Church Sound Repair & Maintenance Tips
When was the last time you went through and inspected your gear closet at church? Be honest!
A lot of tech rooms, drawers, and bins can get filled with old gear, bad cables, broken mic stands, and other gear that isn’t needed or just doesn’t work. While it can be convenient to throw bad cables in a pile “for later”, it’s important to schedule a few times throughout the year where you repair your cables, clean up your gear, and get rid of things you don’t need or use anymore. Here are some church sound repair & maintenance tips that can help keep your gear in good condition, and even prevent a stressful moment when you grab that bad cable that wasn’t fixed last year!
Quick Tips for the Tech Room
1. Schedule time each quarter to take inventory of your tech room.
- Are cables in the right place?
- Are all microphones accounted for?
- Do you have enough spare batteries for wireless devices?
- Is everything organized and labeled the way you like it?
2. Separate microphone, instrument, and speaker cables.
- Keeping cables separate can help you find the right one when you need it.
- Create a dedicated spot for bad cables so you can fix them when you have time.
- Use cable management for each cable, like a Velcro strap or tie lines.
3. Fix bad cables.
- Use a cable tester to check every cable.
- Keep a soldering iron and spare connectors handy.
- Repair and replace cables as needed.
- Restock any cables you need more of or commonly run out of.
4. Fix or replace broken mic stands.
- Maintain a small inventory of common parts and pieces if needed.
- Try to standardize on the type of stands you use to make repairs easier.
5. Get rid of old equipment.
- Donate used gear that you don’t need to another ministry department or organization.
- Clean up gear to sell online or at a church yard sale.
- Recycle or properly dispose of any gear that needs to be thrown away.
6. Check all of your loudspeakers.
- Test to make sure all tweeters, horns, woofers, and subs are working properly.
- Check portable speakers for loose connections.
- Make sure that all speaker stands are in good shape and safe for use.
7. Consider a system tune-up.
- Hire a professional to double-check your system components.
- Check the main system EQ and re-calibrate (if it hasn’t been done in a few years).
- Make sure your amplifiers and loudspeakers are properly protected with a limiter and power conditioning.
8. Make a budget for upgrades.
- Create or add to a budget of gear that you need to add or replace.
- Consider realistic timelines and budgets for replacing different types of equipment.
- Update model numbers or costs that may have changed since your last budget.
9. Communicate.
- Work with your team to make sure everything gets done (this is a great team training opportunity as well).
- Clearly communicate any needs and concerns with your leadership team.
Keeping an organized tech room and establishing a good maintenance schedule is an important part of being a good steward on the tech team.
The great thing is that it isn’t hard. It just takes a little bit of time and committing to do it!
