All churches share the common goal of spreading the message. Some have a greater emphasis on spoken word; others rely more on music in any variety of styles, from liturgical to flat-out rock ‘n’ roll. Yet, all houses of worship need a sound system that provides clarity, intelligibility and musicality. With that in mind, we looked at some recent install/upgrade projects.
Quail Lake Baptist Church, Stockton, CA
Cap: Rocky Gianetta designed this program that switches audio playback perspectives based on the selected listening spot
Located along the San Joaquin River in California’s central valley is Stockton’s Quail Lake Baptist Church (QLBC), founded in 1959. The church grew steadily over the years, and is currently housed in a 1,500-seat sanctuary presenting two services each Sunday — one traditional with a large choir and instrumental ensemble and a contemporary service with a praise band with a front-line vocal team.
Unfortunately, the church’s aging sound system — based around a center soffit-mounted array of five 15” Peavey P.A. cabinets with double-15 subs behind them — was far from suitable for QLBC’s current needs. “The church’s prior system was a constant struggle — a big phasey mess with feedback, holes and coverage problems, with five 90×40 horn boxes with a baffle-mounted 15 clustered together blowing into a wide, 1,500-seat room,” says Mark Sweet, the senior integration/engineering manager of Spider Ranch Productions who was contracted to implement a solution. “The room had a hollow sound with all the classic problems — it’s a large barn with an acoustic dropped ceiling. The fan-shaped architectural layout creates a lot of problems and the double-15 subs behind the speakers were creating a lot of wraparound behind the stage area,” Sweet adds.
QLBC was familiar with Spider Ranch, who had previously been called to address some latency issues with the church’s extensive video system running during their services. “While we were there,” Sweet recalls, “we became involved in discussions regarding audio, often explaining their significant audio issues for non-technical volunteer elders who were doing all the decision-making.”
To ease that process, designer Rocky Gianetta of GIA Design Group (who frequently partners with Spider Ranch), employed an auralization system he developed that uses dry, anechoic recordings of music and spoken word that he runs through his acoustic model of the venue. “These are in an audio form to help quantify and describe the sound of the room,” Sweet explains, “and he models the room from various locations to show what RT60 is, and what a good seat sounds like, what a bad seat sounds like and how it sounds from the front or from the back row. That allows clients to put on headphones and hear a binaural recording of what music and spoken word would sound like in various seats within the sanctuary. It’s very application-specific and makes it much easier for them to understand, without someone telling them about reverb tails and RT60 values.”
The next step was Gianetta merging the audio files with a room model into a video the QLBC team could listen to with him pointing to different parts of the floor plan with a mouse while the audio files play. “It’s a more normal presentation for today’s world and makes it much easier to present audio concepts to lay people,” says Sweet.
Once all parties were in accord, Gianetta completed the audio design. The new system is mono with three mains speaker positions (left-center-right) rather than an all-center approach. Moving the outside coverage to the side positions kept everything straight on-axis, while avoiding the walls as much as possible.
The system choice was critical. “Rocky and I are both proponents of choosing the right speaker for the room,” Sweet notes. “The mains are Danley SH96HO-I, which are high-output versions of their SH96 three-way boxes, with four 15’s, six 4” speakers and an HF compression driver — all loaded into the same 45”x26” 90°x60° horn. Under those are Danley H95HO-I — double-8” with a compression driver on a 95°x55° horn — which handle downfill duties for those seating in the front sections.”
Subwoofer design and placement was an important issue. “In a church like this with a low stage, there is nowhere to place subs on the floor without them being in plain sight and blasting people in the front rows. Here, a flown subwoofer array was a big deal. We didn’t have weight distribution issues, and the church was ok with opening up part of the ceiling for placing the four Danley TH118XL single-18 bass horns, which are in a cardioid end-fire array. We are getting 22 dB of rear low-end noise reduction, and our model shows the same results. You can have a conversation onstage while the system is pounding away.”
Two Powersoft Quattrocanali 8804 DSP+ amplifiers power the mains and a Powersoft Quattrocanali X4 DSP+D drive the subs via a Xilica FR-1-D loudspeaker processor, located on the second floor, to keep cable runs short.
