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| Radian
Audio Offers Upgrade Path to Small Churches |
 Orlando,
FL (March 13, 2003) - Following the trend set by many larger
churches of offering contemporary musical ensembles in order
to attract larger congregations and more younger worshippers,
many sound contractors and installers are having to upgrade
previous installations to cope with the new direction. One such
installer, Entertainment Arts, near Orlando, Florida, reports
that Radian Audio's loudspeaker products have proven to offer
the perfect upgrade path for their clients.
Entertainment Arts' senior installer, Byron Conerly, recently
oversaw a retrofit at the Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church
in Clermont, Florida. "It's not a huge sound system but it's
a nice display of the smaller Radians," he comments. Entertainment
Arts performed the original sound system installation at the
church approximately one and a half years ago.
Three "raw" (unfinished) RCX-108P-V units was all it took to
upgrade the original system to handle a full worship band, according
to Conerly. Radian's RCX-108P-V is a two-way, full-range coaxial
loudspeaker system comprising a single two-way passive coaxial
loudspeaker system loaded with an eight-inch low-frequency woofer
and one-inch exit compression driver. The cabinets were mounted
on the wood beams using Allen Products U-Brackets.
 "The
original intention was for the system just to be for voice,
but it's become a lot more than that," he explains. "The system
that was designed some three years ago was around speech only.
The new priest and the new music director are going in a little
different direction. They basically outgrew the other system
within a year of us putting it in. Once in a while you get to
go back and upgrade things, so we implemented the Radians."
Although the Radian enclosures were also chosen for their vocal
intelligibility, he continues, "The church now has a praise
ensemble, with live drums and guitars. One of the masses is
geared toward the younger folks in the community. It's not full
contemporary but they're leaning that way." Driven by Crown
amplification, the Radian system easily handles the church's
new direction, he adds.
"Even the most conservative churches are offering some sort
of a contemporary service," Conerly observes. "We deal with
just about every denomination you can imagine, and we see it
with everybody--it's definitely a trend."
Conerly's own church, Stetson Baptist Church in De Land, Florida,
is building a new Family Life Center and is using Radian Audio
508/2B ceiling-mount coaxial eight-inch speakers for the house
system. Radian's 508/2B uses one of the best compression drivers
ever developed, coupled directly to a low frequency center pole
with a one-inch horn machined into the shape of an exponential
horn, which loads the compression driver at a taper rate at
least two octaves below crossover.
Twenty-five 508/2B loudspeakers will be installed in the ceiling
of the gym, explains Conerly. "That system started out as a
background system. I got to design it, I'm getting to install
it, and I knew I had to live with it, so we went with the Radians
and pushed it from a background to a foreground system. Our
youth are going to be using it quite a bit, so we are supplementing
the ceiling system with a powered 18-inch subwoofer."
To complement the ceiling-mounted system, he continues, "We
also put together a Radian portable system that will be used
in that gym and elsewhere. It consists of four Radian RPX-112B-V
speakers along with four of the RPX-108P-V floor monitors."
The main speakers were chosen so they could double as bi-amped
stage monitors in the Worship Center.
The RCX-112B-V is a single bi-amped, two-way, coaxial loudspeaker
system loaded with a 12-inch low-frequency woofer and two-inch
exit compression driver. The compact RPX-108P-V comprises a
single two-way passive coaxial speaker system loaded with an
eight-inch low-frequency woofer and one-inch exit compression
driver.
Entertainment Arts, under the guidance of company president,
Tim Huff, has been in business in the Orlando area for 10 years.
"We're a full service house," remarks Conerly. "We design, install
and sell anything you can imagine: sound systems, theatrical
lighting systems, video projection systems. We also do some
small rental stuff. Our niche market is the 500- to 800-seat
church, systems in the neighborhood of $125,000 to $150,000.
That's really where we're heading."
Observing that the company is often called-in to correct other
companies' mistakes, he concludes, "We're not the biggest boy
on the block, but the biggest thing we try and do is just do
it right."
