Qualified Remodeler Magazine

JUL 2016

Qualified Remodeler helps independent remodeling firms to survive, become more professional and more profitable by providing must-have business information, namely best business practices, new product information and timely design ideas.

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space is the driving force. Good lighting and automation of entertainment, lighting scenes and water features truly create the ambiance of the space. If you have the music turn on and automatically turn on a particular channel, then dim the lights and turn on the water fountain to a preset scene it really adds so much more value than listen- ing to music alone. Now you are creating an emotional connection to the space which always drives more use than just technology alone. Ryan: Family and friends — that's the most important "component" of an outdoor space. After that some speak- ers, amps and outdoor TV. Is there anything else you would like to share? Todd: Don't let the outdoors become an afterthought and a place where you cut the budget. Often it is easier to run new wire inside the home through an attic or a basement than it is to trench wire to the far reaches of the yard. Incorporate the outdoor system with everything you are doing indoors, and just as you do with the interior of the house make sure you have future expandability in mind — run cat6 to a couple of locations for potential WAPs and for a TV with an HDMI extender, and run wire for additional speakers and subwoofers if you are doing a basic system to start. Lewis: No matter what the owner is going to do in this space, plan for the future. Make sure there are extra wires or pathways for upgrades. Make sure you have the ability to add more technology when the time allows. Most im- portantly, deal with an educated CEDIA member who understands the value in not only knowing the technolo- gy, but also knows how to listen and communicate to the client and various vendors on the site. e outdoor space has a lot of players at the table and knowing how to project manage and communicate needs to the various partners is paramount. It takes patience and understanding that only comes from experience and humility. Ryan: You can have all the speakers and TVs you want in the outdoor environment, but if they are not easy to use it's just a bunch of junk. You need a great control system to make sure the system is easy to use with built-in redundancy like a basic remote control. An app is great but what happens when your wireless is down? | CEDIA is the leading global authority in the $14 billion home technology industry. CEDIA members deliver technology solutions that allow people to have their best moments in life from the comfort of their own home — life lived best at home. CEDIA is the international trade association and central touch point for 3,500 member companies that represents every facet of the ever-evolving home technology market. Is there a most requested feature that homeowners ask for? Todd: Hands down it is music. People want to entertain outside and listen music while barbecuing by the pool, playing with the kids in the backyard or doing yardwork. Lewis: We are seeing clients asking for better quality au- dio, not only resolution of the audio signal but also in the playback quality. High-end audio has been a big request of clients lately with subwoofers and DSP processing so the audio experience is more in line with listening to a CD or a lossless music format. Outdoor spaces provide an awesome opportunity for high-end audio to knock it out of the park because there is so much space, which makes calibration critical to a proper installation. Ryan: Our biggest requests always center around being able to listen to music or watch movies in the backyard. Outdoor living spaces have become quite popular. What components do you believe to be essential to have a complete outdoor entertaining space? Todd: A solid, well-balanced audio system; integrating light- ing and control; and Wi-Fi coverage with outdoor WAPs and video, be it a projector and screen or an outdoor TV. Lewis: It's easy to focus on the audio in outdoor enter- tainment systems. It is a critical component you have to do right to get the results you want. I'm talking good audio sources, digital signal processing, amplifiers and speakers. While audio, video and control are what a lot of people focus on (for good reason), the mood of the The mood of outdoor areas is the driving force to creating a great ambiance. This includes lighting, automation of entertainment and perhaps water. Create an emotional connection to the space. PROJECTS: QR Outdoors 30 July 2016 QR QualifiedRemodeler.com

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