Audiovisual Engineer Remote Control Role In Design - Creative Sound And Integration

Audio-Visual Design: How Do AV Engineers Play a Role in Design?

If you’re rethinking the space you work, live or play in, updating the sensory experience is likely part of the wish-list. Why? People need more than a singular sensation. Every aspect of our lives involves an experience, in fact; it’s expected. The experience needs to go beyond expectation, making it full-bodied, memorable, worth talking about and desirable enough to be repeated. Otherwise, it never really happened.

Sensory experiences on your premises serve as a reflection of you and all you represent. And you wouldn’t want to rest this responsibility on just anyone, especially a novice. This is where the right integrated audio-visual design elements from Creative Sound can be the key differentiator in success to your commercial and residential spaces.

Can Audiovisual Engineering and Design Play Well Together?

More than want, well-conceived audiovisual designed areas in the home, event centers and business hubs are a need paramount in creating environments that are positively received and supportive of productivity. But many contradictions lie therein, especially if you have to rework an existing sound system or antiquated visual components. Now let’s throw in the task of a corporate relocation and having to work with an interior designer to get the look and feel just right. Talk about a divergence of opinion! And then there’s that ugly word, budget.

So how do you marry design and engineering in a seamless audio-video platform? It takes planning, a keen eye for spatial relationships, consideration for scalability, flexibility, and an ear for quality sound.

Formulating the A/V Plan

Merging proper design into audiovisual equipment includes solid communication skills. If you’re not technically inclined, especially with respect to audiovisual engineering, but need to consult with an expert in the field, there’s nothing more frustrating that to be presented with information and terminology that goes over your head. It’s insulting, defeating and misses the mark on establishing a collaborative relationship.

You, the customer, know what you want or at least have an idea. Perhaps you can’t articulate it in industry terms. But you know someone, a business competitor, friend or neighbor, who has an audiovisual system that impressed you. Perhaps you saw and heard a sample of it on a website. And you want to have what it takes, that competitive edge — whether at home or work (or both); you want to impress others in the same manner.

To increase the likelihood of taking what you saw and converting it into your own space (however applicable), a clear dialogue with the audiovisual engineer is crucial because without it, the design will be off target. Off the top of your head, you could easily identify someone that doesn’t have the best listening skills or talks over you during a meeting or social interaction. These are not the characteristics you want in the professional who is set to design and execute your audiovisual experience. Your opinion matters.

The basics to ponder when formulating your audiovisual engineering and design scope are the following:

  • Current need
  • Potential need (2-5 years from now)
  • Current space (limitations: physically, mechanically, budgetary, legally)
  • Desired experience (effects, volume, convenience, accessibility)
  • Audience (age, socioeconomics, business vertical, location)

Audiovisual Engineering and Design: Science and Technology Meet Art

Audiovisual Engineering And Design Science Technology - Creative Sound And IntegrationThere are varied schools of thought when it comes to audiovisual engineering. Some professionals in the field have years of formal education behind them through liberal arts, say the Berkeley School of Music, or technical training from the Conservatory of Recording Arts and Sciences or the East Valley Institute of Technology. Others get boots-on-the-ground knowledge by working in the business and receiving on the job training. All forms of education are important and beneficial as audiovisual engineers and designers understand how noise can be detrimental to the product and the experience delivered.

Identifying visual and audio noise in a space is essential to a successful strategy going forward. It starts by envisioning a clean slate, what would be the optimal environment, and then reintroducing what is currently in your space and what needs to be reworked or removed entirely.

Minimalism isn’t just for those wanting to live economically or remove the materialistic clutter from their lives. Minimalism infiltrates design as the means to create more white space. It is the antithesis of the kitchen sink syndrome in advertising design.

