Good audio visual services start with the room, not the kit list. Check sight lines before picking a screen size, confirm the venue has an assistive listening system, since the ADA requires one wherever hearing the content matters, and check your mics are legal, because the FCC closed the 600 MHz band to them on 13 July 2020. Then agree who owns volume. OSHA treats 85 dBA over eight hours as where hearing protection starts.
Most audio visual services go wrong for boring reasons:
- Nobody checked whether the back row could read the slides.
- The mics were bought in 2018 and are now illegal.
- Captions were an afterthought.
None of that is a gear problem. It is a questions problem. Our audio visual crews work this list every show.
Start with the room, not the gear
Picking a screen before looking at the seating is the most common mistake in event production.
There is a standard for it. ANSI/AVIXA V202.01, known as DISCAS, sets how big a display must be for where people sit, and splits viewing into two types needing different sizes.
| What people are doing | AVIXA calls it | What it means |
| Reading dense slides, spreadsheets, code | Analytical viewing | Needs a bigger image in the same room |
| Watching video or following a keynote | Basic viewing | Can live with a smaller image |
So “what size screen do we need” has no answer until someone says what is on it. A dense sales deck and a brand video are different jobs.
- AVIXA publishes a free calculator, so you can sanity-check a venue’s suggestion.
- Walk the viewing distance to the furthest seat during the site visit.
- Watch for pillars, low ceilings and door traffic, which no calculator sees.
Screen placement and content are one decision, so our event graphics work starts from the seating.
The accessibility rules are not optional
Most people skip this, and it is federal law.
The 2010 ADA Standards require an assistive listening system in any assembly area where hearing the content is integral to the space. The exception is a room with no audio amplification. Receiver counts scale with seats:
| Seats | Minimum receivers | Must be hearing-aid compatible |
| 50 or fewer | 2 | 2 |
| 51 to 200 | 2, plus 1 per 25 seats over 50 | 2 |
| 201 to 500 | 2, plus 1 per 25 seats over 50 | 1 in every 4 |
| 501 to 1,000 | 20, plus 1 per 33 seats over 500 | 1 in every 4 |
| 1,001 to 2,000 | 35, plus 1 per 50 seats over 1,000 | 1 in every 4 |
| 2,001 and up | 55, plus 1 per 100 seats over 2,000 | 1 in every 4 |
A 300-seat room needs 12 receivers, three hearing-aid compatible.
- Ask the venue to show you theirs, and test one before doors open.
- Confirm in writing whose receivers they are, the venue’s or your supplier’s.
- If you are streaming, WCAG 2.1 makes live captions a Level AA requirement: “Captions are provided for all live audio content in synchronized media.”
- Captions mean a booked captioner, not a toggle you find on the day.
Captions help everyone, not just those who need them, which is why we build them into hybrid event plans by default.
Check that your wireless mics are still legal
This catches anyone with older audio visual equipment in a cupboard.
The FCC closed the 600 MHz band to wireless microphones. Anything on 617 to 652 MHz or 663 to 698 MHz had to stop by 13 July 2020, and selling or importing those units is banned too. The 700 MHz band went the same way in 2010.
| Band | Status for wireless mics |
| 698 to 806 MHz (700 MHz band) | Banned since 2010 |
| 617 to 652 and 663 to 698 MHz (600 MHz band) | Had to cease by 13 July 2020 |
| TV channels 2 to 36, below 608 MHz | Still available |
| 902 to 928 MHz | Available, unlicensed |
| 1920 to 1930 MHz | Available, unlicensed |
| 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz | Available, unlicensed |
Two things follow:
- If your in-house audio visual equipment predates 2020, read the band printed on the transmitter before planning a show around it.
- If a supplier quotes cheap wireless microphone channels, ask which band they run on.
Old kit is also the usual reason a mic dies mid-speech, a bad moment to learn your AV team kept no spare channel.
Agree who owns the sound levels
Volume is the most argued-about part of any show, and real numbers sit behind it.
| Level | What it means |
| 85 dBA over 8 hours | OSHA action level, hearing conservation programme required |
| 90 dBA over 8 hours | OSHA permissible exposure limit for workers |
| 100 dBA | Allowed for 2 hours under the same rule |
OSHA uses a five decibel exchange rate, so every extra five decibels halves exposure time. Your guests are not workers, but your crew and venue staff are.
- In San Francisco, the Entertainment Commission charges a sound monitoring fee of $77 per hour where monitoring applies, so volume is a line item too.
- Set a target level with your AV team before the day.
- Give one named person the authority to hold it, or the loudest opinion in the room wins.
Lighting carries the same lesson, and our lighting crews treat power and position as the first conversation.
The questions worth asking before you sign
Good suppliers have ready answers. A vague one is the warning sign.
- What is the backup plan for the main mic, the main screen and the stream?
- Which AV team members are on site, and for which hours?
- Is the assistive listening system the venue’s or yours, and who tests it?
- What happens if the room runs long past the booked block?
- Who talks to the venue about power, rigging and load-in times?
- Is captioning included, or quoted separately?
Clean answers to those six usually mean the event production thinking is done, the same discipline behind solid corporate event delivery.
Key Takeaways
- Good event production picks the screen from where people sit and what is on it. DISCAS treats dense slides and video as different problems.
- An assistive listening system is required in assembly areas where hearing the content matters, with receiver counts set by seat numbers.
- Live captions are a WCAG 2.1 Level AA requirement, so book the captioner.
- Mics in the 600 and 700 MHz bands are illegal. Check the band on any audio visual equipment bought before 2020.
- OSHA’s action level is 85 dBA over eight hours and its worker limit is 90 dBA. Agree a target and name who holds it.
- The best audio visual services questions are about backups, staffing and timing, not brand names.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do audio visual services actually include?
Sound, screens and projection, lighting, staging, a stream if you need one, and the crew to run it. Suppliers differ on the quiet stuff: the site visit, spare mic channels, and who stays till the room is clear.
How do I know what size screen my event needs?
Work back from the furthest seat and what is on screen. AVIXA’s DISCAS standard separates analytical viewing, meaning detailed slides, from basic viewing, meaning video. The first needs a bigger image.
Is an assistive listening system legally required at my event?
Yes, in an assembly area where hearing the content is integral to using the space, under the 2010 ADA Standards. Rooms with no audio amplification are the main exception. A 300-seat room needs 12 receivers, three hearing-aid compatible.
Are my old wireless microphones still legal?
Not if they run on 617 to 652 MHz or 663 to 698 MHz. Those had to stop by 13 July 2020, and the 700 MHz band was banned in 2010. Legal unlicensed bands: TV channels below 608 MHz, 902 to 928 MHz, 1920 to 1930 MHz, and 2.4 and 5 GHz.
How loud should an event be?
Loud enough to carry, quiet enough to talk over. For crew and venue staff, OSHA’s reference points are 85 dBA over eight hours as the action level and 90 dBA as the worker limit. Agree a number and name who holds it.
Do I need separate audio visual services for a virtual audience?
You need a separate plan and usually separate operators, because a remote audience watches a feed, not a room. The mix, camera cuts and captions must be produced for them, which is the heart of our virtual meetings and conferences work.
Booking audio visual services for a 2027 event? Tell us the room, the headcount and what is going on screen, and we will tell you what it actually needs. Contact us or call 415-545-8635.