The Man Cave
fully integrated home | AV distribution | HVAc | SECURITY | lighting control | home cinema
A unique and impressive basement retreat
The project is certainly one of those that don’t come along too often and truly embodies the custom aspect of the systems we can provide. An existing client wanted to take their basement car park and change it into a one-of-a-kind man cave with the centrepiece being a rotating turntable to park and display one of his supercars. The brief was simple – create a space that Tony Stark would be proud of!
Awards won on this project
The details
The area is split into a normal car parking space and the turntable housed within curved glass walls and door. The walkway leads from the games room at one end, past the wine cellar to the stairs to the main house.
Working within the spacial design created by 'The Design Practice by Uber' we were tasked with extending the existing homes audio and video systems into these areas and create some wow factor features for the car turntable.
Whilst the space is impressive in itself, the automation is where the wow factor really comes into play. Firstly we worked with an industrial controls company to provide a bespoke turntable control system with 360 degree feedback and all of the health and safety features that were required.
This project included
-
Our integrated systems provide a single point of control, eliminating the need for multiple remotes, visible wiring, and reducing the amount of technology on display to maximise the aesthetics of your home. This can be accomplished through elegant wall-mounted touch screens, handheld remotes, or dedicated phone and tablet apps.
-
An intelligent lighting solution creates atmosphere, transforming ordinary rooms into extraordinary spaces. Create ambience with a single button that controls several lighting circuits, have lights slowly turn on at sunset, trigger illuminated pathways and integrate with security systems.
-
Enjoy all of your favourite TV shows, movies and music instantly in any room, distributed from media servers, Sky boxes or even your phone. Instantly available and accessed by a simple button, everything is possible no matter where you are in your home.
-
In a modern home the IP network is the backbone of most of the systems that we install, from the standard distribution of internet over wired and WiFi connections through to sophisticated Audio and Video over IP solutions. Whatever your needs, a well designed and implemented network is an important first step.
-
From CCTV and intruder alarms to perimeter detection systems and gate access, our state-of-the-art systems ensure there is a discreet but powerful level of security in place to alert homeowners in the event of an unwanted visitor and provide complete peace of mind.
Custom Touchscreens
We designed a custom user interface for the Crestron touchpanels to give that ‘iron man’ feel and using a rotary encoder we were able to show the exact rotational position of the car and also control where it pointed. So from a simple swipe of the touchpanel the user can rotate the car to wherever they want to show off a certain side of the vehicle.
Sensors
There are magnetic flux vehicle detection sensors fitted into the driveway and underneath the cars which when calibrated to the client’s cars, let us know when a vehicle has entered the garage and when it is parked. We can then start up a pre defined playlist of background music over the vehicle with different his and hers presets depending on which car it is that arrived home. These sensors also allow us to monitor the presence of the car in the parking space and display that information around the house so a quick glance at a touch panel can let the user know who is home.
Atmospheric Lighting
There are 16 circuits of standard dimmable LEDs but we have also used DMX controlled LED strip throughout, being controlled with our own manufactured Ethernet DMX controller hardware.
The majority of the LED lighting is in white with one exception. Around the turntable is a 5mm gap to allow the rotation. We installed RGB tape into the recess on the underside of the turntable which gives a great glow though the gap. We then programmed the system to give either red or green light depending on if the turntable was safe to walk on – so if the turntable was rotating or the door was open then the light would be red, but once it was stopped the light would turn green and people could enter the turntable area.
Car turntable
We worked with a specialist supplier to create a bespoke turntable control system with 360 degree feedback and a whole host of convenience and safety features. Upon driving onto the turntable the surrounding lights glow green until the car is in position and then we use laser sensors which turn red to let you know to stop before you are near the curved glass walls.
Front page of the Financial Times
We saw this project featured on the front page of The FT. London and New York-based technology journalist, Jonathan Margolis, visited the leafy suburbs of Bowdon, near Manchester, to see the award-winning Man Cave project for himself. I think we can safely say he was blown away; stating that the client had out California’d California.
Client testimonial
“From initial concepts through to completion, the space has transformed into more than I could have hoped for and the level of automation and intelligent control adds genuine convenience, on top of the obvious wow-factor. It’s my own little Vegas.”
Why choose to work with us?
Homeowners, designers and architects trust us to provide award-winning solutions you can rely on and are a joy to use.
With over 15 years in the industry, more than 100 projects completed across the UK and numerous industry accolades, our team brings to life your vision for the perfect home.
