Find the Best Volume for Congregational Worship! Photo provided by sraburton
The answer to this question is easy. The problem is you might not like my answer. How loud is too loud? What a great topic for a Monday morning…
The problem in giving the correct answer to this question is that, first, it depends on who is asking the question. Typically, a congregation member will want an answer of “you’re right, the sound tech is wrong” whereas a sound tech will want the answer, “you’re right, the congregation member is wrong.” Honestly, it depends.
I recall getting this question from a congregation member and based on their scenario, the volume level really was too loud. I’ve also had the question from church sound techs and I agreed their volume level was good and it was just a matter of a particular congregation member. But in some cases, I’ve told them just the opposite.
You are dealing with a very subjective question. How do you define “too loud?“ Who defines “too loud?“ What if your definition of “not loud enough” clashes with another person’s “too loud?“ Therein lays the answer.
How loud IS too loud?
It’s too loud if;
- The pastor says it’s too loud
- Multiple people complain week after week
- The louder you make the volume, the less people sing along
- You are mixing for yourself and not the demographic of the congregation. You’ll likely see this in less people singing along…or people glare at you after the service.
- Parents take their kids out of the service (yep, I’ve heard about someone in that scenario).
Enough with the bullet points!
The answer to “how loud is too loud?” comes down to this;
If it’s not conducive to worship for the majority of the congregation or you are told by the pastor to turn it down, then it’s too loud.
THE WRONG QUESTION IS BEING ASKED!
The more and more I hear from people with this question…well, I think the wrong question is being asked. Ask yourself the question “what’s the best volume level for worship?”
- The best volume level for worship depends on the demographic of the congregation.
- The best volume level for worship depends on the song the band is playing.
- The best volume level for worship depends on the mood the worship team wants to project (exalting, introspective, somber, etc.)
The “best volume” might have an average for YOUR PARTICULAR worship service, such as 96 dBA. But it’s just an average. It’s nothing more than that.
Desire to reach the best volume for worship by the church body and that’s however loud it happens to be.
One simple method to volume control and testing
Volume control for a full band can be simple. Start by placing all the instruments into a subgroup. Then place all the vocals into a subgroup. You might call them VCA’s instead of subgroups. You now have complete control with two faders. Want the vocals to be prominent in the mix? Bring down the instrument fader. Want to push the instrumental energy? Bring up the instrument faders. Bring both up / down and watch the congregation. If you’re not comfortable with subgroups, use the master volume fader.
Using just the master fader, or the subgroup faders, actively adjust the volume from one song to the next. You might even do it during a song if you feel it calls for it.
Active volume mixing gets you focusing on getting the best volume for worship.
Question: Which question is more helpful for you…how loud is too loud…or what’s the best volume for worship?
Like what you've just read? If you do, please join over 3,500 fellow church techs who have downloaded my FREE 23-page ebook, How to Get a Great Drum Sound, and currently receive my regular pro tips, notes on new gear, as well as other great stuff in my newsletter! Simply enter your email below:
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, 
Hi, just like to say you write some very helpful blogs which I’m learning a lot from! I see a lot of people here have written that DB level doesn’t help – but recently we’ve had some complaints (including a letter) saying that it’s too loud. We’ve explained that it’s not necessarily volume but mix.
To help monitor this we need a DB meter – I’ve looked around but was wondering if you could recommend anything? Ideally I’d like something that could be linked to a computer so that I can monitor max/average/current db level. and mayber even showing the frequency split as well?
Any links would be appreciated!
Thanks, Sam
Hi Sam,
Every church will probably be a little different in terms of comfortable sound pressure levels but you can set standards to protect your sound tech and musicians ears and fine tune them over time. We wrestled with this a few years ago and there was considerable wrangling in the beginning as we searched for a workable solution. We chose to follow OSHA standards and not reinvent the wheel. “A” weighted and “slow” settings were used for OSHA hearing protection standards and a simple Radio Shack meter will provide accurate readings for this. Using other weightings or fast response times moves away from OSHA hearing protection standards and into the realm of system tuning. There are hundreds of different meters available for system tuning but the simplest meter is often the best for hearing protection. These guys have several that allow data logging:
http://www.dasdistribution.com/products/sound_level_meters/
In addition to regular SPL monitoring during service we have a small FAQ handout card at the mixing desk that says “We take hearing protection seriously” and simply explains that we monitor every service and follow OSHA standards for your protection. “Like it louder? Move towards the front or try The Edge venue for guitar driven rock worship. Like is softer? Move towards the back or try our Acoustic Cafe venue for a more intimate acoustic worship experience.”
In the end there is no perfect solution that will satisfy everyone but we give our congregation choices to allow them to pick the best worship situation for them. I hope you find this useful.
[MARKED AS SPAM BY ANTISPAM BEE | Empty Data]
Hi Chris, I’ve been that parent taking their child out the service when it’s too loud :-) I can tell my 3 year old means it when he covers his ears and says repeatedly “Its too loud!”
Nothing over 95-97 db for a congregation.
This is an important topic that every church wrestles with over time. I think it is useful for the head pastor, worship leader, and sound/audio leader to get together and agree on objective standards in advance and then measure the sound with a meter to remove subjectivity from the equation. Modern church sound systems are often capable of producing sustained SPL of 110db or more. It is generally accepted that sustained music above 100 db can and will cause hearing loss and our first job behind the mixer is to do no harm.
Our church has several venues with different worship music styles and volume levels to suit the congregation there.
One is a general audience with contemporary christian music and maximum sustained levels of 93db.
