Click here to see more photos of this Featured Home.

An early adopter updates his home's eight-year-old electronic systems with smaller, sleeker, smarter components.

Alex Goodwin has been living with sophisticated electronic systems since 1998 and has loved every minute of it. When other homeowners were just starting to embrace the notion of pressing one button to set the lights, security system and temperature, Alex, his wife, Christine, and their three children were using sleek touchpanels every day to operate motorized draperies, lights, thermostats and audio/video equipment in their 14,000-squarefoot Baltimore home. "We were definitely early adopters," Alex says. "We really pushed the envelope by incorporating all we possibly could into our home."

Fast forward eight years. The Goodwins still use touchpanels to manage nearly every function of their home. However, many of the systems that have kept their house humming for nearly a decade have been updated, modified or improved in some way. "Things had simply become outdated," explains Sean Weiner of Starr Systems, the Baltimore-based company the Goodwins hired for their electronics overhaul. Throughout the abode, huge boxy bigscreen TVs were replaced with sleek, wall-skimming flat-screens. In the home theater, a ceiling-mounted video projector was removed and a smaller, less conspicuous unit was installed at the back of the room. The theater's surround-sound system was completely reworked as well. Even the Goodwins' beloved touchpanels were sent packing to make room for a batch of new wireless models.

Entertainment Upgrade

This time around, Alex knew he would approach the electronics quite differently than he did back in '98. Instead of eagerly incorporating the most advanced systems available, he would carefully weigh the advantages of each feature before moving ahead. "I've learned a lot over the years," he says, "and one of the most important lessons has been the importance of simplicity. You really have to step back and think about the features you care most about and the people besides yourself who will be using the systems before you start putting them into your house." Since the home theater was an overwhelmingly a family favorite, Alex decided to focus a lot of attention there. The first order of business was improving the audio theater's system. "I was starting to have a problem with the way the system sounded," Alex explains. "Movie dialogue, in particular, was difficult to understand." Starr Systems cleared up the audio issue by swapping the existing 5.1 surroundsound system for a top-of-the-line 7.1 JBL Synthesis setup and rearranging the seven speakers so that they were higher and closer to the listening area. "I could hear the difference right away," Alex remarks. "The improvement was incredible." In fact, Alex was so pleased with new system that he was inspired to tackle the electronic systems in other areas of his house. "It's like when you paint one wall and then you've got to paint them all," he explains.

Once the sound quality was in check, it became apparent to Alex that something also needed to be done with the video. "We had originally placed the projector on the ceiling to give us more room for seating," he relates. While the arrangement worked well for the Goodwins, who often invited friends and family over for movie night, the '90s-style projector had become somewhat of a sore point. For starters, it was noisy and detracted from the room decor. Those issues alone were reason enough for the Goodwins to consider a different projector for the space. But when Starr Systems showed them how the brightness and clarity of the family's big 'ol Barco CRT projector compared with that of a newer Runco DLP projector, "that was the end of the story," says Alex. The Barco projector was out, and the pint-sized Runco was in. Only this time, the unit was installed into a wall at the back of the room, a setup that would finally give the family an unobstructed view of the room's amazing architecture.

The screen was next on the list of upgrades for the 18-seat theater. The brightness of the DLP projector and the arrangement of the speakers called for a different type of screen -- nothing larger, just something made of a material that could handle superbright images and that would allow sound to pass through from speakers positioned behind it. The solution: a 138-inch microperforated screen from Stewart Filmscreen. With the new screen in place, the room was ready once again for family movie nights.

Master Makeover

After finishing the home theater, Starr Systems headed off to the family room, master bedroom and master bathroom. The Goodwins had just renovated their master bathroom, so it was a prime time to build an entertainment system into the luxurious retreat. A 32-inch Sharp LCD TV was mounted to a wall, two B&W speakers were built into the ceiling and a satellite receiver was placed in an alcove away from wet towels, toothpaste and blow-dryers.

The adjoining bedroom received a 32-inch Sony LCD TV, too, which Starr Systems installed into a sleek cabinet. A motorized lift was installed to raise the display dramatically into view at the press of a button. Having a TV pop out of a piece of furniture wasn't new to the Goodwins. They had been using a remote control to raise a huge CRT TV out of a big wooden cabinet at the foot of their bed for years. But the thin profile of the new LCD allowed them to use a much smaller, less obtrusive cabinet. Starr Systems cleaned up the space further by placing the satellite receiver, DVD player and VCR in an antique cabinet at the back of the room. The Goodwins chose a new remote control to transmit commands to the components via radio frequency airwaves rather than by infrared signals, which would mean that Alex and Christine would no longer have to aim the clicker directly at the equipment. Now the signals could reach the components even when someone was holding the remote under the blankets.

All in the Family

High definition was something few people knew about in 1998, but Alex had heard enough about the up-and-coming technology to make it the centerpiece of his family room entertainment system. It turned out to be a wise decision. The 60-inch Mitsubishi HDTV that Alex put in eight years ago was perfectly capable of handling new HD content from cable and satellite TV providers. Placing two 27-inch TVs above the 60 incher proved to be another smart move. Using a handheld AMX touch- panel, the Goodwins can direct video from a high-def satellite receiver, a DVD player and a digital video recorder to a specific TV so that all three sources can be viewed at the same time. About the only upgrade this room needed was a better sound system. A beefier surround-sound receiver and speakers replaced the tired old equipment, adding some sonic sizzle.

