Michael Heiss gives an update on the latest connectivity standards in his Letter from America.
Anyone who has heard my presentations at CEDIA or other events has likely heard me riff on “Content is King”, regardless of what part of the industry you practice in. I maintain that continues to be true as content is more than just entertainment and streaming, it is anything that is sensed or captured and then packaged together into a meaningful form, stored or transmitted, selected and managed, and then ultimately viewed, listened to or acted on. Fine, you say, but isn’t the headline topic here connectivity?
Yes, it is and the reason is obvious: There are two “C”s here and they can’t exist without one another. Content without connectivity is like the tree falling in the proverbial forest that can’t be heard. Conversely, if you have a great pipe but there is nothing to flow through it. There, the analogy is turning on the faucet and nothing flows out.
Thus, this issue’s task is looking at connectivity and cutting through some of the confusion all the myriad connectivity paths and technologies sometimes cause for us and our clients. After all, one more thought before getting into it: behind most Kings there is a Queen who really keeps things together. That applies here, as if we think of content as King, connectivity is the Queen. You need both to have a great family, or in this case a home ecosystem.
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Connectivity seems obvious: wires of all types that connect things, wireless transmission where wires are not the right way to bring things together, and the way that content is connected. Obvious perhaps, but also one of the most common places where the King’s realm might fall apart. Today, let’s take a look at some things that can help keep the content King happy! As always, some may seem obvious, but that’s part of the idea as we want to make certain that the somewhat little parts of connectivity don’t get lost in the big picture.
Let’s start with audio connectivity. Like many other aspects of our world, the simple analogue paths of yesteryear are often thought to be obsolete in the face of the digital world. Well, sometimes yes, sometimes no. It’s the choice you make for the use case and budget at hand.
As with other connectivity pipes, in audio things depend on what the source is, what the sink or endpoint is and what is in the pipe. These days the default path may be seen to be digital, but even then, which type? An easy example is connecting a TV, particularly a smart TV, or as industry jargon now uses, “CTV” for “connected TV”. With CTVs being the norm for streaming content we increasingly face the issue of how to get the audio out to an AVR, surround processor or other product. Sure, it’s easy to say, “Come on Mike, haven’t you heard about ARC and eARC?”. Yes, suffice to say that I have, but it isn’t that simple.
First, if you are using an older audio processor it might not have eARC and that means you can only get standard PCM through the HDMI connection, not the full bitstream needed for Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. No ARC at all on the display side? Then there are two options: Use an optical or coax digital connection from the TV to the audio sink device.
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Of course, if the video sink is a projector or dvLED that doesn’t have the streaming smarts of a CTV then you must use an external streamer such as a Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast/Google TV, Roku, or other Android devices such as an Nvida Shield. That gets around the ARC issue since it goes directly to the sound sink and then video from there to the display.
The obvious plan here? Particularly when you have to configure a system that includes the client’s existing legacy gear, pre-bid questionnaires are key, and one needs to make certain that they ask all the right questions.
Sometimes when putting a system together you are also confronted with questions from the client or prospect that they ask based on what they hear from friends, the popular or enthusiast press, or these days even social media and pop-up ads. If you don’t know your stuff, it will be hard to counter request that you may later wish you had an explanation to suggest another alternative.
Here's one more in the audio world. The broad category of Audio Over IP (AoIP), has been gaining speed in the professional and commercial audio community in the past few years in the form of AES 67 and Dante. I’ve seen some impressive demonstrations at NAB and Infocomm this year, and they were part of some of the higher profile demos at last year’s CEDIA Expo and will undoubtedly be very much in sight again this year in Denver.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for the latest and greatest, as I suspect many of you are. Here, however, the connection question is not whether there are benefits to AoIP. The question is if they make sense in the job at hand. At the other end of the audio technology spectrum, one might say the same about using balanced, XLR, audio connections. Is the source to sink distance long enough to make the technology used worth the added cost? Are there other considerations such as the need to protect the audio chain from RF or EMI interference? Those types of systems are what the decision should be based on, not just “doing it for show” or just to have the latest and greatest.
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Yes, connectivity is something that extends to all sorts of hooking things up together, even when we are not the prime contractor for the task at hand. We need to be aware of what the other trades are doing and make certain that our part of the puzzle fits in with the rest. That is how we make and keep clients.
Some of those connections you might not think of as being “yours” are electrical. Trust me, they are. For example, with the growth of EVs across the globe, one has to consider EV charging as part of your remit. Wait, you exclaim, I’m not the electrician. Perhaps, but your game IS connectivity.
That’s why I bring up EV charging. If a client asks for a charger, the electrician would certainly know how to wire it in, but would they understand where it fits in the total home system? Example: Virtually all chargers now have Wi-Fi connectivity to report status and usage. We love our “sparkies”, but do you really want them trying to bond it in with the Wi-Fi and home control system? That is YOUR place.
