The 4 Biggest Mistakes with Multi-Room Audio

When done properly, a multi-room audio system makes every area of your Houston, Texas home sound like a concert hall, with your favorite performer right in front of you. When not done properly, however, the audio in your home could be tinny, overly loud, with dead spots in areas, or full of echoes – to name a few issues. Avoid these common mistakes that could occur if your audio professional doesn’t have the skill or expertise to install a high-end system:

1.   Audio Zones are Misplaced

With multi-room music, all of the speakers throughout the home are part of one system. The job of the audio installation professional is to divide all of the speakers into subsystems called audio zones. This allows you to enjoy music in just one area as opposed to having the same song play across the entire home. But setting up audio zones is not as simple as just having each room be its own subsystem.

You have to think about what will happen if you want to listen to your favorite album in one zone while your significant other enjoys a podcast episode in the next room. Will the audio clash, creating a dissonance completely at odds with the desired result?

The solution is to strategically place each zone in such a way that the audio does not bleed over from one area to the next. That usually includes considering the placement of each speaker, assessing whether acoustic treatments are needed in certain rooms, and grouping speakers in specific ways.

2.   Equipment is Visible and in the Way

If you’ve read any of our other articles, you know that we are big advocates of hidden speakers. The same holds true for audio equipment in general. Amplifiers, receivers, subwoofers…these aren’t typically the sort of things that enhance the look and feel of your home.

The only time someone should walk into your home and immediately notice the audio system is when you’ve chosen an imposing, artistic set of speakers that are designed to draw attention. Anything else should blend in seamlessly.

3.   Each System Component is Controlled Individually

You shouldn’t have to have separate remotes for each piece of audio equipment in your home. For one, you then need a place to store that pile of remotes. Also, it becomes a pain if you want to do something as simple as adjust the volume or turn on the equipment in a room. If your entire system isn’t controllable by one tablet, phone, or remote, you haven’t gotten a quality installation.

As part of the installation, your audio expert should design a control interface that makes it super simple to select the music you want – regardless of source – in the area you want.

4.   Poor Quality Equipment

Finally, choosing a sound system with low-quality devices is a mistake that occurs far more often than it should. Your audio installer should never cut corners by recommending a speaker that will deliver less than stellar performance.  

Cheap equipment is a sure-fire way to ruin your multi-room audio system. Your audio installer can do everything else right – set up perfect zones, hide the equipment, and centralize control – but if the speakers cannot deliver top-quality performance, you won’t end up with a system that you can enjoy every day.

At BRAVAS, we understand the importance of delivering the best possible service and solutions. To speak with us about your goals for enjoying music in your home, contact us today.