Reverberation
High ceilings and reflective surfaces allow speech energy to remain in the room, reducing definition between words.
Heritage Church PA Upgrade
Professional digital audio processing, reliable wireless microphones, time-aligned rear loudspeakers and simple touchscreen control brought together to improve speech intelligibility throughout a challenging heritage church.
The Project
St Francis of Assisi Church in Paddington required a modern PA system capable of making spoken word easier to understand throughout the congregation.
The church's high ceilings, hard surfaces and long nave create a naturally reverberant acoustic environment. Sound that reaches walls and ceilings can reflect back into the congregation and overlap with later words.
The existing analogue system also required regular manual adjustment, offered inconsistent rear-seat coverage and used an ageing music input that no longer suited normal parish operation.
Masters Voice Technology approached the project as an intelligibility and usability upgrade—not simply a louder PA system.
System Workflow
The system is designed around a simple signal path: capture the voice cleanly, process it intelligently, present only the controls volunteers need and deliver correctly timed sound throughout the nave.
Wireless headsets, lectern microphones and music sources capture sermons, readings, prayers, announcements and parish event audio.
The DSP coordinates microphone levels, automatic mixing, equalisation, routing, loudspeaker delays and output balancing behind the scenes.
Parish users can access normal microphone, music and service controls without changing the protected engineering configuration.
Time-aligned JBL column loudspeakers reinforce the rear seating so listeners receive more direct speech without simply making the front of the church louder.
Volunteer Control
Parish volunteers should not need to understand digital signal processing, gain structure, loudspeaker delay or audio routing to operate a normal service.
The touchscreen provides a simplified interface for microphone levels, music playback and normal operating presets while keeping commissioning parameters hidden.
That reduces accidental configuration changes and helps services begin from a consistent system state.
Project Outcomes
Q-SYS automatic mixing, equalisation and level management coordinate the microphone paths used for sermons, readings, prayers and ceremonies.
JBL CBT 50LA-1 column loudspeakers provide local reinforcement toward the rear seating area, reducing reliance on higher levels from the front.
Digital delay aligns the rear loudspeakers with sound from the sanctuary so the reinforcement supports the spoken word.
The lectern touchscreen provides normal microphone, music and service controls while protecting engineering settings. Explore Q-SYS control →
Shure SLX-D digital wireless systems and MX153 earset microphones capture speech close to the mouth while clergy and presenters move around the sanctuary.
The integrated digital platform brings audio routing, loudspeaker timing and user controls together. Discuss church AV maintenance →
Related Capability
PA, microphones, streaming, video, recording and volunteer-friendly control.
PA DESIGNPlan loudspeaker coverage, microphones, audio processing and practical staff controls.
TECHNICAL GUIDEUnderstand reverberation, microphones, speaker coverage and rear-delay system design.
PROJECTSExplore delivered PA systems for churches, schools and other public spaces.
Churches · Chapels · Worship Spaces · Parish Halls
Masters Voice Technology designs, installs and supports church PA and worship AV systems across Sydney and New South Wales, including speech reinforcement, wireless microphones, digital audio processing, loudspeaker upgrades, livestreaming and simplified volunteer controls.
For a useful church PA brief, share room dimensions, congregation seating, microphone needs, existing equipment and the speech problems you hear. Include volunteer operating requirements, service times and installation access. Explore PA system installation and church AV support and maintenance. Where additional listening assistance is needed, assess hearing augmentation alongside the PA design.
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Masters Voice Technology designs, installs and supports commercial AV, electrical and communications systems across Sydney and NSW.