Using Ava to Caption a Large Event

Do you have a lecture, presentation, conference or church service you need captioned? Use Ava to accurately caption a speaker from far away!

Updated over a month ago

Summary:

1. If you are an event attendee
2. If you are an event organizer using Ava

In situations where an audience is listening to a presenter, you can use Ava to caption what is said in real-time!

If you are an event attendee:

• If you know the presenter, ask them before if they can download Ava. Before the presentation, help them setup their device for accurate captions.

• If you don't know the presenter, use a Bluetooth clip-on microphone with your smartphone. Before the presentation, ask the presenter to put the mic as close as possible (e.g: on the podium).

• Ask the event about accessibility options. If they are interested in providing captions, the event can learn more about Ava here!

• If none of this is possible, we cannot guarantee Ava's accuracy, but you can try sitting at the first row.

If you are an event organizer using Ava:

With Ava Event, you can caption all your sessions with a very easy plug & play solution. The captions will be broadcasted to anyone who wants to view them!

Setting up Ava with an audio system:

If your event is at a venue equipped with an audio system (microphones and speakers), it will be very easy to connect Ava with this AV system in order to get the most accurate captions.

You'll need (per room):

• An Ava account. Learn more about our Event Pricing!
• a reliable ( bandwidth requirements) Internet connection (Wifi recommended),
• a smart device (tablet or smartphone) with Ava installed on it, which will be dedicated for the live captioning during the event (Ava host device),
• Minimum upload speed of 516Kb/second (You can check your upload speed by going to fast.com)
• an iRig 2.0 to convert the audio from the mixer to the 'Ava host device'.
• a TRS-TRS audio cable (1/4'' TRS male to 1/4'' TRS male), or the XLR version (large venues only) to connect the mixer with the iRig 2.0 and the 'Ava host device'.

Connecting your host device to the sound system:

• Plug one end of the TRS cable into a direct out on the sound board. If you don't have one, look for the XLR, and plug the XLR cable.
• Plug the other extremity of the cable into the iRig where there is a guitar symbol.
• Switch the iRig to "thru", turn the "gain" all the way up.
• Plug the iRig end to the smart device headphone jack.
• Turn on the sound board power and make sure the microphone signal is feeding to the direct out. Ava needs a lined balanced output signal from the mixing board (ideally vocals only).
• Turn on the microphone the speaker will use.

Here is an instructional video to explain how the above setup works exactly.

Here's what attendees can do to see the captions:

• Download the Ava app: www.ava.me/get
• Tap on Join a conversation
• Type the location's Ava Name (e.g. worshipcentername) then tap on it
• If your Host Device has Ava on, attendees will connect to it and will see the captions appear on their screen too.

Are you looking to take your event's accessibility to the next level? Let us know about your needs!