Today in one line: give each laptop its own microphones, prove it from the car park, then label and photograph the finished system.
Fix — move two cables from GROUP OUT to AUX SEND, set the sends.
Test — the car-park test is the one that proves Gastón's problem is gone.
Document — labels first, then photos, with the room empty.
Wendy — two Zoom account settings, in parallel, early. Her steps ↓
Your undo buttonPhotograph everything in Phase 0 before you touch a knob. If T1, T2 and T4 have not passed by 1:45, put it all back from those photos.
Clock
Phase
0:00
0 · Before photos
0:10
1 · Channel map by ear — Wendy starts Zoom now
0:30
2 · Re-route and set levels
1:05
3 · Laptop settings, both
1:25
4 · Test
1:45
Decision: passed, or roll back
1:55
5 · Labels, then photos
2:40
6 · Close up
The session
0Before photos — your undo button10 min
These photos are your undo button. If the re-route is not working by the decision point, you put everything back exactly as these show.
1Confirm the channel map by ear20 min
The console labels have faded and the walkthrough contradicts itself on channels 1, 3 and 5. Everything after this depends on getting this right.
How
Write it down
Sort each microphone into one group
BIMAH group — used at the bimah/pulpit. Goes to Zoom through AUX 1. CONGREGATION group — handhelds passed around the seats. Goes to Zoom through AUX 2.
2Re-route and set levels35 min
Cables
Master section
Every channel
Both interfaces
The return cable
3Laptop settings — both20 min
Do all of this on both laptops. Screenshot each settings page as you finish it.
Zoom → Settings → Audio
Zoom → Settings → Video
Windows
The TV
4Test20–30 min
You need one helper and your phone. Join a test meeting on both laptops, room speakers at normal service level.
T1 · Pulpit speech reaches ONLY the Bimah laptopWatch each laptop's Zoom mic level while someone speaks at the bimah. Bimah moves, Congregation stays still.
T2 · Handheld speech reaches ONLY the Congregation laptopSame check with a handheld in the seats.
T3 · The always-open mic does not steal the pulpitIf there is an always-open mic, speak at the pulpit — the Congregation laptop's meter should stay low. If it jumps, lower that mic's AUX 2 and test again.
T4 · Car-park test — the one that proves the fixWalk OUTSIDE, join on your phone. Pulpit speech → Bimah tile goes active. Handheld speech → Congregation tile. Screen-record your phone while you do it.
T5 · Remote voice heard in the room, no echo backTalk into your phone from outside. The room hears you; you do not hear yourself come back.
T6 · No feedback at service levelEvery microphone open at its normal level, speakers up.
T7 · Test cloud recording (needs Wendy's changes done first)Start the test meeting AFTER she saves. Record 3 minutes: pulpit, then handheld, then pulpit. End for everyone. Wendy checks Recordings on zoom.us — there should be separate files, larger than 640×360. Processing can take a while; she can send the link later.
Decision point at 1:45If T1, T2 and T4 have not passed, stop. Put everything back exactly as the Phase 0 photos show and leave the old setup in place for Yom Kippur. A working old system beats a half-finished new one.
5Labels, then photos45 min
Labels — once the tests pass, not before
Colour
Marks
Orange
Bimah path: AUX 1 → Interface B → Laptop B
Blue
Congregation path: AUX 2 → Interface C → Laptop C
Green
Room speakers: STEREO OUT (already green)
Yellow
Zoom return into the mixer
White
USB and HDMI
Photos — room empty, flash off, square-on
Screenshots — both laptops
The full 75-shot list is in CBI-SHOT-LIST-2026-09-13.html. This is the part that cannot be retaken later without another visit.
6Close up10 min
If something's wrong
What you see
Check, in this order
A laptop gets no sound after the re-route
That AUX master knob · the channel's AUX knob · interface gain · Zoom microphone still set to Steinberg · cable really in the TRS part of the socket
Distorted on Zoom
Interface gain too high (PEAK lighting) · Hi-Z on · +48V on
Both laptops react to the pulpit
A bimah mic still has AUX 2 up · an always-open mic hearing the room (lower its AUX 2) · a cable not actually moved off GROUP OUT
Neither tile changes in the car-park test
A laptop muted in Zoom · both laptops getting the same feed · Zoom mic set to the wrong device on one
Remote guests hear an echo
AUX up on the Zoom return channel · the other laptop playing through its own speakers · TV volume up
Room hears remote guests only on one side
Zoom return channel PAN still hard left
Hum or buzz appeared after re-patching
Unplug one laptop's charger for a moment — if the hum stops, it's a ground loop between the laptop and the mixer. Note which laptop; don't try to solve it today.
Room silent, Zoom fine
ST button out on that channel · fader down
Mic dead everywhere
Transmitter mute switch · battery · channel ON button
Nothing fixes it by 1:45
Roll back to the Phase 0 photos. Stop.
For Wendy — about 10 minutes, on any computer
Two Zoom account settings
Do this before Obai starts his test meeting — changes only apply to meetings that start after you save.
Obai does not need your password. Please log in yourself.
1 · Separate recording files
Go to zoom.us and Sign In with the congregation's Zoom account — the one that hosts the services.
On the left, click Settings. At the top, click the Recording tab.
Make sure Cloud recording is switched on.
Tick "Record active speaker, gallery view and shared screen separately". Under it, make sure Active speaker and Gallery view are both ticked.
If there is a Save button, click it.
2 · Better video quality
Still in Settings, click the Meeting tab at the top.
Scroll down to In Meeting (Advanced) and find Group HD video.
Switch it on and choose the highest option offered.
Click Save.
3 · Then
Take a screenshot of each page after saving and send them to Obai.
If a setting is greyed out, shows a lock, or isn't there — stop and screenshot it. That usually means the account's plan doesn't include it, or someone else manages the account. There's nothing to fix by searching further.
After Obai's test recording, you'll be able to see the files under Recordings on the left. They can take a while to process.
Send your notes back
Everything you type and tick is saved on this phone. At the end, copy it and paste it to me — the channel map and test results go straight into the manual.
Still open — settle on site, don't guess
The channel map (Phase 1).
Where the Zoom return cable comes from.
Whether there's an always-open microphone.
Whether the account's plan includes Group HD — Wendy's screenshots will say.
Obai Sukar · prepared 17 September 2026. Zoom setting names checked against Zoom's and universities' published guidance on the day; menus can move between versions, so follow what's on screen if a label differs slightly. Cloud recordings are commonly capped at 720p, and Group HD depends on the account's plan. No meeting IDs, passcodes or logins appear in this page.