The Essential Guide to Audio Visual Equipment for Event Planners
Audio Visual is essential at any event, and as an Event Planner, you will be the first contact between your audio-visual team and client. To make your planning journey easier, we have compiled a simplified list of essential audio-visual equipment for your checklist during the planning and execution stages.
Sound Boards and Mixers
If the event will be using more than one microphone in the same space, a soundboard or mixer will be needed. These consoles will balance the sound, control feedback, and allow volume levels on the microphones to be adjusted. Be sure to let your audio-visual team know how many microphones you will plan on using so that they can have the appropriate amount of speakers and mixing boards ready.
Microphones
Speaking of microphones, before making your selections you will want to ask yourself what the microphone will be used for and if it will be stationary or need to be passed between speakers.
If only the current speaker will need the mic and will be positioned in the same spot, a wired microphone is the best. However, if you will have multiple speakers on stage or if you intend to pass the microphone to the audience for questions, a handheld wireless microphone would be the better option.
Projectors and Aspect Ratios
For presentations involving PowerPoints and videos, you will want a brighter projector for good visibility, especially if a room has a lot of natural light. If you are streaming the content, a rear screen projection would provide you with better quality visuals to help bridge the gap between the data being transferred. When it comes to the aspect ratio of your screens, the two most common are High Definition (also known as widescreen), and Standard Definition. Today, High Definition is usually the go-to, but you will need to make sure your speakers submit their presentations to fit the 16:9 aspect ratio.
Adapters and Bandwidth
Hosting an event with multiple presenters and hundreds of attendees can be overwhelming to local bandwidth connections. More bandwidth will provide more consistent upload and download speeds to ensure uninterrupted streaming and prevent the internet from crashing for both your presenters and attendees. You will also want to have some spare adapters on hand for speakers who are using personal equipment to present so that they can connect to your projectors, as most computers do not have the HDMI outlets that are needed for them.
Knowing the basic, essential equipment and how it works will improve your ability to identify your audio-visual needs for your next event and make it easier to manage your budget.
