As your church grows, so will your audio needs. You want to ensure music and gospel reach every member’s ears, and choosing the right professional audio gear is the key. There are several considerations to make when shopping for products. Here are several to help you find exactly what you need. What to Consider When Buying a New Audio System for Your Church 1. How You’ll Use It Specialized professional audio gear has specific purposes. If you’re strictly preaching, you’ll only need a PA system and microphone. However, if you’ll have a choir during traditional services or a progressive band with guitars and drums during late services, a more versatile system will be necessary. Some microphones are designed only for vocals, while others have a wider range to handle other instruments or audio from amplifiers. You may also need more speakers, depending on the size of the space. Adding some to the ceiling, sides of the room, or the balcony or other areas will ensure everyone hears clearly. Think about all the events you’ll host so you choose the appropriate gear. 2. Control Sound is composed of low, mid, and high-range frequencies. Vocals and instruments produce various tones, and they can clash and hurt listeners' ears. An audio mixer lets you reduce frequencies on various instruments and microphones to create harmony. You may want to take the high frequencies out of a guitar while a tenor is singing or add bass to emphasize a powerful sermon. The mixer is essential for creating the best sounds, and many professional audio companies will provide training after installation. 3. Room Acoustics Sound echoes off walls, corners, and every other surface in a room. These echoes, called reverb, can create harsh sounds or muddle tones when the room's acoustics aren’t managed. Professional audio technicians will carefully assess sound absorption and echo—called reverb—in your church. They may then install sound-absorbing panels or bass-muffling blocks to better regulate the sound. When you purchase professional audio gear from Claiborne Sharp Professional Audio , you can be confident of the quality and expertise their staff provides. Since 1989, they’ve created custom audio solutions for churches, schools, and commercial clients in Shreveport, LA. They provide audio training to ensure you understand the gear. Call (318) 861-5953 to speak with a representative and start exploring products and services on their website.

Whether you’re recording an album or setting up a large sound system for an event, setting up mics for the drums is always a challenge. Drums create a lot more noise than most other instruments, so sound can bleed into different microphones and muddy the percussion. Below are a few tips for getting the best drum sound possible. How to Set Up Drum Microphones  1. Isolate the Drums If you’re setting up a sound system in a small room, the front of the drum kit should be surrounded by an isolation shield and behind the drummer should be treated with acoustically absorbent material. Another good option is a full sound isolation booth. For rooms that seat between 500 and 1,000 people, an isolation shield around the entire kit should be enough to keep acoustic sound from reaching the audience. Effective isolation also prevents sound from each drum from reaching the other microphones, which makes the kit easier to mix. 2. Keep Stands Away From the Drums As you set up the mic stands, make sure they’re not touching any part of the drums. Otherwise, they’ll likely pick up vibrations that will be audible through the PA. Be especially careful that the mic stands aren’t touching the bass drum ring or cymbals. 3. Don’t Use Too Many Mics While each drum might need its own mic, too many can cause unexpected problems with the sound quality. Soundwaves from two different drums can cancel each other out or bleed into channels you didn’t intend. Using more mics than necessary can also be confusing for volunteers who don’t have a tech background. The main drums to focus on are the kick and snare drums, as these will provide the discernable beat of the song. 4. Leave Space Between the Snare Drum & the Hi-Hat Isolating the hi-hat from the snare may not always be possible. However, try to keep the snare mic angled away from the hi-hat or place it slightly lower. Otherwise, the mic can get hit by a small rush of air when the hi-hat closes, creating a strange sound your audience will hear. 5. Experiment With Placement Some drums sound better when microphones are placed above the kit, while others have more punch with microphones placed underneath. If your kick drum sounds flat, consider moving the mic to the outside. Don’t be afraid to move the microphones around until you achieve the effect you want. No matter what type of event you’re planning, Claiborne Sharp Professional Audio offers commercial sound solutions tailored to your specific needs. They’ve been serving clients throughout the Shreveport, LA, area since 1989 and pride themselves on helping their clients achieve quality sound. Visit their website for more on their array of services, or call (318) 861-5953 to speak with a commercial sound expert today.

