Jordan O'BrienNiles Auriel is getting a major overhaul as part of its 2.0 update, with the platform gaining streaming audio, climate and lighting control, plus remote access features. The Core Brands-owned company claims that this converts the system from a multi-room audio solution into a major player in the home control market.
“Auriel 2.0 is a huge leap forward from the original multi-room audio platform that we introduced in 2014,” explains Core Brands software product manager, Tom McKeon.
“It’s built on the ELAN Control Platform, so it’s a natural progression for Auriel to expand into smart home control. And, conveniently, the new software update enables any existing Auriel system to easily upgrade to the additional control features, so everyone wins.”
Lighting control devices and wireless thermostats now connect to the Auriel Controller, making the Niles Auriel MRC-6430 a complete home automation controller. Auriel 2.0 delivers access to lighting scenes and climate scheduling with a few clicks on a Niles handheld remote (nHR200), wall-mounted touch panel (nTP4, nTP7), or the Auriel App for Android and iOS mobile devices.
Auriel 2.0 updates the Auriel Wizard, which claims to cut configuration time to just minutes instead of hours. With a tablet or PC, the installer is whisked through decisions that configure the system for lighting scenes and thermostat programming, plus sources, zone preferences, home theatre control and user interface customisation.
Providing more options for integrators and their clients, Auriel 2.0 now has Pandora, Spotify, TuneIn and other popular Internet radio services built into the MRC-6430 chassis. One chassis delivers audio to six zones through seven distinct input sources. For larger homes, two chassis can be linked together to create a 12-zone system.
“We’re continuing to refine the Auriel home entertainment experience, expanding from the ‘one touch to music’ philosophy that made it an industry favourite,” Tom adds. “With the ELAN engine under the hood, Auriel delivers an easy-to-install, entertainment-centric solution that is ideal for entry-level control and multi-unit installations.”
The new Auriel 2.0 update will be on show at CEDIA 2016, stand 4100.