As part of a new youth facility, Oakland Baptist Church (www.oaklandbaptist.org) installed a Vantec series sound reinforcement system that provides clarity to the message and engages attendees.

Audiovisual integrator, Sutherland Sight and Sound of Florence, Alabama, installed the new DAS Audio system. After consulting with church officials to learn about their needs, Michael Embry, the company's project manager and technical project manager for this facility, designed a system composed of self-powered Line Array systems of constant curvature, Vantec-20A, and Vantec-218A subwoofers.

"The church's youth facilities are 18 meters long by 19 meters wide," Embry says. "The stage area is 6 meters long by 6 meters wide. The capacity is 300 people and the seats are movable, which facilitates the adaptation of the space to different needs such as meetings, special events or weekly church services. As for religious services, they are loaded with music, so the system had to provide both extremely clear speech and excellent music playback capability."

The new Church system includes six Vantec-20A line array systems, hung over the front edges of the stage area in L/R configuration. Low frequency support is provided by a pair of Vantec-218A active subwoofers, placed on the ground also in L/R configuration.

For Embry, "sound quality is obviously the most important requirement and, in this regard, the Vantec-20A is a very well designed speaker. It offers a high level of voice intelligibility and a solid musical playback capability, all in a compact and discreet format. I was also impressed by the system's easy wireless control for gain adjustment, along with the fast and clean linear response that results in very natural sound using FIR filters. The energy efficiency of the system is excellent, and the hardware makes assembling the system much easier than that of many competing products. In addition, we had originally planned to use some booster speakers as part of the system. However, after adjusting the equipment, we confirmed that the dispersion of the Vantec-20A provided all the necessary coverage."

Embry also congratulated DAS Audio's Miami office. "We've had fantastic support. All our questions have been answered very quickly. DaS Audio's support has definitely been well received. In addition, the knowledge and experience of Clay Hughes, a church technician, was invaluable as we worked to carry out this project."

"The installation of this system has been a great success," says Clay Hughes. "The audio quality is top notch, regardless of where in the room you're sitting. The spoken word is remarkably clear, allowing the congregation to fully grasp the nature of the sermon. In addition, the system's ability to play music is equally impressive. The DAS Audio system makes services much more attractive and meaningful. I would also like to thank the entire Sutherland Sight and Sound team. It's been a pleasure to work with them."

To learn more about the Sutherland Sight and Sound integrator, visit: www.sutherlandsound.com.

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