Digital Signage Systems for Hotels & Convention Facilities
Ever been in a large convention facility for the first time? Running a bit late and don’t know what room your meeting is in? Even if you have the room number, is the signage good enough to point you down the right hallway? If you are anything like me you will wander around just long enough to now be late to the meeting. (more)
What is a Certified Technology Specialist (CTS)?
Most industries have some sort of accreditation process by which individuals and companies within that industry are recognized as being competent and knowledgeable within that field. For instance, architects are accredited by the American Institute of Architects (AIA), and acousticians are accredited by the National Council of Acoustical Consultants (NCAC). An individual that has these credentials has passed the necessary examinations, peer review, and required work hours to carry the credentials so that people who hire them can be assured they know what they are doing. So just what is a CTS? (more)
What Is An Architectural Coordinator?
I’m Mindy Tangney, Architectural Coordinator for Acoustics By Design. Clients often ask me “What does ‘architectural coordinator’ mean? Are you coordinating Architects? Are you doing architecture for ABD?” Well, not exactly. Let me explain. (more)
Acoustics By Design Honored As One of the Best and Brightest Companies to Work For in the Country!
For the first time in its history, the National Association for Business Resources has named the Best and Brightest Companies To Work For™ in the country. And guess what? Acoustics By Design made the list, alongside companies like Verizon Wireless, Henry Ford Health System, Amway, and American Academy of Pediatrics. (more)
New ADA Assistive Listening System Requirements
Most people who work in the construction industry are aware of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (commonly referred to as the ADA) and the general impacts it has on how buildings are constructed. On September 15, 2010 the Department of Justice published a series of revised regulations. One section of these updates deals with requirements for ADA Assistive Listening Systems for persons who have hearing disabilities. It’s a subtle change, but a big deal. (more)
ABD to Host 10 Year Anniversary Party
Acoustics By Design, an independent acoustical consulting and audio-visual design firm headquartered in downtown Grand Rapids, will celebrate its 10 year anniversary on October 6, 2011, at the Grand Rapids Art Museum. The invitation only event will host 300 architects and engineers as they celebrate a milestone for one of their own. (more)
Training Tips for Church Tech Teams
I run sound at a local church about once a month. I used to spend time behind a mixing board several times a week, but these days it tends to be more time in front of a computer. Several recent discussions with the Music Director at the church got me pondering this question: What really makes a “good” mix? And the inevitable follow-up question is: How hard is it to train a church tech team volunteer so that they can get a “good” mix as the church sound board operator? Here’s my opinion… (more)
Corporate Videoconference Guidelines & Recommendations – Part 2
Good communication can be difficult, especially over long distances. This is why we still get on airplanes and travel to meet face to face. Videoconferencing saves the travel costs, and it still gives us the face to face connection. But here’s the key: the videoconference environment itself is critical to ensuring communication success. Human ability (your eyes and ears) are much more forgiving than technology (cameras and microphones). For example, bad room lighting can automatically be mitigated by a change to your eye’s iris, but video cameras will capture an unusable or poor image. Another example is room noise which can be filtered out by the brain but will be picked up by the microphone and ultimately decrease intelligibility. So here is a list of common “weakest links” for corporate videoconferencing: (more)
Corporate Videoconference Guidelines & Recommendations – Part 1
Teleconferencing requires hearing the voice, so it should follow that videoconferencing requires seeing the people, right? Not so much. Videoconferencing actually requires a finer level of detail – it requires seeing the eyes. Why? We communicate with our eyes. If you cannot clearly see the eyes of the communicator, then you might as well be on a teleconference. This is why web quality video has become unacceptable for many types of corporate communication. Even more difficult are large spaces such as boardrooms or corporate auditoriums. The size of these spaces alone presents a real challenge to the video conferencing system, making it ever more difficult to see the eyes. “So what?” you say. Well, the eventual reality is that without seeing the eyes, users will eventually avoid the technology altogether. (more)
IPTV –When it Makes Sense & Save Cents
