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USA – Based outside Dallas-Fort Worth, TX, the rapidly expanding Stonegate Church moved from its earlier conference centre home to a brand-new building in 2018 — to continue its mission of ‘church planting’, encouraging its congregants to “enjoy Jesus and make disciples”.

The eclectic content of its services — ranging from gospel music to new composition — required a studio- and tour-sound quality sound reproduction, as did the intelligibility of its worship leaders. In this respect the church’s existing sound system was found wanting.

Stonegate was recommended to local AV integration company, Epic Resource Group, whose own mission is to create a direct connection between the stage and each member of the congregation. Although Epic are brand agnostic, in this instance they specified a Martin Audio WPS line array as best fit for purpose, with low end extension provided by SXH218 subwoofers.

Matt Wheeler, himself a former senior audio engineer at a very large Texas church, oversaw Epic’s tech team and undertook the design and system tuning in what was a full AV integration. “This was our first WPS installation, and we were pretty ecstatic with the result,” he exclaimed.

Wheeler has a long association with Epic Resource, which, along with full scope AVL integration, specialises in acoustics excellence largely within the upper end of the worship market.

Company founder (and former worship leader) Brandon Chynoweth advances the company’s ‘every seat matters’ philosophy. “When we sign up with someone, we are entering a long-term, collaborative relationship which our business model supports. It can be really hard to nail it for a client if it doesn’t feel like a completely cohesive effort.

IT WAS THE FIRST COMPACT LINE ARRAY THAT SOUNDED THAT BIG.

“In the instance of Stonegate, we did a deep dive on what their priorities were. It was clear they had a high value for the music experience, because they have a really excellent music department.” Equally, they valued a “personal experience of speech.” Each one of the 1200 or so seats has to feel like the individual is being spoken to directly, he says — values shared by Martin Audio.

The space itself measures around 100ft x 120ft, with a stage thrust. An entire reconstruction took place behind the wall of the stage without any service disruption. “The place became substantially deeper and virtually doubled in size … once we knocked the wall down.”

Brandon Chynoweth has long had a soft spot for Martin Audio since discovering “the best sounding dual 15in sub we could find”, some 15 years ago. Epic have embraced the brand more recently with a clutch of WPM installations (using the smallest Wavefront Precision footprint). “They just sounded great,” he says. “They were lightweight and really great value, delivering a very high quality. It was the first compact line array that sounded that big. Small format speakers with both finesse and power had been hard to find, and we just felt like WPM was a special thing.”

However, for some applications WPM was too small, while WPC remained too big. “There was just nothing in the middle until WPS came along.” The form factor immediately impressed the Epic team.

“WPS picks up where WPM left off,” says Wheeler. “We now have it spec’d on other projects. It punches above its weight and is world-class; it’s been a go-to for us when we really needed it.”

The Stonegate configuration is an alternating left-right system comprising four clusters of WPS — the centre two with eight elements, the outer two with seven — run in stereo. “A lot of us are from a studio background, so with stereo you can pan and be able to get some spatial things going on,” he says. A Martin Audio CDD15 provides centre fill and nine CDD8s, infill at the front.

Three of the SXH218 subs are flown in cardioid — two forward facing, one rear — driven by a combination of Martin Audio iKON iK42 process controlled amplifiers in bridge mode. Elsewhere iK81s are deployed, with the entire set-up powered in optimum single box resolution. “One box resolution is such a difference maker — it’s much more linear and the consistency of volume is much better,” reasons Chynoweth. “In the early projects we did, we just couldn’t believe how much value you get by just spending a little bit more money on amp channels.”

The array processing was modelled in Martin Audio’s DISPLAY 2 and control is under the command of a dedicated DX4.0 processor. A further refinement is the application of ‘Hard Avoid’ to the stage.

The entire signal transmission runs over two Dante networks — one of which the church has access to for patching audio sources around, while the second is a dedicated ‘hidden’ network for the PA. “We don’t want someone patching in a Dante keyboard rig in and accidentally unpatching the bottom box of the right cluster,” smiles Wheeler.

Summing up, Brandon Chynoweth says the church is delighted with the clarity and transparency of the new system. “Their front of house guy is a very accomplished studio engineer and knows what things should to sound like. To say he was impressed is an understatement. Their music minister is a touring artist and is used to high-end sound. Even before [Matt] tuned it, he was stunned.”

“And once we had the array processing and tuning dialled in, he was ecstatic,” concluded Wheeler.

