Residential Tech Today -- March-May 2020

BECOMING A CINEMA SOMMELIER | “SHOULD I INSTALL A CONTROL SYSTEM?”

KEVIN O’CONNOR

THIS OLD HOUSE, THIS NEW TECH

PLUS: Completing a Control4 Smart Home An Inside Look at the New Theory Experience Center Totally Epic Video Game ‘Facts’ You Have to Believe The Future of Content, Distribution, and the Consumer

March–May 2020

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From the Editor I have one of those relatives who has always been an awkward hang during holiday gatherings. While there’s a bit of an unspoken agreement between us to avoid hot-button issues of the day, that doesn’t leave much else beyond sports to talk about when forced into the same room for an extended period of time. That is, until recently, when he started complaining about the rising cost of his cable bill. Finally, a topic that we could both agree on!

Prior to hosting our family Christmas this past December, I decided I would really give us something to talk about by subscribing to Hulu and “cutting the cord.” That way, I could provide a first-hand account of my experience with streaming live TV and even offer a demo on my new 65-inch TV.

Executive Editor Jeremy Glowacki

“ Not wanting to throw in the towel completely, I next signed up for YouTube TV to see how it measured up.”

Having experienced live TV via Hulu while visiting younger relatives the month before (for Thanksgiving), I was fairly confident that I was ready to say goodbye to cable TV and its everincreasing monthly bill. A lack of live TV (for sports and news) had always been an argument against cutting the cord, but with that objection overruled, it seemed like a no brainer to make the switch.

My Christmas Day pitch, however, wasn’t that convincing.

Adding Hulu with live TV and the ability to fast forward commercials on “recorded” content makes the cost of that service start to add up. It’s still lower than the cost of cable, but not by a lot. Others like to point out that the cost of subscribing to multiple apps (Disney+, Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc.) also makes the overall streaming cost high, but I’d argue back that those apps would be added whether I dropped cable or not. My biggest complaint is that the Hulu user experience just doesn’t measure up to my expectations.

My cable system (AT&T Uverse) has made major strides in the evolution of its channel guide design and overall user experience. Sure, I often have nights with “57 channels (and nothin’ on),” but I always know where to find the channels I generally like to watch and have found that rewinding and pausing live TV has become a habit that I’m unwilling to break.

Not wanting to throw in the towel completely, however, I next signed up for YouTube TV to see how it measured up. Immediately, I preferred the higher quality, visually appealing nature of the YouTube TV user interface. Next, I went to look for my favorite go-to channels on cable – The History Channel (“Ok, Boomer!”) – and it wasn’t there. Could I live without Ancient Aliens, American Pickers, and World War II in Color? Probably. Could I find alternatives on Netflix? No doubt. But it still made me feel like I would be giving up some of my “comfort foods,” if I cancelled cable.

I haven’t completely given up. I may still make the switch. We’re being asked to change our habits a lot these days. Maybe it’s time that I did the sensible thing, saved a little bit more of our household income, stopped channel surfing through the “old-man stations,” and cut the cord. Stay tuned!

2 Residential Tech Today |

March–May 2020

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MARCH–MAY 2020

contents

40 Old House, New Perspective

Cover Photo: Anthony Tieuli/Courtesy of This Old House

Departments 22 Design Side 56 Product Revolution 62 Events 63 Coming Up 64 The Lighter Side

10 By the Numbers 12 Quick Bits 14 Connected Home 16 Networked Home 18 CEDIA Says 20 Smart Tech

24 Innovator Spotlight Joe Whitaker, The Thoughtful Home

28 Tech Trends

The latest developments in video technology and video content streaming services and devices

32 Industry Relations

“We should also remain curious, forever evaluating what we offer our clients.”

34 Issue Focus: Becoming a Cinema Sommelier Opportunities abound for skilled home cinema designers and integrators.

38 Tech Advisor

“Should I Install a Control System?”

46 Installation

Jeremy Glowacki completes his Control4 smart home.

48 Innovative Tech

Audio/Video Systems has created a design process and lab for clients near New York City.

52 New Tech

An Inside Look at the New Theory Experience Center

6 Residential Tech Today |

March–May 2020

Contributors Sam Cavitt is the founder and CEO of Paradise Theater, a company that provides comprehensive private cinema design, engineering, and project management. He focuses his efforts on maintaining the highest standard of excellence and sharing the pleasures of fine private cinema with the industry and the world. In this issue, Cavitt introduces his concept for the Cinema Sommelier to RTT readers.

At St. Louis-based Integration Controls, Jamie Briesemeister leads sales and marketing and is actively involved in business development, including industry outreach and education. She speaks about the smart, connected home at several national events. This month, Briesemeister illustrates that if you search for what fuels your passion and curiosity, you and your contributions to the smart home will get better with age.

Henry Clifford founded Livewire in 2001 to meet the growing demand for technologically integrated homes and businesses. In January 2018, he co-founded Parasol, a remote service support company. On page 40, Clifford provides the answer to the question, “Should I Install a Control System?” Well, sort of…

Rebecca Day has covered the consumer technology market for more than 25 years as a reviewer and reporter for consumer and trade publications. She likes when products work as they’re supposed to and calls them out when they don’t. This month she explains how by working with a concept called Millson RackFrame, integrators like Plainview, NY-based Audio/Video Systems can build and wire a customer’s equipment stack in their own lab, on their own schedule.

Dennis Burger is a native Alabamian whose passion for AV and home automation technology is matched only by his fascination with the weather and his love of Star Wars. His credits include writing for and/or editing publications ranging from Robb Report Home Entertainment and Digital TV & Sound to Wirecutter and currently Home Theater Review. In this issue, Burger details his visit to Theory Audio Design/Pro Audio Technology Experience Center in Lake Forest, CA.

Ed Wenck is content marketing manager for CEDIA. He’s a broadcaster and journalist who’s won multiple awards from the Society of Professional Journalists, the Association of Alternative Newsmedia, and the Indiana Broadcasters Association. This month he writes about the future of entertainment content and distribution.

8 Residential Tech Today |

March–May 2020

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e NUMB RS

by the

A look at the metrics shaping the technology market — and our lives

Phrases such as “adjust the rabbit ears” and “flip over the cassette” are extremely rare in the 2020s. These terms were destroyed by, unsurprisingly, the rise of streaming, which has allowed users to fit generations of music and decades of video content onto a minuscule smartphone. But, while we all know that streaming media is king, some of the specifics are still a mystery to the general public. Let’s take a look at some surprising

MUSIC STREAMING SUBSCRIBER SHARE

stats from the wide world of streaming.

VIDEO STREAMING SERVICES WITH MOST SUBSCRIBERS

(First half of 2019)

(in millions // As of November 2019)

151.6 Netflix (Global) 100.0 iQiyi (China) 94.0 82.1 75.0 Viu (SE Asia)

28.0

Hulu (USA)

Amazon Prime (Global)

20.0 Alt Balaji (India) 18.8 Eros Now (India) 15.0 Iflix (Asia)

0

50

100

150

200

Source: www.statista.com

30.0

Tencent Video (China)

Youku (China)

STREAMING VIDEO ON DEMAND (SVOD) REVENUE (in millions)

30000 20000

20,842

22,536

25,894

24,248

28,660

29,650

30,410

5000 2017 2018 2019 2020* 2021* 2022* 2023* 2024*

U.S. MUSIC SUBSCRIPTION/STREAMING REVENUE (in millions )

8000 5,664.5

0

10

2,406.6

2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019

Residential Tech Today | March–May 2020

Music piracy is lowering, with

27% Source: www.ifpi.org

Source: www.statista.com

2000

1,868.3

a week

of people use on-demand streaming for music.

3,962.1

4000

18 hours 89%

7,336.8

6000

Music listening is on the rise, with people averaging

admitting to piracy, down from 38% the year before.

8,831.3

1,449.6 651.2 1,032.8

3.4 million IFPI REPORTS:

10000

10000

Super Bowl LIV was the most live-streamed Super Bowl in history:

Source: www.haivision.com

15000

0

Source: www.statista.com

average minute audience

*Estimated // Source: www.statista.com

25000

27,399

Spotify - 36% Apple Music - 18% Amazon - 13% Tencent - 10% Google - 5% Deezer - 3% Pandora - 2% MelON - 2% Others - 11%

80%

of global consumer internet traffic will be video by 2021.

Source: newsroom.cisco.com

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QUICK BITS WE ASK INDUSTRY INSIDERS ONE QUESTION

When not practicing social distancing, what are your favorite demo clips to entertain potential clients and sell home theater and music systems?

“Shallow” from A Star is Born shows a range of vocals, combined with visuals and the emotional experience occurring on screen.

“Never Enough,” from The Greatest Showman is more upbeat, with horses stomping their feet you can hear and feel, lots of on-screen action, great vocals, and a powerful scene.

For audio and video performance combined, we love to show the scene where Matt Damon’s character in Ford v. Ferrari takes Henry Ford Jr. for his first ride in a race car and the Daytona 7000 RPM scene from the same movie.

– Greg Margolis, HomeTronics, Dallas, TX

We don’t sell 2-channel, but I like to demo audio clips of Alison Krauss or Alan Jackson. I think Alison’s “When You Say Nothing At All” is one of the best. “Remember When” by Alan is also one of my favorites. For videos I really like The Martian in HDR – both the clips on the Mars surface and some of the space station scenes, they really show the expanded color palette.

– Eric Crawford, The Loop, Boise, ID

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Residential Tech Today | March–May 2020

I love demo’ing with the first race scene from Ready Player One. It is a fantastic scene with a clear start and finish, and it doesn’t spoil the movie. It is also relatively short but packed with loads of action and lots of dynamic Dolby Atmos audio that really shows off a good surround system, and it’s familyfriendly.

– John Sciacca, Custom Theater and Audio, Myrtle Beach, SC

Our two favorite video segments include the “Fire Everything” sequence from 2009’s Star Trek, and the opening sequence from 2002’s Chicago. The former is both visually stunning and really highlights the benefits of Dolby Atmos. The latter is sonically immersive, making you feel like you are sitting in a 1920s Chicago theater. Musically, our demo includes clips from The Doors “Riders on the Storm,” Norah Jones’s “Come Away with Me,” Radiohead’s “The National Anthem,” Lorde’s “Royals,” and Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky.”

– Bryan Mills, Mills Technologies, Skokie, IL In our Dolby Atmos, THX Ultra 2 theater we’ll show clients clips from the Dolby Atmos demo disk. There are multiple steps to the demo, depending on what the client is looking for. There’s one demo that explains and demonstrates Dolby Atmos that we tend to use quite a bit. Most people really don’t know what it is until you go over the basics with them. Then we follow up with some of the movie clips from that disk.

– Tony Fabrick, Xtend Technologies, Broadview Heights, OH The Dolby Atmos disk is one. The DTS disk is another that we use. When demonstrating those formats, you can easily showcase that they call the additional audio channels “immersive” for a reason. There’s also a really nice Michael Bublé concert video shot in Los Angeles that we like, but The Greatest Showman is probably our favorite movie to demo.

–Peter Cook, Automation Design + Entertainment, Kalamazoo, Grand Rapids, MI We presently use our Kaleidescape system for demoing 4K movies in our showroom. The top three movies are A Star is Born, The Greatest Showman, and Deepwater Horizon. They all have both great audio and video for the demo. My favorite tracks are Leonard Cohen’s “Love Itself,” Lyle Lovett’s “Church,” Barbara Streisand/Neil Diamond’s “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers.” These tracks cover most listening preferences.

– Ken Irvine, Premier Luxury Electronic Lifestyles, Carmel, IN When demoing movies, we have some of the traditional go-to scenes like the opening sequence from Mad Max: Fury Road and the bombing raid from Unbroken. When we are showing off our landscape audio systems, we like to play clips from the following tracks: “They Don’t Want Music” (Black Eyed Peas, James Brown), “All Along The Watchtower – Live” (Dave Matthews Band), “Say Something” ( Justin Timberlake, Chris Stapleton).

– Eli Weinkle, NXT AV, Orange County, CA My favorite audio/video demo right now is Star Wars: Attack of the Clones – the chase scene when they are going through the asteroids. I love the sound of the engines roaring and also the pulse reactor bomb exploding. For my audio tones, there is a Nine Inch Nails song, “Right Where it Belongs,” where there are a lot of instruments in the mix that if you have a really good speaker system, it picks up every instrument.

– Todd Anthony Puma, The Source Home Theater, Old Bridge, NJ

DEPARTMENTS

Connected Home

Acquiring Home Lighting Control Racepoint Energy’s Purchase of NOON Home Enables Intuitive Energy, Lighting, and Smart Home Control

By Walter Joseph Racepoint Energy, the energy solutions sister brand, acquired the technology and team of NOON Home, including residential lighting control innovations developed by the NOON team based out of Campbell, CA. This acquisition, announced at the beginning of 2020, will enable Racepoint Energy and sistercompany Savant to deliver more comprehensive and intuitive lighting and intelligent control solutions.

