Christ Memorial Church in Holland, MI, has always sought to be a place where all can belong, and in that spirit, began offering contemporary-style worship services in addition to continuing with traditional style services.
As a result, the 1,700-seat sanctuary, constructed in the late 1980s, needed an upgrade of its sound reinforcement system, both to accommodate the more dynamic contemporary style in addition to better serving traditional needs.
The single-level, fan-shaped main sanctuary presented some unique challenges to the sound team, including a 150-seat choir area to the left of the main front platform and a large orchestra platform right in front of the choir.
Large beams support the wood tongue and groove ceiling, and combined with brick side walls and a rear wall made up almost entirely of glass, acoustics were also a concern.
The sound system design/build firm contracted for the project, Parkway Electric & Communications of Holland, proposed that in addition to flown line array loudspeakers for coverage to the audience area, additional line arrays be installed above the orchestra platform. The goal was to provide a reinforced signal coming from the same area as the natural, acoustical signal.
Further, the design called for a portion of the main loudspeakers to also function as a “delay fill” for the choir cluster.
For this choir/orchestra application, Parkway specified four L-Acoustics KIVA line array elements, arrayed beneath a KILO low-frequency extension cabinet, with two additional KIVA down-firing behind the array to provide monitoring for the choir.
A full demo of this approach, with the loudspeakers positioned very close to the actual proposed installation location, went so well that the church gave the go ahead. The intent was to get the choir array/cluster in place and then raise additional funds to add the additional new line arrays in the coming months.
Change In Plans
Everything was moving right along, with the aging house system to be replaced with two larger KIVA/KILO arrays, until the economy began to worsen, which impacted fund raising, and the project cameto a halt.
Finally, many months later, with only a portion of the funds raised, Gary Matthews, Director of the Church Fine Arts program, and Technical Director Dave Scholten, called a meeting with Parkway to explore what options might be available.
Parkway Systems Engineer Jeff VandeHoef offered a somewhat unconventional alternative that better suited the church’s actual budget - a flown system of four L-Acoustics 115XT HiQ coaxial enclosures.
These loudspeakers, which are more traditionally utilized as stage wedges or fill loudspeakers, might be able to meet coverage needs if deployed in an “exploded cluster” above the audience area. Specifically, three of these loudspeakers would bolster house coverage, and the fourth serving as a fill loudspeaker (much like it would have been utilized in the original design).
VandeHoef utilized the L-Acoustics SoundVision acoustic simulation program in mapping out the approach. One of the significant considerations was ensuring that the new loudspeakers would not interfere with the projection path of the existing video system.
The simulation program showed this not to be the case, but it would be a very close call, and all of this came as the church was looking at an upcoming presentation of Haydn’s Creation that would involve the video system.
Because of the potential issue, Parkway moved up the installation date up by two weeks.
“The simulation program showed we would be clear by a few inches, but I choose to push up the priority on this part of the project in order to give us time to make any changes that might become necessary,” VandeHoef explains. “As it turned out, the loudspeaker flypoints were indeed clear of the projection path, just as SoundVision showed.”
Two SB118 subwoofers were also installed during this phase, as were L-Acoustics LA4 amplified controllers for power and processing of all of the loudspeakers. The long-term thinking is that that when funds are available, the 115XT HQs can be re-purposed as stage monitors, replaced by original design’s line arrays.
Two Designs, One Sound
A pleasant surprise to this budget-driven solution was the realization that the acoustic signatures of both the choir system and main system sounded very similar, despite being based on two disparate designs.
“Knowing that line source array and coaxial technologies are very different, I was amazed at how remarkably similar the KIVA and 115XT HiQ sounded. In fact, the chance of us putting a KIVA system in there in the next couple of years went way down because they’re really happy with how the 115XT HiQs are performing,” notes VandeHoef.
The project abounds with other clever solutions, some borne of budgetary necessity and others a continuation of long-term planning. The main system’s Yamaha M7CL-47 digital audio mixing console, which had been added earlier, was outfitted with CobraNet cards to add 32 channels of digital audio to the system.
Twenty-four of these channels route to the recording and video production room. The other eight channels go to Biamp Audia digital units that provide cross-matrixing capability for the choir array.
From there, digital audio goes on to the LA4 amplified controllers providing power and processing to all main system loudspeakers.
An Aviom16/o-Y1 A-Net card was also added to the MC7L console, providing increased functionality with the church’s existing Aviom multizone stage monitor mixing system utilized by musicians.
One specific upgrade in this regard is that the card allows the house sound operator to assign audio outputs directly from Yamaha console interface.
A feed from the Aviom system is also fed to Crown amplifiers retained from the previous system that provide feeds to several stage pockets on the platform where Renkus-Heinz CFX121M monitor wedges can be plugged in as needed.
Several Neumann KM 184 small-diaphragm condenser microphones are suspended above the choir, installed in an earlier upgrade, with a predominance of Shure SM57 mics utilized for a wide range of applications on the platform. Dual Shure SM81 unidirectional condenser mics handle the acoustic piano.
The church also took advantage of Shure’s $1,000-per-unit rebate program to add five UR124S combo wireless microphone systems with SM58 handheld transmitters and UR1 bodypack transmitters. Pastors utilize Countryman E6 omni earset mics with the bodypacks.
In spite of the numerous and sometimes unique challenges the project presented along the way, the end result is a satisfied client.
According to Matthews, “We are absolutely thrilled with the results. The musical style in our arts ministry can greatly vary from a full orchestra and choir performing Haydn’s Creation to our contemporary style of worship - all in the same room - so we needed a system that sounded great and was highly versatile. This setup has been a ‘win’ for all that we do.”
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