Home theaters are the best way to enjoy movies, TV shows, documentaries, sports games, and even video games from the comfort of your own home. There’s no more need to drive to the theaters to watch something on a large screen with crisp detail and immersive surround sound — that can now be achieved right at home.

One of the best things about owning a home theater is customizing the design, layout, and technology. With the help of a professional and experienced home theater company, you can build an excellent home theater. Here are four benefits of having a custom home theater in your Sandy Springs, GA, home.

Note: We originally wrote this popular blog post last year, before COVID-19 became part of every discussion and the stay-at-home lifestyle became mainstream. No one knows how long this pandemic or these stringent social distancing mandates will last, so it doesn’t surprise us that searches for smart home automation, lighting, integrated security systems and more have skyrocketed lately.

One of our favorite smart home systems, Control4, will elevate your at-home experience with its unparalleled convenience, seamless integration, and abundant security and entertainment features -- capabilities that you’ll appreciate both now and after this passes. Why should you work with a Control4 provider to make your time at home more pleasant? And how can you get started with a step-by-step approach, instead of building a top-to-bottom integrated home experience? Control4 offers impressive product updates year after year to make it more competitive in a crowded market. Keep reading for some of our favorite automation perks and how to bring them to your Georgia home.

As we all know, the current COVID-19 health crisis has presented significant challenges to everyone. With Georgia now officially under stay-at-home orders, home life has all family members under one roof pursuing typical activities at the same time – work, school, entertainment, and staying in touch with friends and family.

This time may bring about some new stresses on home life, but we have some technology solutions that may help. GHT Group has always maintained that smart home automation offers a variety of important benefits in various areas, including security and safety, comfort, efficiency, and even wellness. If you have some aspects of smart home technology in your home, you may already appreciate that. If you don’t, we have some solutions that you can consider to make this time a little easier. GHT Group is still open for business and available to help with your home technology needs.

How can home automation help with this period in your Johns Creek, GA home? Read on for some ideas.

Note: We originally wrote this blog in 2018, long before anyone started talking about this novel coronavirus that affects so many lives now. Now more than ever, it feels relevant to discuss how we can make our outdoor spaces more enjoyable for our families. And when this pandemic passes, we will finally get to enjoy our outdoor lighting and video with extended groups of people once again.

Many people know about Coastal Source’s many outdoor audio options but don’t know that it’s also a premier home lighting design provider. In this blog, we’ll remind you of the beauty and functionality built into outdoor lighting and why you should prioritize it for your Georgia home. You’ll learn how a Coastal Source system can highlight your architecture so that passers-by can appreciate it on their nightly walks through the neighborhood. You’ll also discover why lighting control is a key safety feature. Keep reading to explore why lighting and audio are even more important today than when we originally wrote this article.

Spring is here in the Atlanta area.  While our winters are fairly mild, we all look forward to spending time outdoors.  In the South, you can beat the humid heat on a lazy Sunday by floating or frolicking in the pool.  Or perhaps you just like relaxing on a chaise, in the shade, with a good book and a sweet iced tea. Think that sounds enjoyable? Just add music to elevate this experience to the mental retreat we all need now.

We originally wrote this popular blog article during a much more pleasant time, the summer of 2018, before anyone talked of this new coronavirus. The current COVID-19 pandemic, which has afflicted much of Northwest Georgia, casts a shadow over even this outdoor merriment. However, if we’ve learned anything these past few weeks, it’s how therapeutic our outdoor time can be after being cooped up indoors all day.

Whether you’re spending time chilling with pets and family on your patio or getting some exercise in your pool, everything feels more enjoyable when you add music. However, simply adding any speakers you find on Amazon Prime isn’t enough. You’ll need Atlanta’s premier AV installer to help you choose and install the best speakers for your patios, yards and pools.

A couple of times, you may have seen us mention the "golden age of audio" on these pages. It's because we can't think of a time when there have been more choices in quality audio equipment. It's not only choice but incredible sound quality that can be had from a wide array of equipment.

When it comes to outdoor sound systems for your Atlanta-area home, the same holds true. There are so many excellent options in speakers, control systems, amplifiers, and more for outdoor sound that we can’t cover them all in one blog; we can only tell you about a few.

In this blog, we'll cover three types of outdoor speakers from three of our favorite brands in the hope of giving you some ideas on how to amp up your outdoor sound. Given the current environment where you may be spending extended time at home, why not consider spicing up the outdoor entertainment to make it a little more enjoyable?

We’ve discussed the merits of Crestron home automation systems at length in the past. Crestron is the company that is practically synonymous with automation in both the residential and commercial spaces. For some smaller residential applications, Crestron solutions had the reputation of being complex to integrate, as the system had many options.

Several months ago, Crestron introduced OS 3, a redesigned automation system aimed at making a home automation system easier for a homeowner to use and for integrators like GHT Group to install. In truth, OS 3 was not radically new; it was an evolution and improvement over the Pyng system that they had introduced a few years earlier that added many modern features to Crestron automation.

It’s important to understand Crestron’s approach to home automation. They are a company that designs and tests all their own equipment and software, not merely designing equipment that is manufactured offshore. When it comes to the software, the ability to control a home remotely through the internet also means being able to do it with the utmost security and privacy. 

If you have multiple homes, like your primary residence in Brookhaven and a cabin in Blue Ridge in the Georgia mountains, Crestron OS 3 is an ideal solution for managing your homes securely. Read on to learn more.

We’ve discussed the merits of Crestron home automation systems at length in the past. Crestron is the company that is practically synonymous with automation in both the residential and commercial spaces. For some smaller residential applications, Crestron solutions had the reputation of being complex to integrate, as the system had many options.

