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| A Primedia Property | |
| June 21, 2004 | |
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Table of Contents Houses of Worship Top Story New study finds church AV market promising...maybe Installation News Symnet controls the sound system in Our Lady of Guadalupe Church Australia's largest church chooses Lake Contour processors Product News AKG introduces GN 155 CHOIR, the non-hanging choir microphone Electro-Voice introduces the new PolarChoice Desktop at this year's InfoComm Sharp introduces PH series of projectors for fixed installations ADVERTISEMENT Since 1980, FSR has been providing ultra high quality audio and video control and switching solutions to the a/v industry. Located in West Paterson, New Jersey, all FSR products are "Made in the USA" and carry the warranty and support that you require. At FSR, "We have what you need". www.fsrinc.com Houses of Worship Top Story New study finds church AV market promising...maybe Churches are increasingly inclined to obtain AV products and services directly from manufacturers, and yet the worship market isn't as attractive to manufacturers, dealers, and integrators as compared to several other segments. Those are among the interesting, and sometimes contradictory, findings of a new study by the International Communications Industries Foundation (ICIF), unveiled at June's Infocomm exposition in Atlanta. Acclaro Growth Partners of Reston, Virginia, executed the study for the ICIF, which is the nonprofit foundation of the ICIA. ADVERTISEMENT  TV One produces over fifty products for the professional video market worldwide, including Seamless Switchers, Scan Converters, Video Scalers, HDTV Converters, Standards Converters, SDI Converters, Matrix Routing Switchers, Digital Video Recorders, Video Servers, LCD Monitors, Frame Synchronizers, Distribution Systems and other Video Terminal Equipment. www.tvone.com "The religious/worship market is particularly interesting for manufacturers because the trend is to buy direct from manufacturers," the study comments. Another part of the study notes that the religious market shows a "high" preference for obtaining professional services from manufacturers. One manufacturer already dealing extensively with church buyers is Techni-Lux, a maker of high-end lighting equipment based in Orlando, Florida. Techni-Lux sales and training specialist Tony Hansen notes the company has recently launched a design services subsidiary, and it's found that "churches are more open than other markets" to these services. In particular, Hansen reports that visualization software has been very popular with church clients because it lets them see quickly and easily the effect of different lighting choices on the overall "feel" of their sanctuaries. At the same time, Hansen says, dealing directly with end users in the worship market has its drawbacks. "One problem is education, and making sure buyers are aware of what they're doing and not open to the first person who shows them some flash," he says. "A second problem is that you're putting an awful lot of time and effort into a single sale." That time and effort, Hansen adds, can be devoted to building a relationship with a dealer or integrator that may produce multiple sales over a longer time period. Other factors highlighted by the ICIA survey further complicate the attractiveness of the church market to manufacturers and dealers/integrators alike. For example, the study ranked six market segments in attractiveness by comparing the average number of AV spaces each end user manages and the average annual expenditures for each use. In this analysis a combination of high budget and many spaces means a more attractive customer. Church markets ranked lowest in this evaluation, combining a relatively large number of AV spaces with the lowest average annual expenditures. Churches, in other words, need a lot of AV but don't have much money. A brighter spot is the study's assessment of the degree to which different market segments tend to buy individual AV products or integrated systems. In the church market, the split is about 50/50, which puts church users out front in this respect. "The religious and hospitality segments are beginning to adopt and integrate AV systems into their operations," the study says. Other segments lag behind. Specifically, some 80 percent of government end users buy individual AV products, either to use by themselves or to add to existing systems. When it comes to obtaining products and systems, religious buyers report high preference for pro AV dealers and systems integrators and relatively low interest in dealing with volume distributors, retailers, or manufacturers. On the services front, though, manufacturers emerge as one of the segment's preferred sources. One of the study's key recommendations is that as the AV industry has achieved high penetration in such market segments as education and government, manufacturers need to look for growth in "new and burgeoning verticals