When most people think of haunted attractions, they picture fog machines, strobe lights, and costumed actors leaping from the shadows. For John Walsh, the scares run deeper: farm dust and backhoes near his fiber lines are what keep him up at night. In this interview conducted by Hope Roth, we explore how he uses his AV expertise and Q-SYS to bring immersive storytelling to life at Bates Motel & Haunted Attractions.
Walsh, who works with Delco Solutions, comes from an IT background. “I started doing IT networking and I’ve always been in the AV world,” he explains. “I’ve kind of just faded out of the IT segment directly and went into AV. And now they kind of mix match. So it’s interesting because I’m kind of bringing back my old techniques and skills into some of the stuff that we do today.”
That IT background has proven invaluable, with switch configuration and subnetting skills now surfacing in nearly every project. Walsh stays in deep demand for his skills for “keeping different VLANs segmented across Dante or AV over IP video.” There’s nothing more terrifying than a call at 5pm on a Friday night saying that a network segment went down!
Q-SYS Communities Closer Look
Before we dive in deeper on how Bates Motel runs, check out the Communities exclusive video on this project.
Building the Sound of Fear
When Walsh first approached Bates Motel owners Randy and Anne Bates about upgrading their systems, he had a clear vision. “I went to them and said it was time to implement a real paging and background system,” he recalls. “We had been using paging horns, which don’t work for background music. After visiting Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights and other theme parks, I realized background music was a key ingredient in improving the customer experience.”
The solution was Q-SYS, which Walsh has worked with since 2017. “It all kind of runs off one platform and it’s managed by one piece of software,” he says. “It was very easy to implement. As you play with the software, you keep learning and doing new things and finding one way to do it 17,000 different directions each time.”
The results are immediate and visceral. “You hit a button and instantly the light show starts with a music cue,” Walsh describes. “It’s cool.” From the moment they step out of their cars, customers are pulled into the experience.
Walsh recalls one moment that drove home just how essential background music had become. “A couple of years ago, before I had automated all the commands, I forgot to hit play,” he says. “It was eerily quiet out there. You’re standing there thinking, wait, what’s wrong, what’s going on? And then it hits you — the background music isn’t on.”
Expanding the Experience
With fiber now run to the Haunted Hayride entrance, Walsh is already planning the next evolution. “The idea would be to add surround panning speakers, like a dragon roar moving left to right,” he says. “We could trigger fire effects at the castle entrance and progress into scenes further along the hayride.”
For Walsh, the technology is never just about hardware. It is about storytelling. “Having a passion for both AV and the haunt industry makes it easy and fun,” he says. “It’s creative to implement this in different ways for different scenarios.”
Challenges in the Field
Of course, running AV on a working farm comes with unique challenges. Walsh laughs about the “farm dust” that coats equipment. “It’s a thick coating of dirt basically and it’s tough to get off,” he admits. “Knock on wood, this equipment has been in place for a few years now and it runs, it keeps going. It’s pretty robust for sure.”
Heat is another concern. With multiple MDF and IDF closets, only one of which is air-conditioned, Walsh relies on fans and regular cleanings. “We’ll go around and clean the equipment once in a while. I try to do it every month,” he says.
Looking Ahead
For now, Walsh is focused on surviving the season. “Sleep,” he jokes when asked about his off-season projects. But even in the busiest weeks, he is already thinking about what is next, from refining automation to adding new effects.
As he puts it, “My life is the movie Groundhog Day. I just wake up like I feel like I just shaved seven days in a row, five times each day. It’s crazy. But we’re already planning the dates for next year.”
We’re grateful to John Walsh for taking the time to give Communities a deeper dive into the tech behind the terror. And if you find yourself near Glen Mills, Pennsylvania, don’t miss the chance to experience Bates Motel Haunted Attractions firsthand.
Hope Roth
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