Quote:
Originally posted by audiblesolutions
I already know the answer to this but perhaps others might wish to know the recommended wiring for the new DigiLinX system. It is a little unusual.
Alan
Hi Alan,
Apparently you were by the booth, I am very sorry we didn't connect.
I consider our wiring to be, as the Brits would say, bog standard.
It is simply 14/4 and CAT 5e. That is the way nearly all distributed audio systems are wired (and as you well know, very standard practice for any professional installer as it maximizes options.
But,,,,(and there is always that
but), we do suggest something currently unusual.
We like to see CAT 5e pulled all the way to the speakers.
There are two reasons for that.
First, we like to see the amplifier as close to the speaker as possible. That is certainly nothing new or radical, and it is the preferred placement from both a loudspeaker and amplifier designer's viewpoint. It minimizes power loss and increasing damping factor and control.
It also lends itself to using some of the DSP in a SpeakerLinX module to perform the crossover functions in the digital domain and bi-amplifying the speaker. That is an ideal scenario.
The second reason has to do with our view that the speaker may well become more then a one way audio transducer. We are starting to cram so much technology into rooms that people are objecting to all the devices mounted into the ceiling and walls.
For example a room might have controls for HVAC, Ir reception and transmission, lighting, intercom, security, audio, telephony, baby monitoring, wireless access points, etc. That's a lot of stuff on the walls!
If we can move some of these functions into either a universal keypad (Hmmm, should it be IP powered
) or the speaker, we have saved a lot of real estate in the room, reduced clutter and cut down on material cost, labor etc.
Perhaps we don't want anything but a simple light switch on the wall. Since we are installing speakers for sound, perhaps we should integrate a small mic into it, as well as an IR receiver and perhaps put in a PCMCIA slot.
Now our "speaker" is also able to handle intercom, security monitoring, voice mail, paging, IR reception etc. One of the things we realized too is that metal mesh grill on the speaker can be utilized as a very high performance WiFi antenna.
So we see the speaker as more then a speaker.
We think of it as a gateway. We have quite a few patents pending on aspects of this.
To recap, we suggest the standard 14/4~CAT 5e from the headend to each room. The only extra bit we suggest is to continue the CAT5e portion up to the speaker, rather then stopping at the keypad location.
Of course, if it is a retrofit and the CAT 5e does stop at the keypad location, that is absolutely no problem. Just mount the amplifier there.
The amplifier could, as previously observed in this thread, be mounted out at the head end as well. The system does not "care" where the amplifier is located.
