Installing Surround Sound Speakers In An Odd Shaped Space

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A surround sound system is a great addition to a home because it creates nearly theater-quality sound that is hard to top. However, if your media room is an odd shaped space, it can be hard to install your speakers properly. Thankfully, we are here to help you better understand surround sound speaker placement.

Installing Surround Sound Speakers In An Odd Shaped Space

First of all, we suggest placing your seating area in the largest part of the room. This area is typically the bottom and is usually wider and easier to place your seating and viewing items. Next, position your seating so that it faces the television and place your surround sound speakers throughout the room in logical areas.

For example, the front speakers should be placed near the television on the left and right sides. This helps to create a reasonable sound balance that is understandable for your audio instincts. Next, place the mid-level speakers on walls halfway between the front and back of the room. The back speakers should then be hung on the wall in the back corners.

If you get a nasty echo, hang up a sheet or another item to block the area. This will keep the audio focused directly at you and other viewers. If you need help with this process, don’t hesitate to contact us today to learn more. Our specialists will work hard to install a great surround sound system in your home and to provide you with comprehensive maintenance and installation tips.

2 Signs It’s Time to Have Your Network Cabling Checked Out

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Network outages can impact a business’s bottom-line more than almost any other technological hang-up. Lost productivity because of a slow network is just as bad, especially if it’s impacting your employees’ ability to respond to customers or even your site’s updates. While software slowdowns such as overuse and malware can hurt your communications network, so can the hardware it relies on.

2 Signs It's Time to Have Your Network Cabling Checked Out

Why should you hire an expert to check your business’s network cabling?

  • The cabling might be out of date. Whether you’re renting an office building or you have a storefront with points of sale that connect to your company headquarters, updated cabling is one of the best resources you can have for ensuring a faster connection. Older cabling wasn’t built to handle streaming content or wide array of connectivity different devices rely on. We can make sure your cabling not only can handle your volume of use but is optimized for your type of use.
  • You might not have enough connection points. Businesses work best if your employees can work in areas beyond their desks. There might be interdepartmental meetings, a hurried conference, or a phone call with a client that needs to take place behind closed doors. Getting your cabling updated is a great opportunity to increase the number of connection points in meeting rooms, huddle spaces, and even in common areas.

More and more businesses rely on a strong Internet connection. If your business is expanding or more of your services are online, now is the right time to make sure your network cables can handle the extra load. Go to Audio Video Solutions here to get started.

3 Alternatives to Mounting Your Television Above the Fireplace

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Most living rooms are organized around the television so everyone can watch comfortably. But television placement itself is often dictated according to available wall space, your windows, and how open your floor plan is. But the common solution of mounting your television above the fireplace can damage the internal parts and drastically shorten its lifespan.

3 Alternatives to Mounting Your Television Above the Fireplace

Where should you mount your television instead of above the fireplace?

  • The wall opposite your living room windows: It used to be that any direct sunlight would create an impossible glare across your television screen. However, changes in material and technology have reduced the reflective sheen to give you a few more placement options. You can also take advantage of better, less bulky black-out curtains that match the style of your living room and also help lower your energy bill.
  • Angle your television in a corner. Because televisions are becoming more and more lightweight, even as their dimensions continue to grow, you have more wall-mounting options than ever before. So long as you have a corner that allows for comfortable viewing, you don’t have to restrict your television to a flat wall. You can even get an adjustable mounting bracket so you can move the screen.
  • Don’t hang a television; use a projector instead. If above your fireplace is the perfect place for a screen, avoid the issue of heat damage entirely by opting for a projector. Projectors can display a crystal clear image either on the wall or on a screen that doesn’t have small electronic components vulnerable to heat. Sometimes your living is organized in such a way that no other wall space works, and that’s okay.

If you’re looking for the right spot to hang your television, our experts have a few ideas. Go to Audio Video Solutions to get started.

4 Things to Consider When Installing Whole Home Audio

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Your home’s audio system not only sets the tone for your home theater, but it can change how you use your home and yard. When you’re setting up your whole home audio system, here are four considerations to keep in mind:

  1. Where all do you want the audio to reach? While setting up the acoustics for your home theater might be your main priority, there’s a lot more you can do with your system. Consider adding speakers in your backyard or on your patio, and think about the most used areas of your home where you want the sound to reach.
  2. Do you want parental control settings? While it’s never too late to add additional security and restrictions around the audio system, sometimes it’s better to set the restrictions as the norm from the beginning. Deciding what the general level of access should be for different members of the household early on can make the routine more peaceful.
  3. How do you want to control the audio? Some people prefer a master remote, while others want a touch panel that can control all aspects of their home theater. You might also want to be able to control your system from your phone or tablet. Look into home automation options to see what best fits your lifestyle.
  4. What level of sound do you want? Whether you just want your movies and music to sound good without having to make adjustments or you want a system you can fully customize and fiddle with, our range of theater systems can match the levels of automation and experimentation you want.

