
St. Mary's Cathedral is one of the most popular and beautiful Catholic churches in the Portland area. It serves as its parish's diocese, hosting weekly masses, services and sometimes daily visits for a large, devoted congregation. The church needed to ensure its audio-visual equipment could convey its important messages in a smooth, intelligible manner-something that was previously lacking due its domed cathedral and marble walls. When it came time for an AV upgrade, St. Mary's turned to Alpha Sound, a leading AV installer in the Pacific Northwest. With 40 years' experience, the Alpha Sound team was ready to tackle the live acoustical issues at the cathedral while also choosing equipment that would not impede the church's elegant d cor. To accomplish this, the installer selected more than 20 mics from DPA Microphones, the largest DPA install to-date in the area.
Everything about this space is elegant and high-end, says Devin Sheets, lead engineer, Alpha Sound. They have gone to great lengths to beautify the space, and we wanted microphones that would complement the aesthestics of the church. The placement was also crucial, as they did not want any microphone stands regularly in the way.
Built in 1925, St. Mary's Cathedral has experienced concerns with its congregates not being able to clearly understand spoken word and the music portions of services due to the reverberant acoustics in the church. This also affected the livestreams of services, which have become an integral part of its offerings since the start of the pandemic. With these challenges, it was critical to choose mics that perform well, yet fade into the background to allow for the live masses and services to shine. Included among the many DPA mics at St. Mary's are 4097 and 4098 goosenecks, 4099 instrument mics and 4080 miniatures, along with 4006C and 4011F pencil mics.
In addition to eliminating the need for stands on a regular basis, there was an immediate requirement to solve the intelligibility issues both in the room and for the livestream, continues Sheets. The space is very reverberant, so we needed microphones that would sound as natural and clean as possible. This way, we could ensure that we were not compounding the inherent difficulties of the acoustics. There are also several fill speakers nearby, which frustrates the ability to achieve gain from the presenter microphones as they move about the venue. The DPA 4098 Gooseneck Podium Microphone and the DPA 4080 Miniature Cardioid Lavaliers are absolutely astonishing in terms of inherent gain before feedback. For the livestream, having dedicated pairs of microphones for the piano, organs and choir really help to clear up the sound when combined with the 4006C ambient mics in the center of the room to pick up audience responses.
Alpha Sound also selected eight DPA 4097 CORE Micro Gooseneck Microphones hanging from the ceiling above the choir and above the front and rear organs, supported by a pair of DPA 4006C Omnidirectional mics for ambience. This setup gave the church the audio solutions it needed without sacrificing the visual appeal. The team also installed four DPA 4011F Cardioid Capsules on MMP-F Modular Active Booms and two 4011C mics on short stands for various special events where the choir changes and instruments were added. Two DPA 4099P Piano Microphones were also selected. The 4099P mics can be left inside the piano when the lid is closed for storage, eliminating the need to set the mics back up before each use.
DPA was initially chosen because of its impressive performance in past Alpha Sound installations. Going this heavy with DPA was a really big step for our company; it means the brand really impressed us, says Sheets. We previously used DPA microphones with incredible results. The sonic quality really stuck in our minds. That, combined with the industry name recognition, made it obvious that we should be moving in the direction of DPA for our high-end clientele. The DPA 4098 Gooseneck Microphone was so impressive in a prior install that we amended the St. Mary's quote to include this mic.
The DPA microphones also work seamlessly with the rest of the equipment Alpha Sound selected, which includes a Dante-enabled network with a Yamaha MRX7-D processor to ensure day-to-day operations perform without skipping a beat. A custom-decorated Nexo line array speaker system was additionally installed in the open air high above to enable maximum sound quality in what the team dubbed, a difficult acoustic space for amplification.
In our opinion, you can't buy better than DPA, says Sheets. People all around the world respect the brand and we know that it's good. We've experienced the mics and we love them.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
At NAB Show 2026, Net Insight will showcase the next evolution of Nimbra Edge, its orchestration and control layer designed to manage live media services across...
27/03/2026
Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced powerful new innovations that further elevate the company's sports streaming solution. The advanced capabilities enh...
27/03/2026
Bitmovin, the leading provider of video streaming solutions, today announced significant new capabilities for Player Web X, its next-generation web video player...
27/03/2026
Riedel Communications today announced that Czech-based production company CS live has equipped its newest outside broadcast (OB) van with an integrated Riedel i...
