Audio-Visual Equipment Rental in Los Angeles: What You Need, What It Costs, and What to Ask Before You Book
Audio Visual Rentals Los Angeles: Costs, Gear & Answers
Last updated: August 2026. Written by Asi Vidal, founder of Angels Music Productions (Valley Village, CA). QSC and Shure certified. Running events across Los Angeles and the West Coast since 2015.
Audio-visual equipment rental means renting the projectors, screens, sound systems, microphones, LED walls, and event lighting you need for one event, with the rental company handling delivery, setup, and pickup. In Los Angeles, most event AV rentals run from a few hundred dollars for a projector and screen up to several thousand dollars for a full production with sound, lighting, and video.
That is the short version. Below is everything people ask us before they book, in the order they usually ask it.
What is included in an audio visual equipment rental service?
A real audio-visual equipment rental service includes more than the gear. It includes delivery to the venue, setup before your guests arrive, a technician or on-call support during the event, and breakdown afterward. Some companies drop gear at the curb and leave. Ask which one you are getting before you compare prices.
Here is what a full-service AV rental usually covers:
- Equipment for the event, sized to your room and guest count
- Cables, stands, power distribution, and rigging hardware
- Delivery and load-in during the venue’s approved window
- Setup, testing, and a run-through with whoever is presenting
- On-site tech or standby support during the event
- Strike and pickup after the event
- Backup gear for anything that would ruin the night if it failed
Number seven is the one people skip. A spare projector, a spare mic, and a spare speaker cost the company almost nothing to bring, and they are the difference between a small problem and a ruined ceremony.
How much do audiovisual rentals cost in Los Angeles?
Prices vary by gear, guest count, venue access, and the number of labor hours required. These are typical Los Angeles ranges for a single-day event.
| What you are renting | Typical LA day rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Basic projector rental, 3,000 to 5,000 lumens | $250 to $450 | Fine for a small room with the lights down |
| Bright projector rentals, 8,000 to 12,000 lumens | $600 to $1,400 | For ballrooms and rooms with ambient light |
| Laser projector rental, 10,000 lumens and up | $900 to $2,500 | No lamp to fail, better color, quiet |
| Projector screen on rent, 6 by 8 tripod | $75 to $150 | Small rooms only |
| Fast fold screen, 7.5 by 13 or larger | $350 to $800 | Includes dress kit and skirt |
| Projector and screen for hire as a package | $450 to $1,500 | Cheaper than renting the two separately |
| Basic PA with two speakers and a mic | $250 to $500 | Speeches and background music |
| Full event sound for 150 to 300 guests | $800 to $2,500 | Subs, mics, mixer, tech |
| Event lighting rental, 12 uplights | $300 to $600 | Wireless battery units, no cable runs |
| Full dance floor lighting package | $995 to $3,800 | Moving heads, wash, controller, tech |
| LED video wall | $2,500 and up | Priced by panel count and rigging |
Labor, delivery, and after-hours pickup are usually separate line items. In Los Angeles, expect delivery and setup to add $150 to $500 depending on distance, load-in difficulty, and whether the venue requires a late-night strike.
Projector rentals: how bright do you actually need it to be?
Brightness is the number one thing people get wrong. Lumens are the measure, and the right number depends on the room’s lighting and the size of your image.
| Situation | Lumens you need |
|---|---|
| Small meeting room, 30 to 50 people, lights dimmed | 3,500 to 5,000 |
| Hotel ballroom, house lights at half, 100 to 200 guests | 6,000 to 10,000 |
| Large ballroom, big screen, lights up for dinner | 10,000 to 20,000 |
| Outdoors after dark, backyard or patio | 8,000 to 15,000 |
| Outdoors in daylight | A projector will not work. Rent an LED wall instead. |
A 3,500 lumen projector that looked great in your office will look washed out and gray in a lit ballroom. If your event has dinner service happening while a slideshow plays, you need light on the tables and light on the screen, and only a bright projector solves that.
The second thing to check is throw distance. A projector needs a certain distance from the screen to fill it, and every lens is different. Give your rental company the room dimensions and where the projector can physically sit. If it has to sit far back in the room, or very close, you need a specific lens, not a different projector.
Video projector rental vs laser projector rental: which one do you need?