Tokyo, Japan – Giants Town Stadium, which opened in Inagi, Tokyo, in March this year, is the home of the Yomiuri Giants’ ‘farm team’ (nursery club) and will also host women’s and amateur men’s baseball games — as well as being a multi-use facility.

Designed to bring fans closer to the action, the 2,900-seat, three-story stadium has been equipped with a Martin Audio-based weatherized (WR) sound system, to create a listening environment that offers presence and warmth.

With acoustic planning, construction and sales handled by Denon Engineering Co. Ltd, these comprise CDD10-WR (as the main speakers), CDD6TX-WR (100V/70V line speakers for ‘Excite’ premium seats, first base infield, third base infield rooftop garden, and standing room in the right field); CDD8-WR (for outfield grass area, and as temporary, portable speakers), and ADORN A40 (for the Umpire area inside the field).

Transmission is over Dante, with Symetrix processing/distribution and Netgear network switching. The acoustic simulation and tuning were performed by Audiobrains.

The Martin Audio solution, tailored to the space, was proposed in order to achieve an immersive atmosphere and high clarity and intelligibility for each area — as befitting professional sports. In particular, the speaker design needed to be close to the audience.

Stated the Denon Engineering designing team, “At G-Town, the emphasis is not simply on ‘producing sound,’ but on providing the optimal acoustic environment for each area and purpose. The type and placement of speakers are carefully adjusted based on how the sound reaches and is heard. Martin Audio CDD10-WR speakers, which deliver clear sound over a wide area, were used as the main speakers. These cabinets are weather-resistant and dust-proof, preventing deterioration and breakdown due to wind, rain and humidity.”

The ability to mitigate sound leakage outside the stadium was another key issue. In outdoor venues, in particular, there is a risk of sound traveling in unexpected directions. At this stadium, the speakers are housed in dedicated boxes and their directionality is controlled, ensuring accurate sound transmission within the stands themselves, while minimizing sound escape beyond the stadium.

High-quality CDD6TX-WR support the immersive experience of the Excite VIP seats — located closest to the ground. This is a special viewing area offering the ultimate in immersive experience unique to G-Town. To maximize the seating’s features, these speakers, which combine high-quality sound and output, are designed to deliver clearer and more dynamic sound including announcements and background music. This integration is purpose designed to create a more memorable experience for spectators.

In the vast space of a stadium, there is a time lag in the sound from the speakers. For example, the 122m distance from home base to center field is calculated to result in a delay of approximately 0.36 seconds—which can have a major impact on how announcements and background music are heard. Delay correction has ensured that sound can be heard naturally from any seat, creating a comfortable acoustic space. The speakers on the first floor also serve as emergency speakers.

There were further challenges. The G-Town stadium sound control room is located on the third floor, and there were concerns that this would make communication between the referee and the public address announcer difficult during games. To address this issue, mics were installed on the field to allow communication between the referee and the PA announcer, and sound equipment was improved to ensure smooth communication between the two parties. Martin Audio’s ADORN A40, renowned for its clear sound quality, was used for this communication.

The central control system emphasizes intuitive operability, and uses tablet devices in the Symetrix control environment. In addition to intuitive operation of mics, background music and other controls, the screen is customizable to suit the user’s proficiency level.

A patch panel for maintenance services is also provided within the ground, allowing the system to be monitored from the ground side, ensuring ease of maintenance.

In a space where sports and entertainment combine, sound is one of the keys to creating emotion. The project team are satisfied that the Giants Town Stadium maximizes the power of sound to enhance the spectator experience, embracing the cutting edge of sound engineering required for professional sports facilities such as this.

USA – Situated in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Christ the King was initiated in 1981 as a Catholic ‘Charismatic Renewal’ church. Its current church building was dedicated in 2001 — and although it may be fairly new by church standards, the church was still operating off its original sound system, which was struggling to provide even coverage across three naves, fanning out from a central space.

“While they had some good seats, some were not so good in terms of coverage, and that was their main impetus for the upgrade,” stated Steve Newby, founder of family-owned AV systems integrator Annunciation Audio-Visual Services, who won a three-way competitive bid.

“While we’ve replaced the electronics a couple of times, and the operators were doing a fantastic job making it sound as good as possible, there was no getting away from the fact that an upgrade was necessary,” he said. This would require addressing the three spaces individually.

