AV SuperFriends

Recorded February 13, 2026 It's March (yes, March– deal with it), the AV SuperFriends gather to lay down the law… higher ed AV law, that is. This month's On Topic tackles the Top Ten Commandments of AV: the rules you should follow, the ones you sometimes break, and the ones you pretend you've always believed in. From protecting audio at all costs and designing for serviceability, to avoiding 4K hy...

Recorded February 6, 2026 ISE season is in full swing, and while much of the AV world is busy chasing booth demos and press releases from Europe, the AV SuperFriends are back doing what they do best: cutting through the hype. In this episode, the panel digs into the latest ISE announcements and trends, separating what's genuinely useful for higher ed from what looks great under trade-show lighting...

Recorded January 16, 2026 In this episode of On Topic, the panel leans hard into the "Groundhog Day" reality of higher ed AV, where every semester feels like a rerun of the last one. From the same classrooms and support tickets to the same mysterious $7 HDMI cable failures, the panel reflects on why our work so often feels stuck on repeat, even as we insist "this time it'll be different." With the...

Recorded January 23, 2026 In this episode, the panel looks into the growing disconnect between AI hype and the realities of higher-ed operations. As campuses spin up task forces and strategy decks, the people closest to the work are still trying to explain that real progress comes from solid processes, clean data, and systems that actually integrate, not shiny tools bolted on top of chaos. The con...

Recorded January 9, 2026 It's mid-January, and we kick off the first full show of the year with news from CES nonsense, reviewing what consumer tech trends might actually sneak into higher-ed AV and which ones should stay in Las Vegas forever. That quickly turns into an AI-heavy conversation covering lecture capture anxiety, faculty concerns, digital avatars, and synthetic presenters. Then we dig...

Recorded December 12, 2025 It's the AV SuperFriends New Year's special, which means one part retrospective, one part speculation, and several parts nonsense. The panel looks back at their predictions for 2025 to see who deserves credit, who gets partial credit, and who should maybe stop predicting things altogether. From conference room technology to AV-over-IP realities, the team grades themselve...

Recorded December 5, 2025 As December pretends to be festive while refusing to fully commit to Christmas, the AV SuperFriends gather to celebrate that special time of year when inboxes are ignored, productivity is optional, and every project update is deferred. Naturally, this means the conversation focuses on patent lawsuits, seasonal anxiety, and the true meaning of future-proof… which, as it tu...

Recorded November 14, 2025 The AV SuperFriends kick off their first holiday special of the season with a spirited look at the gear, gadgets, and AV workflows that should make life easier, but only if you also bought the missing accessories, licenses, adapters, or seventeen extra widgets the manufacturer forgot to mention.  In classic Christmas fashion, the crew shares their "Batteries Not Included...

Recorded November 21, 2025 In this jam-packed episode, the AV SuperFriends welcome two guests from sunny Southern California, Raj Singh from USC and Joe Way from UCLA, to tackle one of the most challenging topics in higher-ed technology today: cloud-connected AV. The panel reviews what it truly means to run a "connected campus," exploring the benefits, hurdles, required workflows, stakeholder alig...

Recorded October 16, 2025 In this special Perspectives episode, Justin and Chris recorded live from ETC 2025 in Raleigh, NC, setting up in the middle of the action to capture conversations with Frank Alaimo from UNLV and Jim Spencer from Legrand. The panel digs into the real-world challenges facing campus AV teams today: modernizing aging classrooms, navigating procurement hurdles, managing user e...

Recorded November 7, 2025 In this episode, Chris, Jamie, Marc, Larry, Justin, and special guest Craig Park tackle the complexities of large capital projects, the importance of early engagement with AV consultants, and the often murky waters of project communication. The conversation takes a humorous turn as they explore the trials and tribulations of navigating institutional silos, the challenges...

Recorded October 24, 2025 In this Thanksgiving special, the crew gathers at the bustling Circus Circus in Las Vegas (by way of theater of the mind). Chris, Jamie, Marc, Larry, Justin, and special guest Frank Alaimo, dive into the chaos of AV integration during the holiday season, while serving up piping hot takes and mashed-up opinions. As they navigate the complexities of holiday technology reque...

Recorded throughout October 2025 The AV SuperFriends return for their annual Halloween adventure, and this year, the hauntings have gone stadium-wide. When the university football field is plagued by flickering lights, phantom crowd noise, and a scoreboard frozen at 13 seconds left, the team uncovers a century-old mystery: a championship game from 1925 that was never finished. Armed with motion-ca...

