Guardian

In the middle of June, I had a meeting with Guardian. My wife bravely handed this responsibility off to me, but I restrained myself. I had spent a great deal of time researching everything in advance, so I was well prepared for the meeting. I had put together a packet which included lists of desired equipment, speaker packages, data outlet numbers and locations and other stuff. I knew what I wanted, but much of it would be contingent on what Guardian would be charging.

A key need was for comprehensive ethernet wiring using Category 6a wiring for a potential 10GBASE-T network. While this might seem extreme, I wanted to provide for the inevitable expansion into carrying multiple channels of high definition video over the home network without compromising other internet-related tasks. The plan was to provide data outlets in the family room, morning room, finished basement and bedrooms that would be fed from a network switch housed in the unfinished basement. Unfortunately, Guardian are unable to provide Cat6a wiring at this time, so they have agreed to run cables that I will be providing myself. Meanwhile, Guardian themselves will be providing the following:

• Alarm system
• Premium 5.1 surround speakers and wiring for the family room
• 5.1 surround speakers and wiring for the master bedroom
• Wiring for a 7.1 surround system in the finished basement
• Cable TV outlets in all the bedrooms, the basement and the family room
• Ceiling speaker pairs for the living room, dining room and morning room

I will be providing all the amplification and network equipment myself, so basically Guardian is doing mostly wiring. They've also agreed to install an in-wall subwoofer, provided by me, into the family room.