Power is the least glamorous part of event planning and the one most likely to end your programme early. In Zimbabwe it deserves particular attention: load shedding can take a venue offline without warning, and a great many outdoor and rural venues have no usable supply at all. Getting the generator right is not complicated, but it does need doing before the day rather than on it.
Add up what you are actually running
Start with a complete list, not just the obvious items. Sound system and amplifiers, stage and ambient lighting, LED screens or projectors, streaming and recording equipment, and anything the venue is running alongside you — catering equipment, urns, fridges and air conditioning all draw significant power and are routinely forgotten until they trip the supply mid-event.
Lighting draws more than people expect
Sound systems are usually less demanding than they look, because music is dynamic and the amplifiers are not at full output continuously. Lighting is the opposite: fixtures draw steadily whenever they are on, and a lighting rig for a decent-sized event can easily exceed the sound system's consumption. If your event is lighting-heavy — uplighting, stage wash, effects — that is where the load sits.
Startup surge is the hidden trap
Equipment draws considerably more power in the instant it switches on than it does while running. Several devices powering up simultaneously can produce a surge that trips a generator sized only for the steady-state load. This is why a generator that looks adequate on paper cuts out the moment everything comes on at once. Sensible practice is to stage the power-up rather than throwing one switch, and to size with headroom in the first place.
Always leave headroom
Never specify a generator that exactly matches your calculated load. Running an engine at its absolute limit for hours produces heat, instability and voltage fluctuation that can damage sensitive audio and video equipment. A comfortable margin above your calculated requirement means stable power, quieter running and room for the item somebody inevitably adds to the plan the week before.
Noise matters more than you think
A cheap open-frame generator sitting behind a marquee will be audible in your ceremony, your speeches and every second of your video recording. Silenced units cost more and are worth it. Placement matters too — distance from the audience, orientation away from microphones, and enough cable to put the machine somewhere sensible rather than wherever it happened to be unloaded.
Distribution and cabling are part of the job
A generator on its own is not a power solution. You need proper distribution boards, correctly rated cabling, and cable ramps or matting anywhere people walk. Long runs of undersized cable cause voltage drop, which makes equipment behave unpredictably in ways that are genuinely difficult to diagnose during an event. This is not the place to improvise with domestic extension leads.
Fuel, monitoring and the boring details
Work out the runtime you need including setup, soundcheck, the event itself and pack-down, then make sure fuel is on site for all of it plus a margin. Someone needs to be responsible for monitoring the set — not the person also running your sound. Refuelling mid-event without shutting down needs planning, and a generator that runs dry during the speeches is an entirely avoidable failure.
Backup for the critical items
Even with a generator, consider battery backup on the equipment that cannot tolerate a momentary interruption — the streaming encoder, the recording device, the mixing desk. A brief flicker that the audience barely notices can drop a live stream or corrupt a recording. For events being broadcast or filmed, this is cheap insurance.
Let the AV supplier size it
The simplest approach is to have whoever supplies your sound, lighting and screens also supply the power, because they already know exactly what the rig draws. JMG Audio quotes generators alongside the equipment for this reason — the load calculation, distribution, cabling, fuel and an on-site attendant come as one package rather than something you coordinate between two suppliers on the day.
Frequently asked questions
Can I just use the venue’s power instead of a generator?
Sometimes, if the venue genuinely has adequate supply and you have verified it. But load shedding can remove that supply without warning, and many venues overestimate their capacity. For anything you cannot afford to have stop, a generator is the safer plan.
Will guests hear the generator?
Not if it is a silenced unit placed and oriented properly. Open-frame generators close to the marquee will absolutely be audible in your ceremony and in any recording, which is why we use silenced sets and plan placement in advance.
Who works out what size I need?
Your AV supplier should, because they know the draw of every item in the rig. Send the full equipment list — including catering and venue equipment — and the calculation is straightforward.
Does JMG Audio supply fuel and an operator?
Yes. Fuel and an on-site attendant can be included so refuelling and monitoring are handled throughout the event rather than falling to you or your sound technician.
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