No, it's not what you think. What we're talking about is getting a controlled drum beat we can mix with the rest of the worship band.
It's no secret that many church music programs have been incorporating more aggressive/contemporary live music into some–if not all–of their services over the past several years. While the amplified guitars, bass, keyboards and drums help add energy and passion to a service, many organizations are now fighting a new problem: The problem of overpowering sound levels, with acoustic drums seeming to be the main culprit. I have always included live drum kits in my list of the Evils of Church Sound. The problem with live kits is usually three-fold: The first problem revolves around the fact that very few sanctuaries have acoustic properties conducive to loud percussive instruments. If the acoustic decay, also know as reverb, time of the room is longer than two to three seconds, the room should be treated with sound-absorbing products. Unfortunately, this is hardly ever an inexpensive fix. Think in terms of $15 to $25 per square foot for a good, finished look and proper acoustic fix.
(I have come to the conclusion that very few architectural schools teach the importance of good acoustics because every architect I have ever met is much more concerned with incorporating aesthetically-pleasing hard materials like glass, wood and tile into a room design than the detrimental effect that these materials have on room acoustics. No one seems to be telling the architects that if the congregation cannot understand what the preacher is saying and what the choir is singing, the space is a design failure.)
If you have not built yet, make sure that your architect places a premium on acoustic performance.
Regardless of your room acoustics, if the drums are too loud, the other musicians can no longer hear their instruments, so they do what you would expect–they turn it up louder! Then everyone else has to turn up the stage wedges! It is not unusual for us to visit a facility and see 68 to 78dB coming off the stage to the first four or five rows of seats! Think about just how good and loud your main system would have to be to get over that!
The previously mentioned problems compound the third problem–obtaining sufficient acoustic separation between the vocals and the other instruments. Because the drums and other instruments are so much louder than the vocals, some of the drum and instrument sound ends up "bleeding" into the vocal and choir mics. In this situation, if the person at the audio console attempts to bring up the vocals, a large amount of a very unpleasant and roomysounding drum and instrument bleed is also fed into the mix. This makes the mix very muddy and washes out the vocals. If only there were a way to bring the drums under control, you could get the other instruments to come back down to a reasonable level. If you have made the decision that something has to be done about excessive volumes, here are a couple of ideas.
One option, of course, is to invest in an electronic drum set. Electric kits have the advantage of giving the sound engineer a lot of control over the drum levels in the various mixes. If you have tech-savvy drummers and qualified sound personnel, an electronic drum kit can be a great solution. The disadvantages include having to deal with a fairly complex system of wiring and programming, and a less natural drum sound and feel that many drummers dislike. Good, quality electronic drum kits like the mesh-head Roland V-Drums start at around $3,800. Don't waste your money on an inexpensive electronic kit unless you crave aggravation. Also note that while the pads are much quieter than drums, they still make clicking noises that you may find annoying in quiet passages.
If you decide that you would like to keep the sound and feel of a real drum kit, you may want to try out one of the new portable isolation enclosures now finding popularity in many churches. Some of the more popular systems are made by ClearSonic Manufacturing. ClearSonic IsoPacs are portable isolation booths that combine acrylic drum shields with patented absorption baffles and are available in a variety of configurations and sizes. The acrylic shields act as a see-through acoustic barrier while the 1.6-inch-thick absorption panels are very efficient at soaking up sound. Some of their latest systems also use a lid system. If you have a room with a long decay time, the lid option is highly recommended.
While not completely sound tight, using an IsoPac or similar product will significantly reduce the amount of drum sound that will be leaked into the vocal and other instrument mics. This will allow the audio engineer to bring the vocals, choir or other quiet instruments up in the mix without introducing the unpleasant bleed described earlier. For most applications, just adding a kick and two overhead mics can bring a bit of controlled drum presence back into the P.A. mix. A PZM-style flat mic attached by Velcro to the underside of the booth lid may also work great because this method eliminates the need for large overhead mic stands that will clutter up the inside of your enclosure.
Either way, if you can control the drums, you'll have a good beat to mix.
(Special thanks to Brian Smith at Clearsonics.)
Richard Rutherford is the owner of Rutherford Design, a lighting, video and audio contractor. He can be reached at rrutherford@fohonline.com.
