Fall 2011 Update

Hope everyone had a great summer!
We have some exciting news for this fall and a few changes too.
First please check the schedule and let me know if there are any problems with your dates. http://www.newhopechurch.ca/docs/schedule.php
Grant and camera
NHC has received a 30k grant to produce a 5 part series on faith and science. A portion of this $$ will go towards a second camera for use in service. My initial thoughts on how this will work is to have the existing recording person run one of the cameras doing the wide and medium shots from a fixed angle. This works well because the Canon can be zoomed from a remote control allowing the recording mixer to remain sitting. This camera would also feed the children's nursery and upstairs areas. The new second camera would be operated in a tight mode, doing head shots and shots with backgrounds from an angle. We will also be doing a number of on site interviews for the science series.
Why do this? Our videos have received 330k views so far this year (415k last year). So far we have received 145 comments (real ones) that ask some good questions. The web site sees over 15,000 visits per month. Data transfer averages just over 50gb per day. I believe we are reaching people and should continue to do so. The second camera will help to up the quality a bit.
Any ideas on what our new camera should be like? Please let me know.

Storage
We have vacated the old storage room and are in the new, same keys as before. We are trying to work out how to load that room but for now just get things in there as tight as possible. We are also working on new storage on stage that would replace the existing understage storage. If you time to help with this please let me know.

Nursery LCD
A new LCD for the nursery is going to be wall mounted. It will be wired in but need to be powered up each Sunday. The old cart will contain the keypad still and nursery sign in materials.

Small Service System
We used the small service system 5 times this summer and have all the kinks worked out. It works best for times when crowds as small and the band is a max of 2 people. The powered speakers have a very different pattern then the EV's. Please take extra time to walk around and make sure you have full coverage.

Sound and bands
The bands have all been reshuffled and new people added, the new list is on the http://www.newhopechurch.ca/docs/schedule.php page.
This fall I would like to standardize our stage monitor layout for a couple of reasons. One is to have consistency from band to band, to make setup faster and to keep the same type of speaker on the same EQ.
Basically this would mean the 3 powered speakers across the front (mix 4,5,6) and 3 EV's across the back. Across the back would be mix 7&8, with on the six person teams mix 8 would be looped for the drums and bass. Please see http://www.newhopechurch.ca/docs/bandlayout.pdf for details, and give me your feedback.

Thanks for all the time you have each put into this it does make a difference.
Keith

Spring Update 2011

Hi,
Lots of upcoming tech stuff this spring and then we can coast through the summer!
Special events - Cara Luft at Riverpark Church tonight 8 pm
The King's Speech movie night - May 13 at NHC
Volunteer Appreciation BarBQue - June 11 at Keith's House

1. Tech schedule is now updated till the end of summer, please check that the dates work for you. Let me know (as some of you have), when you have holidays.
http://www.newhopechurch.ca/docs/schedule.php
2. Light maintenance will be happening in May, I don't have a date yet from the community center but will send it out as soon as I know.

3. "B" system build
We almost have all the parts for the new "B" audio system. This will place the Mackie recording mixer into it's own cart, complete with snake and processing. We will be using this for special events and small services where we need fewer inputs (ie summer). The idea is that one person can set this up.
Some of the help needed is, building the new box, painting, removing snake from ceiling upstairs, installing new systems and resetting processors. If you are interested in helping with this project, please let me know.

4. Bingo has ended...
We will be getting more storage space from the community center which will mean some reorganization of the storage room. On stage the bingo cage will be going so we will be using the entire stage. Help will be needed for basic construction, demolition. TDA

5. Recording techs
Changes to audio recordings. Due to a lack of interest in audio "CD's" we are going to discontinue the making audio CD's each service. From now on we will be recording the entire service and then burning it to disk as a .wav file and a 128kbps mp3. Audio CD's will be made on request only.

6. Video techs
As part of the purchases for the "B" system we are adding another wireless microphone. This new wireless can be camera mounted also, allowing audio to be sent to the camera from the mixer wirelessly. So for the adventurous the whole service could be shot hand held...
See me for details!

7. Sound techs
A part of the "B" system upgrades we will be going to 3 wireless systems, we will be able to configure these as 3 headsets, 2 headsets and 1 handheld or 1 headset and 2 handhelds.

