Rhodes House, Oxford: A Scalable and Elegant AV Ecosystem

A New Chapter for a Historic Landmark

Rhodes House, the historic Oxford home to the Rhodes Trust, has recently undergone a £38 million transformation. The iconic Grade II listed building originally opened in 1929 and has been reimagined as a world-class convening centre for global thought leadership. The venue now blends its rich heritage with cutting-edge technology built on the Q-SYS Platform, enabling it to host everything from academic symposia and hybrid conferences to weddings and high-profile events. Technology was never an afterthought for the Rhodes House transformation -- it was a foundational pillar of the project's vision.

Quote: "The system is infinitely flexible. You can move a lectern from one room to another, plug it in, and it just works - same functionality, same branding, same control interface." - Stuart Harris, Technical Sales Manager, GVAV

Venue Details

• Customer Name: Rhodes House
• Location: Oxford, England
• Industry: Higher Education

Partners

• Hewshott (Technology Consultants)
• GVAV (Integrator)
• Audiologic

Image of the historic exterior of Rhodes House, Oxford.

Challenges

The project team, including technology consultants Hewshott and integrator GVAV, faced the challenge of designing an AV system that was scalable, intuitive, and robust for diverse use cases, while remaining invisible within the building's historic architecture. The system needed to support everything from simple speeches to globally streamed events.

Image of an elegantly furnished interior room at Fisher Studios, Oxford.

Designing for Elegance, Flexibility and the Unknown

Darren Gatenby, Senior Consultant at Hewshott, stated the brief required designing for events not yet imagined, necessitating a flexible system that could grow with the venue. This involved planning for scenarios from wedding toasts to keynote addresses by former U.S. presidents, without compromising the building's aesthetic or usability.

Overcoming Complexity: Collaboration and Coordination

Close collaboration between Hewshott and GVAV with architects ensured the AV system complemented the building's design. Microphones were embedded flush within wooden joinery, and loudspeakers were discreetly integrated within acoustic treatments.

Stuart Harris of GVAV highlighted the benefit of early involvement: "Normally we're called in after the building's done, and we have to make the tech fit with what's already there. This time, everything was coordinated from the start. It made our job easier and the results much better."

Solutions

A Unified Q-SYS Ecosystem

The AV system at Rhodes House is built around the Q-SYS Platform, chosen for its ability to unify audio, video, and control. Gatenby noted Q-SYS as the perfect fit due to its ready ecosystem and mature Cores, with seamless integration with systems like Wolfvision.

The architecture uses Q-SYS Core processors and NV Series endpoints for AV-over-IP distribution. Q-SYS touch screens and mobile UCIs offer intuitive control. Shure MXA microphones and Q-SYS NC Series cameras facilitate hybrid conferencing. Custom scripting was used for features like Sennheiser MobileConnect and LED lighting control, with plugins from Q-SYS Communities.

Efthymios Chatzigiannis, AV Manager at Rhodes House, praised Q-SYS's adaptability: "What's been great with Q-SYS is how easy it is to adapt. I hadn't worked with it before, but the training really opened my eyes. I can create new interfaces or change the design just by dragging and dropping elements. At one event, an AV technician asked for controls for the camera exposure and I was able to create a new interface for them in a matter of minutes. It's incredibly flexible and intuitive."

This flexibility allows the in-house AV team to respond quickly to new requirements, experiment with automation, and evolve the system.

Image: Diagram illustrating the AV system components: a TSC-116w (now updated to Series G3) touch screen controller and a PTZ Camera NC-20x60.

Spaces Designed with Purpose and Precision

Each space was designed for specific needs while maintaining a consistent Q-SYS user experience.

The Garden Pavilion: A glazed meeting space with a Q-SYS touch screen, Shure MXA710 microphone array, and large-format display. Ideal for smaller gatherings, it supports mobile lecterns with full functionality, demonstrating plug-and-play flexibility.

The Convening Hall: The flagship venue, a large, divisible space configurable in multiple ways. It features Shure MXA microphones, front and rear Q-SYS PTZ cameras, multiple displays, and Q-SYS touch screens. It supports keynote speeches, panel discussions, and formal dinners with excellent acoustics and seamless AV integration.

The XR Lab: An immersive exhibition and extended reality space where users can dynamically adjust lighting to match exhibits and highlight artifacts. Q-SYS Control manages AV and environmental settings for a responsive experience.

Audio-Only Spaces: The Milner, Beit, and Atlantic Rooms are designed for events with light-touch AV requirements, such as receptions and speeches. They include embedded microphones and speakers and can be combined or isolated via central Q-SYS control.

This adaptability makes the Rhodes House AV system powerful, ready to deliver seamlessly for any event, from formal dinners to hybrid panels or spontaneous speeches.

Quote: "We have to be prepared for anything. You never know who's going to turn up — we've had presidents, professors, and wedding guests — and the system just works." - Efthymios Chatzigiannis, AV Manager, Rhodes House

Results

A Venue Ready for Anything

Since reopening, Rhodes House has hosted diverse events, including a 120th anniversary dinner attended by President Bill Clinton and philosopher Michael Sandel, with the AV system proving effective across all scenarios.

Stuart Harris reiterated the system's flexibility: "The system is infinitely flexible. You can move a lectern from one room to another, plug it in, and it just works. Same functionality, same branding, same control interface."

Efthymios Chatzigiannis added: "It's so easy to adapt. I've even started experimenting with automations like triggering camera tracking based on whether someone's using a lapel mic. Each day I learn more and more about what is possible with Q-SYS."

Image of a lecture hall setup at Rhodes House, showing tables, chairs, and a large screen displaying 'WiFi: Rhodes-Guest Password: Rhodesw1f1!'.

Looking Ahead: Built to Evolve

The Rhodes House AV system is a living platform designed for growth, with infrastructure supporting additional endpoints, new use cases, and evolving user needs.

Darren Gatenby commented: "There wasn't really any other solution we wanted to put in. The system had to facilitate everything, anywhere, so AV over IP was the only choice. We've got infrastructure everywhere and everything is configured to work with that, so we've made the building a matrix. We can now just buy the hardware, plug it in, and we're ready to go."

Image of a modern, illuminated space with VR headsets and other technology items.

Equipment List

Q-SYS Contact Information:

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