To Mute or Not To Mute

This post might borderline on a personal rant/pet peeve.

I find it frustrating to watch a speaker start talking and not hearing what they started to say because the sound tech didn’t notice them getting ready to talk into their mic.

Muting Mics during an event service etc, why mute and when?

I have seen and heard the bad results of muting a mic every time someone stops talking.
Yes I know the fewer mics live the better your over all sound is and the less unwanted noise you will have and for the most part it is good practice, BUT I feel you need to find a balance between leaving a mic live and muting unused mics.

For example when the worship team has stopped playing and the pastor has gotten up to preach then yes most definitely mute the mics they were using.

During a audience involved q & a or when you have to people talking back and forth do you mute the mic?

With two people talking back and forth maybe. If one has stepped off the stage or to the side then it might be best to mute it provided you have a good sight line of them. If both speakers are on stage then I would leave both mics on this will prevent a speaker from not being heard if they start talking and you didn’t notice them start to talk.

If it is an audience involved q & a situation then you should most definitely mute the mic as it is being passed around.

To conclude this post/rant, I would recommend only muting when necessary.