In 2016 the Dubois Area School District decided to return to having their graduation ceremony outdoors at Mansell Stadium.  The administration was very concerned about the sound quality as they didn't want it to sound like a football game with echoes.  Earlier in the school year we had examined the existing system and found that most of the speakers were broken.  We repaired them and made adjustments to the limiters in the amplifiers to prevent the speakers from being blown again.  We also reset the delay timing and modified the output of the speakers on the visitor's side of the stadium to reduce the echo and get clearer sound.  The result was the clearest sound they had heard since the system was installed 6 years earlier.
     This was great for football games, but still not good enough for graduation.  There's no way around it - when the speakers are at the back of the stands and the ceremony is on the 50 yard line there is going to be a delay and the sound will echo when it hits the stands and buildings on the opposite side of the field.  The District asked us to provide a temporary system that would deliver clear speaking voices, catch the vibrant student musical performances and have no delay and minimal echo.  After looking at the dynamics of the stadium we created a system with the speakers mounted 10 feet above the field and pointed at an angle so that the sound was directed slightly upwards.  This design minimized the amount of sound waves which would strike the concrete facing of the grandstands (reducing echo) and the angle provided even coverage of the seats as well as insuring that any sound that reflected off empty seats would be directed upwards into the sky and not at the stands on the opposite side of the field (virtually eliminating the echo).  This design was an amazing success and we received accolades from parents, school officials and even the Superintendent who immediately asked us to come back for the next graduation.