Stereo or mono for church sound system installation

Should a church have a mono or stereo sound reinforcement (public address) system. ChurchPA has the answer for your church or hall PA....

How is stereo sound used in real life?

Generally you send some or all of a particular source (i.e. microphone, guitar, drum) to a specific speaker so that you can recreate a "stereo sound image".

Where does stereo sound work well?

Actually it is perfect in the home when you are listening to your (aptly named) stereo system. By positioning yourself in a nice triangle with the speakers, you can get a really good representation of a realistic sound stage, with the guitar where it should be, the piano, each drum realistically spaced out and so on. The sound reaching your ears will be high quality and as if you are actually sitting in front of a band, choir or orchestra.

BUT what does this have to do with a public building like a church?

Not much, as it turns out. Assume for a moment that you have set up a really nice stereo mix, with the guitar panned to full right. Sounds great at the back of the hall where the stereo image is formed. But for the person right under that speaker, all they can hear is the guitar (TOO LOUD). And what about the person under the left hand speaker? They can only hear the guitar reflecting off the rear wall, if at all. To say this another way, the person under the left hand speaker cannot hear anything at all from the right hand speaker (due to psycho-acoustic masking)..

To say it another way:

In the case of amplifying live music and speech for public buildings, we strongly recommend that you go for a MONO system, where all you have to worry about is getting the relative volumes (sound levels) of each instrument correct, and then the sound will be correct for all listeners at all positions.

Stereo mixes only have relevance in the home, and possibly in your car. Mono audio for public buildings, churches and hall sound systems are a LOT less problematic.