Microphone feedback can ruin almost any event, putting additional stress on performers and making the audience uncomfortable. High-pitched squeals occur when sound from the speakers goes back through a microphone and cycles through the system, where it's amplified repeatedly. Below are a few audio installation tips for avoiding feedback at your church or business event. How to Avoid Feedback 1. Turn Off Open Mics Microphones that aren’t being used can pick up speaker sounds and trigger a feedback loop. Any time a microphone isn’t being used, turn it off from the soundboard. This little extra step can prevent most squeaks and squeals that make your presentation seem less professional. 2. Keep Microphones Away From Loudspeakers Loudspeakers are designed to project sound as far as possible, which makes it more likely that signals will get picked up by a microphone. Creating enough space in smaller venues can be a challenge, but moving the speakers in front of the mics can help. You should also make sure directional mics are pointed away from the stage monitors. 3. Lower the Speaker Volume Controlling feedback is often a balancing act between speaker output and the audience experience. Cutting the speaker volume by a few decibels minimizes the chance that soundwaves will feed back into the system. To ensure the presenter is still audible in the back of the room, try moving the speakers closer to the audience. 4. Use Directional Mics Omnidirectional microphones are equally sensitive to sound coming from the front, sides, or back of the device. This increases your chances of producing feedback, especially if you’re doing sound installation in a smaller venue. Directional mics, on the other hand, are designed to pick up sound in front of the microphone and filter out other noises. Even in a small space filled with speakers, you can create pockets away from the speakers where a directional mic can safely be placed. As a premier audio installation expert in Shreveport, LA, Claiborne Sharp Professional Audio has been serving businesses and churches within a 100-mile radius since 1989. Whether you’re installing a new system or having feedback issues, you can rely on their team of professionals to provide solutions that will keep your presentations and concerts flowing smoothly. Visit their website for more on their audio installation services or call (318) 861-5953 to schedule an appointment.

Many churches have recently begun enhancing their Sunday services through the use of church video systems and professional audio equipment. Items like video cameras, mixers, and video projectors are becoming more and more commonplace during worship. If your organization seeks to update its audiovisual presentations, below are some ways a projector can help. 3 Advantages of Video Projectors in a Church 1. Substitute for Hymnals Church hymnals are expensive, usually costing between $10 and $20 apiece—or thousands of dollars to accommodate a medium-to-large congregation. They are also bulky and inconvenient to use. It takes time for parishioners to find the correct page, and not everyone stays current with the current verse or chorus—especially if you have to share the book with someone else. A projector lets you skip all the initial uncertain page-flipping and keeps everyone at the same point in the song. It lets everyone follow along with ease, even those who did not have a conveniently located hymnal in front of them. 2. Highlight Important Points or Passages The pastor's sermon can last 20 minutes or more, and a projector helps churchgoers stay current, remain focused, and follow the thread. Project a list of topic headings so the audience can keep track of the sermon's main points. Highlight important verses or passages, so the congregation has time to contemplate them deeply. Finally, a picture paints a thousand words, so use vivid images to keep your audience engaged and to improve communication. 3. Flexibility & Versatility The portability of a projector makes it useful in myriad ways. It's invaluable during worship services but is also ideal for creating memorable Sunday school lessons. Take it with you during off-premises ministries or use it for youth group meetings. It provides unbeatable versatility and turns every event into an audiovisual experience. If your church seeks a new video projector to enhance worship services, contact Claiborne Sharp Professional Audio . They have served Shreveport, LA, and the surrounding areas since 1989. They provide quality products, affordable prices, and friendly, dependable installation service. They also specialize in church sound systems, video cameras, and audio mixers, and can help you encourage worshiper engagement. Learn more about them on their website or call (318) 861-5953 to discuss your video projector options.

Whether it's a conference room, lecture hall, or church, when it comes to designing large rooms, you need to think about acoustics . How the sound moves around the room is integral to its functionality. Although much of this relies on a sound system, the room itself matters too. While there are many aspects to it, an important one is sound dampening. To better understand why, here's what you need to know. Why You Need Sound Dampening for Large Room Large rooms are very spacious, and because sound travels in waves, sounds tend to bounce around. Not only can this make a room noisier than necessary, but the incorrect sounds can become amplified. Without the correct acoustics, like sound dampening materials, the sound of someone's heels on the flooring can end up reverberating and drown out the person speaking at the podium. Furthermore, both the noises inside and outside the room can travel between them. Using sound dampening materials ensures what's in the room stays in the room and what's outside doesn't get in. It softens the intensity and keeps the volume manageable and appropriate to the room. How to Achieve Sound Dampening The key to sound dampening is using thicker materials. For example, a solid wood door is better at sound dampening than a hollow-core one. As for the walls, more insulation or even another layer of drywall helps dampen the sound. If you're building from the ground up or renovating, materials like concrete or bricks are great for this. How Sound Absorption Works Aside from sound dampening, another critical factor to acoustics is sound absorption. Although they are commonly mistaken for one another, unlike dampening, this type redistributes the sound waves. The materials are soft and porous, and upholstery and carpeting are fantastic at sound absorption. They should be used in concert with dampening materials and placed throughout the room: on the walls, flooring, and the ceiling itself. If you have a large commercial space, Claiborne Sharp Professional Audio can ensure you have the proper acoustics and sound system. For more than 30 years, they've provided a variety of professional audio and video services for businesses throughout the Shreveport, LA, area. You can learn more about their services by visiting their website or by calling (318) 861-5953 .

