Question: How should I mike the congregation in a house of worship?

Answer: In the past few weeks, we addressed how you may mike your pastor, your baptistery, the podium or lectern, and a table or altar. The congregation is a critical part of the worship environment and making certain they are properly picked up by a microphone will enhance the worship service.

In many worship services a microphone is passed around for questions, prayer concerns, and general statements from the congregation. A wireless handheld microphone, such as the ATW-T220a, which is a part of the popular 2000 Series, is the most common solution. This allows the users to quickly pass a microphone without having to worry about cables. It is also important that each participant uses proper microphone technique.

For broadcast and recording purposes, microphones are also used to pick up the congregation singing, as well as to add some ambience of the room into the recording or broadcast feed. Ceiling microphones, such as the hanging U853PM and gooseneck ES931PMWH, are positioned above the congregation to pick up the sound. Since the signal from these microphones is not amplified through the sound system, you do not need to worry about any feedback issues. Boundary microphones, such as the U851RO, and shotgun microphones, such as the BP4073, are also miking solutions often used in houses of worship. The boundary microphones are mounted on walls or ceilings and give an even pickup of the entire space. Shotgun microphones are used in fewer cases but are the “go to” solution for certain situations, such as when the microphone is placed near the speaker system or when you require more directionality in your pickup. The maximum side rejection of the shotgun mic will allow you to have more flexibility to “aim” the pickup toward the sound source you are capturing.

If you need any assistance on determining which miking solutions will work best for your specific application, feel free to contact the Audio Solutions Department.