UK - Opened in 1882, the Cathedral of St John the Evangelist in Portsmouth is the mother church of the Catholic diocese and seat of the Bishop of Portsmouth.
Services in the church’s striking nave – designed in Gothic Revival style – are now being delivered via an Audio-Technica System 20 PRO 2.4GHz digital wireless system, supplied and installed by church installation specialist System Design Audio. The company can trace its history back to 1967 and its relationship with St John’s began in 2010.
“We’ve used Audio-Technica wireless systems in many house of worship projects over the years,” says System Design Audio managing director Peter Hearn, “and I was very interested in System 20 PRO as soon it was launched. We typically need a very robust, reliable and easy-to-use solution for our clients and the licence-free nature of 2.4GHz systems is a real benefit too.”
The installation at St John’s Cathedral involved a four-channel System 20 PRO ATW-R1440 receiver and two ATW-T1401 bodypack transmitters with lavalier microphones, for use by clergy delivering services from the lectern. The receiver is mounted unobtrusively on a column some distance from the System 20 PRO half-rack chassis, connected via Ethernet cable to allow for discreet installation without detracting from the church’s aesthetic.
“Despite the size of the cathedral’s nave, a single receiver gives us the best coverage of any wireless system we’ve ever installed at St John’s,” explains Hearn. “When we were testing System 20 PRO no matter where we roamed with a transmitter, we couldn’t get it to drop out.
“Installation was incredibly easy. The system is designed to be plug-and-play and that’s certainly been the case here. Straight from the box the transmitters and receivers synced with each other, which really inspires confidence in a solution that’s used day-to-day by clergy and other volunteers with no professional audio training.
“There are some other features that really make the System 20 PRO ideal in situations like this,” he continues. “Little touches like the mute switch positioned on top of the body-packs – rather than on the side – makes them easy to use by clergy who wear them under vestments, for example.
“And although we currently have a simple setup at St John’s, the fact that System 20 PRO is scalable up to 20 channels makes it suitable for much bigger installations. In our experience it offers a fantastic blend of features and ease-of-use for house of worship projects.”
