LED Screens for Places of Worship and Auditoriums

The two distances that decide everything

In a hall, two viewers matter. The front row is often only 2 to 4 m from the screen and it sets the pixel pitch, because that is where individual LEDs become visible. The back row may be 30 m away and it sets the screen height, because anyone seated behind a taller person still has to see the bottom of the image. A common starting point is that the smallest text on screen should be at least 1/200 of the distance to the furthest viewer, and rather more where the content is song lyrics or scripture that people read at a glance while standing.

• Pitch from the front row: P1.86 to P2.5 at 2 to 3 m, P2.5 to P3.91 at 3 to 5 m, and P4.81 only where nobody sits closer than 5 m.
• Screen height: mount so the bottom edge clears the heads of the seated congregation from the back row, and check the view from any balcony.
• Brightness: 600 to 1,200 cd/m2 indoors. A dark sanctuary with stage lighting needs the lower end, a daylit modern auditorium the upper end.
• Refresh rate: 1,920 Hz or higher if services are streamed, recorded or relayed to other rooms in the building.
• Balance with stage lighting: the screen should read clearly without lighting the platform or washing out the speaker.

Sight lines, stage layout and mounting

Screens in worship spaces usually sit either side of the platform, or as a wide centre screen behind the band. A centre screen competes with platform lighting and often with a cross or other focal element, so mounting height and the sight line from the balcony decide the usable size. Side screens are gentler on camera and on the stage design, but each has to be large enough for the seats it serves, which sometimes means four smaller screens rather than two large ones. Sight lines should be checked as a section drawing from the back row over the heads of seated people, not at eye level in an empty room before the seats are installed.

Installation, acoustics and service

Fixed indoor installations favour a steel frame tied into the building structure, with cable routes planned alongside the audio and lighting infrastructure rather than added afterwards. Two practical points come up repeatedly. First, service access: rear-service cabinets need a walkway behind the wall, which is expensive inside a finished auditorium, so front-service cabinets are often the better choice even where the screen sits in a recess. Second, the screen is a large flat surface in an acoustic space and it will reflect sound, so its position relative to the loudspeakers and the room treatment should be considered before the frame is fixed. Power and data should sit on a circuit that can be isolated for maintenance without cutting the platform lighting.