Do You Like Good Music?
Winter NAMM 2004 Exhibitors Target the Church Market

By RaeAnn Slaybaugh

The anguished groans of a musician not attending the National Association of Music Merchants conference — known to the world as NAMM — were my first sign that the latest and greatest music products in the world awaited us.

Although NAMM was held at the Anaheim Convention Center a stone’s throw from America’s favorite theme park, we were headed to his Disneyland. In retrospect, I understand the envy; we had access to more than 1,700 exhibitors spread out over six massive halls offering every conceivable type of musical instrument from drums to didgeridoos, plus all manners of audio innovations. For the musically inclined, NAMM is the place to be.

Still, he and other acquaintances questioned the relevance of this show to the church AV market. Whereas attending made perfect sense to the rest of the Church Business staff and to me, I admit I had a few reservations — first and foremost, how long it would take manufacturers to answer one simple question: Which of your products are right for our readers?

As it turns out, the church market is more than a mere blip on their radar screens; it’s really registering. In fact, some even designed audio tools just for you.

The Sanctuary Series

Some speakers and sound equipment are designed to get noticed — but not the brand-new Sanctuary Series (www.sanctuary-series.com) from Peavey Electronics.

One of our first stops at NAMM was the Peavey pavilion, where we met Kent Morris, a consultant with nearly 25 years designing and installing church sound systems. Peavey consulted with Morris to create this tailormade line of professional-quality church audio equipment. As a result, the Sanctuary Series is easy to operate, blends into the worship environment and is priced right for tight budgets. We’d been hearing about this system for weeks and were anxious to check it out.

The first piece we were shown was the 12-channel, rackmountable Peavey S-14 mixing console.

“Since many worship centers don’t have an experienced sound technician on staff, [we] designed the S-14 with several unique, user-friendly features to simplify operation,” explains Peavey spokesperson Jim Beaugez. “Any church leader or choir director can use the S-14 with confidence.”

One of this mixer’s best innovations is Automix technology, an automatic mixing function provided on the first four channels. Once engaged, Automix monitors the levels on these channels and automatically turns down unused or low-priority inputs to give dominance to the main microphone, minimizing ambient nose and feedback.

We also took a look at the unobtrusive Sanctuary Series loudspeakers finished in white, black and unfinished, stainable wood to match any church’s decor. Better yet, their enclosures are mountable and flyable from any location in the sanctuary as well to ensure they blend seamlessly into the architecture.

Bravo Disc Publisher

Our next stop was Primera Technology (www.primera.com) for the latest in CD and DVD disc publishing systems. Though it’s not new to the market (or to us since we’ve featured it in the magazine before), its designers insist the Bravo Disc Publisher remains the prime product for churches.

Whether you want to record and duplicate a choir concert or the Easter pageant, create a welcome DVD for first-time visitors, or record and reproduce virtually any kind of data, software, photos or other digital information, the Bravo makes it quick and easy. You can create up to 25 discs per job and as many as 50 if you add an optional kiosk mode kit.

The HP-Eight Mixer

When we stopped by Crest Audio (www.crestaudio.com), we weren’t expecting such a church-friendly product as the

Sanctuary Series Speakers According to Peavey designers, the all-new S-24 mixer “practically runs itself.” brand-new HP-Eight mixing console — or, as one sales rep referred to it, the “House of Praise” mixer.

The model we saw was a whole lot of mixer for the money, featuring 56 inputs at a competitive $7,000 suggested retail price. However, for smaller budgets, it also is available in 24-, 32-, 40- and 48-channel configurations.

Designed for both professional installation and portable use, its designers say the HPEight bridges the worlds of high-quality audio design and efficient construction.

RMX 5050 Power Amp

At our next destination — QSC Audio (www.qscaudio.com) — we got a look at the brand-new RMX 5050 power amplifier, which, according to its designers, is just the thing for churches. The RMX 5050 combines state-of-the-art performance at an affordable price, explains Marketing Services Manager Roger Maycock.

“This amp alone could “drive an entire church” with its high levels of sustained power, extraordinary audio performance and road-proven reliability, he said.

Maycock also cited a lower-profile QSC development church audio engineers are sure to love: the new eBox online customer service concept. This online tool lets buyers set up personalized pages for their QSC products. Afterward, they have one organized, personalized destination everything they need to know.

Sony Makes Software Affordable

At our next stop, we were excited to find Sony (www.sony.com/professional) offering reasonably priced software bundles, especially the Vegas+DVD + Screenblast ACID + Vision Series 1 package. This affordable but highly functional collection lets you produce professional videos and burn pageants, plays and concerts onto DVDs. You can record an original score and enhance your video with exclusive 3D textures and backgrounds. And best of all, since the entire package is priced at less than $1,000, your church could recoup its investment with just a few events’ worth of CD and DVD sales.

