Our Church has HORRIBLE acoustics!! It was built in the 1960’s ‘Prayer Barn’ style, and is just U-G-L-Y!
It's not limited to the 1960's prayer barn architects, though. The Episcopal Cathedral in Atlanta is notorious for having the worst acoustics in the city, and it was built on a traditional plan, with a very large budget. But they messed up the proportions, and the nave just SWALLOWS the sound, whether sung or spoken. All sorts of acoustic engineers have been consulted to try to improve it, but nothing much seems to help.
But for some reason, when it's empty, it's great for recording the organ if you set up the mikes in the transept crossing, front and center. Which is good because it has a knockout organ -- one of the last of the Aeolian Skinners, a big traditional sounding American pipe organ. We helped our director record one of his original organ compositions over there (our organ is pitiful - but we're getting a new one in the latest renovation. Thank heavens!)