Existing Crestron System Enhanced & Upgraded

Summary

Crestron Audio Video
Ceiling Speaker Upgrade to Origin Acoustics
Crestron DIN Rail Lighting
Full HVAC Integration
Pakedge WiFi
Samsung 4K HDR TV
Anthem AVR
Leon Surround Sound System

Lighting, Audio Video & HVAC Upgrades at the Canaletto Tower, London

This apartment in the Canaletto Tower on City Road, London already had a developer-installed Crestron system controlling lighting, audio distribution and intercom throughout. The system was inflexible and unintuitive in daily use — the owners called Custom Controls to unlock what it was actually capable of. This is a Crestron upgrade project that demonstrates what the difference between a competently installed system and a properly programmed one looks and feels like in everyday life.

Crestron Lighting Upgrades

The most pressing upgrade was the lighting system. We reprogrammed the existing hardware to allow scene-setting from in-wall touchpanels and roaming iPads, and reconfigured the keypads to work intuitively. A simple slider screen on each touchpanel controls every lighting channel in the room; once levels are correct the scene is saved for instant recall from a keypad button. Each button corresponds to a different activity — reading, TV viewing, entertaining — for every room. Crestron blind controllers were added to allow easy control of the Silentgliss electric blinds throughout the property.

Audio Video Upgrades and Living Room Cinema

The existing audio system could only receive Bluetooth input and gave no clear indication of which rooms were active. We upgraded to an Autonomic MMS digital audio server, streaming internet radio, Spotify and iTunes without additional devices, and reprogrammed the interface to allow easy room ganging for parties. A Crestron Digital Media system centralises Sky Q and Apple TV, distributing both at full 4K to the master bedroom and living room. Upgraded Origin Acoustics in-ceiling speakers throughout the apartment improve both music quality and TV audio.

The living room has a full surround sound system: a Leon soundbar under a 65″ Samsung OLED TV, Origin ceiling speakers, a Leon 8″ subwoofer and an Anthem AVR handling surround decoding and ARC room correction. The living room equipment sits in a custom Italian-built unit with a sliding door — the room is completely clean when the system is off, with the TV able to hinge towards the kitchen for casual viewing.

Our Smart Home Services

Smart Home

Music Systems

Mood Lighting

HVAC Controls

Wifi & Networks

HVAC Integration

The original HVAC program was only partially commissioned and difficult to use in practice. Our reprogramming delivers simple setpoint control from touchpanels or iPads for day-to-day use, with advanced setup pages for detailed configuration. Practical automations include the master bathroom towel rail activating with the lights for a warm towel after every shower — the kind of detail that distinguishes a properly finished smart home from an unfinished one.

The Result

A Crestron system that was frustrating to use transformed into one that is invisible in the best possible way — it simply works, every time, exactly as the clients need it to. For London apartment owners with an existing Crestron or other smart home system that has never been properly configured, this project demonstrates what a Custom Controls upgrade delivers.