First multiroom music, then a theater.
In 2007 the owners of this 10,000-square-foot “castle” began a journey into home technology by incorporating a multiroom audio system. Installed by Digital Home Technologies, Palatine, Ill., the Elan HD system piped music from radio tuners, a CD player and a laptop to in-ceiling speakers.
The owners controlled the system via hard-buttoned wall-mounted keypads and touchpanels.
“It worked well for its time,” says Digital Home’s John Goldenne.
By 2010 the owners were ready to update. So began the construction of a dedicated theater, again, handled by Goldenne. It included an Epson PowerLite Cinema projector, SpeakerCraft TIME Five 8 ceiling speakers, Sunfire subs and amplifiers and a 110-inch Stewart Filmscreen screen.
For control, a URC MX-980 handheld remote/MSC-400 controller combo was used. The theater was tied to the home’s existing Elan system so music could be distributed to this room too.
Related: Bringing Mardi Gras to a Home Theater
Fast forward to 2014. The client’s music collection had grown to incorporate downloads, stored on several iPhones; the owners were also ready for Apple TVs and media streamers. They needed a system with more horsepower, a more robust Wi-Fi network, HDMI signal distribution, and a more elegant interface than the 7-year-old touchpanels the owners had been using.
Again, Goldenne was hired to complete the third phase of the home’s tech update. “We tore everything out and replaced it with Elan’s latest home control system, the Elan g!.”
Old HD touchpanels were swapped for Elan’s modern TS-7 touchpanels and in-wall docking stations for the owner’s iPad minis and iPods. An Atlona HDMI matrix switcher was added for uncompressed transmission of digital A/V. Finally, the home’s existing wireless network was upgraded to an enterprise-grade system of Luxul products.
For now, the Elan g! system is focused on access and control of the owner’s audio and video systems, but it’s capable of managing the lights, thermostats and other electronic equipment. The integration of these amenities is likely for Phase 4, says Goldenne.
Stay tuned.
Related: Kalomirakis Builds Biggest Little Home Theater in New York City
