Located in the Khmelnitsky region of Ukraine, the city of Shepetivka benefits from a new house of worship, Church of the Evangelical Baptists. With a goal of spreading the church’s message together with a strong, traditional music ministry, Pastor Reverend Viktor Pasechnyk, wanted to ensure high-quality sound throughout the facility, including the sanctuary, offices, event rooms, hallways and even the outdoors.
Wanting the highest quality sound system for both musical fidelity and easily intelligible vocals and speech, the church chose to work with the team from CORTMI Ltd., an established specialist in multi-functional public address systems (PA) and exclusive dealer in the region. Other system requirements included sufficient output to blend smoothly with the church’s Viscount DB-5 organ, yet with a controlled pattern to minimise the threat of acoustic feedback.
The sanctuary’s primary PA system is a Dynacord COBRA line array consisting of two matched sets of one FAR cabinet and two TOP cabinets suspended above the front of the stage. These are supplemented with two pairs of ground-stacked Dynacord SUB subwoofers. Monitoring for the pastor and musicians on stage is provided by 10 Dynacord AXM-12A loudspeakers, while audio for the choir is provided by one wall-mounted Dynacord TS-200 vertical array cabinet on each side. Power for the main PA is provided by twin SL1800 power amps and one DSP-260 digital loudspeaker processor, as elements in two Dynacord COBRA-4-RACK systems.
With a full choir along with grand piano, horns, strings and acoustic guitars, the church also required a considerable microphone collection, all by Electro-Voice. One dozen white RE90HW miniature condenser mics hang from the ceiling to cover the choir which ranges from 40 to 150 voices. The lead vocal and preachers use the classic N/D767a dynamic microphone, while the RE 320, RE410, and RE510, all from Electro-Voice, provide the flexibility to handle any miking situation that might arise, including guest ensembles from other churches.
The church also required additional speakers outside the main hall, selecting Electro-Voice surface-mount models for the task. For corridors and interior rooms, compact EVID 4.2 loudspeakers were chosen. The adjacent outdoor areas utilise the EVID 6.2 model to deliver the church service to overflow crowds on busy holy days with outstanding clarity and fidelity. All the EVID loudspeakers are powered by a single Dynacord PCL 1240T amplifier.
The final system requirement at Church of the Evangelical Baptists was a portable sound system which is utilised primarily in the music rehearsal room, yet easily transported for use at outdoor events. This system consists of four Dynacord FX-12 loudspeakers and four COBRA-SUBs, with 10 additional AXM-12a loudspeakers that can be used either as monitors or as instrument amps as needed. The core of the portable system is a Dynacord PowerMate 1600-3 powered mixer, with two XA 4000 amplifiers pumping up the volume.
The entire project, from planning and design to installation and commissioning, was managed by CORTMI, Ltd. and its local representative, Nikolay Momotov. The church pastor, Viktor Pasechnyk, is very impressed with both the musical fidelity and clear intelligibility which he felt was important in making a strong impression on worshippers in the new church.
“Our request was for a complex system with the flexibility to meet changing needs as we grow, and we are very satisfied with the results,” says Rev. Pasechnyk. “We are especially proud that according to guests from other area churches and friends from abroad, our new church is considered to be the best-sounding house of worship in all of Ukraine.”
