Overview

 

Abundant Life Bible Church is an independent, nondenominational, evangelical church operating autonomously in Nassau, the Bahamas, for more than 25 years. The church is led by its founder and senior pastor, Dr. F. Edward Allen, and three associate pastors, assisted by six deacons who oversee more than 30 ministries.

The church has an outreach in home and foreign missions. Home missions consist of two radio programs and one television program, as well as support for native missionaries and projects in Nassau and the Family Islands. Foreign missions cater to missionaries in India, Africa, and the Caribbean.

Location:

Nassau, The Bahamas 

Capacity:

500 

Installed Products

Mixers:

M7CL-48

Details

The New Console conforms with the Church's Posture

A dynamic, evangelical organization, Abundant Life seeks to "uphold the old-time traditions of the Faith," while subscribing to "contemporary methods as long as they honor the Lord." Add a strong component of praise and music to its services, and it's not difficult to see how Abundant Life might embrace digital audio technology.

In mid-December 2005, Pensacola, Fla.-based systems design and integration firm All Pro Sound installed one of the first Yamaha M7CL-48 digital consoles at Abundant Life, adding it into a system the company had specified and installed some three years earlier.

No Layers and Single-function Controls make for a Smooth Transition

The M7CL had been the subject of some anticipation by both gear-conscious end users and systems designers, including All Pro Sound systems designer Bill Manning. Interest in the product, which began shipping in early Oct 2005, centered in part on the console's feature set and operational capabilities, which nearly match Yamaha's larger PM5D, coupled with a control surface that leaves nothing to the imagination.

The M7CL is a digital console with no layers. Most physical controls are single-function, and digital controls can be accessed through just two main software screens. Due to its ease of operation, the M7CL virtually eliminates any argument regarding the appropriateness of digital consoles in the worship environment — especially for volunteers.

When he received Abundant Life's M7CL, Manning was primed to test this notion, right out of the box. "I walked up to the console and thought, OK. Where to begin?" he says. "I put my hands on it, started using the touch screen, and found it very intuitive, very easy to find my way around. Everything is right there in front of you. The M7CL is closer to the feel of an analog console than any other digital console I've seen. After my first encounter, my thinking was that this console is going to conquer a lot fears about moving to a digital console in the worship market, as well as the performing arts theater market."

The Ultimate Test: The Operator's Hands

Of course, the ultimate test of how user-friendly a digital console is in the operators' hands. "Bill [Manning] gave us a rundown on the console," explains volunteer operator Cardy Rolle, "and I took the manual home to study. But the learning experience has mainly been fun. There's so much that you can do with this console that I am learning everyday. First of all, I have a user key that allows me to store my settings. They can't be changed by another user, and this is very valuable if you are working in an environment with a number of operators. The security feature allows the administrator to lock certain functions for guest users and protect the overall programming. Patching effects and EQ to any channel is easy, and the console gives you a graphic representation of the EQ that is very helpful." The M7CL's onboard effects and EQ eliminated the need for the standard outboard effects rack.

Installing the M7CL involved cutting and replacing all the old 1/4-in. connectors with XLRs to match the inputs on the console. "Instead of pulling out Y's in the back of console," says Roll, "you can now patch to different channels by assigning inputs."

Other System Details

The church's 500-seat sanctuary is covered by two EAW MK2164 loudspeakers for house mains and six Community model CPL27s for upper and under balcony fills, powered by one Ashly 4.24D processor. Manning added six Sennheiser mics to the church's kit upon revisiting the installation, including three Evolution Wireless EW112G2 and three EW135G2, for a total of 11 wireless units.

Future plans for Abundant Life include live recording in the sanctuary with the M7CL and later, multi-track recording with the addition of a production facility.

System Designer/Integrator/Supplier

All Pro Sound

Country

United States

Web site

http://www.allprosound.com

To Reference List