A smart home system works best when audio, networking, security, and automation are planned to work together. Problems can arise when those pieces are installed separately or when existing equipment is replaced unnecessarily instead of being incorporated into a broader setup. That makes system planning and thoughtful integration just as important as the individual products being installed.
Modern Wiring is an AV and smart home installer working across Santa Cruz and Santa Clara Counties in California. The company handles home theaters, whole-home audio, networking, structured cabling, smart home controls, and commercial AV and camera systems, and it holds a California C-7 Low Voltage Systems Contractor license (CSLB #879032). It also says it works as an authorized integrator, which typically means direct access to manufacturer training and support rather than gear bought at retail and installed cold.
What Modern Wiring Actually Does
Modern Wiring‘s work splits into three buckets: residential, commercial, and new construction. On the residential side, that means Sonos-based audio, home theater rooms, and the smart home controls that tie lighting, climate, and entertainment into one interface. For businesses, the focus shifts to commercial AV for conference rooms and shared spaces, along with surveillance cameras and the networking backbone that keeps them running.
New construction is its own category because the cabling has to go in before the walls close up. Modern Wiring designs the low-voltage plan for a property up front so audio, networking, cameras, and smart home controls end up on one coherent system instead of a pile of separate boxes added over time. That upfront planning is also why the company gets called in on builder programs rather than just single-room jobs.
The Owner’s Background Is the Differentiator
Most small AV installers are local generalists. Dave Hurley, who leads Modern Wiring, isn’t working from a generalist background. His AV career includes installation work at Lucasfilm’s Skywalker Ranch, the Monterey Bay Aquarium and the Department of Homeland Security, plus management and field-operations roles across institutional AV and connected-home programs.
That mix of large-scale builder, institutional, and high-end residential experience is the thing that separates Modern Wiring from a typical regional installer, and it shows up in how the company approaches a job rather than in a marketing line. A technician who has had to make surveillance and AV systems hold up in a government facility or a research aquarium brings a different standard to a home theater install than someone who has only ever wired living rooms.
A Practical Approach to Existing Equipment
A lot of smart home sales pitches start with “replace everything.” Modern Wiring doesn’t frame the job that way. When a client’s existing equipment still functions well, the company integrates it with newer components instead of defaulting to a full teardown.
That matters most for homeowners who already sank money into a receiver, speakers, or a camera system and just want it to work with newer networking or a smart home hub. It also matters for builders who inherit a partially wired spec home and need someone to finish the job cleanly rather than start over.
If you’re weighing whether to tackle any of this yourself first, it helps to understand where DIY home networking and smart plugs top out. Running a mesh Wi-Fi router and a couple of smart bulbs is well within reach for most people. Structured cabling behind walls, multi-room audio zoning, and surveillance systems that need to stay reliable for years are a different scale of project, and that’s usually where a licensed low-voltage contractor pays for itself. Readers planning a broader renovation around this kind of upgrade might also find it useful to look at home improvement projects worth tackling before deciding what to DIY and what to hand off.
Where Modern Wiring Stands Out
A few things make Modern Wiring stand out from a typical local AV and smart home installer.
- Licensed low-voltage expertise. Modern Wiring holds a California C-7 Low Voltage Systems Contractor license, giving homeowners, builders, and businesses a licensed contractor for structured cabling, AV, networking, and surveillance work.
- Experience beyond typical residential installs. Dave Hurley’s background includes work involving Skywalker Ranch, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and the Department of Homeland Security. That experience is particularly relevant for projects where reliability, system integration, and careful planning matter.
- Multiple systems can be planned together. Rather than treating networking, audio, cameras, and smart home controls as unrelated upgrades, Modern Wiring can design them around the same property and infrastructure. That is especially useful for new construction and larger renovations.
- Existing equipment does not automatically have to be replaced. The company’s willingness to integrate usable equipment with newer technology can help homeowners preserve previous investments instead of starting from scratch.
- Residential, commercial and new-construction capabilities. The service range makes Modern Wiring suitable for anything from a dedicated home theater to structured wiring for a new property or AV and surveillance systems for a business.
Where the Fit Gets Narrower
No installer is the right call for every job, and a few things are worth flagging before you reach out.
- Geography is fixed. Modern Wiring serves Santa Cruz and Santa Clara Counties. If you’re outside that service area, this isn’t an option regardless of how well the work fits your needs.
- This is a licensed trade service, not a retail purchase. You’re hiring a C-7 low-voltage contractor for a planned installation, not buying a box off a shelf and plugging it in yourself. That means scheduling, a site visit, and a build-out timeline, which suits a renovation or new-construction project far better than a same-day fix.
- Commercial and residential are both served, but not identically. A company handling everything from home theaters to institutional-grade camera systems has a broad range, but a homeowner chasing a simple Sonos setup and a business planning a conference room AV buildout are different jobs with different timelines. It’s worth being clear with the company about scope before work starts.
None of these are flaws in the work itself. They’re the normal trade-offs of hiring a licensed regional contractor instead of a nationwide retail installer, and for most people in the service area they’re not dealbreakers.
Who Should Actually Call Modern Wiring
This fits a homeowner who wants a theater room, whole-home audio, or a smart home setup that doesn’t fall apart the first time one device updates its firmware. It also fits builders who need low-voltage wiring planned into new construction instead of bolted on afterward, and businesses in the two counties that need commercial AV or camera systems installed by a licensed contractor rather than a subscription camera kit from a big-box store.
The Verdict
Modern Wiring’s case rests on two things that are hard to fake: a C-7 license backing the installation work and an owner whose resume includes Skywalker Ranch, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and the Department of Homeland Security. That’s a different track record than most local AV shops bring to a living room install.
For homeowners, builders, and businesses inside Santa Cruz and Santa Clara Counties who want AV, networking, surveillance, and smart home systems that are planned as one system rather than assembled piecemeal, this is a credible, specific option. Anyone outside that footprint, or chasing a one-device fix, should look elsewhere.
