Things go wrong on church stages! Trust me, I've been there for plenty of it...

A mixer that the un-technical can quickly fix an overloaded input on, a mis-connected mike, a drum mike that got moved, a choir mike that ends up facing the wrong direction, a guitarist that suddenly decides that the Spirit is calling him to play four times louder than rehearsal... That's what you need!

Presets aren't what you need in a live situation. We often forget, because of our familiarity with electronic gear, that many others AREN'T. And it's no good being on stage when the mixer is at the back of the chapel! The guy behind the board can make or break you. Complicating his task with a digital board can come back to bite you. There are thousands of guys you can get to work an analog board, but those with extensive experience on digital boards are fewer. And those familiar with the particular board you pick even fewer than that.

Unless your church has the budget for a fulltime, reliable qualified digital soundman, try to pick your equipment based on the LEAST qualified guy you might ever find yourself using!