Most of us are used to them these days, but that doesn’t mean we have to love microphones during mass.  The Catholic Register up in Canada gives this issue some amplification:  

If every modern church has a box full of microphones and a covey of speakers perched around the sanctuary, why do so many people complain they can’t hear the readings, the prayers or the homily?

 “I’ve seen around the world a kind of misuse of technology where it becomes counterproductive,” said Richard Osicki, a Winnipeg communications consultant and Catholic studies lecturer. “It distracts. It emphasizes things they don’t intend to emphasize — priests forgetting to turn on their microphones or blasting through the microphone.” 

Osicki has organized a day-long seminar Sept. 26 at Holy Ghost Church in Winnipeg called “What is a microphone doing at church?” The idea is to get people thinking about how they use modern technology in the liturgy and to give people some basic skills so microphones and the equipment that goes with them don’t become maladjusted distractions at Mass. 

 “As with so many other Catholic communications things, they (microphones) just kind of grew onto the church without anyone giving them a heck of a lot of thought,” said Osicki.
Doing it thoughtlessly can certainly detract from the liturgy, said David Smukler, a voice coach who has trained hundreds of professional actors, priests and preachers.

 “The purpose of speaking in the church is to convey the word. If you are not conveying the spirit you are not doing the job,” he said.
Whether they’re lectors, preachers or presiders, people speaking in church face very particular problems, said Smukler, who trains actors at York University and Toronto’s Equity Showcase Theatre and has also been a regular lecturer at the Toronto School of Theology.

“We’re always working with the acoustical problems,” he said. “The more stone, the more metal, the more ineffective the communication is… It’s about understanding the acoustical nature of the room. Then, if it’s necessary to use a mic, there are so many modern, good mics that are so simple, that can be pinned on. But people play with the buttons.” 

The other problem in churches is sitting in the pews, said Smukler.
“We have a generational issue of people not listening, that’s number one,” Smukler said. “And then we have people who have hearing loss.”

You can find more at the link.