Ultra South Africa 2024. AV support and photo credit: Gearhouse SA
While Glastonbury is already in the books, this summer is still chock-full of fantastic music festivals still ahead around the world. We know very well that AV terminology can be hard to decode on an average day, but you may find it even more difficult when you encounter terms that are specific for, say, outdoor events. Whether you are planning a smaller local grassroots fest, Lollapalooza, a multi-day rock festival, a gastronomy jamboree with performing artists, or even Burning Man, the lingo is the same and sometimes can be a little… confusing.
Outdoor concerts and summer festivals are absolute beasts of production, often involving hundreds of hours of planning and tons of equipment that needs to work perfectly on massive stages (and for huge audiences) in scorching heat, sudden downpours, strong winds, dust, and everything in between. Such circumstances can even warrant equipment and technical jargon by the crew that are specifically used for outdoor festivals. This means that you might just come across items in your AV provider’s detailed quote, or hear technicians say in the site meeting that you would expect on the IKEA website or in a coffee machine manual.
Whether you are a seasoned event planner who might still get tripped up by the odd tech term, or you are just starting out and want to avoid agreeing to something that turns out to be a drum kit you definitely did not budget for, this glossary of AV terminology is here to help. We have rounded up 30 AV expressions you are likely to hear backstage or in pre-show calls this summer and decoded them for you.
Let’s untangle the AV lingo, one cable at a time!
Jugendfest 2023 in Alesund, Norway. AV support and photo credit: Konsertsystemer LLB
B
Backline — Backline refers to musical instruments and amplification gear (drum kits, keyboards, amps etc.) provided at the venue or by the AV production, not carried by the artists. AV suppliers often provide rental backline equipment to artists for live performances and can often customize backline solutions to meet their specific needs and preferences (outlined in the artists’ technical riders). Why is backline a win-win, you may ask? First of all, AV professionals have the experience to set the instruments and gear up correctly, and make sure it all works perfectly. From the artist’s perspective, it is a logistics dream: they rent everything from a single provider and they do not need to travel with all of their own gear.
Ballast — Counterweights (often concrete blocks or water tanks) used to stabilize temporary structures and prevent tipping or moving too much. This is crucial for ensuring the safety and stability of a stage and the truss structure, especially when there are external forces to consider (i.e. strong winds). In essence, ballast makes sure that the only thing that is blown away is the audience by the performance.
Brightness Nits — If you are a biology expert or simply a Brit, “nit” is not a word you expect to hear in technical context, but in it is the measurement of screen brightness. High-nit displays are essential for visibility in daylight. There is a good reason why projection screens are not used outdoors: your only chance to outshine the sun and make your content visible is your LED wall’s brightness. By how much? The higher the nit, the better.
C
Content Mapping — Content mapping is the process of aligning and scaling video content to match the physical layout of LED walls or projection surfaces during the set up and calibration process. This means that the content transmitted onto each LED panel that makes up the wall is lined up perfectly, and there are no trippy visuals for the audience to make sense of (unless it’s the artists’s niche).
D
DMX — DMX stands for Digital Multiplex, an integram part of lighting control systems that allows multiple light fixtures to be manipulated by a single controller, through a data cable. This protocol uses data signal to precisely control the intensity, colour, etc. of LED lights. And while we are on the subject of festivals, DMX can also be used to control fog machines!
E
EDID — This mysterious-sounding abbreviation stands for Extended Display Identification Data, a communication protocol that allows an LED display to tell a video source what resolutions and formats it supports, so that the source device (e.g. the media server) can automatically configure the video output to match the display’s capabilities.
F
Front-of-House (FOH) — FOH is the nerve center of sound at a concert or festival. This mixing and control spot is often located in the audience, towards the middle or back of the venue, slightly off-center, which ensures that the sound engineer can create a well-balanced audio experience. Depending on the audience and the type of concert, it is often said to be the ideal spot to lurk around to enjoy the best sound quality in the venue (not applicable to the mosh pit experience at a metal fest, of course). FOH is also the culprit when it comes to obstructing the view for some audience members.
Followspot — Probably the most well-known concert feature of all time, the followspot is a high-intensity spotlight used to highlight performers on stage in real time. It can be both automated through a lighting control system or manually operated, although the latter offers the most artistic control (and requires hyper-intense focus) and it is preferred for smaller productions. When automated, the followspot is controlled by tags worn by performers that track their movement.
G
Ground Support — When you can’t hang gear from the sky, build a tower instead! Ground support is a free-standing rigging system built from the ground up to support lighting, audio, and video equipment when no overhead rigging is available (which is mostly the case with outdoor events).
I
In-Ear Monitors (IEMs) — Yes, the mysterious earpieces in artists’ ears that we have all wondered about at some point! They are personal monitoring systems that allow performers to hear a custom audio mix via wireless earpieces. This allows the artists to hear themselves and the music above the noise of the audience.
IP65-Rated Fixtures — Lighting fixtures with an Ingress Protection rating of 65 (or above) are made dust-tight and water-resistant for outdoor use, perfectly designed to withstand the unexpected elements at any festival or concert. AV Alliance partner Elation Lighting‘s Proteus range is one of the market’s leading line of weatherproof moving heads for outdoor events.
