All of us are looking for the best equipment and pricing on items and services that not only make our lives easier, but also those things that bring entertainment and joy to our celebrations. Music services is just one of those services and trying to figure out what size PA you need and a reasonable cost of hiring a DJ and / or karaoke service to provide it depends on a number of factors.
An obvious consideration is the size of your guest list. You don’t want services that are over the top for a small gathering, especially where there is no dancing, but you also don’t want a bare minimum service for a larger, more upbeat gathering. Nice lighting and accessories such as wireless microphones and music videos, etc. always add that extra touch, but what you really want to consider is PA size and power. The reason you want a larger PA rather than a smaller one is not just in the ability to be loud enough for the size of your function, but for the clarity of sound. When you have a more powerful PA, you don’t have to push the amplification in the system to its’ limit. Pushing an amplifier too hard can result in distortion as it struggles to put out more sound than it is capable. With a more powerful speaker the upper limit of its’ ability is not reached and it can continue to put out a clean, undistorted, powerful sound for your celebration. A more powerful PA system will cost more but will make you and your guest’s dancing or karaoke activity more enjoyable.
Your venue also determines what you require your music service to provide in terms of the PA. Are there right hand corners or even different rooms that your function will occupy? If so, and if you want music and/or speeches to be heard in these hard to reach areas, you may consider adding extra speakers placed in these areas. It may require the music service to string long cables, but there may also be the possibility that a wireless system may be able to do the job…making it an easier process. Either way, it is extra labor, time and equipment so this cost will be an additional budget item. Even in very large rooms of 300 or more guests, for the best audio coverage, extra speakers placed midpoint or at the back of the room will provide a more even distribution of sound. Turning up the PA at the front of the room so that you try to reach the back of a large room can be uncomfortable for those guests placed near the speakers. The sound will drop off before it will reach the back of the room in these cases anyway. This also holds true if your dance floor is away from the DJ station. Placing guests between the DJ and the dance floor can be uncomfortable for those guests if they are not dancers.
And finally, are you having part of the function outside the main area? Weddings, for example, may want their wedding ceremony performed in another area. Depending upon power availability, a small battery powered system or regular PA system can provide the ability for the couple to have their ceremony music in a different location than the main room of their venue. In the case of a battery powered system, the location can be even more varied. The same holds true for your personal parties or corporate functions.
The quality of your audio is an important part of your event preparations. A bad sounding PA that is too small can hamper your function just as surely as poor planning. Luckily you have a DJ who can provide you with everything you need to have great audio at your celebration.