The AR-1202 Dimmer

When we swung by the Lightronics (www.lightronics.com) booth to meet with Marketing Director Shannon Heedrik, she immediately directed us to the AR-1202 architectural dimming system. It’s a “natural choice” for all permanently installed lighting applications, including churches, she told us.

And we agree. Flexible, powerful and (most importantly) affordable at $3,100, the AR-1202 is easy to install in auditoriums, meeting spaces and classrooms. It lets you create aesthetic and functionally diverse visual environments for any space and accepts DMX-512 as well as remote station inputs, allowing maximum versatility in just about any application.

Fantom-X Keyboards

This year, we were very impressed to learn that Roland (www.RolandUS.com) would host its first-ever Worship Arts Technology Summit at NAMM. The company invited nationally recognized worship musicians to address some of the most important challenges today’s ministry leaders face and offer practical solutions with live demonstrations.

A big part of that demonstration was the Fantom X-Series workstation keyboards, which also made their debut at NAMM. This line is hailed by its designers as “the standard by which all other workstations are measured” and is unique in its massive dimensions, providing nearly 1 gigabyte of memory when fully expanded. The series includes the X6 61-key board; 76-key X7 model; and the X8 with 81 keys and progressive hammer action. Other noteworthy features include new color LCD, which lets users access creative tools, featuring two control surfaces with highquality keys and dynamic pads, powerful sampling and intuitive sequencing.

Mania PR1 Luminaire

Though the hall reserved for special effects lighting manufacturers was decidedly more club-like than the average sanctuary, we did manage to “see the light” at the Martin Professional booth. There, we were introduced to the Mania PR1 high-precision optic luminaire, which church lighting engineers should really appreciate for its ability to project logos, decorations, messages or even the titles of various holiday pageants onto any wall, floor or ceiling. The PR1’s rotating interchangeable pattern, or gobo, even lets you adjust the message to suit any occasion, from weddings to (hint, hint) staff members’ birthdays.

Marketing Coordinator Ben Dickmann says he hopes to release the PR1 this month. In the meantime, detailed product information is available by calling 954.927.3005.

The Xs 1200 Power Amp

At the Crown International booth (www.crownintl.com), it was time to unveil the Xs 1200 power amplifier, the latest addition to the company’s popular Xs Series. The Xs 1200 is the highest-powered model in the line, providing 1,100 watts per channel into 4 ohms. Crown reps also told us this amp was made to hit the road — something established churches are doing more and more of in recent years and upstart congregations do every weekend.

Another big selling point for the religious market is the Xs 1200’s price. “It offers a whole lot of Crown power for the money,” says Larry Baker, market director for portable PA, recording and broadcast, of this $1,800 amplifier.

Xtreme Sound

Sometimes newer isn’t necessarily better. Case in point: Anchor Audio reps immediately directed us to their Xtreme indoor/outdoor sound system, which has been featured in numerous CB articles over the years.

Maybe it keeps its crown because with 130 watts of AC power, it can fill a gym sized space with sound that reaches as many as 5,000 people. (Better yet, if you add another speaker, that area doubles to the size of a football field.) Plus, with Xtreme’s CD option, you can send out crystal-clear music to the crowd and plug in as many as three wireless microphones.

Nevertheless, the most important church-friendly feature is its price. The basic Xtreme package retails for less than $2,100 and includes the sound system, built-in CD player, wireless UHF with 16-user selectable channels, speaker stand and your choice of wireless mic, handheld mic, body-pack transmitter and headband mic, lapel mic or collar mic. The deluxe package sells for just $500 more and offers everything the basic package does, plus an un-powered companion speaker, two speaker stands instead of one, and a cable connection.

A-16 Personal Monitor Mixers

When we asked Aviom reps (www.aviom.com) for a particularly church-friendly product recommendation, the answer was right in front of our noses; they’d set up a veritable mall of A-16s for NAMMers to try out. Available in five different variations, these systems can be used with in-ear monitors, headphones, floor wedges or spot monitors.

Not surprisingly, an Aviom spokesperson said a large percentage of A-16 buyers represent churches since one of its key functions is to lower stage volume. One church client — an audio engineer — recently told him that adding the A-16 to his arsenal has made choir performances much more musical. He’s not the only one at his church who’s noticed either. Since installing it, members comment that everything sounds much better.

Rodgers Instruments’ MR-200 MIDI Song Player/Recorder

At the Rodgers Instruments booth (www.rodgersinstruments.com), we were introduced to the brand-new MR-200 MIDI song player/recorder, a MIDI sequencer especially designed for organists. Though it might look complicated, Rodgers reps were quick to point out that one of the MR-200’s saving graces is its easy-to-use interface. Other key features include its 16- channel recoding/playback and the ability to save songs in the internal flash memory or to a floppy disk.

We hope this tides you over until next year, when we plan on making a return trip to NAMM to scope more new church perfect products. Until then, good luck with your sound decisions — the congregation is listening.