Then, after all of your efforts to provide the customer exactly the system they are looking for, you find out that your competition offered the absolute cheapest parts they could find, not providing any of the “extras” your customer said they had to have, and your customer's response is simply, “…well, they had a better price – thanks for all of your help.”

You’d only do it once.

Even low priced, budget systems can require up to two or three days of design and research time to insure that all components are proper for the task require – that is unless you just “cut and paste” a “cookie-cutter” generic system that may, or more likely, may not be, the right system for your church or facility. Proper loudspeaker selection alone may require hours of room analysis. "Opinions" regarding the output rating (or lumens) of a projector run wildly rampant. Show me a projector in a church and there's a 95% chance I'll show you an underpowered projector. Let me put this in simple English - the SMALLEST projector I'd sell my mother is 4500 Lumens, and this is for a 6 to 8 ft screen @ 14 feet (OK, I have done a few 10 ft screens with this, but I still prefer 8ft ...)  For a simple 'test', do this.... set your wide screen TV next to your screen... if the picture isn't just a bright and clear on both screens - you got ripped......

The only way, let me say that again, the only way you could afford to do business in this manner is if you have your sales staff just throw together a package that they think the customer might buy. You simply cannot afford to do all of the design work necessary to put a properly engineered sound system proposal together in this type of situation. From a purely statistical point of view, a sales person only "lands" less than 25% of the sales they go after, so considering this fact, 75% of your sales time is automatically wasted. Now, how much time would you "spend" putting that bid together??

Yes, contractors do it every day! If you are from a church looking to upgrade your system, and you’re reading this, there is an extremely strong chance that  the first (and even second – or third) system your church bought was "sold" to you in this very manner.

Do you want to know a frightening statistic? The average, typical church will buy three to four – yes, three to four – sound systems before they buy the right one they should have purchased in the first place. This is a professional audio contractor fact. Which one are you on?

Here’s another hidden fact. If you (the customer) have not provided written information regarding specific system features, functions or other product information to the bidding contractors, you are literally “on your own” to evaluate the performance of the products, and guess what - you are assuming the responsibilities of a system consultant – not the contractor. Do you know the difference between a Rane ME-30, an Ashly 2.24g or a DBX 260? Do you even know what these devices are and what they do, and most importantly, why you may need them? Which is the right one for you?

Let's take this to the next step - OK, you ask for 'bids', and then get flooded with a boatload of technical specification sheets - now what?  If you're looking at a sound system and all you know are "watts", you're going to be in a serious world of hurt. Have you ever heard of a 'lumen?' Does the term 'inverse square law" mean anything to  you? My point here is simple - with all due respect, most people shopping for a sound or video system have little to no idea what they are truly shopping for. As a result, people will become (very much understandably) confused, leaving the only 'common denominator' which is price to become the final judge. George Washington was a diplomat, a statesman, and a general - I believe that he was also a surveyor - something tells me he wasn't an audio/video consultant, yet he is solely responsible for a vast majority of buying decisions.

Are you being provided with the best devices for a custom system designed exclusively for you and the needs and physical layout of your facility or are you simply being sold a "cookie cutter - cut and paste" system or boxes from stock? 

Think about it.  Ever heard, "You get what you pay for." ???   There's another question I really like to ask when people ask me if I have the cheapest price, which is, "How much did you save by buying the wrong thing?"  No, we're not cheap, but I'll guaranteed you'll spend less buying the right thing the first time. Would you like a real-life example?  We were contacted about a wireless microphone for a church - our price, $500....   The church soundman (of course, in an effort to save money) went to the music store and only spent $200 for a system - WOW! he saved $300...  Unfortunately, paying no attention to any details - he connected this mic to his system, resulting in the almost instantaneous destruction of almost every high frequency speaker in his system - repair cost? Over $800.00 - Solution to the problem? The $500.00 microphone we started with.

Let's do the math - First microphone purchased = $200.00 - system repair cost = $800.00 - the 'right' microphone purchased = $500.00. Total spent, $1,500.00. Total dollars absolutely thrown in the trash to save $300.00? One Thousand Dollars.  Again, this is an absolutely true story..

 Another major problem is that budget information is rarely if ever provided by the client. Does the contractor design a three thousand, ten thousand, or thirty thousand dollar sound system? Sure, in the meetings the customer requested a high power system with subwoofers, CD recorders and duplicators, 6 wireless microphones, a hearing assist system, digital in-ear monitors, power sequencers and all of the other deluxe features – but they only have two thousand dollars in the budget. How much time did the contractors waste designing a system that the client cannot possibly buy? (Remember the 75% time wasted?)