One is a youthful audience with guitar driven rock and max sustained levels of 98db
One is an Acoustic music venue with max sustained levels that vary from 85-90db depending on the team.
These may or may not work for your particular church but having a plan… an objective guide that leadership can agree on clarifies the need to protect the hearing of church membership while creating a moving and engaging worship service, and dissolves conflicts between the audio team leader, the worship leader, the pastor, and the grumpy old guy who is uncomfortable with the volume levels during service.
Cajondaddy, great to see you! Your comment on “sustained” should note that 2 hours or under, at 100dbA, is acceptable by OSHA reg’s. That’s NOT to say you need to run it at 100 dbA. Like you show with your different groups – different levels for different folks. I’ll also assume your other readings are in A-weighting.
Use your “objective” levels as max-levels. Then you can sculpt the volume as needed and keep it below the max. You can also use it as a guideline for general levels for that group of people.
Yes, yes, our standards are A weighted for maximum sustained levels at the mixing desk in the back of the room. A $30 Radio Shack SPL meter is plenty good enough for this task. We know that as you move 1/2 the distance towards the speakers, levels will increase by 3db. Occasional transients like a cymbal crash or timpani are not considered and quiet balads can certainly be much lower. Of course music is still subjective and a lovely tenor voice at 100db is a lot more pleasant to my ears than a searing, atonal lead guitar at 90db. Instruments or voices that clash with the rest of the team sound bad at every audible level. That is why we have faders:)
Yes 2hrs/day at 100dbA is our limitation because our most valuable ears (musicians and sound team) are often putting in that much time between morning rehearsal, 3 services, and an afternoon youth group or Baptism.
Here is a link to a study that may help you develop standards for your own church. By bringing this to the attention of your head pastor and worship leader you will likely gain credibility and build trust with them that you are putting the needs of the membership first:
http://www.duke.edu/~jak21/physics.html
The idea is to find common ground among church leadership regarding worship sound levels and empower the audio techs to uphold those standards. This has resolved 90% of the grumbling over “It’s too loud/No it’s not/Yes it is.” Always understand that a plan or standard is simply a starting point subject to review and is not written in stone tablets.
I agree with the “do no harm” policy. I really like your breakdown of the different styles of music at different levels. An acoustic guitar at 110 dB in most venues wouldn’t be appropriate, and trying to keep a student band under 85 dB would be nearly impossible, let alone impractical, and wouldn’t sound right to most of us.
I’ve found that pointing a sound meter at the stage doesn’t solve much. There is a lot of education that goes along with understanding the number you get. Should we use A weighted or C weighted? Fast response or slow? How sensitive/accurate is the meter. Add to that the fact that bass frequencies push a lot more air, resulting in higher SPLs than higher frequencies. A bass guitar can be over 100 dB and not be unpleasant, where a grindy, screeching electric can be at 88 dB and send people running for the doors.
Some pastors want to set a ceiling we are not to exceed, but don’t understand the science behind what the number represents, and don’t care to learn, which makes our job more difficult. I want to make it sound the best that it can, appropriate for the music and the congregation, so I tend to disregard the numbers. When he looks at the meter, sometimes it doesn’t read as high as he thinks it should, and tells me to turn it down anyway.
Yes, we use “A” weighted and slow response at the mixing desk because that is how OSHA standards were developed. Sustained volume is more likely to be damaging to ears than transients. If a Pastor is looking over your shoulder it is an indication that it is time for a meeting (on Tuesday) so you can find some agreement and build trust with this issue.
How about a simple rule of thumb like “If you can’t hear the congregation singing, it’s too loud”? That, after all, is the fundamental difference between mixing for church and a concert–the congregation is the main voice in the “mix” and the reason the band is there is to support their singing. Taking this approach would encourage the sound tech to listen to more than what’s happening up front. They might keep the overall volume down, or find creative ways to leave space in the mix for the congregation’s singing.
“You might call them VCA’s instead of subgroups.” Yes, but only if thats what they are. Be careful about causing confusion on that one.
I’d agree with the comment that volume perception is often more about frequency balance than overall SPL, try muting everything but the HF drivers and see if you don’t immediately want to turn it down :)
I think loudness also depends on how things are eq’d. People at my dad’s church always complained when his friend ran FOH because he ran the higher frequencies too hot, whereas when my dad runs FOH, at a higher decibel than his friend, he doesn’t get any complaints.
I’ve also personally dealt with the frustration of not having sufficient enough speaker coverage so that it is too loud in the front of the room, but nobody in the back can hear anything.
Tiffany, those are terrific examples of how volume issues aren’t always about the volume of the overall sound. Excessive low and high frequencies will do it! Oh, and speaker coverage…that’s a tough one. And if the person at FOH pushes a vocal or an instrument so that it sits on the other instruments, some might call it “too loud” when really it’s a problem with the mix.
How about: •The best volume level for worship depends on the target audience.
Our church has identified our target audience, yet a significant portion of the congregation (I wouldn’t say majority) is 10 – 20 years older than our target. Those are also the most vocal when it comes to almost everything, but sound in particular.
Interestingly, I just turned 50, and fall in the latter catagory, but also tend to like it loud. I tell my contemporaries that we are the first generation in history that our children have said, “Dad, turn it down! It’s too loud!”
Ken, “Dad, turn it down!” That’s great.
As for target audience volume differences, that’s a tough one. How does one do it without alienating the existing core audience? Imagine you are a pastor preaching a sermon on corporate worship. What topics would you address? Something to think about…something for me to think about.