A public address or "PA" system is an electronic amplification system with a mixer, amplifier and loudspeakers, used to reinforce a given sound, e.g., a person making a speech, prerecorded music, or message, and distributing the sound throughout a venue.
Simple PA systems are often used in small venues such as school auditoriums, churches, and small bars.
PA systems with a larger number of speakers are widely used in institutional and commercial buildings, to read announcements or declare states of emergency. Intercom systems, which are often used in schools, also have microphones in each room so that the occupants can reply to the central office.
A portable pa (public address) system is loosely defined as a system that does not need 110 volt AC power to operate.
The system always includes one or more microphones and usually they are wireless.
The size or power of a pa system is stated in watts and there are two types of designations. One is normal operating watts and the other is peak wattage. Any amplification system can only attain peak power for short bursts but can’t sustain that level. So the normal operating power is the most important value.
As to how much power do you need for a given audience size the rule of thumb is 10 watts of power for 100 people if they are directly in front of the system squeezed together as in a church pew situation.
So for example a PA SYSTEM rated for 35 watts and it can handle up to 350 people as long as they were not spread to far apart from side to side. It is always best to get more power than potentially necessary as the volume control can always be lowered.
The angle that the sound is delivered is very narrow from a single system so listeners off to either side would not hear the speaker as well as those in front of the speakers line of broadcast.
For situations where there is a wide spread of listeners the solution is to use two systems. One system on each side of the performance area aimed toward each side of the audience.
It is always best to raise the pa speaker system off the floor and place it on an elevated structure such as a desk to allow better sound penetration through the audience. Ideally it should be elevated at the audience’s ear level. The best solution is a tripod mount.
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