5. Avoid the quick fix.
Have you ever seen a car with a muffler held up by a coat hanger? Have you ever seen the same car driving on the temporary spare tire for over a month? This same simple-fix mentality has no place in audio production. It can lead to mid-service failure, fire or electrocution.
Don’t be that person.
I’ve been in old churches where, after one look at the electrical work, I was ready to run to the nearest exit. The safety of everyone in the room is in your hands. You’ll never want to hear a fire investigator say, “So you knew there was a problem with the equipment and you tried to fix it … are you a certified electrician?”
6. Stop looking for simple answers to complex problems.
There is a time to call in professionals or, if money is tight, devoting the time to learning that aspect of audio production. This isn’t to say you can produce the same level of results, but when money is tight …
Most problems do have simple answers: fuse blew, cable wasn’t properly seated, channel was muted, etc. But when it’s more than that you MUST be willing to educate yourself. Maybe you do hire a professional to fix a problem. Find out how they fixed it and how they identified the source of the problem.
I love reading your emails and helping solve your problems, but there are some emails that ask too much. And these are usually focused around loudspeakers. The question usually amounts to, “What type of speakers should we buy and where should we hang them?”
We can give product suggestions and general recommendations for placement, but because of the unique acoustic properties of the room and the manner in which they will be used, we can’t give the perfect answer. It’s a matter of system design and optimization, considering the need for acoustic treatment, and other factors that are specific to every sanctuary.
If you really want to get serious about loudspeakers and placement in a room, check out this book (one I own and often recommend):
7. Make connections.
Be it small conferences, online forums, Twitter or Facebook, there are a lot of other techs out there who have the same problems, have conquered the same problems or are ready to help others any chance they get. In 2015, there is no excuse to not be part of a tech community.
You need technical support, you need emotional support, you need a place to hang out with fellow techs—people who get it.
Here’s a list of places to start:
- Twitter: Connect with me and the people who follow me—99 percent are audio techs.
- Facebook: Church Sound—Media Tech’s
- Discussion Group: CSC Discussion Group
- Forum: Church Technical Leaders
The best way to know when tech conferences are happening is via Twitter. There is a growing number of regional and city conferences, so be alert.
8. You must stay current on the latest in gear.
Not only is it good practice to know the new technologies because you’ll be upgrading equipment sooner or later, but musicians and even pastors are reading the pro audio magazines. A month ago, my wife ran into a pastor-friend who said, “I saw your husband’s article in a church tech production magazine.”
You must be able to talk with musicians, pastors, church staff and others about new technology because they will ask you about it.
- Do you think we should get the new dpa ear-worn microphone?
- What do you think of the new Yamaha PM10 digital mixer?
- Would a new Radial Stagebug DI eliminate the hum?
Check out the magazines I mentioned earlier. Also, check out ProSoundWeb.
9. You’ll be challenged by your pastor and church staff.
The down side of becoming an audio tech is at some point you are seen as the expert in everything audio regardless of your level of experience. This is when you get challenged to do things you’ve never done, from picking new speakers to fixing room acoustics problems. Would you believe this is a good thing?
It’s too easy to become the weekend sound tech. Walk in, mix the service and walk out. Pick an area of study and focus on that for a few months. Learn all you can about microphones, then loudspeakers, then room acoustics, then something else. Don’t expect to master each topic but do expect to reach a level of knowledge where you can have a discussion on the topic.
To get an idea of working at an advanced level, check out these blogs:
