*** The upgrade is complete and will be in use on Sunday 25th February! ***

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Work started on Monday 5th February to upgrade the audio-visual system in St Nicholas Church.

Many of you may not be aware, but we currently have two systems we use for the Audio of the church service. Both of these systems are very old and are not really meeting our requirements.  The main part which operates all spoken audio is very tired hence why we often get comments from the congregation about not being able to hear whats being said.  Unfortunately, this part also cannot be easily adjusted during the service as all of the controls are housed in the vestry.  

The second system is what we use for the playing of music during service.  This part of the system was operational from the back, however late November, early December, someone decided they needed the speakers more than us and stole the speakers, stands and cables.  Leaving us with no operational system which was required for the festivities.

Thankfully for some time now, a team of us have been reviewing the Audio Visual solution within church.  Not only are we upgrading our existing sound system, we are also taking advantage of this time and upgrading the camera and streaming solution we use and which was implemented during Covid.  We still have a number of the congregation which attend the service online!

As a team we were given a number of requirements.  These were:

  • Must not damage the beauty and aesthetics of the church
  • Provision for all audio and visual requirements
  • Allow full operation during a service from a central console
  • Be user friendly for all capabilities
  • Congregation sound to be greatly improved
  • Future proof (as much as possible and not require considerable investments later down the line)
  • Provide great streaming capabilities and better camera operation

As you can see, we had quite a list to achieve!

We have chosen a suitable solution which was approved by the PCC and also the DAC.  We are working with a company called Hilltop Audio Visual who have a wealth of experience installing AV systems into churches.  Installation has already started and is well underway.  Due to this work, the church has been closed to ensure the work can be completed safely for all.

The system will be fully installed by Friday 16th February and we look forward to demonstrating the improvements!