Slovenia - Basilica Brezje and St. Jernej’s Church recently enlisted the help of Renkus-Heinz’s UBX loudspeakers to ensure visitors can enjoy improved speech intelligibility and clear audio.
Experienced acoustic engineer and project manager Mitja Borko took on the challenge to transform the sound in both venues, with a goal of enhancing clarity, increasing quality and lessening reverberation. After thoroughly testing a range of loudspeakers, the UBX Series UBX8 100V passive column loudspeaker from Renkus-Heinz was chosen. MTD Electronics, a Renkus-Heinz partner in Slovenia, handled the distribution of loudspeakers in both churches.
The UBX8 offers the sound quality and accurate beam-steering technology of Renkus-Heinz’s flagship Iconyx loudspeakers in a compact passive column, making it suitable for aesthetically sensitive buildings that still require audio accuracy. Eight high-quality neodymium transducers deliver the impeccable sound needed in such revered venues. The loudspeakers’ versatile wall-mount bracket also ensured that the installation process was incredibly simple at both locations, minimising disruption for visitors and staff.
Brezje is best known as the home of Basilica of Mary Help of Christians, the largest pilgrimage church in Slovenia. This northwestern national sanctuary attracts over 400,000 visitors every year, so providing high-quality audio is essential. The striking building’s high ceilings, stone walls and wide interior space caused significant reverberation in the nave. “The room required loudspeakers with a tight vertical pattern and wide horizontal dispersion, which is why I thought the UBX Series would be a good solution,” explains Borko.
The UBX8’s Passive UniBeamTM technology offers consistent coverage and constant directivity, minimising echoes so that speech is heard clearly by the whole congregation. The church’s ornate historical architecture meant there were limited options for mounting the loudspeakers; however, the UBX8’s compact form factor meant they could be placed on side pillars without disturbing the building’s aesthetics. Positioned at a 15” mechanical inclination, the loudspeakers vastly improved sound directivity.
“The UBX8 loudspeakers proved to be a perfect choice for the Basilica,” says Borko “The church is a work of art; it’s breathtaking inside. Thanks to Renkus-Heinz, the congregation can hear the liturgy clearly while basking in the visual splendour.”
The small but picturesque Church of St. Bartholomew sits on top of a hill in the village of Sveti Jernej, surrounded by fields and vineyards near Slovenia’s eastern border. Originally built in the 14th century, the church has since undergone various transformations. In 1917, it was damaged so severely by an earthquake that it could not be used for several years, eventually being repaired and reopened in 1922.
The church features a high-peaked, wood-panelled ceiling as well as many other hard surfaces, resulting in poor speech intelligibility. This often made it difficult for churchgoers to understand the worship service, so Mitja Borko once again turned to Renkus-Heinz’s UBX Series to address the problem.
“The church staff were thrilled with the audio improvements,” notes Borko. “Masses are intelligible for the entire nave - even parishioners sitting in the back of the large sanctuary can still understand the liturgy.”
In both churches, the audio systems are supported by a Yamaha 16-channel mixing console, 31-band equalizer and a Klein Hummel power amplifier, increasing frequency response, lowering distortion and ensuring impeccable sound quality. “The improvement in speech intelligibility is remarkable. I highly recommend UBX loudspeakers for future installations,” concludes Borko.