Kinnon Entertainment utilizes JBL VTX V20 line arrays
and Crown amplifiers to realize business growth goals and deliver superior
sound at larger events
NORTHRIDGE, Calif.— Colorado-based entertainment and event production company Kinnon
Entertainment is reaping the benefits of their investment in JBL by HARMAN VTX
Series loudspeakers and Crown I-Tech HD amplifiers. Kinnon Entertainment, which
has a long-standing relationship with HARMAN Professional Solutions, purchased
the system in June of 2015. Since then, the company has experienced exponential
business growth and recently concluded a successful year of productions which
included national concert tours, high-profile sports events and more.
Kinnon
Entertainment was founded by live sound veteran Mike Blecha after purchasing a
truck-mounted JBL VRX system from consumer audio company Cartoys. After
installing additional subwoofers, Blecha used the truck he named Rolling Thunder
to provide audio for small to medium-sized events. The VRX system was comprised
of 8 VRX 932 loudspeakers, 6 SRX 728 subwoofers, 6 SRX 712 monitors and powered
by Crown XTi 2000 and 4000 amplifiers.
“The rig was
incredibly easy to use, which allowed us to be quick and efficient,” said
Blecha. “We started small, but grew to the point where we were doing concerts,
car shows, promotional events and smaller festivals that hosted a couple
thousand people. We did like 350 gigs on that VRX system—it really helped us
break into the industry.”
As Kinnon
Entertainment continued to grow, new opportunities to pursue larger event
contracts led Blecha to purchase a JBL VTX system which would serve as a
scalable solution for future business growth. Kinnon Entertainment’s new VTX
system is comprised of 16 V20 line array elements, 8 G28 subwoofers and powered
by Crown I-Tech HD amplifiers—2 4x3500
VRacks and 2 12000 VRacks. Kinnon is also using JBL HiQnet
Performance Manager 2.0 software to configure their VTX rig. This new system
has allowed Blecha to realize current goals for Kinnon as well as set
benchmarks for continued success.
“As a business
we've always taken strides to be at the forefront of our industry, but when we
got the VTX system it was a total game changer,” continued Blecha. “Since
getting our VTX system last June, we’ve been able to tackle much larger events
and our revenue has doubled. VTX is the future of our company, no doubt.”
Blecha attributes
part of Kinnon Entertainment’s continued success to the intuitive design of
VTX. The new system has allowed the production team to become more efficient,
train quickly and easily, as well as feel confident in their abilities to
provide consistent, quality service to existing and prospective customers.
“It’s obvious
that VTX is designed and engineered by audio gurus who also understand the
challenges we face in the field,” added Blecha. “How easy I can tear down a rig
is so crucial. When you’re popping covers on speakers at 2 a.m. after an
18-hour day or dealing with a curfew and street closures because the event ran
overtime, it’s great to have an easy-to-use rig. With VTX, everything goes
together so smoothly, its practical and sounds great.”
“VTX is so
efficient that I can take a stagehand who isn’t too experienced, show him how
to help assemble the rig and they completely understand and feel confident they
can do it,” said Blecha. “In September 2015 the team went out to Northridge to
get trained by HARMAN. We learned so much and feel even more confident in our
abilities. The incredible efficiency of VTX has made me completely rethink
other facets of our business and see ways we can become more efficient in the
future.”
Kinnon
just concluded a highly successful summer of productions which included sports
events like the Never Summer’s Block Fest, snowboarding music and film festival
and Summerfest Motorcycle Rally in North Dakota. They also produced an array of
concerts at the Adams and Douglas County Fairs, Eastern Colorado Roundup
country music fest, Bob Stock radio classic rock event and more. Blecha and his
team are also working with local venues to create unique audio visual solutions.
“The next step
for us is to get a VTX V25 rig in a semi-truck on tour with a band,” shared
Blecha. “Kinnon Entertainment is one of only two companies in Colorado to have
VTX V20, and no one has V25. We want to be the first. We also want to expand
our inventory of VTX V20 Series elements so we can have two rigs for medium to
larger events. It’s all about becoming more efficient, taking on more resume
building gigs and continuing to grow. There’s no way we could do what we do
without JBL systems.”
Products Used:
Crown I-Tech HD 12000 VRacks x 2
Crown I-Tech HD 4x3500 x 2VRacks
Crown XTi 2000
Crown XTi 4000
amplifiers
HiQnet
Performance Manager 2.0
JBL G28
subwoofers x 8
JBL SRX 712
monitors x 6
JBL SRX 728
subwoofers x 6
JBL V20 line
array elements x 16
JBL VRX 932
loudspeakers x 8
ABOUT HARMAN
HARMAN (harman.com) designs and engineers
connected products and solutions for automakers, consumers, and enterprises
worldwide, including connected car systems, audio and visual products,
enterprise automation solutions; and services supporting the Internet of
Things. With leading brands including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®,
JBL®, Lexicon®, Mark Levinson® and Revel®, HARMAN is admired by audiophiles,
musicians and the entertainment venues where they perform around the world.
More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN
audio and connected car systems. Our software services power billions of mobile
devices and systems that are connected, integrated and secure across all
platforms, from work and home to car and mobile. HARMAN has a workforce of
approximately 30,000 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia. In March
2017, HARMAN became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics.
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