Also, if the garage or an outdoor charging post is too far from the main house you might not have a stable Wi-Fi connection without some upgrades. I can attest to that as when I put in my EV charger, I had to upgrade the Wi-Fi to make certain that it was good enough inside an older garage where the 1950’s plasterboard with heavy metal mesh caused a reception problem.
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Perhaps more than any other connectivity technology, Wi-Fi has been a leader in adding improvements and advancements. The base standard is now over 25 years old. Since then, speeds have increased, as has the number of connected devices allowed. More frequencies and channels help reduce interference and channel congestion. So far, all good.
However, for all the improvements Wi-Fi can be a confusing connectivity “pipe” and that is where you come in, particularly more so in system upgrades, “take overs” or conversions from more DIY systems to the professional ones that you provision. Why? Wi-Fi is more powerful and essential than ever, yet clearly you can’t do any installation these days without it, but there are potential hidden pitfalls within something that is said to be consumer simple. Sometimes, it isn’t.
For example, unless you are creating a full, ground up, new system there are likely to be legacy devices such as light bulbs, switches and outlets, streamers, smart speakers and controllers of all sorts. That puts the onus on YOU to identify them and understand any compromises they might bring to total system performance. It’s not that they might not work, but will the legacy devices work as well as they should and allow everything to meet expectations?
In some cases there is the question of older 2.4Ghz-only devices not working automatically with some dual-band routers, even some brands that offer Wi-Fi6e. The trick is not that they won’t work, which almost every time they will, but that you have to temporarily turn off the 5Ghz bands and use only 2.4Ghz so that the legacy device connects. Not impossible, but it can be a pain. Trust me, been there, done that. Best bet: use dual-band devices at the start and replace older 2.4Ghz only where you can for seamless integration.
Just now I’ve said go for the new, but when it comes to Wi-Fi the question will eventually come around to Wi-Fi 7. Is it “Don’t need it”, “Must have it to future proof”, or “Gee, that’s a bloody good question!”. My advice is definitely not the first choice, maybe the second for some if you are willing to be always observant for possible system software/firmware updates to what is still a somewhat new standard.
For many, this is one of the hardest types of connectivity issues to deal with. There is something very capable and contemporary out there that does mostly anything you want and need for the vast majority of installations. On the other hand, if you are facing a major system build that must have long product viability do you go with the latest and greatest even though it might not be needed (at least for now) and there still might not be the full range of products from brands you deal with at prices that meet the budget. You only get to do it once and you want to do it right.
Making that type of decision is, as they say, why you make the big bucks. The best advice I can give you is simply to be aware and informed and have all the facts lined up. Be prepared to lay them out to the homeowner or builder and clearly explain your recommendation while at the same time giving them options.
Last one: Is it possible to write an article on connectivity in our business without mentioning, as some have often lamented, “You can’t live with it, you can’t live without it”. Of course, that can only be one thing: HDMI. In fairness, HDMI, itself, has often gotten a bad rap for problems that were not the fault of the standard or the underlying technology. Often it was bad implementation. Sometimes it was HDCP, not HDMI that caused issues.
Regardless, the bottom line is that although DisplayPort has its place in the connectivity spectrum, as does Thunderbolt, HDMI is here to stay and it isn’t going anywhere. However, some pointers to keep you out of trouble. First, “Alt-Mode” that allows DisplayPort and Thunderbolt ports to deliver HDMI is something you benefit from. With adaptors or dongles as needed it lets you connect most phones, tablets, computers or laptops with USB-C and in many cases even USB-A to a display.
As always be careful and do your homework. No problem with Lightning or USB-C to HDMI from Apple devices, and USB-C to HDMI with Samsung “DEX” phones and some other Android phones. Have I said, “Look before you leap?” yet? For those with Pixel phones, at least as this is written before August’s unveiling of new Pixel devices and the Android 15 release, USB-C to HDMI is only available with Pixel 8 range models. Imagine my surprise when my assumption that there would be HDMI out with a standard adaptor to the USB-C on my not that old Pixel 7a to use cloud storage as a backup for presentations didn’t work. Don’t let you or your clients fall into that type of trap by not being informed.
To close, perhaps the main thing to always remember about connectivity is not just the physical, signal or device connections. It’s not just the pipes and the analogue, digital, RF or IP content that flows through them via all sorts of connections. The most important connection should always be to your clients, staff, vendors, and even your competitors to make certain that you are connected with the latest information so that you know how to connect, and often how not to. Rest assured that HiddenWires is here to serve as a connection to you to help you plug the right things in, the proper way.