Xantech Commercial Products Used by JW Tel-Tronics for Upgrade to Law Enforcement Operations Center in Seattle Area

Seattle-based JW Tel-Tronics, which offers complete A/V installation and integration services for local municipalities, educational institutions and hospitals, recently upgraded the operations center of a Seattle-area law enforcement agency using IP Web-based control equipment from Xantech, a leader in the field of audio/video remote control and distribution for 40 years. The control system upgrade included a WIC1200 Web Intelligent Controller, IPRS232 XtraLink IP™ units, an RT8 Addressable IR Router and a 79144 Amplified Connecting Block.

According to JW Tel-Tronics systems integration engineer Judith Pile, the Xantech components have enhanced control and operation of the newly upgraded A/V equipment installed at the operations center, which is a command post within the agency that is used during major public events and emergencies. “They wanted something more sophisticated and easier to operate,” she says of the installed systems.

Pile and JW Tel-Tronic replaced the previous A/V system, comprising three projectors and a composite video system, with four flat screen televisions flanked by two projected images. “They’ve got ten computer stations in the room,” details Pile. “And they’ve got four DVRs that are all being fed from satellite TV, plus a VGA matrix switcher. Not only did they want all the signals to go everywhere but they also wanted it to be easy to operate. They were insistent that they did not need a touch screen; they just wanted to control it from a computer.”

Six IPRS232 XtraLink IP units enable the transmission of RS232 serial commands (the IPRS232 also handles RS422 or RS485) over the IP network to the flat screen displays and the projectors. “Those work like a charm,” she reports. The volume levels of an existing amplifier were also brought under IR control, she reports.

The operations center is typically activated for large public gatherings, such as parades, as well as emergency situations. “It’s not a dispatch room, but they have a computer system that tells them what units are where, so they can keep track of what’s going on,” explains Pile. “And they’ve got four DVRs with cable TV, so they can also monitor the local stations.” One of the computer stations is dedicated to the fire department, for when they are involved,” she adds.

Although this was not Pile’s first experience with Xantech components, it was her first time installing an entire setup from the company. “I’d used their IR emitters and things, but this was the first time with a control system,” she elaborates. Unfamiliar with programming the WIC1200, she did have to contact the manufacturer for assistance, and was pleased with the response. “There was great support,” she reports.

Graham Hallett, Xantech President, stated, “Because of the WIC1200’s intuitive operation and ease of programming via our Web Designer 3.0 software, we are finding it to be the system of choice for commercial integrators and system installers. Working closely with Xantech’s service and support team, Judith was able to get the right product for the right application, and considering the system is being used in critical life-and-death situations, it has to work the first time and every time, which made Xantech the logical choice.”

For more information, please visit www.xantechcommercial.com.

ELAN TS10 10" In-Wall Touch Screen Awarded 2011 EXC!TE Award by Custom Retailer Magazine

ELAN Home Systems today was awarded a 2011 EXC!TE Award by CustomRetailer Magazine for its new TS10 10” in-wall touch screen interface for the ELAN g! Home Control System. The award will be presented to ELAN on Sept. 8 at the 2011 EXC!TE Awards Party at CEDIA Expo 2011 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

“The new TS10 Touch Screen provides dealers and consumers with the ultimate touch screen experience,” Lautner said today. “It combines a ‘touch and swipe’ design with a larger Active Matrix LCD screen for viewing television through the analog video feature, and larger easy-to-read icons for aging eyes. It’s ideal for watching television in the kitchen or the bathroom.”

CustomRetailer Magazine presents its annual EXC!TE Awards to the best products available to the industry. Each year, CustomRetailer invites nominations of products that stand out for being innovative, high-performing and solutions-oriented for the custom installation professional. Past winners stand out as particularly impressive, considering the unique challenges custom installers face every day on the job. The impact these products have had on the industry is felt in the installers' productivity, the dealers' profitability, the clients' satisfaction and the industry's vitality.

The new ELAN TS10 Touch Screen also features composite video for viewing TV sources or cameras, a 16:9 wide screen format, backlit hard buttons for commonly used functions, built-in speaker and microphone for messaging, simple IP connectivity for communication, non-volatile flash memory, quick & easy programming, compatible with all ELAN controllers, easy retrofit installation, optional backbox and preconstruction brackets (sold separately), and a screen saver mode that can display photo. The TS10 ships standard with a white frame, but it is also available in almond, light almond, ivory, and black.

