Need Consultant for Church Sound System

[Cheech]

Hey guys, I am not sure if this thread belongs in another place, but here is the deal.....

I help run sound a fairly large Church here, and I was not there for the sound installation, and really don’t know a whole lot about it. They have just asked me to look into getting some help in there.

They want someone to come in and go through the whole system, and make sure everything is wired correctly the whole 9. They would also like for the consultant to do a little training with some of the sound guys.

Anyone have a reputable recommendation for this sort of Job?

There are willing to fly someone in, whatever it takes.

[tINY]

What country are you in?



-tINY

[Mr. Man]

where is the church?

[Cheech]

Baton Rouge, LA that would be the US of A eh

[Skrazz]

Originally Posted by Cheech

Hey guys, I am not sure if this thread belongs in another place, but here is the deal.....

I help run sound a fairly large Church here, and I was not there for the sound installation, and really don’t know a whole lot about it. They have just asked me to look into getting some help in there.

They want someone to come in and go through the whole system, and make sure everything is wired correctly the whole 9. They would also like for the consultant to do a little training with some of the sound guys.

Anyone have a reputable recommendation for this sort of Job?

There are willing to fly someone in, whatever it takes.

These guys are great! http://www.trginc.net/ Based out of tampa. They've worked with our church in upgrading our PA, and personal monitor mixers. They hold a couple conferences a year, one of which i attended. Very impressive. Hope this helps!

[rowdy322]

Originally Posted by Cheech

Hey guys, I am not sure if this thread belongs in another place, but here is the deal.....

I help run sound a fairly large Church here, and I was not there for the sound installation, and really don’t know a whole lot about it. They have just asked me to look into getting some help in there.

They want someone to come in and go through the whole system, and make sure everything is wired correctly the whole 9. They would also like for the consultant to do a little training with some of the sound guys.

Anyone have a reputable recommendation for this sort of Job?

There are willing to fly someone in, whatever it takes.

Contact internallysound.com. They are phenomenal. They do huge conferences all of the time. They did the sound for Saddleback anniversary with 25,000 people in Anaheim stadium. I can give you their cell # and tell them Brad Willliams sent you.

[djui5]

I sent you a PM.

[theoryinmotion]

I work for a company the manufactures Netwowrked Audio Solutions for installed sound...often times is churchs, casinos, hotels, stadiums, and other big installs.

It looks like you say it has already been installed with sound.

What equipment was installed and in particular, what handles the remote control functions and processing for the install?


I personally do trainings for the integrators and the end users around the US.

[nobtwiddler]

I recently did two Baptist Church installs in upstate NY...
If there is anything you want ask, just email me.
Maybe I can be of some assistance.

Paul
www.millbrooksoundstudios.com

[QVA]

In the southwestern to midwestern United States contact Quiet Voice Audio in San Diego. Speak with Karen - GM and she'll put you in touch with one of their engineers. They service over 500 churches and performing arts venues with consulting, equipment and installations.

Phone advice for Christian Churches is offered free and they have a toll free number.

Hope that helps.

[Larry Elliott]

You have had some very good advice, but I would recommend an independent consultant rather than a supplier. I can recommend some excellent people if you want to take this approach
Larry

[QVA]

Cheech, I agree with Larry. I also just noticed the dates on your post and responses. You're most likely long finished with your project. LOL. Might be some help to someone else.

Either an independent consultant or professional sound company with solid references that does consulting and design with no obligation to purchase equipment from them is a wise path.

Truth of the matter is most independent consultants have their favorite equipment suggestions and many receive a commission or "finder fee" from the manufacturer or local rep., some don't. A professional consultant with a good track record isn't going to suggest below the line equipment. Same if asked for a reliable equipment source and installer. Their reputation is at stake and in many cases good quality sound is a labor of love for them in addition to an income.

Most sound consultants know what is tried and true for many common applications. Acoustics, speaker choice and placement are usually the most critical elements. After a few hundred church designs, unless there's something very different in interior design, you start to sense the room just by looking at the blueprints. Most rooms don't need the expense of computer modeling especially a small to medium seating church on a tight budget. Input from the Pastor, worship team, musicians and sound person always helps.

After working with a few different "above the line" engineers, the sound system upgrades or complete design for your acoustic enviornment and style of worship should show a good number of common elements and lay out. If you stick with the higher grade equipment sold by authorized sound contractors (avoid entry level music store gear and equipment without balanced in and outs), then you're already ahead of the game.

A good thing about LA and SD, CA., the live music scene, recording, motion picture and television industry attracts and supports a good number of very talented people that are an asset to good quality church and theatre sound.

There are plenty of wanna-bes, fly by night and weekend warriors out there, a quick check of their resume and references should help you sort through who to take advice from.

From my experience sometimes it seems in addition to a man's professional career he's also born with "special genes", i.e., born knowing how to use a hammer, shoot a gun, be the world's greatest lover and also a sound expert. LOL.

Long winded response thanks to Starbucks. LOL.

Hope this finds you well.

JB

[Thomas W. Bethe]

Originally Posted by QVA

In the southwestern to midwestern United States contact Quiet Voice Audio in San Diego. Speak with Karen - GM and she'll put you in touch with one of their engineers. They service over 500 churches and performing arts venues with consulting, equipment and installations.

