A Fresh Approach to the Line Array

By Ralph Heinz, Vice President, Renkus-Heinz, Inc.

Designers Note Book: A Fresh Approach to the Line
Array
Ralph Heinz, Vice President, Renkus-Heinz, Inc.

There are several very practical reasons why line arrays have replaced horizontal arrays
for many portable sound reinforcement applications. For the same band, playing at the
same volume in the same venue, a line array speaker system may be smaller, lighter, and
easier to hang. It will occupy less truck space and require a smaller crew. In venues with
the proper geometry, line arrays that are properly hung, aimed and curved can provide
most of the audience with a very satisfying sonic experience.

Is a line array a line source?

The quick answer is sometimes. A line source is a line of equidistant drivers: the
earliest products in this configuration date from the 1950s and were used to increase
speech intelligibility in reverberant environments. As most people know, a line source
works by creating a very narrow vertical dispersion. At 0 vertical dispersion we have a
cylindrical wave. By now, most people have heard that a cylindrical waves energy
decreases by 3 dB every time the distance from the source is doubled, whereas a spherical
waves energy drops by 6 dB per distance doubling.
There are two conditions for line source behavior. The first is that the line has to be at
least four times as tall as the wavelength it is radiating for a vertical pattern that is a
reasonable approximation of a plane wave. A second requirement is that the sources on
the line have to be less than 1/2 wavelength apart. This is the inverse of the first
requirement. Olsoni calculated in the 1940s that two adjacent sources radiate a spherical
polar pattern (i.e. sum coherently) when they are less than 1/4 wavelength apart. Between
1/4 and 1/2-wavelength spacing the pattern narrows, but side lobes (interference patterns,
caused by destructive interference) do not appear until the spacing is greater than 1/2
wavelength.
What does this mean in practice? Only very long line arrays can function as a line source
at low frequencies, while only very short modules can couple at high frequencies. In the
real world, the actual range of line source behavior is typically less than one octave. The
answer to the question of whether a line array is a line source is almost never.

If its not a line source, how does a line array work?

Line arrays are famous for their ability to provide even SPL from the front to the rear of
the audience. You can walk from the rear of an outdoor field or a ballroom all the way to
the front, almost directly under the line array, and the sound level stays the same. To see
why, lets review some common practices in the design of sound systems using
conventional horns and compression drivers. The loudspeakers in a horizontal array were
designed to cut a spherical wave front into pie-shaped sections of 60 x 40, 90 x 40 or
whatever the horn designer thought would work well in a good range of venues. If you
were covering a relatively small area, you could get even SPL from front to rear by
aiming the center of the vertical pattern at the back row and the lower edge (the 6 dB
point) at the front row. With a high enough hang point, you could locate and aim the
loudspeaker so that the distance from the horn to the front row was half the distance to
the back row. Then the effect of the horns dispersion control would balance the distance
effects and SPL would be even from front to rear.
If architects would only build public venues to suit commonly available horn patterns,
and keep them small enough so that one speaker could cover each side of the audience,
we would never need line arrays. Of course, this is not the case: venues come in all
shapes and sizes. The line array delivers 18 to 24 dB more output than a single
loudspeaker, and its vertical pattern can be shaped to the venue by varying the curvature
of the array. Just like the properly aimed and located constant directivity horn, the
correctly curved line array delivers equal power to equal areas of the audience. This
implies that as you get closer to the array, each module has to radiate into a larger
included angle, so the splay angles between modules must increase as you move from the
top to the bottom of the array. Therefore, in most venues, the array shape that produces
consistent SPL from front to rear is the near-ubiquitous J shape.

Functional requirements for a line array module

When we combine the acoustic requirements for line source coupling and J-shaped arrays
with the practical benefits desired, the design goals for a line array module become clear:
Full bandwidth.
Axial symmetry so that left, right and center clusters behave identically.
Driver selection and enclosure design such that all cone drivers are crossed over
below the frequency at which acoustic centers are more than 1/2 wavelength
apart.
Flat or very narrow (<10) vertical pattern in the waveguide for frequencies above
the point where acoustic centers are greater than 1/2 wavelength apart.
Waveguide exit must occupy at least 80% of the height of the module in order to
produce a continuous wave front.
Minimal size and weight for the available output.
Simple, fast and reliable flying hardware.
Simple, fast and error-proof cabling and signal routing.
Array design software that makes accurate coverage predictions while facilitating
the specification of array length, positioning, aiming and curvature.
Where multiple drivers are used in a given frequency band, their horizontal
spacing should be close enough to provide consistent dispersion across the
operating band.