Xantech Honors APA Music & Pictures With Two-Millionth Installation Acknowledgement

On June 15, 2011, at the InfoComm show in Orlando, Florida, Xantech presented Bensalem, Pennsylvania-based firm APA Music & Pictures, Inc. with a special plaque commemorating the two-millionth installation of Xantech products and thanking them for their years of Xantech use. The recent installation was performed at Mount Laurel, New Jersey’s Twelve Thousand Building Conference Center, housing training room and boardroom spaces for TD Bank. Xantech products, including the WIC1200 Web Intelligent Controller and CWTC10 10.4-inch Wireless Touch Controller, now form the foundation for the A/V distribution in several rooms in the building. APA has a long history as Xantech users, and they have been proud to push ahead with putting Xantech’s newest technologies to good use. The ceremony was attended by APA’s VP of Sales and Production Dave Pedemonti; Xantech President Graham Hallett; and Xantech Director of Business Development Rick Seegull.

Pedemonti stated, “We are very proud to have completed Xantech’s two-millionth installation, and we thank them for this honor. Xantech and our firm have a long relationship, and we use their products whenever we can, because what it really boils down to is value for dollar. It is great to be here with Xantech management celebrating our achievements together.”

Xantech President Graham Hallett stated, “We sincerely thank APA Music & Pictures, and all of our other valued integrator partners, for consistently choosing Xantech to build the systems that make things work. For 40 years Xantech has worked closely with custom installers and consultants to develop unique insights into the design, integration and control of a wide variety of A/V systems in every conceivable kind of commercial and residential installation. This is why so many designers and installers begin and end every project with Xantech. We are proud of our accomplishments, and we are proud to have great firms like APA Music & Pictures in our corner.”

For more information, please visit www.xantechcommercial.com.

TD Bank Conference Center Location in Mount Laurel, New Jersey is Xantech's Two Millionth Installation

Mount Laurel, New Jersey’s Twelve Thousand Building Conference Center houses training room and boardroom spaces for TD Bank, and recently Bensalem, Pennsylvania-based firm APA Music & Pictures, Inc., through McHenry Creative Services, was charged with installing A/V control systems in the bank’s spaces. The project marks the two millionth installation of products from Xantech (InfoComm Booth 1255), a leader in the field of audio/video remote control and distribution, and further underscores the company’s position as the preeminent manufacturer of A/V control solutions. APA’s VP of Sales and Production, Dave Pedemonti, along with Lead Programmer Bob Balan and the rest of their team, selected control solutions from Xantech. APA has a long history as Xantech users, and they have been proud to push ahead with putting Xantech’s newest technologies to good use.

Xantech products, including the WIC1200 Web Intelligent Controller and CWTC10 10.4-inch Wireless Touch Controller, now form the foundation for the A/V distribution in several rooms in the building. Pedemonti stated, “We had a few different rooms – the boardroom space and training room spaces – and they needed to be ready for everything from PowerPoint presentations to audio and video conferencing. Obviously, we were dealing with multiple connectivity, and Xantech’s technology, which is based on IP addresses for different devices, was the clear choice. The CWTC10 is the ideal interface – it has a large touchscreen that is easy to read and operate, and it is wireless, so it can be moved around to whoever is running a meeting or training sessions. This is far preferable to an in-wall box.”

Pedemonti continues, “When we decided on Xantech products for this installation and reached out to them, they shipped us the units right away, and we worked together closely through the installation phase. Now we have four of those CWTC10’s up and running, and they have worked perfectly. The client is very happy, and we are happy to once again choose Xantech solutions for a key installation.”

APA’s relationship with Xantech goes back several years. Mr. Pedemonti stated, “We were probably one of the first A/V companies to really start working with the technology that they created. Through the years, we have been involved in beta testing for some of their new products, getting a good sense of the best ways to put these groundbreaking technologies to good use, and giving our input back to them. That’s a great approach – letting real users in the field give feedback on the product and help make it the best it can be. We’ve been lucky to forge such a strong relationship with Xantech, and we use their products whenever we can. And thinking of what Xantech’s competitors offer, what it really boils down to is value for dollar – we can install the CWTC10’s for about a quarter of the cost of a comparable product from other competitors, and plus, the CWTC10 is actually a far more versatile control device, because you can control so many different types of things. Additionally, we were able to design and implement the customized web control page using Xantech’s new Web Designer 3.0 Software. They have helped us create some very outside-of-the-box installations, and we’re extremely proud to be their two millionth installation. We, look forward to utilizing their products for years to come.”

