10 Things
your ministry
must know about its
sound system
In the grand scope of worship, nothing is more important than getting the message to the audience. But, in today’s sound environment, the use or misuse of technology can easily get in the way. The following are a few of the more common challenges that most church soundpeople find themselves faced with…plus, a few comments from the peanut gallery. We’ll start with the science of sound and discover the art of the “sound” situation.
Microphone 101 A microphone is simply a device that converts sound (acoustic energy) into an electrical signal that can then be amplified and processed. You are likely dealing with two types of mics: dynamics and condensers. Stay with me here, I promise not to get too technical.
(Shure SM58)
(dynamic element)*
(condenser element)*
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A dynamic mic (Shure SM58, SM57, for example) works much like a speaker, only in reverse. The diaphragm moves in response to the sound, moves a coil in a magnetic field and produces an electrical current. This “mechanical” system requires no batteries or power and is extremely rugged. An added feature of dynamic mics is their ability to function in loud environments without distortion, making them preferred choices for drums, guitars and vocals. Condenser microphones use an external voltage to charge a very thin diaphragm assembly. As the diaphragm moves in response to sound, the electrical output of the assembly changes, resulting in a usable signal. Because the diaphragm assemblies are so lightweight, they react to sounds much faster. To the ear, they are more sensitive and can process higher frequencies easier than a dynamic. Condensers tend to be favorites for cymbals, acoustic guitars, piano and also vocals. One more thing about condensers. Remember that they have to have an “external voltage?” Some condensers get this from internal batteries, but most are “phantom” powered. Sounds spooky, huh? Phantom is nothing more than a voltage applied
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to the element through the mic cable. It is usually switched on at the mixer, but can be from an external supply, placed between the mic cable and the mixer input. Almost always, phantom is denoted on a mixer as “+48.” Keep in mind that phantom requires all 3 wires in the cable, so if you can’t get signal from your condenser and you know that phantom works, try switching cables.
(back of mixer w/Phantom)
The last thing to think about with microphones is their “polar pattern.” This is nothing more than the shape of the “pickup” area around the mic. You are likely to be dealing with 3 types of patterns – cardioid, hypercardioid or omni. Cardioid, sometimes called directional, patterns largely reject any sounds behind them. Why does this matter? If you prefer to have a floor monitor directly in front of you, a cardioid pattern would reject the monitor sound and prevent feedback. Hypercardioid mics are more narrowly focused to the front, but tend to pick up a little more to the rear – the result is that they can better reject sound from the sides. If you have a singer with a monitor on either side of them, the hypercardioid is best. Omnidirectionals, as you can probably guess, pick up from all directions – we’ll look at an application for these shortly.
Micing Musicians Entire books have been written on instrument micing, so let’s look at a few key points. (Cardioid)*
(Hypercardioid)*
(Omnidirectional)*
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Obviously, your goal is a great sound without feedback. Mic choices and placement can go a long way here. Let’s look at micing an acoustic guitar, for example. Consider that the player is sitting down, plays mostly strumming rhythm with a drummer on one side and a piano on the other. A small floor monitor is directly in front. Cardioid, hypercardioid or omni? You can guess that an omni would pick up everything around your player, including the monitor (insert loud screeching sound, painful wincing and nasty looks). The cardioid, if pointed up toward the guitar, would reject the monitor, but might still get too much of the side instruments. Must be the hypercardioid, right? The narrow directionality “focuses” in on the guitar, but the rear pick-up may get some monitor. Use your knowledge of polar patterns to move the hypercardioid mic to point down at the guitar at about a 45 deg. angle – the pattern is focused on the guitar, while the rear pickup lobe is aimed at the ceiling.
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Dynamic or Cardioid? Consider that the sensitivity and extended frequency response of a condenser while nice, is not vital in this instance. The player is primarily strumming, which tends to get loud, and lends a percussive rhythm. Here, you use your most valuable tools of all – your ears. Dynamics, because they won’t overload, have a pleasant way of smoothing out sounds. Whatever instrument you are stage micing, try to mic as close as you can while still sounding natural and use the natural properties of the microphone to prevent feedback and unwanted noise.
Micing the Choir
(choir mic setup)*
Fortunately, form and function work together here. Condensers, because of their sensitivity and ability to be produced with such small elements are natural choices. They can be hung from the ceiling and are virtually invisible. The most popular pattern choice is cardioid, to reject reflections from the back wall. Generally, choir mics are hung 2 to 3 feet in front of the first row, at a height of 2 to 3 feet above the last row, pointed at the middle row. According to Shure, “a decent cardioid choir mic, correctly placed, will cover 15-20 singers, arranged in a rectangular or wedge-shaped section about 10 ft. wide and 3 rows deep. A choir of 30-45 voices should require no more than two or three mics.” A choir will “blend” itself – all you need to do is capture what they are doing. A few mics properly placed and evenly balanced will do the job quite nicely. Just don’t forget to turn them down when the choir is not singing. Similarly, turn down any other unused mics when the choir is singing. In any circumstance, the fewer mics open at a time, the better.
