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It’s a concert venue, a study lounge, a place to see movies, a conference room, game room either and a coffee shop. It’s The Vue, a 10,000 square foot facility for college students, part of the outreach at Bellvue Baptist Church located near Memphis, TN. |
AV Helps Every Space Find Its Place at The Vue
Converted Shopping Center Boosts Tennessee Church’s College Ministry
Thoughtfully creative and taking advantage of every square inch of real estate in the structure as humanly possible, Memphis Audio’s Brian Smith’s design opted to use Panasonic projectors, Da-Lite screens and Panasonic and Viewsonic flat screen displays with mounts from Chief Manufacturing. |
If there’s one especially defining aspect of The Vue, a newly-opened student center here on the east side of Tennessee’s celebrated river city, it’s that it refuses to be classified one way or another. It’s a concert venue. Viewed from another perspective, a study lounge, place to see movies…or conference room. Let’s not forget that you can get lost in the extensive game room either, drink your favorite hot beverage in the coffee shop, or simply pull up a big, comfortable upholstered chair and join a real, face-to-face conversation with others.
Yes, for those bent on forcing a single definition on The Vue, perhaps it’s best said that the 10,000 square-foot, multilevel facility takes aim at being a lot of things for college-age individuals of all description, and to that end succeeds remarkably. As the realization of a conceptual vision developed by Memphis, Tennessee’s Bellevue Baptist Church to serve its college ministry, The Vue began its current life as just another space in a shopping center. Making the transformation to its new, and elegantly revitalized configuration was a feat accomplished with the help of architects and a number of contractors including Memphis Audio, a local design/build AV systems integration firm.
“AV is used to build and enhance multipurpose functionality at The Vue,” explains Brian Smith, Memphis Audio’s systems designer on the project. “Sound and image come together here in a marriage of technology that fosters better communication on both an interpersonal level and beyond.”
As the centerpiece of the main level, a sweeping stage is outfitted to accommodate live musical performances. At the rear of the platform, a roll-down screen from Da-Lite with a viewing area measuring 78”x139” can be used in tandem with a Panasonic model PT-D5100U large venue projector to show movies. A second Panasonic projector—a model PT-FW100NTU—resides in The Vue’s lower level, where it projects images onto a smaller Da-Lite motorized screen in a conference room.
Digital signage displays abound at The Vue too. Hung on walls and rolling about as needed on mobile carts, a sum total of nine 42-inch Panasonic model TH-42PH11UK plasma screens call various locations home, and are outfitted with their own speaker kits. Of these nine displays, eight are wired to receive HD cable TV sends as well as digital signage messaging from a Chyron ChyTV system. The ninth is dedicated to digital signage usage only.
In keeping with a design philosophy structured to meet The Vue’s system needs both now and well into the future, Memphis Audio created a digital transport scheme that delivers HDMI signals to all of the resident flat screen displays and the projectors via shielded CAT 6 cabling.
“In terms of design goals, we wanted to turn as much of the client’s original vision into reality as we possibly could,” Smith says, looking back on the motivating forces that carried Memphis Audio to successfully completing the project in January of 2009. “That wasn’t always easy—or possible. Some of the biggest dilemmas we had to try to overcome were limitations on space.”
Thoughtfully creative and taking advantage of every square inch of real estate in the structure as humanly possible, Smith’s design opted to use projector and flat screen display mounts from Chief Manufacturing.
“The Chief Mounts gave us the flexibility to do things we couldn’t have done in the same space otherwise,” Smith concedes. “They are quick and easy to install, and blend extremely well into the natural aesthetic of the rooms. We love the quality, great service, and price that goes along with the products too—and besides, our installers won’t let me spec anything else anyway.”
Bringing a large degree of mobility and freedom to students at the Vue, a pair of Chief model PFCUB mobile carts manage the task of ferrying two Panasonic 42-inch plasmas to wherever students may need them on the main level. Lightweight and incorporating telescoping height adjustment, the carts are also outfitted with their own integrated cable management systems.
With the Chief catalog supplying RPM Series mounts for both the main and lower level Panasonic projectors, The Vue’s dedicated game room is probably the place where Chief mounts provided the most efficient use of space. For mounting the room’s 42-inch Panasonic plasma screens, model MWHUB flat panel swing arm wall mounts were chosen to secure the displays to custom expanded metal panels running from floor-to-ceiling.
