From Church Production

Halo Systems Chooses dB Technologies DVA Line Array

First Baptist Church Grand Cayman produces a wide variety of events that range from a grand piano to contemporary worship and even hip-hop-style events. In looking for a new high-powered sound system, the church commissioned Washington state-based Halo Systems.

The facility’s design is an octagonal shape with 40-foot ceilings and presented its challenges. Seating is for approximately 1,000 on both the main floor and balcony combined. Plus, a full-width choir loft sits above and behind the stage. “Challenging corners, cavities and upper roof lines made for an extremely challenging acoustic environment,” notes Halos Systems audio systems design engineer Gary Ryan.

To meet the challenge, Halo Systems chose the dB Technologies DVA line array. “We’ve found the dB Technologies DVA product to be durable, powerful and sonically accurate loudspeakers,” says Project Manager Myron Wengerd.

Wengerd goes on to explain how the company went above and beyond in partnering on the project. While some of the dB product is available in white, “The option of white and the company’s willingness to custom paint additional cabinets was critical in this Caribbean décor-oriented room,” says Wengerd.

Left and right arrays were comprised of six DVA-T8 active three-way modules along with one DVA-S10 18” subwoofer. In addition, one DVX-D12 HP active 12” two-way cabinet side/downfill plus one DVA-T4 module firing back into the choir loft for monitoring was added to the arrays. Two DVA-S30 active double 18” subwoofers were built into retired pipe organ wall cavities on either side of the stage for additional low-frequency support. In addition, there were five DVA-T4 modules mounted under the front lip of the balcony as under-balcony fills.

The heart of the audio system includes a Yamaha CL5 digital console with remote stage racks totaling 64 inputs. The signal is routed via Dante through Symetrix Radius processing.

“The acoustic challenges of the room made it even more impressive that the dB Technologies speakers were so easy to dial in,” explains Halo Systems acoustician Gary Ryan. “The T8’s are very responsive to EQ’ing and general signal adjustments. And what else can you say about the power and performance of the DVA-S30 subs? They’re just amazing.”

Wengerd adds that support is another reason Halo works with RCF USA and the dB Technologies products. “We find the company’s service and support to be very friendly and enjoy their willingness to work with us as a contractor/dealer. This support was consistent from the onset of the project to following through on questions after the products were installed.”

Ryan concludes, “Ease of installation, set-up, use and tuning made us all look good while giving the customer more than they expected.”

For more on this story go to: http://www.churchproduction.com/story/main/first-baptist-church-grand-cayman-conquers-acoustical-challenges