Gear Follows Vision | A Church Leadership, Vision and Tech Systems Podcast

Summit Integrated Systems
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Technology
  • Updated Biweekly

Gear Follows Vision is a podcast for pastors, leaders, tech directors, and church production teams who believe ministry starts with vision — not gear. Through real conversations with church leaders and production industry pros, we explore leadership, team culture, and project solutions, while digging into systems, budgets, audio, video, lighting, broadcast, and acoustics. Practical, honest, and mission-first. Because in the church, gear only matters when it follows vision. Connect with us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SummitIntegrated.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

  1. 4d ago

    Church Speaker Systems: Why Design Beats Brand – Gear Follows Vision, S2E6

    Should your church buy the speaker brand everyone's talking about, or the speaker system designed for your room? This episode helps church leaders know the difference before they spend a dollar. In this episode, Deron sits down with Jake Cody (formerly with Yamaha and Bayside Church), who works the front door of Summit's projects and talks with churches across the country at the very start of their planning. This time the audio guys get the episode, and they land in the same place right away: design beats brand every day. Jake and Deron unpack why "we have to have that brand" is usually a sound a church heard somewhere, not a plan for their room, and what really shapes a great church speaker system: room shape and height, whether your church prioritizes the message or the music, point source vs. line array, real-world coverage vs. the spec sheet, and why the PA is only a third of the equation next to the room and the acoustics. They also share simple, free ways to check your current system, from walking the room with a record you know to pink noise, plus how to tell whether the problem is the sound tech, the band, or the PA itself. Because a bigger name on the box doesn't automatically fix what your congregation hears, and a speaker system that follows the vision of your church will serve it for 10 to 15 years or more. What's the best-sounding room you've ever been in, and what made it great? We'd love to hear about it. Prefer video? Watch this conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/wkemBkSeeTs Gear Follows Vision is a podcast from Summit about church audio, video, lighting, acoustics, and the people who use them. Each conversation helps church leaders and production teams design technology around their ministry's vision, simplify their systems, equip their volunteers, and create more reliable worship experiences. Subscribe for more conversations about church technology, production leadership, volunteer training, worship technology, and designing AVL systems that follow the vision of your church. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/summit.is/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@summit.is Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SummitIntegrated Website: https://summitintegrated.com/ Discovery Call: https://summitintegrated.com/contact Summit is a Denver-based audio, video, lighting integrator serving churches nationwide. We don't just install AVL systems for churches — we come alongside teams to build strong culture, leadership, and confidence in every room we serve. Learn more at http://SummitAVL.com/

  2. Sep 23

    How To Choose A Church Audio Console – Gear Follows Vision, S2E5

    Most churches pick a mixing console by chasing brand names, tour credits, and feature lists – and then wonder why their volunteers dread Sunday. Choosing a church audio console actually starts somewhere else entirely. In Season 2, Episode 5 of Gear Follows Vision, Deron sits down with Justin Hitch – one of Summit's solution architects, and a former touring monitor engineer, studio engineer, and audio instructor – to unpack how church tech leaders should really choose a mixing console. Justin walks through what he learned mixing in Nashville studios and out on tour before he ever set foot in a church production booth: why tone gets most of the attention but workflow makes or breaks the decision, how the "big four" studio console circuits still shape everything you mix on today, and why the console that's on every tour might be the wrong call for your Sunday. Along the way they get specific about I/O and future-proofing, the real cost of switching platforms mid-stream, and the deciding factor most churches overlook – whether the volunteers running it every week can actually operate it with confidence. A bigger desk with more features doesn't automatically make your mixes better or your team more confident – the right console is the one that fits your room, your budget, and the people on your team. Start with the vision, and the gear decision gets a lot clearer. What console does your team run right now – and if you could go back, would you choose it again? We'd love to hear your answer. Prefer video? Watch this conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/XnO01_NVoSY Gear Follows Vision is a podcast from Summit about church audio, video, lighting, acoustics, and the people who use them. Each conversation helps church leaders and production teams design technology around their ministry's vision, simplify their systems, equip their volunteers, and create more reliable worship experiences. Subscribe for more conversations about church technology, production leadership, volunteer training, worship technology, and designing AVL systems that follow the vision of your church. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/summit.is/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@summit.is Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SummitIntegrated Website: https://summitintegrated.com/ Discovery Call: https://summitintegrated.com/contact Summit is a Denver-based audio, video, lighting integrator serving churches nationwide. We don't just install AVL systems for churches — we come alongside teams to build strong culture, leadership, and confidence in every room we serve. Learn more at http://SummitAVL.com/