4 Things to Consider When Installing Whole Home Audio

A new home theater is the perfect opportunity to set up your home’s visual and audio equipment precisely how you like it. Go to Audio Video Solutions to see how you experts can help your ideas into reality.

Two Reasons to Update Your Home’s Cables Along with Your Television

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DIY television splitters used to be the only way to have more than one television in a house. But as more televisions were added, the image got grainier, the sound quality decayed, and the experience became less and less enjoyable. Modern content networks, such as online video hosting companies and more customization data plans, have improved things, but network cabling still plays a large part in how you can enjoy media throughout your house.

Two Reasons to Update Your Home's Cables Along with Your Television

Why should you talk to a trained professional about installing network cabling?

  • Cables dictate a television’s location. Finding the right place to install your television can already be a headache, especially as you juggle various factors like windows, wall space, and a comfortable height and angle. Adjusting your cables so they can reach your new television without trailing across the wall can be difficult. Let our experts take a look so adding cables inside your walls only has to be done once.
  • Many houses are still using the cabling that came with the initial construction. Even though many of your devices may be wireless, have a cabled connection still promises the best resolution and cohesive data retrieval. As part of your home theater installation, make sure you have the best cabling for picture and audio quality so you can tap into online providers without delays or interruptions.

Cabling is much more customization than it used to be. Whether you want to have multiple, hooked up screens throughout your house or you just want to ensure a quality connection in your main home theater, Contact Audio Video Solutions to get started.

Simplify Your Media Technology with Integration and Automation

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One of the most common problems with previous home theaters is that they were too complicated. Not only were the speakers bulky and too technical to modify, each new part of the system came with its own remote, instruction manual, and limiting quirks. But not only are home theaters designed now to integrate with your previous media equipment, you can adapt control to a central device or give it to all users with integration.

Simplify Your Media Technology with Integration and Automation

How does home automation simplify your home theater?

  1. You can control everything from a single device, and that device can be your phone. Home systems from electrical use and heating to security cameras are accessible on your smart phone, and home theaters offer the same functionality. You can dim the lights, select a movie and adjust the volume all with a tap on the screen.
  2. Crestron’s interface standardizes how you control each system’s setting. Even with a universal remote, you might have had to deal with different settings menus that all have a different system of organization and a different way of getting to key features. But Crestron’s apps give you control of every device’s features without you having to remember how each one is different.
  3. You can give different levels of control to different users. Not only can everyone in your household have a playlist of favorite songs or some in-progress shows waiting for them, you can control overall access. This control can range from making sure the volume never exceeds a certain limit in the morning and evening to blocking R-rated material entirely.

Automating your home gives you an infinite array of options but without all the clutter of multiple remotes or multiple operating system quirks. Go to Audio Video Solutions to get started.

Three Ways Home Integration Provides A Seamless Media Experience

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We’ve all sat in the car until a song or segment is over. But it’s getting too cold outside to sit without a heater and technology is too in-sync to not be able to carry the sound with us as we move. How can a home automation system help? Here are three ways home integration can provide a seamless media experience.

Three Ways Home Integration Provides A Seamless Media Experience

  • Integrating your home theater means never losing your flow. Just like with different reading and work devices, sometimes it’s better to use a tablet and other times a laptop is better. If you’re listening to an audio book in your car on the way home and you’re not at a good stopping point, a good home integration system can switch the audio over to your home’s speakers without missing a beat or a plot point.
  • It also means never losing your place. If you watch half a movie on your phone, you shouldn’t have to remember what minute you’re on to keep watching it once you’re at your television. With synced devices, you can pause a movie and pick it up from where you left off on a different screen.
  • Make your audio follow you throughout the house. Sometimes it’s nice to listen to music or the news through the air instead of through a set of headphones. Keep your sound with you as you move from room to room by installing connected speakers throughout your house and by integrating the central home theater system with your iTunes, podcast feed, and favorite stations.