Whether you own a restaurant, store, or another enterprise, everything from the building's paint colors to the music playing can make a difference in the customer experience. Sound in particular plays a big role in the ambiance you create, so prioritize professional audio installation. Allowing knowledgeable experts to install your sound system gives your business the following advantages. Why Businesses Need Professional Audio Installation 1. Seamless Integration Commercial sound systems typically have multiple parts, including receivers, speakers, and video equipment. Without experience, integrating these components into a system that works seamlessly can be challenging. Professionals ensure that all system parts are integrated seamlessly to work together and create the best possible audio-visual experience for your store. 2. Correct Acoustics Commercial spaces often have acoustical challenges that can affect sound quality in different areas. High ceilings, open spaces, flooring materials, and even exterior noise levels can all alter how sound travels through your business. Professional audio installers know how to work with unique acoustic elements and will install your system appropriately. 3. Ease of Use Your employees likely aren't AV experts and may not be capable of managing a complex sound system. Professional audio installers will make it simple for the team to use the AV system by making the controls intuitive to use. In most cases, they'll connect the system to a central controller that can adjust sound, displays, and content with just a few clicks. They will ensure you know how to use these features so you can focus on other priorities. Create the ideal environment with professional audio installation from Claiborne Sharp Professional Audio . These audio and visual system experts work with businesses and churches within 100 miles of Shreveport, LA, providing full-service AV equipment sales and service. With more than 30 years of experience, they are a respected authority in the field and will help you make the most of your equipment. Learn more about their services online, or call (318) 861-5953 to discuss your needs and schedule a consultation.

No matter what the size of your business, a professional audio and video system can help boost your company’s image while promoting growth. Solutions such as sound systems, acoustics, video projectors, and cameras are powerful tools that transform the way businesses communicate. Here are the advantages of investing in commercial audiovisual (AV) systems. How an Audiovisual System Can Benefit Your Business 1. Better Engagement During presentations, meetings, and conferences, professional audio and video systems create a more interactive experience for employees and clients. When they feel involved, they become more attentive and engaged. The effects can be amplified if AV solutions are combined with handouts. Having two mediums to engage with will improve learning and participation. 2. Enhanced Communication One of the basic requirements of a successful meeting or event is clear communication. Every setup needs a sharp audio system with well-designed acoustics, as well as a state-of-the-art projector or mounted display with a crisp image. It will be easier to relay information, understand presentations, and collaborate. High-quality audiovisual systems lead to efficient communication and more productive interactions. 3. Versatility & Accessibility When sudden meetings need to be called or quick decisions must be made, gathering employees from all over the building into one room can waste precious time. Professional audio and video systems can be built with versatility and mobility in mind. Installing this equipment throughout the office makes it easily accessible no matter where your employees are, eliminating delays and leaving your company more prepared for the unexpected. 4. Impress Customers & Investors Having a cutting-edge AV system will leave a good first impression on customers and investors. They will see a modern, thriving company that is able to keep up with the latest technology. The advantage of a professional and innovative appearance allows you to stand out from the competition and potentially retain customers and further gain investors. 5. Saves Time & Money High-quality video conferencing equipment could greatly reduce the need for travel and accommodation expenses. When you can collaborate instantly over crystal clear video, there is typically no need to spend time and money on traveling to meet in person. Although there are initial costs of installation, the savings over time are likely to offset them. If your business would benefit from professional audio and video equipment, get in touch with Claiborne Sharp Professional Audio . Serving Shreveport, LA, and the surrounding areas for over 30 years, this full-service audiovisual company offers custom solutions for schools, churches, and businesses. These sound and video experts are committed to providing the best audiovisual experience for your employees and clients to help your business grow. Learn more about their services online, or call (318) 861-5953 to discuss your needs.

If you’ve ever attended a show, lecture, or another event in an auditorium and struggled to hear what the speakers were saying, poor acoustics are likely to blame....