Peoples Church - Fresno, CA


Auditorium and Chapel

Interior Design: Darrell Howe and Associates
Architect: Architectural innovations, Wichita, KS
General Contractor: HMH Construction, Camarillo, CA
Sound and Video Systems design: AMT Systems Inc
Sound and Video Systems installation: AMT Systems Inc.

Description of Project:

People’s Church serves the rapidly growing Central Valley community of Fresno California from an ever-growing campus that includes an auditorium providing seating for well over 2000. This interior renovation not only expanded seating capacity, but features an AV system designed by AMT’s Engineering staff and the Church’s technical team to provide concert level sound reinforcement and high quality video projection to enhance the worship experience at each service, and to expand the capabilities for the very popular and excellently produced drama presentations.

AMT Systems designed and installed an EV X-Array left, center, right speaker system that includes flown subwoofers in each cluster as well as additional low frequency cabinets on the platform. Peoples Church executive pastor/music minister Doug Holck, along with the church’s engineers Henry Grimmus and Jeff Salley, followed AMT’s recommendations for a new Yamaha PM1D digital front-of-house mix console, EAW subwoofers, EV downfill and under-balcony delay speakers to improve system operational flexibility and functionality as well as improved speaker coverage of seating nearest the platform and under the deep balcony area.

Because set decorations for the regularly scheduled drama presentations make access to the platform floor boxes difficult or impossible, AMT provided large wall panels that duplicate the floor box input points so all of the 80+ lines remain usable. The platform inputs terminate at backstage isolated mic splits, providing signal to the house, to the recording studio and for a future platform monitor console.

AMT Systems also provided Yamaha a DM2000 digital recording console and Tascam multi-track recorders for the new studio booth directly behind the platform that can access 48 channels from the auditorium as well as lines from its own recording studio downstairs. The booth mixer and the house PM1D are connected with multiple AES digital signal lines as well. The church’s excellent music program makes extensive use of the recording system for commercial release and live internet broadcasts.

The platform video projection system was also upgraded to three rear projection screens – two flanking the platform and one centered above the choir performance area. Five additional video projectors provide images on five screens for balcony seating. A Vista Spyder video processor allows access to the multiple live cameras as well as the graphics presentation signals for display on the multiple screens.

The Chapel sound system features a Yamaha M7CL digital mix console and is equipped with Aviom personal monitor system components for the music team. Two SLS 10-cabinets line arrays flank the platform to provide full range concert sound fidelity in this popular wedding chapel setting, assuring very high quality reinforcement of the speech and music elements of all the services held in this beautiful room.