Finding itself struggling with 26-year-old technology, the Calvary Chapel of the High Desert in Hesperia, California, sought something more powerful and user-friendly for its team of volunteers to operate. ‘They were unhappy with the flow and format of their existing console,’ says Evan Hamilton, CTO of E2i Design, the full-service house of worship technology and installation secialist called in to help. ‘They also were looking to add a separate mixer to handle broadcast and streaming of their services.’
‘We’ve got a very deep bench – everything from IT, audio, video, lighting, streaming, construction, and architecture,’ he says. ‘We can pick up a project at basically any phase and run from there.’
Led by Install Manager Jason Horn, the E2i design team suggested Allen & Heath as for mixing consoles, specifically two 64-channel Avantis desks – one for their FOH and monitor mixes, and a second is dedicated to broadcast/streaming. ‘Avantis, bang-for-the-buck, is the number one desk on the market right now,’ Hamilton says. ‘These were probably the 25th and 26th Avantis consoles we’ve put in – we’re always happy with them.’
The third mixer based on A&H’s 96kHz XCVI FPGA engine, Avantis puts next-generation technology in a 64-channel/42 configurable bus console, with dual full-HD touchscreens, a flexible workflow with Continuity UI, extensive I/O options, add-on processing from the flagship dLive mixing system, and a full metal chassis. With two I/O Ports, both capable of 128x128 operation at 96kHz, Avantis was a top choice due to its capacity for expanding and connecting the Calvary Chapel system via an optional Dante card and the possibility for future expansion via Madi and gigaAce if necessary.
For connections at the stage, E2i has provided five Dante-enabled DT164-W wall-mounted I/O boxes, adding network flexibility and reducing cabling significantly. ‘They had 60 channels of analogue snake,’ Hamilton says. ‘We pulled all that out and replaced it with a single Cat6 cable.’
All DT stageboxes connect to a single Dante card in the FOH Avantis, which serves a newly installed d&b audiotechnik ALi60 loudspeaker system driven by d&b 40D amplifiers.
Since the installation was completed in early 2022, Hamilton has received positive feedback from the users at the church. ‘We didn’t realise how bad our sound and operations were until E2i Design installed this system,’ says worship pastor Blake Ormonde. ‘The ease of use with the Avantis boards for our volunteers has been a game changer. The clarity of our new system is top notch, and has provided better quality worship for our congregation to engage in. We couldn’t be happier with the new install.’