L
Latency — The time delay between an input and its corresponding output. Lower latency is critical for real-time media playback, and helps avoid the audience witnessing the awkward delay between the sound coming from the stage and the singer opening their mouth on the screen.
Lighting Plot — It is a technical diagram created by the lighting designer, detailing the placement, type, and purpose of each lighting fixture in the rig. Essentially a complex battle plan for where every light gets placed and pointed.
Line Array — A line array is a large system of loudspeakers arranged in a vertical line, designed to project sound evenly across long distances with minimal loss of clarity. This configuration of speakers makes sure that every audience member, whether in the front row or in the burger truck queue, hears the show equally well. See some of the high-end line arrays of our AV Alliance partner d&b audiotechnik here.
Load-in / Loud-out — The process of setting up (load-in) and dismantling (load-out) all equipment before and after an event. The truck-unloading, gear-wrangling, building, configuring and calibrating load-in part can take just a few hours or multiple days, and even a week when it comes to large multi-stage music festivals! Dismantling is usually a much quicker process.
M
Media Server — In case you missed our post on what media servers are, here is a short description: media servers are high-powered computer systems that store, process, and distribute digital multimedia content for live playback. Essentially they are content wizards that make sure the right video content plays at the right time, on the right LED panel.
Modular Panels — Modular panels are individual, generally rectangular or square LED tiles that are designed to connect seamlessly to create LED walls of any shape and size. AV Alliance partner ROE Visual has even created a 50% transparent range of modular panels that sure give the extra oomph to an outstanding concert experience.
P
PA Towers — Essentially these are tall tower structures made of aluminum truss that are designed to elevate and support line arrays and other audio equipment in outdoor or open-air venues.
Patch Bay — A panel hub (also called patch panel or jack field) that is used to connect and route audio, video, or lighting signals between different devices (via jack cables, hence the name). Since it connects various equipment at the same time, it makes reconfiguration much easier by removing the need to physically rewire connections.
Pixel Pitch — Pixel pitch is the distance between LED pixels; a smaller pitch means higher resolution and better image quality at close range, and ultimately a superb viewing experience for the crowd.
Processor — A video processing unit that converts input signals from the media server and manages how video content is displayed on LED screens. Essentially, it is the screen’s brain that tells it what to do and when.
Projection Mapping — Projection mapping is one of our favorite things! It is a technique that uses powerful projectors to cast video content onto irregular surfaces (buildings, trees, statues, mountains etc.), creating the illusion of movement and 3D depth and turning any surface into an animated canvas. See some examples of spectacular projection mapping here.
Festival of Orchestra, Adelaide, Australia, 2021. AV support and photo credit: Novatech Creative Event Technology
Q
Quick Connects — Specialized connectors (e.g. XLR or speakON connectors) that are designed for fast, secure cable connections in live environments. They are ideal for concerts due to their speed, ease of use, and reliability, especially because they are difficult to accidentally yank and disconnect. Click, twist, done.
R
Redundancy — Redundancy means having backup systems or processes in place to ensure the event can continue smoothly even if one or more components fail. Think multiple network connections, backup power supplies, hardware or software, or even extra crew members. Because, as AV suppliers very well know it, in live events backup plans need backup plans.
RF Coordination — It is the process of planning and allocating radio frequencies to ensure wireless devices (microphones, IEMs, comms) don’t interfere with each other in crowded environments, such as a concert or a festival, and cause signal dropouts (and audible chaos).
S
Scrim — Scrim functions like a curtain, but despite the name it is not one you find in IKEA. It is a semi-transparent or mesh fabric used to conceal equipment on, behind, or next to the stage while maintaining airflow and still allowing sound to pass through.
T
Tech Rider — A document provided by performers detailing their technical requirements for the show, which includes not just backline (see at the top), but the necessary sound systems, lighting configurations, and potentially special effects like pyrotechnics or video elements that the venue or the event organizer (and the AV supplier) need to provide.
Timecode — A digital timestamp in hours:minutes:seconds:frames format that keeps different technical elements (e.g. audio, video, lighting, even pyrotechnics) synchronized during a performance, serving as a common reference point for the AV crew.
Truss Warmer — While it sounds like something you could order off of Amazom, truss warmers are actually lighting fixtures used to illuminate stage trusses for aesthetic or branding purposes. Essentially, mood lighting for metal.
W
Wind Bracing — Structural reinforcements – such as metal rods, tubes, or straps, often anchored to the ground – added to stages, truss systems, or tents to withstand high wind loads. These reinforcements create a rigid framework and also help distribute the wind load, so no one single point of the structure will bear the brunt of the force, and prevent the stage or any expensive piece of equipment from taking flight (literally). Wind bracing is also a vital safety measure that ensures the physical safety of the crew, the performers, and the audience as well.
Stay tuned for more AV wisdom and behind-the-scenes insights as we continue to decode the (sometimes confusing) language of live events.
To learn more about choosing the right and highest quality equipment for your outdoor event this summer, we invite you to get in touch with us and find out what our AV Alliance members can do for you and your event!