The Netherlands’ Diocese of Breda annual conference, De Missionaire Parochie - Als God Renoveert (Missionary Parish - If God Renovates), is a two-day event requiring an audio system capable of overcoming the acoustic difficulties of Breepark Breda, a retail, sport and entertainment complex on the edge of the city. An Alcons Audio pro-ribbon system was chosen by audio rental company Pa-PA for the job.
Attracting around a thousand visitors, and broadcast live to many more, the event combines evangelical speeches and praise music. Catholic parishes in the Netherlands and Flanders are not known for contemporary worship styles, but pop/rock music was chosen to represent the word ‘missionary’ – to appeal to people from a modern audience coming to the region’s churches for the first time.
‘We often work for Christian organisations and have a lot of experience with both live events and installed church sound systems,’ says Pa-PA’s Luc De Paepe ‘The challenge for us was to provide excellent sound reproduction of both speech and music, because it was vital for the audience to hear everything perfectly.’
With a venue that is wider (35m/114ft) than it is deep (25m/82ft), De Paepe and his team needed a sound reinforcement system that offered wide dispersion, as well as precise sound control to avoid reflections from the side and rear walls. They specified an Alcons pro-ribbon system comprising 12 double LR14/120 6.5-inch ultra-compact line array modules, four BF181 18-inch subwoofers and six VR8 8-inch monitors, powered and controlled by three ALC4, ALC2 and Sentinel3 amplified loudspeaker controllers.
‘We use Alcons pro-ribbon arrays because of their excellent intelligibility, no matter how large or small the crowd,’ De Paepe says. ‘The volume does not have to be high for the audio system to sound good, which is a big advantage in an acoustically difficult space like a modern hall.
‘The shape and size of the venue for De Missionaire Parochie was a perfect match for the LR14/120. With VR8s as side and front fill, we achieved excellent coverage. Using Alcons meant everybody could hear the speech and music in perfect detail, without distortion. This resulted in compliments from both the audience and organisers.’
