A Look at Some Recent Audio Upgrades
This year, most sectors of the live event industry have been hit hard, yet there has been activity on the installation front, particularly in the house of worship and educational markets, as schools and religious organizations take this opportunity to prepare for the return of students and worshippers.
Via modern technologies, worship environments can enjoy high intelligibility, wide bandwidth, superb coverage, controlled dispersion and mix tools that allow the FOH engineer to translate the power of the word to the entire congregation. And from the altar to the last row, the clarity of the message is everything.
With that in mind, we present some recent installation projects. Each took a different approach, proving there are numerous solutions to any audio problem — large or small — for any sanctuary.
Rock Bridge Community Church, Dalton, GA
Built in 1941, the Wink Theatre in Northwest Georgia (just outside of Chattanooga, TN) was transformed into one of the five satellite Rock Bridge Community Church campuses. To improve audio for these contemporary style services, Oklahoma City-based Skylark Audio Video installed L-Acoustics A-Series constant curvature line source systems in each of its campuses.
“The (A Series) Wide boxes have a 30-degree vertical pattern, and the Focus has a 10-degree vertical pattern,” says Skylark’s Steele Beaty. “Between them, we have the tools to fill a challenging venue like the Wink Theatre, where the balcony is 105 feet long, the main floor is 95 feet long, yet the entire venue is only 56 feet wide. It’s the very definition of a ‘shotgun’ room, so we chose to fly left and right arrays of five A15 Focus enclosures over one A15 Wide. Plus, the A15 enclosures’ Panflex adjustable waveguides let us narrow the pattern width to 70 degrees, which also gives us a +2 dB boost in the high frequencies. We avoid getting any energy on the walls and accomplish it without using any DSP.”
Rock Bridge’s John David Boreing added “with the previous sound system, the balcony was looking at the top of the line array and didn’t get any low end from the floor-mounted subs. It was a tough room to get proper coverage for. The new A15-KS21 combo fixed that immediately.”
Like many venues of its time, the 80-year-old building has a narrow footprint and tightly turning staircases. “It was impossible to get a modern lift in there, and the ceiling isn’t structured, so with the reduced weight and compact form factor of the A Series, we could get it hung in an older venue like this,” Beaty says.
The design employed Soundvision modeling software and L-Acoustics’ new M1 suite of measurement tools. “We measured the performance of the A15 systems in one venue and created a consistent contour we applied to all of the church’s locations,” says Beaty. “We made them sound as identical to each other as humanly possible.”
The sound quality and coverage is excellent, says Boreing. “Now that the pandemic restrictions have relaxed a bit on worship services, everyone is enjoying the new sound at the Wink Theatre. Intelligibility is fantastic, and the music has a real impact, like a concert. It’s a wonderful experience.”
Rock Bridge Community Church
- Capacity: 1,165
- Key Components: L-Acoustics A-Series; KS21 subs
- Integrator: Skylark Audio Video
All Saints Church, Crowborough, U.K.
Suffering from an aging sound system, Saints Church turned to Ashdown Audio Visual. After sampling several brands in the space, a solution was apparent. “The Electro Voice system sounded so natural, straight out of the box,” comments Ashdown’s Mark Willets, adding that even without processing, “it just sounded fantastic.”
Featuring two EVA 2082S-906 line array modules for even coverage across the length of the room, EVA 2151D subs, and ZX1i loudspeakers for infill and as a choir monitor system, the set-up provides clear and even sound quality. Dynacord IPX series amps drive the system, with an IPX10:4 powering the tops and subs; and an IPX5:4 handling fills and monitors. Dynacord’s SONICUE software was used to tune the system and completes the set-up.
Sound quality was the main priority, yet aesthetics were also important, with the white version of the EVA speakers blending seamlessly into the existing architecture.
The church was happy with the result. “What I say has got to be heard,” notes All Saints Church’s vicar Steve Reece. “Thanks to the new sound system, the congregation can finally hear that message! It’s made a massive difference — it’s fundamental to what we do every Sunday.”