NOON entered the smart lighting market in 2017 with the development of the NOON Lighting System, designed to eliminate many of the installation complexities associated with traditional lighting control solutions. NOON, with its unique lighting hardware, offers a complete lighting control platform that can be discovered, configured, and controlled with a single app experience. This acquisition will expand both Racepoint Energy and Savant’s lighting control offerings, including the addition of NOON’s unique keypad style to the Savant keypad lineup.

The integrated Racepoint Energy and NOON team will continue to focus on designing unique product and software solutions that can be sold into both the custom installation and distribution channels. Early development initiatives will include integration into the Savant smart home ecosystem, with plans to offer NOON solutions on the Savant Store.

Here are six questions for Racepoint Energy’s Angie Larson about the NOON home acquisition: What attracted you most about NOON Home that drew you to the acquisition?

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Residential Tech Today | March–May 2020

NOON Home has approached the lighting control market in a very unique way. With their unique design, the NOON Home solution addresses some of the common issues that face all lighting control professionals, including load compatibility and installation pre-planning.

NOON Home’s modular infrastructure enables installers to simply wire in back-boxes, determining later if each specific load should be controlled with a dimmer or a switch and what level of control is needed from that location.

How does NOON Home assist your company in your wellness initiatives?

Savant is committed to promoting healthy living and wellness through the amazing capabilities of dynamic lighting, and recent innovations such as Daylight Mode, which leverages the Savant App to suggest a circadian curve based upon scientific data that highlights time-of-day settings for color temperature and lighting intensity shifts seamlessly throughout the progression of each day. NOON Home’s modular infrastructure will enable Savant to develop products that incorporate sensors for air temperature, humidity, occupancy, and more, bringing truly smart functionality and optimized comfort to each room.

What was the rationale for having Racepoint be the acquiring company rather than Savant?

Racepoint Energy is a technology and innovation brand that develops much of the backbone for Savant’s lighting solutions, including the Companion-Breaker Modules that drive Savant’s latest pro lighting products. The synergy between Racepoint Energy and the

NOON Home lighting platform seemed a natural fit.

Is there a prior third-party control brand integration capability for NOON that will be impacted for non-Savant dealers going forward?

There is no plan to reduce NOON Home integration capabilities.

What, if anything, will change for NOON as it becomes fully a part of the Racepoint/ Savant family?

As announced at the Savant Integrator Summit in January, we will be fully integrating NOON into the Savant Ecosystem including the ability to display and select Savant Scenes from the NOON Director modules. This will give integrators an elegant, completely unique interface option that users love. Savant will be making NOON Home products available to all authorized integrators in March 2020.

What other benefits, such as engineering talent, come as part of the acquisition?

The experience and expertise of the team at NOON within the lighting category will be a valuable addition to Savant and enable us to design unique solutions, making advanced energy and lighting automation available for a broad range of smart home projects. The team at NOON has demonstrated a thoughtful approach to designing unique lighting hardware solutions, and we are excited about the limitless possibilities and expanded offerings when integrated within the Savant/Racepoint ecosystem. x

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DEPARTMENTS

Networked Home

A Reliability Guaranteed

Luxul’s Customer Assurance Program Enables Integrators to Ensure Wi-Fi Performance

By Walter Joseph With the dramatic increase in everyday connected devices, homeowners and business owners alike have come to expect an always-on connection. That means there’s a new standard for network dependability, and that standard is only going to get higher.

Today’s integrators are faced with the challenge of installing systems that are expected to work quickly and reliably 100 percent of the time. What end users don’t always realize is that there’s a strong network running behind their system for connectivity. The best networking equipment isn’t the only thing necessary to meet customers’ expectations – a reliable install can make or break a network.

Meeting this demand starts with the right design that specifies the right equipment.

Luxul’s Customer Assurance Program, or CAP, is a free service for Luxul dealers that helps ease this responsibility. With CAP, dealers get certified wired and wireless network designs for residential and commercial applications – complete with tech support – that are guaranteed to meet their customers’ reliability and performance requirements relating to Wi-Fi.

16

Residential Tech Today | March–May 2020

How CAP Works Luxul dealers simply register their projects at www.luxul.com/assurance, where they provide project details and requirements. Based on this input, Luxul engineers will deliver a complete custom network design, including both required and optional equipment, along with educational pages meant to make end users aware of things like the importance of a solid network, an explanation of remote management and internet content management and their importance, and what interference is and how it can be accounted for in a proper design.

From there, dealers simply install the network based on the design and complete it with a remote management platform like Luxul’s ProWatch.

Luxul’s advanced support team is available to dealers who need assistance configuring their certified networks, while any product experiencing a failure will be replaced promptly. If the wired or wireless network doesn’t perform as expected, Luxul will provide any additional equipment to meet customers’ expectations at no additional cost.

With CAP, dealers save time because Luxul creates the network design for them, for free. At the same time, they can offer their customers the peace of mind of a guaranteed investment.

Dealers have found Luxul’s Customer Assurance Program to be a necessity in providing the Wi-Fi experience that their customers expect. Since the start of the program

in mid-2018, Luxul has provided its dealers with more than 6,600 certified wired and wireless network designs – nearly 1,100 of them in the first two months of 2020.

One of those dealers is Shorewood, IL-based Smart Wire. Owner David Barry says that including Luxul’s CAP design and supporting information in his company’s proposals has helped sell projects.

“We love this program,” Barry said. “Sharing information from the manufacturer adds a level of comfort for the client and backs up what we recommend. It also helps them understand how much is involved in designing and implementing a robust and reliable Wi-Fi infrastructure. We are two for two when we have used this program, and now we’ll be using it for a third time.”

Being able to promise 100-percent reliability is top of mind for Matt Montgomery, co-founder of Tym Smart Homes & Home Theaters in Utah.

“The foundation of every smart home or home entertainment system is a powerful and reliable network,” Montgomery said. “With Luxul’s Customer Assurance Program, that foundation is guaranteed to be rock solid.

Really, there’s nothing for our clients to worry about except deciding on a movie to watch.”

Thoughtful Integrations President Joe Whitaker echoed that sentiment in a comment that perfectly sums up the program: “Without a powerful and reliable network working behind the scenes, a smart home is just a home,” he said. “While it may not get all the glory, the network is absolutely critical in delivering the experience our clients have invested in. Over the last year, Luxul’s Customer Assurance Program has allowed them – and us – to rest easy knowing that their expectations are guaranteed to be met.” x

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DEPARTMENTS

CEDIA Says

The Content Concierge The Future of Entertainment: Content, Distribution, and the Consumer

By Ed Wenke The choices are overwhelming: streams, services, devices – the range of available content is staggering, and the ability of the average consumer to sort it all out is likely past its limits.

Geoff Meads (Presto AV) and John Penney (who’s been a strategy officer for some of the biggest names in content delivery) understand the challenges here, and they both see a terrific opportunity.

In a class – well, more of an open discussion – titled, “The Future of Entertainment: Content, Distribution, and the Consumer,” presented at ISE 2020, Meads and Penney ticked off the issues for attendees who hailed from around the globe: Michigan, Cyprus, Belgium, and so on.

Moderator Walt Zerbe summed up the issue John Penney (above, left, and answering questions from CEDIA’s Walt Zerbe, center, and Ed Wenke, right) understands the challenges of sorting out the overwhelming assortment of streams, services, and devices. simply: “I’m a Star Trek fan, and there’s a new Picard series. It’s only on CBS All Access. I don’t show like ISE, they’d swear we were all speaking A New RMR have that.” Does he want that service – really?

Klingon,” he added.

The upside for an integrator lies in their For how long? “Suddenly, my life was a bit more knowledge and expertise when it comes to complicated.” A minor inconvenience for a Penney is quick to note that there’s another what’s delivered where, and in what format. single show, to be sure; but one that’s repeated – wrinkle in all of this. There’s a sameness to the even multiplied – seemingly on a daily basis.

“If one thinks about rearranging their bulk of big Hollywood productions, and that’s workforce, for example, so that a single by design.

“We see remakes because they’re safe “Remember the days when you’d walk into a employee is an expert in this field, think bets. Every few years the studios can make a new client’s home and they’d have five, six, seven about what a resource that person becomes,” remotes sitting on the coffee table? One for Spider-Man movie with better special effects.”

Penney mused. every device, every cable box?” Meads said. “It The economics here are staggering: It costs feels like we’re back to that place in some way.”

Why So Much?

Compounding that issue, for example, is the fact that TV manufacturers – facing ever narrowing margins – want to build ecosystems that manage your entire experience. The consumer, meanwhile, faced with a dizzying array of options and hardware, has difficulty sorting it all out. The average user likely can’t even differentiate between 1080p and 4K content. “If someone owns a 4K TV,” Meads said, “they think they’re watching nothing but 4K content.”

“If you brought a client on to the floor of a

18

Residential Tech Today | March–May 2020

Disney $200 million to make, and another $200 million to market a film (and that’s part of the reason that merchandising is key).

“Movie production is a ‘barbell’ industry,” Penney said. “Productions are either extremely costly or very cheap. Lower-cost productions don’t need to go into a theater – they can be marketed directly to the consumer.” Couple that with the way people consume content (made possible by all of our dazzling gadgetry), and you’ve created a recipe for the demise of “broadcasting” as we know it. “The idea used to be ‘one speaking to many’,” Meads said, “and now we have many speaking to many.”

Penney’s bullish on the idea of the technology integrator as a “content concierge,” an idea that’s been echoed in CEDIA podcasts by Michael Heiss and Rich Green.

“There are people who are willing to pay top dollar to get the content to the family in as frictionless a manner as possible,” said Green in an interview. “Imagine an RMR proposition that provides a consultant – you – monthly or quarterly, curating the best experience, one that’s tailored to that home.”

And all this content (and its attendant devices) isn’t going away anytime soon. “The future will be the same,” Penney said, “only more so.” x

DEPARTMENTS

Smart Tech

IoT, Tech Me Away!

Three smart home innovations changing the way you eat, sleep, and clean

By Patricia Miller

The Smart Home Revolution has begun.

Approachable, affordable AI has infiltrated nearly every piece of consumer technology and frankly, it’s a wonderful time to be alive.

Whether it’s a sliding glass door that opens by itself, luggage that follows you through the airport, or a self-stirring martini, our daily lives are getting easier by the minute. Here are some of the coolest home-automation technologies entering the market this year that are sure to remind you what a fantastic era you’re living in.

Smart Kitchen Cooking Machine Waking up at five a.m. to make the biscuits is so last century. Why not let your robotic chef do that for you? With CookingPal by TecPal Ltd., you can do just that. “Julia,” as its creators lovingly dubbed it, handles all the monotony of cooking with just the push of a button. It chops, mixes, steams, kneads, emulsifies, weighs, and even cooks, all in one countertop machine. Using a smartphone app or Julia’s dedicated tablet, users can access more than 500 recipes (and counting) created specifically for CookingPal.

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Buy the groceries yourself or use the accompanying tablet or app to have them delivered to your door. Then just place the ingredients in the bowl and let the robo-chef work its magic. Integrated AI even figures out the nutritional value of your meal and offers constructive advice for healthier choices.

Instructional videos accompany each recipe and built-in Alexa or Google Voice add an extra element of ease to this already inviting machine.

Tineco Floor One Smart Floor Washer Okay, how smart could a glorified mop actually be? Thanks to the innovators at Tineco, this wet/dry floor washer has an Ivy League degree. The device analyzes the surface it’s cleaning to determine how much detergent to release, how much pressure to apply to the roller, and even how much suction is needed to leave floors spotless.

Floor One also solves the odor problem typically associated with carpet cleaners.

During its charging cycle, the self-clean function flushes all tubes and contact surfaces with fresh

water and detergent, ensuring dirty water and bacteria are never reapplied to your disinfected surfaces.

Sleep Number Climate 360 Smart Bed Beds have been getting the “smart” treatment for years now, but this one takes it a step further.

Integrated ducting releases trapped air from the mattress, venting stored body heat to keep sleepers at their ideal temperature. An evaporative cooling system can provide up to 12 degrees of cooling or, conversely, warm up to 100 degrees.

Smart sensors integrated into the mattress measure heart rate, movement, circadian rhythms, and breathing, then track those changes in the accompanying app. The app will then tell the user how to optimize their bed settings for a more restful night’s sleep. For those whose feet run cold, the mattress will gently warm them as you fall asleep while cooling the rest of the body. Since testing it out at CES, I’ve been dreaming about this innovative bed nearly every night. x

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DEPARTMENTS

Design Side

Warming a House with Shade

Comparing Thermal Management Properties of Window Shade Materials

By Jeremy Glowacki While I’m not an expert in the thermal management properties of motorized window shades, I do know what a drafty house feels like during a cold winter day in the Midwest. So, when I received a promotional kit from the public relations firm for Hunter Douglas promising to show me how window coverings can improve efficiency and comfort in my home, I was intrigued.

Having recently installed my first AC-powered window shade (courtesy of a company called PowerShades), I was already a big fan of what I often call the most undersold technology in the smart home.