8. Multimedia
We will be going to Powerpoint 2010 soon, provides advanced video support including words over video.

Thanks so much for serving in tech at NHC, God bless you all for your time and effort.
Keith

Background Lighting Changes

So with the New Year comes a new LED light setup. For background lighting we are changing from the 8 Par 38 100watt to 4 Par 64 30 watt LED. The main advantages are; smaller footprint on stage, ability to change colors on the fly, 700w drop in power supply required.
Each LED requires 4 channels to mix colors;
CH1 Level - 50% is full 51-100% strobe
CH2 Red
CH3 Green
CH4 Blue

For one color setup, we are using channels 17 thru 20, so if the LED fixture is set to 17, it will use channels 17,18,19,20. We are going to assign these to scene 6-Red 7-Green 8-Blue, for easier mixing.

For two color setup, we are using channels 21 thru 24, so a LED fixture set to 21 will use 21,22,23,24.
These will be assigned to scene 9-Red 10-Green 11-Blue.

Each fixture is individually assigned so that different colors can be added to the outsides, insides or alternated.

By using the scene menu you can bring up the band, the desired background lighting, hit record and then it will be saved into the cue list.

Please ask for help if this is confusing and I will walk you through it.
More info can be found in this pdf
http://www.newhopechurch.ca/docs/lighting.pdf
Keith

As the Christmas rush begins there are a few things to keep you all in
the loop.
1. New People
Please welcome Mark and Josh. Mark is helping out with audio and Josh with video. Great to have you guys!
2. Multimedia Audio
After a number of repairs to the cable between the main mixer and the multimedia box I have decided to replace the whole setup. The multipin connector we were using was not very high quality and has allowed connections to break off repeatedly. Since a high grade multi pin connector and a small mixer were close to the same price I went with a small mixer. There are several benefits to this, the first it
simplifies wiring between the boxes, and allows for an easy to access headphone setup for the multimedia operators. It also frees up several channels on the main mixer.
(More info on the "Art" mini mixer)
I also added a second line for an ipod, mostly we use this on communion days.
3. Christmas Decor
I am trying a new setup for Christmas, instead of the floor lights we will be using lights attached to the back curtains. These "rope" lights plug right into the wall and are not on a dimmer. There will be a banner hanging on the left side and a curtain on the right, these will be lit with the 2 LED's. In addition 2 purple curtains will hang on an angle on stage with a couple of candle lit windows in front of them. Please be very careful when moving the curtain as the lights are attached to the curtain sliders.
4. Gym Heat
There is now a key on the key stick in the drawer to turn up the heat in the gym if the West Hillhurst guys forget to do it. The kitchen controls we used to use are disconnected and the heat is controlled from the thermostats only.
5. Christmas Coffee House
Friday Dec 17 - 7:30 pm it is a great time to relax and meet people so please consider coming out.
6. Christmas Eve/Dec 26
Setup 4 pm, no take down on Christmas Eve, no setup on Dec 26. Yaa!


I want to wish you all a good Christmas and thankyou for supporting NHC through the technical arts.
Keith

Sound Levels

Hi,
In the last week we have had a number of complaints of the sound levels being too high in the worship part of the service, making it hard for people to hear themselves singing.
I have asked Gary to see if we can get the drum levels down which would allow us to bring down the levels of the entire band.

After thinking about it for a bit I've come up with a few guidelines.
- Use the sound level meter, keep the peak level to 86db A weighted slow or 90db C weighted slow. (for more info on how to use the meter, talk to me when your on on Sunday).

The following does not apply to all songs, use it where you can.
- Try not to drown out the singing, in other words aim to make your mix at the level where you can hear the band and the people singing. This is very important on hymms, but may also work on other songs.
-Blend voices on choruses, use reverb (or more reverb) just on the chorus.
-Vary the amount of bottom end energy (amount in subs), adding more to louder songs
-Turn off all mics on the drums other than the kick on louder songs and turn off any unused mics.
-Cut (gently) the 2-4k frequency on louder vocals, electric guitar, snare, brass on a loud song as this is the ears most sensitive range, you can do this easily by changing the EQ on the sub group.

