Project Gallery

A little home in the country		We love special projects. The bigger the challenge, the more excited we get. When Derek and Lynn first saw the plans for this masterpiece, they knew it was going to be worth any amount of effort. The beautiful architecture and open beam construction posed several design challenges, especially with respect to lighting controls and audio. The owner wanted a comanding theater and basement bar to match his equal love of restoring vintage cars. 110 lighting zones, 8 audio zones, 7 high definition displays, 3 in-wall touch screen controllers and 3 color touch-screen hand held remotes allow them to transform the home from practical, to party, to relaxing, to secure--all at the touch of a button.
The Good Life on Main Street		When the owners of this luxury condo decided to settle down near their family in Carmel, Indiana, they wanted to build a residence with style and performance. Situated right in the middle of Main Street and the Carmel Arts District, their balcony feels like a castle tower overlooking all the action. The owners wanted it all from a technology perspective so they chose DistinctAV after meeting Derek at the Indianapolis Home Show. 8 high-definition TV zones, 5 audio zones, security, and 40 lighting zones create a truly luxurious escape. The lighting accents their artwork and the artwork is part of the lighting! To conserve space, twin TVs were mounted over their bed and there's over a mile of wire terminating behind the temperature-controlled equipment rack. "Peek-a-boo" speakers automatically lower from the ceiling and a powerful in-wall subwoofer makes both movies and music sound rich.
Add Theater, House Audio, HD Matrix		What started as a request for a home theater turned into a "house-changing experience". So far, we've added the theater, 5 zones of high definition video sharing 9 sources, 9 zones of audio sharing 6 sources, 8 zones of lighting controls, an equipment rack, and power conditioning.
Fine Art never sounded so good		The Evan Lurie Fine Art Gallery sits in the heart of the Carmel Arts District on 30 West Main Street. While commercial applications are not our core focus, this building is special. Four luxury condos top the 4-story building (see related gallery profiles). Evan and his wife Jen love to host parties and special events at the Gallery so they asked us to provide the audio system, networks, and security systems to protect the art and their special guests. Evan recommends DistinctAV for advanced lighting controls when clients buy artwork.
A luxury motorhome needs a luxury home		This Noblesville couple loves to tour the country in their luxury motorhome. When they park the RV, it's time to relax in a home (without wheels). Mission accomplished with 10 high-definition flat screens, 7 zones of great sound, and two color touchscreen remotes that tame the technology. The owners were downright giddy playing with their system upon returning to their newly completed home. "I can't believe how easy this is to use. I just picked up the remote and could use all of it!"
Ultimate eligible bachelor		This home is designed for entertaining family and friends. With 5 HD TVs capable of displaying any of his shared sources and an awesome house audio system that extends outdoors. The owner is ready for any type of gathering or simply relaxing with a favorite music collection or a recorded HDTV show. Neat and tidy work conceals the extensive complexity of the underlying systems. Three touch-screen remotes allow this non-technical homeowner to operate it all with ease.
Upgraded TV with cabinet		Some clients upgrade their homes one room at a time. This homeowner updated from a bulky rear-projection 4:3 big screen to a brand new plasma. The beautiful cabinets were saved and a plasma box was created to leave the finished look of the built-in cabinets. Other rooms were added to the system so they can share sources across the house. That's their dog, Levi.
Basement upgrade extends to the rest of the house		Why limit yourself to one room? This lakeside home has the master bedroom TV mounted up and out of the way. The basement entertaining area includes a full surround sound system that automatically lowers from the ceiling. Of course, it's all tied together with custom remotes and a high-def matrix audio/video switcher.
Look Ma! No Wires!		Bringing a flat screen into the family can cause quite a stir. These homeowners wanted to install a flat screen over their existing mantle but they also wanted expandability. With plans for a basement theater and integrated systems, we moved their unsightly equipment to the basement and installed the flat screen with the same attention to detail as our largest projects. They can not access their 400-disc DVD changer via the internet connected on-screen catalog (Escient SE-D1). While their builder limited their house audio options, they can now choose and control the music from their remote and TV. Theater, rack, and a matrix switcher are planned when the basement is finished.