For further information:
Radian Audio Engineering
600 N. Batavia Street
Orange, CA 92868
Tel: (714) 288 8900
Email: radian@radianaudio.com
Web: www.radianaudio.com
Entertainment Arts
Byron Conerly
Tel: (407) 299 9678
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| Starrey-eyed
surprise |
 Nuremberg,
Germany -- A Radian Audio loudspeaker system in a 5.1 surround
sound configuration has been installed at the Nicolaus Copernicus
Planetarium in Nuremberg, Germany. A major component of a new
audio-visual system installed during a building renovation,
the system consists of five Radian full-range, dual-concentric
loudspeakers handling the main channels with a single Radian
subwoofer.
Salzbrenner Stagetec Audio Video Mediensysteme GmbH, located
in Buttenheim, Germany, was selected to design and build the
new audio facilities for the 250-seat planetarium, established
in 1927 and rebuilt after the war in 1954. In order to overcome
several acoustical and installation challenges in the aluminum-clad,
dome-shaped hall, Bernhard Schullan, project manager at Stagetec,
chose to adopt a 5.1-channel surround sound system and adapted
it to fit the specific needs of the planetarium.
The decision offers two distinct advantages over the previous
loudspeaker system. Firstly, a 5.1-channel sound system allows
the show's creators to direct the audience's attention through
the placement of program material in the surround soundfield.
Secondly, the adoption of the standardized 5.1-channel layout
also offers the opportunity for the planetarium to host a variety
of events, from DVD presentations to multimedia shows.
 According
to Dr. Uwe Lemmer, director of the Nicolaus Copernicus Planetarium,
"Designing a sound system for a planetarium is a tricky thing."
One problem is that, unlike a cinema, the seating rows are generally
circular, therefore directions such as 'left,' 'right,' and
'front center' become meaningless. But as Dr. Lemmer observed,
a 5.1-channel set-up is suited to a planetarium environment
"if you want to have the narrator speaking directly to the audience
from a certain direction in the sky or just as a voice without
a distinctive location."
Dr. Lemmer continues, "The planetarium is sometimes also used
for special presentations and corporate events with an additional
flat projection screen in a place that we define as 'front center.'
In that case, the 5.1 geometry can be fully exploited."
 The
contractor elected to install a 5.1 Radian speaker system in
place of the old 100V mono set-up. Five RCX 112 P/V dual-concentric
loudspeakers were installed to handle the main channels in the
theatre. A single Radian RCS-218 dual-18-inch subwoofer provides
low frequency extension. Four two-channel QSC Audio PLX amplifiers
supply power, with system control provided by a Shure DFR11EQ
computer-controlled digital signal multi-processor. All sources
are controlled through a Yamaha 03D digital mixing console.
The 500-square-meter domed projection screen, composed
of curved white aluminum sheets, presented a major acoustical
challenge as it prevented satisfactory dispersion of the audio
program. The old 100-Volt system had been mounted behind this
solid metal screen, resulting in uneven and nearly unintelligible
sound for the audience. The screen therefore had to be perforated,
as in a movie theatre, to allow sound to pass through unobstructed.
Speakers are typically placed only a few centimetres behind
the screen in movie theatre to prevent the screen from acting
as an acoustic mirror. However, in planetariums it is more usual
to install loudspeakers at a greater distance from the screen
to allow easier installation and service access. Stagetec's
solution was to install the speakers directly behind the screen
on custom-made mounting brackets that allow them to move out
of the way of the moveable, curved service ladder.
The hemispherical structure of the dome's concrete roof also
created an acoustical challenge. In order to prevent unwanted
reflections, Stagetec lined the back of the projection screen
and the concrete dome with sound absorbent material. Sound and
speech intelligibility is greatly improved and nearly all the
sound energy is directed into the hall.
That also allowed the contractor to install smaller loudspeakers
with less output but with better quality sound reproduction.
The RCX 112 P/V comprises a 2-inch compression driver which
beams through the center of the mid frequency 12-inch driver.
