A conference, a gala or a product launch puts your speakers, your sponsors and your slides in front of the whole room at once, and the AV company is the vendor who makes that work. Quotes from three companies can look alike on paper. These ten questions show the differences before you sign, and they are the questions we expect from planners booking our corporate event AV in Dallas-Fort Worth.
1. Who will be in the room on the day?
Ask for the crew by role: who runs sound, who switches the slides, who looks after lighting. For a general session the answer should include a technician at front of house for the whole program. Every booking with us is delivered, set up, tested and picked up by our crew, with an on-site technician for the services that call for one, and a conference general session always does.
2. Will you look at the room before you quote?
The room decides the gear. Ceiling height, the depth of the room, where the windows are and how bright the house lights run all change which speakers and which screen are right. For a training class at the Infomart in Dallas, a single projector and a pair of EV ZLX speakers was the right size. A 300 seat general session needs a different plan, and a company that quotes both the same way has not looked at the room.
3. How do you handle microphones and feedback?
Panels need a microphone per panelist, keynotes need a headset or a lapel, and the Q&A needs a handheld that can travel. Ask how many wireless microphones are in the quote and what keeps them from feeding back when a presenter walks in front of a speaker. Ours run the AI-powered De-Feedback system, so the level can come up for a soft-spoken presenter and stay clean.
4. Are the screens bright enough for this room?
A ballroom with daylight or the house lights up needs more than a standard screen. Ambient light rejecting screens and projectors sized to the throw keep slides readable from the back row. At a medical symposium at the Renaissance Plano Legacy West we ran two ALR screens in a ballroom with the lights up. Our projector and screen rental page covers the sizes.
5. What happens in the breakout rooms?
Breakouts usually turn over on a fifteen minute gap. Each room should have its own sound, a display or projector, a wireless handheld and a lapel, all pre-set and labeled so a session change is a button press. Ask who checks each room before the doors open.
6. Who owns the live stream or the recording?
If remote attendees are watching, the stream needs a clean audio feed from the same board that runs the room. One vendor for the room and the live stream means one person owns the feed, the adapters and the call when something changes.
7. What do you need from the venue?
A good AV company asks the venue for load-in times, power locations and any rigging rules before the day. We are insured and send a certificate of insurance to any venue that requires one, and we coordinate the load-in with the venue directly.
8. What is the backup plan?
Ask what comes in the truck beyond the quote. Our crew brings spare microphones, fresh batteries changed on our schedule, spare cables and a second playback source, so a dead laptop becomes a thirty second switch.
9. When are the rehearsal and the sound check?
Presenters should walk the stage, see their slides on the screen and hear their own microphone before the room fills. Build that time into the schedule; our notes on planning an AV rehearsal cover how much to allow.
10. Can one company cover sound, lighting and video?
A gala needs stage wash, uplighting and a dance floor after dinner; a product launch needs a reveal. When sound, lighting and video come from one crew there is one load-in, one schedule and one point of contact on the day.
What a clear AV quote shows
A clear quote lists every item, the crew and their hours, and the load-in and strike times, so two quotes can be compared line by line. If something on the agenda has no line in the quote, ask about it before you sign.
FAQ
How far ahead should we book AV for a conference?
About three months for most corporate dates, and longer for spring and fall weeks when hotels fill up. Weekday dates are often available on shorter notice, so ask anyway.
Do you work with hotel in-house AV teams?
Yes. Most Dallas-Fort Worth hotels allow an outside AV company. Ask the venue for its outside vendor policy and we handle the coordination from there.
Planning a conference or gala?
Send us the agenda, the room and the headcount, and we’ll send you a straightforward quote within 24 hours. Call 817-210-7957 or request a quote.