Jarrod ‘Salty’ Saltalamacchia, starting catcher for US baseball team the Boston Red Sox, has upgraded his home’s AV system with the ELAN g! Entertainment and Control System.
With music and television high on the list of interests for the family, Saltalamacchia underwent the full ELAN g! treatment – even expanding the system to integrate control of the home’s lighting, heating and cooling, security and surveillance.
Dave Febbraio of Connecticut-based Structured Home Solutions integrated nine audio zones, eight video zones, 22 security zones, 12 Lutron lighting zones and several surveillance cameras into Saltalamacchia’s g! System, filling the entire house – indoors and outdoors.
Inside the home, 14 Niles in-ceiling speakers provide audio in almost every room, while nine Samsung LED TVs ranging from 26in to 55in and a Sharp 70in LED TV offer the family an endless selection of TV and videos from 12 DirecTV receivers and a 2TB NAS drive. A Logitech Squeezebox adds Pandora and Rhapsody streaming services to the mix, which also includes AM/FM, Sirius|XM Satellite Radio, iPods, iPads and the family’s iTunes library.
Outside, the poolside patio that features six Niles outdoor speakers and three LG LCD TVs. In addition to the iPads with the g!Mobile app, several rooms and the patio incorporate ELAN HR2 remotes.
The home’s ELAN g! system comprises ELAN’s HC6 Controller, an ELAN V85 video switcher, an ELAN S1616A, five ELAN HR2 Remotes, an ELAN TS7 in-wall touch screen, an ELK security system, Lutron RadioRa2 lighting, two Aviosys IP video servers and a Panamax BlueBolt surge protector and battery backup.
“Not only is the sound clearer [than comparative systems], louder, and distributed all over the house, but all my music and movies are automatically connected to the system so there’s no need to plug in my iPad,” commented Saltalamacchia.
The Boston Red Sox starting catcher, whose career game total stands at 474 to date, cites the g! iPad control apps as one of defining features of the system, with it allowing control of the TVs from different locations. “Especially in the game room, where it’s easy to use three side-by-side TVs that are clearly labeled TV one, two and three on the g! screen. If I ever move to a new home there’s a good chance that getting an ELAN g! System will be one of the first items on my to-do list.”
