Having been considering replacing an underperforming PA system for several years, technical staff at the Comunhão Cristã Abba evangelical church in southern Brazil has now equipped with an SSL Live L200 Plus mixing console at FOH and an L100 Plus at monitors – bringing a significant uplift in audio quality, clearly noticed by both the team itself and the congregation.
The move came bout following discussions between Solid State Logic’s Brazilian distribution partner JWD Audiovisual introduced them to the SSL Live. ‘During the SSL Live demo [arranged by João Wesley Digigov, CEO of long-time A/V partner JWD Audiovisual] we immediately noticed higher SPL and improved system response. But what truly stood out was the sonic definition across both low and high frequencies,’ he says.
Replacing the loudspeaker system at the 3,500-capacity church would have required a considerable investment. Instead, introducing an SSL Live console revealed that the existing PA was more than capable. ‘SSL solved my problem,’ Marcelino says. ‘If I had invested in loudspeakers and not changed the console I would have been just as dissatisfied, and maybe other issues would even have arisen.’
Alongside the cost savings, the new system has enabled the church to produce high-quality live recordings, thanks to its integration with a pair of SSL ML32.32 Madi stageboxes. Marcelino edits and mixes the recordings in his studio.
‘SSL has long been a benchmark in recording studios,’ says Marcelino. ‘So, when the SSL consoles arrived, we immediately started doing live recordings. And the sound quality is simply sensational.’
The church has also noticed a clear improvement in sound quality of its streamed services, with audio now offering far greater fidelity and intelligibility than with the previous set-up. ‘Overall, the sound has improved a lot,’ Marcelino confirms.
Switching from the prior console to the SSL Live presented less of a learning curve than might be imagined. ‘I found the operational workflow of the console to be very intuitive,’ Marcelino reports. ‘Everything you need is at your fingertips – it’s easy to navigate and to train our volunteers. The online help and manuals are also excellent; the information is very clear.’
‘The touchscreen is fully multitouch and displays everything – channel strip data, routing, EQ – right there,’ Digigov adds. ‘I supported the team during the demo, but even then, they were already getting hands-on. Once installed, they adapted to it very quickly.’
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