With the 30 plus years of experience I now have in professional audio, I have seen these situations too many times – way too many.  When Suffolk Audio Services was created, I made a business decision not to enter the arena of “open competitive bidding” for one simple reason – everyone loses.  The customer loses because they bought a system with either substandard components, or a system that doesn’t meet all of their requirements, or even worse, over bought a system they’ll never benefit from.  There is a “discount dealer” in the area that has sells 24 channel consoles with 8 subgroups and a matrix (do you know what that is?) feature to churches that have absolutely no idea what these functions are, or how to use them. In fact, these features will never be used. The churches spent thousands more than they needed to for absolutely no reason whatsoever. However the dealer did a great job of convincing the churches that they got a good deal. Right.

The contractor loses because in order to even get the job in the first place, they must cut any potential profit(s) to the bone. Project installation managers are usually under considerable pressure to get the job done in the specified time – time that was estimated by sales representatives who typically have very little to no actual installation experience. Labor mis-estimates are the number one reason audio contractor companies close their doors – permanently. I can tell you about several contractors who “lost their rears” by under-estimating projects in bid situations leaving their customers deserted with no system. And yes, there were lawsuits.

Should someone determine (for whatever reason) that a “bid” product be substituted or replaced, the contractor will issue a “change order” virtually allowing them to charge whatever they want for the replacement parts (to compensate for the low prices originally charged in the first place), and you’ll also see “restocking fees” for as much as 18 to 20% of the cost of the original items. Remember, you approved the original design.

Yes, this does happen.

Do you think that every contractor you called to “get a price” spent the time and the attention to detail that they should have in the design of you system? If so, think again.

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Q10: Ok, so if all of these problems exist, what is the right way to buy a system?

A10: For facilities requiring “bids,” the larger facilities, (roughly 300 to 400 seats or larger) or for rooms that offer difficult acoustic or architecturally challenging situations, an independent consultant or system engineer should be hired. This person will work directly with the client to determine the exact needs and system requirements – and preliminary budget estimates to the owners.  The consultant will then create either of two types of document, a performance, or equipment specification. The performance spec sets a specific set of performance parameters the system must meet and specific system features.  The contractor is then free to choose the products that will meet those requirements. The equipment specification is similar except that specific products have already been selected. The contractor may offer other products, but they must first submit any information as required by the consultant in order to prove that the offering is equal or superior to that requested. If the consultant (acting for the client) specifically wants OAP or EAW speakers and Crown power amps, they have the right to reject alternate products.

The bottom line is that the final system design (and performance) is ultimately in the hands of the consultant – that’s what you paid them for. The contractor is responsible for providing the system and properly installing it per the consultant's design.

For smaller systems (generally about 300 seats or less) or rooms that do not pose major acoustic problems – your best course of action is to interview several contracting companies – not for what products they have, or how cheap they are, but for their experience and willingness to work with you in determining you needs. Then select a contractor to work directly with you to design, install, train, and provide future service. The contractor will negotiate a fair and reasonable price – within the budget of the facility.

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Q11: Your price seems high..

A11:  Within a few nickels or two, the (manufacturers) price for a piece of gear (to the dealers) is pretty much the same. So the major differences you will see from one dealer to another is either in profit or their labor cost. Let me be frank -  “Profit” is not a bad word – it is the lifeblood of any business. Any company that cannot generate a fair and reasonable profit is in serious jeopardy of failure – and then who wins? Remember the “MARS” music stores?? They learned that lesson the hard way. It is only from profits that a company can exist and pay and train their staff, and frankly, keep their doors open. Now, who stands to benefit from this - YOU DO!

I hear people complaining constantly - "I just haven't been able to find anyone who knows anything about our sound system!" - of course, these are the same people who have 6 different discount catalogs on their desk. This is simple Economics 101.  People have become so "discount price" obsessed that I'm truly afraid we've started down the "slippery slope".

Want examples?? Just look at ... (I can't mention names - but you know who they are - you shop there every day). Each and every one a discount "warehouse." When was the last time you were able to find anyone at any of these stores who even had a clue...  Want to know why? Take a guess.

Go to the #1 retailer in this country and try to get sales help - good luck.  I don't want to go off on a political rant here, but do you know where 80% of the products sold by the #1 retailer in this country come from? Can you cay China? The Discount Dilemma in this country has forced 1000's to lose good paying manufacturing jobs and plants to close. There is now only ONE remaining television assembly plant left in the US.

I just learned  that Eastern Acoustic Works (EAW) has laid-off over 100 dedicated employees - manufacturing to be done somewhere in Asia.

At a local electronics "warehouse" I saw a $90.00 - yes NINETY DOLLAR - tos-link (a little home stereo optical cable) - note the key word OPTICAL - that means a cable that passes "light energy"- I had to ask.... "Why is this cable so expensive?" to the sales rep....   The reply, "It has excellent shielding sir!" - Now I realize that everyone reading this isn't up on fiber optic cables, so I'll explain. There is little, short of a nuclear bomb going off within a thousand feet (+/-) or so, that will interfere with the signal on an optical cable - light energy is already immune to ANY interference - ANY.  The fact remains, the kid had absolutely no clue - period.