  3. Sep 16

    Bleeding Edge vs. Leading Edge: What You Actually Need in Church Tech – Gear Follows Vision, S2E4

    How do you tell the difference between technology your church actually needs and technology that just looks impressive in a demo? This episode gives church leaders a framework for spending wisely. In Season 2 of Gear Follows Vision, Deron sits down with Jake Cody (formerly with Yamaha and Bayside Church), who works the front door of Summit's projects and talks with churches across the country at the very start of their planning. Together they draw a clear line between bleeding edge technology (brand new, risky, still on an island) and leading edge technology (proven, well-supported, rock solid) and how to decide which one is right for your church. Jake and Deron get into the questions that actually matter before you spend a dollar: what problem are you really trying to solve, is it a technology problem or a process problem, what's your appetite for risk, and do you have the staff and volunteers to support what you're buying. They dig into real examples from immersive audio to 4K video to multi-site, why the newest gear so often needs a Rube Goldberg machine of adapters to work, and why knowing your bailout plan matters more than owning the latest thing. Because buying more technology doesn't automatically solve the problem underneath it, and the churches who steward their budgets best are the ones who fix the problem first and dress it up second. When you're weighing new church technology, are you solving a real problem or chasing a feature? We'd love to hear where you've seen that line. Prefer video? Watch this conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/YdnCBogAjYc Gear Follows Vision is a podcast from Summit about church audio, video, lighting, acoustics, and the people who use them. Each conversation helps church leaders and production teams design technology around their ministry's vision, simplify their systems, equip their volunteers, and create more reliable worship experiences. Subscribe for more conversations about church technology, production leadership, volunteer training, worship technology, and designing AVL systems that follow the vision of your church. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/summit.is/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@summit.is Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SummitIntegrated Website: https://summitintegrated.com/ Discovery Call: https://summitintegrated.com/contact Summit is a Denver-based audio, video, lighting integrator serving churches nationwide. We don't just install AVL systems for churches — we come alongside teams to build strong culture, leadership, and confidence in every room we serve. Learn more at http://SummitAVL.com/

  4. Sep 9

    Is Church Lighting Design Dying? What LED Walls Changed – Gear Follows Vision, S2E3

    What happens to church lighting design when a giant LED wall takes over the stage? Great lighting hasn't died – it's changing, and the best designers are the ones who treat that wall as one more fixture, not the whole show. In Season 2, Episode 4 of Gear Follows Vision, Deron sits down with Chase Donald, one of Summit's project managers, to talk about how church lighting design has evolved alongside LED screens – and why the craft is far from dead. Drawing on years of designing and programming for worship at Red Rocks Church and beyond, Chase breaks down how to keep a stage from turning into a flat wall of light: using dimension, depth, and perspective instead of hardcore saturation, rediscovering side light and floor-based fixtures, giving the camera more information to work with, and controlling LED content straight from the lighting console (with tools like Resolume and Vista) so it moves song to song instead of flipping between static graphics. He and Deron also dig into the discipline of designing fresh every week instead of pulling last week's cues out of the library, why "blow-through" LED is exciting but probably a special-moment tool rather than an every-Sunday one, and how to spend wisely on a wall you'll actually use well. The thread running through all of it: Gear follows vision. A 40-foot LED wall doesn't make a service better on its own. What makes lighting come alive is the partnership – production listening to the worship team, the worship team, and the pastor, and getting out of your own way so the technology serves the moment instead of shouting over it. What's one lighting habit you're rethinking after this episode – and what would it take to design fresh again this week? Prefer video? Watch this conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/8mBwfr97AnY Gear Follows Vision is a podcast from Summit about church audio, video, lighting, acoustics, and the people who use them. Each conversation helps church leaders and production teams design technology around their ministry's vision, simplify their systems, equip their volunteers, and create more reliable worship experiences. Subscribe for more conversations about church technology, production leadership, volunteer training, worship technology, and designing AVL systems that follow the vision of your church. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/summit.is/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@summit.is Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SummitIntegrated Website: https://summitintegrated.com/ Discovery Call: https://summitintegrated.com/contact Summit is a Denver-based audio, video, lighting integrator serving churches nationwide. We don't just install AVL systems for churches — we come alongside teams to build strong culture, leadership, and confidence in every room we serve. Learn more at http://SummitAVL.com/

