Tips for Getting into Worship Venue Consulting

[King Conga]

I'm interested in getting into the consulting biz for advising churches, and specifically worship venues on how to outfit, and implement their facilities for their pro audio needs. I want to go somewhere like Full Sail and get a 4-yr degree, but I also want to know:

1.) Specifically what technologies I need to have a REAL good foundation in.

2.) What is the "typical" career path for such a consultant.

3.) Do they "typically" work for a corp like Roland, Soundcraft, etc?

4.) If not, someone like Roland, who, or what industry segment do I work for?

5.) Finally, if you know of someone, or such a company that does this, who are they?

 

Note, I AM NOT looking to so much ultimately be in the labor part of it, (I know there will be some) but the advise, and consent. I'm 51, in bad shape, so if you get my drift...

 

I know I'll probably need some electrical engineering basics, but if someone could just give me a starting point.

 

Thanks,

KC:wave:

[prosigna]

There are tons (and by tons I mean "a big whole bunch") of people who do what you are talking about. I worked for a regional sound company who started a design & install segment of the business in about '95. They started out doing cheap $10,000 installs for churches and worked their way up into the big-time multi-million dollar jobs.

 

The big time jobs (anything over $100,000) were usually designed by a company like Acoustic Dimensions. Under 100K we designed them in house. We had two engineers on staff (one electrical and one mechanical). Both those guys did as much cable pulling and soldering as they did computer CAD work.

 

Also, most sound companies make fun of Full Sail degrees. This is a learn on the job kind of industry. Solid engineering education is a plus for what you are wanting to accomplish. By that I mean typical mechanical, electrical, industrial, civil, etc... engineering schools.

[Craig Vecchione]

So you don't have an engineering degree, don't have live sound experience, and don't want to do physical labor?

[agedhorse]

If you want to be competitive in the design & consulting stuff, you better know your stuff. I mean really know how signal infrastructure works, how power systems work, how the construction industry works and how the church industry fractions work. If you don't, you will get chewed up and spit out (after you get sued for failure to perform). Then you need an education and experience. If you plan on being a principal designer, you might need an EE degree, at least an AA in ET, but most firms are looking for full BSEE's to carry the projects forward.

 

I've been doin gthis for 25 years, I have a BSEE in analog power systems and industrial controls. I use these principals every day in my work and project management. When I design a job, I know exactly how it will go together, how it will attach mechanically to the building and what the structural and mechanical engineers will need from me in order to complete their work. I also submit my dawings for inspection and everything must meet applicable building & safety codes.

 

51 years old is kind of late to hit the ground running IMO... you have a couple of years (minimum) plus 5 years of learning the ropes and getting experience. There's a lot of physical work involved too, jobsite inspections, sitting at a CAD station all day developing concepts and drawings. By the time you are ready to make real money you will be ~60 years old and then you will have to determine if you can make it worth your while.

[jwlussow]

 

So you don't have an engineering degree, don't have live sound experience, and don't want to do physical labor?

 

 

And? What

[agedhorse]

 

It might be unrealistic to think you can just plug yourself into a middle-man position, just meeting with the venue, collecting a check and turning the rest over to a third party.

 

 

Certainly without an education, years of experience AND a proven track record.

[rwhealey]

 

I'm interested in getting into the consulting biz for advising churches, and specifically worship venues on how to outfit, and implement their facilities for their pro audio needs. I want to go somewhere like Full Sail and get a 4-yr degree, but I also want to know: 1.) Specifically what technologies I need to have a REAL good foundation in. 2.) What is the "typical" career path for such a consultant. 3.) Do they "typically" work for a corp like Roland, Soundcraft, etc? 4.) If not, someone like Roland, who, or what industry segment do I work for? 5.) Finally, if you know of someone, or such a company that does this, who are they? Note, I AM NOT looking to so much ultimately be in the labor part of it, (I know there will be some) but the advise, and consent. I'm 51, in bad shape, so if you get my drift... I know I'll probably need some electrical engineering basics, but if someone could just give me a starting point. Thanks, KC:wave:

 

 

 

If you're dead set on going to school for it, I would look at a degree in Architectural Engineering. Most schools with ArchE have both acoustics and construction management focuses.

 

If you're interested, PM me and I can give you the contact info of someone here at the University of Kansas who can help you find a school or talk to you about the job.