Part I

Part II

Radio RA 2 is a lighting control system that replaces the current switches in a condo or residence. It can call up specific scenes and levels with a push of one button. You can have an all off button when you go to bed at night. We have found that most people do not like to walk into a dark home. From the widow visor control, can open your garage door and turn on the light loads you want to the level you would like.  You are having guests over for some fun you can push one button for a party mode.  Plus if you dim levels in your house 25% you can save 20% on your energy bill.  In the future we can add the shades for light harvesting to even help save more in the future.  If any of these seem like a great idea and would like a free, just contact me.

There are some significant updates:

• You can now put up to 200 devices on the system
• There is a central processor that a professional installer can set up from a computer. The processor is in the Master controller and it even has an astrological clock. The clock is important because we know when things like sun up and sundown are thru the year
• Most of the parts are less than the previous system
• This new system talks better to the other Lutron products including Grafik Eye and Lutron Shades.

The Sivoia QS can integrate perfectly because we can set up scene from the lighting system that can control the shades. We can even use the astrological clock in the Lutron Lighting control system to help follow the sun and to help reduce the time the lights are on buy controlling the shades.  The QS system uses less expensive wires that are easier to pull. They even have a wireless version that you just have to run power to.

The Benefits of QS Shades

Total light control

• Seamless integration with GRAFIK Eye QS for intuitive control of electric and daylight
• Integration with other Lutron lighting control products
• Adjustable light and shade zones for scene control

Easy to design, install, and integrate

• Simplified low voltage wiring scheme
• Built-in diagnostics to verify system communications

Precision control of daylight

• Shades start, move, and stop in unison, maintaining perfect alignment with each other  (Within 0.125 inches of each other)
• Minimal, symmetrical 0.75 inch light gaps to ensure maximum window coverage

Simple operation, beautiful aesthetics

• Simple, intuitive control of window treatments with see Touch® QS keypads
• Wide variety of styles, colors, and metal finishes to complement your decor
• Backlit, engraved buttons for visible, intuitive control
• Preset buttons instantly recall a favorite light level or shade position

Ultra-quiet performance

• Manage daylight without disturbing the activity in a space
• Near-silent level operation rated at less than 44dBA at 3 feet

Contact me for a free in-home consultation

This is a great event to show that Music is alive and well.  If you would like me to register you please reply to my email address and I will be happy to get you in.  When you show up please look me up.  Last two years we have had over 500 people come check out what is new and hot.  I still think because of the Ipod more people are listening to music then ever before.  The ipod gets people listening and it is my job to help get the music to sound as good as it should in the home.

This is your invitation to Music Matters 5, our fi fth annual special event devoted to the reproduction of music in any environment. Regardless of the source, if you are passionate about music exquisitely reproduced, you need to attend Music Matters 5. During one listening-packed evening, you will see and hear the absolute finest 2-channel systems available, presented by the manufacturers.

Highlights this year include the world public debut of the new B&W 800 Series loudspeakers, the new Audio Research Ref 5 pre-amp and Ref Phono 2 pre-amp, Magenpan’s new 1.7, 3-way, and Mini Maggie system, as well as the Linn DSi, Ayre DX5 universal transport and the Peachtree iDecco.

There will also be a special demonstration room for Advanced Audio Systems, our Tacoma location, dedicated to the public premier of the Vandersteen Model 7 loudspeaker. In addition, we are pleased to be joined by Stereophile Contributing Editor, Michael Fremer.

Music Matters 5 is being held on one night only, Wednesday, February 3rd at our Seattle Showroom at 6206 Roosevelt Way NE. Presentations will run from 5–10 p.m. and will last approximately 30 minutes each. Hors d’oeuvres and refreshments will be served.

