The Project:
In this case study, we will cover Abe Abrahamian of Omnia Integration as he set out to do a full smart home update on a home built in the 1800’s.
This project consisted of a 24 zone audio/video distribution system with Control 4 and the modular 16x16 HDBaseT from AVPro Edge. The entire home was equipped with Control 4 lighting control, HVAC control, garage control, and security integration. Every floor had Control 4 in-wall touch screens, NEEO remotes in every video zone, and two Control 4 door stations.
Originally, the video matrix was a 10x10 competitive product, but as the client and Abe discussed the benefits of HDR 4K distribution throughout the home, they decided to go with AVPro. Abe used a modular 16x16 matrix with 10 AVDM (audio downmixing) inputs and 8 HDBaseT outputs. The sources for this project included Apple TV 4K, Roku 4K, Sony Blu-Ray 4K, and Kaleidescape, so a full bandwidth switch was the way to go!
More unique features in this home included a custom theater room with a cabinet on the front wall consisting of Origin Acoustics inwall speakers in the custom millwork and four additional speakers in the rear to complete a 7.1 channel system.
Challenges:
The biggest challenge in this project was to wire the home, which was built in the late 1800’s. It took the Omnia team at least a week to pull 4-Cat-6 wires to each TV location and speaker wires in all of the rooms.
They deployed a Wi-Fi network that could be completely remotely managed. Abe stated, “In fact, we use Araknis networking product and Wattbox to remotely access and service our clients. We probably only have 2-3 truck rolls a year. It makes us extremely efficient.”
In terms of video distribution, just AVPro products were used. The rest of the system consisted of Araknis, Wattbox, and Control 4. Abe stated, “We learned about the product through the years of following AVPro’s development. We used your HDMI extenders, which have literally had no issues at all.”
Support:
Abe and his team did run into a few hiccups during the installation and had this to say about AVPro Edge’s Support Team, “Experience was fantastic and still is. We did encounter some issues with sound blanking out. We are still working with the AV Support team. On one of our previous 16x16 installs, you folks were kind enough to work with me to test various video sources locally here in the Chicago area. Then you took that feedback and provided firmware updates to resolve issues.”
The Outcome:
Abe stated that his favorite things about using AVPro Edge products in this project were the ease of installation, easy to use GUI, and great support.
Overall the client was extremely happy with the result, and Omnia will be using the 16x16 solution again.
