Eco High Fidelity Installs ELAN Entertainment and Control System in Maui, Creating 21st Century Sustainable Smart Home

Sustainable technology has become a common topic among homeowners wanting to minimize environmental impact without decreasing functionality. When Dattilo Design Group, a Maui-based builder and design company, began rebuilding a Wailea home after a fire, the team was initially hesitant about incorporating smart home technology into the project because their prior experience with ‘smart home’ systems was not a good one. After doing a little research, the group turned to integration firm Eco High Fidelity to install sustainable audio and custom-shading solutions powered by an ELAN Entertainment and Control System.

“When I received the call about the Wailea project in Maui, I jumped at the chance,” Owner of Eco High Fidelity Tommy Kissell said. “Dattilo Design Group’s visions require a higher standard than normal designers. Like all of our projects, we relied on the concepts and methods of sustainability. To ensure the best results, we assembled a diverse group of specialists to create a spectacular state-of-the-art system that would make the Jetson family jealous.” 

Due to the home’s open floor plan, flames and smoke from the fire caused damage throughout, including the electronics and shading solutions. However, even before the fire, the owners were frustrated with the technology previously installed. The A/V elements and home automation system were unreliable and prone to service calls. “It’s the same story we have all heard,” Kissell added. “Hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent on a complicated system that ended up requiring constant maintenance.”

To counteract the owner’s struggle with electronics, Eco High Fidelity centered the new A/V system around a simple and reliable ELAN control system. “This ensures that the whole-home automation system functions perfectly and remains fun to use,” Kissell continued.

Allowing the owners to enjoy whole-home audio, an ELAN S1616A multi-zone audio controller was integrated into the ELAN control system. Through the ELAN system, the homeowner can listen to a 250,000-song music library and popular streaming services, including Spotify, Pandora, Maui Native 92.5 and Sirius XM, anywhere in the home.

“Another one of the main highlights of this house is the unique shading solution,” Kissell explained. “To ensure comfort and protect the owner’s art and custom furniture, specialized shading solutions provide daylight harvesting and blackout environments. Additionally, the house has a 35-foot-wide ceiling window over the entryway and foyer, so we had to develop a sun-shield for that area.” 

Working closely with Eco High Fidelity’s partners, the team was able to develop customized Roman, Sheers and Ceiling shades, operated through a Lutron system. Fully linked through the ELAN controls, the owner’s can raise or lower any of the shades with the touch of a button.

To operate the entire ELAN system, three 7-inch, in-wall touch panels were integrated around the home. For more portable options, the owners can use several global hard-button remotes or the ELAN App on an Apple iPad. Furthermore, ELAN provides remote access to the automation system, so the designer, homeowner or integrator can access the controls from any web-enabled device. 

“Hawaii is becoming a bridge between sustainability and technology,” Kissell concluded. “Overtime, technology will provide sustainable solutions to maintain the integrity of the islands, while still providing the state-of-the-art features the natives desire.” 

To view additional high-res photography, click here.

ELAN g! and Niles Speakers Provide the Foundation for an Easy-To-Use Full Home Automation System

Building a home always starts with laying a strong foundation. The same can be said for any home control system, and that’s exactly what the ELAN g! System and more than 50 Niles speakers have done for one Pennsylvania homeowner.

“This client came to me asking for a simple way to control everything in their home from the TVs to the pool, but they didn’t know how to accomplish that,” said Keith Foltz, owner of Harrisburg, Penn.-based Momentum Sound and Media. “I told them that I could take care of everything, and that it would all tie together seamlessly through the ELAN g! system. All of the other components are intentionally behind the scenes, so the most important thing for them is an enjoyable user experience and reliability, which ELAN delivers in spades.”

Like most homeowners today, this family didn’t want to see wires hanging from TVs or clunky black boxes in every room. Foltz was able to eliminate all of that clutter by combining all the ELAN equipment plus every cable box, audio receiver and subsystem control unit into two equipment racks located in the basement utility room. Then he designed a whole-home audio system using Niles legendary in-ceiling speakers so every room has crystal clear audio and no visible speakers. These considerations keep the house free of mess and also make it easier to troubleshoot any issues that may arise.

“Putting all the electronics in one stack is the only way I would organize a system this large,” Foltz said. “That way if anything needs to be changed, replaced or fixed, I don’t have to trace wires or open walls. It also makes the system cheaper, because all equipment like this should be connected to high quality surge protectors, so I can install just a few of them for the whole rack instead of putting one in every room.”

Even the backyard has its own music zones with two wall-mounted speakers, two planter speakers, two rock speakers and a hidden in-ground subwoofer, all from Niles. So what is it like to control nine TVs, 52 speakers in 21 zones, five zones of HVAC, the home’s lights, security, garage doors, irrigation and pool from one device?

“The ease of operation and convenience of the iPhone/iPad app is best part of the system,” the homeowners said. “Control of the entire house is literally at our fingertips at home as well as when we’re away. With four children, it is amazing convenience to be able to turn off lights, TVs, and music from our phones rather than running through the house each time we leave.”

With a centrally-located 7-inch ELAN touchscreen, five 2-inch wall-mounted touchscreens throughout the house and eight ELAN HR2 handheld remotes for the TVs, the family is always just a few buttons taps away from putting their favorite music or TV on in whichever rooms they choose. It’s just as easy to check that the security system is armed, the garage doors are closed and the lights are off, making it easy to come and go without walking around to make sure everything is set appropriately. And whether they are home or halfway around the world, the family can check in on the home’s surveillance cameras from their iPhones, iPads or any computer. In the near future Foltz will install and integrate electronic locks on several of the home’s exterior doors and ELAN control for the driveway gate.

The crown jewel of the home’s entertainment offerings is the luxury home theater. Combining a backlit 122-inch Screen Innovation Black Diamond screen, a JVC 4K projector, three Sunfire CRM3 ribbon speakers in the front, six Niles HD8 speakers for surround and a Sunfire in-wall SubRosa subwoofer with nine Salamander Designs theater seats, the theater takes viewers away from the home and places them right in the movie.

“I love that the ELAN system is compatible with so many products from other top-name brands like ELK Security, Aprilaire, Pentair, Lutron, Access surveillance cameras and more,” Foltz said. “It gives me a lot of flexibility when designing a control system, both in terms of functionality and price.”

To download hi-res images of this installation, click here.