The importance of the waveguide

In the past decade, a variety of new waveguides have been developed to enable the line
arrays output to be shaped by varying its curvature. These new approaches are broadly
classified into four main types: ribbons, horns, reflectors and lenses.

Ribbons look continuous: are they?

The ribbon is subject to the same limitations as any other line source. A typical high-
output ribbon is about 6 inches high and will be usable as a line source up to 4.5 kHz.
Above that frequency the acoustic centers will be more than 1/2 wavelength apart and
will generate side lobes due to destructive interference.

What about conventional horns?

Horns can be designed for relatively constant vertical pattern, but there are limitations
imposed by geometry. Recall that the horn mouth has to occupy at least 80 of the
enclosure height. A 10 conical horn with a mouth opening of 12 (.3m) must be almost 5
feet 9 inches deep.
A second issue with conventional horns in conventional enclosures is the separation of
acoustic centers. The acoustic center of a compression driver/horn combination is the
compression drivers exit into the horn. For an array module with two 12-inch cones on
the low end, a single 2.5 inch or 3 inch voice coil compression can produce more than
enough high frequency energy to equal the output of the woofers. But if we place a single
compression driver and horn in an enclosure 15.5 inches high, the adjacent drivers will be
about that far from each other, and cannot couple as a line source above 437 Hz. This is
well below the compression drivers crossover point.ii For more on the acoustic centers of
conventional horns and drivers, please consult the Renkus-Heinz White Paper on the
True Array Principle (TRAP).

Reflectors
Reflective waveguides have been used for decades, but for microwaves, not audio. It
happens that the wavelengths of microwaves and sound waves are nearly the same. For
instance, sound at 13.55 kHz travels through the air at 1129 feet/second and has a
wavelength of 1 inch. Microwave radiation at 11.78 GHz travels at the speed of light
(186,000 miles/second) and also has a wavelength of 1 inch. Whether for microwaves or
sound, reflectors operate on a ray model: the wavelength of the impinging energy is so
short that all of it is reflected. The ray model is valid over a limited frequency range:
lower frequencies with longer wavelengths will be refracted or diffracted when they
encounter a boundary, instead of being reflected.

Lenses
Like reflectors, lenses have been used to control both microwaves and sound for decades.
There are two types: the obstacle array and the path length refractor. The obstacle
array works exactly the same way a glass lens does when it focuses light: the obstacles
(which can be spheres, discs, strips or irregular shapes, as long as they are small in
relation to the frequencies involved) slow the sound as it passes through the lens. An
obstacle array lens can produce a concave convergent, convex divergent or planar wave
depending on its shape.

A piece of foam can provide the irregular shaped obstacles required for this type of lens.
However, the particular material chosen will function only over a limited bandwidth.
Above a certain frequency, the material will absorb sound, converting the energy into
internal motion and heat. Below another frequency, the irregular shapes will be too small
to act as an obstacle array, and the sound will pass straight through no matter what shape
is used. These frequencies are, of course, specific to individual materials.
The path length refractor uses plates (again with spacing that is small compared to the
wavelengths in question) to force the sound to travel a greater distance than it would
otherwise. Plates can be arranged in a zig-zag pattern or simply slanted relative to the
path of the sound to be refracted. Although the slant lens looks as though it should be
altering the direction of the sound, it does not. The added path length merely alters the
arrival time of the pressure wave, not its direction.
The Renkus-Heinz Isophasic Plane Wave Generator
In order to be able to produce a continuous, coherent wavefront that can be shaped by
curving a vertical array, we need to radiate a more-or-less planar wavefront from an
opening that is at least 80% of the enclosure height. Theory and measurement show that a
wavefront whose curvature is less than 1/8 of a wavelength is effectively flat and will
propagate as a plane wave.
A schematic of the waveguide used in a Renkus-Heinz line array module looks like this:

