- Client: Capital One (national financial services company)
- Location: 201 3rd Street, San Francisco, CA — Commons space
- Scope: A large open collaboration and event space with dual projection, distributed audio, and multiple video conferencing kits
- Platform: Crestron 16x16 DigitalMedia matrix, Polycom RealPresence video conferencing, dual NEC projection
Background
Capital One is a national financial services company, one of the largest credit card issuers in the country, with a San Francisco office that once occupied four full floors at 201 3rd Street in SoMa. The building's ground-level "Commons" space was built to double as open collaboration space and a large-scale event venue — not a conference room, but a space that needed to handle everything from casual team gatherings to company-wide town halls.
The situation
Capital One needed its Commons space built out with AV that could scale from small-group use to a full company event: video and audio distributed across a large open floor, multiple video conferencing endpoints for hybrid participation, and enough amplification and speaker coverage to fill the room for an all-hands rather than a meeting.
What made it hard
A space this size isn't one room with one signal path — it's a matrix problem. The head-end had to route video and audio to multiple zones at once, support several video conferencing kits running independently, and still work as a single coordinated system when the whole space came together for one event. Getting that right meant a switching platform with real headroom, not a small-room DM switcher pressed into service for something much bigger.
How we designed it
The head end runs on a Crestron DM-MD16X16 — a 16x16 DigitalMedia matrix with dedicated 4K input and output cards — giving the space enough switching capacity to route multiple video and audio sources to different zones simultaneously rather than forcing everything through one signal path. Video conferencing runs on four Polycom RealPresence Group 700 kits with EagleEye IV PTZ cameras, so multiple zones of the Commons can run independent video calls at the same time. Dual NEC PX602UL DLP projectors on motorized Da-Lite screens handle large-format presentation content, backed by four NEC 55" displays for smaller-format viewing around the space.
Audio runs on a genuinely large-venue scale: 36 SoundTube RS600I ceiling speakers and 7 SoundTube subwoofers, driven by Extron four-channel amplifiers and tuned through dbx feedback suppression processors — coverage built for a room that needs to sound right whether it's hosting a handful of people or the whole office. Shure QLXD wireless handheld and lavalier microphones handle presenters, and an RTS intercom system lets AV and event staff coordinate backstage during larger events, the way a broadcast crew would rather than a typical office AV team.
Equipment summary
| Category | Equipment | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Switching | Crestron DM-MD16X16, 3-Series control | 16x16 matrix, multi-zone routing |
| Video conferencing | 4x Polycom RealPresence Group 700 + EagleEye IV cameras | Independent zones can run separate calls |
| Projection | 2x NEC PX602UL DLP projectors, Da-Lite motorized screens | Large-format presentation content |
| Displays | 4x NEC 55" P553 displays | Smaller-format viewing zones |
| Speakers | 36x SoundTube RS600I, 7x SoundTube subwoofers | Venue-scale distributed coverage |
| Amplification | Extron XPA 2004 (x2), dbx AFS 224 feedback suppression | Four-channel amps, tuned for the space |
| Microphones | Shure QLXD124/85 wireless handheld + lavalier | 4 channels |
| Event coordination | RTS wireless intercom system | Backstage crew communication for larger events |
Network and IT
The head-end rack runs on a Middle Atlantic ERK-4420 44-space rack with seismic floor anchoring, sized to hold a 16x16 matrix, four amplifier channels, and the DSP and control processing a space this size needs — not a wall-mounted enclosure, but a proper equipment room built for a venue-scale system.
The rollout
The pick list specified every zone of the Commons space in a single coordinated build rather than phasing the space room by room — appropriate for a space designed to function as one large venue rather than a collection of separate rooms.
How is a large open collaboration space different from designing a conference room?
Capital One's Commons space needed a 16x16 DigitalMedia matrix rather than a small-room switcher, because multiple zones needed to route video and audio independently while still being able to combine into one system for a full company event — a matrix problem, not a single-room signal path.
Can a single space support several video conferencing calls running at once?
Yes — Capital One's Commons space runs four separate Polycom RealPresence Group 700 video conferencing kits, letting different zones of the same open space host independent calls simultaneously rather than sharing one system.
What does venue-scale audio coverage actually require?
Capital One's Commons space runs 36 ceiling speakers and 7 subwoofers across the room, driven by multi-channel amplifiers and tuned with feedback suppression processing — coverage sized for a room that has to sound right whether ten people or the whole company are in it.
Do large event spaces need dedicated crew communication systems?
For bigger events, yes — Capital One's space includes an RTS wireless intercom system so AV and event staff can coordinate during larger gatherings the way a broadcast crew would, rather than relying on hand signals or phones during a live event.
Technology partners on this project
Creation Networks, Inc. — nationwide commercial AV integrator, CTS-D certified, based in Concord, CA and Incline Village, NV. Design, engineering, programming, installation, and support from a single point of contact since 2006. Call 888-230-3661 or email sales@creationnetworks.net.
Large-space and event AV
Building a Multi-Zone Space? Plan the Switching First
Tell us your square footage, how the space will be used day to day versus during events, and how many zones need independent video, and a CTS-D engineer will reply within one business day to set up a site walk or room assessment — no charge, no obligation.
