In some ways, it's hard to believe that WFX 2009 in Charlotte, N.C., was a whole year ago. In other ways, it seems more like five years ago because so much has changed.
As each year passes, WFX gets more defined and targeted toward the topics, presentations, level of information and diversity of products that church techs and pastors must know about to move forward in their ministries.
If you're attending WFX or are on the fence about whether or not you can make it, read this. It will either get you even more interested in what you'll find at WFX in Atlanta this fall, or it will help you realize all the solid messages and solutions you and your team can't afford to miss.
Mind-boggling keynotes
Here are two keynote faces you must see at WFX Atlanta-Ed Stetzer and Shaun King. Stetzer is president of LifeWay Research in Nashville, Tenn., so he knows what makes church tick in modern culture and how to reach people with the Word. You'll hear him talk about his experiences with church planting, revitalizing and pastoring churches. Stetzer has the perspective that today's church leaders and servants need to move forward.
"Who's Shaun King?" you might ask, because he's young. King launched Atlanta's Courageous Church on a shoestring budget starting with a solid concept of what he wanted to achieve for the Kingdom. His WFX topic? How digital launched a church. And he'll give you examples, from his blog to Facebook and Twitter, of what God can do with a solid plan.
Our Keynote Production Sponsor is Audio Ethics, a full-service A/V systems integration and production rental company based in Charlotte, N.C.
Tech-heavy events
It's easy to start feeling burn-out when you serve repeatedly but don't stop to refuel your creative vision and touch base with the Reason behind it all. That's where WFX's Tech Director's Retreat comes in. Some of the things you'll learn include how to make sense of social media for your church, and how to start a strategy. How to get the job done well within your financial constraints-it can be done, and God makes it possible. How to keep on top of the multi-site movement and its opportunities for your church either now or down the road. And how to keep your services and your creative relevant in changing times. Plus a lot more.
Hard-hitting class sessions
WFX knows you're not simply sitting down to take off a load. You need some serious take-away. We've tailored our education in Atlanta to prepare you for what you need to learn now and down the road. Here's a glimpse of two-from more than 80-total sessions you can choose from.
In "Digital Church 101: Overview of the Social Media Landscape," presenter Cathy Hutchison, director of connection with Dallas-based Acoustic Dimensions, explains that one trend in social media that affects churches is the prioritization of accessibility over quality. As part of that trend, "You might be willing to move from a formal static site with an outside web designer to one where multiple users can contribute immediately," Hutchison reports.
In another session, "Master Planning for Technical Systems (Bring Your Pastor)," Chuck Walthall, founder and CEO of Walthall & Associates in Pensacola, Fla., promises to deliver the step-by-step process required to define and develop technical systems, in language that your pastors can understand. "Proper room acoustics, for example, is a critical element few understand and the underlying cause of numerous loudspeaker systems being blamed," Walthall says.
Here's something else that WFX Atlanta will offer that no other WFX has before: 40+ hands-on training classes, sponsored by WAVE, which supplies creative inspiration, audio, visual and acoustical elements and system integration for broadcast, worship, performing arts and corporate environments.
Expo exercise, opportunity
Get ready to walk, but don't expect to notice that your feet hurt until it's all over. At WFX Atlanta, you'll find expanded expo hours, nearly 200 exhibitors, and networking-intensive options like a Social Media Lounge, Solution Zone Training (exhibitor-led training sessions right on the expo floor), and live webcasts.
Of the 200 or so exhibitors expected at WFX Atlanta, at least half will be focused on reaching church technical staff members. The following represents just a sampling of products and services attendees will see at WFX Atlanta:
A-Line Acoustics (Booth #840) EMMA, the company's No.1 selling portable powered line array speaker system, features a brand new look. The new custom designed systems are available in any color using components built right here in the USA. They are self-powered with internal DSP control for high sound quality and performance.
American Music and Sound (Booth #1015) will feature products from Allen & Heath, Midas and Turbosound. The new Midas PRO3 digital console offers VCA and POPulation groups, which allows users to navigate channels without the hindrance of layers or pages of faders. It brings the same effects and dynamics processing as the Pro6 and XL8 within reach of tighter budgets, offering 48 input channels with remote-controlled mic pre's, 27 buses and six stereo effects.
Turbosound will show its new TFM-560, a bi-amped professional floor monitor designed with a minimal footprint. The TFM-560 uses side-by-side custom neodymium drivers and features an asymmetrical horn that gives good coverage both up close and further away from the monitor.
Allen & Heath will feature the iDR-64 stage box which includes 64 mic/line inputs with 32 XLR outputs. It includes a full DSP mix engine (dynamics, EQ and delay) for all 64 inputs and 32 mixes. Now two iDR-64 stage boxes can be controlled from any iLive mix surface.
Atlanta Soundworks (Booth #1309) is an audio-visual systems integrator. In business since 1988, Atlanta Soundworks works with churches to enhance their worship and outreach by providing audio, video, and lighting systems and services. Atlanta Soundworks (ASW) has achieved InfoComm's Diamond Level Certification, and offers its customers a dedication to optimal service and exceptional design and installation.
At the Audix booth (Booth #1026), attendees can see the new 50" and 84" Microboom choir mics, and the MG12, MG15 and MG18 podium/gooseneck mics which offer micro condenser technology and are RFI-shielded. Audix will also show its new affordable, yet accurate TM1 measurement mic. Audix says all new products are designed, assembled and tested at the company's factory in Wilsonville, Ore.
