Exponential Home Entertainment

Les Everett, Owner of the integration firm Nu-Tech Audio Visual in Fayetteville, Ga., was approached to handle a modest loudspeaker installation in what started out as a basement remodeling project. In initial talks with the homeowners, he found that, although the wife was a music-lover, the clients were not predisposed to doing much more in the way of technology to the home – “and their kids only cared about having Wi-Fi,” he said.

In fact, the main method of music distribution in the home had been via an outdated intercom system – and there was only a single AT&T network router in the basement for the whole house.

After deeper conversations with the owners, Everett was able to convince these clients of the extraordinary benefits and enjoyment to be had with thorough, whole-home automation – but in a way that was easy to control and manage, with URC.

Everett selected URC, with its intuitive, simple-to-operate remotes as the control protocol for these clients. The upshot: this installation, when all was said and done, escalated tenfold in dollar value, and now reaches every corner of this 7,600-square-foot home – with 18 zones of audio distributed by URC’s DMS distributed audio system, a dedicated media room, and a family room theater, URC lighting control system, automated door locks and Fibaro sensors around the home – all controlled by URC Total Control™ in-wall touchscreens, tabletop touchscreens and remotes.

Nu-Tech installed a seven-foot rack in the basement that serves as the heart of the house, a Luxul® network and six Luxul XAP-1510 WAPs throughout the home. A custom made Doorbird® Doorbell with the homeowners’ name on it interacts with all nine URC in-wall touchscreen units, ringing them all as well as ringing the homeowner’s phone for when he is out of town so he can see who’s at the door.

Every wall keypad doubles as a video intercom for each room. And each child has a touchscreen on the walls of their room, explains Everett, so that when meal time rolls around, Mom no longer needs to summon them with a shout to come down for dinner.

Another nice amenity is URC’s geofencing feature, giving the homeowners peace of mind that all lights and locks are engaged or disengaged properly when they are leaving and arriving. This capability is triggered by the owners’ proximity to the residence. “For example, when they get to a certain stop sign up the road,” explains Everett, “the phone sends a push notification, such as, “Are you leaving the house?” and if the response is “Yes,” it will shut off lights or lock doors.”

Everett said the homeowners are so pleased with the end result that they want a similar system installed in a just-purchased lake house – and are recommending Everett and his URC solutions for a resort that the couple’s attorney colleagues are involving in the planning for.

“URC gives great tech support and has a great sales team and reps,” he said. “No other company out there has a better remote.”