Scotland's hidden treasures

When commissioning a family home to nestle in a quiet corner of Scotland the head of the House old had very clear views on the importance of the audio-visual system and one specific criterion that needed to be met without exception: not one single loudspeaker in the property should be visible to the eye. No small requirement given that the initial sketches included 40 separate areas where sound and vision would feature.
 

As the family’s principal residence this house would be a home of extraordinary detail and design, with every small touch meticulously calculated and considered. The brief as to ensure the home included the latest entertainment and control technology, to keep everyone in the family happy, whilst not dominating or conflicting with the décor of this large, classically-styled home.
 

The answer lay in thorough planning, innovative thinking, many kilometres of cabling and the latest in cutting-edge loudspeaker design. The key to the success was having high quality room filling sound created by Amina’s Invisible Loudspeakers. The results were truly stunning.
 

Once built and installed, the system set a number of precedents. In the media room, over 1 km of cabling was used to connect three bespoke storage racks that cradle one of the largest systems of its kind in the UK. A choice of 16 high-definition video sources and 16 audio sources can be distributed to any of 29 displays and 40 pairs of loudspeakers throughout the property. Access to these sources is gained through 19 wireless and 6 wall-mounted touch-screen control panels that provide user-specific control dependent upon predetermined access rights. A personal identification number given to each user has allowed parental control to be set on the children’s access to the main media server, as well as giving each individual tailored access to their own iPod, Sky HD box and DVD player from anywhere in the premises.
 

With the last critical item the family safely installed, the job was complete and the system could be officially handed over. The client was delighted and acknowledged that the Amina installation partners had fully appreciated their detailed requirements. By using invisible speakers they were very sympathetic to the traditional aesthetic design leaving decorative ceilings and walls completely unblemished by loudspeakers.