About James Wasem

Author / Audio Engineer
Great Church Sound | Missoula, MT
greatchurchsound.com
@James_Wasem

James Wasem has been fascinated by sound and electricity from an early age. His love of music and technical gear made sound engineering and systems integration a natural pursuit. James has spent the last 20 years performing and touring in bands as a drummer, mixing live sound for churches, schools and theatres, and working as an audio systems installer and designer. James believes that technical ministry volunteers provide a critical service for their congregations and should be well equipped with quality tools to help them grow in craft, skill, and spirit. James and his wife Kate live in the beautiful Rocky Mountains of Missoula, Montana.

stay alert

Stay Alert in the Tech Booth

Tech tips don’t always have to be about “technology”. This one is about you – The Tech! It can be easy to get caught up in the business of serving the worship team, managing technical details, and preparing for a service or special event. Sure, much of your mandate to... read more

3 Tips to Stop Audio Feedback

Feedback from the sound system is one of the most annoying distractions from the sound system. As a new volunteer sound tech, feedback was my arch nemesis! A successful service was defined by the simple test of whether there was feedback in the middle of service or not. The interesting... read more

equip your sound team

How to Equip Your Sound Team for Success

Great sound doesn’t just happen. It takes time, energy, and commitment from a team of dedicated individuals. This not only goes for those on the sound team, but from other leaders in the church as well. Great sound doesn’t start with your sound system. It doesn’t even start with your... read more

time management

Time Management Tips for Sound Techs

A proficient live sound tech is always aware of time. Besides the obvious mandate of showing up early for soundcheck and being ready when the event or service starts, a sound tech needs to manage a variety of critical components that factor into a great mix. 1. Running an efficient... read more

live streaming

Audio Tips for Live Streaming

In an effort to “get our church online and live streaming”, many teams make the mistake of forgetting one CRUCIAL element… …The Audio Quality! I’m going to make a bold statement here: the audio for a live stream is more important than the video.   We’re tuning in to hear... read more

Practice Your Mixing Skills

Practice Your Mixing Skills

Mixing sound is an art It is also a technical craft. And like any art or craft, you must commit to learning and practice in order to stay proficient and mix with excellence on a regular basis. This begs the question: How do you practice mixing? This is going to... read more

direct box

Why You Should Use a Direct Box

A discussion about direct boxes might seem like a terribly simple concept for some. But to be honest, this topic confused me for at least one or two seasons as a new live sound tech. In order to address the reason why we should do something or use some tool... read more

Ideas for Better Sound Quality at Your Church

Ideas for Better Sound Quality at Your Church

  Sermons are carefully prepared. Worship songs are thoughtfully selected and arranged. The band is warmed up and ready to go. And the tech team has everything in place for a quality service. But there are still sound system problems… EVERY WEEK! Maybe these problems are minor and “easy” to... read more

How To Select The Right Microphone

It seems like there is a lot of mystery and mythology centered around the selection of “the perfect microphone.” So what is it that makes a mic sound good, and how can we select the right mic for our live sound application? Step 1: Placement Listen. I don’t care what... read more

How Headphones are Ruining Your Mix

I’ve got a confession to make. I used to be addicted to headphones. Pathetic, right? And there was even something worse that I let happen because of this (I’ll explain that in a minute). Let’s get this straight. Headphones are an extremely important tool in your live sound toolbox. They... read more