Solved! Wiring for my Smart Home

[shalindewan]

Would appreciate some help!

I am in the middle of a refurb for my 6 bed home in London (4 floors)

I am looking to integrate Alexa/google Home into my house alongside smart TV, climate control (for under floor heating) August lock and door bell etc. Sonos speakers.

I guess i have 3 questions:

1. Has anyone gone down this road rather than an in built system such as control4 or cestron? What do you guys think is better the inbuilt way or the DIY way?

2. How would you wire the house. Data/tv/phone/audio etc.
Mainly TVs will be used to stream Netflix etc. Speakers for Spotify? Would you have provisions in there even though I am looking to go down the DIY method?

3. For sound - in ceiling speakers vs sonos?

Thanks for your replies in advance!

 

[americanaudiophile]

1. The custom install control system (Control4, Crestron or Savant) will offer much more flexibility and can be programmed to do what you want the way you want it to work. DIY isn't remotely at that stage yet. Of course the cost is much higher but it can be configured to your needs and the installer is responsible for getting it to work. Based on your location I suspect that it will be a better investment too.
2. I would run at least 2-4 CAT cables to each TV. You can use them for HDMI with adapters and network connections. The wire is cheap and having 1 or 2 extras is good insurance. I would do that rather then depend on WIFI to stream 4k HDR from Netflix.
3. I would go in ceiling speakers. They can be placed to work best in each space. Much more discrete. Many more options so you can tailor the quality and quantity of sound you need in each room. If you want to use Sonos as your music source then you can use Connects with a multi-channel amp or 6 ConnectAmps. You might also consider the Denon Heos system. They have a larger range of models and offer some features that Sonos doesn't. Might integrate better with a control system too. Your builder or designer should have people they work with that can help.