So far, reaction to the system has been overwhelmingly positive. “Front of house is in the balcony along the center line, right on-axis and the main (center) speaker is covering the middle third of the room — both balcony and main floor areas,” Sweet explains. “With four 15’s in each main box, they now have twelve 15’s providing warmth in that low-mid band, where they had five before. Midrange is now all via cone drivers which are smooth, yet there are plenty of available SPLs. And as it’s all horn-loaded, there is better directivity into the room.”
Quail Lake Baptist Church
- Capacity: 1,500
- Key Products: Danley Sound SH96HO-I mains and TH118XL subs
- Integrator: Spider Ranch Productions
- Designer: Rocky Gianetta, GIA Design Group
Graham Memorial Chapel, St. Louis, MO
The Benjamin Brown Graham Memorial Chapel at Washington University in St. Louis, MO has undergone an extensive audio transformation. Spearheaded by the school’s system designer and media technology manager Jeff Allen and executed over an 18-month period, the project sought to seamlessly integrate an audio system to enhance the overall clarity of the chapel while honoring its architectural integrity.
The 45-foot ceilings and stone interior walls in the 785-capacity chapel posed an acoustic challenge. K-array solutions were selected after an on-site demonstration, provided full coverage sound with exceptional clarity from the front to the back of the chapel as well as the balcony. The slim, discreet speakers from K-array disappeared into the woodwork without visually disrupting the space.
System designer Jeff Allen emphasized the significant improvement in sound clarity, especially at lower volumes, which eliminated the need to “push the amps too hard,” avoiding distortion at higher volumes.
Leveraging K-array’s K-framework 3 powerful 3D modeling software, multiple system configurations were tested during the acoustic design phase. The software, alongside additional EASE acoustic modeling data provided by David Bick of McClure Engineering, ensured optimal system performance.
The system consists of 10 flown Kayman-KY52 I speakers in a true stereo L/R configuration. For clear coverage in the front, two Python-KP52 I speakers were added for front fill. Rounding out the setup are two compact passive Thunder-KS2P I 18” subs powered by dual 8-channel Kommander-KA208 amplifiers.
TSI Global in St. Louis secured the project and brought in engineers Lee Buckalew and Garrison Brown who handled rigging, installation and final commissioning.
“The K-array system’s unique design and advanced features proved to be the perfect fit for the Graham Chapel,” says Allen. “The powerful modeling software allowed us to optimize the system for the space, and the final results speak for themselves. Clear, even sound at all volumes create a truly immersive experience for the audience.”
Graham Memorial Chapel
- Capacity: 785
- Key Products: K-Array Kayman-KY52 I
- Integrator: TSI Global
- Designer: McClure Engineering
Brentwood Baptist Church, Brentwood, TN
In the past half-century, Brentwood Baptist Church has grown to nine campuses around the Nashville region, consistently averaging more than 5,000 worshippers in weekly on-campus attendance, along with an estimated 4,000 additional online viewers. The current main campus recently refreshed the sanctuary’s AVL systems by leading systems integrator Diversified. The finishing touch on the audio infrastructure is a KLANG:konductor immersive in-ear mixing processor.
“We were not only due for a technical refresh but an aesthetic one, too,” says Brentwood’s technical services director Darby Gilmore. We wanted to modernize, and KLANG:konductor was part of that.”
Diversified’s VP of Faith & Performance, Tim Corder, saw the KLANG:konductor as a solution that perfectly fit the church’s situation. Brentwood Baptist’s very diverse multi-generational worship style can toggle from full orchestra and choir one week to a high-energy rock-style band the next. “It can be a challenge to adapt a sound system for that kind of diversity,” says Corder, “one that also has a very high input-channel count — as well as a challenge to find console combinations that support a large number of stereo mix buses. They needed a platform that could manage high channel and stereo-output counts, would have an easy-to-use interface, and sounded great. KLANG is the only one that checks all those boxes.”
Corder specified that the Apple iPad employed as the user interface with the KLANG:konductor be hardwired for PoE, to assure uninterrupted power and broadband connectivity for every use.
