The Basics of a Control System and Do you need one?
The Control System in an AV project is one of the most vital components and should absolutely be considered in any AV design. That doesn’t necessarily mean you need one for your system but it should, at the very least, be considered.
Let’s take the case of a small conference room or classroom. Maybe your AV system includes a 60” LED/LCD with built in speakers and a wallplate that includes HDMI, VGA, and audio for connectivity. Chances are, you don’t need a control system. More than likely you would simply use the remote that comes included with your display for power on/off, source switching, and volume control. If you’re concerned about losing your remote you may even want to consider a simple, wired, wall mounted control pad. It’s a much less expensive alternative than a control system but they have their place in smaller AV systems.
Here are a few examples of simple control pads:
- http://www.cablestogo.com/product.asp?cat_id=3134&sku=40099
- http://spcontrols.com/prodcat.php?hierId=32
- http://www.kramerus.com/products/model.asp?pid=1088&sf=460
Now, let’s expand this room and make it little larger and add two displays, an AV switcher, audio amplifier, ceiling speakers, add Video Conferencing, maybe a document camera, BluRay player, Apple TV for wireless streaming of an iPad, microphones, and add a few pop-ups in the table for multiple laptop connections. Getting the idea? The remote that came with your TV just isn’t going to cut it. You need a simple method of operating the AV system and all those components that multiple users of the room can easily understand. This is where a control system becomes a necessity and should not just be an afterthought in the AV design.
I hope this provides you with a basic understanding of the Control System in AV. Here are links to some of the largest manufacturers in the AV Control System industry.
- http://www.amx.com/
- http://www.crestron.com/Default.asp
- http://control4.com/
- http://www.extron.com/product/prodtype40.aspx
- http://www.fsrinc.com/products/flex.htm
- http://www.savantsystems.com/default.aspx
- http://www.universalremote.com/
- http://www.xantech.com/controls/keypadsremotes/SmartpadLCD/