The difference comes down to the light source. Traditional video projectors use a lamp. Laser projectors use a solid-state laser light source.
| Â | Lamp projector | Laser projector |
|---|---|---|
| Light source life | Around 1,500 to 4,000 hours | Around 20,000 hours |
| Risk of failure mid-event | Real. Lamps fail with no warning | Very low |
| Brightness over time | Dims noticeably as the lamp ages | Holds steady |
| Color consistency | Shifts as the lamp ages | Consistent |
| Warm up and shut down | Needs a few minutes each way | Instant on and off |
| Noise | Louder fans | Usually quieter |
| Rental cost | Lower | Higher |
Rent a lamp projector when: the event is short, the room is small, the content is a slideshow, and budget matters most.
Rent a laser projector when: the projection is a centerpiece of the event, the room is large or bright, you are running content for many hours, or a failure mid-event would be a serious problem. Weddings, Bar and Bat Mitzvahs, corporate keynotes, and projection mapping all fall into this category.
Projector screen on rent: what size and what type?
Two simple rules will help you choose the right size.
Rule one: viewing distance. The person farthest from the screen should sit no more than about six times the screen height away. So a 7.5-foot-tall screen works for viewers up to about 45 feet back.
Rule two: screen height off the floor. The bottom of the screen should sit at least four feet off the ground. If it sits lower, everyone past row three sees the back of someone’s head instead of your content.
Common rental screen sizes:
| Screen | Format | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| 6 by 8 tripod | 4:3 | Under 40 people, small rooms |
| 7.5 by 10 fast fold | 4:3 | 50 to 100 people |
| 7.5 by 13 fast fold | 16:9 | 100 to 200 people, standard for video |
| 9 by 16 fast fold | 16:9 | 200 to 400 people |
| 12 by 21 fast fold | 16:9 | Large ballrooms and general sessions |
Front projection vs. rear projection. Front projection puts the projector in the room, which means a light path guests can walk through and a shadow risk. Rear projection puts the projector behind the screen, which looks cleaner and keeps the stage clear, but it needs floor space behind the screen. If your venue has the room, rear projection almost always looks better.
Dress kit and skirt. A screen with a black dress kit and a floor skirt looks finished. A bare screen frame on a bare tripod looks like a classroom. It usually costs very little to add.
Renting a projector and screen for hire together
Renting a projector and screen for hire as one package is almost always cheaper and safer than renting them separately from two places. You get one company matching the lens to the throw distance, the aspect ratio to the content, and the brightness to the room, and one company responsible if the image does not look right.
A standard projector and screen package should include the projector, the correct lens, the screen with a dress kit, a stand or rigging, an HDMI or SDI run long enough to reach your laptop position, a switcher if you have more than one source, and a confidence monitor if someone is presenting with their back to the screen.
Ask for the cable run length before the day. The single most common problem at events is a laptop that ends up 60 feet from a projector with a 25-foot cable.
Event lighting rental in Los Angeles
Event lighting rental covers everything from simple uplighting around a room to full dance floor production. Here is what each piece actually does.
Uplighting. LED fixtures placed on the floor along the walls, aimed up. They change the color of the entire room and offer the highest impact per dollar in event lighting. Wireless battery units run 8 to 10 hours and need no cable runs, which matters in venues that will not let you tape cable across walkways. Most rooms need 12 to 24 units.
Wash lighting. Broad, even light over the dance floor, the head table, or a stage. This is what makes photos and video look good. Without it, your photographer shoots into darkness and uses flash all night.
Pin spots. Narrow beams aimed at centerpieces, the cake, or the head table. Small detail, big difference in photos.
Moving heads. Motorized fixtures that pan, tilt, and change color and pattern. This is dance floor energy. They need a controller and someone running them, or a program set in advance.
Monogram or gobo projection. Project your names, a date, or a logo on a wall or dance floor. Needs a clean surface and enough throw distance.
Haze. A light haze makes beams visible in the air. Check with the venue first. Many Los Angeles venues have smoke detectors that will trip, and some require a fire watch. Ask before you assume.
String and bistro lighting. For outdoor and tented events. Needs rigging points and a power plan.
Los Angeles-specific things that will affect your AV rental
These local details can turn a smooth setup into an expensive one.
Load-in windows. Many LA hotels and venues give you a fixed window, sometimes only two hours before doors. If your AV needs four hours to build, negotiate that window before you sign the venue contract, not after.
