Michael Restrepo discusses how passion and purpose drive his work in the custom integration industry, describing Restrepo Innovations as a concierge-style design and build firm focused on meaningful client experiences. He highlights the human impact of smart home technology, the value of community at events like CEDIA Expo/CIX, and his commitment to an optimistic, people-first approach to the business.
At CEDIA Expo 2025, Harman Luxury Audio’s Jim Garrett joined Convo by Design host Josh Cooperman inside the Volkswagen ID. Buzz “Podcast Van” to discuss how performance, aesthetics, and lifestyle continue to converge in home entertainment. Garrett highlighted Harman’s collaboration with Samsung, integrator feedback as a driver of innovation, and the company’s push toward discreet, design-friendly solutions like invisible loudspeakers.
Recorded live on the Smart Stage at CEDIA Expo/CIX 2025, this episode features Ari Supran, CEO of Sonance, delivering one of the show’s most talked-about presentations: “Practical Uses of AI in the Custom Integration Industry.” In this engaging and highly practical session, Supran walks the audience through how AI is already transforming day-to-day operations inside his company—and how custom integrators can do the same. Instead of focusing on futuristic speculation, he demonstrates how AI to...
In this exclusive interview conducted during CEDIA Expo/CIX last month in Denver, Buzz Delano, principal consultant at Delano Associates, reflects on the progress he's seen over 30 years in the business. That includes how we've seen design, custom builders, kitchen and bath technology, furniture and decor come to complement audio, video, home theater, networking, windows and shading at events like CEDIA Expo/CIX. This has redefine the entire industry as "the smart home profession," he says. L...
Ring account managers Chris Babiak and Tommy Leonard join CE Pro Executive Editor Zachary Comeau to share strategies for growing your integration business with Ring. From creative upselling techniques to cross-industry partnerships and overlooked product features, this conversation is packed with actionable insights to help pros build better systems, increase referrals, and boost recurring revenue.
In this episode of the CE Pro Podcast, Paul Williams, Managing Director of Home Management Solutions at Nice, discusses his recent advocacy efforts on Capitol Hill as part of CEDIA’s second annual Smart Home Day. The conversation focuses on why direct engagement with lawmakers is essential for the continued growth and innovation of the smart home industry. Williams outlines several key policy issues raised during meetings with Congressional staff, including the need for tariff relief on speci...
Through the publication of his book Richard Charschan, president of AcousticSmart, aims to educate interior designers and architects on the benefits of properly designed home theaters.
On the latest CE Pro Podcast, Joel Silver of ISF, Jason Dustal of Murideo and AVPro Edge, and Robert Zohn of Value Electronics, explain how even simple calibration adjustments can create happier clients.
Before lighting fixtures and power management became hot categories in custom integration, the big buzz was about the impact of wireless audio. With multipurpose media rooms becoming the norm, we spoke with WiSA (Wireless Speaker and Audio Association President Tony Ostrom about the state of wireless audio and especially in surround sound settings and other applications as well, in this week’s CE Pro Podcast episode.
In the world of interior lighting, artwork needs to be specially lit if homeowners want to capture the essence of beauty the artist originally intended. Step outside and you’ll find that to be no different, only instead of the artist being Basquiat or Monet, it’s good old mother nature (and of course the architect that helped design the home). WAC President Patrick Laidlaw says it’s this realization that drove the company to develop its recently released Colorscaping system. Released just bef...
Daryl Friedman admits he doesn’t have time for hobbies these days leading CEDIA as global president & CEO. It didn’t help that the former GRAMMY executive took reins of those roles in 2021, when the pandemic was experiencing a surge. He came into CEDIA and embarked on a worldwide tour of the organization’s conferences and meetings with integrator members. Thankfully, I was able to capture 30 minutes of Friedman’s time recently – on a day when he only had eight meetings. We chatted a...
HDMI Licensing President Rob Tobias chats about AI's impact on AV, improving immersive experiences, Blu-ray discs vs. streaming content, identifying counterfeit cables and more.
One of the most enduring companies serving the custom integration industry is Russound. The New Hampshire-based company has some exciting products for 2024, highlighted by its AVA-Series of mini-AV receivers (AVRs) to expand its audio riches for the CEDIA channel. In the latest edition of the CE Pro Podcast, Russound CEO Charlie Porritt joins to chat about the latest happenings and R&D developments from the audio company.
Vetting a new vendor for your portfolio can be a daunting process, but that’s where your industry networking comes in handy. Down in Florida, Anthony Petrone, founder and CEO of Wellington-based Petrone Technology Group, was seeking an outdoor audio solution and his dealer friends kept pushing him toward Coastal Source. Hear how the match was an immediate success and why Coastal Source CEO Franco D’Ascanio is expecting big things from 2024, all in this latest CE Pro Podcast episode. Edi...
Everyone knows about CEDIA, the leading association for the custom integration industry. Chances are you’ve attended CEDIA Expo and taken CEDIA instructor-led technology courses. But did you know about all the stuff the association engages in behind the scenes to benefit the entire industry? In case you didn’t, I talked to Darren Reaman, director of government affairs at CEDIA, to discuss the group’s advocacy efforts and other endeavors that help elevate the industry, all in this week’s CE Pr...
The fall and early winter periods are important times of the year in the world of home AV. For many homeowners, it means buying new AV systems in preparation for a winter of staying home and watching movies, streamed content, and sports such as hockey and basketball. The annual CEDIA Expo, which took place just after Labor Day, the 2023 event in Denver marked a milestone period for the electronics market. Recapping some of the most important video developments from the CEDIA Expo ...
Following a successful CEDIA Expo 2023 in which home audio – particularly immersive audio – was front-and-center on the show floor, it was time to talk surround sound with our “Audio Guys” regulars on the latest CE Pro Podcast. Joined by CE Pro All-Star Band keyboard player Steve Haas, who is a nationally recognized acoustician in the residential and commercial audio markets, along with the CE Pro Podcast resident audiophiles Steve Silberman, director of sales, West for Savant, and Paul Bochn...
This year, Nationwide Marketing Group expanded its reach with the rebranding of its residential dealer group to Oasys Residential Technology Group and launched a commercial counterpart, the Ellipsys Commercial Technology Group, in addition to the well-established Azione Unlimited. The leaders of those organizations – Richard Glikes, president and chief creative officer of Azione Unlimited, Hank Alexander, director of the Oasys Residential Technology Group, and Chris Whitley, executive d...
We just wrapped up CEDIA Expo 2023, and beyond the usual product innovations and education sessions, CEDIA hosted its annual awards banquet where it honors a Lifetime Achievement Award winner and often, but not always, a special CEDIA Fellow recognition. This year the special CEDIA Fellow recipient was James Chen, managing director of Kordz. We were privileged to have Chen connect with us from Australia over Zoom. In this episode, he tells us about his three decades in the industry, his...
One of the highlights at CEDIA Expo every year are the amazing home theater and audiophile demo rooms, and it looks like this year will be no different. One in particular that’s sure to stand out at CEDIA Expo 2023 in Denver (Sept. 7-9) is the 11.6.6-channel Dolby Atmos theater being staged by Seymour-Screen Excellence, StormAudio, Grimani Systems, and RowOne Seating. The brands say it will be the first fully digital AES67 Audio-over-IP (AoIP) home theater at the show in Sound Room 10 o...