This past weekend, I was training a new volunteer for my sound team. He was sitting in the sound booth with me during the service so I could show him the work that's done during the service. Several times, I found myself saying "you can do [whatever] for a slight improvement in the sound."This morning, I realized that learning the different subtleties in audio manipulation eventually leads to a large improvement in the quality of sound. For a simple example, how can I [keep reading]
Slaying the Monitor Dragon
December 15, 2008 Mixed by
This weekend, one of our sound guys had the privilege (bad luck) of running the audio for the Christmas choir. He did a fantastic job in spite of battling the dreaded Monitor Dragon. The Monitor Dragon is the beast that rears its ugly head when the people on stage need a monitor volume so loud that it affects the sound the congregation hears. This is a beast that we have tamed by using IEM's and educating the worship teams in proper monitor usage. The choir usage though, [keep reading]
Rock Concert Or Humble Hymns?
December 1, 2008 Mixed by
Over the Thanksgiving holiday, I heard my brother-in-law's wife make the comment that she didn't like a church she visited because it was like a rock concert with everyone having their hands in the air. She's in her late twenties; a person you would think would be at a mega-church and singing worship songs. However, because of how she was raised, she loves singing hymns. She likes a piano, a choir, maybe another instrument but in short, simple. I could provide the most [keep reading]
Dissecting A Song For Better Mixing
November 22, 2008 Mixed by
I know people who work on dead bodies. I have several friends who, after graduating from college, went on to medical school. They were given cadavers (dead bodies) which lasted throughout much of their schooling. They dissected the bodies so they could learn how the body works; where nerve bundles are found and how muscles are connected, among other things. In time, understanding the parts of the body meant gaining a better understanding of how the body works together as [keep reading]
Dealing with Criticism: A Lesson for the New Guy
November 14, 2008 Mixed by
I've heard my share of criticisms on the quality of the church audio. Years ago when we ran a sub-par system, criticism was common. Feedback in the system was common and the production quality just wasn't what it could have been. Ah, the good old days.Now, it's rare that I hear criticism either for my work or another sound tech's work. Most of my sound tech's know how to handle criticism anyway, so it's not an issue.Soon, I will be adding one or two new guys to the sound [keep reading]
I'm Chris Huff and I've been working behind a mixer for over twenty years. Since 2008, I've been helping other sound techs learn all about the art of church audio through behindthemixer.com.
For more about me, 