New Church Audio System

dude_56013

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Well, I think the name pretty much sums it up. Our church's 1970's audio system is...well...[insert many expletives].

That said, I'm trying to come up with some sort of plan to get a new one. I'd be doing all the wiring and install and all that. I'm going to take my PA setup there a few Sundays and see how everyone likes it before we drop the money on it.

Here's what I'm thinking of doing.

2 x Peavey 12M (my current speakers)
1 x QSC GX3 Power Amp
1 x Alesis Mixer (My current mixer; love it!)

That totals $860 and doesn't factor in any wiring, such as speakon cables (which are pretty spendy) and normal wiring from the mixer to the amp.

Here's what the wiring diagram is going to look like:
102rs4w.jpg


Thoughts? Suggestions?
 
I do 't know much about this type of stuff, but you should definitely go with speakers installed in the ceiling. It will look much cleaner, and there won't be any obstructions for the sound.
 
Looks like a good setup. Make sure that each of the speakers points directly out over each set of pews, and then just mix mono.

As for the other stuff, maybe you could put the amps under one of thsoe pulpits, if it is a closed back podium with enough ventalation, that way you can reduce the speakon runs.
 
Foot, ceiling mounting is impossible at this point. It would greatly increase the price tag.

Why?

This.
25piaa8.jpg


It's a good 25 feet up there. We'd have to hire someone to do it. All of that scaffolding is down now, and we wouldn't have had enough to reach those corners anyways. You can see in the pic where the old speaker was mounted.

Rubber, I've gotta go there and have a look at where wires can be ran. I'm not positive where we'll put the amp yet. The podium idea is a good one, but it might be a little noisy because it's an open back, and I'm not sure if it's deep enough, either. I'll look into it though. We'll figure something out, I'm sure.

I was more concerned with the hardware and wire diagram, but both of you seem to feel it's decent. I'm pretty good with audio, it's just that it's been a while since I've dealt with it so I figured I'd do a double check.

I'm curious to see if J pops in this thread...
 
I'm not saying take everything here as gospel - but it's definitely a good read that highlights some important points!
http://www.audiosystemsgroup.com/3Times.pdf

The Peaveys you linked to are really designed as monitors - are you planning to mount these somewhere permenantly? They wouldn't be my first choice at that price bracket, I'd honestly go with something like the Behringer B1220s instead. Yes, I did just recommend Behringer - but they make some acceptable stuff these days, especially on a budget. The B1220 is a very nice cab for the price, plenty of power and they're pretty cheap. I think they've stopped making the original - there's a B1220 pro though which sounds a bit better than the original to my ears (though both are decent cabs.)

Oh, and regarding speacons - buy the connectors and make your own, it works out much much cheaper that way! It might sound silly, but since it's for an install I'd recommend buying normal 2 core mains cable and running it through that - it'll work out miles cheaper and sound exactly the same (just make sure it's thick enough!)

The main reason for the price difference is the "feel" of the cable, if I was touring there's no way I'd use mains cable because it coils like crap and doesn't lay flat properly without a lot of persuasion. But in permanent installs? No need for a nice feeling cable :)

Two other points:

1) What mics are you getting?
2) Factor some decent quality mic cables into the mix, especially if they're being unplugged and moved around a lot. Cheap ones just break and need resoldering until they're an inch in length at which point they need replacing - it's far cheaper in the long run and much more convenient to by decent ones to start with!
 
Sorry Berry, but I'll never buy Behringer. I've had nothing but horrid luck with them. And yes, I know they are "monitors" but they are more versatile since they can be pole mounted or sat on the floor at an angle if needed. I love the sound of my.

As far as speakons, I realized I don't need them. The amp allows 1/4" to 1/4".

I'll talk about the mics when I get back from my church meeting here in 15 minutes.
 
Maybe more surround sound? Like some really cheap speakers to just fill in sound?

That mixer is nice. Our church has something almost just like that!
 
Maybe more surround sound? Like some really cheap speakers to just fill in sound?

That mixer is nice. Our church has something almost just like that!

I don't think we need surround sound. We don't have a large enough sanctuary.

You need to hire a professional. I can not stress this enough.

We. do. not. have. the. money. nor. will. we. ever.

I cannot stress that enough. We are a congregation of 50 people on a Sunday. Plus, I'm probably more of a professional than anyone in this crap town of 3,000 people. We'll try my system out and see how it sounds and if it's crap, then I guess we'll look into other things.

Oh. Sorry Berry. On the topic of mics: we have never microphones (small podium ones; they work quite well). I'm not sure if they are phantom powered, but either way the new mixer has that if needed. We also have a wireless mic (crappy one that clips on your shirt) that isn't use much, but I can't rig that up into the mix, too. So...long story short, the mics aren't a problem. But I will probably run new cabling and install new XLR jacks since they are from the 70s.
 
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