such as digital signage, security, and worship." ADVERTISEMENT  Project the word in a new light! Capture your congregation's attention and inspire your audience by engaging them in an audio visual experience they will not soon forget. IAVI can help by providing state of the art LCD Projectors at an affordable cost. For more information call us toll free at (888) 999-6564 or visit our website at www.iavi.com Installation News Symnet controls the sound system in Our Lady of Guadalupe Church When Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish wanted a new sound system, intelligibility, aesthetics, and reliability were the overriding goals. But another factor, perhaps less acknowledged during the initial planning, ended as a major consideration. This consideration was solved by Symetrix's SymNet Audio Matrix, a modular system for mixing, routing, and processing audio. As part of its sound system upgrade work at the 7,000-seat church in Sacramento, California, systems integrator Art of Sound installed a Symetrix SymNet 8x8 digital signal processor to achieve extensive front-end sound system control. "The unit's automatic mixing feature, combined with additional signal processing for mics and line arrays, gave the church the ability to easily manage and control the sound system. This was an important consideration given the varied demands placed on it," says Art of Sound integrator Alonso Camacho, the system designer on this project. Through the use of a SymNet Adaptive Remote Control (ARC), presets for Monday through Friday and Saturday and Sunday masses, for live radio transmission masses, and volume control of the narthex and transept areas were made available. The remote selects preset configurations for these and other system applications and gives the church an unparalleled level of operational ease, Camacho says. In addition to installing SymNet, Art of Sound installed AXYS Intellivox, a digitally controlled loudspeaker array whose highly accurate directivity delivered the needed speech intelligibility and an even sound pressure level from the front of the nave to the rear of the church, a distance of 100 feet. Intelligibility was a major concern, given the fact that the facility was designed largely to complement organ pipes and choral singing. Consequently, the spoken word has not been treated equally well by the facility's acoustics. "Unfortunately, when selecting their original sound system, little or no design was used to select the proper configuration to adequately work and provide speech intelligibility," Camacho says. "Many years went by with constant complaints and frustrations by the parish, congregation, and sound technicians." Another bonus of the speaker selection was its low profile. The units' 4-inch drivers and small physical width allowed the speakers to be concealed against the column from which they were suspended. A single line array was integrated to cover about 95 percent of the main sanctuary. The remaining 5 percent, as well a gallery area, was covered with two additional boxes. Also part of the design were Audio Technica 5000 series wireless microphones, and Countryman E-6 head-worn microphones, used to interface with the wireless systems. A Tascam CDA-500 provided CD and cassette playback. The SymNet 8x8 processes the signal feed for six Community CPL-23WT loudspeakers that serve the transept and lobby areas. Since installing the system, Our Lady of Guadalupe has won over its parishioners. Many congregation members have noted how much the intelligibility has improved. Less apparent to the congregation, however, is the level of control and sound processing detail that SymNet has made possible. Audio Gear: * Axys Intellivox-6c (Nave) * Axys Intellivox-2b (Nave/Fill) * Axys Intellivox-2b (Gallery) * Community CPL-23WT (Transept #1) * Community CPL-23WT (Transept #2) * Community CPL-23WT (Lobby; x4) * Symetrix SymNet 8x8 DSP * Symetrix SymNet ARC * QSC ISA-500Ti * Audio Technica 5000 Series Wireless * Countryman E-6 Head Worn Microphones * Tascam CDA-500 Art of Sound can be reached at (916) 498-9098. Australia's largest church chooses Lake Contour processors Australia's largest church, Hillsong Church in northwest Sydney, remains one of the most technologically advanced buildings of its kind in the country with the recent addition of three Lake Contour Pro26D digital loudspeaker processors in its convention center. Hillsong Convention Center, opened in late 2002, was designed to modern convention center standards and features state-of-the-art sound, lighting, and video infrastructures. The original loudspeaker management in the center's 3,500-seat main auditorium was limited in DSP resources, according to audio systems designer Scott Willsallen, who recalls that he initially recommended Lake Contour to the church based on the precision and layering ability of its filters. Willsallen had previously utilized Lake Contours on the sound system for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Rugby World Cup during 2003. "The