I only have one window shade because almost all of my other windows are already covered by high-quality wooden blinds. There were only a few windows that were left “clean” by the prior owners of our home, and until recently they only sported drapes or sconces. The biggest of these windows are located behind our family room sofa where late afternoon sun tends to blast through the room in the summer months and a cold draft hits you in the back of the neck during cold winter nights. Although I haven’t yet spent a summer with my new PowerShades shade, pushing a button to close it at night since installing it in December has certainly made me think I feel warmer while I’ve watched my favorite Netflix shows during the winter. But, how much warmer?

Enter Hunter Douglas and a fun sales and marketing kit that promises to prove the thermal management benefits of their particular line of shades. In the kit, I received a Hunter Douglasbranded, three-and-half-inch long, rocket-ship shaped, “professional, non-contact, infrared thermometer” made by the manufacturer Westward. This device, according to my press materials, was sent to me so I could quickly assess the surface temperature of objects, such as an uncovered window and the sample shade material also included in the package.

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The first thing I did when I opened the thermometer was to walk around “shooting” its infrared beam at various surfaces throughout the house, with a special emphasis on the windows. I found that the surface temp of my windows on a cloudy, 37-degree day was a chilly 59 degrees Fahrenheit despite my thermostat being set at 70.

Placing a high-quality lined drapery material in front of that same window changed the temp to 67, which was the same temp as the interior reading behind my aforementioned PowerShades shade. Last, I wanted to see what the sample shade material sent by Hunter Douglas did for my results.

While Hunter Douglas offers a wide assortment of shade materials in a variety of colors, for this efficiency exercise, they sent a sample of their gray-colored Duette honeycomb-style shades, which were recently certified by the Attachments Energy Rating Council (AERC) for their energy performance.

Hunter Douglas is the first company to rate interior window covering products with AERC. AERC provides third-party certification of the energy-saving potential of a window attachment product that uses a process of material testing and window modeling to gauge the degree to which a window attachment – such as a shade, blind, or storm window – will improve the performance of that window in reducing heating and cooling usage. Products certified by the AERC have two ratings: one for Cool Climate, which indicates potential energy savings for home heating versus unprotected windows, and another for Warm Climate, which does the same for air conditioning.

Hunter Douglas promotes several benefits of widespread installation of energy-efficient shades. In older homes, window systems typically account for 25 percent of annual heating and cooling costs but can be responsible for as much as 40 percent. This means that many homeowners are spending more money

A thermal test kit from Hunter Douglas was compared with an uncovered window and an AC-powered window shade from PowerShades.

than necessary on heating and air conditioning.

DOE research has shown that window attachment products have the potential to reduce that energy usage significantly.

What was the result of my little experiment?

The temperature reading from behind the honeycomb-style shade sample was a cozy 73 degrees. My assumption is that the same temperature would hold on a hot sunny day as well, where the “unshaded” surface temp might hit the high 90s in direct sunlight.

While much has been made recently about the importance of daylight exposure for properly maintaining circadian rhythms and mental health, it’s also nice to know that there are materials like those provided by top window shades manufacturers that can help keep out the cold or heat when you’d rather not replace your windows, as well as provide privacy and energy savings. One day I want a house with motorized, automated, energy efficient window shades on every window. For now, I’ll have to dream (and throw on a sweater in the winter.) x

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innovator spotlight

Going Above and Beyond Thoughtful Integrations’ Joe Whitaker Strives to Exceed Client Expectations

By Jeremy Glowacki St. Louis, MO and Dallas, TX based members of Thoughtful Integrations are made up of some of the brightest minds in technology and business. Led by partners Joe Whitaker and Steve Sigel, the combination of technological knowledge, organization, process, management, and business operations allows the company to provide solutions that encompass the end users’ needs in a budget threshold and time-managed fashion, whether for commercial building automation or a smart home system.

Whitaker has almost two decades of experience in custom systems integration and design and is one of the most proactive members of the Control4 community. Among the first to be certified by Control4 in Texas, Whitaker continues to design and implement amazing solutions while contributing to the consumer knowledge base. He also has helped in product development, creation, and preproduction testing with top manufacturers like Sony, Platinum Tools, Sanus, Nyne, Stealth Acoustics, Simply Reliable, and Vanco. Not only has he volunteered for many technology speaking panels and held classes and seminars, Whitaker is also a member of the CEDIA Board of Directors.

Here’s what else we learned from our conversation with Whitaker.

Residential Tech Today: What are the most important lessons you’ve learned while running your integration business?

Joe Whitaker: One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that clients don’t know what they don’t know. Our industry as a whole has had a hard time publicly relating what all the options are and how they play out in real life. Add to that what “mass market” has told them is “smart home.” This lesson has taught me that my first job is to educate the client on all the options

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that are viable for them. Totally getting in the head and personal bubble of the client is extremely valuable. What I mean by this is really getting into who they are. How do they live their personal lives – the life they don’t often share with outsiders? If you can dig down to the soul of a client, you find values they have that you can satisfy with technology. The next big “gotcha!” moment for me in lessons was partnerships outside our little “tech bubble.”

While partnering with builders and all is great, look farther and deeper. What if both the integrator and designer worked together to offer an entire environment that had style and tech?

I’ve preached this forever, and I think both industries are starting to get it.

ticket to a $500,000 price. Of course, we provide some amazing technology for luxury homes, but we have also found that mass-market “smart home junior” projects can be successful. We have always been a company that can fit almost any budget, as long as the products and services are vetted properly. There are definitely products and brands that we will not sell or support, but even to those with a small budget we have isolated devices that do work well and can grow with bigger systems as a client’s smart home journey continues. EcoBee thermostats are a perfect example. Sure, they are available at the Home Depot, but they are also one of our favorites to use in our large, fully-integrated homes.

RT Today: What range of budgets does your company typically work with on your projects?

RT Today: Explain how you manage locations in separate cities and why you have that structure.

JW: I think we are unique in this, but I wish we weren’t. We range from the $5,000 full-price

JW: This has not been the easiest thing initially. It all comes down to the culture of the

dealer/manufacturer relationship back in the SpeakerCraft days. Then Origin Acoustics came in and started to change everything. I had a concept for an “Architectural Voice Control” product that Origin could make and contacted Jeremy about it. We met in Riverside, CA, and before I left we had literally invented a category, and the Valet amplifier was born. These random stories litter my life, but one thing has remained consistent. If a solution doesn’t exist, build it. If it’s repeatable and works, then contact people to build it. Sometimes manufacturers won’t see the most obvious solution staring them right in the face. I’m sure all of those in the trenches of what we do have brilliant ideas all the time. The key is to act on them.

Thoughtful Integrations’ Joe Whitaker (pictured on facing page) has almost two decades of experience in custom systems integration and design and is one of the most proactive members of the Control4 community.

people involved. The co-owner of the company (Steve Sigel who also runs the Dallas location) wanted to hire a new employee. There was an upcoming project for a Landry’s property going on in Dallas; it was one of those after-business operations overnight installs. So, Michael Mothersell was put on to come out to install as a probationary project (read: tryouts). I went down to Dallas, and we ran through the install as a full team effort. Not only did Michael mesh and work like a champ, he is now probably the number one rock star in the company. Not only because he is really good at what he does, but because he matches our internal culture. If we can’t take everyone in the company and stick them on a fishing boat together all day, then something has got to change. I think one of the biggest pieces of the success puzzle is that our co-owner Steve and I totally trust each other and think of each other like family. And, who knows? Maybe in the near future we may see another “family member” and location.

RT Today: Explain a little bit about how your product development partnerships with various manufacturers have come about and what you learned from those experiences.

JW: My entire story of working with manufacturers goes back to 2006/2007. I had my own company in this industry back then that was doing great, then the housing market tanked. I had previously built a lot of custom tools and products, but they were all one-offs

RT Today: What part of this business makes you happiest?

for projects we were doing. Market crashes, budgets go in the dump, and I had to fill that gap or close shop like so many did. So, my first dive into all this, at least the way I remember, was with Bryan Garner and Kary Wawrzyniak at TruAudio. I had what most thought was a crazy design for speakers. Bryan and Kary gave me my first ever audience, and from that the confidence to move forward. Today, I get to say that over a decade later, TruAudio and I introduced a new product to their dealer council at CEDIA Expo this last year and the response was amazing.

After that, one big break happened. In about 2010 or 11, I was contacted by what I still think is one of the biggest dream teams of all time: Amy Escobio, Jayson Savage, Jon Lin, Ray Hartgen, and Neal Manowitz. I was blessed to get a call to “semi” consult with Sony on the surround receiver with Control4 built in, and the first-ever 4K Sony projector. This wasn’t just an opportunity to get to work on cool gear; it was an opportunity to work with people I genuinely consider friends. After that, I developed products with Vanco that would have never seen the light of day if it weren’t for their amazing team. Thank you, Lindsey Corbin, for making them all look amazing! This relationship still lives on to this day with one of my favorites that actually has a “shared” patent with Mark Corbin and Brandon White of Vanco. Then, there’s Valet from Origin Acoustics. Jeremy Burkhardt and I have known each other for a long time. But in the past, it had always been a

JW: Seeing the look on a client’s face when we blow their minds still, to this day, is my absolute favorite thing about this business. One of the other things that really gets me going is going above and beyond to create a solution that either doesn’t exist or you were told cannot be done. This goes for day-to-day activities at Thoughtful Integrations or when I am developing a product or tech. I love to be told it can’t be done, and then do it!

RT Today: What is the most frustrating?

JW: I’ve got two for you. The first is the refining of our “elevator pitch.” For most of this, it is an impossible task to undertake. We do so much, and our landscape is constantly changing.

I remember a good friend of mine, when asked what he did, would just say, “I hang speakers.”

It’s really difficult and frustrating. CEDIA is starting to make this easier by having a real title code and definition within governmental workforce, but it’s still a hard thing to get through. The other thing is in business and tech.

That’s the big consumer tech company’s method of dealing with us. Our customers know these brands to the point of demanding them. But with fast-changing proprietary or open APIs, user interface control, and sometimes making huge business moves that affect the integration industry, we are often left holding the bag of disappointment and on occasion large monetary losses. It’s hard to put your foot down and say

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innovator spotlight

Going Above and Beyond

no to a client demanding a tech or product even when you are confident that it will not meet the client’s expectations when used in an integrated environment.

RT Today: When you’re deciding whether to start offering a new product or technology in your projects, what are some of the most important criteria you consider?

JW: The biggest one is interoperability. If it can’t work in a cohesive and structured way with our other tried-and-true technologies, it immediately gets kicked to the curb. All the time I have manufacturers, distributors, and reps wanting me to check out some new tech or gear.

My first response is, “does it work with XYZ?” If the answer is “no,” then I abruptly end the conversation. The other is the obvious one we all look at. Is there any money in it? But when I say that I look a little deeper. We like to look at it as an equation: margin, shipping, lead time, labor charges versus cost of employee install.

Does this equate to a profitable product?

RT Today: Currently, what are your favorite products or technologies?

JW: Voice is still a big influencer right now.

Since Origin Acoustics Valet happened, even more manufacturers are bringing in devices that help us use voice in our world of custom integration. Amazon’s platform continues to grow and improve on the software and hardware side. The guys over at Josh.ai continue to grow and innovate specifically for our space. Their “social media model” of feature request/posted demo/feedback method is insanely brilliant.

They are really the first to do this. Google and Apple are still there, but their influence is primarily in the “fan boy” space. Voice is still a big influencer of ours and would be regardless of the fact of helping usher it in our market. Video tech and the way it is distributed is on the top of my list right now. OLED, crazy new short throw projectors, what Screen Innovations is doing with ALR, motorization, and control right now is amazing stuff. Video over IP is still one of my favs since the tech first hit the market. But... here’s the shocker, I LOVE ROKU! I know it sounds funny, but the brand and tech has almost officially killed the need for centralized video distribution. They are small and can fit right

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Thoughtful Integrations owner Joe Whitaker has played active development roles in such products as the Origin Acoustics Valet Amplifier – a multi-zone audio system designed to work with Amazon Echo Dots, and as well as Vanco’s HDWIRKIT HDMI wireless extender kit.

behind a display, run all the most used streaming apps, now run most major television provider services, have full two-way IP integration on most control system platforms, and support 4K 60 HDR. Oh, and they run PLEX. If you play your cards right, there’s a way to make money with them, as well. We are also toying around with movie/content servers like Kaleidescape and Modulus. It’s kinda crazy to me that movie servers are coming back, but they are!

RT Today: Looking ahead, what technology trend do you expect to have the most influence on the work that you do?

JW: AI is far off, but I do think that in the very near future – especially due to voice – machine learning is going to be a huge influence. I believe that we are at a time where simple learning, like what Nest has done, can be expanded and applied to the whole home and beyond. Facial and biometric is getting so good and is affordable. Now that will probably be tied to some minor machine learning. I see our first version of this in the near future and see it as a who, where, when, and demeanor (noted by video recognition and or physiological blood pressure, temp, breathing, posture, etc.) calculation that will have outputs based on learning habits. The big question is going to be on the business impact. What is it going to do to installation teams? The future seems headed toward “self-programming.” I think the other big

trend is going to be less about what we install, program, and service and be more about how we do business. Consolidated software platforms are going to play into a big part of this.

