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 installation projects.
Village Community Presbyterian Church, Rancho Santa Fe, CA
The Village Community Presbyterian Church serves thousands of worshipers throughout San Diego. Sound Image Integration (San Diego) recently installed a d&b audiotechnik Soundscape system with En-Scene object-based mixing.
The church began as a traditional Presbyterian church but has since added a contemporary service as one of its Sunday services. The traditional service utilizes a variety of instrumental and vocal musicians. The choir can range from 15-150+ members depending on the service. They also use chamber and full orchestras, brass ensembles, handbell ensembles, pipe organ, grand piano, and other instruments. The contemporary worship band is typically a core group of an acoustic guitar, electric guitar, bass, keyboards/piano, electric drums, lead and backup vocals. The San Diego Symphony and other professional classical and jazz ensembles also regularly hold concerts in the sanctuary.
“When we started working with Village Community Church to design a new sound system, their biggest concern was speech intelligibility, as with every house of worship,” states Sound Image Integration’s Jake Henricksen. “They also asked that the loudspeaker system be visually discrete to not distract from the architectural beauty of the sanctuary. That led to discussions of distributed loudspeaker systems instead of line arrays or other typical solutions. We knew the sanctuary had a beautiful acoustic signature desirable for pipe organ, choral, and classical music repertoire. The loudspeaker system would need to be highly directional to overcome the acoustically live space, especially if not using a line array. d&b audiotechnik xS-Series was a natural choice with the directional nature of all their loudspeaker series.”
Henricksen said that initially, Sound Image modeled exploded mono, hybrid stereo/mono and LCR systems. “With the variety of instrumental music and theatrical productions the church hosts, the space deserved something special. We discussed the benefits of sound localization and improved coverage using Soundscape. Once the design committee understood how powerful sound localization is when connecting with an audience, we never looked back. From that point forward, our underlying design criteria was to make the loudspeaker system disappear physically and acoustically. We wanted the congregation to experience the spoken word and music as if it was unamplified, coming straight from the source.”
d&b Soundscape enables further connection between the stage and the congregation, creating a more intimate experience. While Soundscape systems typically require more loudspeaker positions than a traditional P.A. setup, the loudspeakers can often be smaller cabinets at each position, improving sightlines or even tucked away out of sight. Since both level and delay processing are independently utilized per loudspeaker position in real time, multiple loudspeakers are producing sound simultaneously to create accurate localization no matter where a listener is seated.
The initial d&b ArrayCalc model demonstrated how even coverage across the almost 180º wide seating area was possible using just a few small xS-Series loudspeaker elements that could be custom color matched at the factory. Sound Image provided initial CAD elevations and renderings showing loudspeaker locations, and using a standard RAL color chart, picked a color that blends into the ceiling perfectly. “At the first service in the sanctuary after installation, some parishioners didn’t even notice the new loudspeakers, but immediately heard the difference,” says Henricksen. “The church put its full trust in the d&b and Sound Image partnership.”
Village Community Presbyterian Church
- Capacity: 300
- Key Components: d&b audiotechnik Soundscape system
- Integrator: Sound Image Integration
First Baptist Church Woodstock, Woodstock, GA
First Baptist Church Woodstock (FBCW) is no stranger to major undertakings. Last year, FBCW notably became the site of the world’s largest permanent installation of L-ISA immersive sound technology with FOH and monitor DiGiCo Quantum338 consoles. Now, the church has embraced immersive mixing in the house and in the ears with its addition of a DMI-KLANG module, supplied by the church’s integration partner, Diversified.
Nick Geiger of Diversified says the move into immersive sound for FBCW’s stage monitoring came about as part of the same conversation that saw the immersive audio move with the P.A. “With so many unique audio sources, the need to expand the sound field to hear more distinction between the different voices and instruments is critically important. With the native integration of the KLANG into its DiGiCo workflow, the changeover was simple and immediately effective.”
According to Geiger, KLANG also brought a practical solution to FBCW’s unique stage monitoring needs. “With the limited time each week to flip the stage, moving 16 of the monitor mixes to KLANG, where those musicians can adjust their own ears without the assistance of a monitor engineer, freed up time for the monitor engineer to focus on the mixes that are sourced from the monitor console. The overall efficiency of getting the stage monitors dialed in has increased tremendously.”
“The church’s monitoring needs are on a scale I haven’t encountered anywhere else,” says Joel Hilsden, FBCW’s technical director and the church’s regular monitor engineer. Each of the two worship services requires up to 20 unique IEM mixes. That’s up to 40 distinct mixes handled by a single engineer each Sunday.
“With limited rehearsal time, preparing the monitor console for rehearsals and services is its own challenge,” says Hilsden. “There simply isn’t time to build every mix on the fly from a generic start file. We have always relied heavily on the console’s mix presets to be sure we’re beginning each rehearsal with a familiar personalized starting point for every IEM mix. It’s mission-critical that the console recalls everything precisely across all inputs and outputs during our 15-minute set change.”
