Elytronic in the Press - Electronic House May 2013

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Big-screen video transforms this space and ushers in an invisible surround-sound system. Photography by Christos Panayides SHOWING OFF ELECTRONICS delivers even more impact when it seems there's really not much to sec. That's the beauty of this luxury pcnrhou sc-r-lccatcd on th e M editerranean island of Cy-

SYSTEMS DESIGN & INSTALLATION

prus-r-whosc architecture irsclfis such a th ing of bcauty that you wouldn't possibly want to mess

Elytronic

with it. For most of the day, the stunning interior simply speaks for itself, without much hint that

Nicosia. Cvorus Ir;nin

th e room offers entertainment beyond an elegantly wall-mounted flat-panel television. But when

Interior Design J Joseph Interiors Nicosia, Cyprus

the hom eowner fire s up a movie for guests, at the press of a button the room puts on quite a show:

Architect K.N. Tofarides Associates Nicosia. Cyprus

ized bli nds slowly cover t he windows; a 106-inch screen drops down in front of the T V; a

This is when, as de ftly installed and programmed by local cus tom electro nics pro Elyrronic, the technology choreograp hy com m ences: t he ligh ting begins to d im; the motor-

projector descends from its ceiling hideout; and the invisib le surround-sound speakers an d subwoofers make their p resence known.

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"T h e owner is a developer for real estate apart ments and houses, so he knew abou t

auto mation and he wante d to do something special to show customers th at was a bit over the top. P lus he likes th e stuff as well, so he understands how it 's able to make his life easier," says Elyrronic's H arris Epameinonda s. "T he most challenging part was to crea te an am azing space without t he electronics being shown, so nobody knows th ere's a proj ector, a screen, the speake rs, until they suddenly appear. T he coord inatio n of the gear took the

ceiling guys, th e heatin g guys, the interior designer . . . because everybody's part of it, and bringin g everyone on th e same page."

Elyrronic wo rked throughout the roughly 2,OOO-square-foot penthou se while it was being renovated, so the com pany could carefully provide detailed plans and exact dimensions for all of that coo rdi nation. For exam ple, the five Ste alth Acoustics AX3 speakers and pair of Stealth B1 630 passive subwoofe rs are truly invisible in the ceili ng , but they required particular metal structu res to ensure the ceiling wouldn 't shake du ring a movie (especially the area around the subs). T heir install ation also necessitated special instructions for the ceiling painter so the spe akers would receive the proper fi nishing that wouldn't muffle the sound.

And since you can't see the speakers, we'll just tell you that the front three channels re-

Co ntrol : Contro l4 Lighti ng/Sh ading: Lut ron Projector : Planar Screen: Screenview TV: Pioneer Speakers & Subwoofer: Stealth Acoustics AN Sources: Apple TV. N et gear. Pioneer Lift & M ou nt: Chief Rack: Ra xxess

side in fron t of the screen housing, while the rear surrou nds fl ank the C hief proj ector lift and

HIGHLIGHTS

the two subwoofer panels sit between the family room and adjacent op en di ning room area.

• M odern look tha t's un interrupted by t echnology.

• Invis ible surround -sound audio system meticulously insta lled in the ceiling.

• Two viewi ng options. w ith a projec tion screen housing i ncorpor at ing the design of the room.

"In the living room, what people want these days [for NY }, it's a compromise between aesthetics and performance," says Epameinondas. "The invisible 5.1 Stealth Acoustics system is kind of a compromise, but on the other hand it looks amazing and sounds very good. It's magical."

Speaking of the ceiling, one of the more creative fe ats in designing and installing the

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FAMILY/MEDIA ROOM ~I~BRONZE

At play.

Imagine all of your music, movies, sportsand TV, at your command via touch screen, touch pad, iPhone or iPad. Imagineyour security, climate and lighting, all under your control, whereveryouare,bywireless device.

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That's whatan ELANg! Entertainment and Control System can bring you.

Screenview dropdown screen was the housing itself. A s further illustration of Elytronic's teamwork with t he ot her trades involved , rather than install a simple, rectangular box to hold the screen when it 's not in use, t he

room's part ial faux ceili ng gently curves over the housing to create a seamless facade that carries forth the rest of the mode rn look.

On the electronics side, the coordination is governed by a Contro14 system that triggers the

automated events in the big reveal, which along

with the AN an d lights and shades can also include bringing the room temperarure to a certain

level. Lutron lighting and motorized shades can

be set accordingly at the press ofa button,wheth-

elanhomesystems .com

er the viewing calls fo r the 6Q-inch plasma screen

C2013 Core Brandos. LLC. .... nghts reserved.

or the l 06-incher. Either way, the views are al-

E"" ... subsod'ar; of Core B'........ u.c .

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