It can now be revealed that Renkus-Heinz audio technology is powering the beautiful National Mosque of Malaysia, which is set within 13 acres of tranquil gardens in the centre of the bustling capital city of Kuala Lumpur. With a 240ft minaret, a 16-point star on its roof, and space for up to 15,000 worshippers at any one time, the mosque is one of the most iconic in Malaysia.
Since its construction in 1965, the mosque has seen several upgrades to its PA system, in both indoor and outdoor prayer spaces, but has continued to struggle with poor intelligibility and inadequate coverage. This most recent refit was the fourth attempt to get it right.
Leading the project was specialist AV integration and acoustic consultancy firm, Acousticon Sdn Bhd. The grand design was developed in 2019 with the consultant, the Public Works Department (PWD) of the federal territory, and implemented in two phases.
Delivered in 2020, phase 1 focused on bringing clear yet unobtrusive sound to the mosque’s outdoor prayer area. This was a complex task due to the narrow 80m-long covered terrace, 48 supporting pillars, and the mosque’s proximity to residential and commercial properties. Acousticon designed a distributed audio system from Renkus-Heinz based on twelve passive Iconyx ICX7-II mechanically steerable line arrays.
These were installed using the fixings of the previous system to comply with strict heritage regulations that prohibited further mountings on walls or pillars. Optimised with the help of EASE Focus 3 software, the new system is designed to provide clear, intelligible and properly contained audio throughout the prayer area.
The upgrade also introduced a Q-SYS digital control system, replacing complex manual controls with an touch panel interface. Notably, it became the first mosque in Malaysia to implement AES67 networking.
Phase 2 of the project – which was completed in 2024 – concentrated on improving sound within the main prayer hall, a 50m x 50m indoor space notorious for its challenging acoustics. This phase required a more advanced solution: Active steerable loudspeakers capable of overcoming the hall’s high reverberation time (RT60) while complying with the strict heritage preservation regulations. The choice fell on active Iconyx IC24-RD digitally steerable line arrays from Renkus-Heinz.
Azizi Bin Ala, founder and technical director, Acousticon, said: “The biggest challenge was the ceiling height limitation, as it directly affects the sound throw distance. As a rule of thumb, the higher a loudspeaker is mounted, the further the sound can travel. To compensate for the 5.4m ceiling height limitation inside the mosque, a loudspeaker with a movable acoustic centre is essential, ensuring that sound projection can still reach up to 50m. Restoration restrictions also meant that we couldn’t mount anything on the walls or pillars as most of the surfaces are decorated with unique imported marble.”
To get around the mounting restrictions, the IC24-RD steerable loudspeakers were placed in custom-made, decorative stainless-steel poles, strategically positioned to combat the hall’s reverberation issues.
Bin Ala said that Renkus-Heinz’s advanced OmniBeam software played a crucial part in ensuring sound was evenly distributed across the hall. “Thanks to OmniBeam, we were able to achieve a consistent soundfield with a tolerance of ±2dB SPL from the front to the rear of the room – solving the historical problem of uneven coverage,” he said.
Moreover, the movable acoustic centre of the IC24-RD allowed the loudspeakers to be mounted at just 1.6m while projecting sound as if they were positioned at a height of 4.4m, achieving optimal sound throw without violating heritage restrictions.
Haji Ehsan Bin Mohd Hosni, Grand Imam of the mosque, concluded: “The new system sounds very different from the previous one, as the sound is highly intelligible, with excellent tonality and excellent coverage. In the past, I needed an additional monitor speaker in front of me, but this is no longer the case. The experience for everyone has been greatly improved.”
