CE Pro Podcast

Through the publication of his book Richard Charschan, president of AcousticSmart, aims to educate interior designers and architects on the benefits of properly designed home theaters. 

On the latest CE Pro Podcast, Joel Silver of ISF, Jason Dustal of Murideo and AVPro Edge, and Robert Zohn of Value Electronics, explain how even simple calibration adjustments can create happier clients. 

Before lighting fixtures and power management became hot categories in custom integration, the big buzz was about the impact of wireless audio. With multipurpose media rooms becoming the norm, we spoke with WiSA (Wireless Speaker and Audio Association President Tony Ostrom about the state of wireless audio and especially in surround sound settings and other applications as well, in this week’s CE Pro Podcast episode.

In the world of interior lighting, artwork needs to be specially lit if homeowners want to capture the essence of beauty the artist originally intended. Step outside and you’ll find that to be no different, only instead of the artist being Basquiat or Monet, it’s good old mother nature (and of course the architect that helped design the home). WAC President Patrick Laidlaw says it’s this realization that drove the company to develop its recently released Colorscaping system. Released just before this year’s Lightapapoolza, the new control system for outdoor color-tunable lighting has already garnered plenty of attention from dealers, and so, on this episode of the CE Pro Podcast, our web editor, Nick Boever, chats with Laidlaw, as well as IoT Product Manager Michael Sabolcik to dig into the details of the new system and what integrators can expect to experience when working with it. 

Daryl Friedman admits he doesn’t have time for hobbies these days leading CEDIA as global president & CEO. It didn’t help that the former GRAMMY executive took reins of those roles in 2021, when the pandemic was experiencing a surge. He came into CEDIA and embarked on a worldwide tour of the organization’s conferences and meetings with integrator members. 

Thankfully, I was able to capture 30 minutes of Friedman’s time recently – on a day when he only had eight meetings. We chatted about Friedman’s challenges after being named as head of CEDIA; his investment into the community; his and the association’s commitment to advocating for members; and the direction of the organization for the rest of 2024 into 2025.

HDMI Licensing President Rob Tobias chats about AI's impact on AV, improving immersive experiences, Blu-ray discs vs. streaming content, identifying counterfeit cables and more. 

One of the most enduring companies serving the custom integration industry is Russound. The New Hampshire-based company has some exciting products for 2024, highlighted by its AVA-Series of mini-AV receivers (AVRs) to expand its audio riches for the CEDIA channel.

In the latest edition of the CE Pro Podcast, Russound CEO Charlie Porritt joins to chat about the latest happenings and R&D developments from the audio company.

Vetting a new vendor for your portfolio can be a daunting process, but that’s where your industry networking comes in handy. Down in Florida, Anthony Petrone, founder and CEO of Wellington-based Petrone Technology Group, was seeking an outdoor audio solution and his dealer friends kept pushing him toward Coastal Source. 

Hear how the match was an immediate success and why Coastal Source CEO Franco D’Ascanio is expecting big things from 2024, all in this latest CE Pro Podcast episode. Editor’s note, we recorded the conversation in late 2023, so the references to “next year” in it refer to 2024.

Everyone knows about CEDIA, the leading association for the custom integration industry. Chances are you’ve attended CEDIA Expo and taken CEDIA instructor-led technology courses. But did you know about all the stuff the association engages in behind the scenes to benefit the entire industry? In case you didn’t, I talked to Darren Reaman, director of government affairs at CEDIA, to discuss the group’s advocacy efforts and other endeavors that help elevate the industry, all in this week’s CE Pro podcast episode. 

The fall and early winter periods are important times of the year in the world of home AV.  For many homeowners, it means buying new AV systems in preparation for a winter of staying home and watching movies, streamed content, and sports such as hockey and basketball. 

The annual CEDIA Expo, which took place just after Labor Day, the 2023 event in Denver marked a milestone period for the electronics market. Recapping some of the most important video developments from the CEDIA Expo 2023 show floor in Denver, the latest CE Pro Podcast features our expert ‘Video Guys’: Joel Silver, CEO & lead developer, Imaging Science Foundation (ISF), Jason Dustal of Murideo, Robert Zohn, president and founder of Value Electronics, and first-time guest John Bishop of Bishop Architectural Entertainment Services.