Custom Home Theater Design & Installation


Custom Home Theater Design & Installation

 

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Turn Your iPhone into a Universal Remote with RedEye

October 25th, 2011

You know that you can control your iTunes music library on your computer with your smartphone. Did you know that you can now control all of your home theater equipment with it too? One of my favorite new home theater remote control solutions is RedEye, the next step in universal remote control by ThinkFlood.

How it Works

By leveraging your existing smartphone (iPhone, iPad, or Android) and home Wi-Fi network, RedEye allows you to control your entire theater system. The remote’s program is stored and retrieved from the RedEye Wi-Fi docking base station. Any Wi-Fi capable smartphone with the RedEye app can instantly retrieve the program from the RedEye base, and control your theater system. This means family and friends can walk into your living room without hunting for “the remote,” and instantly start controlling your theater system with their iPhone.

Easy to Use Remote with Motion-Gesture Features

My first experience with the RedEye remote system on a recent home theater installation was quite favorable. Once the RedEye system was properly integrated into the client’s existing theater system, the RedEye remote was reliable and responded quickly to command prompts. The app was so easy to use in fact, that my client’s 9-year-old daughter downloaded the app and started using it faster than I could explain how to use it!

One unique feature that I have not seen on any universal remote is the use of the iPhone’s accelerometer capabilities. The accelerometer allows you to send commands to your system with five different motion gestures. For example, when you receive a phone call and do not want to look down at the smartphone remote to find the mute button, you can mute your iPhone with the flick of your wrist!

Getting Started

You will need to purchase the RedEye Wi-Fi communication docking station, download the free RedEye app, and program the docking station to control your system.

One tip for optimizing your system’s performance is to use an IR distribution block. You can attach IR flashers directly to each system device, eliminating missed device remote control commands. For additional RedEye help and to ensure the best RedEye control and reliability, I recommend hiring a professional home theater integrator to set up your RedEye remote control system for you.

To learn more about taking control of your theater system with RedEye, contact us at (650) 321-7833 or info@immexperiences.com.

If you have any universal remote tips of your own to share with us, please post a comment below.

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House Hunting: Your Home Theater Checklist

April 3rd, 2011

Are you searching for a new home? You know to look for foundation issues. However, what about the viability of running low-voltage wire throughout your new home?

If you would like high quality sound and video distributed throughout your home and to have a clean appearance with equipment wires hidden in the walls, taking a close look at the home’s home-theater readiness can help you anticipate the investment required. To help you successfully implement the whole house audio and video system of your dreams, here are a few considerations:

1. Look for existing home wiring

Check to see that the home has structured wiring in place. Residential structured wiring usually takes the form of a home-run with wiring runs from a central point (often in a closet or a basement) going out to all other rooms in the home. Check for the following low-voltage wiring to each room:

• Voice, Internet, streaming media: Cat 5, Cat 5e, or Cat 6 wire

• Satellite and digital cable: coax cable

• Speakers: speaker wire

2. Determine how easily wire can be run to each room

Does the home have an accessible crawlspace and attic? Ideally, you will have a home with a crawlspace and an attic to run wire whenever and wherever you need it. Even if none of the rooms currently have any wire ran to them, with a crawlspace and an attic, a home theater professional can run the wire for you. If the home does not have an accessible crawlspace or attic, a home theater professional can still run the wires, although it will require some sheet rock removal and drilling through studs to place the wire where it needs to go. Read more »

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Top 10 Home Theater New Year’s Resolutions

December 17th, 2010

New Year’s Eve has always been a time for looking back at the past, and more importantly, forward to the coming year. It is a time to reflect on the changes we want to make and resolve to follow through on those changes. Did your home theater New Year resolutions make our top ten list?

1. Fix it or maximize what you already own

You put your hard earned money and time into your home entertainment system. Don’t you want the best picture and sound quality possible from your investment? A professional video calibration is an excellent first step, as it will noticeably improve your display’s picture quality. Read more »

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2010 Holidays: Is Now a Good Time to Buy an HDTV?

October 27th, 2010

An oversupply of LCD and plasma TVs is causing significant HDTV flat-panel price reductions right in time for the 2010 holiday shopping season. According to the research firm, DisplaySearch, starting in October and continuing through the end of the year, prices will be 12 percent below 2009 levels.

If you have been saying, “I’ll install the home theater system I have always wanted… once displays are more reasonably priced,” then now is a prime time to buy. Read more »

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Summer Is Here: Is Your Outdoor Home Theater Ready?

July 18th, 2010

A dedicated home theater system is no longer relegated to inside your home. You can now remodel your backyard into a first-class outdoor home theater system. For some, the appeal of an outdoor home theater is the nostalgic reminder of the drive-in theater. I have even heard swimming pool owners refer to it as their dive-in movie theater. For others, the appeal can be as simple as watching the game outside with your buddies while puffing on a Cuban cigar. Can you imagine how wonderful it would be to watch a basketball game by the pool or a movie under the stars? An outdoor home theater is an innovative solution for the sports and movie lover who wants to regularly enjoy the outdoors.

The Display

To implement a large outdoor display, I recommend a few approaches that look classy while protecting your display from the harsh elements of the outdoors:

• Recess a flat panel display into your backyard’s awning that flips down for viewing
• Recess a projector screen into your outdoor awning that rolls down for viewing
• Store your large display inside a waterproof unit and use a motorized lift to slowly carry the display into full view Read more »

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Top 3 iPhone Apps for A/V Media Control

June 3rd, 2010

Did you know that you can control many of your favorite audio and video media components with your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch, and other web browser capable wireless devices? Downloadable software applications from the web can transform your iPhone into a first-class wireless touch screen remote. I am happy to say that many multimedia device manufactures have generously provided the apps for free and only take a few seconds to set up.

Our staff’s top three favorite free media control apps compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad are:

1. Sonos Controller – for Sonos Systems

The Sonos Controller lets you do the following:

- Browse your entire music library
- Quickly search for your favorite artists
- View album cover art
- Stream music and radio stations from the web
- Select the room or zone to play the music

To download the Sonos Controller, visit the Sonos website.

2. i.TV – for TiVo and Roku Players

The i.TV app is primarily for TV and movie listings. The more exciting thing the i.TV app will do is act as a remote control for your TiVo HD DVR and HD Roku player. Read more »

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HD Blah Blah Blah!

April 3rd, 2010

“HD blah blah blah!” echoed thunderously throughout an upscale Menlo Park Italian restaurant from an older gentleman seated at the bar. Hearing this man’s home theater battle cry made me realize that perhaps some clarification on the value of a 1080p native resolution display was in order. If you are currently creating or updating a home theater system, a 1080p display can be vital in delivering a high resolution, larger-than-life movie theater picture experience to your home.

When you go to your local movie theater, the screen size and seating distances are such that you will have a viewing angle ranging from 26 to 40 degrees. A full HD 1080p display makes it possible for the picture detail to be maintained while you sit close enough to recreate the same degree of visual envelopment you experience at your local cinema. Read more »

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3D HDTVs – A Game Change for 2010

March 13th, 2010

At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2010 conference in Las Vegas, display manufacturers heavily promoted 3D HDTVs. More recently, Panasonic broadcast live to a movie theater the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in 3D HD for free to the general public.

It is very exciting to see manufactures’ collective push to bring 3D displays to the consumer market this year. When sports fans see how incredible the 3D HDTV picture looks when watching their favorite team play live, I believe we will see increasing interest for 3D HD displays. Read more »

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