A checklist to work through before you commit to a studio equipment setup
Before signing off a studio build, run through these questions on cameras, mounts, cabling, monitoring and access, so the room is ready to broadcast without surprises later.
6 min read
Start with the programme, not the kit list
The most common reason a studio build goes sideways is that the equipment was chosen before anyone wrote down what the programme actually does. Before you look at a single camera, put the format on one page: how many presenters, whether they stand or sit, how often the set changes, how long the show runs and how many people sit in the gallery. A fifteen-minute bulletin with one anchor asks very different things of a room than a ninety-minute live show with guests and outside contributions.
I ask clients to bring a recent rundown, even a rough one, and a sketch of the set as it stands. From those two sheets we can usually say what the room must handle on a bad day, not just a good one. That is the standard worth buying and installing for.
If the programme is still being designed, say so. A setup can leave room for change, but only if the plan names where that change is likely to come from.
- One page describing the format and running time
- A recent rundown, even if unpolished
- A sketch of the set and where presenters sit
- Number of crew expected in studio and gallery
Cameras and mounts: how many, where and on what
Decide the number of camera positions from the shots the programme needs, then check the room can physically hold them. Each camera needs space to move, a clear line to the talent and a route for its cable that nobody trips over. Pedestals suit bulletins where a smooth push or drift is wanted; fixed or robotic heads suit rooms with a small crew and repeatable framing.
Ask what each mount is rated to carry once the prompter, monitor and any accessories are fitted, and whether the floor is level and firm enough for pedestal work. A beautiful camera on a wobbly base undoes the good it does.
Also think about where the operator stands, where the floor manager walks and where guests enter. A position that looks fine on a plan can block the one path everyone needs during a live break.
- Shots required per segment, listed camera by camera
- Mount ratings against the real weight carried
- Floor condition and space for pedestal moves
- Clear walking routes for crew and guests
Cabling and power: the part viewers never see
Cabling decides whether a studio feels calm or fragile. Before agreeing a design, ask how runs are separated: power away from audio, audio away from video, and nothing crossing a walkway uncovered. Look at where cables enter the room, whether there are floor boxes or trunking, and how easily a faulty run can be traced and replaced during a quiet hour rather than mid-bulletin.
Labelling matters more than most people expect. Every cable should carry the same identifier at both ends, written down in a patch list that stays in the gallery. When something fails live, the person fixing it should find the problem in seconds, not minutes.
Check the supply too. Count the circuits available, note what else shares them and ask what happens to the studio if one trips.
- Separation of power, audio and video runs
- Matching labels at both ends of every cable
- A patch list kept in the gallery
- Circuit capacity and what shares each one
Monitoring: what the crew needs to see and hear
Monitoring is where a studio gets judged by the people working in it. The director needs to see every source and the programme output at a size they can read. The camera operators need a return feed or the prompter in view. The floor manager needs a clear sight of the on-air state without turning their back on the talent.
Walk through each role and ask what that person looks at in the final minute before going live. Then check the plan puts that screen within reach, at the right height and out of the talent's eyeline. Glare from studio lights on a gallery screen is a quiet and frequent fault.
Do not forget confidence monitoring of the final output, so someone is always watching what viewers actually receive rather than what is believed to be going out.
- Every source and the output visible to the director
- Return feeds placed for operators and floor manager
- Screens positioned clear of light spill
- A confidence monitor on the final output
Access, maintenance and the day something fails
A studio is installed once but lived in for years, so ask how it will be looked after. Can a lamp be changed without moving a camera? Can the rack be reached from the front and rear? Is there a clean place to keep spares, and does the crew know where they are? These small points decide how long a minor fault takes to fix.
Ask for a spares list that matches the room, covering the items most likely to fail on air: cables, connectors, batteries and a spare microphone. Agree who holds them and who may touch what.
Finally, ask how the handover works. A good one ends with the crew running a full rehearsal themselves, with the installer watching, not the other way round.
- Rear and front access to racks and junction points
- A short spares list held in the studio
- Named responsibility for each part of the system
- A rehearsal led by your own crew at handover
Questions to put to any installer
Before deciding, put a short set of questions to whoever you are considering. Ask them to describe how they would phase the work so you lose as little airtime as possible. Ask what they need from you before arrival, what they will document at the end and what is outside the scope. Ask who will actually be in the room, not just who signs the quotation.
Listen for specifics. A clear answer names the order of work, the checks made and the points that depend on your decisions. A vague one promises a smooth result without saying how.
Written scope and a written quotation protect both sides. If a detail matters to you, it should be on paper before any work begins.
- How the work is phased around your schedule
- What you must supply or decide beforehand
- What documentation is left behind
- Who is on site and who is responsible
A studio setup is a set of decisions that are cheaper to make on paper than on the floor. Work through the format, the cameras, the cabling, the monitoring and the upkeep, and write down what you find. If the answers are clear, you are ready to commission the work with confidence. If some are not, you have learnt where the risk lies before it costs you airtime, and that is exactly what a checklist is for.