Having a band for your event? Don't forget about the P.A. system they'll need...

By Adrian Cavlan

Hiring a band for your event? Well, one thing to think about is how your guests will hear them.

Most people don’t necessarily understand that a band playing for more than maybe 50 or so people will definitely need a P.A. system to be properly heard.

This P.A. system will include mains (the speakers that play toward the audience), monitors (the speakers that play back toward the band so they can hear themselves), plenty of mics and D.I. boxes (so that vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards, drums, horns, etc can be fed into the mixing board…) oh - and yeah, a mixing board capable of taking all those inputs and creating a “front-of-house mix” (for you and your guests) and a “monitor mix” (for the band members). Oh and a stage snake… we won’t even bother explaining that one. 

Oh - and then there’s stage lighting. So the band can see what they are doing and your audience can see the band. Because you don’t hire a band and then have them play in the dark.

Does this all sound like a lot? Well, frankly, it is. And, it requires not only owning, transporting and setting up a lot of gear, but also a crew with the the expertise to run it all! This is why, as you might imagine, bands typically hire this part of it out to P.A. companies and do not handle it themselves once the size of the event surpasses a very small party.

Good to know, right?

Well, here’s something else good to know: We here at Sound In Motion have you covered!

If you are having a band and need PA service, call us. We are happy to generate a quote for you.

Is it inexpensive? 

No. But going through all the trouble and expense of hiring a good band only to have them sound weak, thin and kind of crummy at your event is really just throwing money away, isn’t it?

Besides, if you are looking for inexpensive, probably best to not hire a good band anyway, as you can get a good DJ for a lot less usually. See THIS article for more on that.

OK - well, happy planning and please let us know if we can be of help!