This four-story penthouse in downtown Miami is as richly decorated and technically adorned as a luxury residence can be, with the extra Neat-O! tidiness and sophistication one might expect to find in a state-of-the-art corporate office high-rise. Automated conveniences are everywhere, along with ubiquitous music.
Everything was meticulously planned and installed by Hollywood, Fla.-based Geeks of Technology, right down to the A/V zone that’s located in the elevator (yes, you read that right). In there, according to Geeks of Technology’s Dan Hanga, “it’s possible to stream any of the sources or cue up panoramic views of downtown Miami, according to the time of day. During the day we have day views, during the evening, night views.”
Hanga says all of the wiring to make that possible was run through the “umbilical cord” of the elevator cabin, which also works to provide cabin status (active, ascending, descending) and gather time-of-day information for syncing the appropriate panoramas.
But elevator music is just part of what elevates this project. The lighting, for example, features more than 30 custom scenes and presets for the 100+ circuits within the Crestron system as well as dimmable RGB LEDs in several areas’ ceiling coves that are independently controlled via a DMX server.
The project also featured audio, video, climate, security/surveillance, window treatments (shades and blackouts) and managed Wi-Fi, plus a Panasonic PBX phone system that includes 10 extensions and up to four incoming lines.
“This would be the same setup you would find in serious small businesses — with the ability of auto-attendant, voicemail, extension transfer, on-hold music, etc.,” notes Hanga.
There’s some serious A/V, too. The distributed entertainment sources the various zones (including the elevator) can tap into include two satellite receivers, three Blu-ray players, three Apple TVs, Internet radio, Pandora, Sirius XM, and a dedicated 4-terabyte media server. A Crestron 16×16 DigitalMedia matrix switcher routes video to the penthouse’s 12 TVs, while four eight-channel Crestron Sonnex amps drive the roughly 50 in-ceiling speakers.
Then there’s the real wow element — the 75-inch family room TV, which resides within a dual-sided carved bronze frame with glass overlays.
Even more impressive? The gorgeous structure can be rotated so adjacent rooms get the jaw-dropping view.
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