Considering all the coverage parameters, and the fact that houses of worship are inherently reverberant spaces, it was deemed necessary that a system with a higher degree of control was essential. As a result, Martin Audio’s smallest Wavefront Precision footprint, WPM, was installed in three L/C/R clusters of six elements in each, along with three SXC118 cardioid subwoofers. To safeguard against any holes in the frontfill coverage Annunciation specified four CDD10s and a pair of CDD8, and to complete the Martin Audio deployment have provided 24x C6.8T powerful ceiling speakers to “a funky underhung area” — essentially extensions of the left and right naves.

THE FEEDBACK HAS BEEN 100% POSITIVE, BOTH SOUND WISE AND AESTHETICALLY

Steve Newby’s confidence in specifying different Martin Audio series is based on his experience supplying largely Catholic churches with different solutions — including O-Line and CDD — in the 18 months since he first started using the brand. “Last year we got a trio of jobs which was perfect … and all three have been met with universal praise and satisfaction from the clients,” he said.

“I had experienced pattern consistency with all Martin Audio products,” he continued. “The lack of beaming was one thing, but also the way it actually sounded off axis. We care about that because off axis response will colour the room if it’s not relatively smooth. [With Martin Audio] you can be 90° off axis and know there’s nothing bouncing off the wall that’s likely to destroy the coverage area.

“We’re also very comfortable with DSP optimisation and what it can and can’t do. The fact that both O-Line and WPM integrate this control with the digital steering was very appealing conceptually to me — in my opinion, having the best of both worlds is fantastic.”

Once again, the systems have blended well at Ann Arbor he said. “The voicing between these three different series in the Martin catalogue was all very consistent and we achieved seat to seat consistency very well.”

Newby rationalised that foremost in a reverberant space was “control and granularity.” Explaining the choice of the smaller WPM over a larger format, he said, “Better to have the less expensive box, and use more of them, to focus on control. Having individual amplifier and processing per speaker within a 6-box array made more sense as it was more efficient. We wanted to maximise that, as there were surfaces we needed to avoid.”

The choice of the SXC118 cardioid subs was also axiomatic. These are attached to the ceiling structure, 40ft in the air, and like all enclosures, are finished in white.

The design of the arrays was carried out in Martin Audio’s DISPLAY software. The 3D visualisation model translated exactly into real life, “and we quickly noticed that the sanctuary was the same volume as halfway back in the church.”

Assistant Director of Worship, Adam Plomaritas, who had originally introduced Annunciation AV to the project, stated in summary, “I’ve been a part of several sound changes over the years, and this is the first time the feedback has been 100% positive, both sound wise and aesthetically. There hasn’t been a single negative response.”

India: The Festival of Sound & Dance 2025 at Pimple Saudagar, Pune, brought together devotion, music, and technology in a large-scale celebration. Over nine unforgettable nights, thousands of attendees came together to celebrate rhythm, culture, and community under a beautifully illuminated skyline. Madhav Stage Services, a trusted name in large-format live events, designed and executed a sound experience that perfectly matched the scale and emotion of the occasion. Every beat of the dhol and note of the vocals reached the audience with pristine clarity — transforming the open-air venue into a sea of synchronized energy and joy.

Behind the spectacle stood the power of Martin Audio, chosen for its precision, coverage, and warmth. The setup featured 16 WPC 2×10″ Bi-amp Three-way Line Array modules, 16 MLA Mini 2×6.5″ Powered Line Array elements, 12 SXH218 2×18″ Passive Hybrid® Horn/Reflex Subwoofers, and 4 LE200 15″ Passive Coaxial Stage Monitors. This configuration ensured a rich, immersive soundstage with deep, controlled bass and sparkling highs that filled every corner of the venue. The result was a sonic landscape where performance met perfection — reaffirming Madhav Stage Services’ reputation for delivering unforgettable experiences powered by Martin Audio.

Rhode Island, USA – October, 2025

Back in 2020, the iconicNewport Folk Festivalintroduced a bike powered stage, following the organisers’ desire to incorporate bicycles into the festival experience and provide an alternative power source for performances.

Masterminding this was Illiterate Light, a 2-piece rock band from Virginia who had first experimented with the idea of carrying a simple sound system powered by bike, after setting up in 2015. Eric Shy took over production manager duties as the tech scaled up, and the idea really took root after the band played the Quad Stage at the 2019 Newport Folk festival where 2000-plus bikes commuted to the festival. The festival loved the idea of bike-powered performance and invited Illiterate Light back in 2020 to become a full-blown stage at the festival (which has persisted to this day).

