In church production, it’s easy to fall into the trap of overloading your gear or pushing it to its limits. While it may seem tempting to stretch your equipment beyond its intended capacity, doing so can cause serious issues during live events or services. Whether you’re mixing audio or running a video switcher, overworking your systems can lead to failure when you least expect it.

Just because your equipment can handle high demands doesn’t mean it should. When you run systems at 100% of their capacity, especially during live events, you’re much more likely to hit the breaking point. Think of it like pushing your car’s engine into the red zone every week—it’ll break down faster. It’s tempting to think you can get by with consumer-grade or non-professional gear, but that can quickly lead to issues when you need reliability most.

Instead of squeezing every last bit of performance out of your equipment, focus on building a system with a bit of overhead. When you push your gear to its max, it can work—until it can’t. If you find yourself constantly operating near the edge, it’s a sign that your setup may need an upgrade or expansion. This kind of long-term planning allows you to accommodate more flexibility and capacity, ensuring smoother services and fewer headaches down the road.

Before committing to a new purchase, ask yourself: just because you can use a certain piece of equipment in a specific way, should you? If you’re starting to stream services or rely on gear that isn’t built for constant, high-demand use, it’s worth considering whether you need to invest in more robust equipment first. The goal is to avoid shortcuts that could lead to problems when you’re live.