LED booth video specs, explained before your deadline.
Booth screens are not TVs. They are custom pixel grids, and content that ignores that fact looks soft, stretched, or cheap on the show floor. Here is everything to collect and check before anyone opens After Effects.
The one number that matters: the pixel map
Every LED wall is assembled from cabinets, and each cabinet carries a fixed grid of pixels. The wall’s native resolution is simply cabinets multiplied by pixels per cabinet. A common 500 by 500 mm cabinet at 2.5 mm pixel pitch holds 200 by 200 pixels, so a wall built 6 cabinets wide and 4 high is 1200 by 800 pixels. The same cabinet at 1.95 mm pitch holds 256 by 256 pixels, and the same wall becomes 1536 by 1024.
Neither of those is 1080p, and neither is 4K. That is the point: booth screens almost never match broadcast resolutions. Content built at 16:9 and cropped or stretched to fit is the single most common reason booth video looks wrong. We design to the native pixel map from the first frame, which is also why the final files look sharp at arm’s length.
If nobody has sent you a pixel map yet, the specs are not real yet. A render size guessed from photos of the booth is a redo waiting to happen.
Six questions for your booth builder or AV partner
- Pixel map and layout. Native resolution per screen, plus how cabinets are arranged for pillars, corners, and ribbons.
- Processor and playback. What drives the wall and what player runs the files. This decides codecs and frame rate.
- Accepted formats. MP4, ProRes, HAP, or image sequences, and any bitrate limits.
- Frame rate. 30 or 60 fps in the US. Match it exactly.
- Brightness and environment. Indoor booth LED is bright; content tuned for a dim monitor can blow out on the floor.
- Deadline for files. Playback teams want finals before load-in, not on show morning.
Formats that actually play
| Situation | Deliver | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Standard media player | MP4, H.264, 20 to 50 Mbps | Plays everywhere, small files, fine for most booth loops |
| Media server (disguise, Resolume, Watchout) | ProRes 422 or HAP | Frame-accurate playback, no compression artifacts on gradients |
| LED processor direct input | Confirm with the AV team | Some rigs take a laptop or player over HDMI at a fixed canvas size |
| Backup, always | Second codec on a drive | Show-floor playback surprises are cheaper to fix with files in hand |
Design rules the show floor enforces anyway
- Text size is physical, not digital. The old signage rule holds: about 1 inch of letter height per 10 feet of viewing distance. On a coarse pixel pitch, small type simply stops existing.
- Avoid 1 to 2 pixel details. Thin lines and fine textures shimmer and alias on LED. Bold shapes and strong contrast read; delicate detail does not.
- Watch full-white frames. Large pure-white areas at full brightness are blinding at booth distance and flatten everything around them.
- Keep safe margins. Cabinet edges, mounting seams, and trim can eat the outer pixels. Keep logos and type away from the border.
- Assume no sound. Booth video runs silent. If the story needs audio to work, it does not work.
Delivery: the last 5 percent that saves the show
Finals should be loop-checked at the seam, named per screen, and tested on the actual playback system before load-in. We render every screen at native resolution, watch the loop point frame by frame, and hand the package to your AV or venue partner with a backup codec included. If a processor rejects a file at 8 pm before opening day, the backup is already on the drive.
Send whatever you have: show name, booth render, screen sizes, or just the builder’s contact. We will confirm the specs and come back with a scope and a number.
Book a call→Next guide: How long should a trade show booth loop be? · Or see what we build for booth screens.
Spec questions we get most.
What resolution should my booth LED video be?+
TechnicalThe native resolution of your exact screen build, which is rarely a standard size like 1080p or 4K. Get the pixel map from your booth builder or AV partner and design to that number. Scaling a 16:9 master up or down is what makes booth content look soft.
What video format do LED processors accept?+
TechnicalMost playback systems take a high-bitrate MP4 (H.264 or H.265) or ProRes 422. Some media servers prefer HAP or image sequences. Confirm with whoever runs playback before rendering finals, then deliver a backup format as well.
What frame rate should booth content use?+
TechnicalUse the frame rate the playback system and screen are configured for, which in the US is usually 30 or 60 fps. Mismatched frame rates cause stutter on camera and on fast motion.
Why does my video look pixelated on the booth screen?+
TechnicalAlmost always because the file was designed at a different resolution than the pixel map and then scaled, or because fine details like thin lines and small text fall below the physical pixel pitch of the wall.
Who should I ask for the pixel map?+
WorkflowYour booth builder or the AV company supplying the LED. If you send us their contact, we collect the specs directly and confirm everything before production starts.
Can Motion Bloc build the content once I have the specs?+
ProcessYes. That is our core work: we design to the native pixel map, playback-test the files, and deliver every screen version ready for your AV or venue partner. Send the specs by email and you will get a scope and a number back.
Specs in hand? We take it from here.
Native-resolution design, playback-tested files, delivered before load-in. Tell us the show and the screens.