:: NEWS

- Article Published in January 2008 edition of Audio Visual SA magazine.

Custom installation, distributed audio and video, control solutions. All these are buzz words that are in vogue at the moment. Custom installers, or at least companies that claim to be custom installers, are popping up like mushrooms after good rains. The problem, is that while there certainly are quite a few distributors that sell quality products, offer after sales service and have the in-house knowledge to be able to adequately support their dealers, there are more than a few companies that don’t.

When a well-intentioned, yet uninformed custom installer supplies untested or unsuited products to a client, the overall result is more often than not, not a satisfactory one. In many cases compatibility issues arise, and the distributor either can’t resolve these or has even gone out of business.

What this means is that it is the consumer that ultimately loses. This brings us to AVation, a new company that specialises in the distribution of custom audio/video, automation, and control solutions.

Whoa, hold the boat. First you tell us to be wary of new companies and installers movinginto the custom arena, and now you tell us about Avation, a new company? What gives?

The answer to this is simple. While Avation may be a new company, its founders are not new to the industry. Between them they have more than two decades’ worth of experience in all aspects of the industry. This, together with the fact that they weren’t satisfied with the general level of support within the industry, led them to the realisation that there was a need for a distributor that could offer affordable yet specialised custom installation products.

Their experience and knowledge of the local market also meant that they were aware of, and had probably dealt with, the intricacies and any surprises that this could dish up. It has also meant that the products they chose to distribute were all suited to our local conditions.

Having been in the field,Avation is also in the enviable position of being able to offer virtually unparalleled support to their custom installer clients.This support ranges from system design and layout, to system programming and even to one-on-one product related training. Let’s now have a quick look at the products supplied and backed up by Avation.

First up there is Xantech, and a look through a company brochure reveals that this is virtually a one-stop company for the custom installer. The company offers, amongst others, colour LCD touch panel control interfaces,programmable keypads – even a waterproof model – and even multizone/multisource controller amplifiers.The range is too diverse to mention more, but if it’s required for a distributed audio and video system Xantech will probably have it.

Sherbourn offers home theatre and custom solutions that range from multi-channel amplifiers that use mono-block amplifier designs that have balanced and single ended inputs – the top model can deliver up to 2100 watts – to multi-room capable A/V processors, and to diminutive A/V amplifiers designed for use in a specific zone.

Request offers music servers that are able to stream audio into up to four different zones simultaneously. Music can be accessed by artist, genre or song, and the one can even create custom play lists. Systems include USB ports, video output up to component video, analogue and digital output, a 64 key remote control is supplied, and Request systems are even able to interface with third party touch screens.

TruAudio offers a wide range of speakers,including numerous in-wall models.

URC has a range of universal remote controls that can be programmed to control virtually any component.

RTI have a range of home automation systems that feature in-wall and remote control products.

Atlantic Technology has a range of home theatre and custom installation speakers.

Alcorn Mc Bride supplies audio, video and show control products that are designed for use in the professional A/V industry.

Any custom installer who has ever run a cable, and who has tried to pull a large connector through conduit will love the cables from Impact Acoustics and their Rapid Run Technology. Rapid Run consists of special cables that are easily pulled through conduit.The cables can be fitted with dedicated pulling caps that protect cables as they are pulled, and when they arrive at their destination, the cables are attached to dedicated wall plates. Cables and wall plates are available for HDMI,DVI, and virtually all analogue audio and video cables.

As you can see,Avation has a large range of products, that as already mentioned have been tested to ensure that they are suitable for our specific South African requirement. This means, for the installer, that he will be able to offer his clients great products that will deliver on expectations, and it means that the end user will enjoy their installation.

Custom installers should also appreciate the fact that Avation carries numerous spares and offers quick repair and turnaround times should a repair be necessary. For the record, if a reader has been to the Cradle of Human Kind, the SAB World of Beer, or even the Apartheid Museum, you’ve come into contact with some of the work of AVation’s founders.