What is the proper amplifier for 13 paging microphones?

Answer 1

13 pager microphones in a single public address system suggests a very large announcement system. The amplifier in fact has no bearing on the number of microphones although the choice of amplifier is important to make sure it will drive all the loudspeakers properly. The microphones will need to be handled by a mixer. The mixer's job is to generate the right signal level for each microphone and then combine the signals into a single output. That output will be fed to the amplifier. However, with 13 microphones, it's important to make sure they are not all on at the same time, so each will have a switch that needs to be pressed before the mic will become active. It may be that the switches need to be linked together so that only one can be used at a time or to allow one to override all others. It is also very likely that the system will need to have different speaker zones and then each microphone will need to be routed to one or more zones. A signal router or a routing mixer is needed to perform this task and it may demand a software controlled router to make sure that each microphone is heard in the correct locations. Multiple amplifiers will be needed to support this routing option and the system can become fairly complex. This is the type of project that should be designed by a professional public address engineer. Although the technology is relatively straightforward, there are many pitfalls that need to be avoided. Correcting mistakes after a system like this has been installed is an expensive (and embarrassing) process. Having been in the industry for a long time, I have seen many mistakes (and made a few of my own in younger years). It is well worth obtaining professional help to avoid any of those mistakes.