Top 10 AV Mistakes Convention Centers Make in Savannah
By Pro AV Services NYC — A KLAV Group Company
Savannah's convention scene is booming, from the Savannah Convention Center on Hutchinson Island to historic ballrooms along River Street. But too many venues sabotage their own events with avoidable audiovisual mistakes. After producing 1,000+ events for clients like Madison Square Garden and Barclays Center, the KLAV Group team has seen every misstep in the book. Here are the top 10 AV mistakes Savannah convention centers make — and exactly how to fix them.
1. Wrong Speaker Placement
Mounting speakers in corners or above HVAC vents creates dead zones and feedback loops. Solution: Use line-array modeling software (EASE or AFMG) to map coverage before drilling a single hole.
2. Skipping Acoustic Treatment
Savannah's hard-surface historic venues bounce sound like a racquetball court. Untreated rooms turn keynote speeches into mush. Solution: Install broadband absorbers, bass traps, and diffusers on first-reflection points before adding more speaker power.
3. Buying Consumer Gear Instead of Commercial
Big-box brands fail under daily convention loads. A $400 Bluetooth speaker cannot replace a $4,000 commercial line array. Solution: Specify commercial-grade equipment from QSC, d&b audiotechnik, Shure, or Crestron — built for 24/7 duty cycles.
4. Not Planning for Expansion
Today's 500-seat ballroom becomes tomorrow's 2,000-attendee general session. Closed-architecture systems force costly rip-and-replace upgrades. Solution: Design with Dante or AVB networked audio so channels, zones, and rooms scale with a software update — not new wiring.
5. Ignoring Lighting Design
Flat overhead fluorescents wash out speakers, kill video quality, and tank attendee energy. Solution: Layer ambient, key, and accent lighting using DMX-controlled LED fixtures with color temperature tuned to camera-friendly 3200K–5600K.
6. DIY Installation Failures
In-house maintenance teams running speaker cables alongside power lines create 60Hz hum that ruins every recording. Solution: Use certified low-voltage installers who follow NEC, AVIXA, and InfoComm standards for cable separation, grounding, and rigging.
7. No Maintenance Plan
Equipment fails the morning of a $250,000 corporate event because no one updated firmware or replaced lamp hours. Solution: Sign a quarterly preventive maintenance contract covering firmware, calibration, lamp/laser hours, and spare parts inventory.
8. Wrong Equipment for Space Size
Undersized amplifiers clip and distort; oversized arrays overwhelm intimate breakout rooms. Solution: Match SPL output and dispersion patterns to room volume in cubic feet, not just square footage. Always design with 6dB of headroom.
9. Ignoring Savannah Noise Ordinances
The City of Savannah enforces strict decibel limits in Historic and Victorian Districts — violations carry fines and permit revocations. Solution: Install dB-limiter systems with logging, and design directional arrays that contain SPL inside the venue envelope.
10. Not Hiring Professionals
The most expensive AV mistake is treating audiovisual as an afterthought handled by the lowest bidder. One bad event costs more than a professional system. Solution: Partner with a CTS-certified integrator with venue-specific experience and a proven Fortune 500 client roster.
Get a Free AV Assessment from KLAV Group
Pro AV Services NYC, a KLAV Group company, has produced events at MSG, Barclays Center, UBS Arena, Webster Hall, and the Christian Cultural Center — and we now serve convention venues across the Southeast, including Savannah. Stop losing clients to preventable AV failures.
Schedule your complimentary on-site AV assessment today.
Call 646-280-9522 or visit klavgroup.com to book your walkthrough.