Presentations will be made by the following manufacturers:

Audio Research
Audioquest
Ayre Acoustics
B&W
Classé
Finite Elemente
Linn
Magnepan
Peachtree Audio
Transparent Audio
Vandersteen
Wilson Audio

The control 10 is a music/media server that gives you a system that is easy to read and easy to figure out.  Plus it is very rich in data and the ability to cross reference information is the best I have seen.  There is nothing wrong with Kalidescape, Sonos and the other systems that are on the market.  Just nothing hit the level of this system.  The Control 10 will give you give you clip art like everyone one else only if you want to find all the things that were produced by Quincy Jones it will tell you.  You could ask for an obscure bass player that played with Steve Winwood and it will let you know everyone he has played with.  I missed the album covers that talk about the LP inside, they have article’s on most of the music we loaded on our system.  The 17 inch screen makes it easy to read, I do not have to use my cheaters to read most of the basic information. The sound–it sounds like a Merdian GO8 CD player.  Because it records all the music in FLAC is it truly loss less. The screen can double as a Crestron touch panel so if I was designing a Theater/listening room I would just use this to control the whole room.

Here is the math.The unit sounds like there $4,o00.00 CD player when you are playing back music, it even has a slot loading CD transport in the front.  It acts like 17 inch Crestron touch panel sell for way more than $8,000.00. The Control 10 sells for $5,500.00.  You still need storage, only what a value.

Technical Specifications:

Dimensions: 18 x 13.6 x 7.3in (WHD)

Weight: 23.6 lb

Tilt: Adjusts from 0 degrees to 50 degrees

Network Connections: 1 Ethernet (RJ-45) or Neutrik EtherCon

Power Connections: 12V DC input, external AC adapter 110-230v

Audio Connections: 1 S/PDIF coaxial digital output, RCA type Meridian SpeakerLink

Control Connections: Meridian Comms and RS-232

LCD Display:Size/resolution: 17″ diagonal/ 1280/1024 pixels; brightness: 350 cdm2, Viewing Angle: 150 degrees

We showed our Wilson Audio Sasha speakers, which  I blogged about when they first came out.  But, this surround sound system with the matching center, rears, and Thors Hammer was just amazing.  In the same room was the Sim2 C3X Lumis Host as the video projector.  The color the projector produced was rich and the beautiful small projector made it very popular with the people that were style conscious.  The Lumis Host has processor that lives with your equipment rack and uses a fiber optic cable to get to the projector.  This eliminates the HDMI cable issues we have had in the past with other 2 piece projectors.

The room that Runco and Meridian shared was very impressive. Meridian purchased Sooloos this year and they showed the Control 10.  This very powerful music storage system now sounds like there G08 CD player that sells for $5,000.00 and the Control 10 sell for $5,500!!!  One thing you still need storage and that boosts the price but, I hope that makes the point. In this room they showed there DSP7200 digital speakers doing 5.1. With the advent of the HD621 you can now hook up HDMI without any jitter issues that are inherent in HDMI. The projector was the Runco Rear projector easy to install all the great scaling that Runco is famous for and in the 100” 16×9 format sells for about $40,000.00 and you do not have to worry about the ambient light in the room.

B&W showed there new CT series of home theater speakers with the new CT series of Classe electronics. CT stands for Custom Theater.  The B&W speakers are made to stay behind screen walls and have nothing interesting for cosmetics and no grills.  They are based on the 800 series of speakers that are so good that Abby Road Studios use them in there big mastering room.  Classe showed there rack mountable pre-amp just like there SSP800.  This one has the board that makes it do the True Dolby and DTS Master.  The chip should be ready for business next month. The Runco projector that was used was the VX-22 with the McKinley Cinewide lens.  The Stewart curved screen was like icing on the cake.

All in all it was a lot of fun and nice to know that there are lots of people in the area interested in getting some of the best performing theater products made.

Remotes that out put Ir are way too slow and laggy.  This remote control every thing in your system with the RF controler you put in with your stack of electronics. Sending RF is much faster and has less of the issues we have when someone has to point the remote at a target while the Macro string runs.  They have 3 Rf repeater boxs and I would use one of them based on the system you have.