Flexstage (Booth #1207), a rental and custom-designed stage and scenery provider, is featuring its new Flexpax Stage Aesthetics Subscription program. The program is designed to help churches by providing a fresh new stage look that is changed out quarterly or bi-monthly for a modest cost payable annually, quarterly or monthly. Using readily available pipe-and-base, which is also available through Flexstage, a church can have a mega-church look without the mega-church price
For-A (Booth #745) will be showing their new HVS-350HS HD/SD switcher with up to 24 Inputs and 1.5-M/E architecture. Designed for the house-of-worship market (among others), the HVS-350HS features the ability to handle mixed HD/SD inputs with a frame synchronizer on every input, DVE, two keyers with chroma key, plus a dual-channel 16-split multi-viewer.
Group One (Booth #1213) will feature products from Digico, XTA, MC2 and more. Digico will show their new SD9 compact digital console. A complete, integrated system, the SD9 includes the mixing surface, a D-Rack digital stage interface and CAT5E digital multicore, with the additional ability to simultaneously record 56 channels direct to your favorite multi-track software or DAW.
XTA and MC2 will show their DC1040 4 x 8 Speaker management system with I-Core System controller which operates all XTA & MC2 units. They will also show break-in/break -out boxes for Dante, Cobranet and Ether Sound networks.
The Lampifier Co. (Booth #436) introduces what it calls "a new category of professional, wired microphones," offering a phantom-powered, audio-enhancing processor located inside the microphone handle. The programmable sound processor optimizes the microphone for various applications for vocals and instruments. No extra patch cables or outboard sound processors are required.
Lighting Inspirations (Booth #831), a full-service lighting design company providing high-impact theatrical, architectural and video lighting services to the church and worship industry announces the hiring of Tom Stanziano, a veteran lighting designer in the worship industry. A freelance senior lighting designer and Consultant, Stanziano is a graduate of the Art Institute of Pittsburgh and served as staff lighting designer at Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, for seven years.
The folks at Lightronics (Booth #601) invite you to see their PAR4 which features four interchangeable lenses, VNSP 15°, NSP 19°, MFL 21-34° and WFL 30-51° and a color filter frame. The PAR4 produces as much light as a 1,000-watt par can while reducing electrical consumption up to 40%. Rated at 800 watts maximum, the fixture utilizes a 575- or 750-watt halogen bulb, comes with a bi-pin G9.5 base and is available in black, white or silver. A two-year warranty is standard.
Line 6 (Booth #1313) will be showing their Digital Wireless Microphone Systems. These brand new microphone systems represent an alternative to traditional UHF/VHF wireless systems, and solve the problems that have plagued analog wireless users for years, namely frequency over-crowding, the introduction of DTV and proposed White Space products.
Movek (Booth #946), which makes the recently introduced MyMix networked personal mixing system, will show their new IEX-16L 16-channel input expander. The IEX-16L takes 16 line-level analog signals from a console and places them into the MyMix system.
Niche Video Products (Booth #1030) will exhibit a complete CatDV workflow along with complementary video production products in their booth at WFX Atlanta. CatDV is a media asset management tool at home in all areas of content creation, production, post production and delivery. Its powerful database allows churches to catalog, organize and search all types of files, not just media (videos, stills, PDFs, office documents, project files, and more). Using this media asset management tool churches can more easily track assets like sermons and events in the church that have been recorded, whether it's video, audio or photographs.
The new StudioLive 24.4.2 Digital Mixer will be featured at the Presonus booth (Booth #1226). The StudioLive 24.4.2 provides 24 input channels. Each input features a trim pot, XLR mic input with XMAX mic preamp, 1/4-inch TRS balanced line inputs and unbalanced insert points and 10 aux buses. It has four stereo 31-band graphic EQs, and two stereo 32-bit effects processors. The new VSL (Virtual StudioLive) software for the StudioLive 16.4.2 and StudioLive 24.4.2 digital mixers provides bidirectional control of channel, subgroup, and main-bus levels; Fat Channel parameters; aux mixes; effects; and the graphic EQ from a computer.
Rose Brand (Booth #827) will feature their new ShowLED Animation Curtain. Designed for ease of operation and affordability, the high-density LEDs can be placed randomly, in a matrix, or in any specific layout imaginable. LEDs can be individually controlled as pixels to display low- to medium-resolution still images, video loops and flash animations.
Ross Video (Booth #1316) will show both the Vision QMD/X Octane production switchers and CrossOver Series of production switchers. The Vision Series is Ross's flagship line of production switchers designed to handle the most sophisticated and demanding productions. CrossOver is Ross's line of single-MLE production switchers designed for compact studios, outside broadcast vehicles, edit suites and flight packs. Ross will also show its XPression 3D character generator and SoftMetal line of video servers.
Texas Digital Atlanta (Booth #741) offers their VitalCAST Digital Signage Solution, a state-of-the-art turnkey signage solution that allows users to update displays across multiple locations from one central workstation with just a few clicks of the mouse.
Vaddio (Booth #711) will be showing their OneLINK digital bus technology which allows power, video and control to pass over a single bi-directional Cat. 5e cable. "Our customers have asked for a quick-connect solution that solves the distance limitations of HDMI PTZ [pan-tilt-zoom] cameras," explains President and CEO Rob
Sheeley. "OneLINK technology is the latest development in our continued effort to make integration and installation easier by placing power, video and control all on a single Cat. 5e cable." Vaddio will also show its Reveal I-Wall Architectural PTZ Cameras.
Wenger's (Booth #506) Versalite staging products offer a wide range of portable options for churches. The Versalite line of stages and risers feature a variety of heights, shapes and surfaces, while the lightweight, extruded, aircraft-grade aluminum frames exceed building codes for floors. Wenger will also display a range of music stands and chairs for musicians and congregational use.