All Saints Church
- Capacity: 600
- Key Components: Electro-Voice EVA, Dynacord IPX amps
- Integrator: Ashdown Audio Visual
Gateway Southlake Church, Southlake, TX
With more than 30,000 worshippers attending 29 weekly services at nine campuses, Gateway Church is among the nation’s largest multi-site congregations. To enhance worship at its 4,000-seat flagship Southlake, TX campus, the auditorium upgraded with 51 Meyer Sound LEO family loudspeakers configured as a novel mono-stereo “hybrid” system.
Although the wide, fan-shaped seating that wraps the stage adds a sense of intimacy, it makes it difficult to maintain a stereo image while ensuring high intelligibility throughout the space. “We wanted to leverage the latest technology to open up our sound with a stereo feel for most of the congregation while still maintaining excellent intelligibility and without the effect being distracting to anyone,” says Gateway’s senior live audio engineer Brandon Conn. “We upgraded some of our satellite campuses to LEOPARD line arrays, so we were confident LEO family’s clarity and control would help achieve this goal.”
The new system was designed by Gateway Church audio staff, Meyer Sound’s Bob McCarthy and integrator Pro Sound & Video (a Solotech company). The solution deployed three hangs of five-each LEOPARD line arrays aimed to cover the first ten rows of seating, all carrying a mono signal. The main center section with the great majority of seats is covered in stereo by left and right arrays (each with five LYON-M mains over six LYON-W wide coverage line arrays).
“The idea here was to create a stereo image where it works well, but not attempt it where it would compromise performance or intelligibility,” says McCarthy. “Up front, a split left and right would be so wide it would pull you away from the stage. So there, a mono image reinforces an intimate connection with the stage, then from row 11 back, it blends seamlessly into a more open stereo image.”
To assure uniform frequency response front-to-back in the field of the main arrays, McCarthy implemented Meyer’s new Low-Mid Beam Control (LMBC) in the tuning process. “When Bob inserted those filters, the improvement was impressive,” recalls Conn. “It was easy to hear the difference.”
The audio overhaul also replaced the ground-stack subs with dual flown gradient cardioid arrays of five each 1100-LFC low frequency control elements. Four new 1100-LFCs under the stage enhance the visceral effect up front. Eight UPQ-1P loudspeakers replaced the former stage side fills, and five GALAXY 816 Network Platforms took over signal optimization and drive. Existing delay systems, with a combined total of 41 UPQ-1P, UPQ-2P and UPJuniors, were left in service.
Conn added that sound is now uniformly excellent throughout, yet subtle differences let worshippers select their preferred experience. “People who are musically inclined and want the stereo image will sit more toward the middle;” he says, “those who want direct energy from the stage congregate toward the front. And those who want it a bit quieter go to the back, but with no sacrifice in the fullness of the music or speech intelligibility.”
Gateway Southlake Church
- Capacity: 4,000
- Key Components: Meyer LEO System
- Integrator: Pro Sound & Video
Pinelake Church, Jackson, MI
Since opening its Reservoir Campus in 2003, Pinelake Church has transitioned from a traditional full-choir worship, to a more contemporary style, which pointed out the weaknesses in its sound system.
Pinelake reached out to Nashville integrator InteRise to design and install an audio solution. One main issue InteRise had to overcome was the low ceiling inside of the building. “There was a huge challenge with sightlines because the roof is so low relative to the size of the room and seating sections. We came up with a solution that created quality audio coverage across the room but also did not obstruct the visual space,” says InteRise’s Philip Hagood. “We looked at a number of manufacturers, but ultimately d&b Soundscape rose to the top of our options, because it checked so many boxes.”
Many of Pinelake’s other campuses have d&b sound systems, so the church knew they chose a high-quality product. Before the project began, the InteRise team made a 3D measurement of the space with to produce renderings that would show what the new sound system in the space would look like.
d&b’s Soundscape allows for a deep, intensified connection between the congregation and the worship ministry. The d&b En-Scene software enables object-based mixing and positioning that creates an authentic acoustic reality. It locates and tracks each individual sound object, while the d&b En-Space software modifies reverberation signatures to transform the acoustics of any space to suit any needs.
“in this application at Pinelake, Soundscape brings the benefit of being able to mix with space and size that’s compelling to the audience while representing every seat in the house equally which we refer to as object-based mixing,” explains d&b’s Nick Malgieri. “This allows the sound engineer to place objects in space and then the sound system re-renders these objects, so everyone hears the sound with proper localization to where the performers are on stage.”
