Sounds like progress

    The auditorium at Holyoke High School has seen plenty of action this month — from the elementary Christmas program to choir and band concerts — and the music was at its best thanks to a new sound system.
    The upgrade has been about a year in the making and was made possible by the combined efforts of multiple organizations, which makes sense since so many groups benefit from the use of that auditorium.
    Though the previous sound system wasn’t the original from the 1977 construction of the auditorium, it wasn’t far from it. Arlan Scholl explained that he installed that system in the late ’80s and then had the pleasure to work on the new system again this year.
    Despite being used for about three decades, the old system was still serving the school well, but there was room for improvement. At the beginning of 2017, Joe Hall of the Phillips County Arts Council spearheaded the project, approaching the school superintendent John McCleary about a proposed change.
    From there, Scholl Oil and Transportation was brought in to design a new setup to meet their needs. With a price point in mind, Hall and McCleary went to the Heginbotham Trust to see about funding the project.
    With plans and financial details squared away for the $18,000 project, Scholl Oil and Transportation did the installation and Fetzer Electric did electrical work to accommodate the demands of the new system. Work was completed about the time the 2017-18 school year began.
    
What’s new?
    Scholl commented that, sound-wise, the auditorium should now have everything they could possibly need.  
    For starters, the new mixer situated in the back row of the auditorium has 32 channels. That’s twice the number of inputs that the old mixer could handle, and it’s housed in a new secure roll-top rack.
    A couple of years ago, seven hanging microphones were added above the stage. They’ve been a great asset for theater productions and group numbers at choir concerts. Those microphones permanently took up seven of the 16 available channels. Two more channels were used for a computer and CD player. Once choir mics and hand-helds were set up for a concert, the mixer would often be at capacity.
    With 32 channels, there’s space for all that and more, such as keyboards and guitars. Now with the capacity to use them, some new microphones were also included in the system overhaul.

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