Among the top schools in the US, New Jersey’s Ivy League Princeton University centres its religious and ceremonial activities on the Princeton University Chapel, an elegant house of worship in the architectural style of the English Gothic Cathedrals of the 14th century.
Constructed in 1928 at a cost of more than US$2m after a fire destroyed the previous worship site, it was the largest university chapel in the US. For years, the venue has been relied on to carry congregations and events, and to be an oasis in the of the university campus for people of all faiths. With seating for almost 2,000 worshippers, the nave features sandstone walls with limestone highlights and towering 80ft-high ceilings, but its admirable aesthetics consistently compromised the intelligibility of liturgical services.
To resolve the problem, the chapel’s staff called in Maryland-based audiovisual integrator Washington Professional Systems (WPS) to devise a new audio system. The brief specified clear and intelligible speech for all congregants, as well as acoustically balanced music enhancement, broadcast capabilities and better audio clarity for worship leaders, the choir and the musicians. With consultancy support from SIA Acoustics, the chapel has installed a system from Renkus-Heinz, comprising 11 ICLive-Dual loudspeakers and two ICLive-Trip loudspeakers.
Going into the project, WPS had to consider the historic nature of the venue and, with support from the project architect, ensure that the system was discreet and respected the intricacies of the building. WPS used a tiered escalation process to identify any modifications, and sought guidance on how to proceed.
‘The loudspeaker system was designed with the goal of delivering high-quality speech intelligibility and tonal balance for music, while respecting the venue,’ says WPS Senior Project Engineer, John V Fish. ‘With that framework in mind, the system uses 13 self-powered Renkus-Heinz IC Live Gen5 loudspeakers throughout the main sanctuary, located on each side of the altar, on the columns of the nave, on the sidewalls of the balcony, and at the Marquand Chapel. Each loudspeaker receives an independent audio signal from the DSP and is programmed with specific delays to act as one unit, creating the effect that the audio is being delivered from the altar.’
One of the main reasons WPS opted for a Renkus-Heinz solution was its beam-steering capabilities. The IC Live Gen5 Series features OmniBeam – an algorithm that optimises sound and coverage for venues – providing custom-tailored sound that covers the geometry of a space, delivering consistency from the front to the back of any venue.
‘The beam-steering capabilities allow control of sound dispersion from the loudspeakers in the vertical plane. This capability helps fine tune the system for highly intelligible speech in the very reverberant and reflective Chapel,’ says Sam Berkow of SIA Acoustics. ‘Additionally, the IC Live Gen5 loudspeakers allow us as designers to control the vertical dispersion of sound to the point where we can create the sense that sound is coming from the presenter or worship leader themselves, rather than from the loudspeakers. This system allows a historic building to meet the expectations of today’s most demanding audiences.’
The system is also served by an Allen and Heath Avantis digital console, and a Dante-based network is used to transport audio throughout the sanctuary, the choir and the altar. This network enables the system to move the audio signature effectively with low latency at a low cost – all system inputs and outputs are available on Dante, which means each signal can be routed as needed including to specific loudspeaker groups.
‘By offering multiple modes of operation, the design allows Chapel staff to activate and use the system without navigating a complicated start-up procedure,’ Fish says. ‘Additionally, the system has enough headroom to be used for a wide variety of events with no drop-off in quality or sonic clarity.’
Being a working religious centre, the chapel remained open during the installation to allow daily services and events to take place. To maintain these operations, WPS created staggered shifts for the on-site team that worked in tandem with the chapel’s schedule to prevent disruptions. The outcome is a high-quality audio system that has achieved its goal of blending modern and advanced capabilities with flexible, easy-to-use operation.
