There are many advantages of incorporating home systems into the design of a new home at the very start.

The construction of a new home offers the widest array of possibilities and allows for a whole house media design that is not only comprehensive in its capabilities and future proof but also offers the most economical installation scenario.

The foundation of such a design is the installation of a structured wiring system. Because wire is relatively cheap, but opening up existing walls to add additional wire is expensive, the ultimate, future-proof design strives to place media access ports on several walls in each room of the house. In this way, a clean media connection can be made regardless of how the decorations of the room change over time or even if the main purpose of the room changes. For example, guest rooms often become bedrooms or even home offices and the need for entertainment and data connections changes accordingly. With these connections economically installed during construction, there is no need to either attempt to snake new wiring through existing walls or worse, run wires along the walls or under carpets (never a good idea).

The structured approach generally groups two coaxial connections and two Ethernet data/telephone connections at each access point and on a single wall plate. It also brings all of the connections back to a central cabinet, usually in the basement. This allows for the placement of a central hub that not only manages the interconnections between rooms but also provides a place to centrally store all of the homeowner’s digital content. The placement of a large PC or storage device at the hub means that each member of the family can access any of their music, photos, spreadsheets/memos etc. from any room where there is a television or PC.

Aside from allowing any to any access, this centralization also makes everything easier to manage. Most homeowners have their content scattered across many devices. MP3 music on a Apple computer in the bedroom, financial files on the PC in the den, CDs collecting dust in the living room or maybe stored in a CD jukebox. Some of this material is poorly protected from viruses and some of it is rarely used because of the inconvenience of the medium or its location. A central hub not only allows you to listen to your CDs throughout the house but it ensures that all your important files, songs etc. can be easily protected from viruses, power surges, equipment failures etc.

New construction also allows for the optimal design of the home theater. The correct placement of the speakers within the room can have a tremendous effect on the overall sound quality and impact of the viewing experience. The flexibility of being able to design the home theater from the ground up allows not only for correct speaker placement but the unobtrusive use of various acoustical materials to eliminate unwanted sound reflections and bright spots. This ensures that every seat in the room can enjoy the best possible experience.

Finally, new construction often allows for the cost of the whole house media system to be folded into the price of the overall project and can therefore enjoy the benefits of long term mortgage-based financing.

Let the team at Alpine Home Media work with you and your architect or builder to ensure that your new home is ready to provide you with years of trouble free entertainment and productivity. We would be glad to ‘walk the site’ with you to discuss what possibilities might work for your lifestyle and budget.