What to know about event AV in Glendale
A city event permit changes the noise rules
Events running under a city-issued special event or event permit are exempt from Glendale's 25-66 sound rules if they follow the permit's conditions. The permit's conditions then become your sound limits, so we ask for them before we size a system.
Without a permit, quiet hours start at 10 p.m.
From 10 p.m. to 7 a.m., it is unlawful to run sound equipment so that excessive or offensive noise is heard off the premises, and sound audible beyond 125 feet that disturbs a reasonable person is unlawful. The city's noise page says it issues no permit that allows loud music in residential areas.
Event days bring crowds to the district
Westgate runs live music at Fountain Park on event weekends, and parking lots around Desert Diamond Arena and State Farm Stadium charge on event days. The stadium calendar lists Cardinals home games on Nov. 15, Nov. 29, Dec. 6, Dec. 20 and Jan. 3, and the Fiesta Bowl, a College Football Playoff quarterfinal, is Dec. 30.
Nightclubs and live venues sit 300 feet from homes or need a CUP
A Glendale nightclub or live-entertainment venue can be approved administratively only if its entrances and exits are more than 300 feet from any residential use. Closer than that needs a Conditional Use Permit. If you plan recurring live events, tell us early.
What we supply
For a corporate event, banquet or conference, that usually means a PA system, wireless microphones, a mixer and a person running it, plus projectors or screens for slides and live video. For a club night or concert, it means line-array or point-source speakers, subwoofers, monitors and often an LED wall behind the stage.
Rental, install or both
Some events need gear for one night. Others, such as a venue that books bands every weekend, need a permanent system with temporary add-ons. We help you decide. A fixed sound system and stage wiring cost more up front and make every later event faster to set up.
Sound that fits the room and the rules
Indoors, we aim speakers at the audience and away from walls and open doors. Outdoors, the 125-foot hearing test and the 10 p.m. start of quiet hours set how loud the system can run and when it winds down. We set a limiter and plan the end of the night around the clock, not the crowd.
Screens, streaming and recording
Screens range from a projector and screen in a ballroom to an LED backdrop on a stage. We run presentations, camera feeds and live streams. A recording feed can go to a laptop for later. For larger screens, see LED video walls.
Venues that book events every week
A bar or club that hosts bands, DJs or trivia nights gains from a fixed stage position: a mixer input panel on the wall, speaker mounts rated for the load and cable runs to the stage and booth. Touring acts and DJs plug in and go, and staff stop rebuilding the setup every Friday. Check Glendale's live-entertainment venue rules, including the 300 foot distance to homes, before you invest in a permanent stage. We help you prepare the questions for Planning.
How an event job goes
We walk the venue, learn the schedule and load-in time, and write a plan with the equipment list. Setup, soundcheck and a run-through come before doors. We stay through the event or hand off to your staff, then tear down. For a quote, call (602) 769-7992 Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM.
After the first event
Venues that host events often add commercial audio for daily use, AV control systems so staff can run a night and TV and video distribution for game days. The rest of our Glendale work is on the Glendale page.
