SOUND SOLUTIONS
ACTION CHURCH CHOOSES ALLEN & HEATH | Doug Doppler
Regardless of the size of your Church or the number of locations , technology is increasingly changing the way we do Church . More and more of us are utilizing technologies like streaming and social media platforms like Facebook and YouTube to reach and attract people outside our four walls . As individuals , we are inclined to think of the social dimensions of these platforms . As Churches , it is increasingly vital that we understand the media side of social media .
The onramp to technology is more straightforward for newer Churches in that many of the leaders and congregants grew up in what I ’ ll call the ‘ post flip-phone age ’. They grew up immersed in technology and frequently don ’ t own a DVD player , printer , or wait for it … fax machine ( I still do by the way ). The point being is that our collective perspective on technology has some generational distinctions that tend to define and potentially inhibit our ability to see things from a level playing field . As it relates to ‘ doing Church ’ the goal of this ongoing series is to try and level that playing field by looking at some of the Churches out there who are making the most of technology as well as the platforms they ’ ve chosen and why . technology is not something Churches like Action simply use as a vehicle , it is integral to how they communicate who they are to the world , both personally and corporately . The framework of this understanding as it relates to your congregation is key to seeing how the conversation we ’ re about to embark upon can benefit you , your team , and the people who attend your Church , be it in person or online .
FROM PODCAST TO STREAMING As another point of reference , the ‘ now generation ’ did not invent the concept of repurposing Sunday ’ s message . The biggest difference is that video and streaming are increasingly changing the kind of content we need to capture , how we share it , and perhaps most importantly , when . In days past , we were afforded the ability to be a bit more casual about when we posted the service Podcast . When it comes to social media , regularity is key to higher engagement , which means whether you ’ re posting your service on YouTube after the fact , streaming during your service , or both , your tech game has to be a lot higher . A great video or streaming experience requires some new chops that are more than just capturing a stereo feed from the board as we did in the ‘ age of the Podcast ’!
SOUND SOLUTIONS As it relates to this conversation , there are several key considerations when it comes to addressing the production challenges most Churches are facing .
Broadcast We are effectively stepping into an era where even smaller Churches are needing to get their broadcast chops together . At their main campus , Action Church has a separate console just for broadcast .
Analog vs . Digital There is a lot to be said about relative simplicity of a traditional analog board , be it with or without effects . In contrast to the Allen & Heath dLive platform that Action Church has embraced for all their campuses , the small startup I personally attend is using a humble Allen & Heath MixWizard WZ4 16:2 analog console with built-in digital effects . While this console has served us really well , it is primarily designed to feed sound to monitors and mains . While we can pipe audio directly to the video camera , we are increasingly feeling the need to move to a digital board because of the input and output routing , channel presets , scenes , and robust effects processing .
For the next three issues , we ’ ll be looking at Florida ’ s Action Church with three levels of reveal . In this first installment , we ’ ll be addressing the fact that regardless of the size of your congregation or the number of campuses , we tend to have a lot more in common than we might think . By identifying the global nature of the challenges that many of us face , solutions can be found by looking at the best practices being employed by Churches that might not ‘ look ’ like your church at first glance . And from that perspective it is key to note that
LIGHTS , CAMERA , ACTION Action Church is four and half years-young and is about to launch their fourth campus , and has a weekly attendance between 3,500-4,000 people . As a member of ARC ( the Association of Related Churches ), they are operating out of a smart playbook , key to why they had over 700 people at their first service . Yes , I said first service . As a bit of a background , ARC helps equip Churches with some tried and true best practices , which for startups includes building community long before you launch .
Allen & Heath MixWizard WZ4 16:2
138 October 2018 WorshipMusician . com