Hilsden describes the introduction of the DMI-KLANG into their weekly routine as “completely seamless. We thought we’d be adding complexity to our workflow, but since the console is able to store and recall KLANG settings in its mix presets and snapshot system, it functions like part of the console, not an added piece of outboard gear.”
The backline musicians each use an iPad running KLANG:app. For vocalists, the stage manager has a wireless pack assigned to KLANG’s cue output. Hilsden walks the stage during rehearsals with the iPad in show mode with cue-link enabled, assisting the 12 vocalists one by one with their IEM mix. “If anyone is struggling, the engineer can quickly step in to help. It’s remarkably efficient.” he says. “The band talkback microphones, previously dominated by mix change requests, are now just a way for the band to talk to each other about music, rather than mix requests to the engineer.”
Beyond personalized control, the benefits of KLANG’s immersive audio engine aren’t lost on the music team. “I’ve been amazed at how much more detail I’m able to hear throughout my mix,” says Trey Tanner, Instrumental Pastor and band/orchestra director for 9:30 worship. “The majority of our Sunday worship involves a choir, full orchestra, worship team, band and soloists. The KLANG system has completely opened up the box and allowed me to place things so specifically that I no longer have to pick and choose what certain things I want to focus on. I can pay attention to everything, all while having a super clear and enjoyable mix.”
FBCW’s DMI-KLANG is installed in one of Quantum338’s two DMI slots, connected to an Apple desktop running KLANG software, which is securely hard-wired to the console for Console-Link, connecting to multiple iPads onstage over Wi-Fi.
“Overall, what KLANG has done for everyone onstage is to make our rehearsals more efficient while also delivering a clearer, richer, more personalized monitor mix for our band and vocalists,” Hilsden concludes. “There’s a clarity to the sound that can’t be achieved with traditional left-right panning.”
First Baptist Church Woodstock
- Capacity: 7,500
- Key Components: L-Acoustics L-ISA, DiGiCo Quantum338 consoles with DMI-KLANG
- Integrator: Diversified
Chapel Hill Church, Gig Harbor, WA
Chapel Hill Church, a member of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church and part of Washington state’s Gig Harbor community since 1963, upgraded its FOH console. Its new 24-fader Solid State Logic Live L350 Plus mixes P.A. for the church’s main 1,450-capacity sanctuary, distributes monitors to the musicians and singers and also feeds a broadcast stream. CCI Solutions supplied the console via the company’s office in Seattle.
“We were experiencing some problems with the previous console,” says Chapel Hill’s full-time production director Connor Caldwell. “I said to my technical director, ‘I think an SSL Live would be a great fit for us.’ We looked at the options and ultimately landed on the L350 Plus, and it has been a game-changer.”
Caldwell reports that the improvement in audio quality was apparent the instant that the L350 Plus was installed. “Once we got it installed and were pumping stuff through those preamps, there was a noticeable difference in the tone, sonic quality and depth,” he says.
The services are passed directly over Dante directly from the console to the church’s broadcast feed, which is distributed via a DAW. Once the new L350 desk was in place, he says, “The improvement in quality was immense. We were able to strip off all the plug-ins on the DAW input channels because now it sounds the way we want it to sound.”
Caldwell finds he no longer has to use onboard DSP to correct the audio in the sanctuary either, as he did with the previous console, and is instead using processing purely for creative purposes: “Mostly, it’s a lot of the basic processing, like the SSL Bus Compressor for gluing drums together, the de-esser for spoken word and some reverbs and delays.”
Chapel Hill Church holds traditional and modern services every Sunday, with pipe organ, brass, strings, timpani, bells and choir at nine o’clock and then a new contemporary service with a modern band at 10:30,” says Caldwell, who mixes the services. “So the flexibility of the console and the scalable I/O was also a huge, huge draw for me.”
Having 64 lines from stage to the L350 means that Caldwell and his team can quickly strike and reset the stage for the later contemporary service without repatching, a process that used to take 30 minutes. “And we’re not even flipping between show files in the SSL; we’ve done it all with the onboard automation. It will automatically set everybody’s monitors where they need to be, and set up faders, groups, layers and all that fun stuff. We just clear the stage, bring out the instruments and we’re ready to rock.”
For the contemporary band, which typically includes drums, bass, keyboards, electric and acoustic guitars and as many as five vocalists, Caldwell says, “We use the SSL Live TaCo (Tablet Control) app. We authorize all their iPads and lock into their specific auxiliaries at the start of a rehearsal and then they mix their own in-ears.”
The contemporary and classic service musicians immediately noticed the improvement in audio quality. Caldwell adds, “We got feedback from the pastors and congregants, too. They said, ‘What did you do? The bells sound so good now.’ It wasn’t so much what I did, it was the magic of the SSL!”