WE HAVE RECEIVED MUCH FEEDBACK STATING THAT WE HAD THE BEST SOUNDING STAGE

“A stage powered by bikes and solar was completely off the grid,” noted Shy — but the organisers loved it and the following year agreed to a dedicated stage.” As the concept evolved, so production scaled up and this year a full-blown Martin Audio PA rig, provided by the British manufacturer’s Virginia-based partner, Southard Audio, was on show.

Shy himself has a long relationship with Southard, having worked with Jason Misterka’s company as an audio engineer for over a decade.“He is my point person for all things Martin Audio, and I have been working with their products ever since they first came into the Southard warehouse. Jason has always been a mentor and huge supporter of Illiterate Light, providing wisdom and technical expertise as the band has grown. He has worked with us to meet our production goals and achieve a superior level of quality needed for an event likeNewport Folk Festival.”

CDD-LIVE 15 was the obvious option for the Bike Stage, he believes. “The dispersion pattern helps maximise the distance you can getout of a point source box. They sound fantastic and I am super familiar with them. Power consumption is a real concern on our stage since we are off the grid, so point source has been the solution for now.”

To implement this, he deployed a pair of CDD-LIVE 15 as main PA and a further pair of CDD-LIVE 12 as fills.

Sound containment was another primary concern, since the Bike Stage was adjacent to the Quad Stage. There could be no sound from the PA system during soundcheck since the Quad Stage had active performances taking place. “FOH uses nearfield monitors to combat this, so inputs can be cued to make sure they sound great before the PA system is opened up,” Shy explains. “This was a further reason why it was vital to use CDDs as I know how things translate to them. So when we launch into a performance, I am confident I can get the mix sounding great in the first 30 seconds, which is critical considering the short sets on the Bike Stage and the calibre of performers.”

How did the event work in practice? Some 2000 cyclists pedalled to the festival. Six cycled at a time for the duration of a song, before making way for six new cyclists “with bike coaches helping bikers saddle up and get thru the line,” according to Eric Shy. “Our system can buffer the power for roughly two minutes so performing artists could play without interruption.”

CDD had proved massively popular, he confirmed. “They were excellent,” he exclaimed. “We have received much feedback stating that we had the best sounding stage, and that the quality of sound was remarkable for the size of the system and the coverage we could achieve (75ft x 75ft-plus.”)

Birmingham, UK – Marquee AV is proud to announce the successful delivery of a custom-designed audio system for Society Birmingham, the latest venue from Society, following their successful debut in Manchester in 2021. Located in the heart of Birmingham’s business district at One Colmore Square, Society Birmingham is a 9,000 sq ft independent food hub that blends street food, craft drinks, and social vibes in a dynamic, open-plan space.

Society Birmingham required a high quality, reliable sound system to support its vibrant atmosphere while maintaining clarity and control across multiple zones and approached Marquee to deliver the project.

The venue features five independent kitchens, a craft beer bar, cocktail bar, coffee lounge, and outdoor terrace. The system was designed to deliver consistent sound quality across these varied spaces, with careful attention to existing acoustic treatment and architectural constraints.

The full installation included the following areas and equipment:

Ground Floor Bar:

• 4 × Martin Audio CDD6 compact coaxial speakers
• 1 × Martin Audio SX115 subwoofer for low-frequency reinforcement

Ground Floor Dining Area:

• 12 × Martin Audio CDD6 speakers for wide dispersion and even coverage
• 1 × Martin Audio SX115 subwoofer to maintain warmth and depth in ambient music

Coffee Lounge:

• 4 × Martin Audio CDD6 speakers for intimate, balanced sound

WCs:

• 5 × Martin Audio A40T wall mounted speakers for discreet background audio

THE AUDIO QUALITY IS FANTASTIC, ENHANCING THE ATMOSPHERE THROUGHOUT THE SPACE.

Martin Audio’s CDD Series was chosen for its coaxial differential dispersion technology, which ensures even coverage and clarity across the venue’s irregular layout. The SX115 subwoofers provide tight, controlled bass without overwhelming the space, crucial in a venue with acoustic treatments and proximity to office spaces above.

The A40T speakers were selected for their low impact design and consistent performance in smaller, enclosed areas like the bathrooms.

All zones are controlled via a centralised DSP-based audio management system, allowing staff to adjust levels and source inputs per zone. This ensures flexibility for different times of day and event types, from relaxed daytime dining to lively evening gatherings.