All of the pattern control techniques that have been borrowed from microwave research
are useful for creating continuous HF wave fronts, since the dispersion angle is
independent of the path length from the driver to the waveguide exit, and therefore from
the horn geometry. The Path Length Equalization Technology used in this device has a
significant advantage over the other techniques illustrated above, however. Reflectors and
obstacle arrays can be highly effective, but over a relatively narrow bandwidth: perhaps
four octaves. This limitation is due to the transition from the ray model (reflection) to
the wave model (refraction and diffraction) that occurs as wavelengths become long in
relation to the reflector or the obstacles.
The path length refractor, however, can generate planar wavefronts over a wide operating
band. When higher frequencies pass through the device, it operates on the ray model,
as illustrated below:

But what happens at lower frequencies, when the wave model takes over due to the
longer wavelengths? The path length refractor lens then functions as a closely spaced
array of diffraction slots, as illustrated below:
The Renkus-Heinz CoEntrant Driver
The patented CoEntrant Driver integrates the output of a cone transducer and a
compression driver into a single high output, wideband point source. Coupling these
devices with Complex Conic horns has generated a number of highly effective horizontal
array modules the ST Series of products.
The new CDT 1.5 CoEntrant driver has been developed for use in high output line array
modules. It integrates a 6.5 inch carbon fiber cone with a 2.5 inch voice coil compression
driver. The CDT1.5 can be crossed over as low as 350 Hz, allowing a properly designed
waveguide to control dispersion over a frequency range of almost six octaves.

CDT & PWG: An Ideal Combination for Line Array Use

Because of its ability to function as a diffraction slot array at lower frequencies and as a
path length refractor at higher frequencies, the Plane Wave Generator is able to control
vertical dispersion over the entire operating bandwidth of the CDT1.5. A vertical array of
these devices will produce a coherent wavefront from 350 Hz to 19 kHz. The sound
system design can shape the vertical dispersion of this wavefront by altering the splay
angle between modules: as mentioned above, this is the key to adapting the arrays output
to a particular venue, in order to deliver consistent SPL from front to rear.

SPL and Frequency Response

In the region below crossover from the waveguide into direct radiating cones, the J
shape does tilt the main lobe downward and broaden the bottom edge, but this effect is
only approximate. Control of dispersion is much more precise in the operating band of
the waveguide. Assuming a good approximation of a continuous, coherent wavefront, the
waveguide-directed output will closely follow the J curvature of the array, and output
will be much more consistent from front to rear. Theory suggests, and observation
confirms, that for short lines the sound at the rear of the coverage area will be thin,
because higher frequencies will be projected more consistently than low frequencies. For
longer lines the reverse is often true: there can be a narrow low frequency lobe that is
aimed mainly at the upper tiers of seating, despite the tilting and broadening effect of a
J curvature.

STLA Line Array Modules: Even Vertical Response

The STLA crosses over from a pair of 12-inch cones to the CDT1.5 CoEntrant Driver and
Plane Wave Generator at 350 Hz. Since all frequencies above 350 Hz are being
controlled by the waveguides, they will follow the arrays curvature closely. This
wideband coverage control generates the expected benefits: not only consistent SPL but
consistent frequency response and timbral balance from the front to the rear of the
audience area.

Consistent Horizontal Directivity

Line array modules should be symmetric on axis so that the same module can be used for
left, right and center clusters. To reproduce the low frequencies, many line array modules
use a pair of large cone drivers at the ends of the enclosure. This is an approximate and
frequency-dependent pattern control technique, which depends on interference effects.iii
A side benefit (pun intended) of the CDT1.5 is that it allows the STLAs 12-inch woofers
to be close together because there is no separate midrange section. The reduced
horizontal spacing, combined with a low crossover point into the CDT1.5 CoEntrant
Driver, enables the STLA to provide consistent horizontal dispersion over a full two
decades: from 200 Hz to 20 kHz.