“With the new system, the band sounds amazing, the vocals are easy to understand and the same thing is true for the message,” says Pinelake’s director of worship technology Kevin Hoober. “The Soundscape system gives us all of those things wrapped up together.”
Pinelake Church (Reservoir Campus)
- Key Components: d&b Audiotechnik Soundscape System, Yamaha Rivage PM7
- Integrator: InteRise
Mosaic Church, Clarksville, TN
In 2017, Tabernacle Church, located just outside Nashville, TN, began an expansion project, re-emerging as Mosaic Church — adding 65,000 square feet to the campus, including a 1,500-seat sanctuary. Asked to oversee the expansion of the performance space, industry veteran Fred Holly of Holly Media led the effort.
Aside from general construction, Holly focused mainly on the performance space, selecting and installing a new audio system, and pulling in one of his trusted resources for advanced surface techniques and sound dampening. “Usually when clients show me plans for a church, it’s obvious that architects know nothing about acoustics,” said Jay Perdue, owner and designer at Perdue Acoustics and the lead instructor of architectural acoustics at InfoComm University. “They’re more focused on what it’s going to look like versus what it’s going to sound like.”
“Fred really did his homework,” says Perdue. “The shape of the room was very nice with no corners to deal with. I checked all the parallelisms and slap back on the back wall was a non-issue. After a 13-point check throughout the space, it has the flattest response I’ve ever seen.”
RCF’s Jim Reed arranged an onsite demo with a complete system including: 16 TTL 55-A active line arrays, four TTS 56-AS active subs, two TT 25-CXA active floor monitors and four TT 20-CXA active monitors for the stage. For added coverage, Reed added nine HDL 26-A active line arrays for center and front fills for added coverage. At the helm is an Allen & Health dLive s7000 mixing console.
Holly was surprised at the time it took to set up and fly test the sound system. “Literally, out of the box every single thing worked — 16 boxes — we had the network up and the rig sounded amazing — very musical.”
After completing the installation, RCF’s Zachary Anthony provided tuning, optimization and training. “The sound quality from a TT rig is exceptional, and paired with the acoustic treatments, the room is near perfect,” says Anthony. “It’s like listening to a giant pair of studio monitors — this room is an absolute pleasure to mix in.” Mosaic Church celebrated with a socially distanced congregation of about 700 proud parishioners.
Mosaic Church
- Capacity: 1,500
- Key Components: RCF TTL line array; Allen & Health dLive s7000
- Integrator: Holly Media
Newhope Church, Durham, NC
Streaming has grown increasingly important during the current health crisis. “We’ve been broadcasting our services from our six campuses for a while now; but since Covid, it’s become the most important thing we do,” says Dave Bookhout of Newhope Church.
“Sometimes we broadcast live using the eMotion LV1; and at other times we pre-record and then mix and master the broadcast using Logic, with all the same Waves plug-ins that we use on the LV1. Week in and week out, we use the Waves eMotion LV1 live mixer in our broadcast suite.”
“We are running four Dell TouchScreen monitors in our setup,” Bookhout explains. “Our DiGiGrid MGO optical MADI interface transports 128 channels between two MADI cards in our Midas Neutron and the Waves SoundGrid network. We have a Waves SoundGrid Extreme Server to handle the plug-in processing — we have almost every Waves plug-in in our arsenal, and we are using many of them at any given time, so a powerful server is crucial. We also utilize the SoundGrid Driver with a DAW for virtual sound check at both FOH and for broadcast, to get everything dialed in between our rehearsals and Sunday morning. That’s invaluable for us.”
On choosing the LV1 for streaming, Bookhout says, “the ability to run Waves plug-ins on every channel as well as on the master gives us every tool needed to create an incredible mix. When broadcasting to Facebook and YouTube, mastering is ultra-important, and we are able to achieve great results that we were only able to hear previously when mastering in a DAW.”
Bookhout added that “the LV1 is easy to use. Training our volunteers and getting them up to speed on the LV1 was a breeze. The sound quality is superb, and having access to all the Waves plug-ins almost feels like cheating (laughs).”