The KLANG:konductor is integrated with Lawo mc2 36 MkII consoles at FOH and monitors. “The console has several 64×64-input MADI interfaces and we’re using two of them for a 128×128 input matrix,” Gilmore explains. That same large musician and vocalist complement also argued for the KLANG:konductor. “At first we looked at the cost of an additional console for monitors and the staffing cost of a dedicated monitor engineer, and tossed around the idea of using a pair of KLANG:konductors instead,” he says. “However, the vocal team preferred having the personal touch of a monitor engineer, so we decided to go with a console and a KLANG:konductor; we can use the KLANG alone for the backline on smaller events and use both for full services. That way, everyone has the benefit of the KLANG’s audio quality, and it gives us tremendous flexibility in terms of how we allocate our monitor resources.”
Furthermore, the KLANG:konductor’s interface with the console was straightforward and effective. “We can’t control the KLANG:konductor directly from the desk; instead we use a VNC remote-desktop connection to a computer running KLANG:app, which gives control access from the console through that interface,” he explains. “We also have access to KLANG:app via a number of KVM remote stations, including FOH, so we have a high degree of submixing control, a ton of routing options and it’s been working flawlessly. Everybody’s happy.”
Brentwood Baptist Church
- Key Products: KLANG:conductor; Lawo mc2 36 MkII consoles
- Integrator: Diversified
Wake Chapel Church, Raleigh, NC
Wake Chapel Church has two locations in the greater Raleigh area, and its Tarheel Club Road church recently installed a new sound reinforcement system. With a 3,000-seat sanctuary, church officials wanted a sound system that could deliver articulate speech and equally impressive music reproduction. They found it with the new Constant Curvature Array (CCA) loudspeaker series from Blaze Audio.
Hi Tech Electronics, Inc. of Greenville, NC, was contracted to design and deploy the new sound system at Wake Chapel. “The sanctuary at Wake Chapel is a large space that measures 187 feet wide with a room depth of 137 feet from the front of the stage to the rear wall,” says Hi Tech president David Williams, who oversees the company’s sales, engineering and installation projects. “To properly address a congregation of 3,000 people in a space this wide and deep, we needed loudspeakers capable of delivering wide horizontal dispersion in addition to significant throw. Equally important, we wanted to maintain a clear line of sight to the stage area from the entire seating area. We were initially expecting to fly as many as 36 line array enclosures deployed in three hangs of 12 — left / center / right — across the front of the stage area, but this would have impaired visibility, so we sought another solution — Blaze Audio’s Constant Curvature Array series.”
The compact, arrayable 3-way point-source CCA10i system is designed for medium-sized venues to large distributed systems that need a flexible, scalable solution. Mounted horizontally with tight acoustic centers to minimize comb filtering, each CCA10i enclosure provides 20° vertical coverage and can be flown in vertical arrays. The system’s constant curvature waveguide provides excellent array coherence with 160° symmetrical horizontal pattern control.
Williams and his install crew deployed a setup of CCA10i’s at the front edge of the stage with three hangs (left / center / right), with each cluster containing four CCA10i enclosures. Located 90 feet from the stage is also a delay system, flown in three hangs (left / center / right), with each cluster having three CCA10i’s.
“The difference between using the CCA10i’s as opposed to traditional line arrays is huge,” Williams explained. “By eliminating these large clusters across the front of the stage area, people can see the activity on stage better — and this goes a long way toward keeping the congregation engaged.”
To help contain costs on the project, Williams reused the existing four WorxAudio TL 218SSi-P subwoofers. Amplification was via 12 Blaze Audio PowerZone Connect 3004 amplifiers. Selah Media Productions of Mount Holly, NC was contracted to handle system control programming, custom matrix, gain, EQ and delay DSP using Symetrix Composer into Symetrix Prism units. Blaze Audio’s Hugh Sarvis and Selah Media president Buck Roberts were onsite to tune and commission the system.
“Both church personnel and congregation members have been impressed with the new Blaze Audio setup,” says Wake Chapel lead audio engineer Steven Petersen. “The system’s speech intelligibility is better than it’s ever been, and music sounds more natural and with more presence than we’ve ever had. We couldn’t be happier.”
Wake Chapel Church
- Capacity: 3,000
- Key Products: Blaze Audio CCA10i
- Integrator: Hi Tech Electronics
- Designer: David Williams
New Life Austin, Austin, TX
In 2017, New Life United Pentecostal Church of Austin — aka “New Life Austin” — became one of the first churches in the country to implement a KLANG:fabrik immersive in-ear mixing processors. The tech-forward church wanted to improve the experience for the eight to ten musicians and vocalists on its stage every Sunday, giving each worship team member full control over their personal monitor mix while also improving its sonic quality.
