Avalon

Environmental audio across mixed-use development

CLIENT

North American Properties

INDUSTRY

Commercial

LOCATION

Alpharetta, GA

DATE

May 2017

TECH

Audio

Our Solution Story

Avalon is a mixed-use development in Alpharetta, Georgia, a thriving city on the north side of Atlanta. Phase I of North American Properties Atlanta’s live-work-play creation opened in 2014, with Phase II opening in 2017 and more phases to follow. Retail tenants include such brands as Regal Cinemas, Vineyard Vines, and Whole Foods.

Audio

North American Properties Atlanta engaged dB Integrations at the beginning of Phase II to upgrade and expand upon the work done in Phase I by a different contractor.

dB upgraded Phase I’s distributed audio system from analog to digital, also improving the processor and adding a touch controller for the system. We installed additional landscape speakers to expand the entire environmental sound system in a range of public areas—a large plaza as well as parking garage and covered passageways.

Audio

dB’s engineers upgraded the front end of Avalon’s distributed audio system from analog to digital. We installed a Rane multiprocessor with Halogen software, which manages routing and sourcing for all of the audio across the property. This audio includes the main stage for live performance (installed in Phase I), smaller stage for live performance, Pandora media player, wireless microphone, audio from CATV, iPod, and even emergency broadcasts. We also added digital amplifiers and a touch screen controller. This control center resides in the concierge building and can be used to manage sound throughout the Avalon property.

While the speakers installed during Phase I are connected via copper cables to the control rack, the Phase II installation employs a Dante network, which uses a fiber network and allows for total versatility and control in various spaces across the network.

dB Integrations expanded the network of landscape speakers to cover the Phase II spaces. These small Bose speakers are all connected to the central control. There are in-ground speakers throughout the main plaza, surface-mounted speakers in the parking deck, and flush-mount ceiling speakers in the covered passageways.

A notable feature of the main plaza is a large fountain with numerous water jets. The movements of the water can be coordinated with audio, and dB implemented the route to the audio system to enable that functionality.

Recap

The entire audio system of both Phase I and Phase II is now managed and controlled with dB technology. We have created a fully networked audio solution for Avalon, with a variety of spaces now linked together through higher quality sound that also enables more control, flexibility and stability.