I am also looking at AR, VR, and RR. I think we are at the tech teetering point where we will quickly figure out if there’s a business model behind this or if it’s just another trend gimmick.

As far as the tech, of course, I’m excited about it, but I am keeping a close eye on whether or not there’s a business model behind it. The last influencer I am keeping a close eye and active hand in is the wellness/living in place trend.

While the tech is coming out and getting better, again, there’s a business model issue. Sure, it can be profitable, but to whom and how? What doctor, scientist, or medical organization is going to prove the impact inside the home to show a client personal ROI in health? Where are the benchmarks and expected health impacts per tech or device? And will someone solve the liability and legalities of this so we can build a business plan behind this? I think this is going to be a big tech influencer for us all, if someone steps up and qualifies those questions I’m asking. For the next five years, I expect these trends to have a larger business impact than a technological impact when it comes to our industry. These trends will be more about us being business professionals and less about being AV nerds. x

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TECH TRENDS

It’s Always My Fault…

Or Is It? Who to Blame When ‘Streaming-centric’ Media, Hardware, Software are No Longer Compatible

By Michael Heiss

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In the world of consumer electronics and residential technology it seems that it has always been you, your brand, or your company’s fault when something goes wrong or doesn’t work, even if that is not the case. It may feel like a parent or a teacher asking a child, “Why did you do that?” when the response is “It wasn’t me,” and for once it really wasn’t. Sometimes that takes a lot of convincing.

Whose Fault is It? Actually, in most cases it isn’t “your” fault.

You’re just the last one on the chain and because of that you end up having to take the brunt of the complaints, whether it is from your family or, if this is your livelihood, your clients. The “fault,” if you will, may sit in a number of places.

Let’s look at some recent examples so that you have a better understanding of what is going on.

In today’s increasingly “streaming-centric” media, hardware and software environment, devices that you installed, either as a technology provider or as a DIY consumer may work one day, and then not the next. Services that were once compatible, all of a sudden didn’t work anymore or were gone entirely

Disappearing Channels Think about a time when channels from a cable, satellite, or streaming service suddenly disappear. To make matters more confusing, sometimes the channel will disappear from one content source, but not all. In many cases, this is due to “retransmission consent,” which is the legalistic term that describes the agreements

Residential Tech Today | March–May 2020

that program or content owners have with distributors at the end of the delivery change. In virtually all cases, the cable or satellite provider, the streaming service provider such as YouTube TV or the streaming device manufacturer/ content aggregator such as Roku does not own the content rights; a broadcaster, studio, sports team, or program creator is the owner.

Think of this as the content business’s equivalent to paying rent to the landlord. If you want to build a building on someone else’s land or open a store in a shopping mall, then you must pay rent. It’s the same here, and sometimes “the lease runs out.” When that happens, the channel must be pulled until a new agreement has been reached. With cable and satellite content suppliers, you usually see crawls

TECH TRENDS

warning that a station or channel is being pulled, but not always with streaming services.

Take, for example, when Fox Sports threatened to pull their feed from Roku two days before the Super Bowl. Fortunately they reached an agreement to settle whatever the dispute was just in time for the big game. More recently, as this is being written, YouTube TV is in negotiations with Sinclair Broadcasting around the streaming of many of the (former) Fox Regional Sports Networks (RSNs) and the YES channel for the New York Yankees. At press time there is a temporary extension, but as the end of the NCAA basketball season and the start of the baseball season approaches, anything is possible. After all, each side has leverage: one with content and the other with viewers that represent the eyeballs that advertisers covet.

Convincing Others It’s Not Your Fault If you’re a tech professional, be sure to use the business and entertainment press to keep watch on negotiations between content owners and distributors. If things do go to a blackout, as they occasionally do, be ready to explain what is going on and offer any available off-air and streaming alternatives. If you are an integrator, were you ready to explain a potential Super Bowl blackout to your customers? If you are a sports fan and planned a big party that Sunday afternoon, did you know what your “Plan B” would have been?

When Sony closed their PlayStation Vue service at the end of January, they did let subscribers know right on the app. It’s not your fault, but it is up to you to help the viewers deal with the new options.

Retransmission-based channel deletions or threatened outages are sometimes big enough news that people are at least partially aware of what is going on, but sometimes a channel just disappears from streaming devices, with or without advanced warning. Again, you need to make sure that all involved know that it is not “your fault.”

A second example was the closure of Sony’s PlayStation Vue service on January 31. The backstory is that Sony determined that a broadbased streaming service wasn’t a viable business for them despite the fact that the service was reported to have more than 500,000 subscribers.

If a viewer didn’t pay attention to any of the news about this and then couldn’t get the service on February 1, whose fault was it? If you explained all of this in advance, you wouldn’t have been the goat, but rather the dove of peace.

The last version of the Vue app showed four

When the AirTV app was moved as the functionality was blended into the Sling app, the result was greatly improved integration of streaming and OTA content. It’s up to you to demystify and help when things like this happen.

possible alternatives. Did you make those affected aware of them and setup a replacement?

That’s an easy way to turn a lemon into lemonade.

services. I’ve been an AirTV (provided by

One more recent example: Sling’s AirTV products are a great solution to integrate off-air TV reception for cord cutters with streaming

main Sling app, was gone from Roku! Did that

Sling) via the standalone AirTV app user as an OTA solution and it more than does the trick.

However, one day the AirTV app, NOT the mean that the unit was dead or obsolete? Is it your fault?

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TECH TRENDS

It’s Always My Fault… Or Is It?

No, Not at All. What the folks at Sling did was to combine the off-air tuner with the streaming services of the main service. That is a much better solution as it shows all available content, be it OTA or streaming, in one unified menu system. Great… if you know what has happened, know how to deal with it, and take care of business. That way, it won’t be “your fault.”

The answer here is that even though the underlying service or app may no longer be available, the “tile” for it may remain on the main screen for the device. To some that may be annoying, to others, confusing. The solution, of course, is simple. All of the major external streaming products let the user “remove” or “delete” an app or channel. It is simple enough, if you know how to do it.

Photo: IStockphoto.com/jfmdesign

New Services, Older Hardware In some cases, the reason for a service’s disappearance is more subtle. One of the great things about external streaming devices is that they work with services to enable regular updates that expand or enhance content or user interface features. Sometimes, however, the processor and other requirements of a service update require more power than an older device might have.

When that happens, the service just won’t work.

A good example was a recent update of Netflix that simply wouldn’t work with some older Roku models. On most models, no problem. On others that are more than a few years old, not so much. To their credit, Roku did send an email to affected owners, but sometimes people don’t read them.

More confusing to the non-technical crowd was when there is more than one Roku in a household it may seem odd to a user when any Roku TV and many external streamers worked perfectly with the new Netflix interface. All it would have taken to fix this was to replace the old device with a new one at a very low cost. If you did not take care of business, in this case, then it actually might have been your fault.

This may all sound illogical to technophobes, but to keep everyone happy it is your responsibility to do the research so that you know what has happened and have the answer as to how to solve it one way or another. It really isn’t that hard, and your being able to resolve something that baffles everyone else further proves your value as a knowledgeable residential tech expert. x

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Photo: IStockphoto.com/LPETTET

Photo: Courtesy of Sling

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INDUSTRY RELATIONS

R

The Test of Time

ecently, I ran across an older interview with Remodeling Magazine after I presented at their Big 50 event. It was my first “big” speaking gig, and they flew me out to Washington DC to present on home technology and automation to a group of about 200 remodelers. The recession was behind us, and home automation was being looked at as a new offering to bring clients in the doors. After the presentation, Lauren Hunter, then products editor of Hanley Wood, interviewed me, and we discussed connected products and solutions that could stand the test of time.

Fast-forward to January at this year’s Kitchen & Bath Industry Show/International Builder Show.

Many of the same products and solutions I spoke about in 2014 were being shown and discussed.

Educational sessions and panel presentations were all about the “smart,” “connected” home.

Technology was on display, both to bring people into the booth space as well as embedded into a countless number of products that we all use.

Attendees were learning about these products as if magic made it happen!

Concurrently, with all of the sessions and learning opportunities, attendees were introduced to home technology professionals, integrators, and the trade

association CEDIA. Many were just discovering such resources existed.

In some ways, I am still surprised by the awe of someone just learning about our industry. Having seen a lot of amazing products and technologies throughout my 15 years in this industry, I know I’ve become desensitized to new products unless they are very good, innovative, or greatly enhance an existing product. What is commonplace to us, however, is extraordinary to others. Seeing this excitement brings it all home.

Like a Fine Wine, the Best Connected Home Products Keep Getting Better with Age

It ignites the passion to deliver an exceptional solution to someone who has never experienced it before, whether they be end user, builder, or specifier. It fuels my curiosity to ask more questions, consider new designs, and create amazing experiences for people. It encourages me to forever evaluate what we offer so as to not become complacent with our designs over time.

It pushes me to do more outreach because every time I do, I see “ah-ha” moments and sparks of excitement in my audience as they learn something new.

Providing professional services, such as design, contracting, graphic art or home technology, can be monotonous if you look purely at the task at hand. However, if you search for what fuels you to stay passionate and curious, you will get better with age. x

By Jamie Briesemeister

In 2014, Hanley Wood products editor Lauren Hunter interviews Jamie Briesemeister about connected products and solutions.

Photo: iStockphoto.com/koya79

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ISSUE FOCUS

As we shelter in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, those with private cinemas have been able to realize benefits that only became evident in a time like this. Refuge: The tranquil environment offered in these rooms means a lot during stressful times. Restoration: The ability to time-out in an environment of beauty and serenity is beneficial to our emotional and physical well-being.

Connection: Video conferencing from one’s private cinema is the next best thing to being there. It is nice to offer a silver lining in tumultuous times.

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ISSUE FOCUS

Financial Times publishes the e-zine “How to Spend It,” which is heady reading for those who have “it” to spend and a good place to be seen for those who create items worthy of consideration. The publication features everything from articles on A-list homes, their architects, and designers; to cars, boats, and planes; to watches, wine, fashion, and more. It’s a true benchmark of luxury where those who appreciate the finer things in life can learn more about favorite pursuits.

Seeking a Cinema

The Time is Right to Commission Private Cinemas for ‘Curators’ of the Motion Picture Artform

Sommelier

By Sam Cavitt

One such pursuit is the acquisition and enjoyment of art, which is quite prevalent. Paintings, sculpture, and works of many genres make up an art connoisseur’s private collection. Those who do curate collections of admired works often augment their passion with home makeovers – including private galleries – to better share and enjoy them. One artform, however, is notable for its absence: moviemaking.

“Moviemaking is the most complete, truly contemporary art form. It brings narrative, acting, scenery, lighting, sound, and music together into the most marvelous machine for emotion.”

– Renzo Piano, Architect, Academy Museum of Motion Pictures But how does one curate a private collection of this artform? Whereas sculpture, even substantial works, can be ensconced in a purpose-built gallery or display, private or otherwise, and other, more conventional artforms can easily and favorably be exhibited. Film, with its singular depth of brilliance and significance has as unique a set of challenges. Film’s artistic value is in its effect on the individual – those moments when tears, laughter, memories, or thrill arrive without warning. Billions are invested in other artforms that never evoke such quintessence and memorable reaction.

But how can this unique genre be collected?

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March–May 2020 | Residential Tech Today

ISSUE FOCUS

Seeking a Cinema Sommelier

The new Academy Museum of Motion Pictures sends a very important message about what we do, maybe opening the eyes of professional integrators and their clients to a bigger picture.

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ISSUE FOCUS

It is an important question because film is likely to change dramatically and not necessarily for the better. It already has.

These days, economics and technology have combined to compromise film in varying ways.

A new definition for the term “theatricality” (referring to whether or not a film is likely to fill seats) is a result of theater economics. As a result, many of the most artistic works do not enjoy a long theatrical run. Why? Because the audience will wait to see these less “theatrical” films in their living rooms, or worse, on their phones! This is where technology, which in many ways has created even greater potential for the artform, has created an everyday container that serves to diminish the experience for much of the population. Anyone who has stood in the presence of a painting masterpiece, such as a Raphael, da Vinci, or Monet, knows that an image on a flat, portable screen cannot communicate the true cinematic experience.

This also has potential to affect the creators of the art. If Lawrence of Arabia were being produced today, the iconic desert scene would not exist. It would not have worked on living room televisions and portable phones. The imagery was too grand to be realized on such devices. When considering all the tools available to modern filmmakers, cinema graphic, sonic, immersion, special effects, one realizes that to properly experience this artform requires a powerful delivery system and specialized environment. How will the artists respond to the knowledge that their work will only be seen on compromised delivery systems? Will they compromise accordingly? What creative potential, even today, is being lost? What other form of art suffers such degradation?

It is not all bad news. The same era of technological development that produces ubiquitous flat panel displays and a population mesmerized by hand-held screens has yielded some very powerful tools for the artists of the film industry. Film directors speak of the “big window” that is the cinematic screen. Digital video technology provides cinematographers the ability to produce big windows to film’s fantasy world that are astonishingly good.