“The game room also presented us with a real challenge created by a structural pole planted firmly in a place that had the potential to make the area around it pretty much unusable unless we started using our imaginations,” Smith relates. “After some careful thought, we used the pole to our advantage, hanging a pair of 37-inch ViewSonic monitors on either side with Chief’s PCMU flat panel ceiling mounts. PlayStation 3 and Wii consoles were installed directly below, and now we’ve utilized the entire space in a very efficient fashion.”
On the sonic side of the equation at The Vue, JBL loudspeaker systems supply concert-level sound reinforcement for the main level stage as well as distributed audio heard elsewhere in the building. A comprehensive template of control is supplied by AMX in the form of wireless remotes as well as MIO wall panels in the game room.
“Just like when considering many other facets of the AV system, simplicity was the name-of-the-game when it came to control,” Smith adds. “Simplicity that doesn’t make sacrifices in terms of versatility or performance. Students took to the AMX controls quickly and intuitively for daily operations. For special events such as concerts, The Vue uses volunteer student operators who take command of things from a main control area.”
Upon The Vue’s official debut, administrators from Bellevue Baptist Church were, according to Smith, “blown away” by its new AV systems. “They had never experienced an atmosphere like this on their main campus or anywhere else. The Vue has set a standard by which all their other facilities are being measured. Plans are being discussed for building a coffee house for adults and new youth areas inspired directly by it, and who knows how far this facility’s influence will be felt? This may very well be a bellwether systems statement that will echo through corners of the church far and wide. It’s become a center of attention.”
AMX
www.amx.com
Bellevue Baptist Church, Cordova, TN
www.bellevue.org
Da-Lite Screens
www.da-lite.com
Chief Manufacturing
www.chiefmfg.com
JBL Professional
www.jblpro.com
Memphis Audio
www.memphisaudio.com
Panasonic
www.panasonic.com/broadcast
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STUFF YOU MIGHT WANT TO KNOW ...
Multi-site Church Ads HD Video Production Facilities
Systems integration firm Advanced Broadcast Solutions (ABS) recently designed and installed a broadcast-quality HD video production infrastructure at Highlands Community Church, a non-denominational Christian church in Renton, Wash. As part of its innovative ”Inside Out” project, Highlands added HD video production capability to better serve its rapidly growing congregation – and expand its reach to a second, video venue in nearby Kent, Wash.
With no space left to expand at the church’s Renton location, they considered buying or building a second facility, but found Seattle real estate prices cost prohibitive. “With our HD video strategy, we’re able to share a consistent, unified message with congregants at our two locations, while minimizing the cost of the second location,” says Gordon Strange, technical director for Highlands Community Church. “We record our Saturday evening worship service in Renton, then display that HD video at two Sunday morning services in Kent. With video as its foundation, our Kent location is actually an ad hoc worship center that we set up every Sunday morning in the auditorium of nearby Kent Ridge High School.”
The worship service in Renton includes the pastor’s sermon, announcements, and a variety of vocal and instrumental performances. The HD video shown at Kent focuses on sharing the sermon, supplemented with on-site live music and announcements.
At Highlands’ Renton campus, ABS installed a HD video production control room in the worship center’s balcony, built around a FOR-A HVS-300HS HD/SD switcher and Panasonic P2 HD record decks. Three Christie HD projectors and Da-Lite front projection 16:9 video screens are used for image magnification (IMAG) during the service, with footage from two robotic Panasonic HD PTZ (pan-tilt-zoom) cameras. Prior to its upgrade, the Renton facility showed only computer-based presentations on a single screen using a digital projector.
A major initiative, the “Inside Out” project included the systems design and integration work by ABS in Renton, as well as an upgraded lighting system at Renton and three 24-foot trailers of HD video gear to facilitate the Kent services. “I had hired ABS once before for a large-scale project I managed at another church. Since that was such a positive experience, I came back to them for this project,” adds Strange. “They’re professional, dependable, and dedicated to quality work.”
Advanced Broadcast Solutions
www.advancedbroadcastsolutions.com
Christie Digital
www.christiedigital.com
Da-Lite Screens
www.da-lite.com
For-A
www.for-a.com
Highlands Community Church, Renton, Wash.
www.highlandscc.org/
Panasonic
www.panasonic.com/broadcast
Avid Venue Celebrates Five Years of Live Sound System Innovation
Commemorates Occasion with Special, Limited-time Upgrade Offer
Avid today announced it is celebrating its fifth year in the live sound market. Since the launch of the flagship Venue D-Show system systems have become a top choice for bringing studio-quality mixes and amazing clarity to live performances-- from concert tours and broadcast events to clubs and houses of worship. To commemorate this milestone and thank its supporters, Avid is offering sound professionals an opportunity to trade in their older analog or digital mixing boards and receive up to a 20% discount on new Venue systems.