Phone advice for Christian Churches is offered free and they have a toll free number.

Hope that helps.

For a "BIG" company they have a very poorly done website with virtually no information on it and their email is a GMAIL account. I would be very suspicious of this company. FWIW

[QVA]

Thomas, good morning. Interesting evaluation and opinion. My reference and referral is to http://quietvoiceaudio.com. I now know your comments are regarding the Quiet Voice Audio Homestead created web site.

There was a time when I would have agreed with you. I was impressed with a company's zip code, office space, staging area, business card, telephone system, company vehicles, etc. That was easy to get caught up in with the Hollywood motion picture scene.

In the professional sound business like so many other industries, I now realize, why pay for all that "stuff" it has little to nothing to do with expertise, stability or service.

The economy has dramatically changed and a few well skilled sound companys financially mismanaged are gone in the high overhead "sunshine tax" state of Southern California. A few have down scaled to survive including excellent companys like Sound Image in San Diego. Quiet Voice Audio did smart overhead adjustments to maintain win-win pricing.

Low efficient overhead without compromising performance or service seems to be a prudent business strategy in this "redistribution of wealth" economy.

From what I have seen, most churches do not want to be paying for style over substance or image. It would be like paying extra for atmosphere in a resturant and the food is just OK but not as good as home. LOL. I live in the mountains in an upscale area with many $1M to $5M homes, ranches and estates. California postcard pictures. LOL. Nice comfortable places, well maintained, good quality cars, recreational vehicles, swimming pools, horses, looks great on the outside! Problem is, most, not all, are in debt up to their necks and it wouldn't take much to become an uncomfortable statistic.

Bottom line, references can be easily checked and a company's real business card is the last project they successfully completed.

I don't know about you Tom but I look at being frugil as being of good stewardship, not "cheap" or less-than. Clients appreciate it and it helps keep good engineers working.

JB

[Thomas W. Bethe]

Originally Posted by QVA

Thomas, good morning. Interesting evaluation and opinion.

There was a time when I would have agreed with you. I was impressed with a company's zip code, office space, staging area, business card, telephone system, company vehicles, etc. That was easy to get caught up in with the Hollywood motion picture scene.

In the professional sound business like so many other industries, I now realize, why pay for all that "stuff" it has little to nothing to do with expertise, stability or service.

The economy has dramatically changed and a few well skilled sound companys (companies) financially mismanaged are gone in the high overhead "sunshine tax" state of Southern California. A few have down scaled to survive including excellent companys (companies)like Sound Image in San Diego. Quiet Voice Audio did smart overhead adjustments to maintain win-win pricing.

Low efficient overhead without compromising performance or service seems to be a prudent business strategy in this "redistribution of wealth" economy.

From what I have seen, most churches do not want to be paying for style over substance or image. It would be like paying extra for atmosphere in a resturant (restaurants)and the food is just OK but not as good as home. LOL. I live in the mountains in an upscale area with many $1M to $5M homes and ranches. Nice comfortable places, sweet cars, recreational vehicles, swimming pools, horses, looks great on the outside! Problem is, most, not all, are in debt up to their necks and it wouldn't take much to become an uncomfortable statistic.

Bottom line, references can be easily checked and a company's real business card is the last project they successfully completed.

I don't know about you Tom but I look at being frugil as being of good stewardship, not "cheap" or less-than. Clients appreciate it and it helps keep good engineers working.

JB

Today anyone can make a passable website by themselves with not much investment in time or money. They can also have a "real" email address. and a way to reach them. IMHO they also should have some bio's about the people that work there and some pictures of jobs they have done on their website. This website looks like it was done in a hurry and without much thought for what it was going to be used for. Sometimes it is better NOT to have a website if it is not done well.

As to where to put your money. I agree that being fugal in this economy is probably a good way to go. If they indeed have a long list of satisfied clients (over 500 is what it says) why don't they list some so a potential client could check with them to see what the company is all about.

To me it looks like someone's way of attracting business without revealing very much about themselves including a real street address.

By the way this is the website I was referring to Blank and not this one Church, Theatre and Commercial Sound Systems Design, Sales and Installation by Quiet Voice Audio seems like there maybe two similar companies with the same name...

FWIW and YMMV

[hbphotoav]

FWIW, here are three Nashville area companies with national client bases and great track records:

Spectrum Sound (Welcome to Spectrum Sound, Inc.) Designer Ken DeBelius designed our d&b audiotechnik system which made 10,000 square feet of warehouse into a pretty nice 1,000 seat venue.

CTS Audio (Clearly Different Live Sound Production | CTS Audio) The final tuning of our room was done by CTS Audio's Ed Crippen. Highly recommended.

Mankin Media Systems (Mankin Media Systems: Nashville, TN) offers complete A/V/L design. Owner Ben Mankin was instrumental in moving us from a simple Sony switcher to a SDI-HD system to feed our screens. They also have a growing national reputation for work in the Worship Arts realm. First class.

All three are excellent people with excellent products and design. Choose the one you feel best about. We've enjoyed working with all three.

HB