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Wedding sound checklist: 150–300 guests
What a room that size actually needs, and the three things people forget until the speeches start.
Updated August 2026
A 150 to 300 guest wedding needs four things: enough sound for the room, at least one microphone for speeches, a DJ setup someone can actually operate, and a backup for the music source. Most problems on the night come from the last two, not the first.
Sound for the room
Guest count matters less than the room. A hard-walled hall carries sound; a garden with a marquee swallows it. Tell whoever is quoting you the venue as well as the number, or you will be sized for the wrong space.
Microphones — the thing most often forgotten
- —One wireless handheld for speeches, minimum. Two if there are several speakers.
- —Somewhere for the mic to live between speeches, so it is not passed around and dropped.
- —A quick level check with the person who will actually speak, not just with the DJ.
Speeches are the part of the night the family will rewatch. It is worth ten minutes of checking.
The DJ setup
If you are hiring a DJ, they will tell you what they play on. If a friend is running the music, get a standalone all-in-one rather than a full club rig — no laptop, a USB stick goes in, and there is far less to go wrong at 11pm.
The three things people forget
- —Power. Ask how many separate circuits are available, not just where the sockets are.
- —A backup music source. A second phone or USB stick with the playlist on it, handed over before the night starts.
- —Who is in charge of the music when the DJ is not there — during dinner, or between the ceremony and the reception.
The running order matters more than the gear
Write down the order of the night — entrance, speeches, first dance, dinner music, floor open — and give it to whoever is running the sound. A good rig with no running order still produces an awkward silence after the speeches.