Micing the Speaker Without question, the most popular choices here are clip-on lavalier mics and small headworn mics. Condenser technology allows mics to be so small and lightweight that they usually go unnoticed. Lavalier mics should be placed roughly 6 in. from the speaker’s chin. Your choice of pattern depends on the acoustics of your space. Some find that cardioid (directional) mics can tend to sound small and unnatural, as the ear expects to hear a small amount of ambience in any human voice. In very reverberant environments, this is less of an issue. An omnidirectional pattern tends to sound more natural, but may pick up reflections and
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possibly monitors. Generally, in a highly reverberant space, go cardioid. If less so, try an omni.
Wireless the easy way In most instances, speakers and singers like to get out from behind a stationary mic and decide to go wireless. Don’t let these systems intimidate you, modern systems are really simple to use and understand. Each system includes a transmitter and a receiver – simple. These operate on a specified frequency so that one receiver looks for signals from one transmitter – simple. The receiver connects to a line input on your mixer and is treated just like any other source. Just remember that each system must operate on a different frequency. To further simplify things, manufacturers provide multiple pre-programmed frequencies designed to work with each other. In choosing to add wireless to your sound system, consider how many speakers or musicians will be wireless. Different systems have varying sets of frequencies available. The ability to utilize more and more frequencies – and more systems -- is one of the primary factors in varying levels of pricing. That said, just about any system will allow for 2 to 5 systems at a time. You will see the term “diversity” used a lot in wireless system literature. This simply describes how the receiver looks for signals from the transmitter. In a diversity system, 2 antennas are looking for the same signal; the one that finds the strongest signal is used, helping to ensure a consistent reception. Look for this feature in a system. (wireless diversity)*
Wireless systems are also described as either VHF or UHF. This is just like the channels on your pre-cable television. The VHF range got pretty crowded, so manufacturers moved to UHF, looking for more available frequencies. You are much less likely to encounter interference with a UHF system. Your wireless systems sales representative will help select a set of frequencies for use in your area.
Location, Location, Location In my years of working with Christian bands, choral groups and sound reinforcement companies, several assumptions seem to creep up without explanation. Typically, people install their sound booths and support systems simply because they’ve always seen it done a particular way.
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In one such scenario, I found a tiny 60-75 person cell church that had taken up residency in an old doctor’s office. They had knocked out walls in the center of the structure to allow for all 75 seats to be scrunched in front of a hefty pair of EV 15” mains. I had to hand it to them for the speaker selection, but their attempt at a sound booth was nothing short of comical. In the back of this “auditorium” was what looked like an international shipping crate stacked on two levels of cinder blocks. This was, in fact, their “sound booth”. There was not even enough room to put a chair behind the small console. And, as an added bonus, the soundman couldn’t stand up straight without hitting his head on the ceiling tiles. So, why all of the wasted effort? The moral of the story is that everyone who wants to build something for their church begins with good intentions. However, in order to correct a problem, one should first assess (1) the purpose of the item to be built, (2) the way to design to achieve maximum function, and (3) their budget constraints. All of that is just to say, if you’re in a small installation situation, don’t go overboard trying to suspend a sound booth over the main entrance of the church. In most small-church cases, sound booths do little more than isolate the garbled collection of cables from the eyes of the audience. Spend a little more time finding where you can accurately simulate the audiences experience to determine the sound levels and EQ. It’s a good idea to maintain a similar horizontal plane as your audience. THERE’S NO REASON TO PUT A SOUND BOOTH IN THE RAFTERS. The money saved from complex building construction could be reinvested to upgrade or expand your sound equipment.
The Curse of the Phantom Sound Man Being a sound engineer at a church is a pain-staking and thankless job at times. That’s why the turnover rate for sound volunteers is typically higher than any other position throughout the church. Finding yourself without a volunteer right before a service can be one of the finer moments in life. But, with a little planning, it may be easy to transition someone from Roadie to Rockstar in just a few short minutes. Start by creating a track-list of your typical Sunday morning service. If this list includes specific channel instructions, you may need to only show your new volunteer where the fader and mutes are to pull off a bearable temporary mix. If you can’t splurge on a $20 label maker, break out the old masking
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tape and start labeling those channels. It may seem like a nobrainer, but I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been asked for a mid-sermon adjustment only to find that I can’t identify which channel we’re on. It’s a rookie mistake that’s easily avoided. And, don’t stop at the channel strips. Label the master and slave drives on your CD duplicator. Label the cables as they’re plugged in the power conditioner or the cables patching to your outboard gear. LABEL THE WHOLE ROOM LIKE YOU WERE DECORATING A CHRISTMAS TREE!! At some point, you’ll thank yourself. Don’t be afraid to keep records. When you jot down the starting time for a cassette accompaniment, write it in a legal pad along with who sang it. Make a note about the EQ. Date it and file it in or near the sound room Especially in charismatic churches, the speaker could easily want to throw you a curve ball at any minute. Leaving yourself enough clues will help you solve the mystery in a hurry!
