Two Rivers Church, located in downtown Knoxville, TN, upgraded their sanctuary with a d&b audiotechnik sound reinforcement system installed by Nashville-based Morris Integration.
“The existing system was older, and intelligibility was far from ideal,” said Philip Hagood, general manager, Morris Integration. “They were looking for clarity, musicality and even coverage. They also wanted bass punch but needed the subs to be flown. As we looked at a few options it was clear that the d&b Y-Series and J-SUB would provide exactly what they required.”
The sanctuary is rectangular shaped, with the stage parallel to the long side of the room. A flat floor provides seating for 650. The feel of the space and worship experience is traditional while the service features contemporary music.
“They didn’t want volume as much as fidelity,” Hagood said. “The goal was to upgrade the worship experience for their members. Installing a new sound reinforcement system would accomplish much of that.”
Morris specified left-right arrays made up of five d&b audiotechnik Yi8s and two Yi12s per side – 14 total cabinets. Two J-SUBs were flown center with a 10S hanging below for center fill. Four 5S loudspeakers were utilized for front fills – two were set into stairs located to the right and left of the stage, keeping the aesthetic of the room clean and uncluttered.
The two-way Yi8 and Yi12 loudspeakers are loaded with two 8-inch drivers and a centrally mounted 1.4-inch compression driver with a wave transformer. The boxes are identical except for dispersion pattern, with the Yi8 providing 80 degrees and the Yi12 120 degrees.
“By hanging two Yi12s at the bottom of each array we ensure complete coverage of the seating area,” said Hagood. “The church wasn’t looking for volume as much as clean sound and excellent coverage. The blend of the two line array boxes did the trick nicely.”
“We are very grateful for the relationship we have with Morris. Their communications and customer care was excellent from start to finish,” said Tae Cho, worship arts pastor at Two Rivers Church. “They had only our needs in mind as we planned everything out. The install itself was done cleanly and quickly exceeding our expectations in both regards.”
“In many ways it was a text book install – ahead of schedule and on budget,” said Hagood. “People have commented on how smooth and full the sound is without being overpowering – while providing the clarity they were looking for. It’s a far superior sonic experience than they had before, which is exactly what we intended.”
