First-timers often ask me this one the week before their first EMMA event: can I just lock the car up between judging and ducking off for a coffee? The honest answer is no — and it's not just etiquette, it's written into the rulebook.
What the rulebook actually requires
Across EMMA's install scoresheets there's a line item called "Presentation to the public." It requires competitors to show off their vehicle and installation to the public during the event, and to allow spectators to listen to the system. That's a scored requirement, not a suggestion — if your car is shut up in a trailer all day, you're leaving points on the table.
The one exception
The rulebook carves out exactly one exception: a car belonging to an active judge or back-office staff member is allowed to stay closed, for safety reasons. Everyone else's build is expected to be out, accessible, and able to be heard by the people walking the pits.
The bonus points tied to showing off your build
On top of the baseline requirement, EMMA also awards bonus points for anything in your install that "attracts spectators" — think a lit-up amp rack, a glass-panelled boot build, a clean under-seat enclosure. The rulebook is blunt about the catch, though: no noise accepted. Whatever draws the crowd has to do it visually, not by blasting your system at anyone walking past. Judging happens at controlled, measured volumes, not a stereo war in the car park.
What this actually means for your day
Practically, build your competition-day kit (see my EMMA competition day kit checklist) around the fact that your car sits open in a public pit area for hours. Don't leave loose cash, phones or tools in plain sight, and if your amps or processor are visible, expect curious hands near them — most people are respectful, but it only takes one. I also keep hearing protection in my kit; the rulebook itself urges both competitors and the public to protect their hearing around car audio systems running at competition levels, and a pit lane full of systems being auditioned is louder than it looks.
Public viewing isn't the same as being judged
Don't confuse this with who's allowed in the car while you're actually being scored — that's a separate and much stricter rule. Spectators watching your build in the pits is encouraged; who sits with you during an actual judging run is tightly controlled, right down to single-seat formats at national and international finals. I've written a separate page on exactly who can and can't be in the car during your session: Single-Seat vs Double-Seat EMMA Judging.
As a judge, I actually like this rule. Car audio competitions live or die on spectator interest — a pit lane of locked cars does nothing for the hobby. The best events I've judged are the ones where competitors treat the public walk-through as part of the show, not an inconvenience between runs.
If you're chasing every point you can on install quality, don't overlook "presentation to the public" as a freebie — it's one of the few scoring lines that rewards effort you'd probably put in anyway. For more line items people leave on the table, see Easy Bonus Points EMMA Competitors Forget.
Written by Pete — Integrated Audio
Pete is the founder of Integrated Audio and a Certified International EMMA Head Judge, judging EMMA Sound Quality and Installation competitions in Australia and internationally. He writes from the judging side of the table, drawing on hands-on experience building and installing HELIX, MATCH and BRAX car audio systems.