How to plan a sound system for a banquet hall

A banquet hall hosts a wedding one evening, a conference the next morning and a dance party at night. The sound system has to handle speeches, music and live bands, and be simple enough for your own staff to run.

Start with speech

Most complaints in halls are about unclear speech, not loud music. Hard floors, glass and high ceilings make sound bounce. Speakers should be placed to cover the seating evenly, aimed away from walls and at the audience, and tuned for the room.

Speakers and subwoofers

• Point-source speakers (12" or 15") cover most halls up to a few hundred guests.
• Line arrays suit long or large halls where the back rows are far from the stage.
• Subwoofers (15" or 18") add the low end for music and DJs.
• Delay or fill speakers help long halls and areas behind pillars.

Mixer and controls

A digital mixer stores scenes, "wedding", "conference", "party", so staff recall the right settings at a touch, and can be controlled from a tablet while walking the room. Lock the settings that should not be changed.

Microphones

Plan wireless handheld and lapel microphones for speeches and anchors, a podium microphone for conferences, and spare batteries or rechargeables. Keep the microphones' frequencies coordinated to avoid drop-outs.

Zones

Pre-function areas, lawns and dining spaces often need their own background music and paging, on separate volume controls.

Mistakes to avoid

• Too few speakers turned up too loud.
• Speakers pointing at glass walls.
• No subwoofer, so DJs bring their own and overpower the room.
• No training, so the system is only used at one setting.

See sound system installation with full equipment specifications, and LED walls for banquet halls.