PA system for Contemporary church

[chrisani]

Which pa or sound system would you recommend for a church that caters to all styles of events, music, functions. From spoken word to dance, acoustic, choral, contemporary worship to rock concerts?

 

The worship area is has a balcony and has an almost 180 degree seating arrangement. 75 meters wide and 40 meters deep.

 

Any suggestions?

 

Thanks

[Simon Lewis]

Which pa or sound system would you recommend for a church that caters to all styles of events, music, functions.  From spoken word to dance, acoustic, choral, contemporary worship to rock concerts?

 

The worship area is has a balcony and has an almost 180 degree seating arrangement.  75 meters wide and 40 meters deep.

 

Any suggestions?

 

Thanks

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

There are several members of this forum who install church sound systems. Any of them will be happy to quote you for a complete sound system. Most, if not all will comprise good quality components from well known manufacturers.

 

However, given your diverse requirements, your large venue and (if you'll forgive me saying it) your rather sparse and generalised enquiry I would suggest the following:

 

1) Find someone who properly understands electroacoustics and the needs of a contemporary church. Ideally, this would be a consultant (i.e. one who makes their living from giving advice, NOT selling equipment).

 

2) Have them devise a detailed needs analysis, a review of the building acoustics and the overall technical requirements to deliver the agreed infrastructure, control, sound pressure level, coverage, quality and intelligibility across the auditorium. This will most likely include acoustic modelling using EASE, CATT, Ulysses etc.

 

3) Put the technical requirements out to tender.

 

4) Review the replies with the aid of your acoustic consultant. He will be your guide and is likely to save you money. If the project is as large as you indicate, you cannot afford to spend money without some guarantees of design integrity and post installation verification.

 

The majority of church systems do not follow this path - mainly because the overall spend does not appear to justify it, and also because most of the above process is rolled into one company acting as "consultant" designer and installer. Many do this very well, but large projects often get led by architects, who follow their own agenda, (which often does not have "sound system" written on it!).

An independent consultant can work at architect level to ensure that this key aspect of your facility works as you need it to.

 

The other side of the coin is you could be recommended to buy "ABC" because it "sounds great" and it was used on the last "XYZ" tour, only to find it does not deliver the required intelligibility, coverage, aesthetics, control etc., etc. By then, the system will be paid for and there will be no prospect of changing it for years to come...

 

I trust I've interpreted your query correctly - and no offence to all of the install companies out there ;-)

 

Simon <><

[paulears]

Simon, one of the most well answered, sensible posts we have had for ages.

 

In the US, real consultants never sell kit. Over here, many people label themselves consultant and do. This has always struck me a huge conflict of interest. and I'm sure, like you that this is why many sound system installed in all sorts of venues sound poor and seem to consist of a pile of mismatched items with big price tickets.

[BlueShift]

I would second what Simon said - excellent advice.

 

However, just because two companies suggest different pieces of kit doent necessarily mean they are just toting boxes they like or resell - there will inevitably be several solutions to your building, and there will be several manufacturers who make speakers that fit the bill.

 

If you just say "what system is going to give me great sound throught this space" there will undoubtedly be many solutions. Its only after you start introducing other variables like practicality, profile, budget, etc.. that you will begin to narrow down your options.

 

Now a good consultant will help you weigh up these solutions. There are also some good install companies who are big enough, and sell a wide enough variety of kit that they will be more dedicated to giving you a good solution (and therefor gaining respect for their company) than selling you a particular box. I have worked with such companies before, so dont be afraid to seek opinions - you are perfectly free to reject them after all..

 

Also, for a system of your size (especially if you have a largeish budget) the key word in my mind is 'demo' if you are buying tens of thousands of pounds of kit from someone, they should be more than willing to let you demo bits of the system - take this opportunity, listen to the boxes you are looking at, trial various stage wedges, get demos on consoles - the best thing you can do is get a good idea of the system before you buy it. Don't be afraid to make your consultant/install company work for their money! :)

 

Lastly, dont rush it - I have seen so many churches rush to get a system in and its only in hindsight realise they've made a mistake. Make sure you spend a lot of time planning - talk to engineers in your church, talk to your musos, talk to your pastors, make sure your clear on what you need, as well as what you want. Your much better to wait a couple of months for a great system than get a mediocre one in a couple of weeks!

 

Cheers ;)

[Pete McCrea]

I'll third everything posted above. It's good stewardship to take time and spend the money wisely on the equipment. If you can get a consultant in then do it. And then get people to quote on their specifications for the system. This should make it easier for you as client to compare things. So often people get three quotations from different companies. All have different ideas, and of course different costs. With a specification there is a bench mark to measure them by.

 

Get in touch if you want a quotation......

[James]

There is a very interesting article written by Jim Brown on the subject of church PA systems. As someone who uses church systems a lot there it is disturbingly accurate in many ways

 

Why Churches Buy Three Sound Systems, and How You Can Buy Only One

 

James