Sound for Worship - a church audio system design for a Boston area Seminary from Power Sound of New England

The Project:
Saint John Seminary in the Boston suburb of Brighton asked us to consult with them and to design a church audio system for their chapel. Designed to offer the clarity for both the spoken word and the music - which is a vital part of their liturgical celebrations – the new Power Sound church audio system answers the call. The chapel had a great system for its generation. After fifteen or so years it was time for a comprehensive church audio renovation. Working closely with the seminary project coordinator and clergy, we designed a system that met some of their specific needs and we recycled some of the good equipment for use elsewhere.
 
Church Audio:
In front of the altar at the chapel we mounted Bose Panaray loudspeakers – an integral part of many church sound systems designed by Power Sound – on the marble walls. The speakers emit clear even sound throughout the space. The Cantor sings from the back of the chapel, so we fitted a portable podium with a pencil style microphone that transmits, wirelessly, through the church audio system. The podium can be moved as required while maintaining its amplification capabilities. Small speakers that were part of the older audio system were cleaned, repainted and wall-mounted behind the altar so celebrants and lectors can hear and follow the Mass.

 
Sound clarity meets aesthetic quality in our audio visual systems:
We care about the visual impact of our A/V systems. You care about the visual integrity of the sanctuary. We colorize speakers to blend with their environment. The photos to the right show how easily the speakers almost disappear into their surroundings.  Since some of the wall surfaces are marble, we ran matching raceways form the speakers to cover external wiring on the wall. We also repaired surfaces when old equipment was removed in order to maintain aesthetic integrity. Church sounds systems should be heard far more than seen.

Highlight: Customized sound for each Celebrant’s style.
At St. John’s Seminary there are many Celebrants.
We designed a church audio system with a ‘sound scenario selector’. It allows our technical team to preprogram settings for a host of sound scenarios and individual sound settings for the unique liturgical style of each primary Celebrant including the Rector and Cardinal O’Malley.  Settings may also be programmed for daily Mass, full Mass or any sound scenario church sound systems need to accommodate. A single dial offers easy switching from one setting to another. 
 
Recycle, Re-Use, Save:
The bottom line matters. Re-utilizing parts results in financial savings. We reconfigured many of the former audio system parts into a portable church audio system. With a rolling case and speaker stands, the portable sound system can be used anywhere. At Saint John’s Seminary they plan to use it for outdoor services!
 
Chapel and Church Sound Systems:
Audio visual systems designed by Power Sound and Video can be as unique as the needs of the spaces they’re designed for.To read more about audio visual systems visit our website: www.PowersoundNE.com

Flexible Church Video Projection Systems offer Churches Custom Ways to Integrate Video Presentations

Church Video Projection: We keep writing about it because we are being asked about more than ever. We understand that houses of worship want a way for audio visual systems to enhance worship and education. Video projection as part of an integrated A/V system is a valuable tool for offering more visual worship. A recent audiovisual design and installation project at a New Hampshire church highlights some of the ways a combined church audio and video projection system can deepen the connection to the worship experience.

The Project:
Littleton Bible Baptist Church in New Hampshire asked us to consult with them and to design an audio visual system tailored to offer specific video projection capabilities in the sanctuary and new church audio in other areas of the building.


We designed an audio visual system that offers very flexible operation. We installed a discreet, ceiling mounted high-lumen (high-performance)video projector for presentations on the screen. (seen above.)

Video Projection. Flexible Operation: A Powerpoint – or other church software - presentation may be controlled by a laptop computer from the area adjacent to the podium. When the pastor wants to begin (or pause) a video presentation he may easily do so from the podium area. Or, the computer in the loft can control the church video presentation while the pastor is away from the pulpit. Video projection can be used during services or for other displays including films and educational presentations. (Monitor: pictured at right)


Church Audio:
As part of the new church audio system professional speakers, designed for worship spaces, are ceiling mounted and are arranged to emit even sound coverage throughout the space. We also installed speakers in the daycare, meeting room and a classroom. The church audio can be turned on at the podium; or computer-controlled audio can be turned on and off in any or all spaces as needed. Other electronics including a sound mixer in the loft control sound for the choir and podium.


For both the spoken word and music the audio visual system provides the all the flexibility the church wanted. Control of the church video projection from multiple locations and audio projected whenever and wherever needed. One great system with multiple configurations; at Power Sound we design comprehensive audio visual systems to meet the varied needs of worship spaces.

Power Sound of New England – Church Audio at a Boston Parish

A sound system test drive lets churches “try before they buy”

Let’s face it; church sound systems are not an insignificant purchase. They are a long-term investment and good audio visual systems will thus last for a long time. The right church audio means a design that is unique to your parish, the sanctuary size, reverberant nature, speaking style of the Celebrant, and other factors. Good church sound systems are the difference between a congregation hearing clearly and being engaged in services or…well…not.

We think excellent church sound systems are best heard to be believed. A weekend demonstration allows a church to try before they buy! 

The Project:
St. Mary-St. Catherine of Siena Parish in the Boston neighborhood of Charlestown came to us when they needed better sound. Our G.M. Troy Jennings analyzed the acoustics and collaborated with the pastor, Rev. James J. Ronan, and the parish business manager, James Santosuosso, to discuss the challenges the parish endured with the existing church audio system and to distinguish the priorities for the new system. 

We created  an audio visual system design to meet the demands of a variety of scenarios that affect sound transmission including attendance, the spoken word versus the music ministry, ceremony type, and environmental fluctuations that will impact church audio. 

The Demo:
Prior to installation of a new system we set up a temporary BOSE loudspeaker system for a weekend “test drive” by the parish. They were thrilled. They enjoyed the clear church audio they wanted and had the assurance that they’d be delighted with the results before the new sound system was purchased and installed.

The results: 

"Fabulous..."

“We are very impressed with the clarity…(of the new church audio system)…we knew it would be excellent quality, but assumed that came with a big price tag. We were wrong. Working with Troy, we came up with a competitive price that fit our budget. Power Sound’s demonstration of the system in our Parish was fabulous—what a great way to hear the actual sound improvement we’d realize before purchasing it. When we contract with a company we expect the very best products and service...Power Sound has delivered both.”   
   ~ James Santosuosso; Business Manager, St. Mary-St. Catherine of Siena Parish, Charlestown, MA

A highlight of the church audio system: The new loudspeakers, crafted especially for worship spaces, provide super-professional sound quality. We’ll go into the techy “hows and whys” of this further in our next post.

To read more about church sound systems and this project visit our website: www.PowersoundNE.com/featuredprojects.html