Firstly, it’s good to understand the science behind why adding a subwoofer can make the most impact to your audio system.  Most full range speakers operate within a range of 70 Hz to 20,000 Hz , a huge range that can accurately relate most – but critically not all frequencies in the audible spectrum.   Subwoofers typically operate in the much lower and narrower band of 30Hz to 150Hz..  It’s the rumble in your seat that you notice during action scenes in a movie theatre or the thumping bass in a DJ’s set.  At lower levels it can also help to produce a full rich sound that will fill the room. Low frequency reinforcement is not always needed, but if you’re going to do it, it needs to be done well.

There are three options, but you can pick only two!

When choosing equipment for projects, we consider three key elements: Aesthetics, Performance and Price. We often say: “pick any two”, because we are yet to come across something that is beautiful, powerful, andcheap.

AESTHETICS

By their nature, subwoofers are typically big, bulky, unattractive boxes – causing exasperation for any architect or interior designer.  Balancing the needs of the room with the needs of the architectural finish will often be the most challenging part of project design.   However, several of our brands have creative innovative solutions to making a subwoofer more aesthetically pleasing or, in some applications, almost disappearing.

In-Wall: Some subwoofers have been designed to be only partially visible.  K-array from Italy have engineered a subwoofer to pack a very large punch in to a small enclosure. They also have some stunning custom finishes including Chrome and Gold.  Sonance, who invented the recessed speaker, have in-wall subwoofers with paintable grills or custom wood finishes to seamlessly match their surrounding decor.  JL audio also makes an impressive in-wall subwoofer with an attractive finish.

Remote Subwoofer: The ultimate aesthetic option, for us, is made by James Loudspeaker. These powerful speakers are totally hidden in a bespoke cabinet.  Sound is delivered to the room via a flexible tube which connects to a discrete toe kick.  The toe kick is often unrecognizable as the subwoofer output making it impossible to know where that low frequency punch is coming from. Alternatively, with specialized engineering, some subwoofers can be installed into existing furniture, or placed under beds and sofas.

PERFORMANCE

Choosing the right subwoofer requires complete understanding of the form and function of the room as well as the speaker itself. In fact, it’s arguably more important to understand the composition of the room first before you choose the performance of your subwoofer, so let’s have a quick review.

In a home theatre for example, simply buying a powerful subwoofer, placing it in the corner and turning it on, may not necessarily yield a great audio experience. If the room is the wrong shape or has a lot of reflective surfaces, the low frequencies can be very uncomfortable to listen to. So, when it comes to choosing a subwoofer, it needs to be a balance of what the room is intended for, what the room’s acoustic performance is capable of and what the reflections are going to be like based on the finishes of the walls, ceilings, and floors.

REFLECTIONS

In the Caribbean, we often find ourselves trying to add high quality sound in rooms or spaces that have tiled floors and large windows. These are not great spaces for a subwoofer. Low frequency wavelengths reflect off flat walls and surfaces more than higher frequencies.  You can think of a subwoofer audio like a bouncy ball. You can imagine what will happen if you throw one against a hard flat surface. The same is true with audio and especially below 100Hz. The best way to prevent the ball from flying around the room is to add some absorptive materials that effectively “catch” or trap the audio waves. If you don’t add absorption to a highly reflective space, the low frequency energy will create an uncomfortable listening experience. It may also be important to try and prevent the low frequency sound waves from leaking out of the room which can be disturbing for the rest of the house or even your neighbours, but we’ll save that discussion for another day.

Now we’ve got a room that is ready for low frequencies, let’s review the different performance characteristics of a subwoofer. Subwoofers come with a few basic options: Active or passive, Ported or sealed. So, let’s review the main differences:

Active subwoofers have the amplifier built-in. Passive subwoofers have a remote amplifier and are powered by speaker wire. Generally, active subwoofers work well out of the box because the amp is powered and tuned for the speaker but they are not good for outdoor use, especially in the BVI’s Marine environment.  Passive speakers are generally the best choice for outdoor applications and most distributed audio systems but you have to choose the right amplifier and use the right cable.

With all the different speakers out there, it’s impossible to say these rules apply to all, but broadly speaking, ported subwoofers have a higher output and range and are better known for use in large theatres. They are often described to make a better “boom” effect which is more common in movies but also known to be quite effective with some musical applications. Sealed subwoofers are known for their accuracy and the preferred choice for musical applications or small theatre rooms.

For the large-scale home theater solutions, we would choose the high-performance solutions from Pro Audio.  These large speakers are generally installed behind a transparent acoustic curtain or hidden behind an acoustically transparent projection screen to provide cinema grade audio that is off the charts.  For smaller residential applications, Sonance, JL Audio and Sonos all sell subwoofers that can boost, clarify, and elevate the audio and take your movie watching experience to the next level.

For listening to music, it’s important to note that different genres of music have different audio requirements.  Therefore, we always spend time with our clients and architects to design and engineer an audio solution that will meet their needs.