Marquee AV worked closely with the venue’s interior designers and acoustic consultants to ensure the system integrated seamlessly with the space. Mounting options were limited due to acoustic treatments, requiring a non-invasive installation approach. The compact form factor of the CDD6 speakers allowed for discreet placement without compromising performance.

The result is a strong, high-fidelity audio system that enhances the customer experience while respecting the venue’s acoustic and aesthetic requirements. The system delivers clear, balanced sound throughout the venue, with no audio spill into the office spaces above.

Systems designer at Marquee AV, commented: “With the incredible expertise of the Marquee AV team, combined with the top-notch support from Martin Audio, we were confident in delivering a sound system that not only sounds incredible but perfectly fits the venue’s unique acoustic and design challenges. Working closely with the client and the client’s design team throughout the process made it even more rewarding to see how everything came together so smoothly.”

Owner of Society, added: “We are thrilled with the new sound system installed by Marquee AV. The team brought real expertise and worked closely with us to overcome the venue’s unique challenges. The audio quality is fantastic, enhancing the atmosphere throughout the space. It’s been a game-changer for Society, and our guests have definitely noticed the difference.”

IRELAND: No Martin Audio dealer partnership has existed longer than that with Irish distributor Rea Sound, which dates back to 1982.

Fast forward 43 years and the system integrators continue to specify permanent Martin Audio solutions in a broad variety of facilities — most notably Houses of Worship.

Three churches in particular demonstrate how Rea Sound have adopted a different approach to suit the needs (and protect the heritage) of the respective buildings.

One of these is St. Finnian’s Church of Ireland in Castlereagh, outside Belfast. States the church’s Mike Johnson, “We’d had our audio system since around 2017-2018. But with Covid came a necessity to stream services, and the rector asked me to put together a package. So I spoke to Rea Sound and very quickly they proposed a system which we installed five or six weeks later.”

Rea Sound director Roger McMullan remembers that the church wanted a discreet sound system, with the speakers set quite high. “That would give us a nice overview of sound coming from both the front and above, which would also tie in with the audio visual system,” he said.

IT’S A BEAUTIFUL LISTED BUILDING, SO WE HAD TO BE SENSITIVE TO THE AESTHETICS… AND THE ACOUSTICS, WHICH ARE EXCEPTIONAL.”

It was also one of the first churches in which they had installed Martin Audio’s CDD series. “We used four CDD10s at the front of the church,” he said. “This gave us a nice even coverage of the spoken word throughout. It’s not a particularly long church, and the sound quality produced from CDD10 is exceptional.”

“Working with Rea Sound has been excellent,” concludes Mike Johnston. “We’ve always been able to ring up and get answers to questions. The technical help and the solutions are always good, and when we have problems they are always there to help us.”

Another prominent Rea Sound installation was carried out at St. Mark’s Church of Ireland, a Grade A listed parish church in Dundela. “We looked at a number of suppliers and asked them all to come in and look at the building and the acoustic, and make recommendations as to what would fit the bill,” says the church’s Michael Newman. Rea Sound were the successful bidders and their creative approach, specifying O-Line micro-array, surprised him. “With a traditional system you think of speakers placed around the building but that wasn’t the case. We were somewhat dubious about it at first but [Rea’s] faith has definitely been fulfilled. The sound quality is excellent.”

“We set four hangs of 12 O-Line, two in the centre and one at each side,” recalls Roger McMullan.” There are also CDD5 infills for the choir and CDD5 infill for the room. It’s a beautiful listed building so we not only have to be sensitive of the aesthetics, but also the acoustics, which are exceptional. The church didn’t want a distributed speaker system so O-Line fitted perfectly.

“We were able to fit four hangs at the front of the church above the eye-line and as that’s in stone colour it worked well with the church, while providing exceptional sound quality from front to back.”

At Ballynure Methodist Church the AV systems they have had over the years had varied in quality, and some were fairly primitive, according to the church’s Robert Stokes. “But Rea Sound have kept things moving along, as we had three churches installing at the same time.”

According to Roger McMullan, “Each church was very different but the brief was the same. The control aspect had to be similar in all three churches. The sound system is based on Martin Audio CDD10 at high level again, which takes them away from the congregation’s eyesight and provides even coverage of sound throughout the whole space.

“Since all three churches are limited in terms of technical support, they rely on volunteers to easily position themselves in any church.”

Take a look behind the scenes with Irish distributor Rea Sound at their house off worship installations here: