What equipment do I need to use pads at church?
Short answer. A phone and a 3.5mm cable to the mixing desk. That is it. No laptop, no audio interface, no in-ear monitors required.
The barrier to entry is far lower than most teams assume. Unlike tracks, which need a click, in-ears and rehearsal, a pad requires no synchronization with anyone.
The minimum that works
- A phone — the one already in your pocket.
- A 3.5mm stereo → dual 1/4” cable (or 3.5mm → XLR, depending on your desk).
- One free channel on the mixing desk, stereo if possible.
That is enough for next Sunday.
Where to plug in
Use two channels in stereo, panned hard left and hard right. A pad is a wide sound; summing to mono flattens the image and it loses half its effect.
If only one channel is free, mono still works — it just does not open up as much.
Settings that prevent trouble
- Turn Do Not Disturb ON. A notification with sound goes into the desk alongside the pad.
- Airplane mode is not a substitute if you need the network to download; download the pads first, then enable it.
- Phone volume at maximum, and control level from the desk. That uses the full range and avoids noise.
- Battery: a pad playing with the screen on drains it. Bring a power cable.
When it is worth investing more
- USB-C interface — if the phone headphone output’s noise floor bothers you on very quiet systems.
- A second device — if the same person operates pads and something else simultaneously.
- In-ear monitors — only if the team already uses a click for other purposes.
None of these are needed to start.