If you’ve been to a show recently or been to an auditorium with an updated sound system, you’ve likely seen the single column speakers hanging from each side of the stage, called line-arrays. These have replaced the large grids of speakers used not that long ago that may (for example) use 3 columns of speakers- 1 angling away from the stage, 1 straight ahead, and 1 facing towards the middle of the room. There are many advantages to these line arrays, but don’t assume that your room needs these new shiny toys, or that they will fix all of your audio issues.

I was listening to some classic music today. I don’t mean classical music, but some stuff from the 60′s. I was admiring the sound of the drums, and it got me thinking about most of the drums I see and hear at churches. Drums seem to be the enemy of a lot of church audio volunteers. They try to tame the drums by confining them to cages, putting tape all over the heads, and telling the drummer to use small sticks and play ‘jazz’ style. Let me offer a different approach to the drums.

This weekend I’m out doing a couple shows in Indiana. Last night we were in an old theater (as in movie theater- see the screen behind the stage?) in a college town, and I just want to tell you about the audio set up, what I liked/ didn’t like about it, and what could have been improved. It’s not my intent to insult anyone here. In fact, the theater took good care of us. The local radio station was there in support. And, the crowd seemed to have a good time. I, on the other hand, wasn’t the happiest camper.

There are 3 types of cables we are going to talk about, and when to use them. Unfortunately, you can’t always tell what type of cable you have just by the connector on the end (XLR, 1/4 inch, etc.), but most connectors have a sleeve that unscrews quickly giving you access to see how the wires are connected to the end so you can figure it out. We will cover 3 generic types of cables: microphone, instrument, and speaker cables. Using the correct cable for appropriate applications will help eliminate 99% of possible buzz and hum, and in some cases make the system safer to operate.