Why Dennis Erskine Turned to Torus to Power the CEDIA HQ Reference Home Theater

When CEDIA decided to put a reference home theater inside its new headquarters, which also houses a state-of-the-art experience center and training facility, the association knew it must meet high expectations. After all, the professional organization that represents the custom electronics industry has an obligation to create a best-in-class cinema, with every detail meticulously designed, and an exceptional experience delivered.

It stands to reason then, that the integrator on the project should be a renowned industry name with extensive knowledge of the best solutions to meet any challenge. 

The Erskine Group was chosen to design the nine-seat Reference Cinema Home Theater in CEDIA’s new headquarters in Fishers, Indiana. The theater installation was done by Heartwood Custom Interior Finishes of Dallas, Ga..

“We were able to provide a turnkey project, completing the construction, design, installation, and calibration,” says Dennis Erskine, president of The Erskine Group.

The cinema includes leading high-performance brands, including Procella loudspeakers, Trinnov Audio Altitude32 AV preamplifier, QSC amplifiers, Barco Loki Cinemascope projector, and a Stewart Filmscreen masking screen, all powered and protected by a custom Torus Power All-in-One Series wall-mount power isolation unit. CinemaTech seating and Quest Acoustical Interiors round out the installation.

“We were not going to do this room without a Torus Power unit, or its equivalent. And there is no equivalent to what the Torus Power isolation transformers can accomplish in any size installation,” Erskine says.

Custom Torus Power Unit Meets Highly Specialized Requirements

“Originally, we planned to step the power down from 240 volts to 120 volts,” Erskine explains. “But then, the engineers who were working on the mechanical systems told us they were instead bringing 480V three-phase power into the building so we needed to drop that down to 120 volts.” Installing a reference-grade home theater within a commercial building posed several challenges, as you might expect. One of the biggest challenges was stepping-down the power to accommodate the residential gear being used.

“By combining advanced room isolation design with high-performance components and clean power delivered by the Torus Power AIO unit we have been able to achieve a dynamic experience that is second to none and worthy of being an industry showcase.”

— Dennis Erskine, The Erskine Group

Erskine called Torus Power’s Kevin Main and asked about possible solutions for this part of the project. From this conversation, a custom All-in-One (AIO) Series 11.8K-480V to 120V step-down wall-mount isolation transformer was developed (See photo to the left). The Torus Power unit includes 24 x 20Amp breakers, enough to accommodate all the high-end AV components within the theater.

The audio system includes Procella P815 left-center-right speakers, four Procella P18 subwoofers, and 16 additional Procella speakers for 3D surround sound, processed by a Trinnov Audio Altitude32 AV preamplifier rendering 30 channels of Dolby Atmos.

The Torus Power AIO unit delivers clean power to ensure the top-of-the-line system can perform at its best. The AIO unit decouples and isolates electronic components from the power source, eliminating transients and improving audio quality. The result is a dramatically reduced noise floor with better dynamics, imaging, and bass attack.

“By combining advanced room isolation design with high-performance components and clean power delivered by the Torus Power AIO unit we have been able to achieve a dynamic experience that is second to none and worthy of being an industry showcase,” says Erskine.

Similarly, the Torus Power unit is designed to power and protect the Barco Loki projector, eliciting brighter colors, deeper blacks, better contrast, and a more captivating overall image from what is already one of the industry’s best projectors.

“Providing a steady stream of ample, clean power allows the projector to perform at its very best and prevents it from being compromised. The Torus Power AIO absolutely fits the bill.”