According to Bookhout, one key element was that “adding eMotion LV1 into our streaming/broadcast workflow greatly improved our mix quality. When people tune in to our online broadcast, there is nothing more important than the mix. It doesn’t matter how good our video is — if the audio is sub-par, people will quickly leave and watch something else. Waves gives us every tool we need to build the best online streaming mix possible, which allows us to create incredible worship experiences.”
Newhope Church
- Key Components: Waves eMotion LV1
- Integrator: In-house
Taylor Church, Jacksonville, FL
Taylor Church, an interdenominational, full gospel, Pentecostal church, recently elected to upgrade its sound system with Event Series speakers from DAS Audio. The system was supplied and installed by BDH Technical Systems (St. Augustine, FL), working with Invisible Audio of Jacksonville, FL.
“Taylor Church offers a unique blend of both contemporary and traditional worship,” says Craig Bruce of BDH. “For the most part, services are contemporary and include the use of a sizeable praise band that is supported by an 8-member vocal team. The new system encompasses three clusters for a total of nine DAS Event 208-AW line arrays, flown in a left/center/right configuration at a height of 14 feet with a pair of DAS Event 218-A powered subs, which are positioned on stage left and right.”
Bruce added the sanctuary is quite wide, “so we realized a center hang would be required. We liked the self-powered nature of the Event 208-AW, as there’s no space for a separate amp room. I was impressed with both their overall sound quality and compact form factor. The gain before feedback with a lapel microphone on the pastor is like night and day compared to the previous system, so the pastor can now walk out into the room and sound close to the congregation. Pastor Mark Woods has been very complimentary of the system’s high level of speech intelligibility and its full, rich sound for music reproduction — with the result being that the congregation is more engaged than previously.”
Taylor Church
- Key Components: DAS Event Series
- Integrator: BDH Technical Systems
Denton Bible Church, Denton, TX
Since beginning in the mid-1970s, with barely a dozen members, to the opening of its 3,500-seat auditorium in the new century, Denton Bible Church (DBC) has kept on the leading edge of technology. The church recently added a DiGiCo Quantum 338 console (for both FOH and monitor duties and a DiGiCo SD12 to handle broadcast duties. Both desks, plus the two DiGiCo SD-Racks installed with them reside on an Optocore network, all installed and commissioned by integrator Digital Resources, Inc., based in nearby Southlake, TX.
DBC was well-versed in the streamlined operation and high I/O counts digital consoles can offer, explained Digital Resources Inc.’s Lance Eddleman. “The SD12, for instance, is the latest 96-input-channel model, and provides plenty of I/O for broadcasts. And the Quantum338 gives them a high number of faders, to support their blended traditional and contemporary worship styles, as well as advanced features, such as the Spice Rack and Nodal Processing.”
Speaking on the Quantum 338, Eddleman says “we knew that the new desk was what they needed, in terms of channel counts, in terms of features and in terms of cost. All of those were big factors in their decision-making, and the Quantum 338 won on every count.”
Eddleman adds that the SD12’s small footprint, which allowed it to fit nicely next to the church’s Pro Tools system, while its high-input capability made the console the natural choice for DBC’s broadcast requirements. Furthermore, the Optocore network allows both desks to integrate seamlessly. “We also included the Optocore AutoRouter on the network, because it takes the consoles’ inherent flexibility and expands it.”
The Optocore AutoRouter automatically discovers devices and adds them to the Optocore loop, without any user action. “That’s a big deal for this church, as they rely heavily on volunteers to run the systems,” says Eddleman. “So for a small event like a wedding or a funeral, they can use only the components of the sound system that they need to, such as a single console and SD-Rack, instead of having to turn the entire system on.”
The two new DiGiCo consoles represent a significant shift from the platforms they had been using, but DBC technical director Preston Fuqua feels their volunteers are catching on quickly. “With the Quantum 338, we can do virtual sound checks combining recorded tracks and live instruments simultaneously, which is great for training. Both consoles have been a dream come true for us. They are our future, here now.”
Denton Bible Church
- Capacity: 3,500
- Key Components: DiGiCo Quantum338, SD12
- Integrator: Digital Resources, Inc.
