We always like to hear about homes that have been automated from top to bottom. While interesting and inspiring, that level of integration is nothing but a pipe dream for most folks. Focusing your technology attentions on a single room is usually the most economical game plan, says Jay Cobb, president of Hi-Tech Home in Clovis, Calif. For less than $9,000, he and his team outfitted Nick and Corey Ferri’s… View this story
Bedroom • Multiroom AV • Cool Homes

Q. I have just bought a new house, and before the house was plastered I got extra wiring done by the electrician. I have wiring in all rooms for speakers (ceiling in all rooms apart from sitting room where speakers will be free-standing). All wires go back to one area under the stairs except for surround sound for sitting room. I haven’t done anything else in regards to amps, systems… View this story
Home Theater • Multiroom AV • Ask a Pro

Multiroom audio system manufacturer Sonos already had a pretty solid controller, but the company must have really loved the response to the Apple iPhone/iPod touch app it came out with last year. The app could turn your beloved portable device into a controller for the Sonos music system, with all of the touchpad ease and swiping and scrolling that’s made the iPhone/iPod touch products so popular. So why not take… View this story
Multiroom Audio • Multiroom AV • Product News

It was the ultra-contemporary European-style Kreon light fixtures that set the tone for the technologies in this master suite. “Once we saw how modern they were, we knew we had to be just as sleek with our integration of the electronics,” says Edwin Melendez of Multimedia Innovations in Hallandale, Fla. One of the slickest implementations of high-tech is the 50-inch Runco high-def plasma display that traverses on a motorized track… View this story
Bathroom • Bedroom • Home of the Year Awards 2009 • Multiroom AV • Home Control • Cool Homes • Slideshows

One full-scale automation system to cover a 10,000-square-foot home is impressive enough. But doubling that capacity and making sure everything still runs smoothly is another thing altogether. That was the challenge faced by electronics installer Home Systems when these New Jersey homeowners added a resort-size addition to a residence that had an existing Crestron automation system. “We designed a totally new Crestron system that would incorporate the new parts of… View this story
Home of the Year Awards 2009 • Multiroom AV • Home Control • Cool Homes • Slideshows

When you live in a high-rise, space can be tight. To give themselves more elbow room, the owners of this 17th-story residence bought three apartments and had the walls removed to create a 10,000-square-foot living space. During the renovation, the homeowners decided it would be worthwhile to put in some electronic systems—not just a basic security system and entertainment setup—but a sophisticated design that would automate everything from the window… View this story
Home of the Year Awards 2009 • Multiroom AV • Home Control • Cool Homes • Slideshows

Q. I’m looking for a multi-room system that has 16 sources to 42 zones and a media server for my movie collection. Is there a system out there that can handle it? - Sami Jann/Edmonton Alberta A. That is quite a system you are looking for and one I would love to design. The largest distributed audio system available today is made by Russound. Their Sphere E-Series allows 12 sources… View this story
Digital Media Servers • Multiroom Audio • Multiroom Video • Multiroom AV • Ask a Pro

Our Home of the Year sits among the Hollywood Hills, where the stars shine as brightly inside the homes as they do in the night sky. We’re familiar with some of the A-list technologies here—CinemaScope theater, 7.1-channel surround-sound, intricate TV concealment, extensive automation—but we don’t often see them shine together in such a spectacular location, with equally stunning results. This home can’t settle for anything less than red-carpet treatment. The… View this story
Home of the Year Awards 2009 • Home Theater • Multiroom AV • Home Control • Cool Homes • Slideshows

You won’t see a single touchpanel on the walls of this home. Nor will you run across big, beefy speakers or keypads blanketed with a bazillion buttons. With the exception of a 100-inch screen in the media room, this home doesn’t appear to be very high-tech at all. But when you pick up one of the family’s six remotes, the true sophistication of the electronic systems becomes apparent. From any… View this story
Home of the Year Awards 2009 • Home Theater • Multiroom AV • Networking • Security • Home Control • Cool Homes • Slideshows

Throughout its history Universal Remote Control (URC) has earned a reputation as a quality manufacturer of OEM (original equipment manufacturer), consumer-level and custom industry remote control products. However, with the introduction of its new PSX-2 Personal Server ($399 MRSP), the company is entering a new category that it’s never offered: product source components. Unlike most source components such as a DVD or CD player, the PSX-2 offers much more than… View this story
Home Control • Digital Media Servers • Digital Media Stores • Docks & Cradles • Multiroom AV • Product News