AGI recommended vaults made of concrete be built under the platform, where the subwoofers reside, in order to cut the resonance, and this approach has proven to solve the problem exceptionally well.
The previous sound system had reached the end of its usefulness in terms of meeting the church’s needs for a dynamic presentation combined with solid, seamless coverage throughout the listening area. Utilizing their extensive experience, combined with an assist from Soundvision and other modeling programs, AGI first addressed the issue of loudspeaker location, configuration, and selection.
“There wasn’t a high level of rocket science in terms of what we needed to do here with respect to the loudspeakers,” Anderson notes. “We could see fairly quickly what would result in optimum coverage, and then it was just a matter of addressing the details with as much precision as possible.”
AGI conceived what Anderson calls a “pseudo” left-center-right (LCR) loudspeaker arrangement above the platform, supplemented with small loudspeakers on delay to extend coverage to the upper portion of the balcony region.
“It’s not a true LCR design, because the center loudspeaker here is not intended to cover the entire room by itself,” he explains. “Rather, this arrangement provides even overall coverage and a way to smoothly attain the sound pressure levels desired by the church.
“That said,” he continues, “the sound operators can mix any way they like. So if they want to put more vocal emphasis in the center, which is one of the strengths of an LCR approach, they certainly can do so. What our approach provides is complete coverage with enhanced flexibility.”
The project also proved an ideal application for AGI to implement Tannoy VQ Series loudspeakers, which they had first noticed at a trade show and then tested at their headquarters, with impressive results.
“We like the overall design of these loudspeakers, they’re a large-format system with exceptional smoothness at the top end, and with high-frequency output that lasts for days,” Anderson says. “They’re also very efficient, with excellent coherence and balance, and the coverage pattern is very even. When you look at our specific coverage and dynamic goals for this project, the VQ Series is an outstanding fit.”
To attain the desired coverage on this project, AIG specified three VQ100 loudspeakers, one each for left, center and right. The VQ100 offers a precision 100-degree horizontal beamwidth, combined with a three-way full-range design that utilizes dual 12-inch woofers for low-frequency reproduction combined with Tannoy’s lauded Dual Concentric transducer approach for mid and high frequencies.