  5. Sep 2

    How to Prevent Church Tech Failures on Sunday – Gear Follows Vision, S2E2

    What happens when your church technology fails during a Sunday service? A reliable church AV system needs more than good equipment – it needs backups, redundancy, hardware protection, and a clear recovery plan. In Season 2, Episode 2 of Gear Follows Vision, Deron sits down with David Forman, Systems and Support Lead at Summit Integrated Systems, to explain how churches can prepare for audio, video, network, playback, and power failures. David breaks church technology reliability into three categories – backups that protect your system configurations, redundancy that protects your signal paths, and power protection that protects your hardware. He explains which church AV configuration files should be backed up, where those files should be stored, and why one backup isn't enough, then joins Deron to dig into network redundancy, Dante secondary networks, playback computers, spare equipment, UPS battery backups, surge protection, and the hidden complexity that redundancy can introduce. Along the way, they cover why backups should live both locally and in the cloud, the differences between hot, warm, and cold spares, and why battery capacity and maintenance matter as much as having a UPS in the first place. Every technology system will eventually experience a failure. The goal isn't to eliminate every possible point of failure – it's to identify what is mission-critical, protect it appropriately, and give your church production team a practical recovery plan. What's one point of failure in your church's system that isn't protected yet? We'd love to hear it – find us on Instagram or TikTok @summit.is and tell us. Prefer video? Watch this conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/QFl2APAEBTU Gear Follows Vision is a podcast from Summit about church audio, video, lighting, acoustics, and the people who use them. Each conversation helps church leaders and production teams design technology around their ministry's vision, simplify their systems, equip their volunteers, and create more reliable worship experiences. Subscribe for more conversations about church technology, production leadership, volunteer training, worship technology, and designing AVL systems that follow the vision of your church. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/summit.is/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@summit.is Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SummitIntegrated Website: https://summitintegrated.com/ Discovery Call: https://summitintegrated.com/contact Summit is a Denver-based audio, video, lighting integrator serving churches nationwide. We don't just install AVL systems for churches — we come alongside teams to build strong culture, leadership, and confidence in every room we serve. Learn more at http://SummitAVL.com/

  6. Aug 26

    How to Build a Stress-Free Sunday for Your Church Tech Team — Gear Follows Vision, S2E1

    How can your church build a stress-free Sunday for its tech team? It starts with preparation, clear processes, and technology designed around the volunteers who actually run it. In Season 2, Episode 1 of Gear Follows Vision, Deron sits down with Greg Splitt, one of Summit's system design engineer legends, to talk about how churches can equip and empower their production teams for success. Greg shares lessons from years of supporting church tech teams – covering preventable equipment failures, untested system changes, wireless interference, inadequate documentation, and the quiet pressure production directors feel to constantly "save the day." Deron and Greg dig into why church audio, video, and lighting systems should always follow the ministry's vision – and why buying more gear doesn't automatically create a better worship experience. What's one change you could make this week to better equip your church tech volunteers? We'd love to hear it – find us on Instagram or Facebook, or reach out through the website. And if this episode was useful, a quick rating or review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify helps more church leaders find the show. DOWNLOAD THE STRESS-FREE SUNDAY CHECKLIST Help your church production team prepare, test, and troubleshoot before the next service: https://summitintegrated.com/sunday-stressing Prefer video? Watch this conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/PxB6fWQW-rA Gear Follows Vision is a podcast from Summit about church audio, video, lighting, acoustics, and the people who use them. Each conversation helps church leaders and production teams design technology around their ministry's vision, simplify their systems, equip their volunteers, and create more reliable worship experiences. Subscribe for more conversations about church technology, production leadership, volunteer training, worship technology, and designing AVL systems that follow the vision of your church. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/summit.is/ Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@summit.is Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SummitIntegrated Website: https://summitintegrated.com/ Discovery Call: https://summitintegrated.com/contact Summit is a Denver-based audio, video, lighting integrator serving churches nationwide. We don't just install AVL systems for churches — we come alongside teams to build strong culture, leadership, and confidence in every room we serve. Learn more at http://SummitAVL.com/