PRICE

If aesthetics and performance were the only two facets of our audio designs, our job would be simple!  Where we must get creative is providing a bespoke solution that delivers all the needs of the clients, architects, and designers, within the set budget.  When choosing brands, it’s often the price that ultimately tips the scales.

At the high-end is Pro-Audio but we only recommend that level of sound in a a premium home-theatre.  For a typical residential application for watching movies and listening to music, subwoofers come in a variety of shapes, sizes and price.

For the discerning customer, we would recommend James Loudspeaker.  Their selection is vast, the sound quality is incredible, and their speakers can withstand the harsh BVI environment, even in water-front properties.   K-array are also a high-end solution and have an innovative selection of free standing or in-ceiling/ in-wall options to elevate any room in the house.

Sonance and JL Audio subwoofers offer amazing value for money and both provide excellent sound solutions with a high architectural aesthetic finish. And for a price conscious project SVS subwoofers are extremely affordable and provide attractive finishes.  Sonos is a popular, cost-effective solution which can be integrated to any audio system and easily controlled using a pad or smart phone.

At AVL, we cannot stress enough the importance of a subwoofer in achieving well-balanced sound that fills the room. Those gasp-worthy movie scenes or dance-triggering music moments would not be possible without the impact, drama and power of your audio systems secret weapon – the subwoofer.

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Energy Efficiency

Although there is a natural appeal to saving money on a monthly utility bill, the global need for ‘greener’ solutions to energy consumption is a driving force for many of our customers upgrading to smart lighting.

For the average home, lighting accounts for about a quarter of energy bills.   Installing dimmers and sensors can instantly positively impact your electricity usage. Sophisticated sensors can detect occupancy to only activate a light when someone is in the room, or sense daylight to shut off any lights when they are not needed.  Energy efficient light sources such as LED or fluorescent lamps and dimmable light fixtures help reduce electricity usage and generally last a longer than a traditional incandescent or halogen lamp.  Additionally, easily activating ‘away mode’ or ‘green mode’ when the property is unoccupied prevents unnecessary electricity wastage.

Convenience

A well-designed lighting control system is easy to operate and understand.  Light years away from the basic ‘on/off’ wall switch, a smart network allows you to control the presence and levels of lighting for a single room or an entire house.

Each button is fully customizable to suit the needs of the homeowner, such as ‘movie’, ‘cooking’ or “property off”. Preset scenes can be added to each room, giving numerous options for different occasions.  These commands can be instantly activated by a touch of a button on a wall mounted keypad, from an app on a smartphone or tablet, or integrated with a voice activated system, such as Alexa. It can also be executed automatically using a timeclock. For example, at sunset, the system will automatically turn on the path lights, the pool lights and set an attractive scene in the social areas. This is how most commercial resorts control their lighting in public spaces and is the reason why you do not see their staff running around turning on and off a combination of lights and adjusting dimmers. It all happens automatically, and it is tracking the position of the sun at any time of year, so it knows exactly when to activate a setting.

Home Security

Lighting control can be programmed to provide additional home security and keep vigil over an unoccupied property.  In “vacation mode”, the lights can be programmed to provide random lighting in specified areas to make it look like someone is at home.

Ambience and Aesthetics

Lighting can play an essential, and often understated, role in the ‘feel’ of any space, in both commercial and residential applications.  Colour temperature and levels of lighting will all contribute to the size, atmosphere and ambience of a room.  Each area will have different requirements and a lighting control system can easily adjust for each situation.  Pre-settings can range from an endless range of choices, from dinner party to disco, and dimmable light fixtures provide further control to set the desired scene.

Installed interfaces can help customize the look to suit the aesthetics of the décor.   Faceplates range in size, finish and texture to blend in or accentuate.  Back lit buttons are easy to find and read in the dark, and personalized engraved labels clearly navigate the chosen settings. The benefit of a fully integrated lighting control system is that you do not need to have several gangs of switches and dimmers on the wall. You just need one keypad in a convenient location and the buttons can be programmed to control one or hundreds of lighting loads and other devices in the property.

Future Proofing

There is no question that the need to be efficient is an essential pre-requisite in the design of new homes and buildings. When you add the convenience and aesthetics of a lighting control system to these intelligent features, it’s understandable why this option is being considered in so many mid to large scale homes and businesses. A lighting control network is easy to update and change up as your needs and requirements evolve over time.  The latest technology can be applied as new updates become available, ensuring your system is working to its fullest potential.

AVL can assist in the design, supply, installation and support of LUTRON and CRESTRON lighting control systems. Please contact us for a free consultation.

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DESIGN

WIFI has become an essential part of life and the need for it has never been greater.  No longer can rental villas and hotels in the Caribbean use the excuse of ‘unplugging from the real world’ to account for no or intermittent WIFI.  It is a compulsory feature and guests will expect fast and reliable connectivity from the minute they arrive. And these days it’s not just personal devices that need to connect; everything from pool systems to smoke detectors require a reliable connection to the internet for full functionality. 