Because handheld devices provide a great deal of our daily media, keeping a separate system between your home theater and your family’s devices can be too limiting. Integration lets you access your shows, news, and music across devices and across locations without a hassle. Look at the best options for your home at Audio Video Solutions.

Three Reasons Why You Should Hire a Professional to Mount Your TV

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Being able to mount your television is one of the best parts of having a flat-screen television: it can’t be bumped and toppled over, it’s at the best height for watching, and you get more of your floor space back. But there can be a few risks in the actual installation procedure without a lot of room for recovery. Hiring an expert to position and mount your new television will be a save for both your walls and your screen. Here’s why:

Three Reasons Why You Should Hire a Professional to Mount Your TV

  1. Your stud finder won’t find all of the obstructions before you drill. Stud finders are generally reliable for projects like installing a towel rack, generally because builders know about where a towel rack will be installed; they’ll keep the likely zone clear of fire blocks, wiring, and pumps. But living and bedroom walls are much more complicated, and stud finders can’t always catch everything.
  2. Specialists are used to finding solutions that match your house. Installation kits usually come with standard hardware, and you have to make your house and your chosen spot work for the brackets. But television installation experts know what brackets can be substituted for slightly wider or narrower ones, and they’re more familiar with finding spots great for both viewability and structural permanence.
  3. There’s a long checklist of requirements for the right spot, and it’s hard to keep it in mind. Mounting your television isn’t just a matter of finding a spot where it won’t fall down. You have to have a spot that works for all viewers, that won’t have too much sun glare, and that gives you a few options for how to hide the cords. Not only can experts do the actual installation, they can help you evaluate the best places on the walls or ceiling.

While you can always redo your tv installation, it’s a headache under the best of circumstances. If you’re about to mount a flat screen, hire an expert to position and install it so you can enjoy your home theater without lingering frustration. Go to Audio Visual Solutions to get started.

Trust Us with Your Home Theater Installation

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While planning for the installation of your own home theater system, do not forget the last critical component in the equation. In order to keep your system running smoothly, you must plan for ongoing maintenance.

Trust Us with Your Home Theater Installation

Remember that almost all major purchases require ongoing maintenance in order to ensure top performance. It is hard to imagine someone buying a sports car and then balking at regular oil changes. Likewise, one does not build a home and then neglect servicing the air conditioning or plumbing systems regularly.

In order to protect their investments, most people set aside time and allocate resources. While some people feel confident that they have the skills to accomplish these tasks themselves, others commit ahead of time to relying on the experts.

The same is true of maintaining your home theater system. While you could plan to service it yourself, eventually time or knowledge levels might hold you back. The good news is that we are here to help.

Since maintenance is a key phase in every home theater, we can help keep you on track. Whether your specific situations can be solved through remote access or require an on-site visit, we are available to help keep you satisfied, updating and adjusting the system to suit you as your needs grow and change.

By calling us when you hit any snags, you will be able to save valuable resources of time and money, allowing you to concentrate instead on what you do best: living life to the fullest.

If you have questions or comments about our services, or if you are interested in hearing more about our installation or maintenance services, please feel free to contact us. We look forward to serving you.

Control Your Home Through Your iPhone Part II

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Programs and apps help us run our lives. Whether it’s a banking app on our phone so people can monitor income and spending, a home surveillance system so you can monitor your home’s security while you’re at work, or a timer so you can see how you’re spending time online, every facet of our lives is integrating into our phones and devices to give us more information about ourselves. Here’s how you can do the same with your home theater and automation systems:

Control Your Home Through Your iPhone Part II

  • You can add functionality to every smart system in your house. Whether you want to use the app solely to navigate your home theater system and arrange a playlist or you want to change the lighting, climate, and security settings in your home, the Crestron app lets you do that wherever you have wifi. You can program daily or weekly schedules of lighting while you’re away on vacation to deter potential crime or let someone in if they forget their key. And if you have an Android device instead of an iPhone, Crestron has an app for you, too.
  • Evaluate your home systems through collected data. Systemic change in your habits requires data, and if you record calories or track your spending you know how valuable seeing your habits on a daily, weekly, and monthly scale can be. Use Crestron’s integration platform to measure energy usage, monitor your media consumption, and see what tweaks you can make to optimize your life.

If you’re thinking about syncing up your home but aren’t quite sure how it will fit into your lifestyle, download Crestron’s home integration app here to give it a try, and then contact Audio Video Solutions when you’re ready to try it with your own home’s home theater system and automated controls.