  7. May 9

    Ep. 20 – How To Fix Church Production & Worship Team Conflict

    Church production problems rarely start with bad gear — they start with misalignment. In this episode of Gear Follows Vision, Deron sits down with Chase McCall to unpack one of the biggest challenges facing churches today: alignment between worship teams, production teams, and senior leadership. From frustrating weekend service moments — bad audio mixes, missed cues, late lyrics, and communication breakdowns — to major AVL system decisions that impact the future of the church, this conversation explores how small “trust leaks” quietly grow into larger ministry and leadership problems. If you’re a church production leader, tech director, worship pastor, executive pastor, or volunteer serving in church audio, video, lighting, or livestreaming, this episode will help you build stronger systems, healthier communication, and better team trust. In this episode, you’ll learn: • How to improve communication between worship and production teams • Why small technical mistakes create larger leadership trust issues • How church leadership alignment impacts audio, AVL, and weekend services • Practical ways to lead better production meetings and team conversations • How to approach church AVL projects without competing agendas • Why mission, vision, and outcomes matter more than personal preferences • How healthy church production culture creates stronger ministry environments The biggest takeaway: great church production is not just about better audio, lighting, or technology — it’s about alignment. When worship, production, and leadership teams move together with clarity and trust, everything gets stronger. If your church production team feels disconnected, frustrated, or stuck in constant tension, this episode is for you. ________________________________ Summit is a Denver-based audio, video, lighting integrator serving churches nationwide. We don’t just install AVL systems for churches — we come alongside teams to build strong culture, leadership, and confidence in every room we serve. Learn more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SummitAVL.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@summit.is⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@summit.is⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SummitIntegrated⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SummitIntegrated⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

  8. May 8

    Ep. 19 – How Plugins Slowly Wreck A Mix

    Church audio plugins can improve a mix — or quietly destroy clarity. In this episode of Gear Follows Vision, Summit solution architect Andrew Starke joins Deron for a deep conversation about plugin culture in church audio, live sound, and AVL production. They unpack how modern mixing workflows in churches often drift from intentional and effective to overprocessed and unnecessarily complicated. What begins as excitement around studio-style mixing techniques can quickly turn into overloaded console scenes, excessive plugin chains, phase problems between microphones, latency issues, and mixes that actually sound worse instead of better. If you’re a church front of house engineer, audio volunteer, tech director, worship leader, or production pastor, this episode will help you rethink how plugins should — and should not — be used in a live church environment. In this episode, you’ll learn: • How overusing plugins can hurt live church audio quality• Why latency and phase issues matter more than most engineers realize• The hidden risks of overloaded church audio show files and processing chains• How to build cleaner, more reliable live sound mixes for worship services• Why fixing the source is better than stacking more processing• How gain structure and intentional mixing improve clarity and consistency• The difference between studio mixing workflows and effective live church audio• How to simplify your AVL systems without sacrificing quality Andrew and Deron also explore the mindset behind modern church audio culture — why engineers often chase complexity instead of clarity, and how better decisions lead to more consistent results for both volunteers and experienced operators. The big takeaway: plugins do not create great mixes. Engineers do. If your church audio mixes feel muddy, overprocessed, inconsistent, or difficult to manage week after week, this conversation will help recalibrate how you think about plugins, processing, and live sound mixing in church production. ________________________________ Summit is a Denver-based audio, video, lighting integrator serving churches nationwide. We don’t just install AVL systems for churches — we come alongside teams to build strong culture, leadership, and confidence in every room we serve. Learn more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SummitAVL.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@summit.is⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@summit.is⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SummitIntegrated⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SummitIntegrated⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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About

Gear Follows Vision is a podcast for pastors, leaders, tech directors, and church production teams who believe ministry starts with vision — not gear. Through real conversations with church leaders and production industry pros, we explore leadership, team culture, and project solutions, while digging into systems, budgets, audio, video, lighting, broadcast, and acoustics. Practical, honest, and mission-first. Because in the church, gear only matters when it follows vision. Connect with us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SummitIntegrated.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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