Recorded October 17, 2025 In our first ever live in-person episode of the Weekly Rivalry, the spotlight shines on Waco, Texas, as the Central Florida Knights take on the Baylor Bears in a thrilling showdown that transcends football. Justin and Chris with special guests Mike Ferry from UCF and Connor Krey from Baylor as they explore the intricate interplay between AV and IT teams that keep everythi...

Recorded Oct 8, 2025 In this episode, the crew tackles the realities of higher ed AV projects that just don't go according to plan.  When timelines slip, budgets tighten, or rooms are handed over mid-flight, how do campus tech teams adapt and deliver before classes start? Chris, Marc, Larry, Jamie, Justin, and special guest Chris Gaut exchange tales about project rescues, impossible deadlines, and...

Recorded October 3, 2025 In this episode, the crew gears up for the 2025 ETC Conference in Raleigh, NC, swapping predictions, travel plans, and a few questionable presentation ideas. Brandon Pope from NC State and Tim Cichos from Notre Dame join to preview what attendees can expect from the conference, from the carefully planned venues and community spirit to the sessions that promise to mix genui...

Recorded September 19, 2025 It's October, and the AV SuperFriends are leaning into the spooky season with a conversation that's equal parts eerie and insightful. They tackle some of the haunted house problems in higher ed AV: ghost signals that won't quit, obsolete equipment that seems impossible to kill off, and the slow creep of outdated standards lurking in classrooms everywhere.  Joining the d...

Recorded September 12, 2025 It's episode 1-2-3 Off the Rails, and the crew is joined by two special guests for an especially thick and robust panel for a discussion of multi-display classrooms that either delight faculty or guarantee support tickets, the eternal war over dongles, aspect ratios, and those pesky 4:3 PowerPoints that just won't die. Special guests Tino Kaltsas and BC Hatchett jump in...

Recorded September 5, 2025   The AV SuperFriends are back with two special guests, Casey Sisco (UTSA) and Atkins Fleming (Texas State). This one covers it all: from facial recognition at football stadiums, to the never-ending challenges of digital signage.    The highlight of the show is our Weekly Rivalry segment, where Texas State and UTSA face off in a sports-style showdown for AV & IT bragging...

Recorded August 15, 2025 In this episode, Chris, Jamie, Larry, and Justin revel in the chaos and excitement of back-to-school preparations and reminisce about their experiences from ten years ago while tackling the challenges of the new academic year. The discussion kicks off with a lighthearted look at the absurdities of the back-to-school rush, including the frantic requests from faculty and the...

Recorded August 29, 2025 Just in time for the big Texas at Ohio State game, it's a special episode of AVSF! When the calendar hands us a rare fifth Friday, the AV SuperFriends don't take the week off.  We go live with a special bonus episode full of chaos, competition, and classroom technology trash talk. Chris, Jamie, Marc, and Justin are joined by two guests: Chris Harshfield from Ohio State and...

Recorded August 22, 2025 We kick things off with the big news of the week: AOL finally pulling the plug on dial-up internet. Yes, it was somehow still a thing. Cue the nostalgia, sound effects, and plenty of snark. From there, we debate the future of AVoIP. Is it the solution for everything, just another tool in the quiver, or the next technology destined to quietly fade away? Expect strong opinio...

Recorded August 8, 2025 In this episode of Off the Rails, Chris, Jamie, Marc, Larry, and Justin review the chaotic world of last-minute project requests. They share their experiences, strategies, and a few laughs while navigating the often unpredictable demands of faculty and staff just before the new semester kicks off.  The conversation kicks off with a lighthearted look at the absurdity of tryi...

Recorded July 11, 2025 In this episode, the goon squad discusses testing AV equipment and the often murky waters of bench testing. Join Chris, Jamie, Larry, and Justin as they share their experiences, opinions, and a few laughs about the realities of ensuring gear works as intended before it hits the field. The discussion kicks off with a humorous take on the common practice of just throwing gear...

Recorded July 25, 2025 In this episode, join Chris, Jamie, Marc, Larry, and Justin as they discuss the the broken business model of per room, per system, per month, per year cloud service pricing, the ongoing struggle with outdated features and devices that just won't die and the question of when to cut the cord on legacy systems, sharing their own experiences and the sometimes humorous realities...