AV Technology - October 2008 - (Page 44)

casestudy government From Primitive to Professional The audience visuals inside the Aliso Viejo Council Chamber are displayed on two 50-inch Panasonic plasma HDTVs that are suspended on either side of the chamber, using Peerless ceiling mounts. RENOVATION PROJECTS CAN OFTEN PRESENT INSTALLATION CHALLENGES. By James Careless ince being incorporated in 2001, the City of Aliso Viejo, CA, has recorded its city council meetings using a single microphone and a cassette tape recorder; nothing else. So when the city decided to build an updated council chamber inside its existing office space, the council seized the opportunity to bring their AV system up to professional standards. The result: Thanks to the efforts of systems integrator TV Magic of San Diego, CA, the Aliso Viejo Council Chambers are now equipped with a new full featured AV system that doesn’t intrude on the room’s aesthetics. “With the council chamber being built from scratch, we wanted to upgrade our AV facilities to a professional level,” says Glenn Yasui, director of administrative services for the City of Aliso Viejo. “But we also wanted the installation implemented as discreetly as possible, so that the AV equipment wouldn’t dominate the room’s overall look.” To do the installation, the City of Aliso Viejo tendered an RFP for $135,000. The winning bidder was TV Magic. A full-service broad- S cast and AV integrator, TV Magic’s previous clients include the City of Mission Viejo, CA (council chamber); Crystal Cathedral Ministries (“Hour of Power” production studio); and Foothills Christian Church (church AV system). In theory, the installation should have been easy, because Aliso Viejo was basically “doing new construction inside an existing office building,” says Bill Cyree, the TV Magic design engineer in charge of the project. “But, in practice, space was a real issue, because the client didn’t want the equipment to be more visible than necessary. In particular, setting up the council’s plasma display so that it was visible to them yet invisible to the audience was a real challenge.” “The City wanted this AV system to be as simple to operate as possible, even though it had to be capable of managing inputs from plugged-in laptops at various access points and automatic level balancing between the council’s three microphones,” he adds. “This is why we chose a Crestron touchscreen system and located the bulk of the AV system next door in a small equipment room.” That’s not all: “The system had to be prewired for four video cameras,” says Yasui. “We didn’t add cameras during the installation, because shooting the meetings is not something that council wanted to do at this time.” The audience visuals inside the Aliso Viejo Council Chamber are displayed on two 50-inch Panasonic TH-50PH10UK plasma HDTVs that are suspended on either side of the chamber, using Peerless PLCM1CP ceiling mounts. Meanwhile, the seven-position councillors’ table is equipped with seven HPL1506 15-inch LCD monitors; one for each of the six councillor positions plus the mayor. The entire system is controlled by a Crestron TPS-4000L 10.4inch touchscreen, flush-mounted at the centrally located mayor’s position. “The councillors’ table is basically a big The seven-position councillors’ table is equipped with seven 15-inch LCD monitors; one for each of the six councillor positions plus the mayor. www.avtechnologyonline.com 44 | AV TECHNOLOGY | october 2008 http://www.avtechnologyonline.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of AV Technology - October 2008

AV Technology - October 2008 Contents Precedent Corporate: Residential AV Does Not Equal Commercial AV Government: Funding Problems? Education: DIY ISP.EDU, Part Two The Cost of Bandwidth Star Grounding Wars Understanding IoIP How to Equip a Smart Classroom Two Rooms With A View From Primitive to Professional Product Review:�Visionary Solutions AVN 420 Encoder Product Spotlight: Document Cameras New Products Ad Index AV MO: Using Infrared Microphones

AV Technology - October 2008

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