The Sanctuary of Lourdes is a beacon of faith, covering an impressive 53 hectares and 22 places of worship. A testament to time, history and devotion, the basilicas of Lourdes have witnessed over a century of prayer, adoration and contemplation, attracting six million pilgrims from all over the world every year.
As part of a contemporary transformation, the Basilica of Notre-Dame du Rosaire in the Sanctuary of Lourdes recently embarked on a sound journey to renovate its exterior and interior sound system with APG loudspeakers from Arbane Groupe.

The Basilica of Notre-Dame du Rosaire is the most important place of pilgrimage in France. Built between 1883 and 1889 and consecrated in 1901, the Byzantine-style basilica features impressive mosaics covering more than 2,000 m² and can accommodate 1,500 worshippers.

After three decades of loyal service, the APG outdoor audio system, installed by local integrator Audiomaster Technologie, began to show signs of fatigue after enduring extreme temperatures (-10°C winters and +40°C summers), humidity and daily operation. It was time to offer the faithful a modern audio experience. "Thirty years ago, our engineers spent almost a year on site to design and manufacture the product.
exactly as the customer wanted, and I think that's why the APG enclosures stood up to the harsh weather conditions," says Rodolphe Portet, technical sales engineer at Arbane Groupe. "It's really a great testament to the quality of the product and the bespoke engineering efforts that go into it.

Audiomaster Technologie, a subsidiary of ACE EVENT GROUP, rose to the challenge with the aim of renovating the exterior and interior of the basilica with a sound system capable of ensuring perfect intelligibility of the spiritual teachings, sermons and traditional Catholic music, while respecting the spirit of the church.
the architecture, mosaics and decor of the basilica.

After numerous series of tests and comparisons, Audiomaster Technologie once again turned to APG loudspeakers, attracted by the warmth of the sound and the wide coverage, as well as by the proximity of the manufacturer. "This close relationship between us and
Arbane Groupe is very important to us. It enables us to develop better projects by building on the ideas put forward during our first collaboration," says Loïc Bourgain, head of technical design at ACE EVENT GROUP.

Eric Grandmougin, Marketing Director of Arbane Groupe, believes that another reason why Audiomaster Technologie chose to work with Arbane Groupe again was the ability to create bespoke speakers: "We were able to customise the colour of the speakers so that they would blend in perfectly with the environment and be hidden from pilgrims. "We also organised demonstrations for Audiomaster Technologie before the installation and created a 3D model showing how we would cover the sound in the basilica, which gave them a much better idea of the result.
adds Mr Portet.

Audiomaster Technologie installed 70 APG iX8-O compact outdoor loudspeakers, featuring a two-way coaxial design, bass reflection and IP54 protection. Thirty-six loudspeakers were installed on the lighting poles along the 421-metre main walkway. Sixteen loudspeakers adorned the Rosaire esplanade, and a further 16 units were placed along the main walkway. the river and the sacred grotto. All the loudspeakers are powered by six Powersoft Quattrocanali 2404 DSP amplifiers coupled to a Xilica Solaro processor. The end user wanted to offer people walking down the street
This is why we decided to install the loudspeakers face to face to deliver the same sound everywhere at the same time.