Looking for a solution that would allow them to more easily mic pastors and performers of all statures, the audio team at Christian Church of Clarendon Hills (CCCH) recently turned to DPA Microphones’ d:screet Necklace Microphone. This marks the first known HOW application for the company’s latest miniature mic, which recently won a TEC Award. In addition to its regular services, the church lends its auditorium to local schools for concerts and events, so the audio team also keeps a supply of DPA d:fine 66, d:fine 4066 and d:screet 4061 miniatures on hand.

Initially trying the DPA d:screet Necklace mic on recommendation from their local integrator, Robert Locklear, Minister of Worship and Music at CCCH has become quite fond of the miniature mic. “It has a lot of the same tonal qualities of a regular headset mic with a little lower-end, which was a welcome surprise because of the high-end frequencies boost,” he says. “We don’t have any of the whispyness that we have with most headset mics that are commonplace in houses of worship. We only have one Necklace mic right now, but it has such a great quality that we’re definitely going to purchase more.”

The size and durability of the mic also appealed to Locklear and his team, who have a limited budget for purchasing new mics. “We do a lot of plays and talent shows, both through our church and for local schools that rent our space, and the biggest problem we were having was trying to mic the children and petite women,” he explains. “For instance, our Pastor’s wife is very petite and when she would wear the d:fine headset mics that we use for the male speakers, we couldn’t mount it to her head properly because we have the longer boom, so the d:screet Necklace is a better fit for this situation.”

It isn’t just the smaller presenters who are benefitting from the d:screet Necklace. “It has been excellent for all of our speaking roles,” continues Locklear. “We had some doubts about it being placed down by the neck and behind the mouth, but those have really been unfounded. What’s more, our Senior Pastor is very comfortable with the mic. It’s especially useful for when he’s done with service as he spends a lot of one-on-one time speaking with people and found that it would often be off-putting for people sharing their life story with someone with a headset mic. With DPA’s d:screet Necklace mic, he just tucks the mic into his collar and sits it right where a tie might be, so no one notices the mic. This setup has given him and his congregation a lot more confidence to have personal conversations.”

Though the d:screet Necklace is proving to be the preferred solution for presenters, the church’s DPA collection began with the original 4066 Headset Microphone, now part of DPA’s d:fine line of headset mics. It was Locklear’s experiences with that mic that led him to purchase the d:fine 66 and d:screet 4061, in addition to the d:screet Necklace.

“We started purchasing the 4066s as we were replacing our competitor-brand headsets because we felt the DPAs were a lot sturdier,” he explains. “We purchased the dual-ear version, which was not available for most brands at the time. That solution has given our speakers a lot more comfortability, confidence and security because the mic doesn’t move around when they are talking. The mics are also great for the students who use them, especially for younger users when we host outside events. The wire is a lot more pliable than most headsets.”

With the new whitespace laws coming into effect, Locklear plans to replace all of his older mics with DPA products. “Over the next year, we’re going to switch all of our AKG beltpacks to Shures. This means we need to update our mic inventory to add more d:screet Necklace and d:fine 4066 microphones for increased options for our speakers. Everything at our ministry and what we do to serve the community is very fluid, so we have to have solutions to accommodate that fluidity, and DPA is a big part of that.”

Founded 50 years ago in the western suburbs of Chicago, CCCH’s congregation is roughly 750 people strong. With the ever-changing technological advancements, CCCH uses drama, videos and popular songs to provide compelling explorations of the Bible each week.