Capable of handling 500W RMS, the system provides 90-degree
conical dispersion.
 Stagetec
chose to use Radian's RCX 112 P/V because the mid frequency
and high frequency speakers are mounted on a single axis. "The
advantage of this design is that the sound is dispersed in phase
for all frequencies, and the interference of high- and mid-frequency
drivers are eliminated," says Schullan.
The coaxial design of the Radian speakers also saved space.
"There were special challenges with our building due to very
limited space behind the projection dome," confirms Dr. Lemmer.
"The choice for Radian came also due to its relatively low geometric
profile, in that the speakers have just the right size to fit
into the desired places."
Radian Audio Engineering
Tel: 714-288-8900
www.radianaudio.com
Salzbrenner Stagetec Audio Video Mediensysteme GmbH
Tel: (+49) 9545-440-0
www.stagetec.com
Nicolaus Copernicus Planetarium
Tel: (+49) (0)911-929-6553
www.planetarium-nuernberg.de
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| Church
Market |
ORANGE, CA: The Radian RCX and RCS Series
of Contractor products is designed specifically for permanent
sound installation in a wide variety of venues. The full-range,
two-way coaxial series of loudspeaker systems, complemented
by Radian's subwoofer enclosures, are ideally suited for installation
in houses of worship, hotel and casino show rooms, convention
centers, theme parks, and other public entertainment venues.
For those venues that additionally require a more portable system,
a hard-wearing exterior finish and hardware such as handles
and a bottom pole cup for stand-mounting, Radian's RPX and RPS
Series offers a nearly identical range of Professional products
utilizing the same broad range of coaxial transducers.
Brownell Sound and Hi-Fi, located in Portland, Oregon, offers
custom installation services to churches, schools, hotels, recording
studios, nightclubs and multi-use facilities through its Brownell
AVL (Audio-Video-Lighting) division. Installation manager Jeremy
Phillips comments that the church market in the Pacific Northwest
has embraced the Radian RPX-108P loudspeaker system.
Phillips reports that the local St. Clare Catholic Church, for
example, recently hired Brownell to install a custom Radian
RPX-108P system in the crucifix-shaped nave. The system was
a perfect fit for St. Clare's bid specification, which stipulated
a coaxial system and certain size and finish requirements.
An 8-inch two-way passive coaxial loudspeaker system is available
in both the RC and RP Series. Both series utilize a single 8-inch
low-frequency coaxial transducer with a 1-inch exit compression
driver. Available in the Contractor and Professional Series
as an arrayable system in a trapezoidal-shaped enclosure with
20-degree sides (RCX-108P-V and RPX-108P-V respectively), the
RP Series additionally offers the RPX-108P, a more compact stage
monitor version, which Brownell selected for St. Clare Catholic
Church.
"It's a distributed system, with 18 of the Radian small format
8-inch monitor wedges. The reason we went with the monitor version
was that they have a smaller profile," Phillips explains. Over
15 percent smaller and 25 percent lighter than the arrayable
versions, the RPX-108P monitor system was the perfect fit at
St. Clare's, he says, where they are mounted to the support
beams with OmniMount brackets. Radian supplied Brownell with
custom versions of the RPX-108P enclosures at their request.
In order to be less obtrusive the cabinets were supplied with
a white finish.
Phillips says that the system delivers not only speech but also
music to the congregation. The need for good intelligibility
dictated the layout of the Radian system. "It's a very reverberant
environment," he says, "that's why we went with the distributed
system, to get those drivers as close as we could to the listeners
and have good pattern control." Driven by QSC amplifiers, the
system is set up in five delay zones.
The design of Radian's coaxial loudspeaker systems offers an
advantage over traditional multi-way systems. Rather than employing
multiple separate horn and driver combinations, Radian's coaxial
systems represent a true point source, delivering the full range
of frequencies coincidentally to the listener from a single
coherent source. The 'time smear' normally associated with component
systems, where the sound from a low frequency component arrives
later or earlier than the sound from other horn/driver combination
components, is eliminated through the use of a coaxial system.
