Should You Find an Audio Visual Integrator Who Takes a Cross-brand Approach?
published onDecember 18, 2013

When it comes to audio visual gear, there’s something to be said for brand loyalty. Dealers who rely on a few trusted brands know what equipment they’re providing and are experts when it comes to installing that gear. They might also enjoy better volume pricing, and they might pass the savings on to you. Compatibility issues become a thing of the past when your speakers, amplifiers, processing equipment and switchers are made by the same company, which shouldn’t be an issue for the end user, but makes equipment installation easier for the integrator. But what benefits do customers really get when their integrator refuses to think outside the box and choose from a variety of brands to create the best audio visual systems for an application at the best prices?

The Benefits of Brand Loyalty
We’re not saying that integrators should never rely on the same brands for an installation. In fact, very often, here at JD Pro, we turn to the Harman family of products, which includes JBL speakers, BSS Audio processing gear and Crown amplifiers. It just so happens that Harman (a well-known name in commercial audio for decades) makes high quality products that provide a lot of bang-for-the-buck for our customers. But we’re also not afraid to select other brands when they fit our needs. By working with the world’s largest distributors, we offer fair pricing on a variety of well-known and lesser-known audio visual brands.

Audio Visual Design and a Cross-Brand Approach: the JD Pro Difference
The fact is, JD Pro provides full-service audio visual design, integration, and service-after-the-sale. In that order. The design comes first. Design is the key to a good sounding audio system or a video system that will really wow your customers. Audio visual design doesn’t mean picking the same brands and hanging the equipment in the same positions on every job site. It means listening to the customer, evaluating the space, determining the customer’s needs and then finding the best equipment at the best prices to fit their budget, whether that budget is large or small.

Electro-Voice Speakers and BLU Processing Provide Even Sound Coverage
We recently completed an audio installation in a Brooklyn church. (And if we can brag for a moment, the project was covered in the November issue of Sound & Communications magazine…)

Some integrators would raise their eyebrows at the gear we provided. We installed two pairs of Electro-Voice speakers that are more commonly used in restaurants and sports bars as fill speakers, and then hooked them up to a high-end BSS Audio SoundWeb BLU digital processor to provide the best sound. The speakers weren’t pricey, and they provided a lot of bang for the buck. Real work horses of value. This allowed us to splurge on the processor, which made it easy for us to “set-and-forget” EQ and to process each microphone on its own channel for the best sound quality possible. The goal was to provide clear, even coverage for every seat, in a church that had no technical staff at all. They didn’t have anyone to provide live mixing. Everything had to sound perfect the minute we left the job site, and keep sounding that way for the life of the gear. And this gear is built to last, another thing we wanted to ensure for our customer. The church has been serving the community for decades and intends to be around for decades more.

This is just one example of how thinking outside what we normally might install for a project helped us serve our customer. We’re not afraid to try new things, new technology, or to apply existing technology in new ways.

Creative Audio Visual Design for Staten Island and Beyond
When a Staten Island, NY, church, business, school, retail venue or hotel hires JD Pro, they are looking for more than a “cookie cutter” installation. They are hiring us for our creative design skills, our industry relationships that allow us to provide a variety of high quality brands at affordable prices, and for our reputation in the industry and around the New York Tri State area.

Do you want a team of guys to hang speakers and screens, or are you looking for audio visual design and consulting services that will make a difference in your venue? Why not call us and find out how JD Pro can help you?