Immersive sound formats create soundscapes so convincing that what was once the filmmaker’s goal of evoking a willing suspension of disbelief,

For film, the private gallery is the private cinema. It is possible now to commission a private cinema that will preserve the artform similarly to the private art facilities mentioned above. The goal is building a facility that will present the art as it was intended, rather than how it is commonly experienced today, in tawdry “cardboard-box” multiplexes, home renditions of the same, or worse, personal devices. These rooms are performance-engineered and artfully designed to embody the substance of theaters of note, in fact, often turning out as superior to most commercial cinemas.

has become a phenomenon where audiences are drawn into the experience inexorably.

Unfortunately, the state of the audience remains compromised. Even those blockbusters that pass the theatricality test are displayed in commercial cinemas that leave much to be desired. Those who choose to watch movies on handheld devices or typically compromised home AV systems do not realize what they are missing. The film lover may never experience the work of the artist as it was intended to be experienced. If this trend persists, what will the effect be on the art?

Cinema is primed for connoisseurship. A vast reserve of work exists, and the state of the art holds promise for even greater expression. And, like fine art, there is concern for the preservation of the artform. What is missing is the community.

Fine art enjoys a community of enthusiasts who interact and raise awareness and excitement. This community includes professional art consultants, of course, but more common are the art enthusiasts themselves. For cinema, the knowledge of how good it can be, the connoisseurship if you will, has remained in the realm of the professionals. If the artform is to thrive and a community of cinema connoisseurs are to emerge, a catalyst is needed.

Could that catalyst be analogous to the sommelier for fine wine? A cinema sommelier?

Cinema sommeliers will be enthusiasts in their own right – “cinema connoisseurs” in the truest sense. I’m talking about a community of professionals and devotees who, like art consultants, gallery designers, and art lovers in the fine art world, have facilitated the emergence of private galleries and helped curate private collections in their goal to preserve their art. Professionals will guide a growing community of cinema connoisseurs, not from a profit incentive but from pure passion. The business side of this will take care of itself as it has in the case of fine art consultants mentioned above. Word will get out.

A very real alternative exists, and there is precedence. In the fine art world, private collections are a significant trend. In fact, record breaking acquisitions have made quite a stir.

What is relevant to our conversation, however, is the underlying motivation of many private art collectors: namely, their love for and desire to preserve the art. To that end, fine art lovers not only acquire art but invest in private facilities to optimally shelter, display, and enjoy their collections. This is not an anomaly.

See www.glenstone.org/about/mission or visit www.artnews.com/art-collectors/top-200profiles/ and it will be clear that many are actively collecting art and building galleries in their homes. Art Connoisseurship is alive and well!

The ability to experience “the most complete, truly contemporary art form” in one’s home with those we love, as it was intended to be experienced, while playing a part in the preservation of that art, is a compelling, singular opportunity. x

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March–May 2020 | Residential Tech Today

TECH ADVISOR

Should I Install a Control System?

The Answer to the Question is the Ever-Annoying, ‘It Depends’

By Henry Clifford It’s 2020, and we’ve come a long way since the advent of smart home control systems so expensive that only the very wealthy could afford them. We live in a world chock full of choices (maybe too many!). Consumers are often confused by the array of shiny objects available to make their lives easier, leading some of them to seek out the services of home technology professionals like my company, Livewire. We cater to these harried consumers by collaborating with them to pick the best solution. Our presentations are oriented around showing choices using a “Door #1, Door #2” analogy. By stepping back and assuming the role of trusted advisor, we avoid being labeled as trying to “sell” something.

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I’ve always found that the best professionals seem to answer questions with another question. Ever try getting your lawyer to actually tell you what to do? All of the good ones give options, then step back and let you decide.

Home technology is no different. The second we move into advice-giving mode is the moment we lose control of the sale. By staying on the same side of the table with the client, shoulder to shoulder, we stay involved in the process because we’re building the most important element in any relationship – trust.

Here are the options we present whenever trying to help a client decide whether or not a control system makes sense for them.

Door #1 – One App to Rule Them All We explain to the client that just like a universal remote, home technology can be controlled through a single user experience.

Manufacturers like Crestron, Savant, Control4, Elan, and others offer solutions able to control audio, video, security, lighting control, video surveillance, HVAC, and more through a single app. These companies generally manufacture not only the control system software but many of the subsystem components as well. These subsystems may or may not be best in class and sometimes are a function of the control system company needing to diversify revenue streams.

COMMON APPLICATIONS: • Large homes or estates

TECH ADVISOR

• Allows best-in-show subsystems to live in the home and communicate with each other

Door #2 – Separate Apps Picking the best lighting control system, best multiroom audio system, etc. decouples the buyer from feeling like they’re beholden to any single manufacturer.

CONS: • Individual third-party components may occasionally experience connectivity issues with parent control systems • Potential for finger pointing when issues arise (particularly with customer-provided gear)

COMMON APPLICATIONS: • Clients who don’t mind hopping around between apps • Any size home depending on client preference

Door #4 – Siloed Control Sometimes universal remotes in each room are all that’s needed. When we review this option with the client, it allows them to let their guard down. We try to read body language as best we can, and during this part of the conversation we’ll usually see crossed arms unfolded with folks leaning forward and engaging more as they start to understand we’re really serious about partnering with them.

PROS: • Offers up maximum choice to client • Can be much less expensive than a traditional control system approach • No single point of failure • Subsystems stand on their own and aren’t impacted by failure of another

Photo: iStockphoto.com/metamorworks

• Clients who are passionate about technology and willing to tolerate periodic tech SNAFUs PROS: • Can be simple • Subsystems like HVAC, security, and lighting can talk to each other • Remote management and support is simpler with a single-vendor approach • One wringable neck when the system needs support CONS: • Expensive • Systems often have a single point of failure with no redundancy or failover capability • May be missing deeper functionality, which might annoy more technical users • Easy to complicate with poor system design and programming

CONS: • Switching between apps can be confusing for clients • Systems don’t talk to each other • Updating and servicing can be confusing to track and monitor

Door #5 – No Control at All We often call this the “two cans and a string” approach. We go out of our way to explain that control should only come into play if it’s going to help remove friction. We talk about this approach to really hit home the message that the client is in the driver’s seat, not us. It’s been well documented that consumers contemplating any kind of home improvement work will seek to understand all their options, including those they have no intention of choosing. Even if it means they don’t hire us to work with them, we want them informed and comfortable. As a result, we find that Door #5 serves to either qualify them into one of the other approaches or self-select out of our process. We find it’s a great way to avoid wasting their time and ours.

Door #3 – Hybrid Approach We’ll make tweaks to our control system offering by substituting in best-in-class subsystems while preserving the control layer (such as Control4 working with a Lutron lighting control system). This can enable a good blend of Doors 1 and 2. Just because a control system company makes everything, it doesn’t always mean putting all our eggs in one basket is a good idea from a reliability or functionality perspective.

COMMON APPLICATIONS: • Clients who don’t care about how the system works; they just want it to work.

• Door #1 customers who had a bad experience in another home.

For us, the answer to the question “Should I Install A Control System?” is the ever-annoying “It depends.” We’ll keep refining our customer interactions as technology evolves, always keeping simplicity and trust-building at the forefront. x

PROS: • Offers a compromise between the first two system approaches (Doors 1 and 2).

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March–May 2020 | Residential Tech Today

FEATURED

Cover Story

Old House,

New Perspective

This Old House Host Kevin O’Connor Discusses His Unique DIY Journey and the Legacy of the Iconic PBS Program

By Anthony Elio If you told Kevin O’Connor he would become the third host of the PBS program This Old House at the beginning of the millennium, there’s no way he would have believed you.

Before ever appearing on camera, O’Connor was a senior vice president in the Commercial Real Estate Group for Bank of America. While not the typical pre-television gig, it was his interest in DIY projects that would lead to a very unexpected opportunity. A simple advice inquiry to the spinoff project Ask This Old House led to not only a taped segment on the show, but an eventual call from the production staff that resulted in O’Connor’s role as host of the program.

Ever since its launch in 1979, PBS’ This Old House has stood out for its ever-evolving focus on home renovation. While there have been many changes along the way, such as the transition from original host Bob Vila to Steve Thomas to Kevin O’Connor, the themes of reinvention and creativity have persisted. The program has even made strides to adapt to modern media, launching a YouTube channel that currently boasts more than a million subscribers.

With This Old House celebrating 40 years of

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Residential Tech Today | March–May 2020

reshaping abodes in 2019 and each host uniting for a 40th anniversary special, we were honored to discuss the current state of the residential world with the show’s current star. O’Connor opens up about his very first episode and common DIY mistakes in this exclusive interview.

Residential Tech Today: Your journey to becoming the host of This Old House is so fascinating. Can you tell me how that felt?

Kevin O’Connor: Surreal is a pretty good word. Surprising and unbelievable are other good words. I never had any interest in television, let alone any sort of public role, performance, or whatever. I tell this story a lot, but I joke that I was never in the high school play. I wasn’t even in a family video prior to them asking me to be on the TV show. I didn’t aspire to it, but I was a huge fan and had great affinity for This Old House and those guys, having grown up watching it, being fascinated by that process that they talked about. So, when they asked, I said yes. And in hindsight, I think they’re probably the only people who could have asked me to be on TV that I would have said yes to. Otherwise, it would’ve seemed so insanely foreign that I would’ve been like, “I

don’t know what you mean, and the answer is no. Why would I do that?”

RT Today: Do you remember your very first episode?

KOC: Not with total clarity, but I do have recollections of it, yes. I remember being asked to do something that I’d never done before. I remember being asked to say something and basically commit it to memory and think about where I was when I didn’t know where the camera was. I remember the guys who I did it with. Yeah, it’s a hard thing to forget.

RT Today: Do you remember when you were on Ask This Old House, before you were even a host? I believe it was a wallpaper related project?

KOC: Yep, I remember that clear as day.

RT Today: Could you have possibly thought back then that now you’d be hosting the show for 16-plus years?

KOC: No. And in fact, there are so many things about that happening that are unbelievable to me, even to this day. I tell the story about my wife and I, when we bought our first house. It was a fixer upper. It’s exactly what we were looking for. We wanted that sweat

FEATURED

Cover Story

Photo: Anthony Tieuli/Courtesy of This Old House

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March–May 2020 | Residential Tech Today

FEATURED

Cover Story: Old House, New Perspective

In 40 years of This Old House, home remodeling has come a long way. There are more DIY solutions available than ever before and smart home technology is an increasingly popular topic of discussion for host Kevin O’Connor. The end result, however, is the same: a customized home and a sense of “look what I did” satisfaction.

Photos: iAnthony Tieuli//Courtesy This Old House

equity. We wanted to do the work ourselves, make it our own. And the only reason that I even imagined I could do it was because I watched This Old House growing up and was inspired by that. And then we wrote a letter to the [program’s official magazine] looking for some help because Ask This Old House wasn’t on the air yet, so you couldn’t write them. And that letter was picked up by a TV producer who was trying to make the first season of Ask This Old House, and one thing led to the next and that was it.

We wrote a letter to the magazine to get some help on fixing a historical detail, that doesn’t even make sense. I’m not the kind of guy that writes letters to magazines looking for information. What were we thinking? Why did we write a letter to the magazine? That’s ridiculous. I’m not that guy. I don’t write letters

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Residential Tech Today | March–May 2020

to the editor. I don’t pen notes to my mom.

What the heck caused me to write a letter to the magazine to say, “Hey, magazine people. Any chance you’ve got some advice for me and my wife Kathleen?” Even that blows my mind. I don’t have any idea what caused us to do that.

RT Today: When you first started, what was the “smart home tech” at the time? It’s so different now, but what was the precursor?

KOC: The easy one was the thermostat, which is what you would expect, right? It’s a new way to put the schedule into your programmable thermostats – do it the smart way. That was the easy one, but it was so sort of singular, and it required you to kind of embrace “Joe’s WiFi Thermostat,” where you’re just like, “Who am I signing up with here?” And, I really got to be dedicated to this whole proposition. Whereas,

nowadays, the fact that we can talk to it or that the interface is easy, that is part of the larger suite of equipment and options, that’s what’s really changed. Back then, it was that one singular adoption of, say, the thermostat, and now they’re so much easier. There are so many more choices, colors, sizes, interfaces, and usefulness. All of that stuff has gotten better.

RT Today: Have people been asking quite a bit more for smart tech to be integrated into their homes now?

KOC: Definitely more people have asked.

There’s no doubt about it. I’ve adopted it in my own personal house, which we can talk about.

But our homeowners on the show have definitely asked for it, and it starts in a couple of different places. They now understand, in many cases, that the WiFi is the backbone to it.

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Cover Story: Old House, New Perspective They’re used to asking for very robust WiFi because they want to be able to watch their streaming videos, but now they get that it gives them power to control and monitor their home systems. I do find that the entry point for a lot of homeowners is through the door of comfort.