Radian coaxial loudspeaker systems make use of the low frequency
cone as an extension of the high frequency compression driver,
providing clean, transparent speech and music reproduction with
lower distortion than most asymmetrical high frequency horns.
The 90-degree nominal conical dispersion pattern, combined with
a power handling capability of 200 Watts RMS, a maximum sensitivity
of 96 dB (1 Watt, 1 meter), and a maximum SPL of 119 dB continuous
(125 dB peak), make the Contractor and Professional Series products
ideal for large scale venues requiring good coverage and intelligibility.
St. Clare is just one of many churches in the area that have
installed Radian systems, Phillips reports, "and we have a couple
more that we have bids out for." St. George Antioch Orthodox
Christian Church has installed three of the RCX-108P-V systems
in a center cluster array, as has Shepherd of the Valley, he
says. In both installations the center speaker is delayed and
band-pass filtering has been applied to minimize lobing.
Although St. George's is a large space, at 90 feet by 60 feet
with ceiling heights from 12 to 25 feet, the eight-inch transducers
are easily up to the task, Phillips observes. He also notes
that a Radian [RCS-118] 18-inch subwoofer was included in the
system at Shepherd of the Valley, to better handle the charismatic
music that is heavily featured there.
Radian's RCS and RCX Series of products for contractors offer
an ideal solution for installations in churches and houses of
worship. Compact in size and unobtrusive, custom finishes also
ensure that Radian loudspeaker systems are heard and not seen.
Additionally, the systems help overcome the often-reverberant
environment of houses of worship through their coaxial design,
providing a coherent, true point-source that eliminates time
smear and allows the contractor to provide their client with
a highly intelligible sound system.
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| Radian
365 6.5-INCH Coaxial Transducer Now Shipping |
ORANGE, CA (December 5, 2001) --
Radian Audio Engineering is now shipping its 365 6.5-inch
two-way coaxial transducer. The Radian 365 offers exceptional
performance for the price, redefining value for money
in single point source, ceiling-mounted transducers.
Designed for use in a very wide range of demanding sound
reinforcement applications, the Radian 365 comprises
a true 0.75-inch Mylar® dome tweeter with a 6.5-inch
woofer. Excellent intelligibility is guaranteed in virtually
every installation through the drive unit’s 60 Hz -
12 kHz (-6dB at 12 kHz) frequency response. High-level
performance of the 365 coaxial is assured through its
60 Watts RMS handling capability and sensitivity of
91dB (1 Watt at 1 meter). |
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Designed for use in a very wide range of demanding sound reinforcement
applications, the Radian 365 comprises a true 0.75-inch Mylar®
dome tweeter with a 6.5-inch woofer. Excellent intelligibility
is guaranteed in virtually every installation through the
drive unit’s 60 Hz - 12 kHz (-6dB at 12 kHz) frequency response.
High-level performance of the 365 coaxial is assured through
its 60 Watts RMS handling capability and sensitivity of 91dB
(1 Watt at 1 meter).
The even, controlled directivity and conical pattern, 90-degree
nominal dispersion of the 365 make it ideal for music and
paging applications in foreground or background sound systems.
This latest addition to Radian’s expanding line of ceiling
loudspeakers is well suited to applications as diverse as
multi-zoned public areas in hotels, convention centers and
airports; houses of worship; offices and boardrooms; and reception,
retail and entertainment locations.
System integrators will find the 365 easy to install in standard
8-inch ceiling enclosures utilizing the supplied baffle plate.
The plate also includes a mount for optional factory-fitted
25/70.7/100 Volt transformers. The 365 will be available in
a very easy-to-install enclosure system in the near future.
High-resolution TIFF and JPEG images of the Radian 365 Coaxial
Transducer are available on request.
For further information:
Radian Audio Engineering
Jim Chase, Director of Sales & Marketing
Tel: (714) 288-8900
Email: radian@radianaudio.com
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