limitless grouping available in Lake Contour adds a level of flexibility that no other device can offer, both from a tuning and a monitoring perspective," says Willsallen. Equalization may be applied to compensate for a speaker's phase response, then additional, multiple parametric and graphic curves may be overlaid to optimize the entire sound system, for example. In the main auditorium audio system, two Lake Contour units control the main left and right flown clusters of three-way EAW KF760 and KF761 line array speakers, powered by Crown amplifiers. The third unit provides management of the front and center fill systems and the subwoofers. Lake Contour's Mesa filter allows users to overlay a single, customized, asymmetrical curve to tailor a frequency response that would ordinarily require multiple channels of EQ. For Willsallen, this has been indispensable in optimizing the sub-bass loudspeaker arrays. "A Mesa filter was used above the low-pass filter point to attenuate the out-of-band energy that the standard tuning passes," he elaborates. "This one filter, which was a rather dramatic one, made the greatest single improvement to the sound and feel of the sub-bass system." "The Contours have one extra feature that for certain installations and events is reason enough to specify the product," observes Willsallen. "When fitted with the AES/EBU input option, Lake Contour can automatically switch between AES and analog inputs, with AES as the priority, which introduces a level of redundancy that others processors do not." Michael Cuthbertson is engineering director for Lifestyle Systems, the company charged with overseeing the ongoing expansion of the audiovisual and communications systems at the rapidly growing church. He agrees with Willsallen: "The deciding factor came down to filter quality and ease of operation to implement the desired filtering. "We also required a redundancy plan, for which the AES/analog auto-select function caught our attention." At Hillsong, the left, right, mono, and subwoofer AES outputs of the Yamaha PM1D digital console feed the digital inputs of the Lake Contour units in parallel with analog backup feeds. Prior to the installation at the church, Cuthbertson also consulted with another major client, Steve Leroux at the Sydney Opera House, where 11 Lake Contour Pro26Ds are installed. Cuthbertson had already had a favorable experience with Lake Contour after installing it at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, where he was formerly the FOH engineer. "I felt that system performance tonally was the best we had ever achieved within that venue, which made my job much easier in achieving a great sound." Cuthbertson reveals that there is a requirement for a fourth Lake Contour unit at the church. "We also have numerous other venues within the building as well as two additional major projects on the table where Contours are being considered," he adds. The Hillsong Convention Center additionally houses an 800-seat auditorium, nine lecture theatres, two professional dance studios, Sunday school rooms and play areas, as well as a children's day care center. The church regularly produces a half-hour Christian television program featuring the teachings of Pastor Brian Houston that is broadcast in over 120 countries around the world, including the U.S. For more information, visit www.hillsong.com. Lake Technology, an innovator in audio digital signal processing, is the creator of the technology behind "Dolby Headphone," a software solution enabling cinema-quality surround sound to be experienced over any pair of stereo headphones. Lake has strategic relationships with Dolby Laboratories and Clair Bros. Lake customers include major computer OEMs, commercial electronics OEMs, telecommunications companies, airlines, and research institutions. The company has offices in Sydney, Australia, and San Francisco. Visit Lake Technology's Web site at www.contour.lake.com. Product News AKG introduces GN 155 CHOIR, the non-hanging choir microphone At InfoComm 2004 AKG introduced the GN 155 CHOIR microphone as another innovative problem-solver for contractors. The GN 155 CHOIR is comprised of a 62-inch gooseneck module mounted onto a 15-lb. shock-isolated, telescoping clutch stand that is height-adjustable from 6 feet to 9 feet. All five AKG Discreet series microphone capsules are compatible for mounting onto the GN 155 CHOIR to allow customization to the application. At the capsule mounting point is a status LED that illuminates when phantom power is applied to the microphone. The GN 155 CHOIR's 33-foot cable terminates in a three-pin XLR-type connector. Within the XLR connector are two jumpers that may be removed to switch off the gooseneck's LED and/or engage a 6dB/octave @ 200Hz high-pass filter. The finish is inconspicuous matte gray to blend in visually in any situation. Low-profile hanging microphones have been used for years to mic choirs and large ensembles for house of worship and theater applications. In many installations, a solution was