In the shadow of Mount Rainier, Puyallup’s Experience Church is part of a new generation of houses of worship – a non-denominational Christian church bringing their message to parishioners via modern music and technology. The 500-seat sanctuary welcomes parishioners with upbeat, amplified music and innovative use of video.
Installed more than 15 years ago, the church’s sound system was showing its age and in need of an update. Uncertain of the cost and in need of ideas, the church contacted Sumner, Washington-based McCauley Systems for advice and consultation. ‘I’ve had a long-standing relationship with this church, having designed and consulted on the original sound system about 15 years ago,’ says McCauley Systems Principal, Ryan McCauley.
‘Fundamentally the system is still in good shape, with excellent coverage and impact, but many of the loudspeaker components in particular were approaching the end of their useful lives, and some of the amplification and other electronics were beginning to fail.’
With the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the pandemic, budgets were also a concern: ‘Since I’d designed the original system, I suggested refurbishing that system rather than replacing it,’ McCauley continues. ‘With the advancements in loudspeaker technology, we were able to not only replace the failing components, but update them with more modern versions, far superior in performance and sound quality.’
Perhaps even more significant have been the advancements in DSP and amplifier technology: ‘What was state-of-the-art 15 years ago has been vastly surpassed by today’s technology, larger per channel power, advanced DSP, and FIR signal processing capabilities,’ states McCauley.
The existing line array cabinets – LR hangs of eight dual-8-inch cabinets per side – have been refitted with custom RMS-Acoustics loudspeakers, and the rack of amplifiers as been replaced with four Linea Research 44C Series 4-channel Networked DSP amplifiers. ‘The Linea amps are immensely powerful and sound amazing,’ McCauley says. ‘We were able to replace an entire rack of 16A with just four Linea units, two 44C20 and two 44C10, which cuts down on both heat and rack real estate.’
The 44C20 delivers four channels of 50kW/channel into 2Ω, while the 44C10 offers four channels of 2.5kW. All C Series amplifiers offer integrated 96kHz DSP and network control, including FIR filters on every output, as well as traditional EQ and DSP, and an optional Dante interface.
‘In addition to the obvious hardware improvements with loudspeaker components and amplification, we also upgraded their signal chain to include a Dante digital audio network,’ McCauley says. ‘They now have a dual redundant, primary/secondary Dante network between the console, amplifiers, and personal mixer system, improving both dependability and sound quality compared to their previous analogue system.’
Measuring and tuning the room was also a breeze, with McCauley employing Eclipse Audio FIR Filter Designer to design a custom FIR filter from multiple locations in the room. ‘The Filter Designer software dramatically changes the equation for FIR design in smaller spaces. We’re able to take the required measurements and design the FIR filter, in less than an hour. It’s a powerful tool.’
More: www.linea-research.co.uk