“…just the facts ma’am…” It’s amazing how many churches I’ve been to and seen tape covering up certain faders that say, “do not touch”. Well, phooey on that! When you’re wearing Bermuda shorts and realize it’s 25o outside, what do you do? You go back inside and change your clothes! The same thing happens in the world of audio. Your environment is constantly changing. Your guitar player buys a new preamp. Someone switches the microphones on a cable. Or, even worse, the pastor gets a cold! Each scenario represents a change in the audio environment and requires an immediate response. Plus, a full auditorium NEVER sounds like an empty one. Don’t ever listen to the nay-sayers that recommend you set it and forget it. Allow your audio to evolve. Before you or your volunteers get touchy-feely with the board or EQ panel, you need to have a solid foundation in understanding how your sound system works. Spend a few moments taking inventory of the wiring that goes to and from each position on the control panel. Knowing exactly where each wire is coming from makes it easier to make changes on the fly. Knowing exactly what those changes will do helps develop the confidence you need to be creative. If you’re training first-time volunteers, show them the snake (or mixed-up bundle of cables) and let them mentally follow the signal path from the microphone, to the mixer, to the amplifier, and to the speakers. This visual mapping method will decrease their learning curve and help you avoid long and uncomfortable stares of silence.
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Rockstar Syndrome If you’ve sat through enough worship services in your lifetime, you have inevitably seen the passing of the guard from one worship leader to another. And, if you’re a real veteran you’ve seen them by the dozens. My guess is that we’ve all run across the rockstar burnouts that have given themselves to Jesus, only to find they need to offer their talents to His service. In doing so, we find our floor monitors growing to match their playing style and the stage volume increasing to just below that of a 747 initiating take-off. This problem continues to escalate when the other people on the stage start playing louder to compensate. After a while, you can turn off your mains and get a face-lift on the front row, because your stage volume has gotten completely out of control. The solution can take many different shapes. Everyone likes to hear a “free” scenario, but sometimes capital investments are a necessity. For a short-term fix, try making monitor adjustments well before anyone arrives for practice. Try running any heavy hitters directly through a line-in on the mixer, instead of micing their 4x12 Marshall stacks. Most rookie musicians will balk at the thought of running direct, but it’s your job to sway them into at least trying it (sorry, your Jedi mind tricks won’t work here). If you’re like most churches, you’ve probably got only one or two monitor mixes. Be sure that your “superstar” is on the first outlet that gets any signal. He’s going to crank it right back to what he thought was the original level, but at least now the horn section can probably turn their monitor down. Before, no one had any control over the level that was originating from the stage. Don’t forget that micing a guitar cabinet or any other musician is not so that they can play louder. It’s done so that the sound engineer has control over the signal. Wow, there’s a novel thought… Control! The second solution comes with a slim price tag, but is worth every red cent. In fact, I’ve never seen one of these solutions utilized and had it returned. What I’m referring to is personal monitoring devices. Manufacturers like Aviom and Hear Technologies have developed an incredible way to take back the stage volume control. They do this by utilizing a breakout box and a network cable. These systems are inserted on EVERY channel on the console and give each musician independent control over what they hear in their monitors, without affecting
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the person next to them. Revolutionary is not the word! Now your little Rockstar can blast his Les Paul through his own headphone mix without destroying the delicate ears of your flute player.
Discover the Matrix Although there are hundreds of publications on sound theory and applications, most novice audiophiles will avoid charts and graphs like the plague. Maximize the learning method that fits you best. Since most of us learn via the school of hard knocks, don’t be afraid to raise your hand and ask the tough questions. Perhaps the easiest way to do this is to network with like-minded professionals via online forums and user groups. Take a few moments to familiarize yourself with the forums on WirelessMicrophones.com or ProSoundWeb.com. Both sites offer immediate feedback from experienced sound engineers through their forum section. Remember, there are no dumb questions, just dumb people who never ask.
Get the point? With thirty or so people on stage, a house full of worshippers and teams of possible technical problems, keep in mind the reason that you are behind the board. Sound and A/V has been introduced and largely accepted into our worship sessions because they enhance the message that we’re conveying to our audience. Whether it’s a 140db soloist or an inaudible evangelist, your job is to repackage and deliver their message to your audience. After all, if they can’t hear the message, they can’t GET the message.
* Images courtesy of Shure Booklet written by Micah Boaz and Tim Waters Designed by Michael Mattheiss
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