However when the band does a "special", in other words the worship leader asks the audience to sit down, you can give a little more level as people are not trying to sing with that song.

If you have other thoughts about this please comment,
Thanks,
Keith

Tech's Needed

We are currently short a few key people in sound and multimedia, please email me keith@newhopechurch.ca if your interested in helping out. All training is provided, commitment is once every 4 weeks.
Thanks,
Keith

LED

After a few years of watching, LED lighting has come to the point where brightness, features and cost are affordable for us and probably most small churches.

Why LED?
For us as we live in older rented facilities where we cannot do upgrades to the AC feeds, LED provides more lighting options per watt. We recently have been trying Microh's LED KDII Par64 RBG.

These lights are comparable to a 300w Par56 in brightness, but draw only 30watts. A side benefit is that they can be used in locations where kids are running around without having to worry about small burnt hands (we have a lot of the under 5 crowd!)

So far we have found these lights to offer very saturated red, green and blue colors, but due to their RGB design, yellows and oranges are harder to mix.
Since LED lights can only be dimmed by turning them off and on a flicker free design is essential for video, and these seem to work well.

The LEDP64KDII can be operated in several stand alone modes, including a music chase mode or by using 4 DMX channels (dim,R,G,B).

They donot produce an acceptable white light and I wouldn't consider using them for a front or side fill on any person, but for accent lighting, superb! (YMMV, try before buying)

Considerations when buying LED's
Brightness - equal to XXX incandescent watts
Flicker Free - for less video interference
Number and Brightness of LEDs
Color of LEDs
Ability to produce white
Stand alone or DMX operation
Number of DMX channels required.

Sound System Changes

Earlier this year we upgraded our stage monitor system with 2 powered NX55P speakers. This allows us to have 5 monitors on stage without the band having to haul in extra equipment. After using the system for the past 2 months in various ways we have decided to make the following changes.
We are moving from 4 monitor mixes to 5, the mid/high speakers will become stereo.

The changes are marked on the mixer, snake and amp rack.

YAMAHA MIXER
1 Group mix - drums
2 Group mix - instruments
3 Group mix - vocals
4 Monitor mix 4
5 Monitor mix 5
6 Monitor mix 6
7 Monitor mix 7
8 Monitor mix 8
9 Effects mix
10 Subwoofer mix
Stereo - mid/high left and right
Stereo2 - recording (when recording mixer not used)
Matrix 1 - recording house mix
Matrix 2 - camera (when recording mixer not used)

SNAKE HEAD
Subs - blue (2 subs or sub left)
Mid/Hi Left - white
Mid/Hi Right - black
Monitor Mix 4 - red (EV speaker or sub right)
Monitor Mix 5 - yellow (EV speaker)
Monitor Mix 6 - green (EV speaker)
Monitor Mix 7 -powered speaker
Monitor Mix 8 - powered speaker

AMP RACK
QSC LEFT - mono subs or sub mix left (blue)
QSC RIGHT - monitor 4 or sub mix right (red)
Yamaha P2100
A - monitor mix 5 (yellow)
B - monitor mix 6 (green)
Yamaha P2200
A - mid/hi left (white)
B - mid/hi right (black)

NOTES
Example setups
5 monitors (4EV,5EV,6EV,7powered,8powered)
Subs both on QSC Left
Stereo mid/hi

4 monitors (5EV,6EV,7 powered,8 powered)
Subs one each on QSC connected with Y-cable
Stereo mid/hi

Please note that mix 4 should be used last as it does not have a dedicated equalizer and may be prone to feedback problems.

Using the stereo mix feature requires several things, one that a channel be set to stereo not to group (the pan control comes after the stereo switch not before).
Example would be when using sax on far right of stage, you could pan it to the left to balance the sound.
However groups can be panned left or right.

On April 17 I will hold a Saturday morning practice for those who wish to learn more and try things out in a more relaxed setting.
Keith

Easter and babies!

Hi, just wanted to wish you all a blessed Easter and to let you know that Brandon and Marcia had a baby boy last week, congrats to them!
Hope you all enjoy the Easter holiday and thanks for being on the tech team.
Keith