Examples of our remotes		With over 20 years experience designing user interfaces, Derek and his team create intuitive and feature-rich remotes that make all the complexity go away and leave you with a powerful, yet easy to use solution. Here are some sample images from our recent projects.
SpyMaker Exhibit		Universal Services Inc creates amazing exhibits around the world. When they needed technician support for the buildout of the Spymaker Exhibit, they contacted DistinctAV.
Theater / Entertainment Room		This basement project had some ceiling challenges and a tight budget. The 1080p rear-projection TV looks very theatrical due to the large black cloth wrapped border. The whole-house audio wires, network, phone, and cable wires were moved to the utility room behind the TV. In-wall speakers and a built-in sub produce great sound without taking up any valuable space. A Play Station 3 game console is neatly hidden in the cabinet and doubles as an extra DVD or CD player.
Palo Alto Home		The homeowner asked us to design and build their large renovation project on the Stanford Campus. There are over 240 wire pulls to accomplish the level of control, audio, security, lighting, and HD video this client desires. The most intriguing aspect of this project is the lighting control system. To maintain the 1940s look we adopted replica "push-push" switches and integrated them with a state-of-the-art lighting control system. The result is an old-time look with modern conveniences. All of the lighting is California Title 24 compliant. Recent upgrades include a 19-zone completely IP-based digital audio system with in-wall color touch-screen controls, cameras, a 400-disc DVD changer manager, and a music library manager. The spaghetti-works photo is the bench testing of the advanced digital audio system.
Theater / Entertainment Room		Transforming this basement room to take advantage of every available cubic inch was a challenge we thoroughly enjoyed. This included a built-in mini rack and speakers, ceiling mounted front projector, and beautiful lighting accents--all controlled via our "On Touch Easy" touch-screen remote.
Media Townhouse		This townhouse is decked-out with six flat panels, whole house audio, security, and scene controlled lighting. Recently added AppleTV.
Overhaul and Add Matrix		This customer wanted to get more out of their sources in an existing theater room. We installed a new flat panel over a difficult fireplace and added a high-definition matrix switch while re-using their existing remotes.
Hook-up and Repair		We know how important great service is and how hard it is to find. Many customers start out as simple repair or re-connection service calls.
Irish Pub Theater		Our client wanted a built-in TV for general entertaining and a big screen for watching movies. We installed a motorized drop-down screen that lowers in front of the cabinet for big-screen viewing. The remote simplifies the operation of the two screens by automatically switching all the components from one viewing system to the other simply by choosing "Watch Big Screen" or "Watch Small Screen". Choosing the DVD, HiDef Cable, TiVo, or Game system is the same regardless of which screen is displayed. There is also a flat-screen over the Bar area and a TV in the exercise room. The Theater sources can also be viewed from the living room TV.
Our Showroom		The DistinctAV Showroom is designed to help our clients experience the possibilities of home electronic systems. There is a Kitchen, Family Room, Studio Room, Theater, Game Room, and Outdoor section. We also host private events. Contact Kim Long at extension 420 for more info or reservations.
Lake Tahoe Camp Themed Theater		DistinctAV owner, Derek Cowburn, created this ultimate escape theater room in his house in Cambridge. Huge "trees" flank the screen and hide the front speakers in this 6-seat theater. A fiber-optic starfield ceiling, acoustical treatments, and matching decor make this room a special getaway for watching movies, listening to music, or just relaxing.
Smart Home Wiring		This client enjoys lots of music and the luxury of lighting controls without "Breaking the Bank". We engineered all the low-voltage wiring in this new home including flexible High Definition viewing in key locations, security, lighting, audio, telephone, network, cable, and controls. All the systems are designed to work together easily.
Home Theater		This large room has a projection screen and a custom fabric proscenium to hide the speakers. We enclosed the projector in a hushbox to eliminate any projector noise. The Escient DVD changer controller and easy to use remote means no kids are required when it's time to watch movies or High Definition cable.
iPod dock, house audio, smart remote		This client asked us if we could install speakers and volume controls in two rooms to get music from their tuner in the basement. While discussing the possibilities, we discovered they love their iPod and told them about the iPod docking station.
2006 Home Show booth		If you missed the 2006 Indianapolis Home show, here is the DistinctAV booth. If you visited us, thanks for stopping in!