DiGiCo Quantum338 Serves as Monitor Mixer for Large Ohio Church
World Harvest Church is a big deal. The 122,000-square-foot main building is home to a sanctuary that seats over 5,200 people and contains an auditorium, a television studio, a children’s ministry that includes Sunday school for children newborn to sixth grade, the Harvest Preparatory School, the ministry’s administrative offices and more, all on a 57-acre campus in Columbus, Ohio. The church even incorporates Valor Christian College, a co-educational institution located on the property.
But like many churches of any size, World Harvest Church is careful when it comes to AV technology investments. That’s why the church’s most recent acquisition—a new DiGiCo Quantum338 console, serving as its monitor mixer—is an addition to its existing DiGiCo infrastructure, which includes an SD8 console mixing front of house and an SD-Rack that has now been upgraded to include 32-bit “Ultimate Stadius” microphone pre-amps. The audio system infrastructure update further involved moving all of the DiGiCo platforms to an Optocore fiber network, handled by Orlando-based Owens Audio Video Design, which also sold the DiGiCo systems, as well as a Nexo PA, when they were installed earlier this year.
“World Harvest Church tends to hang onto their systems and get the most ROI from them as possible, which isn’t unusual,” observes Bob Owens, owner of Owens Audio Video Design. “They’re a longtime customer and a longtime DiGiCo user—we sold and installed the DiGiCo D5 console that they had in the sanctuary for monitors before we sold and installed the SD8 there in 2010. The Q338 is a great choice for them—it takes them light years beyond where the D5 was, with more faders and layers and inputs, but at a very cost-effective price for all that additional capability, plus the Quantum processing, which is a super plus for them.”
The church’s audio team now has 56 32-bit mic pre’s to work with, as well as 64 AES and analog outputs at monitors. In addition to the new pre’s, the SD-Rack also had new interface cards added, including five analog cards, two AES cards, a Dante card, and an Aviom interface card for the church’s IEMs. “World Harvest Church’s pastor is pretty outspoken,” says Owens. “When he doesn’t like something, he’ll let you know. But when he does, he’s happy to tell you that, too, and he’s noticed how much better and how much the cleaner the sound in the church has been this year. In fact, everyone’s noticed!”
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