Danley DBH-218 Sub at Dogwood Church, Tyrone, Georgia

Dogwood Church, in Tyrone, Georgia, recently built a new 400-seat youth multipurpose building on its 70-acre campus. The church sought out Chicago-based Advanced Systems & Technologies (AST) to help maximize the impact of the multipurpose building's audio, video, and lighting systems on a limited budget. AST obliged with a complete AVL system design that relies on a Danley Sound Labs DBH-218 subwoofer.

"Dogwood Church has a lot going on," said Terry McCarthy, partner and systems specialist with AST. "They're a very contemporary church with a focus on students and families, and their worship style is appropriately contemporary and high-tech. We began working with them early in the process and thus had a major role in shaping the acoustics and electrical specifications. That was important because the church had a lot of expectations but a limited budget with which to meet them. We listened carefully to their needs and helped them prioritize so that they would have the very best system for the money."

High on the priority list was the kind of deep bass that reframes music as a physical experience. "No doubt, the young people connect with low end," said McCarthy. "We had to give them plenty of bass! The Danley DBH-218 delivers exceptional low-end content at any price, but it's very affordable." The DBH-218 is acoustician Tom Danley's take on conventional subwoofer design. The payoff for its larger footprint is a punchy bass, the company says, and the single DBH-218 covers Dogwood Church's new student room. AST built a custom enclosure under the stage for the DBH-218, which allows for the maximum impact from the subwoofer. Efficiently powered by a QSC-PLD-4.5 series amplifier, the DBH-218 receives 4,200W of continuous power (7,500W peak).

The rest of the system is comprised of self-powered stereo RCF HD 10a line arrays, a Behringer X32 digital console and snake system, Behringer personal mixers, and Juice Goose power sequencing. AST also designed a comprehensive Perdue Acoustics sound control system to minimize reflections and to even out the room's frequency response. The facility also has two high-quality air walls, allowing the room to subdivide for multiple simultaneous smaller events. AST installed three control point locations, which are networked for ease of access, quick changes, and minimal set-up time. An HD/SDI video system features two 7500-lumen Panasonic video projectors firing on a pair of 193" Da-Lite screens that flank the stage. In addition, there are six HD camera locations, two 55" HD video monitors for stage view, and a 16 x 16-channel distribution system that sends video to the foyer TVs and throughout the facility. McCarthy also designed a 60-circuit comprehensive stage lighting system which includes: seven lighting bar locations, two Martin Rush movers, 16 Blizzard RokBox LEDs and twelve Leviton 575W spot fixtures. The lighting system also boasts a full dimming compliment with total control of all the house lighting fixtures featuring gear from Doug Fleenor Design and Lightronics. This, coupled with a black wall and ceiling motif, give Dogwood Church's new student building the look and feel of a modern theatre or live music venue.

"The folks at Dogwood Church couldn't be happier," said McCarthy. "We came in on budget and gave them a system that will meet all of their technical needs and more. And with the Danley DBH-218 installed, it's pure rock and roll!"