WOW...that's a lot of questions :-) In general, we don't put near enough emphasis on the audio. Training is so imperitive; but what I have found is, most people are shown a few knobs and that's about it. The tech people have the power to really distract from what's going on. And rarely, are they given the proper tools to really succeed. With our Media Minister leaving, I have the opporunity to train our techs. 2 things I found to be true across the board (pun intended :-) in our situation. Rarely is the Praise Team or Worship Leader too loud. There is a fear of that, but in reality, the louder the singers, the louder the congregation will sing. There is, of course, a limit to this...but I have been in few C of C's who actually are anywhere close to this. I teach techs to think of mixing 6 parts (SATB, Worship Leader, AND congregation) As I've taught this way, it has immediatly improved the sound. You may not get a slider for the congregation, but you would be surprised how much the tech can impact the volume of the congregation. As an aside, besides not being "ready" at the board (your un-muting example...happens all the time), the other big "no-no" I see in churches is in your picture. Do whatever you can to move a sound tech out of a booth. They are not hearing what the congregation is hearing. To address your other questions...I'm taking this as a cue to encourage our techs and provide solid training. I can't expect them to know things they haven't been taught.