Crossroads Church

Crossroads Community Church in Yorktown, VA is synonymous with their worship ministry and when it was time to build their new worship center.  They knew they needed to partner with a design integrator that understood their needs and could implement a solution that would allow them to take their ministry to the next level. Crossroads Community selected Sifa Design Group (SDG) because our team not only had the experience and right technology, but we understand the nuances of technical worship better than most. Our team members all serve as technical volunteers with local churches.

After meeting to establish the design criteria, timelines, and budget SDG recommended a scalable solution comprising of a full sound system built from ground up. The design process didn’t stop there as it also needed an acoustical system tuned to the room, HD video and distribution, and dynamic full color stage and environmental lighting.

The sound system consists of Martin Audio CDD speakers for mains and Subwoofers primarily because this solution offered the best combination of fidelity and coverage for the room. Two CDD speakers replaced what would have conventionally required 4 speakers for an auditorium as wide as theirs. System amplification utilizes Ashly Audios KLR series amplifiers and Xilica Audio DSP Speaker processing. At the helm of this system is an Allen & Heath GLD console that is connected to the stage via Allen & Heath’s digital stage box’s and custom floor boxes by Whirlwind. This solution creates dynamic, warm, yet a very flat and smooth response for the FOH engineers to mix on. All tuning was done to insure accuracy and coherence in every seat. The end result, we were able to tune the entire system to sound like one large pair of studio monitors.

Worship Leader Jacob Dryden also needed a solution for his personal monitor mixers. The Allen and Heath’s ME-1’s were the obvious choice for their seamless integration with the GLD and stage box.  The interface was simple enough for volunteers to understand while robust enough for the most demanding user.

SDG also provided stage and environmental lighting. The System consists of and Avolites Titan Mobile lighting controller, and a mix of fixtures from Chauvet Professional and Leviton, all on custom connector bars by Applied Electronics. We also implemented Total Control ® automation linked to the Lyntec motorized breakers, all the Audio, Video, and Lighting components allowing simple one touch operation from a touchpad. This has made the system simple enough for any lay person to operate with minimal training.

For video, Crossroads Community opted for a state of the art Video Over IP system by Aurora Multimedia. This allows up to 4K uncompressed video to be distributed to different parts of the building, and control the matrix over IP or from the switcher itself. Display technologies are a mix of Digital Projection and BenQ projectors and flat panel displays by Sharp Professional.

Our most unique challenge on this project was the room acoustics. The building is a metal framed building with an open blackout ceiling which makes for one huge reverberant space. SDG’s knowledge in architectural acoustics and vibration control allowed us to use state of the art modeling technology to design a solution that resulted in a very pleasant sound room.  Even at high volume levels, this system performs like no other.

The end result was a solution that offers very High Fidelity sound and aesthetically pleasing lighting and HD Video that can be customized to the church’s growing needs.