They want to be able to control the things that provide them comfort and convenience.

They want it to be able to control temperature.

They want to be able to control cooling. We want to have the convenience of being able to do it from wherever, from whenever, because I’ve forgotten, or I want it to be automated with the ability to override it from my phone and from the office when I’m away. That’s sort of the entry point. And, now, it’s gone further recently because it’s something that you can apply to lighting systems and security systems and smarter systems that will monitor and provide feedback information but also provide protection, whether it’s property protection, physical protection, protection from damage, flooding, freezing pipes… that type of stuff.

RT Today: This Old House has a huge online presence, with almost 1.5 million subscribers on YouTube. Has this online transition affected the way the show is run?

KOC: Without a doubt. It has caused us to think about every time we make a piece of content that works for television, will it also work for digital? And we ask that question because now the digital presence is so big. And in addition to that, it also gives us license to start

creating content direct to digital, which you wouldn’t do if you were only speaking to 30,000 people. It’s an expensive proposition to bring those smarts and that production prowess to create something that’s only going to be seen by 30,000 people. But when the audience approaches millions, then you can start creating content specifically for that audience, and we can do that. And in some cases, you make digital content differently than you make television content. So, yes, the digital audience – the digital subscriber base – has caused us to rethink our business.

RT Today: So many people watch shows such as This Old House and then get really into DIY work. What is the most common mistake they make when they jump right into it?

KOC: Their eyes are bigger than their stomach. People get in over their heads. They bite off more than they can chew. Those of us on TV, we do half-hour shows, generally. And I think we do a better job of warning people that these are complex things that you have to do, and it requires real craftsmanship. But generally, TV makes things look easier than they are… makes them look like they go faster than they do. It’s human nature that a lot of homeowners start on projects and have no appreciation for how much work it is and how long it’s going to take. The number one mistake is underestimating the cost and time that a project will take. I hear it all the time. Even when you’re

working with professionals, architects, and great contractors, like the Silva brothers and our guys, and they warn you and they remind you. Even then, people continuously make the same mistake and assume it will cost less and take less time than it actually does.

RT Today: This Old House just turned 40 in 2019, and every host has brought something special to the table. What do you want your tenure as host of the show to be remembered by?

KOC: I pride myself on never pretending to be an expert. And even when I know how to do something, I want the audience to hear how to do that thing from the expert. Because, even if I know how to cope a miter with baseboard or crown molding, if you’re ever given the choice to hear how to do that from Kevin O’Connor or from [general contractor on This Old House] Tom Silva, I always want people to hear it from Tom Silva.

And I’ve learned a lot in 17 years. You can’t help it. I mean, you’re thrown into the deep end of the pool and you have to swim at it for 17 years; you’re going to learn how to swim. But I try really hard to make sure that I never fool myself into thinking that just because I know how to swim, I should be the one instructing others on how to swim. So, I fight really hard to make sure that I let the experts speak. I let the experts teach our audience, and I don’t get in the way of that. x

Photos: iAnthony Tieuli//Courtesy This Old House

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Residential Tech Today | March–May 2020

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INSTALLATION

Rounding Out My System My Evolution from Reluctant Smart Home Customer into a Fully Committed Enthusiast

By Jeremy Glowacki Despite my role as a tech magazine editor, over the years I’ve been a fairly reluctant smart home customer, resisting offers to install a fullfeatured control system from the various pro-quality manufacturers, such as Crestron, Control4, Savant, URC, or RTI. But, last fall, something finally clicked for me, and I decided it was time to commit to completing a system that had been built in bits and pieces over the 13 years I’d lived in my home.

But, first a little background.

Back in 2008, after writing about residential tech for almost a decade, my wife and I moved with 2-year-old daughter Ella and dog Otis, out of a tiny one-bedroom New York City apartment into our first house – five-bedroom suburban residence in the thriving Indianapolis suburb of Carme.

From the moment we decided to move, I was all in on the idea of a building a dedicated home theater in our finished basement and was fortunate to use industry connections to build a pretty cool combination of projector, screen, 5.1 surround sound system, and even a starry ceiling made of LED fiber optics lighting. But going any further into the house felt like too much of a commitment and maybe too much of a retrofit mess, despite the convenience of a pair of in-ceiling speakers in both the kitchen and the family room, and prewiring for a pair of speakers on our patio.

I did take some baby steps a few years later, when I accepted an offer from Nuvo (now owned by Legrand) to install a multiroom streaming audio system that was distributed over the existing powerlines in my house. At the time, they upgraded the in-ceiling speakers in our family room and kitchen from 6- to 8-inch models and added single-point stereo speakers in both our dining room and upstairs hallway to expand the system around the house. I figured

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A new TV appears to “float,” thanks to an SnapAV Strong Razor Series mount and Triad sound bar.

at the time that this was simply the best way to retrofit a multi-room audio system into an older house. What I came to dislike, however, were the various separate control apps and islands of incompatible systems (family room entertainment system, basement home theater, multi-room audio system, outdoor speakers) for throughout our home.

Just a few years ago, driven by the need for a more robust network backbone, I accepted an offer to have Indianapolis-based custom integrator Millennium Sounds enhance the system quite a bit with the installation of a Pakedge home network, a Control4 remote control system programmed to run our family room equipment stack (Hitachi plasma, AV receiver, cable box, Apple TV, Blu-ray player, and Wii console), and a full replacement of my entry-level Lutron lighting control system with Control4. At the time, an upgrade to an enterprise-grade network was a huge motivation, but the fun part was experiencing my first custom-installed lighting control system. We’re talking custom-engraved, multibutton keypads controlling groups of lights at pre-determined dimming levels of our choosing.

While house-wide dimming in, say, “Day” or “Night” modes is a huge time-saver and the unified look of the toggle dimmers aesthetically pleasing, having an “All Off ” button to shut down the house at night or on the way out the door, was the big winner in our house.

Add to that a Control4 remote control in the family, replacing years of frustrating DIYprogrammed remotes, and I was starting to understand how great a professionally-installed, pro-grade home control system could be. But, I felt like I was being wasteful replacing the existing Nuvo system for multi-room audio.

Eventually, my (and let’s be honest, my family’s) frustration reached a boiling point with having too many separate systems and a music distribution system that was becoming less reliable due to either network incompatibility or power surges. Pulling perhaps my last “tech editor card” out of my deck, I contacted Control4 again, which had acquired respected speaker brand Triad before being acquired as a company by multi-faceted solutions provider SnapAV. Encouraged by my need to tie everything together (which is practically SnapAV’s mantra), my original integration firm,

INSTALLATION

keep the TV volume lower on the soundbar and still hear what we’re watching. I refer to it as “sports bar mode.”

Millennium Sounds, pulled together a proposal to expand, replace, and unify my system.

SnapAV agreed.

After years of thinking that a more involved retrofit (one that involved running ethernet and speaker wire throughout the home rather than piggy backing on my home’s line-voltage wiring) would be impossible, Millennium co-owner Bill Lehman and technician Andy Bang convinced me that my basement drop ceiling and crawl space enable an easier retrofit than I had realized. It would prove to be a little more of a challenge to get upstairs, but the creative use of an HVAC air duct enabled the installation team to switch from a proposed Triad One with a wireless remote station for a Control4 audio system to a hardwired set up.

“Wired is always preferred when relying on the network to transmit audio,” Bang noted. “We were happy that we were able to get a wire back to the home base in the family room.”

Three seven-inch glass-edge T3 touchscreens replaced the controllers from Nuvo in the kitchen, dining room, and upstairs hallway.

Triad does not make a dual-voice coil in-wall speaker, so there was not a direct replacement for the Nuvo speakers I already had in the dining room and upstairs hallway, so we left those alone. We did, however, replace the existing 8-inch Nuvo speakers in the ceilings with 8-inch speakers from Triad (Silvers in the family room to match the Triad Silver Soundbar for distributed music or as theater rear speakers and Bronzes in the kitchen. The Triad Silver soundbar was ordered in a custom width to perfectly match our new LG 60-inch TV exactly and replacing a tower speaker (left-center-right) combo that my wife was ready to clear out of the family room. A SnapAV Strong Razor Series articulating mount for large displays was expertly installed by the Millennium team to

I was already familiar with the Control4 app, having used it for my lighting control system and back-up TV remote, but now it also controls my multi-room audio system when it’s inconvenient to walk up to a touch panel on the wall. The learning curve for controlling rooms within the audio system is still a work in progress after having used another control system for so long, but we’re adjusting and enjoying it. It’s been great having the power to add various music services without contacting Millennium to do it for me.

For the first time, we’re not only able to access Pandora and Napster, but also our Amazon Music account, SiriusXM, TuneIn, iHeartRadio, and also a cool app called ShareBridge that enables me to cast any audio stream (say, a YouTube clip) from my phone to the multi-room music system.

We can also change the screensaver for the panels (chose a digital clock that dims down when not in use), but I’d like to switch to a family portrait the next time Andy Bang comes by for a service call.

On that same visit, I will also have Andy add my new motorized window shade from PowerShades into the system. Not that it’s necessary, but just because it can be done, and I’m no longer a reluctant smart home customer. x

hold both the TV and robust soundbar.

“As a double-arm mount, it will hold a heavier display, and it’s rated for the weight of both the soundbar and the display together,” Bang said.

“You have to take a beefier mount into consideration when you’re doing that.”

A Triad subwoofer was hidden behind a sofa end table without the need to run more speaker wire under the floor, thanks to a SnapAV Episode ES-SUB Wireless Kit. While they were at it, Millennium upgraded my Control4 system to an EA5, which is positioned in the company’s product lineup just under flagship CA10. “That’s what every bigger, multi-room installation should have,” Bang explained. “It allows us high-end audio with a nice digital analog converter (DAC). And we’re running that into a Triad audio matrix switch, and into a Triad amplifier.”

Improving on the way I had jerry rigged my Nuvo system to link to a relatively new 4.1 outdoor speaker system from Origin Acoustics, the Millennium team programmed the Control4 system to distribute streaming music outdoors via the Control4 app. Now, for the first time, I can change music and control volume from my deck.

The whole system, as it has come together makes me truly appreciate the professionalism and expertise that a veteran integration/ installation team can bring to a project like this.

My audio system has worked flawlessly since the installation back in December and I can discern an improvement in audio quality in the inceiling speakers and love the streamlined look and performance of the Triad Silver sound bar.

I’ve experimented with switching my family room AV receiver from Dolby surround mode to “all-channel” surround and have found that the localization of the ceiling speakers allows us to

The Millennium Sounds team installed the new Triad in-ceiling speaker (top) and Control4 touchpanels (above).

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INNOVATIVE TECH

Consistent, Repeatable Project Success Working with RackFrame, Integrators Build and Wire a Customer’s Equipment Stack in Their Own Lab, on Their Own Schedule

By Rebecca Day

“It’s the most radical and exciting business move that Audio/Video Systems has undertaken since lighting control, and it has nothing to do with voice assistants, wellness, or the hottest trends in home automation,” said AVS COO Franklin Karp. It is all about process: pre-building systems in the integrator’s Plainview, NY, design lab, so that they’re fully tested and proven before they even reach clients’ homes.

AVS adopted Millson Custom Solutions’ RackFrame product, part of what CEO Richard Millson calls their FrameWork platform, which includes proprietary products, off-site production and testing, and a standardized project process. Millson designs and sells their WireFrame (structured wiring), CinemaFrame (home theater), PictureFrame (TV installations), and RackFrame (equipment rack termination & testing) under their Millson FrameWork umbrella.

RackFrame, a solution for terminating and connecting equipment racks, supports systems of “any size or complexity,” Millson said, and includes specific connections for virtually any signal type used in the industry. Working with RackFrame, integrators build and wire the equipment racks for a customer’s project off-site in their own lab, on their own schedule. When it’s time to install the system into the home, it’s already been fully wired, programmed, and tested. “If an issue happens to pop up during installation, the technicians on site can troubleshoot and solve it much more quickly,” Karp said.

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They renovated two rooms of their Long Island facility to implement the FrameWork project process. AVS’ technical staff builds the racks in one space, completing and documenting all of the power and signal connections required for that system design.

Then they move the rack(s) into the dedicated testing room, where they connect and fully test all functions of the system using a custom Millson patch panel, which allows them to duplicate the functionality of the system to what it will be once installed in the client’s home.

The products, project process, system production, and testing methodology were all originated by Millson. The Vancouver, Canadabased integrator developed their FrameWork platform to create a streamlined, repeatable process for delivering large numbers of projects all at once in multi-dwelling unit (MDU)

INNOVATIVE TECH

Working with Millson RackFrame, AVS integrators build and wire a customer’s equipment stack in their own lab, on their own schedule. When it’s time to install the system into the home, it has been put through the paces and approved for installation.

projects. It turns out that virtually all of what they had developed was equally well suited to single-familyhome projects, as well. So Millson decided to share his approach with the custom integration channel, beginning with his colleagues within the HTSA buying group.

“FrameWork is a total operational solution designed to dramatically increase project efficiency and deliver consistent, repeatable success,” Millson explained.