It all begins with a bespoke networking design.  For an existing property, this can only be achieved by a detailed analysis of the property and an understanding of how the conduits have been run.   For new construction, the specialist will review drawings to determine the best design. Although many of the same rules and principles apply to a good WiFi solution, every project is different and complete knowledge of all areas is required.  Strategically placed access points, or radios, will be used to propagate the WIFI signal around the property (more on this later when we move on to technology and installation). In addition to the challenges of WiFi signal, our customers often have customized configuration requests, such as a dedicated network for security and privacy, or restricted internet in children’s areas. 

A large part of our design process is determining the installation method that will cause the minimum disruption and expense for our clients.  Homes that were built before the age of internet are likely to have a single small internal conduit running through the house for analogue telephone only.  This won’t be sufficient to create hardwired data network and new infrastructure will need to be plumbed in. Bringing a property into the twenty first century is worth enduring and investing in, adding overall value and enabling future technology.  

For new construction, it’s essential to secure the plumbing for technology as early as possible in the design phase.  Allowing for a proper conduit network is often an afterthought but by prioritizing technology integration at the very early stages, it will save a lot of time, money and hassle down the line. We’ve always found it confusing that designs for homes include mechanical, electrical and plumbing automatically, but the requirement for technology is often considered only during or after construction. Many people hope that a wireless system can be plugged in anywhere, at anytime, and meet all the WIFI requirements.  At AVL, we know this is simply not a viable option for getting good quality signal to all the necessary areas throughout the property.

TECHNOLOGY

Whether AVL are designing a WIFI network for a family home or a large resort, our customers expect optimum results.  Our clients want WIFI connectivity that can withstand high traffic and require minimum maintenance, so this dictates the technology that we use in all our projects.

The technology we install is the most reliable on the market.  The industry standard of reliability is referred to as the five 9’s – meaning that WIFI has to not only be ‘good’ but ‘99.999% good’.  When a 98% reliability rate for WIFI means poorly streamed movies and dropped calls, the five 9’s marker of reliability is paramount to all AVL installations,

There is a dazzling selection of modems, routers and access points on the market.  Although the old adage of ‘you get what you pay for’ applies, there are affordable alternatives available and a professional will know when to splurge and when to save. 

For our installations, regardless of size, we recommend products that are tested to a commercial standard.  These are routers and access points that have been designed to withstand the kind of traffic and overuse that could be found in an airport, large office or hotel.  Aesthetics are also important and the newest hardware features customized veneers, textures and finishes so they seamlessly blend into the existing furniture.

Many of the private villas and resorts we work with have beach or sea facing properties that provide stunning views but can wreak havoc on technology.  The al fresco Caribbean lifestyle means that salt spray, extreme sunlight and humidity all effect products, whether installed indoors or outdoors.  When choosing hardware, we visualize how they would hold up on the deck of a sailboat so our products are tested to marine grade standards to withstand these harsh elements.

Although AVL services and supports all installations, we insist that our products require the minimum amount of maintenance necessary.  We understand there is nothing more frustrating that technology not working when it’s needed most, so we also use remote monitoring to track the reliability, consistency and effectiveness of all our WIFI products.

INSTALLATION

The installation begins at the centralized hub, or core.  This is where the internet uplink terminates (which is provided by an Internet Service Provider (ISP), for instance Flow, CCT or Digicel) and enters the home.  A quick note on those so called ‘boosters’ that we mentioned earlier.  Internet cannot be ‘boosted’ to be faster than what is arriving to your property via your ISP.  The strength of the signal can only be shared, it cannot be made faster or stronger. The way we propagate the signal throughout the property ensures there is no drop in strength.

From the centralized core, a modem is needed to convert, or decode, the signal into ethernet.  It’s common for modems and routers to be combined (especially if using the basic models provided by your ISP) but at AVL, we always recommend a separate router.  This provides a more secure and private transmission with network management features that improve internal network performance. 

Small access points, or radios, are distributed throughout the property at locations dictated by the network design.  These are hardwired so that all end points (or nodes) return back to the centralized core. This configuration, or star topology, creates the fastest and most robust pathway back to the core.

The location and amount to radios needed depends on the layout and materials used in the property.  These radios work a lot like a conversation between two people; face to face hearing and understanding one another is easy, but if one person walked out of the room and closed the door behind them, the conversation would be hard to hear and understand.  In the Caribbean, most homes are built with hurricane resistant materials. This often means concrete walls reinforced with steel and impenetrable glass, all of which can hinder WIFI signal. Even aluminum mosquito screens and UV filters on windows can block and scramble WIFI signal.  All these elements have to be taken into account during design and installation.

The final step is where the WIFI magic happens!  Once the radios are in place and wired in, they can then transmit a WIFI signal.  Despite being individually hardwired, they will provide a seamless centralized connection to the core and to each other.  Imagine walking through a property on an internet call where each radio with pass over to the next one, without any disruption of service.  The strategic location of each radio ensures that all social areas in the property have a secure and reliable WIFI connection at all times.

There are many different ways to install a WIFI network, but at AVL we are only interested in providing systems that we know are going to last and work.  A simple but effective philosophy that has made us the best in what we do.

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