Field-Configurable Horizontal Directivity

Not all audience areas are shaped like the rectangle above, but many of them are. In this
situation, its useful to have different horizontal patterns for the top (long throw), middle
(medium throw) and bottom (short throw) sections of the array. The diagram above
shows how wider horizontal dispersion at the bottom of the array helps cover the edges of
the audience. With a single horizontal pattern we would have to choose between leaving
the sides of the front rows in acoustical shadow or bouncing excessive energy off the
side walls, thereby creating a large reverberant field and degrading the intelligibility and
clarity of the sound in the audience area. Because the PWG is not a conventional horn we
can make the mouth of the device a diffraction slot. The width of the horizontal coverage
can then be varied by replacing part of the front baffle. This can be done at the factory, in
the rental warehouse or even at the venue itself: the procedure is simply removing and
replacing a few screws.

Summary: Acoustical Considerations

The vertical pattern control technique is a path length refractor type of acoustic
lens, which has a wide operating band.
This technique complements the wideband point source CDT1.5 drivers
effectively to control both midrange and high frequencies.
Waveguide control (as opposed to line source control, horizontal spacing or other
fixed-geometry, dimension-dependent techniques) of both midrange and high
frequencies maximizes the usefulness of the adaptable J curved vertical array.
Narrow horizontal spacing between woofers and a low crossover point to the
CDT1.5 provide consistent horizontal pattern control from 200 Hz to 18 kHz.
The horizontal waveguide for the midrange and high frequencies can be altered in
the field: this allows the entire array to produce a closer approximation of a
rectangular coverage pattern, which is very useful for many audience areas.

Practical Considerations
Self-powering, Self-processing
The STLA line array module is a fully integrated system that incorporates a Class D
digital tri-amplifier with comprehensive onboard loudspeaker management processing.
This makes for a simpler setup process, and a sound system that is smaller and lighter
overall, since the amplifier and processor racks are eliminated, and signal connections are
made with line-level XLR cables instead of heavy-gauge speaker wire. Class D
amplifiers are highly efficient, generating maximum acoustic power from the available
electrical power. Their high efficiency means less energy is wasted as heat, so fan cooling
is not required.

Weight savings
Digital amplification has another important advantage in a line array module: it is light
weight. The STLA is capable of 139 dB SPL, yet weighs only 190 lbs. This means that
eight-high arrays can be flow from a single one-ton motor, saving on rigging cost and
taking up fewer suspension points.

Simple, Safe Rigging

STLA/RHANG hardware is designed to make array setup simple, efficient and safe. Each
module includes two 5/8 inch metal tie bars and two quick-release pins. The holes in the
tie bars allow adjacent cabinets to be hung with 0, 2.5 or 5 splay angles. The
RHANG/STLA fly bar will support up to twelve-deep arrays.
STLA dollies can hold four cabinets and since the stack is still under six feet tall, groups
of four can be rolled on and off the truck, attached to the fly bar or to another group of
cabinets, and flown. Load in and load out are fast and simple and can take place in a
minimal floor space. The dolly wheels can be locked, allowing the dolly to function as a
stage-stack or ground-stack platform.

AimWare Software
The line array allows sound system designer to shape vertical dispersion so that most of
the venue has the same SPL. AimWare makes the design of STLA line arrays easy by
allowing the designer to input a section view of the venue and experiment with different
array trim heights, aiming angles and curvatures. The software predicts the results and
can output the array as a file for import into EASE 4.0 and higher.

A New Generation of Line Array Module

The STLA and STXLA line array modules are designed to maximize the practical and
acoustic advantages of line array systems. The combination of the patented CoEntrant
Transducer with a unique Plane Wave Generator gives the array broadband control over
vertical dispersion, which means that not only is SPL consistent from the front to the rear
of the audience, but frequency response is balanced as well. The FOH mix engineer hears
the same level and frequency response as the audience. The STLA, with its integral Class
D amplifier, is the lightest self-powered high output line array module available at 190
lbs. A fast, effective and safe rigging system helps cut down on labor cost and time
during load-in and load-out.

i
Olson, H. Acoustical Engineering, Professional Audio Journals 1991
ii
For more on the acoustic centers of conventional horn/driver HF devices and their
behavior in arrays, please consult the Renkus-Heinz White Paper on the TRue Array
Principle.
iii
Olson, H. Acoustical Engineering, Professional Audio Journals 1991
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