Excellence in the Arts - by Jeff - September 18, 2009 - 10:55 Etc/GMT+5 - 1 Comment
“Turn it down!” is an easy concept to grasp, but the reality of lowering the volume is not always that easy. To take steps to control the “sound makers” on the platform requires thinking through the larger picture. Ask some questions: what is making sound? Where does that sound need to be? From what does that sound need to be kept away? The answers to these questions can then help the team make adjustments that will help lower the stage volume level and help everyone hear what they need to hear. Full Story
Excellence in the Arts - by Jeff - August 12, 2009 - 07:20 Etc/GMT+5 - 2 Comments
What is the solution to the problem of too high of a sound level on the stage? “Turn it down” of course. We all know that is easier said than done in reality, and have already looked at some of the reasons why. The next step then is to start working through these issues and “turning down” the volume. Full Story
Excellence in the Arts - by Jeff - July 27, 2009 - 16:18 Etc/GMT+5 - 2 Comments
“My bass amp goes to 11 and it sounds best there.”
The truth of the matter is music, what makes a good mix and what sounds good are all subjective and relative to both the context and personal opinion of those listening. Full Story
Excellence in the Arts - by Jeff - July 13, 2009 - 02:39 Etc/GMT+5 - Be first to Comment!
Started to write this article then found someone had already done it for me:
Top 10 Reasons for Bad Sound (and what you can do about them)
give it a read and let me know if you agree- I will add my comments later.
Excellence in the Arts - by Jeff - June 29, 2009 - 15:45 Etc/GMT+5 - 2 Comments
“Should we have it at 95dB?” “They put it at 95 but that’s too loud.” “85?” “You should have heard them rockin, they pushed it to 105 the whole time.” “Where should we have it?” Full Story
Excellence in the Arts, Featured - by Jeff - June 26, 2009 - 03:40 Etc/GMT+5 - 1 Comment
At Infocomm09 last week, I had the privilege of teaching a session titled Managing Stage Volumes for Technology for Worship Magazine. In that session I addressed this issue experienced universally- the stage that is too loud.
Too loud on the stage cannot be measured in dB. What’s too loud for one person is fine for another- and most often musicians ask for “more.” Generally, it’s understood that feedback is what happens if the stage is too loud (although that’s not an accurate understanding). The true problem with a loud stage is ambient bleed which means a muddy house mix, and another problem- something not always considered- is hearing damage. Usually communication and education with the proper application of technology can manage stage volumes nicely.
I will try and address these thoughts over a couple upcoming blog post – (see links below)
What should the stage dB be? (Managing Stage Volume part 2) – Click Here
Excellence in the Arts, Media - by Jeff - February 5, 2009 - 18:34 Etc/GMT+5 - Be first to Comment!
There is a chasm forming between “old timers” and the young folk in this Christianity business, and it happens – of all places- during worship. It’s not just generational lines, musical preference lines, or denominational lines.
Recently written in:
We have decided we need to attend church closer to home, instead of driving 45 minutes each way. Today, we go to a nearby one that seems very nice, is multi-ethnic, and is 3 minutes away from home. Perfect. Everything was fine before these two ladies got up to sing. Oh MY….the sound level was up SO HIGH that it nearly blew us out of the building. WHY do they do this? Of course the sound guy is like, 20. I’d like to have some hearing left in my old age, and for my children to still be able to hear when they grow up. I carry earplugs because of my last church in which they thought it was necessary to shake the walls or we weren’t “having church”. Thank God. I sure used them today.
To make it all the more frustrating, the Pastor was GREAT! Wonderful, dead-on, preaching/teaching that really encouraged focusing on the Lord and not ourselves.
Bob Kauflin at Worship Matters has a recent post on the subject: How Loud the Worship Team where he outlines 5 great points:
1. Cranking up the volume is just a cheap trick to add energy to a room.
2. When your intonation is not very good, turning it up only makes it hurt worse.
3. The speakers in most church PA systems cannot take that much energy.
4. Consider that you might be marginalizing older people.
5. Musicians—every one of them, including the singers—are accompanists to the congregation’s praise.
So what should a worshiper do when he or she believes that the sound is in fact too loud at a church? Feel free to talk to the Sound Guy or the Worship Leader. Most of them appreciate feedback- be sure to tell them when something sounds nice, too. Ask if he has a Sound Level Meter. This little black piece of equipment should be sitting on the sound board, pointing at the stage area. Ask him if you can help him collect data at different points in the room, to see if there really is in fact an actual physical sound problem. After you collect this data, if the sound levels are above 90-95dB (‘C’ weighted, slow response), then share these articles with the Worship Leader and Sound Guy (remember, the Sound Guy tends to be under the Worship Leader who has true control over how loud is the sound).
How Loud is Your Church?
Loud Church Music- A Medical Comment
Hearing is Priceless
Keep in mind that sometimes the sound level is not the problem, but it could be a musical problem (see #2 above) or a style issue (some styles of music just sound louder than others). The Sound Guy can’t control if a musician is going to squawk, so please accept those kinds of gaffes for what they are. Forgive and forget. Realize that chances are, the Sound Guy was not anticipating something hurting your ears, his ears hurt too, and he’s probably back there scrambling to fix what he can.
