Given the breakneck speed with which technology is moving, designing and installing an audio/video and lighting system that will serve now—and still be viable in 10 years—may seem like an impossible task. However, when New Psalmist Baptist Church moved from its campus on Old Frederick Road in Baltimore to an all new facility, that is just what Minister Joshua Thomas, New Psalmist's multimedia and creative arts ministry director, set out to do. Thomas had been involved in the technical ministry at New Psalmist since he was eight years old, and progressed to working part time in 2009. After receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in Film and Media Arts, Thomas joined the staff full time.
The 112-year-old church had been at its previous location, which included a 2,000-seat sanctuary, for about 10 years when the city of Baltimore planned redevelopment for the area, including the parcel of land owned by the church. The blessing in disguise afforded the church the opportunity to build a larger facility to house its expanding congregation.
The church began discussions with Indianapolis-based architects HCO Inc. in 2007 with the ambitious goal of gaining occupancy in 2010. HCO Inc. recommended Walthall & Associates of Pensacola, Fla., to handle the design of acoustics, audio, video and lighting for the project. Chuck Walthall, principal of the firm, recalls, “One of the first meetings we participated in, Anthony Vaughn, a deacon in the church and the project manager for the church, walked in and said to everybody, ‘We're marching in, in 2010'; October 16th 2010, they marched in.”
Setting the Bar High
Thomas explains the directive communicated to Walthall, “The main goal that we had—what we learned from building our old facility—was that we had to go in ahead of the technology, because if we didn't we would be behind it on day one. We wanted to make sure that all of our infrastructure was prepared not just for today, but for tomorrow, so that five or 10 years down the line we could still function with the systems we have in place.”
Walthall agreed, researching the latest technologies with various manufacturers, and some technologies that were still on the drawing board. “We were determined to incorporate the latest technology—including technology that may be three years out but not yet public knowledge,” Walthall says. “Our design called for all self-powered loudspeakers, digitally networked and controlled,” he adds. Renkus-Heinz STLA/9R Series line arrays, incorporating Renkus- Heinz Audio Operations Network (RHAON), were selected by Walthall's lead designer, Eric Aden. Aden also specified Renkus-Heinz ST9 two-way, trapezoidal boxes for side fills and DR18-2R subwoofers for the main sys- tem in the sanctuary. DSP was provided via the internal processing in the Renkus loud-speakers, as well as an external Symetrix DSP unit. Additional Renkus-Heinz products were deployed throughout the facility.
Allen & Heath iLive-T112 Digital Mixing Systems were specified at the front of house, on-stage monitor and broadcast production mix positions. Originally designed with the larger iLive control surface in mind, switching to the smaller T112 still provided the basic functionality New Psalmist needed. The money saved afforded upgrades to the broadcast video system, including a 1.5 MLE Ross Vision Series video switcher and Hitachi Z-HD5000 cameras.
A combination of Shure UR and ULXPs are used for the wireless microphone systems, and PSM 900s were selected for personal monitoring systems. Stage monitors are a mix of Nexo PS15Us and PS10Us.
“The production lighting design called for ETC SmartBar Series dimmer bars,” Walthall adds. “We distributed three-phase power and DMX to 24 locations on the catwalks. This design concept allows the lighting designer to position a dimmer bar wherever they need to light for broadcast and stage productions. An ETC Element lighting control console provides the interface. Mainstage Theatrical Supply of Pensacola, Fla., supplied and installed the ETC system.”
Digital Projection Titan 600 11,000-lumen projectors are used for IMAG and video support in the main sanctuary.
The contract for installation of the audio and video systems was awarded to Maryland Sound and Image (MS&I) of Ran- dallstown, Md. Both Walthall and Thomas give high marks to MS&I's Jonathan Hilton for managing the project. Once the initial designs were conceived, Walthall, Hilton, and Thomas worked in close collaboration, applying relevant and cost-effective technology upgrades wherever applicable, with Thomas focusing his efforts primarily on the video systems and equipment.
Thomas was intent on keeping his finger on the pulse of technology and credits attending the NAB tradeshow as a valuable experience for getting connected and getting a broader view of what technology tools are available. “Without going to NAB last year, we would not have the video system that we have now. It wouldn't be close,” Thomas says.
“That was a big thing, going out there and getting an unfiltered view of all the equipment. Getting to see everything for myself so that I could make decisions based off what I knew, not what I've read or what I've heard other people talk about. That gave us an added confidence, so if there was a question that maybe another piece of equipment would work better or something like that, I had a personal first-hand view of how the piece that I saw at NAB would work for us,” Thomas adds.
Getting the Right Tool for the Job
The quality upgrade of the new video switcher and cameras came at a cost, however—in the form of limited connectivity. As Thomas reports, “The problem we ran into was that the Hitachi cameras, as well as the Ross switcher, had only HD-SDI connections. So, when we have multiple formats for other equipment going around, how do we convert to HD-SDI without breaking the bank? Jonathan Hilton at MS&I came across these Blackmagic Design converters and mini converters. And we were able to keep our connectivity around the build- ing and in our production area using a lot of the Blackmagic converters.”
Thomas continues, “The piece that really saved us a ton of money ... was the Black- magic Design 16x32 Videohub. It allows us to route the signal around the building right from an iPad or from a computer. Now that the system's fully functional, I can go right to the Crestron app and turn on all the projectors in the building, lower the screens, make sure the right feeds are sent to the speakers in the sanctuary and all that—right from the iPad or computer. It makes things easier not only for me, but also for the volunteers. So that instructions can be: ‘Just go to ... click here, and click on' vs. having to use remotes or physically go to a lot of different places to do things. And also, if we're short-staffed or something like that, I could do it right from my iPad.”
Thomas leaned heavily on available technology to make sure the various types of video equipment received the proper and optimal signal. “I'd definitely say between Blackmagic Design and AJA Video Systems, they are the backbone of our entire video system,” he notes.
“What we were able to do through the AJA products, instead of buying all professional monitors in our production room that are $2,500 apiece and running HD-SDI through them, we were able to buy 32-inch LCDs or plasmas that you would put in your house and, using the AJA Hi5 HD-SDI to HDMI mini-converter, we can drive them all off our Videohub,” Thomas continues. “We were able to put monitors around the building and right off the same Hi5, feed them right from our router, and since HD-SDI carries audio with it, they have audio as well. There's a lot going on and five years ago we wouldn't have been able to afford it just because the converters would have run the price up.”
Not Just About the Gear
While the equipment plays an important role, for Thomas, people are the key to a smoothly functioning, robust creative arts ministry. “A lot of people see media ministry and think it's all technical,” he says. “We've been working on ways of strengthening the ministry component. One of the things we began to do is hold a Saturday worship service just for the communications ministry. We have a time of worship where we don't have to worry about working the cameras, working the soundboard or anything like that. Some churches completely neglect the ministry side.”
Thomas adds, “And what I've found [is] that if you neglect the ministry side, it's only a matter of time before you start having a lack of volunteers. The enthusiasm in your ministry goes down. So one of the things that we're really focused on is not just teaching them how to operate the soundboard, but also [growing] them in a spiritual sense. We don't want to make the ministry into a job.”
