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May 2012

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Loudspeaker System Design and Room Acoustics

by Daniel Keller

Regardless of the size of your flock, the shape of your sanctuary or the tenor of your faith, your congregation has come to immerse themselves in the worship experience. And sound is an integral part of the encounter; whether it's a clearly eloquated sermon or a raining chorus of guitars, nothing brings a congregation closer than hearing the message loud and clear.

Designing an audio system for a house of worship can be a challenging experience. With seemingly endless choices in loudspeaker designs and system configurations, determining what's right for your sanctuary can be a daunting and confusing journey.

What's Your Mission?
If there's one thing most systems designers agree on, it's that creating a worship sound system begins with the experience. Before delving into the complexities of room acoustics and loudspeaker configuration, consider the goals for your worship experience.

"It's important to spend time understanding and quantifying your own unique ministry needs," says GC Pro's Mick Hall. "Be sure you have a clear vision of what you need your system to accomplish in your ministry." Vance Breshears of Acoustic Dimensions in San Diego agrees. "Look at the room, look at the program. What experience do you want to create within these walls?"

"Our choice of system design is directly influenced by what the client wants to convey in the way of a worship experience," says Chuck Walthall of Pensacola, Fla.-based Walthall & Associates. "A contemporary worship [service], for example, usually means a full band, maybe some orchestral pieces, and that requires full-bodied sound, good low end and a fairly high SPL. That requires a more robust loudspeaker system than a traditional
service would."

Within These Walls
The most important aspect of your system isn't even the system itself, but the space it's in. Acoustics are far less glamorous than loudspeakers, but the best system won't help a bad room sound better, so it's important to address your acoustics first.

"Many churches design their rooms to look beautiful, with little regard to how sound will behave in the space," says Hall. "The success of any system is dependent on the acoustics of the space, yet some churches fail to budget for acoustic design at all."

Indeed, too many churches fall victim to the lure of a shiny new system without first assessing what it will sound like within their unique space. "Typically, we'll set up a demo or simulation to portray subjectively what they're going to hear," says Breshears. "That goes a long way toward illustrating the need for acoustic treatment."
"Before you even consider types of loudspeakers, system configuration or anything else, address the room's acoustics," says Walthall. "If the acoustics aren't correct, I don't care what kind of system you put in there, it won't get a fair shake. After all, a speaker system's primary function is to increase the sound level to the listener's ear. If my room's acoustics don't support what I want to do, making it louder isn't going to fix that."

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Daniel Keller is an audio industry veteran and principal of Get It In Writing, Inc.