Scott Heston, of Heston Technical, took on a project that is located off the Seattle shore, which he claims is, “not the everyday sort of thing that we do.”  The project involved a 1,500 square foot houseboat that was custom built from the floats up by owners, Mike and Kristy Villiott. They wanted to have a fully integrated entertainment system installed, which would allow them to have clear, consistent sound throughout their home—whether it meant they were watching movies on the main floor, or listening to music while practicing on the rooftop putting green.

The Villiots and Heston agreed on incorporating a comprehensive suite of Tannoy speakers throughout the home. “They wanted the entertainment system to flow throughout the house, inside and out, [with] the latest equipment, as well as easy control of the system,” says Heston. So they added a Kaleidescape digital movie system, three Sony LCD screens and surround processors, along with the Tannoy technology. Crestron amps with both remote and wall-mounted touchpads for all A/V systems, temperature and lighting (all protected by Furman power) were added, as well.

Kristy Villiot was particularly concerned with not compromising the aesthetics of their home. Heston made sure that the overall look and feel of the place stayed within Kristy’s liking. “We chose Tannoy because they had a style that fit the environment Kristy was creating,” says Heston. Because there were two different, distinct surfaces, specific speakers were necessary for fitting the build. “The upstairs lent itself to wall mounted speakers. Whereas downstairs, the speakers were located above, in the exposed timber of the ceiling.”

In the main family room, an Arena 5.1 surround system was installed, and it was chosen because it provided a focal point for entertainment without ruining the aesthetic of the room. On the second floor, in the master sitting area, a second Arena system was installed, featuring three Highline 500’s surrounding the LCD monitor in an LCR configuration, in conjunction with an Arena Highline TS 500 sub.

Low-profile mounted flush speakers were installed in the ceilings of the master bedroom deck, the master bath, as well as elsewhere throughout the home for distributed sound throughout. A total of ten Tannoy CMS 601 DC BM’s are also tied into the main entertainment systems. Additionally, two CMS 501 DC BM’s were added to provide rear surround channels for the main family room; while at the rooftop, on the putting green, Heston included a pair of Tannoy iw4 DC’s.

Tannoy was also chosen as a matter of convenience. For Heston, Tannoy is a ‘go to’ product because of the quality of construction, ease of installation, and overall clarity and sound quality. There is much thought that goes into the functionality of this kind of project—especially, when one is dealing with a home that is afloat.