David Bohnett’s Los Angeles and New York City residences may stand thousands of miles apart, but they function as if they are one—at least when it comes to their ability to communicate. A sophisticated Panasonic phone system, combined with a Crestron automation system, tie the two homes together to create a powerful communications network that takes Bohnett’s business and personal life to a whole new level of efficiency. Should somebody… View this story
Home Control Systems • Telephones • Home of the Year Awards 2009 • Cool Homes

Home theater designer Donny Hackett has always wanted to visit Paris but had never gone. So he decided to bring Paris here. More specifically, to Tennessee and the attic of Jason Crist’s suburban Nashville home. A walk upstairs brings Crist to the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, the Notre Dame cathedral—and a screen that could take up a wall in the Louvre. All of the attractions, including the whopping… View this story
Themed Theaters • Home Theater • Cool Homes • Slideshows

Building a house can be a major stress-inducer. There are almost always setbacks, cost overruns and other unexpected angina producers. Stir in the prospect of building green, and those setbacks can become lengthy delays, cost overruns can become major budget busters, and the angina—well, let’s not even think about that. Despite the dangers, Kimberly Lancaster and Joe Hageman have bravely waded into green home building—even incorporating home technologies to make… View this story
Home Control Systems • Lighting Control Systems • Green Technology • Cool Homes

It’s easy to get excited about home theater. Go on the AVS Forum. There certainly is a lot to get your creative juices flowing and your mouth salivating. While seeing the big, beautiful, comfortable rooms might get many to jump into a project, Steve Caesare wanted to take his sweet time. “I’m genuinely a do-it-yourselfer type of guy. My dad was that way and I grew up that way,” he… View this story
DIY Home Theaters • Home Theater • Cool Homes • Slideshows

It’s not enough that this Balinese-style home is located in the paradise known as Honolulu. We get to be envious of its sunny home electronics systems too. That’s because custom electronics professional iDesigns by Michael outfitted the tropical home with 32 zones of streaming media, and full access and control of all systems from touchscreens in every room. “The home is open and inviting, enticing guests to savor the Balinese… View this story
Multiroom Audio • Multiroom Video • Home Control Systems • Lighting Control Systems • Home of the Year Awards 2009 • Cool Homes

Want a “net-zero” home that produces all of its own electricity? No problem. You just estimate how much energy you’ll use, then buy enough solar panels to produce all the electricity for your needs, right? If there’s some energy-efficient home technology, like a home control system that shuts things off and some lighting control, even better. But what if, say, you worked backwards on that as did Jabar McKellar of… View this story
Home Control Systems • Lighting Control Systems • Green Technology • Cool Homes

Everyone knows that CFLs (compact fluorescent lamps) and LED (light emitting diodes) fixtures conserve electricity. CFLs are four times more efficient and last 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs, while LEDs use less than 10 watts of electricity and have even longer lifespans. They’re both great energy-savers, no doubt. But a 4,000-square-foot green home in Raleigh, N.C., proves that it’s possible to get even more efficiency out of these new… View this story
Fixtures and Switches • Lighting Control Systems • Shades and Blinds • Cool Homes

Some guys love power tools. Some love cars. Some are happy with a comfy chair, a remote and something to nosh on. Then there are those who need to go above and beyond—to create a space that most men only dream about. Today, we call these spaces “man caves.” In these caves, though, the only things being fired up are amps, Blu-ray movies, video games and gigantic TVs (sometimes multiple… View this story
Home Theater • Cool Homes • Slideshows

Home energy monitoring may be about to go mainstream. It’s made it into at least one spec home, this one constructed by Mark Johnson Custom Homes in Wilmington, N.C. It’s part of a green home that the builder intends to make LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified, meaning it has many eco-friendly and sustainable features, from the insulated concrete form (ICF) walls to low-flow water fixtures to a… View this story
Home Control Systems • Green Technology • Cool Homes

For legendary blues guitarist BB King, the thrill isn’t gone when it comes to touring. The 83-year-old “King of the Blues” is still on the road with his famous Gibson guitar “Lucille” performing 100 concerts per year. And King gets from gig to gig on more than just a simple set of wheels. King rides in a $1.4 million, 45–foot luxury motorcoach that has more than $200,000 worth of electronics… View this story
AV Components • Blu-ray • Digital Media Servers • Multiroom Audio • Multiroom Video • Receivers • Set Top Boxes • Displays • HDTV • Lighting Control • Cool Homes