Thanks to partnerships with the world’s leading sound providers--including Clair Global, Sound Image, Firehouse Productions, Solotech, Spectrum Sound, Sweetwater Sound Productions, and Clark Pro Media, among others--Venue systems have been proven successful and are used by award-winning artists, on the hottest tours and festivals, and in high-profile clubs and houses of worship. In 2009 alone, the artists, events, and establishments using VENUE systems included U2, Paul McCartney, No Doubt, Bruce Springsteen, Coldplay, Dave Matthews Band, Fleetwood Mac, Nickelback, Bridge School Benefit, Outside Lands, Knitting Factory and Saddleback Church.
According to John Cooper, FOH engineer for Bruce Springsteen: "Venue consoles have changed the way I approach mixing. Today, I have greater control over the workflow and can detail the mix in a way that was just not possible a few years ago. The plug-in architecture and Virtual Soundcheck have enabled me to work offline to determine which plug-ins are best suited for my live mixing environment, as well as build presets to make use of live. The ability to record direct to Pro Tools has also increased my value to the production and streamlined the process overall. The support that I have enjoyed since day one with Avid Digidesign has truly been unequaled. It's a privilege to be onboard with such a great team."
Avid introduced the Venue D-Show system in 2005 to advance the art and profession of live sound mixing with a complete live sound system that offers studio-quality sound, Pro Tools plug-in effects processing, and direct connectivity to the widely used Pro Tools recording and playback systems. Since entering the market, Avid has made great strides on behalf of its users to raise the bar in live sound, including:
Expanding the Venue product line to support a wide array of live sound applications and environments. The Venue product line now includes the Venue D-Show system, Venue Profile system, Venue Mix Rack system, and Venue SC48.
Venue D-Show software allows users to learn the system once and then take their show files and system expertise to work on any other Venue system.
Virtual Soundcheck enables users to fine-tune a mix by using prerecorded tracks from a previous show or rehearsal in place of live inputs.
Supporting the AVnu Alliance and its goal of developing universal AVB (audio/video bridging) networking standards that will offer users seamless audio and video integration to enhance the live event experience.
www.avid.com
Central Pennsylvania Church Upgrades IMAG Capabilities
Glad Tidings Assembly of God now delivers IMAG (image magnification) content to their worship center in Reading, PA with a Ross Video Vision 2 Multi-Definition Production Switcher.
Recommended by system integrator, Clair Brothers Systems, Glad
Tidings chose Vision for live production feeds to IMAG and recording for
post.
“Glad Tidings recognizes the power of visual media in our worship, teaching and fellowship,” says Brady Treat, productions director, Glad Tidings Assembly of God. “Vision 2 has helped us to deliver IMAG content to our main worship center, a broadcast mix for DVD, and feeds to distributed displays throughout the facility. We have enjoyed our partnership with Ross and look forward to growing together.”
“We are very excited that Glad Tidings chose Ross for their church production needs,” adds David Ross, CEO, Ross Video. “Vision is the perfect fit for houses of worship of all sizes, offering power and ease of use at an affordable price.”
www.rossvideo.com
| NEW PRODUCTS |
01. |
EAW KF740 Three-Way Full Range Line Array Loudspeaker
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EAW, a world leader in audio system solutions, debuts the KF740 Three-Way Full Range Line Array Loudspeaker, a high-output, extremely lightweight compact speaker module that capitalizes on EAW’s modern engineering and manufacturing technology. This is EAW’s next-generation line array. Based on input from key end-users, and engineered by the same Whitinsville, Massachusetts-based design team responsible for EAW’s critically-acclaimed KF Series, the new KF740 line array system brings a new level of performance to modules of its size, having been optimized for the widest possible range of touring and fixed-installation applications. The symmetrical design, large horn and spaced woofers provide exceptional pattern control while EAW Focusing and EAW Resolution software, both exclusive, proprietary technologies, further enhance system performance. The KF740 is designed for applications of nearly any size and delivers output resembling the much larger KF760, but has the footprint and weight of the more diminutive KF730. Because of this optimum ratio of weight, size and output, the KF740 is an ideal solution for a wide variety of applications including touring sound, corporate A/V, sports arenas, houses of worship, performing arts centers, hotel ballrooms and clubs.