The platform comprises proprietary products, offsite production and testing, and a standardized project process. The quality of components used in their PictureFrame (for hiding equipment behind TVs) and CinemaFrame (an in-wall home cinema solution) products are “absolutely first class,” Karp noted.

And according to Karp, pre-testing their systems off-site ahead of time affords AVS far greater control over the installation timeline. In the past, the integrator was always subject to the schedule set by the general contractor who is “always in a rush,” Karp said.

Dust can get into the equipment and wiring, and projects are often most hurried near the end when everyone is on site at the same time trying to meet the construction move-in date. “Even if you have the rack hermetically sealed, dust still seems to get in somehow,” said the custom installation industry veteran.

Now, during the wiring stage of construction, the miles of Cat-6 and other cabling are pulled to a central location, organized, terminated, tested, and labeled.

With the Millson solution, AVS technicians can terminate and test all cabling before the racks are brought to site, “so nothing’s left to chance during the rest of the construction,” Karp said. “Speakers are in the ceiling, and wires are terminated, covered, and protected. You put the cover on and walk away; you’re done until you come back for the final installation in a clean environment.”

At the AVS lab, technicians use the Millson process to build clients’ racks for all the electronics that are

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INNOVATIVE TECH

Consistent, Repeatable Project Success

AVS adapted two rooms of their Long Island facility for the Millson RackFrame process.

AVS’ technical staff builds their technology racks in one space, stacking and wiring all the components going into a job. After racking their equipment, AVS moves the rack into the testing room, where they use a patch panel and configure the rack to duplicate what they’re doing in the client’s home.

part of a home’s control system. There, they can test up to 32 zones of audio, lighting, every TV, touch panel, camera, and remote in the project – everything but HVAC. “The time we spend is much more efficient, because guys are heading to the office to work a full day, versus commuting to the city and losing God-knows-how many hours coming and going,” the integrator said.

Utilization under the new process “skyrockets,” Karp said, and “the delivered quality goes through the roof.” AVS’ technicians open and test every product in the lab, down to streaming players and set-top boxes that fit into a box behind a TV. “Instead of building everything on site, we’re building and testing every part of the systems here, then marking them for delivery to each room or area,” he said.

“The system for the master bedroom is built, labeled, tested and wrapped, ready for delivery whenever that part of the site is ready for us.”

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Because everything is tested and ready before delivery, AVS can delay final installation until much later in the project than before, so when they do arrive on the job site, they’re entering a clean environment. “No one’s painting, no one’s doing floors, no one’s sanding – all the crap that can negatively impact our final install work,” Karp noted. Because the products being installed have been tested, including software and firmware updates, touch panel set up, remote configuration and so on, if there is any kind of issue, “We know it’s not with the equipment we just brought in,” Karp said.

“These are large and complicated systems, things can happen – but we’re no longer scrambling because a TV’s not working and the client is moving in that day.”

AVS began implementing the full Millson FrameWork solution relatively recently. The process overhaul will make AVS techs’ work time much more efficient, and Karp considers

that a big win for the business. Technicians can put in a full day at the lab assembling, wiring, programming, and testing systems, versus a half a day of productivity with the other half spent commuting to and from job sites. When it’s time for installation, “we just plug everything in.

Instead of taking weeks to do an implementation, we can now do it in as little as one day – or maybe a week at most, depending on the size of the project,” Karp said.

The proven project process makes the installations “idiot proof ” – “because all the high level tasks and brainpower are focused in our facility,” Karp said. “At the end of the day, the guys could even send me to plug in a rack, it’s that simple.” With the Millson system, the wires are all labeled and color-coded: “You just plug it in.”

That sits well with the general contractor and clients because AVS is now taking the “fuss and mess” out of the final installation process, with

INNOVATIVE TECH

The Millson RackFrame design adds aesthetic appeal, making the rack look so much nicer because everything is organized and wires are concealed using the wiring kit. (Below) The wiring behind the scenes at the AVS testing facility.

far less time spent on site, “we don’t have to spend a week testing it and pushing every button, because all that has already happened at our facility,” Karp said. It’s a whole different way of doing an installation. “The level of repeatable efficiency is mind-boggling,” he added.

And with the increasingly restrictive condo policies in the exclusive Manhattan high-rises they service, saving on labor costs and improving overall efficiency are more important than ever for AVS, Karp noted. New York labor costs are already among the highest in the nation, and it doesn’t help that all of the supertall high-rise condo buildings – some 80 floors and higher – can make that problem even worse by adding significant elevator wait time for technicians on site. And that’s on top of an already lengthy commute, and the infamous New York rush-hour traffic. It’s not unusual for workers to wait 30-40 minutes for a service elevator, Karp said, after they stand in line to present ID and have their photo snapped. And if AVS has a project on the 80th floor and another on the 50th floor, their employees can’t just go from one to the other; they have to start

all over again at security and get a different pass for each floor, chewing up man hours. With inefficiencies and labor costs exploding due to these unavoidable realities, Karp is ecstatic over being able to focus far more of the overall project labor off-site, at their home base. “Now we get a full day of labor out of every employee, and they appreciate it too because there is less stress for them, and they are more productive.”

install in half a day what would have taken two or three days of on-site install and testing previously. When AVS sent key staff members to Millson’s operation in Vancouver for an inperson look at their operation and how they use the process, “their eyes lit up,” he said.

Karp wouldn’t disclose AVS’ capital outlay to fully implement Millson’s FrameWork solution, other than to describe it as a “serious investment.” But he also said that he believes he can recoup the cost in two years or less and it may ultimately allow him to reduce labor charges, making AVS more competitive he said.

An important feature of the Millson solution is that installations no longer need to be completely linear with pre-wire, production, testing and final install all happening in parallel as time and job-site conditions allow. “Even if several projects are closing at the same time, we can now handle it because we’ve been building the racks weeks in advance,” Karp stated.

“Everything is assembled, programmed and tested, and then we wrap them up and put them away.”

Another, less obvious benefit of this new process? There’s a new level of polish and professionalism that adds to AVS’ overall presentation, Karp said, describing it as a “change in our culture.” When Karp has shown the system to architects and designers, “they get really excited” because they understand the system is fully tested, the installation is dramatically simplified and the overall experience is greatly improved for the end customer. “They got all of it.” x

AVS completed their first project using RackFrame in February, a smaller system for a guest home. The tech on the job “was blown away,” Karp said, because he found he could

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NEW TECH

Taking Care of the Audio An Afternoon at Theory Audio Design’s Experience Center in Lake Forest, CA

By Dennis Burger

You can build a full-blown 5.2.2-channel Dolby Atmos system – complete with onwall and on-ceiling surround and overhead speakers – with Theory speakers and program called Automator.

I’m sitting in one of two screening rooms at the Theory Audio Design/Pro Audio Technology Experience Center in Lake Forest, CA, having just heard the single most powerful soundbar demo I’ve ever heard in my life, when owner and president Paul Hales makes a curious proclamation: “I don’t want Theory to be known as a soundbar company.” Curious, because the core of Theory Audio Design’s home cinema sound systems is built around three different soundbar offerings, designed to match 65-, 75-, and 85-inch TVs, with a unique style that relies on custom-extruded aluminum chassis and Apple-esque industrial design.

Whether you’re building a 3.0-channel Theory system or a full-blown 5.2.2-channel Atmos system complete with on-wall and on-ceiling surround and overhead speakers, one of those soundbars is almost certainly front and center.

So, to my ears, him saying he doesn’t want to be

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known as a soundbar company is sort of like Porsche saying it doesn’t want to be known as a car manufacturer. Interestingly, that thought ends up being oddly prophetic.

“Let me clarify,” he said, when I pointed out this seeming contradiction. “I don’t want Theory to be known as just a soundbar company. The business plan for Theory extends far past residential surround sound or audio for video. We’re starting there, because we have a built-in customer base thanks to PRO – residential integrators primarily – who cater to residential installed audio/video. But, because we’ve shown this thing at CEDIA twice, and because soundbars are kind of the anchor now, my concern is that the company would be perceived as a home audio/surround sound/ soundbar kind of company, and I want to make sure that’s not the case, because we have much bigger aspirations.

“Not to diminish that market,” he added. “We love that market. But we’re aiming for bigger things.”

To hammer home his point, Hales pulled up a presentation on his laptop, with a forwardlooking timeline for the company. According to the illustration, in-wall and in-ceiling speakers will be added to the existing on-wall lineup, starting as early as this year. Ceiling pendants and subwoofer will come a little later. Dante and AES67 audio over IP and AES70 control are slated for 2021, followed by expansions into the commercial indoor/outdoor marketplace shortly thereafter. And, behind these expanded plans, I can’t help but notice that the entire lineup of products under the Theory Audio Design umbrella isn’t much bigger than it is now.

That’s actually half the point, Hales told me.

And he pointed to two luxury car brands to

NEW TECH

make it. Look at Mercedes and Porsche. Both make roadsters, coupes, sedans, and SUVs. The difference is that Mercedes does it with 28 different models, and Porsche does it with six.

“What we aspire to for Theory,” he said, “is to cater to indoor/outdoor, residential and commercial, architectural, and surround sound applications with just a handful of models. We are simply offering fewer models that are more competent and more valuable to meet a broad spectrum of needs.”

“For whatever reason, the audio industry has taken the position that this speaker is only for this application – commercial or residential or professional – and that speaker is only for that application, and that a good movie speaker is a bad music speaker, for example. They’ve basically said, ‘We don’t know how to design a speaker that can do both.’ But that just doesn’t have to be so. As long as the speaker can

You don’t have to run complex (and in Hales’ opinion, harmful) room correction. You simply run the full-range, uncalibrated, unfiltered, undelayed decoded signal from the surround preamp into the loudspeaker controller, then run a program Hales refers to as the “Automator.”

reproduce the bandwidth and the dynamic range you need, and be of acceptable size and aesthetic, a good speaker is a good speaker is a good speaker.”

And along those same lines, a good amp is a good amp, and a good DSP is a good DSP. That’s why the heart of every Theory Audio Design system is essentially the same speaker controller: a small, 1U, fanless chassis with 1,800 watts of power and some truly sophisticated processing. For now, in surround applications that unit still needs to be fed by a surround sound processor, but eventually that need will go away as Theory adds surround sound – even object-based surround sound – decoding. No matter the application, Hales has worked to make setup as simple as possible.

“With the Automator, you answer three questions,” he says. “We need the distance to the chair, to set levels and delays; we need the distance to the nearest wall, to compensate for low-frequency gain of that wall; and we need the distance to the nearest corner, mainly for the subs, because the gain created by the corner is calculated into the subwoofer level setting. Our assumption is that subs are placed on the floor against the wall. And we know based on the efficiency of all the speakers how to set the level relative to the main speakers. And then if you said, ‘Oh, it isn’t against the wall, it’s over there

To set up a Theory system – even a complex 5.2.2-channel Atmos system – you don’t have to think about delays, crossovers, or microphones.

Theory Audio Design’s home cinema sound systems are built around three different soundbar offerings, designed to match 65-, 75-, and 85-inch TVs.

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NEW TECH

Taking Care of the Audio

by the couch, twelve feet away from the wall,’ then we’ll compensate for that.”

And that’s it, really. The speaker controller does the rest of the work for you. In fact, both of the Theory systems that I demo’d that day were dialed in completely using the Automator and its calculations based on those three simple answers. No room correction. No EQ. No manual fiddling with levels or delays or crossovers or bass management.

I’ll admit that watching Hales dial in a system, as an audio guy, made me start to feel a bit like a McDonald’s cashier being replaced by a touchscreen. Where does the audio expertise that I’ve spent the past 20 years building up slowly but surely factor in here? If this is the way the home audio industry is headed, am I becoming obsolete?

“Look, you probably know more about surround processors than 99 percent of the population,” Hales said to me. “You can probably save yourself inside of a surround processor, but think about the average enthusiast or integrator, and how many opportunities surround processors give them to inadvertently screw up the sound. These things are needlessly complex. The manufacturers got into feature wars, and so they loaded them with all sorts of add-ons that are in most cases just ways to harm the sound: dynamic range compression, double bass, dynamic volume compression, night modes, DSP cathedral modes, and all of this stuff.

“I get it,” he continued. “I used to look at every installation as an audio problem. When we started PRO in 2004, I was looking at the world through audio goggles. Everything I looked at was an audio problem.

But then I did my own house and realized these systems are extremely complicated. You have video distribution, audio distribution, switching, control, security, cameras, phones, networking, and I realized that these poor integrators – hats off to these guys, because their jobs are so complex. It is amazing to me that the ones out there that are good at it are able to maintain it, because there’s so much complexity, particularly when you start to talk about sophisticated control systems.”

Hales concluded by saying that he realized that expecting every integrator (let alone consumer) to be an audio expert is not only is it unrealistic, but also not even smart. “We don’t want them to be audio experts; let us be the audio experts. We want them to be integration experts. We want them to be sales experts, so they can get these systems installed and working right for their clients so that they can go sell and install the next one.

