BRISBANE AUDIO SERVICES

How to Set Up A Small Speaker System for Speeches

By Peter Richter - Brisbane Audio Services

Positioning of the speakers relative to the microphone is important for optimal performance. If they are too close or at the wrong angle, you may get feed-back (squealing).

There are two methods I will outline here for set up:

At the front:

Place the speakers either side of the room, but forward of where the performer is going to be mainly speaking from.

Angle them in so they point not quite to the middle of the back of the audience

At the back:

This method works quite well with small crowds as you can keep the level down to the point where the people at the front actually hear the direct voice from the performer, and the speakers are used to supplement the sound at the back. This give a more natural effect and means you don’t have to have it loud at the front to be heard down the back. Also the performer is not put off by their own voice loud nearby and so speaks more strongly into the mic. These factors result in less feed-back problems.

Set the speakers up a couple of meters behind the audience – to either side and angle in so they point to the opposite corners of the audience.