Community?s VERIS at the heart of classic church?s audio redevelopment

The St. Bede the Venerable church in Northampton Township, Holland, PA, recently underwent a full expansion and refurbishment, including a brand new sound system based around Community Professional Loudspeakers’ VERIS 8 two-way full-range systems.

Audio specialist Audiobahn’s Tony Hersch, who was coordinating the work around the on-going construction, explained the thought process behind the new system: “Unlike some of the more traditional Catholic churches, St. Bede offers a mix of traditional and semi-contemporary services, with a choral and live musical accompaniment, as well as traditional organ and choir,” he says. “So ultimately we had to design a system that offered more than simply spoken word intelligibility – it had to offer good musicality as well.”

The distributed audio system includes 14 VERIS 8 cabinets – seven on each side of the seating area – as well as a further two VERIS 8 boxes for platform monitors. Two Community CPL27 dual eight-inch systems are designed to provide monitoring to the choir loft, while two MVP12M boxes provide additional monitoring. The system is powered by QSC amplification, with a Soundcraft LX7II 16-channel console and Shure RF system completing the signal chain.

One of the key challenges of the installation, according to Hersch, was coordinating the work around the on-going construction. “It was a pretty extensive renovation,” he commented. “They brought in the altar from another church in Philadelphia that had closed its doors, with massive marble columns, and gorgeous stained glass windows. They were still holding services during the renovation, with the construction behind a false wall, and we were running cable and installing the speakers within a very tight schedule, alongside the general contractors.”

Hersch was particularly impressed with the newly redeveloped sanctuary, adding: “It sounds fantastic, and the coverage is great. There’s not a bad seat in the house. And it looks terrific.”

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