Sound System Design 132134.6.2.1 User Interface
Many users in a religious facility are nontechnical and
unfamiliar with sound system operation outside of, per-
haps, a home theater system. There are two exceptions:
the facility lucky enough to have a trained operator on
staff and those facilities that have services that include
popular religious music, dramatic presentations, and so
on, and make full use of the capabilities of an entertain-
ment-type sound system. These exceptions should
receive a system designed with a trained operator in
mind.
34.6.2.2 Systems for Inexperienced Operators
It’s a good idea to place all seldom used controls and
adjustments (including the system equalizer) behind the
locked door of an equipment rack or within the software
of a DSP system. Minimize the number of controls seen
by the user and minimize the complexity of their func-
tion. A typical set of controls might consist of a simple
mixer with one set of treble and bass controls and a
master volume control.
An automatic mixer can be extremely useful since it
takes over most of the caretaker functions of mixing. A
system with an automatic mixer may need only one user
adjustment—the on-off switch. A compressor/limiter
and a feedback detector/gain-reduction device would be
valuable additions to such a system.
In any such system, provide needed and useful user
interfaces such as an MP3 player, CD, or DVD player,
and a volume control for each. It may be possible to
integrate these into the automatic mixer so that volume
controls on the external devices are all that are needed.
Also keep in mind the possibility that an experienced
operator may volunteer, in which case the facility may
wish to upgrade to a more complex user interface, prob-
ably in the form of a mixing console.
A digital mixing console may seem like an ideal way
to provide increased capabilities to a religious facility
with inexperienced operators. The designer can set up
the console with recallable scenes and the operator
simply selects the appropriate scene for each worship
service. However, the smallest change in a service may
necessitate significant changes in settings that require
human judgment. When that happens, the digital mixing
console may be more difficult to understand than a
conventional analog mixing console. Thus, digital
mixing consoles may be best for facilities with experi-
enced operators.
34.6.2.3 System AestheticsMany religious organizations have large, architecturally
beautiful facilities. In general, they do not wish to alter
the architectural lines (which may have religious signifi-
cance) by adding large loudspeakers. In particular, the
central cluster type of loudspeaker system almost always
ends up in an aesthetically undesirable location.
Religious organizations and their architects should
be encouraged to design new buildings with a sound
system in mind and to ask a qualified acoustical consul-
tant to join in the process in the early planning stage.
Systems for existing facilities, however, must contend
with existing architecture and sight lines.
When a central cluster is the right choice for good
coverage, it may be enclosed in a framework covered
with grille cloth chosen to match the room decor. In
those facilities with an attic space above the auditorium
it may be possible to hide the system behind a large
(new) opening in the ceiling, again, covered with grille
cloth. Enclose the cluster above the ceiling, too, to
prevent the loss of valuable heat through the hole in the
ceiling. Brace the enclosure and line it with fiberglass or
other sound absorbent material to help reduce acoustic
problems.
Newer Christian churches in the United States often
choose a wide, fan-shaped auditorium. For these
churches, an exploded cluster is a good way to cover the
space with several, relatively small clusters that are
easier to disguise. Note that column-style line arrays on
each side are usually not a good choice for this style of
space because they cannot adequately cover the center
of the seating area near the stage.
In a rectangular room, a small central cluster,
augmented by a second cluster on delay, may help solve
sight-line problems. Column-style line arrays, placed
left and right at the sides of the platform, are another
alternative for this type of room, providing good
coverage while maintaining a discrete profile.
In deep rectangular rooms, a distributed system may
be the best solution. In high-ceiling rooms, a distrib-
uted system may consist of column-style line arrays or
small packaged loudspeakers installed on building
pillars. A small localizer loudspeaker in the front can
help maintain a natural directionality.
One oft-suggested approach, placing the loud-
speakers in an organ chamber, far to the rear of the
system microphones and behind a wooden grille, is
almost always unworkable. The position of the loud-
speakers aims them directly at the system microphones,
which usually results in feedback problems. In addi-