A Mountain Villa with an Expansive Audio Experience
Amazing projects require amazing sound systems, but as with many projects these days, integrators know a lot of clients want the technology to be invisible. That was the case for the audio in this mountain villa project where SAV Digital Environments (Bozeman, Montana) needed to find a discreet solution for the extensive six-figure, 11-zone audio system.
Despite the challenges, however, their work certainly paid off. Finding a perfect solution for the client that managed to strike a chord between their high aesthetic and performance requirements, the design also seemed to strike a chord with the judges in the CE Pro Home of the Year Awards, netting SAV the silver award for Best Sound/Audio Project. It also struck a chord with Sonance, capturing their coveted Integrator of the Year Awards.
The complete system included lighting control from Lutron, TVs from Sony, audio streaming from Sonos, and a security and monitoring system from Axis Communications, all united within the RTI’s control platform. It was the choice to use Sonance and James Loudspeaker for the audio system, however, that wound up being the biggest decision for SAV.
Out the gate, the clients saddled SAV with the decision of whether or not to use consumer-grade speakers that would sit on the counter. Having streaming audio in the home was essential, so SAV chose to go with a more discreet speaker solution. Using small aperture speakers and subs from Sonance and James Loudspeaker, they were able to achieve just that, striking high aesthetic and performance requirements.
“As you enter this luxury mountain villa nestled in the mountains of Big Sky, Montana, you notice that everything complements each other. There isn’t a single talking point. The talking point is the home itself,” says Scott Abel, director of quality and customer service at SAV Digital Environments.
“We made that our goal, to integrate so seamlessly into the environment that it’s like we’re not even there. To become part of the home, just as the wood and steel, the stone and glass. The various smart home technologies that we integrated—from distributed audio, TV displays, and a custom theater, to integration into the lighting control and window treatments, even electronic tinting glass—all of it had to be under one interface that controlled everything intuitively and smoothly.”
