Kevin Rhodus, Platform Integration Manager at Q-SYS, has built a career on solving complex problems, from integrating third-party platforms to designing scalable systems that redefine the AV experience. This feature dives into Kevin’s story and some of his best projects, including a magical holiday light show spanning 12-acres and 400,000+ channels of lights, all controlled and monitored by Q-SYS. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kevin\u2019s Background and Leap to Q-SYS<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI started working in AV in high school,\u201d Kevin recalls. \u201cMy first job was at the City of Dublin\u2019s Abbey Theater. At the same time, I volunteered at the Columbus Zoo and attended their Zoo School program.\u201d During a research study, Kevin connected with the zoo\u2019s Media Productions department, which handled everything from photo\/video production to maintaining parkwide audio systems. He joined and over time, the team evolved into a full theatrical production and AV installation department. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Kevin continued working in AV throughout college, gaining experience in system design, installation, and programming. \u201cI built an in-house AV portal using Active Directory Organizational Units to grant access to AV systems based on a user\u2019s Windows login back in 2010,\u201d he reflects. In school, he took every video and audio production class he could find, and eventually even created his own major\u2014Audio\/Visual Design for Natural Resources. <\/p>\n\n\n\n After college, Kevin joined SoundCom Systems, a regional integrator in Ohio. \u201cI started as an engineer, handling pre-sales and post-sales design, CAD, and programming projects,\u201d Kevin explains. \u201cThat gave me a diverse background in control and DSP systems. When the Core 110f launched, we quickly transitioned many projects to Q-SYS control. By the end of my six years at SoundCom, I was a full-time programmer handling most of our Q-SYS programming.\u201d At Q-SYS, he\u2019s worn many hats, from Advanced Applications Engineer to now Platform Integration Manager, providing high-level technical support to large, multinational partners and designing, developing, and programming Q-SYS Experience Centers across the US. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Kevin\u2019s approach to integrating third-party platforms with Q-SYS is rooted in adaptability. \u201cOne of the most powerful aspects of Q-SYS is how easily it leverages third-party integrations to expand the platform\u2019s capabilities,\u201d he shares. \u201cI always ask how I can expand my toolbox to solve problems.\u201d With tools like APIs and Q-SYS Open, Kevin combines native strengths with external capabilities to address real world problems. For example, during the early days of COVID, Kevin devised a solution that created QR codes via API calls, allowing users to control meeting rooms using their own devices. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Projects That Change the Game<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n When we asked about his most impactful projects, Kevin recalls working on the audio distribution system at Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby. \u201cIn 2019, they had over 30 different DSPs, each running its own area, with common feeds sent over Cobranet, QLAN, Dante, and analog lines. Adjusting audio in any area required figuring out which system covered the area and which of a dozen gain knobs to adjust,\u201d Kevin explains. \u201cThis process typically took multiple team members over an hour, and once adjusted, there was no easy way to reset the system to a nominal level.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Kevin\u2019s team consolidated everything into a single Q-SYS design that runs the entire facility, enabling staff to manage audio from one intuitive interface. The system also integrated a variety of 3rd party devices to extend capabilities and introduce proactive monitoring for equipment racks located outdoors or in remote shared spaces. Previously, the only way the team knew there was an issue in one of these locations was to react to reports of outages. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, Q-SYS allows the system to scale as the facility grows, future-proofing the solution for years to come. \u201cEach of the 30+ schematic pages are laid out in a standardized way that allows users to easily identify what is happening across the entire facility,\u201d Kevin explains. \u201cSince completing the project, they have added multiple new venues to their system while maintaining a consistent and easy-to-follow signal flow and user interface.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Q-Control and the Importance of Scalability<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n When asked about a plugin he\u2019d like to spotlight, Kevin told us about Q-Control, a show controller he developed to support the various use cases and device integrations required for Q-SYS Experience Centers. It started with tailored cues and controls for specific devices in the Austin Experience Center, but today, it\u2019s a scalable, JSON-driven solution that is reusable and collaborative. Kevin shares that \u201cQ-Control now supports multiple shows, non-linear scenes, control via Q-Control style notifications, and incoming control over UDP messages from third-party devices to trigger cues or scenes.\u201d These changes elevated Q-Control into a scalable tool that can be used in projects in the Costa Mesa Experience Center and at nationwide tradeshows, a perfect example of the importance of designing systems to scale. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI always approach projects with scalability and reusability in mind. As we teach in training\u2014if you\u2019re going to do something more than once, write a function. I apply the same philosophy to system programming,\u201d Kevin says, and shares the following best practices he\u2019s learned over the years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n Sparking Holiday Cheer with a Q-SYS Controlled Light Show<\/strong> ?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Speaking of scaling systems, let\u2019s dive into one of Kevin\u2019s projects that brings new levels of cheer every holiday season. In his neighborhood, Kevin runs a 12-acre holiday light show and uses the Q-SYS Platform to ensure the 400,000+ channels of lights shine bright every night. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Kevin originally connected Q-SYS to his holiday lights to solve a basic problem\u2014a controller that would drop offline about once a week. \u201cEach night, I would look out the window and see part of the woods dark,\u201d Kevin reflects. \u201cI wanted to find a way to notify us when the controller went offline so we could respond more quickly. Fast forward a few years, a few thousand lines of code, and one massive Q-SYS file, and now the system not only alerts us but also automatically reboots any faulted controller and self-heals.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Each year, Kevin’s community is raising the bar on what this show can achieve. Kevin\u2019s Q-SYS-powered system now runs redundant show players and FM transmitters, integrates MQTT for efficiency, and monitors every pixel with Q-SYS Reflect for real-time alerts and remote control of the show, which allowed it to run 100% of the scheduled time last year. When individual sections had issues, Q-SYS instantly resolved them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s been amazing to see what started as two neighbors putting up lights in the woods become a family tradition for so many in our local community,\u201d Kevin reflects on how the project began years ago. \u201cMy neighbor and I talked in depth about wanting to turn the woods into a light show. I got married in October and designed a light show for our Halloween-themed wedding, which introduced me to Vixen\/xLights and Falcon Pi Player. Shortly after, my neighbor and I decided to jump in and pull off a light show in a month. That first year, we had three houses and 160 channels of control of standard strands of lights. Fast forward nine years, and we\u2019re now up to nine houses and 420,000 channels of control (140,000 individual pixels), and we keep growing each year.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n With the community asking what the show was for and where to donate, Kevin and his neighbor quickly realized they could use the light show to raise money for a good cause. They formed a non-profit organization that raises donations for a local charity chosen by the neighborhood each year. Over the history of the show, they\u2019ve raised more than $100,000 and donate 100% of the money to the selected non-profits! <\/p>\n\n\n\n Watch the Magic in Action<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n Want to see more on Kevin\u2019s holiday light show? Join the live Deep Dive webinar next Tuesday. Click here to register<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re more of a podcast person, Kevin covered this topic as a recent guest on Ask the Programmer with James King and Steve Greenblatt. Click here to listen. <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\n
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