Right to the Source

For a while, the Goodwins had been perfectly content listening to music from their cable TV receiver, satellite receiver, 200-disc CD changers and AM/FM tuner. After all, those were they only types of music sources available at the time. But as soon as digital music servers and satellite radio came out, the family was eager to add those components to their AMX whole-house audio system as well. The Goodwins still use the same wall-mounted keypads to select a tune, but the new variety of music has made using the system much more fun. In fact, Alex has taken an active role in the design of his music system by grouping songs into special playlists. Now instead of having to select songs individually during a party, he can simply choose a particular playlist and hear an ongoing assortment of favorites all night long, without having to break away from the event.

Cutting the Cords

The Goodwins never really had an issue with the touchpanels they used to communicate with the systems of their house. But these days, wireless is the way to go, and the touchscreens they had installed in 1998 were wired in nice and tight. The solution was obvious: Swap the hardwired AMX touchpanels for compact 8 1/2- inch wireless models that the family could carry around the house. While the touchpanels are now free to go anywhere to operate systems that affect the entire house -- such as the wholehouse music system, the heating and cooling, security and the lighting systems -- Starr Systems designed the control menus of each touchpanel specifically for a particular room. The touchpanel in the family room, for instance, is responsible for commanding the entertainment triumvirate that resides there. The touchpanel in the home theater, meanwhile, sets up the big-screen movie action. The family uses the kitchen panel to see the weather forecast and traffic report, and to take a quick peek at the footage captured by the security cameras surrounding the property.

Still Going Strong

As extensive as the redo was, the Goodwin house still harbors a few of its original systems. Two that Alex may never part with are the Home Automation Inc. Omni security system and the Lutron HomeWorks lighting control system. "These have turned out to be bulletproof systems," he says. Still, as this tech-savvy homeowner has learned, even those systems may eventually succumb to Father Time. But Alex isn't worried. He'll be more than ready for a change by then. EH

Breaking It Down

Fat-Free TVs

Flat-panel TVs were just a twinkle in an engineer's eye when the Goodwins built their house in 1998. The skinny screens are now the hottest thing going on the home entertainment front, so when the family renovated their home's electronic systems, they made sure to replace every TV with either an LCD or a plasma model.

Wireless Wonders

Wireless Modero touchpanels from AMX have introduced the Goodwin family to a new, more convenient way of controlling their house. They used to have to walk to a wall-mounted touchpanel every time they wanted to alter the temperature or the lights. Now they can grab the wireless touchpanel off the coffee table to make the change.

Pint-Sized Power

The Runco VX-2C DLP video projector is nearly half the size of the homeowners' previous unit. Its small footprint allowed the home systems installers to build the projector into the back wall of the home theater, where it would go unnoticed.

All-Out Audio

One of the homeowners' biggest hang-ups about their home theater was the less-than-perfect audio quality. The issue was resolved by repositioning the speakers and having their surround-sound setup swapped for a top-grade Synthesis system from JBL.

Equipment List

Home Theater

Runco VX-2C DLP video projector
138-inch Stewart Filmscreen
JBL Synthesis THX digital surround-sound controller
JBL Synthesis THX digital equalizer/crossover
JBL Synthesis 5-channel
THX power amplifiers (2)
JBL Synthesis 2-channel
THX power amplifiers (2)
JBL Synthesis main left and right speakers (2)
JBL Synthesis center speaker
JBL Synthesis 18-inch subwoofers (2)
JBL Synthesis THX surround speakers (4)
Panamax surge protectors (2)
Sony progressive-scan DVD/SACD player
DirecTV high-definition receiver
Motorola high-definition cable receiver
Hughes DirecTV receiver with TiVo

Whole-House Audio

AMX audio matrix switcher
AudioControl 2-channel amplifiers (3)
AudioControl 16-channel amplifiers (2)
ADA TuneSuite AM/FM/XM tuner package
ReQuest Multimedia FusionPro 120 media server
Home Control System
AMX NI-3000 NetLinx master controllers (2)
AMX NI-4000 NetLinx master controller
AMX color tabletop touchpanel
AMX Modero wireless touchpanels (2)

Other Entertainment Areas

Auton motorized lift assembly
Panasonic 42-inch high-definition plasma TV
B&W flush-mounted, in-wall speakers (2)
RTI TheaterTouch remote controls (2)
Rotel surround preamplifier/processor
Rotel 5-channel amplifier
Rotel DVD player
Rotel stereo receiver
Sony 30-inch LCD TV
Sony DVD player
Sony DVD recorder
Sony hifi stereo VCRs (2)
SpeakerCraft infrared repeater system
SpeakerCraft flush-mounted in-wall speakers (2)
SpeakerCraft outdoor wall-mounted speakers (2)
T2 RF distribution amplifiers (4)
T2 5x16 powered multiswitch

Other Systems

Somfy drapery control system
Lutron HomeWorks lighting control system
HAI Omni security/automation system
Active Thermal Management temperature management system

Electronics Design & Installation

Starr Systems
Baltimore, MD
www.starrsystems.net

Top Of Page