Several months ago, Crestron introduced OS 3, a redesigned automation system aimed at making a home automation system easier for a homeowner to use and for integrators like GHT Group to install. In truth, OS 3 was not radically new; it was an evolution and improvement over the Pyng system that they had introduced a few years earlier that added many modern features to Crestron automation.

It’s important to understand Crestron’s approach to home automation. They are a company that designs and tests all their own equipment and software, not merely designing equipment that is manufactured offshore. When it comes to the software, the ability to control a home remotely through the internet also means being able to do it with the utmost security and privacy.  

If you have multiple homes, like your primary residence in Brookhaven and a cabin in Blue Ridge in the Georgia mountains, Crestron OS 3 is an ideal solution for managing your homes securely. Read on to learn more. 

SEE ALSO: 5 Reasons to Automate Your Home Media with Crestron

Right now, many of us are hyper-focused on our home entertainment and automation systems since some of us aren’t venturing far beyond our property. Isn’t now the right time to optimize your automation and AV controls? Though hands-free control has grown more popular as we deal with the new coronavirus, sometimes nothing replaces the familiar control we get with a traditional remote control. Remote controls allow the tactile controls you’re used to, while backlighting features let you see how you’re navigating your remote, even if you’re watching in the dark.

Crestron released its TSR-310 and HR-310 remotes back in 2018, but Crestron home automation users enjoy their capabilities to this day. Click on our original blog post to learn more, and keep reading to learn some details about both remotes.

We’re big fans of smarter lighting solutions at GHT Group. With some new technologies, there are advantages and disadvantages. When it comes to lighting, LED has clear and measurable benefits that are hard to ignore with no downside. While LED lighting and fixtures were once an expensive proposition, economies of scale and a major shift to this technology have now made them an easy decision for any home.

Should you upgrade to LED lights in your Alpharetta, GA home? You might guess our answer is an emphatic yes, and we’ll give you five reasons why below. Keep reading!

SEE ALSO: Learn About GHT Group’s New Brand Partner: DMF Lighting

Even in 2020, decades after high-end names like Klipsch started producing speakers, we’ve associated the best audio with the most exorbitant price tags. While there is some truth to the statement, “You get what you pay for,” that doesn’t mean that spending more is always the way to go. Klipsch’s new RP-600M bookshelf speakers deliver without breaking the bank.

In fact, RP-600M costs about 10% of what the mid-level Heritage Cornwall model sells for. Klipsch wants every owner of their speakers to be proud of their purchase, which shows in the way these bookshelf speakers look and sound.

As businesses close throughout the country to aid in social distancing and halting the spread of COVID-19, we have been designated by the government as an essential business that may remain open to support our community during this time. That being said, we’re not conducting business as usual. Your safety is of the utmost importance to us, which is why we’ve implemented special steps to protect clients and staff during the COVID-19 outbreak in the US. 

Some say this is the golden age of audio, and we think they’re right. We cannot think of another time when there were so many options to choose from for great sound. It doesn’t matter whether you’re into the ease of wireless speakers like Sonos or the legendary quality of McIntosh equipment; there is excellent audio quality to be had at every end of the price spectrum.

We've had several blogs featuring various high-end audio products from Klipsch and MartinLogan speakers to turntables and amplifiers.  In this blog, we wanted to highlight a couple of options that deliver the sound quality that any Atlanta audio enthusiast could applaud at two ends of the budget spectrum. As we're talking about hi-fi audio here, budget does not mean inexpensive. As any enthusiast knows, truly great sound does not come cheap.

Of course, these are but two options to get you thinking about your high-end audio upgrade; GHT Group has many others. But these two can start the creative juices flowing!

Lighting control is one of the most sought-after smart home solutions today. The reasons are straightforward; lighting control and automation saves money, is energy efficient, and makes your home more convenient and beautiful. 

While several home automation companies offer lighting control products and solutions, no company has a singular focus on it like Lutron. The company invented the solid-state dimmer in the 1950s, and since then has continued innovating in lighting control and management in both the residential and commercial markets.

As you might expect from a company focused on lighting control, Lutron makes several solutions. We have featured Lutron’s Caseta system before, a wireless system that serves as an entry point into the world of lighting control, and is best suited for smaller homes and condominiums that range up to 2,500 square feet. In this blog, we're going to focus on Lutron's higher-end solutions – RadioRA 2 and HomeWorks QS, targeted toward larger and more extensive properties.

Which Lutron lighting control system is the right choice for your Johns Creek, GA home? Read on to learn more. 

SEE ALSO: Introduce Your Home to the Human Side of Lighting Control

Netflix is one of those internet institutions that is now ingrained in popular culture, and not just in the U.S. Younger viewers may not even realize that the company started as the internet alternative to Blockbuster video rentals, shipping physical discs conveniently to your home and doing away with the dreaded late fees.

These days, of course, Netflix is the 800-pound gorilla of internet video streaming, with a seemingly endless array of titles to watch. Moreover, they have become a force in Hollywood, financing many original movies and shows that can be viewed by audiences more massive than ever before, and garnering multiple Golden Globe and Oscar wins.

If you have a media room or home theater installation in your Atlanta, GA home, chances are you have a few Netflix favorites. It doesn’t hurt that Netflix has also been ahead of the curve in adopting the most advanced audio and video technologies in their original content like 4K, Dolby Atmos surround sound, and Dolby Vision that make great use of the latest AV equipment. And if you love Netflix, you'll love it even more with the newest feature Sony includes in its latest TVs and projectors. Read on to learn more.