Line array vs column array
A column is a short, slim line source in a single cabinet. A line array is a set of modules you curve to the room. They solve the same problem at very different scale, price and level.
Same physics, different scale
Both stack drivers vertically to narrow vertical dispersion. A column does it inside one fixed enclosure, usually over the mid and high range only. An array does it with modules you can add, splay, fly and aim per section.
Where a column wins
Reverberant rooms with speech program and a visual constraint: churches, museums, stations, atria. Slim, wall-mounted, quick to specify, and vertical control exactly where intelligibility lives.
Where an array wins
Music at level, depth beyond a column's reach, or coverage that has to be shaped per seating block. Columns run out of headroom and low frequency long before an array does.
Side by side
| Column array | Line array | |
|---|---|---|
| Form | One slim fixed cabinet | Modules hung in a curve |
| Vertical control | Fixed by the driver line | Set by hang length and splay |
| Low frequency | Needs a separate subwoofer | Modules plus matched subs |
| Level | Speech and background music | Full-range music at concert level |
| Mounting | Wall or pole, no steel | Rigging, motors, load calculation |
| Typical use | Churches · stations · atria · museums | Festivals · arenas · touring · deep halls |
| From Quint | C-series today, column in development | L · V series · C36 |
Common questions
What is the difference between a line array and a column array?
A column array is a single slim cabinet with drivers in a vertical line, fixed at the factory and aimed by tilting the box. A line array is a set of modules you hang, curve and splay to the room, with matched subwoofers and far more output.
Is a column array a line array?
Acoustically it is a short line source, so it shares the principle. In practice the two are specified for different jobs: a column for speech in a reverberant room, an array for music and for depth.
Which is better for a church?
A column, if the program is mostly speech and the room is modest. An array, if the nave is deep or the services are musical. We will tell you which, and we would rather do that before you order.
Can a column do music?
Background music and a worship band at moderate level, with a subwoofer under it. For a full-range mix at concert level, a column is the wrong tool.
Does Quint make a column speaker?
One is in development, on the same linear target curve and the same P-series preset approach as the rest of the catalog. Today we cover those jobs with C-series point sources — talk to us about the timeline before you specify.
Plan your system with us
Send a floor plan or a rider and our engineers come back with a modelled design: cabinets, amplifiers, presets and coverage.