Now New Life Austin has upgraded, installing a KLANG:konductor, replacing the :fabriks. The installation, part of a package purchased through Heart of Texas Music Inc., also included a new DiGiCo Quantum225 FOH console. The KLANG-DiGiCo combination has taken the church’s audio to a new level.
“We have nine or ten vocalists during services now, along with bass, drums, a couple of guitars, keys, percussion, sax and so on,” says TJ Feronti, New Life Austin’s tech director and FOH engineer. His channel count now exceeds 70, which strained the capacity of the previous 56-input KLANG:fabrik systems.
“The :fabrik is a great IEM processor, but we were having to send groups from one into the other to accommodate everything we needed,” Feronti explains. “And we had been maxed out on the DiGiCo SD9 console we had been using for front of house and to route the monitors. Now, we have up to 128 channels and 16 separate mixes available, going over MADI through the Quantum225. It’s all so much easier to manage.”
Feronti adds the church’s musicians and singers have taken to the KLANG’s immersive mode, with most of them choosing to use it. “They’ve been very impressed, whether they’re new to the professional aspect of this or have been doing it since they were using wedge floor monitors or just stereo IEMs. They love being able to move things around spatially in their mixes on their iPads and have them reflect what they’re experiencing onstage.”
And Feronti says the :konductor has made his job easier, able to listen in and keep an ear on any of the stage mixes from his own iPad. “Plus, it’s so easy to use,” he adds. “Whenever we have other worship teams visiting, our house team can help them adjust to it very quickly. It’s just made everything a whole lot easier here.”
New Life Austin
- Key Products: DiGiCo Quantum225; KLANG:konductor
- Integrator: Heart of Texas Music Inc.
Gloria de Cristo Lutheran Church, Yuma, AZ
Gloria de Cristo Lutheran Church serves as a second home for many, whether they’re able to physically be inside the beautiful interior or not. With a congregation size ranging from 50 to several hundred, coupled with an outdated AV setup, church staff knew they needed a system capable of improved speech intelligibility and music reproduction.
While a large portion of Gloria de Cristo’s congregation is made up of local churchgoers, there is also a large community of virtual attendees. Virtual attendees can stream church services from anywhere in the world to feel connected to the church while deployed.
To make this happen, Gloria de Cristo staff reached out to CCI Solutions to design and integrate a sound system to fit their needs. CCI Solutions is on a mission to provide the right amount of technology so churches can achieve their vision and deliver their message, without distractions.
“The church came to me intending to incorporate a sound system that was a couple of decades old and then solve the reverberation issues preventing clear audio,” said CCI Systems Consultant Mike Robertson. “With a strong military audience, we wanted to ensure everyone could stay connected with the church via web streams that were easy to hear and understand. It was important to offer that accessibility to all.”
The main P.A. system is comprised of two Martin Audio CCD12W 12” coaxial speakers paired with a Martin SX212W dual-12 subwoofer — both finished in white and center hung over the altar. These are fed via an Allen & Heath SQ-5 digital console and AR1212 stagebox.
Powering the main church system is a LEA Connect Series 1504 four channel / 1,500 watt amplifier in the nave and a 2-channel / 350w/side Connect Series 352 in the fellowship hall. As part of the Network Connect Series, the world’s first Internet of Things (IoT) enabled pro-grade amplifiers, both are well-suited for installations requiring high flexibility, making them ideal for Gloria de Cristo. “One of the coolest things about LEA Professional’s technology is the all-in-one capabilities,” added Robertson. “We were able to put everything on the CS1504 in the nave and everything on the CS352 in the fellowship hall. Everything is easy to integrate and operate, which can be a game changer for churches that don’t have tech support on site.”
CCI has been working with LEA Professional technology for a while, utilizing the amplifiers regularly in P.A. system installations. Robertson notes LEA’s flexibility and capabilities among the top reasons for standardizing on their technology.
Gloria de Cristo Lutheran Church
- Key Products: LEA Pro Connect Series; Allen Heath SQ-5; Martin Audio CCD12W
- Integrator: CCI Solutions
