Keeping cool in the face of adversity: Sound Guy and Setup Crew Leader are jobs for the detail-oriented… but not the worry-wart. When I led the setup crew for the Rock, concerts in Old Town Square gave me ulcers – I felt it was just a matter of waiting for something to explode, fall over or blow a circuit. And that’s before the cops show up. For what it’s worth, I apologize to everybody who’s ever been sound guy for a concert where I’ve been point-of-contact for the businesses around the stage.

But Now that I am leading at our weekend services too it is a whole new ball game for me… not the leading part cause I’ve done that off and on there over the years, but more so… actualy I think I’ll do a seperate post on this situation to get some of your guys feedback rather than hi-jacking this discussion ;o)

As far as wthe relationship between sound man and worship leader (and rest of the band for that matter) goes, it is paramount to a smoothly running ministry. If the relationship is rocky, or non-existent, everyone’s life will be MUCH more difficult.

As with any relationship, this takes compromise and grace and forgiveness and submission (on both parties’ parts…). Maybe almost moreso than most relationships, as issues of preference, opinion, and philosophy collide weekly when it comes to running sound.

That is a good point on how the LW gets the brunt of comments about how things sounded bad or good when really the sound guy deserves those comments (good & bad) just as much.

As far as sound, at the Rock (i don’t attend frequently, but have filled in there and stop by once in a while) they hover around 105+, then one of our locations can go as low as 87. My goal is to keep things around 100, its powerful enough but not offensive.

Another piece to add to the mix though: when they are talking “sustained sound” they are talking about sort of the white(ish) or pink(ish) sound of machinery, engines, motors, etc. Music is a different sort of sound than that (most of the time ).

However having just come back from the David Crowder concert last night, I probably should have been wearing ear filters of some sort (as I SHOULD every time we play a live show, but never do… to my detriment)

Good discussion!

The church faces some risk of liability for music that is so loud that it causes permanent hearing loss . . . BUT, there is a legal doctrine of “assumed” risk – audiences are in a position where they know loud music can cause hearing loss – it’s perfectly obvious. No one forces them to be there – case in point, all the loud rock concerts that millions of Americans attend every year. Most lawsuits brought against concert venues and loud bars have been dismissed on this principle.

OSHA has different noise level standards for the workplace than the NIOSH. According to them workers can be exposed to noises of 102dB for 1.5 hours, 105dB for an hour, 110dB for 30 minutes, and 115 dB for 25 minutes or less.

Funny thing I found while researching this stuff: Churches are subject to OSHA’s regulations, but the regulations state that OSHA is not allowed to enforce the regulations due to the religious nature of the service involved. That is unless the service is at a private hospital owned by the church, a school operated by the church, commercial establishments such as bakery shops owned by the church, or in the administrative offices of the church.

So, as long as the loud music is in the church auditorium, the church can’t get in trouble if I go deaf because I stand next to a drumset several hours a week.

At rock concerts I always wear earplugs, and then worm my way up right next to the speakers so I can hear (and FEEL!) everything clearly. I also wear earplugs or at least stuff some kleenix in my ears if we’re playing at a place that has really loud stage volume. It makes singing difficult, but it’s better than losing my hearing! I’ve also cut foam earplugs in half (the long way) to allow for some sound to get in for singing – which has actually worked pretty well.

and the same information from the CDC and NIOSH: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/noise/pubs/lookatnoise.html

Question about sound and protecting people’s hearing. Where does the 105dB limit come from? How do you measure that with the fact that most concerts (ie, David Crowder) are at around 115dB?