Sound and Light Technicians - Houses of Worship
Today's worship services are quickly changing from the services that were held only a decade ago. With technology being integrated into worship services at an accelerating rate, the dependence on properly operating electronic equipment is becoming ever more important. Today's worship services combine DMX lighting, computers with video projectors, movies, live and pre-recorded music, including the increasing use of wireless microphones and devices.
Services have transformed into a work of art, more than the worship services of yesteryear. As attendees expect seamless services from the church, many worship leaders have become stage producers. This in turn has placed more pressure on the worship audio, video and lighting teams - many of whom are volunteers. The result is that with so much dependence being placed on technology, an equipment failure can spell disaster for the services.
Having ran sound for churches for over 12 years, along with running sound at events for nearly 20 years, I have experienced what the major causes of failures in worship services usually are. I also know that the projectors and sound equipment are usually not maintained like they should be. How many times has the projector shut down in the middle of a service due to overheating? Can you remember the last time the projector filters were cleaned? How many times has the lapel microphone been scratchy or stopped working all together? Do you have buzzing, popping, or other problems?
The only time these problems are apparent - or remembered - is during a worship service, a wedding, or some other event. Most of these failures can be prevented by basic routine maintenance. Lets face it, volunteers are well-meaning, devoted people and a church couldn't operate without them. I myself have volunteered hundreds of hours for churches operating and repairing their sound systems, so I know first hand the situation you are facing. But as you are aware, most volunteers usually don't have the experience or the time to work on the AV systems in a church. Not to mention the liability of having volunteers working on this type of electrical equipment without really understanding it.
The Solution
is for a church is to have a maintenance plan for the equipment to be serviced, tested, and repaired on a schedule. Sound and Light Technicians provides this service.
If you have a failure right before or during a service we are usually available for emergencies.
This is how much dirt a heat sink can have in it after only a year of use, dirt and dust acts the same as insulation for your house. It prevents heat from leaving the fragile electronic components by insulating them from the air which is the cooling source. This fan also has so much airflow blocked that it lost nearly 100% of its cooling ability.
Proper care and maintenance is the key to preventing equipment failures
Even computers need maintenace. Notice that this computers fans are nearly plugged up with dirt. The Chip is under the fan on the motherboard. Proper care of the computers will help prevent random computer crashes. Especially when using powerful programs like Media Shout.
Cleaning the projectors is very important. Projectors build up incredible heat inside and plugged filters, dirty fans, and dust on components can cause the projectors to go into thermal shutdown. Maintaining projectors and replacing the bulbs on a schedule will help eliminate loss of video in your service.
