Pinelake Church in Reservoir, MS recently implemented a d&b Soundscape immersive audio system in its fan-shaped sanctuary in support of contemporary worship services that are increasingly featuring guitars in the mix in an upgrade implemented by integrator InteRise of Nashville.
“Before d&b Soundscape was installed, there were serious dead spots with the previous system,” states Kevin Hoober, Director of Worship Technology, Pinelake Church. “As you moved throughout the room, the mix changed at times dramatically.”
“The room is very wide and fan-shaped so the audience in the middle of the sanctuary can see and hear with accurate localization, but for audience members who are seated to the sides, the visual and the audio become disconnected,” adds Nick Malgieri, Advanced Systems Specialist, d&b audiotechnik Americas. “So how do we reintroduce creativity and artistry into live sound at large events without burdening the engineer or the production? We also want the audience to listen in a more natural way. That’s the goal of Soundscape.”
Phil Hagood, General Manager at Interise, notes, “Our goal was to focus on clear, transparent, distraction-free, communication of the message, d&b Soundscape really worked toward what we needed with an intuitive, graphical interface.”
There are now 40 loudspeaker positions in the system, each having different signals sent — based on where sound objects are located — via the control software. “Soundscape allows us to use a larger quantity of smaller loudspeaker systems that are totally invisible to the audience,” Malgieri adds.
“Behind the fader layer, as a technician you don’t feel that complication,” explains Hoober. “It makes mixing easier, and frankly, more enjoyable. One of the unique challenges with this project was that the projection lines are very tight to the ceiling so long arrays could not be used.”
He concludes that the whole room can now enjoy mixes. “There’s not a cheap seat in the house anymore. “We’ve created an environment to sing and to listen. Walking the room now with Soundscape, I’m standing in a place that was previously not covered and now I feel like ‘this is pretty rocking,’ I can sit here. It’s about allowing the listeners to connect with every word that is being said. Our hope is that we will bring our vision, our mission by using Soundscape here to Rankin County, Mississippi.”
