I'm not an audio engineer, but I could sure use the help of one!
Recently I helped my church purchase a little box called an AutoHybrid by JK Audio. It basically takes a balanced line-level output and broadcasts it over a telephone line. This is useful for us because it allows church members who can't make it to a service one day to be able to "call in" and listen along. We just plug the box into the PA system, call into a number, and go.
I've verified that it's working. However, it's SUPER quiet... to the point that it's basically un-usable.
Here's an explanation of our set up. Most of this equipment is pretty old.
- TOA Series A-506A Amplifier
- Peavey 1/3 Octave EQ-31 Graphic Equalizer
- Shure UT-4 Wireless Microphone
- Gentner Assistive Listening FM Transmitter
- JK Audio AutoHybrid
I actually drew up a diagram as best I could of how all this equipment is connected to each other, so take a look if you want all the specifics. But basically, there are two main (wired) microphones that plug directly into the amplifier, then the amp sends an output to the equalizer, which in turn sends an output back to the amplifier. And currently the AutoHybrid is plugged into the equalizer, because there was nowhere else to plug it in. And again, this actually does work in that it is broadcasting the signal over the phone... it's just far too quiet.
What do I need to do to make the AutoHybrid louder without breaking the current system? Someone I spoke with earlier had suggested adding either a mixer or a distribution amplifier to receive the microphone signals before sending it to the equalizer, but I'm not totally sure how I would have to re-wire everything to make that work.
Thanks so much in advance!