Making the decision to update your worship sound system isn’t always easy. Most leadership teams for a house of worship will have budget considerations and lots of different operational tasks taking up their time and attention. Here are some things to think about before deciding whether to update.
Did your environment change?
The biggest reason to update your worship sound system seems obvious: it’s old! It may be tempting to update your sound system simply because you’ve had the same one for a number of years. Some good sound systems can last more than 20 years, so you don’t necessarily have to update it regularly if it still suits its purpose.
But in a lot of cases, a house of worship will change and evolve over time. If, for example, your worship space expanded or you added more seating, your worship sound system may no longer be sufficient to give everyone in your church a good experience.
It’s also worth remembering that your sound system works as part of your church audiovisual (AV) setup as a whole. If your church lighting system is excellent, it would be a shame for the sound element to not be up to par.
What does your congregation expect?
It goes without saying that if the sound system is making unpleasant noises or doesn’t even allow the preacher’s voice to be heard, it needs updating. But the impact of a really good sound system on a congregation's mood and enjoyment of a service shouldn’t be underestimated. Even if your sound system isn’t yet on its last legs, that doesn’t mean your congregation's overall experience wouldn’t be significantly improved by an updated sound system.
This may be especially true if you have a variety of presentation styles during a service or use a lot of live music. But even with a simpler service, it’s important that attendees of all ages can hear preachers and worship leaders clearly throughout the service.
Does your worship sound system suit your leaders?
Services should be moving experiences that the congregation and leaders all immerse themselves in, without the distraction of a bad sound system.
Maybe the nature of your worship band has changed or is likely to change in future. If extra instruments have been added, your existing sound system might need an upgrade. It may be that you now need to mic up the drum kit to be heard, could take advantage of mixing apps on tablets and other devices, or have developed the need for wireless microphones.
Maybe there’s even someone within your church who’s a tech enthusiast and would jump at the chance to make the most of an updated worship AV system, to improve the service experience for everybody.
Have your intentions changed?
If you’re looking to keep your congregation engaged or to attract new members, you might have chosen to do so by varying up your house of worship’s calendar. The addition of orchestra, choir, or theater performances would be a good reason to update your sound system.
If you’d like to bring more young people into your congregation, a high-quality AV system would help you do that. That doesn’t mean your AV needs to provide a breathtaking experience nobody will ever forget, but it is worth bearing in mind that tech-savvy younger people will quickly spot technical inefficiencies and could be put off by them.
With so many elements to sound system equipment, it can be difficult to assess whether you should take the plunge and go for an upgrade.
At Advanced Sound & Communication, we can give you an honest assessment of what would work for your particular needs and budget to help you decide whether to update your worship sound system or church AV.