When you’ve been in the electronics business for 51 years, you’ve seen a lot.

Now the oldest electronics integration company in Fort Worth, Sound Ideas celebrates 51 years in business this year as a full service electronics integration company.

Sound Ideas is a second generation family-owned business, now in its third generation of working in the business offering design, installation and support for electronic systems in both residential and commercial environments.

“It’s been such an incredible and humbling journey,” CEO Chris Hornsby said. “Having been in the electronics business for over 50 years, we have seen many technologies evolve and trends come and go.

“It started with 2 channel stereo played on vinyl, then to blow your eardrums car audio, and now to your smart home being controlled from your fingertips, it’s been a ton of fun and a lot of work,”

Despite the changes, their mission remains the same: To provide clients with a thoughtful, well designed electronic smart home system that brings comfort, security, and convenience to their lives.

How do they do it?

“It’s really pretty simple. We have the best and brightest team,” Chris Hornsby said. “From initial consultation and design with one of our electronics system designers, to our amazing technicians and programmers, we take pride in doing everything in house, and striving to be the best contractor our clients ever work with.”

Sound Ideas began in 1972 when college students Tom Bonjour and Jay Hornsby opened their first location near University of Texas at Arlington. Just two years later, the company opened a second location in Fort Worth on Camp Bowie Blvd. In 1976, a new location was built on Arlington’s Pioneer Parkway that served as the company’s new headquarters, and in 1984 another Fort Worth location off Hulen Street was added to showcase Sound Ideas’ increasing custom installation business.

In 2005, Sound Ideas closed both of its retail locations and Bonjour retired after 35 years in the electronics business. Jay Hornsby, along with son Chris Hornsby, continued the company and relocated their company office/showroom to I-20 and Campus Drive in Fort Worth.

Then in 2016, Jay Hornsby retired after his 45-year career as an owner of Sound Ideas. Chris Hornsby, along with wife Rachel, continue to own and operate Sound Ideas and in the spring of 2023 moved the company headquarters to a brand new facility on the west side of Fort Worth. This new space will feature a Control4 certified showroom, and highlight the smart home solutions they can provide to their clients.

“Here’s to another 50 years. We just hope our kids are on board!” Chris Hornsby laughed.

What are the latest trends?

Now, 51 years later, it’s all about smart home solutions and Texas-sized TVs.

“This is Texas, so the bigger the TV the better. There are even TVs that are designed to look like a piece of art when turned off,” Chris Hornsby said.

The most popular smart home solution requests include whole home lighting control and motorized window shades.

From a simple, single-room audio and video system, to a full blown smart home system including lighting control, motorized window shades, whole home WiFi/networks, security camera systems, and audio/video systems throughout the home—all of which can be accessed and controlled from an app on your phone or by voice control.

“To see the look on a client’s face when we show them how one button on a keypad can turn on/off lights or raise/lower shades anywhere in their home is priceless,” Chris Hornsby said.

“The local community is the reason we are still in business 50 years later,” he added. “Being a small business, we don’t have a huge marketing budget to get our presence out. We pride ourselves on offering great smart home solutions and even better customer support.

“We believe this is why our community continues to refer us to their friends, neighbors and family. We are very thankful to our clients for the many years of support and trusting us with their electronics needs.”
To learn more about Sound Ideas or set up a consultation to find the solutions for your tech needs, visit the company online at www.sihometheater.com or call to schedule an appointment.