This remote is also a WiFi transceiver for high speed transfer of cover art, artist, album and title metadata. It does more than that.  Instead of purchasing an expensive “Media PC” or dedicated music server, any PC with iTunes and/or Windows Media Player can be connected to your audio system to act as a high powered music server with a very good and intuitive interface.

MX-6000 Server is a software application that once installed on a PC, combines your iTunes library with your Media Player library. The MX-6000 uses its network connection via WiFi to communicate with the server software on the PC. Since all communication happens at WiFi “G” speed and it is fast at displaying the information. All your cover art, artist, album and song title metadata appear on the screen of the MX-6000. Lists are navigated via the integrated scroll wheel without ever connecting a keyboard or mouse to the PC. So now people can grab this one remote, not turn on the TV and enjoy your misic.

When the MX-6000 is connected to the Internet, pre-programmed modules enable instant access to personalized news, sports, weather and stocks. Unlike other devices, the MX-6000’s news, sports, weather and stocks modules are user-configurable without a programmer or a PC.  News, Sports, Weather and Stocks modules require that the MX-6000 be installed to a WiFi router with an Internet connection.

There are some very cool things that this remote can work with.  URC, the maker of the MX6000 also makes like switches that can also be controlled from most of there Rf remotes.

The PSX-2 Ipod doc is more of a server than an Ipod doc.  This has a very rich graphical menu that shows right on the MX-6000.  It even has component video outputs on the back so if a friend comes over with a digital movie or video you can connect this to your tv or receiver and control from the MX-6000

Specifications

* Display: 4.3″ Wide Screen TFT (480 x 272 QVGA) 65,536 Colors
* Size: 7.5″ x 5.1″ x 1.3″
* Weight: 15 oz. (with battery)
* Learning Capabilities: Standard frequencies (15kHz to 455kHz)
* Macro Capabilities: Up to 255 steps each, however nesting is allowed
* Memory: Microprocessor: ARM9 core @533MHz
Memory – 128 Megabytes of SDRAM
* RF Freq: 418MHz
* Range: IR (line of sight) -30-50’ depending upon the environment
RF (radio frequency) 50 to 100’ depending upon the environment
* Power Supply: 4800mAh (4 hours of continuous use, 9 Days in standby)
* Network: WiFi: IEEE802.11 b(11Mbps)/g(54Mbps)
* Warranty: 1 year parts & labor when purchased from an authorized dealer

HTE 17 is free, but please be sure to RSVP.

Hope to see you there, this is always a lot of fun!

Dates:

• Wednesday June 25, 2009 from 5-10pm
• Thursday June 26, 2009 from 5-9pm

Address:

14405 NE 20th Street
Bellevue, WA 98007

CLICK HERE TO RSVP

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In this environment I am doing fine. I have lots of established clients and get referrals regularily.  There are companies that wire commercial and residential projects that were struggling when times were good.  A few of the companies that have wired the condos at 1521, Olive 8 and Bellevue Towers are not in business now.  People are now coming to me and having me come out to pick up were these other companies left off.   The same is true for residences that people are purchasing as 2nd and 3rd owners.  The gear is all gone and there are a bunch of wires  in a cabinet and now they want to bring it all back to life.

Here are a few tips of what to try and get before the sale is closed and what to do after you move in.

Schematic and Pre-wire pull list:

When I do a good size project we will put a schematic together.  This is the roadmap that the installers, project managers, programmers and customers can use to understand what is in the system and how it will be wired.  These systems get more complicated to set up and easier to use everyday, but without a road map it is too easy for something to get missed. The pre-wire pull list will tell the installers what wires are pulled and where they start and end.  With out this check list again it is too easy to miss some wires or or accidentally pull the wrong one.  Every competent wire low volt company will make these at the time of the install.  With that list, your next installation expert should be able to pick up where everything was left off just fine.