Chapel Hill Church
- Capacity: 1,450
- Key Components: Solid State Logic Live L350 Plus
- Integrator: CCI Solutions
Mount Calvary Baptist Church, Fairfield, CA
Mount Calvary Baptist Church has been serving Northern California as a house of worship since 1962. Fifty years later, the church is still growing — to the point where they had completely maxed out their outdated audio console’s processing capabilities. They soon approached Keith Wackford of Sacramento Production Services, for his help and expertise. “They wanted a system that offered personal monitor mixing for the band and multitrack recording capabilities,” recalled Wackford. “They also run a lot of wireless, but with very little personnel to actually monitor and adjust it, telemetry and control of wireless devices from the FOH console was crucial.”
After researching the market, Wackford’s team landed on an Allen & Heath dLive S7000 36-fader control surface, paired with a CDM48 MixRack. A 128-channel Waves card was added for multitrack recording purposes, allowing the church to capture and re-mix any performances using the isolated tracks. It also means that tuning the room before a performance is a simple task, using dLive’s dedicated Virtual Soundcheck mode.
A 128-channel Dante module was also included, which is used to interface with the church’s various Shure wireless devices. The dLive’s Shure and Sennheiser wireless integration feature enables the front of house engineer to monitor battery life of wireless microphones, as well as adjust input gains and view metering remotely – without having to be near the actual receivers. In addition, the Dante module distributes audio throughout the facility via a Dante-enabled audio matrix processor.
For personal monitoring, Wackford included a 10-port Allen & Heath ME-U hub – which can receive signal from the church’s dLive mixrack and feed that audio to their seven ME-1 personal monitor mixers, along with channel names and stereo link information. The ME-U also provides PoE along the same data cables, which eliminates the need for individual power supplies to each ME-1 mixer. “We were quite impressed with how easily the band took to the ME-1s, after previously using a different system,” recalled Wackford. “It was really nice, since it didn’t require much input from us as installers or from the main engineer.”
The stage was expanded during the overall audio upgrade, so a DX168 16-input, 8-output stagebox was added to reduce overall cable runs to the main CDM48 MixRack. “Being able to run simple Cat-5e through a floor pocket closer to where the band was made it much easier without having to create a whole panel or wall plate,” recalled Wackford.
Wackford notes that he often chooses dLive when a client needs room for growth. “For churches that don’t know where they are going to be four, five, ten years down the road, that expandability is crucial,” he explained. “You may only have 32 mic preamps in your MixRack, but someday you may need 64 or 128. It’s just a matter of adding another DX stagebox. You may even want to add a separate recording or broadcast desk, all that takes is a gigaACE card and you can easily share audio without needing to rely on a third-party protocol. It’s huge for us, and it’s huge for our clients, too.”
Mount Calvary Baptist Church
- Key Components: Allen & Heath dLive S7000, CDM48 MixRack
- Integrator: Sacramento Production Services
St. John the Baptist Church, Cirencester, England
St. John the Baptist is in the small market town of Cirencester, England. Although its visually appealing, it presents numerous acoustic challenges, as stained glass windows and wooden pews lining the space create ample opportunities for reverberation and muffled audio. To overcome these challenges, the church turned to Renkus-Heinz for the solution to fit its sonic needs.
Together with UK-based supplier CUK Group, Staffordshire-based event and installation specialist Novum Audio Visual worked to specify and install three Renkus-Heinz ICC36/3 column arrays from the US manufacturer’s Iconyx Compact line. As a result of Novum’s work, 12 unsightly box speakers were removed from the white limestone columns of the 600-year-old nave and its associated cabling. The Diocesan architect, along with the church, was delighted with this visual improvement. This was CUK’s first installation of Renkus-Heinz products after taking over distribution of the brand.
The ICC36/3 comes equipped with a 36-channel digital amplifier, powering the array’s 36 three-inch, full-range, high-sensitivity drivers. With an amplifier and DSP channel for each driver, the Iconyx Compact loudspeakers are designed to custom-tailor the asymmetrical beam of sound needed for each space. Each column is 3-meters in length, enabling directional control from 150 Hz and full steerability from 300 Hz and above.
“The ICC36/3 column arrays were the perfect solution for St. John the Baptist. The design of the arrays goes a long way to ensuring low frequencies do not add excessive amounts of reverberation,” said James Lawford, live sound channel manager at CUK. “By keeping sound off the ceiling and preventing a reduction in speech intelligibility, we can ensure every congregation member can hear every word spoken and sung no matter where they are seated.”
Concerned with architectural integrity, church leadership and aimed for as little visual impact as possible. Novum Audio Visual utilized a color scanner to match the nuanced tones of the stone architecture to a RAL color code in order to custom-paint the loudspeakers and blend them into the background. The ICC36/3 column arrays deliver impeccable sound to the congregation without any architectural intrusion.
“I’m often skeptical about new shiny things, but when you hear for yourself how accurate the coverage is, and how much control you have across the full bandwidth, you’re soon convinced,” added Madden. You can stand at the front, or 25 meters back, and the SPL is the same. We already have two more projects in mind that would be perfect for this solution.”
St. John the Baptist Church
- Capacity: 500+
- Key Components: Renkus-Heinz ICC36/3 column arrays
- Integrators: CUK Group, Novum Audio Visual