Go to any electronics store and ask for "digital headphones" - they'll find them right away - it will even be printed on the box "DIGITAL HEADPHONES". Now tell me, what's "digital" about them? Think about this for just a moment......  now let me make this real easy for you - nothing. Nothing has been or literally ever will be "digital" about headphones. The signal coming down the wire is analog, the device in the headphone that converts the electrical signal to sound energy - is analog. Our ears are - analog - always will be. Don't even get me started on watts.

We are flooded with marketing propaganda that can mislead even the most well intentioned consumer - and most of the time, the sales help we get, well, isn't. 

My point here is simple - our price may be a few dollars higher, but isn't that worth something? The training, the experience and the knowledge we bring to you, to put it in simple English, didn't exactly come free, and the only way we can continue to have the level of knowledge our customers are glad we have, again, we have to go back to that word profit. 

A reputable sound system company will invest several thousand dollars annually for to maintain the latest technical information and employee training. You are the one who benefits from this.

Now, let me ask you a few questions; do you drive the cheapest car you could possibly drive? Do you live in the cheapest house? Do you have the cheapest furniture and wear the cheapest clothes. Do you eat the cheapest food? What was the last thing you purchased (other than possibly gasoline) where you shopped solely for the cheapest item you could find? I’ve got a very good feeling that the answers to the questions above are “No”, “No”, “No”, “No”, “No” and “I don’t know”.  Then why would you want the cheapest installers you can find? Wouldn’t you want trained, experienced people hanging heavy speakers over your head? Do you have any idea how much you – and we – could be sued for if an incident occurred? 

Now let's talk about service rates!  If you have a problem with your system, would you rather have some “new guy” hunt and peck his way around your system, charging you for every minute he’s there, not having a clue how to fix the problem in the first place, or having a qualified technician who is experienced in locating system faults? Sure, it makes perfect sense to me to pay the cheap company $45.00 per hour for three hours to have a technician stumble around - versus paying a qualified company $65.00 for only one hour. Sadly, the cheap company gets its share of work – why? Because they’re $20.00 an hour less. (In case math is not your strong suit, you would have just paid more than double – to save money - in the above example.)

The bottom line is simple - paying a tiny fraction more for better quality products, service and reliable technical support will actually save you hundred to thousands of dollars. The sad part is that, unfortunately, most people have to pay dearly to learn this very simple fact. 

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Q12: The other company said they are “certified”, are you?

A12: There are a number of technical certifications and other programs that are available for technicians, engineers and installers and it cost (a lot of) money for companies to provide this training. While there may be some merit to the certification programs, there is no single “certification” that is recognized within our industry.  To be honest - I've absolutely lost track of what the "certification-du-jour' these days even are....  and no, I'm not kidding!

Just because a company may represent themselves as “certified” by some agency or group, doesn’t mean that all of the installers or service people you see will be “certified”. The certificate holder may (very often) be only a manager sitting back in the office.

To answer the question, no – Suffolk Audio Services holds no “certifications” of any type.  Why not? Simply because, as stated above, there are many – and the one that our industry recognizes today may be “out of fashion” tomorrow. This has happened several times over the course of the past few years. Each of these programs can cost many hundreds to thousands of dollars each and quite frankly, I feel that some for the current "certified" training misses many key elements that are required in understanding all of the nuances of knowledge necessary.

“Certification” may provide for a base line of some technical knowledge, but it doesn’t for make up field experience. If you hire an installer to suspend (a potentially life threatening) speaker 40 feet up over the heads of your congregation, I personally wouldn’t care if they were “certified” in installing fiber optic connectors.

Unfortunately (but often) “certification” is used as a tool by contractors to restrict bidding on projects. If company A has written a specification for a client and company A also has a “certification XXX” (provided by some agency), they may state in the bid documents that “certification XXX” is required and mandatory for all bidders. Well, company B and C has “certification YYY” and may be restricted from bidding –yet may actually be a better choice to provide and install the system.  Using 'certifications' in this manner can be highly misleading if not fradulent.

Please don’t misunderstand – I am the first person to say that education and proper training IS extremely important – you should see all of the training certificates I have on my walls! But until the industry and customers adopt a single recognized standard that is applied fairly across the board, the certification process is very “hit or miss” and unfortunately, as I said above, the training (very) often doesn’t make it all the way to the customer.

Here’s another point….   Even though Suffolk Audio Services is not certified – by any of the programs, which are available, we have been hired by each of the following contractors to perform installation services – many on a very frequent basis. 