Speaker and Volume control  count:

This is very helpful when going through a residence to see what is there.  Some times there are blank plates for other things.  In condos, you can find that control systems and motorized shades have been pre-wired and most of these systems will have keypad or touchpad locations.  Where these plate are will give your next designer very good clues as to what is pre-wired and what can be done.

Demark Locations:

Take a look at what is in these boxes. It will tell us a lot on how the residence is wired and again what we can do for you.  You might have Satellite and Cable–this will give us lots of choices.  If the Internet and phone wires are wired into the same location, we need a second Network wire. This again will give you options.

Theater Dimentions:

There are lots of variables  here.  Size of the room and physical distance to the screen from the viewing locations will need to be engineered.  Site lines so the risers are at the correct level so heads are not blocking the view and sound.  The screen height and width tells us where the projector should be.  Every projector has different throws and not all can be used in for every install. The distance from where the power and wires come out of the ceiling to the screen is critical for what projector is prescribed to fit the solution.

Pictures help a lot:

When we are talking about parts of the install, pictures help everyone during the planning and install phases. It all comes down to communication and the more types we have helps keep mis understanding from happening.  Lots of people are not technical, they can do the talking for us.

Full service is key to satisfaction:

Here is the list of the types of people you should have to complete most jobs properly.

Installers. These guys are the heart and soul to get the job done right. They need to know what they are doing and most states require a license.  They need to be organized, quick and pleasant to be around.  It is really hard for the one man shows to do all the rolls to pull off these jobs. Some times I will take an installer to a job I am trying to adopt. They very quickly can tell the quality of the install. After all that is what they do.

Project managers. This roll is the interface between all the different trades on a jobs including the customer and salesman.  There is a lot of prep that has to be done before the guys show up to do the work.  When you have the installers working on a job they cannot do any of the prep to get the job done. On a job that we are picking up they will come out and make sure what is in the house to give us advise and estimate the time to install the system.

Engineer. These are the guys that take the wishes of the client, and the plan of the consultant, then makes sure it will all work as asked.  They also document the jobs.  Lots use autocad and on new construction will drop out things right on the plan done by the architect. They will also reverse engineer what is in the house on the jobs we are adopting. It is there job to make sure the system will work if there is not documentation and create the missing documents.  This is very important in a theater as well.

Programmer. We sell remotes that make our systems easy to operate.  We have to program lighting control systems, shade system and control systems that control the whole shooting match. When we adopt a system we have to make sure the correct wires are pre-wired.  We have lots of wireless solutions so we might be able to work around it.

Service Techs. Having a service department with bench level techs are very key to keeping customers coming back and getting referrals.  I hate to hear people say about my competition, “yea they did a great job with everything but, when the tv broke down I had to take it to a service shop on my own.”  My company fixes everything we sell and we need these guys.  They are the only people I know that can get a tv or projector perfect.

I hope this is of some help to those of you who have fjound yourself stuck with an uncompleted project.  Be sure to shop around and don’t forget to give me a call.

Kaleidescape was the first company to come up with a legal way of putting movies you own on to a hard drive based system that can be looked a with separate players on any TV in your residence.  This is the first of the systems to come with its own remote control.  All of the systems I have installed up to now have always had a Crestron control system operating the system.

The Mini System can be expanded by adding Players so you can enjoy your entertainment collection in other rooms of your home.  You can add Servers if you run out of space on this system, as well as adding more players to expand to other rooms of your home.  You are not limited to just movies on these systems music can be distributed thru out the home as well.  The great interface that Kaleidescape has developed makes it easy to find your music as well as your movies–It is fast and very logical.

Key Features:

• Stores up to 225 dvd’s or 2,500 Cd’s
• Outputs 1080p
• You can add two additional zone to the Mini system
• DVD/CD playback from the Disc
• Simple Installation