needed that allowed quick, easy changes of microphone positions and flexibility in pickup pattern customization. The GN 155 CHOIR does that simply and elegantly. Available microphone capsules that can be used with the GN 155 CHOIR include the CK 31 cardioid capsule, the CK 32 omnidirectional capsule, the CK 33 hypercardioid capsule, the CK 80 speech-optimized hypercardioid capsule and the CK 47 hypercardioid short-shotgun capsule. The distance-pickup superiority of the CK 47 and the CK 80 will make them the first choices for use with the GN 155 CHOIR in most applications. At a pro user net of $425 (plus the cost of the microphone capsule), the AKG GN 155 CHOIR is a great audio problem-solver. AKG Acoustics is a manufacturer of microphones, wireless systems, and headphones. AKG Acoustics, U.S. markets the full line of AKG Acoustics microphones and headphones and processing technology for recording, concert, sound reinforcement, commercial sound, and broadcast applications. AKG Acoustics, U.S. is located in Nashville, Tennessee. The telephone number is (615) 620-3800, and the Web address is www.akgusa.com. Electro-Voice introduces the new PolarChoice Desktop at this year's InfoComm Electro-Voice (EV) introduces the new PolarChoice Desktop, a free-standing podium-style microphone, firmly anchored in place by its elegantly designed base. Its easy-to-use on/off switch can be programmed for either Push-to-mute, Push-to-talk, or latching on/off operation, and its blue LED clearly displays microphone status. Like all Electro-Voice PolarChoice microphones, the PC Desktop features the capability to select the polar pattern, and the four patterns - omni, cardioid, super-cardioid, and hyper-cardioid - all feature identical voicing, so you can change patterns without having to retune the entire sound system. The PC-Desktop can also be interfaced to an auto-mixer for use in those large and difficult, multiple-microphone installations. The free-standing and movable PolarChoice Desktop can be used anywhere a gooseneck or podium-style mic is needed, but where a permanent installation is not possible, required, or desired. Whether it's a boardroom conference table, videoconference facility, training room, house-of-worship altar, or even on a podium - with the PolarChoice Desktop, anything is possible. Features: * Free-standing and movable weighted base for reliable stability. * Logic input and output makes it possible to use with an auto-mixer. * Programmable microphone on/off switch can be configured to operate as either latching on/off, momentary push-to-mute, or momentary push-to-talk. * High-visibility blue LED clearly displays microphone status to the user. * Selectable polar pattern for easy adaptation to any acoustic situation. Choose between omni, cardioid, super-cardioid or hypercardioid. * Exceptional sound quality and consistent frequency response between polar patterns, with EV's proven PolarChoice design. * 10-foot cable terminated in XLR connector. * Available in three gooseneck lengths: 18-inch, 12-inch or 5-inch. Electro-Voice is a professional audio brand of Telex Communications, a leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of sophisticated audio, wireless, multimedia, aircraft, broadcast ,and communications equipment for commercial, professional, and industrial customers. Telex Communications markets its products in more than 80 countries under the brands EV, Telex, RTS, Dynacord, Midas, Klark Teknik, University, and others. Visit www.electrovoice.com for more. Sharp introduces PH series of projectors for fixed installations At Infocomm 2004, Sharp has expanded its professional projection systems offerings by introducing a new line of projectors to fit most any need in business or education. The five new projectors offer high brightness and display solutions for professional use, from the road warrior to the high-end corporate installation. The new line includes models that are smaller and brighter with more features and easy setup. For the high-end installation/integration market, comprised of larger lecture halls, houses of worship, conference facilities, rental and staging, and NOC command and control, the PH Series offers high brightness with an intelligent dual-lamp optical system. Combined with DDR DLP technology, this system allows for reliable operation during extended usage applications and decreases the overall cost of ownership by managing lamp life. It also offers "redundant" reliability in critical applications and installations. Users can choose among four levels of brightness ranging from 4000 to 1600 ANSI lumens, to meet the needs of any environment. The unit is bright enough to project a brilliant image in larger venues and versatile enough to assimilate data from multiple sources into a crystal-clear image. This series also contains a built-in RJ-45 LAN connection for remote control, diagnostics, asset management, and theft deterrent features. For more info, visit www.sharpusa.com. |
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