Freight elevators and stairs. Ask if there is a freight elevator, what it measures, and whether it is shared. A 16-foot truss section does not fit in a passenger elevator.
In-house AV requirements. Some hotels and convention spaces require you to use their in-house AV provider or charge an outside vendor fee if you don’t. Get this in writing early. It can change your budget by thousands.
Union labor. Certain convention centers and large venues require union crews for load-in and rigging. Your rental company should know which ones and price accordingly.
Power. A 20-amp circuit runs a limited amount of gear. Large lighting and video setups need dedicated circuits or a distro tie-in. For outdoor events at private homes, you almost always need a generator, and a quiet one if there are speeches.
Sound curfews. Many Los Angeles venues and residential neighborhoods enforce a cutoff for amplified sound, often around 10 p.m. outdoors. Confirm the rule with your venue and plan the timeline around it rather than finding out at 9:45.
Parking and rigging fees. Truck parking at some LA venues is a real line item. So is rigging if anything hangs from the ceiling.
How to compare AV rental quotes without getting burned
When two quotes are far apart, one of these is usually the reason:
- Labor is missing. One quote includes setup and strike, the other lists gear only.
- Brightness is different. A 4,000-lumen projector and a 12,000-lumen projector are both called “a projector” on a quote.
- No on-site tech. One quote includes someone for the whole event; the other includes no one.
- No backup gear. Cheaper until something fails.
- Screen size or dress kit. A bare 6 by 8 tripod versus a dressed 9 by 16.
- Delivery timing. Late-night strike costs more than next-day pickup.
Ask every company these five questions and the quotes become comparable:
- What are the exact model numbers and lumen ratings?
- Is a technician on site for the full event, and for how many hours?
- What backup equipment comes with the order?
- What is included in delivery, setup, and strike, and what is extra?
- What happens if something fails during the event?
Frequently asked questions about audio-visual rentals
How far in advance should I book AV equipment in Los Angeles?
Book four to eight weeks out for standard events. For peak wedding season, holiday parties in December, and graduation weekends, book three to six months out. Popular gear like large fast-fold screens and laser projectors goes first, and last-minute orders usually cost more.
Can I rent a projector and screen without setup?
Yes, most companies offer a dry hire where you pick up the gear yourself. It is cheaper, but you are responsible for cable runs, focus, sizing, and anything that goes wrong. For a business meeting, it is fine. For a wedding or a Bar Mitzvah, it is not worth the risk.
Do I need an AV technician at my event?
You need one any time content is being shown live, multiple sources are switching, microphones are being passed around, or lighting is being run to a program. For a static slideshow in a small room, you can usually get by without one.
What size projector screen do I need for 150 guests?
A 7.5-by-13-foot 16:9 screen covers most rooms with 150 guests, as long as the bottom of the screen sits at least four feet off the floor. If your room is long and narrow, move up to a 9-by-16.
Can you project outdoors during the day?
No. Sunlight overwhelms any projector on the market. For daytime outdoor video, you need an LED wall, which produces its own light and stays visible in direct sun.
Is uplighting worth it?
For most rooms, yes. Uplighting changes how the entire space reads in person and in photos, and it is one of the least expensive items on an AV order. Twelve to twenty-four fixtures transform a plain ballroom.
What is the difference between a laser projector and a regular one?
A laser projector uses a solid-state light source rated for around 20,000 hours, holds its brightness and color, turns on and off instantly, and will not fail from a blown lamp. A lamp projector costs less to rent but dims over time and carries a real risk of lamp failure.
Do you deliver outside Los Angeles?
Angels Music Productions delivers across Los Angeles County and the surrounding areas, including the San Fernando Valley, Westside, Downtown, Orange County, and points along the West Coast. We quote distance beyond the local area as a travel line item.
Getting a quote
Have these five things ready, and any AV company can quote you accurately in one call:
- Venue name and address
- Date, start time, and end time
- Guest count
- What you need shown or heard: slideshow, live video, speeches, dance floor
- Load-in window and any venue restrictions you already know about
Angels Music Productions is based in Valley Village and handles audio-visual rentals, projector rentals, event lighting rentals, LED walls, sound systems, and projection mapping across Los Angeles and the West Coast. Call 949.394.2572 or request a quote.