One of the transitions that we are watching closely in the audio-visual Industry is the evolution of audio and video delivery over networks instead of through dedicated distribution systems. In the consumer world you may have noticed that some TV networks are starting to stream things like major sporting events from their websites, or you may have signed up for a service like Netflix or Hulu Plus to stream movies to your TV. These are examples of TV delivered over the Internet – commonly called IPTV. (more)
Acoustics By Design is Named One of “West Michigan’s 101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For”
Acoustics By Design was recently honored by the Michigan Business & Professional Association as one of “West Michigan’s 101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For.” 2011 marks the fifth consecutive year that ABD has received the award. (more)
Troubleshooting Church Sound Systems
Recently I was working with a church that was experiencing some “issues” with their sanctuary sound system. They had just reconfigured their main worship space and everything had been fine. But now that several weeks had gone by, things were not right. They asked if I could come and help work with their sound volunteers to get everything straightened out. I’ve worked with many churches in somewhat similar circumstances so, at first glance, nothing in this scenario seemed out of the ordinary. (more)
Video Wall Design Considerations for Corporate Webcast Auditoriums
Out of curiosity, we asked one of our current clients what made them pick Acoustics By Design to be their audio-video consultant for their corporate webcast auditorium project. We beat out several national AVL consulting firms to get the project, so what made the difference? Well, there were a list of reasons why ABD was the best fit. One reason was that we took time to understand the client’s vision, and that we proposed the concept of a video wall rather than the traditional approach of using several projectors to accomplish their complex webcasts. Cool. So why did we pitch the idea in the first place? (more)
Best Audio/Visual Design Awarded to Cornerstone Church
The new Cornerstone Church campus is proof that good design is worth waiting for. After three years of design and eventual construction, the new church facility opened to rave reviews and experienced an immediate jump in attendance. The “wow” factor of the campus is the state of the art audio, video, and lighting system in the sanctuary designed by Acoustics By Design and integrated by Parkway Electric. Recently, the church was awarded for Best Audio/Visual Design at the 2010 Associated Builders and Contractors Awards Program. More
Analog vs. Digital Sound Boards | The Top 3 Factors
On practically every project we work on that has a significant sound system, we have a discussion with the stakeholders about whether the main mixing console should be an analog board or a digital board. In a nutshell, we can boil the discussion down to 3 main points… Price, Flexibility, and Ease of Use. Here’s why… (more)
How Does 3DTV Work, and Is It Just a Gimmick?
With visions of dollar signs dancing in their heads, manufacturers are foaming at the mouth thinking of how they can make 3D Television sets the next big thing. But if I want to watch a 3D movie at home, do I really need to throw out my HDTV and buy a new 3DTV? I mean, I can currently watch 3D movies on my HDTV at home with my 3D glasses, so what does 3DTV offer that my “normal” HDTV doesn’t? I need a filter to sort through all the hype. (more)
Apples, Oranges, and Sharp Pencils
In the world of sales idioms, you never want to compare “apples with oranges”, but you always want the salesperson to “sharpen their pencil.” You don’t want to compare two unlike things, but you do want to make sure you get the best possible price. So, in the world of audio-video design, how do you know that you are comparing apples with apples and making the right purchase for the right price? (more)
How Today’s Teachers Use Classroom Display Technology
Kids today have it all: the cell phone, the iPod, the iPad, the internet, digital cameras, video games, laptops – ahhh!!! With all this stimuli, teachers have to battle to win the ever-decreasing attention spans of their students. And any teacher knows the statistics of how students learn: most of what they get their hands on (tactile learning), some of what they see (visual learning), and little of what they hear (aural learning). The good news is that new classroom display technology enables teaches to fire on all cylinders and teach fluidly while using all three methods of communication. So, how are teachers doing it? (more)
Football Stadium Sound System Design | How to Control the Friday Night Roar
It’s 7pm on Friday night in the middle of September. You’re sitting down with your significant other to a nice refreshing beverage on your back porch. All is calm. It’s a beautiful evening. Suddenly a not-so-distant voice floats through your backyard let you know that #58 has just tackled #23 on the 35 yard line. You are, once again, thankful that your peaceful and idyllic life has been interrupted by the sound system from the local High School football game. No…you wish there was some way to contain that sound to the stadium where it’s supposed to be (NOT in my backyard)! (more)
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