Turn everything off in your processor. Let us take care of the audio. Here’s your Theory system. Answer these questions and you’re going to get good sound.” x

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Despite the company’s plans to diversify their audio offerings, soundbars are still front and center of the current line up featured in the Theory Audio Design/Pro Audio Technology Experience Center in Lake Forest, CA.

“ I used to look at every installation as an audio problem. When we started PRO in 2004, I was looking at the world through audio goggles.

Everything I looked at was an audio problem.

But then I did my own house and realized these systems are extremely complicated.”

PRODUCT REVOLUTION

Nortek Security & Control’s ELAN brand is introducing a full range of new surveillance cameras, an NVR, and an assortment of compatible accessories for 2020. The lineup delivers advanced analytics, auto-configuration capabilities, and multiple form factors. The new assortment features built-in advanced IntelliVision analytics for more precise person and vehicle classification plus advanced object detection, which provides personalized and informative alerts to the end user. The new array includes six outdoor IP cameras, one 8-channel NVR, and accessories.

The new Sonance Patio Series system, which includes four satellite speakers and one in-ground subwoofer, is designed for petite outdoor spaces. The landscape lighting-like speaker housings and the textured brown finish allow the speakers to be hidden more easily. The four staked satellite speakers each feature a 3.5-inch (89mm) anodized aluminum cone driver and a Santoprene surround. The subwoofer contains an 8-inch (203mm) dual voice coil, polypropylene cone, and Santoprene surround. The system can be expanded to include eight satellite speakers and two subwoofers.

Hogar Controls has launched and shipped the new Prima Touch Switch line, a collection of multi-function, modular, capacitive touch switches. Featuring a three-inch glass design, Prima switches come in single-, double-, triple-, and four-button configurations for on/off, dimming, and scene control for Z-Wave and Zigbee smart home devices including lighting, comfort, entertainment, security, and more. Users can install up to four touch switches in a fourgang light box location using existing wiring for up to 16 different scene actions.

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PRODUCT REVOLUTION

Metra Home Theater Group’s new Helios Smart Power Surge Protector and Conditioner includes a free mobile app that allows users to control the outlets remotely and create schedules for power usage. The Helios AS-P-603W power strip features a total of nine AC outlets with four switched rear outlets, one easy-access always-on front outlet, four “smart” outlets controlled via the mobile app, plus two USB ports of USB-A and USB-C for portable device charging.

Naim Audio has launched a dedicated Control4 driver to control its range of music-streaming speakers and systems. The driver works with all Naim products based on their latest-generation music streaming platform: the Mu-so and Mu-so Qb secondgeneration wireless speakers; Uniti Atom, Uniti Star, and Uniti Nova streaming systems; and ND5 XS 2, NDX 2 and ND555 dedicated music streaming players. Further Naim products – including the Uniti Core music server – can also be integrated, offering the ability to rip and store music collections.

A five-year effort by Curl and Parasound, and sweeping circuit improvements, have resulted in the new Parasound Halo JC 1+ monoblock amplifier. With 450 watts into 8 ohms, 850 watts into 4 ohms, 1300 watts into 2 ohms, and a peak current of 180 amperes, the 83-pound JC 1+ excels even with speakers that can dip to 1 ohm. It operates in pure Class A up to 25 Watts and Class AB to full power.

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PRODUCT REVOLUTION

Savant, in partnership with USAI Lighting, has introduced lighting control functionality called Daylight Mode that can align lighting schemes to match the natural circadian progression based on time-of-day. Daylight Mode suggests a circadian curve based upon scientific data that highlights time-ofday settings for color temperature and lighting intensity shifts seamlessly throughout the progression of each day. The Savant app intelligently adjusts for related factors such as geography, time zone, and season. Users can personalize their lighting experience to suit their daily habits.

SnapAV’s new Signature by Episode custom install speaker line features 32 models across three series, one- and two-step installation options, seven optional cradle accessories that can be paired with pre-construction brackets, back boxes, and several grille options. The 3 Series models feature polypropylene woofers and silk dome tweeters. The 5 Series feature polypropylene woofers and adjustable silk dome tweeters, both with vacuum-deposited titanium. The 7 Series features honeycomb fiberglass Nomex woofers and pure titanium tweeters.

The new Squid power management device from SurgeX streamlines installation, combining multiple features, including boxed networked control and analytics of AC and DC, front-end protection with SurgeX’s patented Multi-Stage surge suppression technology, as well as monitoring and management capabilities. Squid includes two 5V USB ports inputs for charging and network troubleshooting, eight outputs, four of which are traditional controlled and monitored IEC receptacles, and four are DC so integrators can eliminate the need for wall warts or a two-box solution.

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PRODUCT REVOLUTION URC has launched a two-way IP module for integration of its Total Control 2.0 system with August Smart Lock and Smart Lock Pro door locks and Symetrix Radius NX, Prism, Solus, and Edge DSP models, and Home Connect appliances. The August module allows end users to control and view status of compatible August Smart Locks door lock models. The Symetrix module controls independent channels or zones of audio routed thru compatible Symetrix DSP models.

The Home Connect module enables automated morning routines – for example their coffee, brewed by Home Connect appliances.

Deako has expanded its suite of modular and scalable home with the Simple Rocker Switch, Simple Dimmer, Simple Motion Sensor, Smart Switch, and Smart Dimmer. The new products, paired with their existing backplate, can be quickly installed into a standard junction box, enabling builders to offer homes pre-wired for customizable upgrade packages. A modular system and “click-in” switches require no special wiring or hubs. Upgrade packages including Simple Motion/Dimmer, Smart Switches/Smart Dimmer, and Scene Controller Switches are seamlessly added into the Deako Backplate.

AudioControl’s three CM Series 70-volt amplifiers feature Dante digital audio networking capability, which is an uncompressed, multi-channel digital media networking technology that moves data over a standard IP network using readily available Cat-5e, Cat-6, or fiber optic cable with near-zero latency and synchronization. With the amps, any source can be accessed from anywhere on the network, and up to eight streams of digital content can be routed to any Dante-enabled device, creating limitless system architecture options for any size project.

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PRODUCT REVOLUTION

Focal’s four new Chora speakers enable a full Dolby Atmos 5.2.4 experience. After launching the Chora 806, Chora 816, and Chora 826 loudspeakers in September, Focal most recently added the Chora 826-D – the first Focal loudspeaker built with Dolby Atmos technology – Chora Center, and Chora Surround to the line, as well as the Sub 600P subwoofer.

Just Add Power has released the 3G 708POE transmitter, enabling integrators to extract audio from sources and output it via a 3.5 mm port, making it simple for integrators to incorporate two-channel stereo receivers and amplifiers into their J+P systems.

Like its predecessor, the 708POE distributes video resolutions up to 4K Ultra HD with no latency over a single Cat-5e cable. The unit supports HDCP 2.2, HDMI 2.0, HDR, HDR10, and all lossless audio formats, including Dolby Atmos.

The JBL L82 Classic is Harman’s modern bookshelf version of the best-selling JBL L100 loudspeaker. Packaged and sold as mirror-image pairs, the L82 Classic loudspeakers feature a 1-inch titanium dome tweeter with acoustic lens waveguide and front-panel HF Level attenuator. The tweeter is the same as used in the larger L100 Classic. The speaker features an 8-inch cast frame white poly cone woofer and a Quadrex foam grille in a choice of black, orange, or blue.

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PRODUCT REVOLUTION

NAD Electronics has created an all-new amplifier intended for high performance distributed audio systems. The CI 8-150 DSP delivers 8 X 150 watts per channel @ 8 ohms, and is also bridgeable to 4 x 365 watts per channel @ 8 ohms. The hybrid digital amplifier platform delivers stable and efficient power with high current capability, all in a slim 1U rack space. To make this level of performance possible, the CI 8-150 DSP uses a customized version of the proven nCore output stage.

Legrand’s Building Control Systems (BCS) division has added 79 new decorative shade fabric styles to its QMotion shades offering, including lightfiltering decorative sheers and room-darkening blackout fabrics in a variety of patterns, textures, and colors.

The new decorative sheers include the Cirrus, Ridges, Shiraz, Tapestry, and Wisp collections. In addition, the Matrix, Tenley, and Texture sheer collections are available in matching room-darkening blackout fabrics. For total light blockage, new roomdarkening blackout fabric collections include Blends, Etched, Grains, Sparks, and Milled.

Vanco International has introduced Beale Basics, a new cost-conscious custom installation speaker series, to its Beale Street Audio brand. The line consists of five in-ceiling speaker models, including the IC6-BSC (2-way design with 6.5-inch woofer), and IC8BSC (2-way design with 8.5-inch woofer) for residential installations. The IC6V-BSC and IC8V-BSC offer the same components as their residential counterparts but in 70V for commercial applications. The Beale Basics line also includes the IC6DT-BSC, featuring dualtweeters and a 6.5-inch woofer.

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MEET-UP

Events

Our event partners care about the health and safety of their attendees. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the schedule for this season’s events are changing rapidly. Please check each event’s official website for current information regarding show dates, venues, and ticket prices. Some of the spring’s most anticipated events are listed below:

CEDIA Tech Summits Multiple Locations

HTSA Fall Dallas, TX

CEDIA Denver, CO

ISE 2021 Barcelona, Spain

ProSource 2021 Multiple Locations

Photo: iStockphoto.com/narin_nonthamand

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Azione

Multiple Locations

InfoComm 2021 Orlando, FL

CES 2021 Las Vegas, NV

Total Tech Summit Cleveland, OH

HTSN

Winston Salem, NC

COMING UP

Residential Tech Today

COMING ISSUES June/July

Outdoor Tech: Improving the smart home experience around the pool and yard requires a thorough understanding of weather-proof speakers, TVs, lighting, and extended network connections.

FOCUS: HOME QUARANTINE TECH

August

Embracing Biophilia: The "healthy home" is being discussed as the next frontier for the evolution of smart technology. Finding the best way to turn the smart home into an environment that mimics the natural world for improved health and wellness of its occupants, from human-centric lighting, to proper sound isolation, air handling, and water purification.

FOCUS: BATHROOM TECH

September/October

My Control: There are many ways to control a smart home, from individual apps to handheld remotes, voice-controlled devices, and even machine learning to predict your behavior.

What are the current strengths and limitations to the state of the art in this category, and what’s on the horizon for smart home control and automation technologies?

FOCUS: LIGHTING AND LIVING ROOM SOLUTIONS

Photo: iStockphoto.com/Terry J Alcorn

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RELAX

The Lighter Side

Totally EPIC Video Game Facts You HAVE To Believe

By Anthony Elio Video games are a major part of the modern cultural lexicon, with headline events such as E3 (canceled due to COVID-19), SXSW (canceled due to COVID-19), and Valve’s EPICENTER (canceled due to COVID-19) bringing legions of video game fanatics together. And, thanks to our natural inclination to look at screens and not interact with one another, online gaming continues to surge in popularity worldwide. But, while video games are a big part of the conversation, how much does the general public actually know about video game culture? Here are some must-know facts about the grand, entertaining, and ultimately pointless world of gaming.

Super Mario Jumps Off In June of 1982, struggling video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto was having trouble coming up with a new game concept. Amid his creative block, Miyamoto’s garbage disposal jammed, forcing him to phone up a plumber. Upon arrival, much to Miyamoto’s chagrin, the plumber immediately began jumping on his pet turtles, Mandy and Rutteger.

While this incident indeed traumatized the developer, it eventually inspired the creation of the massive hit Super Mario Bros. The original game is dedicated to the memories of Mandy and Rutteger.

Schneider Snubbed Many hardcore gamers like myself have wondered why any of Rob Schneider’s iconic films, such as Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo, The Hot Chick, and Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo, have never been adapted into video game form. Well, according to a 2010 interview, Playstation creator Ken Kutaragi, who claims to have been a major Schneider fan, was denied an autograph at the 2002 premiere of Mr. Deeds, in which Schneider portrayed the unforgettable character, “Nazo the Delivery Man.” This led to the cancellation of numerous video games based on Schneider’s vehicles. Sadly, the actor’s career has never recovered.

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Residential Tech Today | March–May 2020

The Madness of Madden One of the most notorious gaming phenomenons of the modern generation is the fabled “Madden Curse,” in which any player featured on the front cover of a Madden game has a disappointing season. This supposed supernatural event was actually addressed by the man the entire franchise is named after, John Madden: “The only Madden Curse resides in me. Every year, I slap my name on a new entry in this series, keeping children from going outside, keeping families apart, keeping individuals from serious self-growth. I can’t sleep. I can’t eat. I can never escape this curse.” Series publisher Electronic Arts could not be reached for comment.

X-Treme Naming While many believe that Microsoft’s first console, the Xbox, was simply given a random marketing name upon release, that’s actually not the case.

The million-selling console actually derives its moniker from the famed General William X. Box. Legends say that Box took part in numerous campaigns, fragging noobs left and right while locating warp zones on the battlefield, keeping up an incredible kill streak along the way.

However, he was forced to ragequit life when he was especially PWND one fateful day by a battalion of NPCs.

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(Image of Palm Beach in 1950 vs Now)

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