-range performance from a two-box in-wall solution. When used in this unique configuration, the DSW600 gives the DSP320.2, DSP520.2, DSP640.2 or DSP750 bass extension down to 24Hz. In addition, the DSW600 can be used to augment the bass from other loudspeakers in both two-channel and surround-sound systems, creating full range LCR or surround channels.

The DSW600 can integrate into a variety of installation applications, producing impactful bass in any room size and as part of any loudspeaker configuration

Meridian meridian-audio.com

AUDIOCONTROL ADDS DIRAC

Dirac Live Bass Control is now available on AudioControl machines

64 SEPTEMBER 2020

Dirac and AudioControl have announced that AudioControl’s latest line of receivers and processors include Dirac Live Bass Control.

Dirac Live Bass Control uses machine learning and artificial intelligence to co-optimise the components of a sound system to deliver accurate, consistent bass throughout a room.

Dirac Live Bass Control aggregates measurement and location data from each subwoofer to determine how a system’s bass is distributed throughout a room. It then identifies gaps in the sound waves and distributes bass evenly. The audio software also corrects the low-frequency sound waves produced by other speakers so that the bass produced by each speaker is in sync with the overall system.

The intelligent processing allows for flexible placement of subwoofers in a space to meet the listener’s design or aesthetic preferences.

Dirac Live Bass Control is part of the Dirac Live family of acoustic processing technology, which also includes the Dirac Live Room Correction calibration software.

“As a leading supplier of best-in-class home cinema receivers, processors and amplifiers to AV specialists, we are excited to feature Dirac Live Bass Control as standard across our new Maestro X-Series processor platform and

the majority of our XR Series receivers,” says AudioControl’s CEO Alex Camara.

“Dirac’s new bass control technology will enable AudioControl to provide the very best cinematic experience by intelligently optimising the subwoofers and speakers to the characteristics of each room. Including Dirac Live Bass Control as standard on the majority of our processors and receivers is another example of AudioControl’s commitment to providing the very best entertainment solutions for our discerning customers.”

Dirac Live Bass Control is included with AudioControl’s Concert XR-8 and Concert XR-6 receivers and Maestro X7 and Maestro X9 preamp/processors. It is available for an additional cost for the Concert XR-4 receiver.

The latest AudioControl Concert receivers support in-demand surround formats and deliver six channels of user-configurable outputs for high-pass channels, height channels or additional subwoofers for optimising the movie experience.

Dirac dirac.com

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Audio Control audiocontrol.com

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BANDWIDTH

THE NEXT BIGGER THING Perpetually rising bandwidth demands from IoT, WF6 and content streaming mean that multi-gig capability is now the first base for home network designers.

This means CAT 6A minimum for Ethernet. Anything less will quickly be choked off, and your business could be next. In which case you’d be mad to risk your good name for a few pennies saved per metre on CAT 5 or 6, especially when the cable’s locked in the walls and impossible to upgrade.

In the age of multigig pulling CAT6A is a no brainer but choose carefully. Traditional UFTP and FFTP cables are great for high crosstalk environments but they’re thicker and more difficult to terminate, adding unnecessary cost to every install.

HNC PROPLUS 6A 10G

SCP’s new CAT6A UTP uses internal gearing to better separate the pairs. It’s slimmer, easier to pull and terminate, keenly priced and best of all, certified to 10G. With bandwidth always on the up, why would you risk a lesser cable…?

Crimp and Trim in one easy action with Simply 45 Terminations

Next bigger thing A4 Advert.indd 1

15/08/2020 09:01

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