White space allows the viewer to focus on what you want them to; it’s a strategy. The same can be said about an audiovisual segment to your business or home. There should be a strategy behind it, using the aspects of science, the benefits of technology and the importance of clarity. They make for a better user experience. Here’s how…

Digital Behaviors Have Reshaped the Way We Find Comfort and How We Excel

Think about how we convey a message to someone, share a thought or spend leisure time. It involves audiovisual engineering and design. From our mobile phones and tablets to business conventions and sports arenas, we rely on consistent and accurate visuals and sound to help us get through our day. But it does much more. Audiovisual engineering and design can change the way we perceive ourselves, and it helps determine better outcomes.

The Rise in Resimercial

It’s evident in hospital and other healthcare settings, for example, where in recent years, there’s been a push to redesign medical-based residential spaces to mirror home environments. The thought behind it is based on case studies that show faster patient improvement, healing and decreased hospital stays when resimercial design is used. The more a person is treated as if they are already well, the more likely wellness will exist. It encompasses all the senses: sight, sound, touch, feel and smell.

Audiovisual engineering and design play a significant role in this. If you’ve ever been to a hospital or surgicenter, you are keenly aware of the bleeps, bells and buzzes that are heard in the patient room, waiting room, nurses’ station and associated hallways.
Technology-based equipment accompanies these sounds with often vibrant displays that indicate compromised health. The physical environment can engage fear, from the visual and audio elements of the experience. This is also a concern in other commercial or corporate sites.

Interior Designs Must Respect Acoustics

Interior Designs Respect Acoustics White Space - Creative Sound And IntegrationFor years, businesses have been touting their interiors utilizing the open spaces concept. Evident in companies such as Intel in Chandler and Lifelock in Tempe, as well as smaller entities across the Phoenix metro area, time tells a different story.

According to many researchers in the study of spatial design in the workplace, open spaces (meant to spur collaboration amongst coworkers and management), has failed miserably. Employees and contractors alike have shared their sentiments about this setup, and productivity results mirror their thoughts.

Distraction is the biggest complaint, as sound carries across open areas, taking focus away from individual-based work in addition to collaborative sessions. There is also the visual aspect of distraction.

You could be the most attentive person on the planet but if you are trying to lead a meeting with 10 people present, all seated at a table while other meetings are going on in the background, or random coworkers are walking by, some within arms’ reach, your focus is lost.

The eye’s peripheral vision is always engaged, part-curiosity, part-protection. It keeps you aware of what else is going on around you.

Rethinking the Floorplan

Many businesses now have to scale back their open spaces and recreate areas that promote focus and productivity. They have to do so without losing the feel of approachability between staff and management. Some may utilize glass walls (for conference rooms) to allow for privacy while promoting transparency; however, acoustics can be a problem. Without the use of proper materials to help absorb sound without muffling the clarity, the desired audiovisual experience may fall short.

Volume is also something to watch for because everyone’s threshold for sound differs. And while visual effects can be intriguing, they can work against a desired experience too, especially since people today are more easily distracted than ever before because of our increased exposure to smart devices.

Finding Balance Between Audiovisual Engineering and Design

It’s easy to get caught up in the “look what this can do to wow your customers” or having the leading edge technology that’ll “blow away” your clients during a creative presentation. But at what cost? Does it go beyond being impressive, putting you knee-deep in overkill? What is the consumer or audience takeaway: a cool experience or is it painful? And how do you determine where to draw the line?

A seasoned audiovisual professional comes in to level the playing field. Because they have numerous clients from a variety of industries, they know the must-haves pertinent to you and what to consider down the road, so you stay on top of what’s trending while having the foresight to know what’s next.

Overselling vs. Scalable Audiovisual Investments

When contemplating hiring a corporate audiovisual installation company for the purchase of new media and audio equipment and the A/V industry isn’t in your wheelhouse of knowledge, it can be cause for concern. You know what you know.

If you don’t know audiovisual, how can you tell if you’re being oversold? Is this purchase a short-term fix or will it stand the test of time? Will it allow for adjustments that meet company growth? These are just some of the topics that should be taken into account when planning your audiovisual design.

To get started, ask about any of our commercial or residential audio/video services by speaking with a Creative Sound system designer or engineer.






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