Challenge

Ensuring Speech Privacy in a House of Worship

Mountain View Baptist Church’s newly constructed church provided their parishioners an ideal space to meet and worship in an idyllic mountain setting in Layton Utah. However, there was a problem in the back office area, used for church administration, reception, and counseling services. Church staff found that voices were overheard too easily there between offices and the reception area and that speech privacy was compromised. It was discovered that the office walls terminated slightly above the drop ceiling and did not continue to the ceiling deck – a common issue in modern construction. In a church counseling environment, ensuring parishioner speech privacy is paramount. Wayne Linder, Mountain View’s Chair of the Sound Technology and Media Committee, thought a sound masking system might provide the solution to the problem.

Sound masking is the process of adding a low level, unobtrusive background sound to an environment to cover up excess speech noise, making the affected environment more comfortable, private, and free of excess noise distractions. Linder looked for a system that allowed for uniform coverage, zone flexibility, paging and background functionality, and a low-impact installation. QtPro™ from industry-leader Cambridge Sound Management met all of the necessary requirements.

Solution

Linder installed the QtPro sound masking system in Mountain View’s office area. Small, barely visible emitters (speakers) were installed seamlessly into the office’s drop ceiling. The emitters were connected by cables to an intuitive Qt® 300 control module residing in the HVAC room.

Result

A More Private Office and Counseling Environment

QtPro cut down on crosstalk in the office and made conversations in private offices and counseling areas less audible and intelligible. Now pastors and parishioners can feel confident that their private conversations won’t be overheard by unintended listeners. “QtPro provided the speech privacy we were lacking and it’s unobtrusive enough that we don’t really notice it,” says Linder. “We’re pleased with the system.”

About Mountain View Baptist Church
 Mountain View Baptist Church believes that God’s call for them is to be a biblically-centered church that Loves God, Links Together, and Labors Well. The Church is located at 2585 East 3000 North (Highway 193) in Layton, Utah. Worship services are every Sunday morning at 10:30 AM, and the church also meets for Bible study and worship on Wednesdays at 6PM. All are welcome.

About Biamp
Biamp® is a leading provider of innovative, networked media systems that power the world’s most sophisticated audiovisual installations. The company is recognized worldwide for delivering high-quality products and backing each one with a commitment to exceptional customer service.

Recipient of the Frost & Sullivan 2018 Global Installed Audio Conferencing Enabling Technology Leadership Award, Biamp is dedicated to creating products that drive the evolution of communication through sight and sound. The award-winning Biamp product suite includes: Tesira® media system for digital audio and video networking, Devio® collaboration tool for modern workplaces, Audia® digital audio platform, Nexia® digital signal processors, Vocia® networked public address and voice evacuation system, Cambridge® sound masking solutions, and loudspeakers for installed sound applications from Community Loudspeakers® and Apart Audio®. Each has its own specific feature set that can be customized and integrated in a wide range of applications, including corporate boardrooms, conference centers, huddle rooms, open floor environments, performing arts venues, courtrooms, hospitals, transportation hubs, campuses, retail, hospitality, military and government, and multi-building facilities.

Founded in 1976, Biamp is headquartered in Beaverton, Oregon, USA, with additional offices around the globe. For more information on Biamp, please visit www.biamp.com.