Historic chapel upgrades with JBL and BSS
Published: WORSHIP
UK: London-based integrator RG Jones Sound Engineering has equipped the historic chapel at Cambridge’s Trinity College with its first ever sound reinforcement system, using 127 of JBL’s miniature Control 52 satellite speakers.
These are accessed via a BSS Soundweb DSP design to optimise the sound broadcast from seven fixed mic positions at the lecterns. The equipment was supplied by Sound Technology, the distributor for Harman Pro in the UK.
Trinity College was founded by Henry VIII in 1546 as part of the University of Cambridge. The chapel, with its notable clock tower, sits at the far end of the Great Court and was begun by Mary I in 1554. RG Jones project manager Jeff Woodford and installation manager Jon Berry were therefore implementing a design in a listed building under English Heritage restrictions. These called for the loudspeakers to be set discreetly on the shelving under the pews and the transformer distribution boxes to be similarly concealed.
Because the system was designed to handle gentle reinforcement rather than public address, sequential delay times were measured by Mr Berry from each of the mic positions to each of the Chapel’s 14 speaker zones – based on seven mic positions feeding each of the North and South sides. Advanced programming ensured that the voice of the speaker or celebrant is heard first at the local position. A further four zones cover the organ loft where the equipment rack is situated, the ante-chapel, control screen position and altar.
Mr Berry explained how he used London Architect’s Logic programming of the two Soundweb BLU-100 devices (configured 12-in/8-out) to enable them to sense when audio is being passed into the system. ‘At the point that it reaches a certain level it will trigger a preset, which sets the delay time appropriate to the particular speaker, ensuring that the listener can detect exactly where the sound source is.
‘When two people are speaking from different positions, it will use custom designed Logic automatically to recall a different preset which will deliver a compromise between the two positions. The system simply auto configures and triggers the delay time, via the Logic preset recalls.’
With the installation of 127 100V line Control 52s, a radical number for a listed building, and the additional number of zones, a BSS BLU-BOB2 was incorporated into the design to expand the number of outputs. RG Jones simplified the use of Soundweb for clergy rather than audio technicians. ‘We created our own front end GUI, which communicates directly with the system,’ said Mr Woodford. ‘There is one fixed position and a portable tablet with a docking station next to the equipment rack, which can be used on Wi-Fi, with a further docking station downstairs in the centre of the Chapel.’
‘This was the first time the Chapel had used sound reinforcement,’ added Mr Berry, ‘and given the restrictions and number of mic positions it proved to be a particularly challenging project. But thanks to the discreet and versatile nature of the Control 52s, and programming flexibility of Soundweb’s London Architect, we’ve been able to deliver an optimum localised sound to every seat in the room via a simple interface.’