Like all KF Series loudspeakers, the KF740 delivers premium, high-output, three-way performance, in a package that is extremely compact and easy to set up. Each module contains two high-frequency compression drivers with 2.5-inch voice coils and two 8-inch mid-frequency transducers with three-inch coils, all of which are integrated into a single horn that occupies the entire face of the enclosure. This allows for consistent 90-degree pattern control, even at frequencies down to 160 Hz, as the MF frequencies are transitioned to a spaced array of four 10-inch low-frequency transducers with 2.5-inch voice coils. Two of the low-frequency transducers are mounted within the horn, and two are side-mounted, providing as much as 18 dB of off-axis rejection. EAW Focusing, as provided by EAW’s UX8800 DSP, easily and precisely transitions from one system subsection to another. Also, all magnet structures within the KF740 utilize neodymium magnets.
A full KF740 array provides seamless coverage, from directly below the array, to hundreds of feet in front. The vertical output can be tailored to match the requirements of any space by varying the splay at the rear of the enclosures as directed by EAW Resolution software. The resultant configuration repeatedly produces a continuous, coherent wave front of extended-range, high-resolution audio over the entire defined coverage area. EAW says unlike other line arrays, the KF740 features a smooth, uniform transition when the listener moves from on-axis to an off-axis position, thereby increasing the sound field. Broadly applicable line sources can be constructed solely of KF740 modules. The versatile KF740 can also be integrated above KF730 modules or beneath KF760 modules to extend the reach of the range to any application imaginable. The KF740 has impressive low-end response from a cabinet of its size; however, low-frequency output and extension of the KF740 can be even further enhanced by the use of the SB1002 flying subwoofer.
The truck-pack-friendly KF740 is assembled in the U.S.A. and is meticulously constructed for structural integrity, long life and impeccable sonic reproduction. The exterior-grade Baltic birch plywood enclosure, wear-resistant textured coating and powder-coated steel grille work to protect each module. The extruded structural aluminum rigging, precision quick-release rigging pins and Neutrik STX series NL8 connectors are ideal for touring applications.
www.eaw.com |
02. |
ESI Inc. RLC-90 Remote Camera Control System
Remote Control for Panasonic AG-HPX170 Family Cameras |
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The Model RLC-90 system from ESI, Inc. was developed to meet the remote camera control requirements for churches, council chambers, corporate board rooms, fly packs, entertainment venues, class rooms, and small studios using Panasonic’s economical line of HD cameras.
The RLC-90 system consists of a RLC-90 lens controller and 90-CAM camera adapter module and cabling. The RLC-90 system provides the capability for long-distance remote operation of the record/pause, zoom, focus, and iris over a single eight-conductor CAT5 cable. This cable, which is sold separately, provides digital data and power to the 90-CAM camera adapter module. The Model RLC-90 provides remote lens control for Panasonic cameras including AG-HPX170, AG-HVX200, AG-HVX200A, and AG-HMC150.
A tally feature is also included; the 90-CAM camera adapter contains tally indicators that can be illuminated by the user’s switcher or external control system. A terminal board is provided on the RLC-90 connector panel providing signal input for the tally feature. The tally indicator is a group of four super-bright LED lights located on the front surface of the 90-CAM camera adapter mounted on or near the camera.
The equipment configuration consists of the hand-held RLC-90 controller, which is operated by the camera operator, and CAM camera adapter module located on or near the camera. The power adapter for the RLC-90 system is also provided. For cameras in Panasonic’s AG-HPX170 family of cameras 90-CAM adapter is required.
www.esi-inc.com |
03. |
Galaxy Audio PA6S Powered Compact Personal Monitor |
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Galaxy Audio introduces the new PA6S with a newly designed outer shell, 155 watt power amplifier, two-way speaker system, 155-watt Neolite 6.5” woofer, 1.5” 60-watt tweeter, two XLR/ ¼” inputs with XLR pass through, built-in compressor/limiter, line input, line output, three-band EQ, built-in mic stand mount, mic boom attachment, built-in stand/wall bracket mounting positions (for optional bracket).
The PA6S is great for any live sound application whether it’s used as a front-of-house compact PA speaker or a personal monitor.
www.galaxyaudio.com |
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