• Audio Visual Innovations (the top A/V company in the US)
• Communications Specialist, Inc (a top 10 company)
• SPL Integrated Solutions (another top 10 company)
• Beta Systems
• Dynamic Systems Integration
• ECI Communications
• Fire Protection Equipment Company
• Island Systems and Design
• National Church Purchasing Group
• RCI/DMX
• ACS Dataline
• Ambassador Enterprises
• The Whitlock Group
• SPROX

(NOTE - Audio Visual Innovations (AVI) and Signal Perfection Limited (SPL have merged to form the largest A/V company in the world!)

Suffolk Audio Services is fully licensed and insured.  We have participated in programs such as Synergetic Audio Concepts, and have received factory training from companies such as Crown, Community, Eastern Acoustic Works, OAP, Ashly, Telex, Middle Atlantic Products, Altec Lansing, and a host of others.  We have received rigging training from ATM/Allen – a world leader, and from J.H. Holland Company, who trains and supplies the Military and local shipbuilding industry.

This combined with now over 30 years of practical experience, it’s safe to say, we know what we’re talking about.

Just for fun, ask the next audio salesman you see to explain the difference between a graphic and parametric equalizer. (Most cannot.)

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Q13: What separates professional audio contractors from music stores, and “box sale” discount houses?

A13: A lot!  Yes, all three sell, microphones and amplifiers and speakers – but only the professional audio contractor is able to evaluate the specific details of each component and how it will relate into a complete system design. Are you buying the best microphone for your needs or one the salesman wants to sell you?  Many music stores and “box sales” wholesalers neither know or care about what your school auditorium, church sanctuary or fellowship hall looks like, if there are acoustic issues that must be addressed, of if you even have the knowledge to properly or safely install the products. Who is going to set up and equalize the system? Who is going to train you and your sound crew?  Who is going to hang (what we call rigging or flying) the loudspeakers?  If you don’t hire someone who is experienced in this very detailed – not to mention potentially dangerous – operation, you are subjecting yourself to a situation where if a failure should occur, the liability exposure could be in the millions of dollars. Is it worth it?

If you did purchase something from a discounter or local store and it doesn’t work (within the warranty period) you can take it back for a new one - assuming you are able to identify the problem in the first place. Do you think that a salesman from a music store is going to come to your office, school, or church? Hardly. Do you think that if there is a problem with a product purchased from a wholesaler that they will be there to help you?  You would be lucky even to speak to the same person you bought the gear from. What if you have a feedback problem – what part do you take back to the store?

A church in Virginia Beach went to a music store (to save money) and bought a wireless microphone for their system in their fellowship hall. All of a sudden, on Sunday mornings, the wireless microphone in the sanctuary was acting up. Guess what? The (new) microphone was on the same frequency as one in the sanctuary. That’s a technical no-no.  Any reputable audio contractor would have checked for this. And by the way, the church paid for the service call to identify and track down the problem – so much for saving all that money.

Another great “cost savings” attempted by many today is to purchase their gear from the “discount houses” (and there are many) and have a local contractor install the gear. This sounds great in practice, but….  If there is a problem, like, ordering the wrong parts (and there are hundreds of ways to do this) the entire process can come to a halt. Would you like to know what the restocking fees and shipping costs are even for two cheap speakers? I can tell you of a church who found out the hard way......

Your best way to purchase – to make an investment – in a sound system is to chose a contracting company that you feel comfortable with. Chose a company who is willing to work with you, answer your questions, provide you with options, and explain why they will benefit you. Work with the contractor in discussing realistic budgets.

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Q14: Why don’t you show the individual prices for items in your quotations?

 A14: - When you purchased your car, did you ask for a “price per part” breakdown? How about your house? Your TV or computer? I bet you didn’t.

 Just think for a moment, if you wanted to buy a car, would you buy individual the parts from different places, the engine from somewhere else, and maybe you have a seat or two somewhere in the house? Hardly. You just might want all of the parts to be represented by one company, which has assembled them properly, tested them to insure that all everything is working in harmony.  Do you think your sound system is any different?

When a customer comes to Suffolk Audio Services, they are not looking for the price for an amplifier or speaker or microphone. They are looking for the solution to a problem – and this is exactly what we do – solve problems, and work with our clients to meet their objectives within their budget. This is something that cannot happen if a customer is just shopping for “a price” and vendors are just slinging numbers at them.

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Q15: Why did you post all of this information?

 A15: - Very simple – customers will make the best decisions if they have the right information.  We want our customers to know everything possible about Suffolk Audio Services, our history, our knowledge and experience, and our philosophy.

 Our bottom line is that we’re not here to "sell" you anything,  we're here to help you solve your problems.

(PS - Thanks for taking time to read this!!)

Send mail to mail@suffolkaudio.com  with questions or comments about this web site.

This site was last updated 06/05/10