27/03/2026
130 Industry Experts Confirmed as Show Celebrates its 10th Anniversary
MPTS, the UK's largest and most influential event for the media, production and tech...
27/03/2026
Grass Valley today announced the successful completion of a major live production deployment with NVP, a leading European media company specializing in live spo...
27/03/2026
Showcases resilient solutions for satellite-to-IP migration, REMI and hybrid live production
Appear ASA (Appear, OSE:APR), a global leader in live production t...
27/03/2026
San Francisco, California, March 2026 - Microsoft Ignite, a major annual conference hosted by Microsoft for developers, IT professionals, partners and business ...
27/03/2026
Clear-Com is proud to highlight its support for worship teams through professional communication solutions, with the deployment of its EQUIP wireless system a...
27/03/2026
Orban Collaborates with Sage on Virtualized EAS Technology Demo
Brie Clayton March 26, 2026
0 Comments
Sage Alerting Systems (SAS), in cooperation wit...
27/03/2026
Berklee Alums Bring GIANT to Broadway Brian and Dayna Lee BM '13 met and fell in love at Berklee, and now their production companys first Broadway debut i...
26/03/2026
Extron and Audio-Technica have announced that their Design Solutions devices, Ce...
26/03/2026
SPORTEL Asia took place March 24-25 at the Orchard Hotel Singapore, drawing 370 participants representing more than 220 companies from 35 countries. Approximate...
26/03/2026
LTN will demonstrate satellite-to-IP migration solutions for broadcasters, cable networks, MVPDs, and station groups at NAB Show 2026 (Booth W2100).
The C-Ban...
26/03/2026
The Seattle Mariners have partnered with Daktronics to install an upgraded outfi...
26/03/2026
The Esports Foundation (EF) has awarded National Team Partner status to organizations and individuals across more than 100 countries and territories for the Esp...
26/03/2026
Telestream has announced expanded integration between its Vantage workflow platf...
26/03/2026
FOR-A Corporation has announced a partnership with Nippon TV and NVIDIA to distr...
26/03/2026
CBS Sports and the WNBA have expanded their partnership through a new long-term, multiplatform rights agreement. CBS Sports will feature up to 20 regular-season...
26/03/2026
Zac Brown Band will star in the Sunday Night Baseball show open on NBC and Peacock, NBC Sports announced. The open was filmed at American Family Field, home of ...
26/03/2026
Major League Baseball opens the 2026 season with nationally televised games across multiple media partners. Fans can visit MLB.com/Watch for a complete schedule...
26/03/2026
DIRECTV has announced an agreement to carry nine new MLB-operated team channels, covering the Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers (Detroit SportsNet), Kansas City R...
26/03/2026
Nationals.TV, the Washington Nationals' local broadcast channel, is now avai...
26/03/2026
Starting Thursday, March 26, MLB.TV will be available on the ESPN App, giving fans access to more than 2,000 out-of-market regular season games. Fans can also r...
26/03/2026
Spotify's partnership with NAVER, Korea's leading digital platform, is built around one simple goal: making it easier for listeners in Korea to discover...
26/03/2026
Exclusive to ComposerCloud for first month
Sample library and virtual instrument gurus EastWest have announced the upcoming release of a new virtual drum i...
26/03/2026
Friday 27 March
Friday 27 March will mark Dynamic Range Day 2026, the annual day of online activity that was started in 2010 by mastering engineer Ian Sheph...
26/03/2026
Includes four separate instruments
Max Richter's SRM Sounds venture have just announced their fifth release, ASMR Choir. Captured at the main live room ...
26/03/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), an agency of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC), has been tasked with administering the Sixth Presi...
26/03/2026
By Matt Klein
Hello to everyone reading this - whether you're a current YEP, HPA member, or just YEP-curious. I'm Matt Klein, one of the co-chairs of t...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
28 participating companies, from start-ups to blue-chips, lead the UK Group as part of the GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland presence across all the Halls at N...
26/03/2026
Arkona Unveils BLADE//planner and Major Usability Enhancements at NAB 2026
Brie Clayton March 26, 2026
0 Comments
New graphical configuration tool and...
26/03/2026
Bitfocus showcases complete control at NAB Show 2026
Brie Clayton March 26, 2026
0 Comments
Continuing development drives advances in security, availa...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Nevion introduces powerful new Panel Builder to enhance VideoIPath broadcast con...