For more information, please visit www.xantechcommercial.com.

Xantech Virtually Eliminates Programming: Xantech To Introduce QuickConfig Mode Function For Its MX88 Multi-Zone Audio/Video Controller at InfoComm 2011

Underscoring its commitment to developing meaningful innovations that provide simple solutions for installers and end users alike, Xantech, the company that invented the concept of extended IR control for audio/video systems, will introduce its Xantech QuickConfig™ installation/configuration mode for its MX88 IP-enabled multi-zone audio/video controller at INFOCOMM 2011 in Orlando, Florida, at Booth #1255.

QuickConfig eliminates the tedious programming process that can literally take days with other supplier’s products, and reduces it down to as little as 10 minutes. By employing QuickConfig, the installer can instantly configure the MX88 for multiple zones and sources throughout a residence without the need of an external computer to program the system. The MX88 can be used to control every aspect of the home theater including audio/video, lighting and drapes. Additionally, it can be programmed to control the air conditioning/heating system, home security and video surveillance cameras.

Xantech President Graham Hallett stated, “For the past 40 years, Xantech has been and continues to be at the forefront of control technology and how it shapes, and is shaped by, industry trends. We are now seeing increasingly complex A/V and IT systems in a growing number of places, and simpler, more intuitive control solutions and setup protocols are an absolute necessity. As A/V control systems evolve, Xantech continues to give users products that make their lives easier. Whatever your system components, you turn it on; we make it work.”

QuickConfig mode lets installers do all programming of sources and zones directly via the MX88’s keypad or Xantech’s new SmartPanel™ LCD touchpanels. For the home theater, sources can include Xantech audio/video components or those from other manufacturers. QuickConfig also easily configures sources that have metadata, so information such as song title, artist and genre is clearly displayed.

Unlike other installation/configuration software of this caliber, absolutely no separate PC is required. It is extremely intuitive and straightforward, guiding the installer one-by-one through the system components and manufacturer codes, much like programming a universal remote control device. With QuickConfig, the MX88 is usable out of the box, as it requires far less setup and configuration time than other protocols, and no additional time needs to be spent mastering the software. QuickConfig also configures the MX88’s iPad interface, further enhancing the unit’s capability.

About the Xantech MX88 Multi-zone Audio/Video Controller
The MX88 allows a user to control an entire Xantech multi-zone audio/video system using an Apple iPad®. An integrated audio/video distribution and control tour-de-force, the network-ready MX88 combines a 50W x 16-channel/8-zone amplifier and highly efficient auto-sensing universal power supply with advanced automation control capable of up to 16 Serial ports with the use of Xantech’s RS232 1x8 serial routers, and 17 selectable IR ports, as well as IP communication and two-way interface with an iPhone®, iPod® touch or iPad.

Xantech’s iPad integration approach uses an existing WiFi network to interface the MX-series controller to the iPad (or any networked web-browsing device), serving up a web application embedded in the MX88’s architecture. System control and status monitoring can all be accessed within a wired or wireless immediate LAN environment, or remotely over the Internet. Full metadata, menu navigation and even content graphics and album art are all transitioned from media source to the iPad through the Xantech audio/video controller itself. The MX88 is perfect for residential or commercial multi-zone control applications.

As impressive as the MX88’s audio and video performance is, the controller excels in another performance parameter so vital today: environmental friendliness. The MX88's engineering and design incorporate a wide range of technical improvements to make it a leader in the area of a more eco-friendly, ideal power consumption-versus-output ratio. The unit is built around an exceptionally intelligent and highly-efficient “greener” power supply with 100V-240V automatic voltage selection and advanced low-power consumption mode. On-board Intelligent Power Management circuitry provides positive external device control (through video and current sensing) over all 8 source input components connected to the unit, enabling the MX controller to manage the status of any of them — turning them OFF when not needed, for example. The controller’s all-digital amplifier section is a model of conservation, operating at nearly three times the power and heat efficiency of conventional audiophile amplifier circuits while maintaining full fidelity.