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CX Magazine covers JBL VTX A-Series at festivals

JBL launched their VTX A Series of premium line array loudspeakers at Frankfurt’s PL+S in 2017 with the flagship A12 dual 12” element. In the years following, they’ve released the A8 dual 8” and A6 dual 6” elements, and seven models of complimentary subwoofers. Designed by JBL from the ground up, including the HF transducers, the VTX A Series is a generational change in sound for JBL.

MadisonAV has deployed the cutting-edge JBL Professional VTX A8 line array system at a series of festivals around the country over the last few months. Jason Allen at CX Magazine has talked to production managers and sound technicians about their experiences with A Series, and the feedback has been excellent.

CX Magazine is an independent trade journal for the vibrant AV, integration, and live production technology markets across Australasia. 


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The generational change in sound for JBL - by Jason Allen, CX Magazine


"As I’ve written many times about the A series, this is not the JBL of the 90s and 2000s. Tonally, they are on par with any of the big-name rider-friendly line arrays. Their power to weight ratio is exceptional, and everyone who hangs one praises their rigging system."

"Here in Australia, MadisonAV took on distribution of JBL’s premium touring products back in 2022. Since then, they’ve been doing an exceptional job of introducing A Series to the market, including to engineers like myself with a long history of disliking the brand, and winning us over. They’re doing such a good job that they won ‘Launch Event of the Year’ at the Harman APAC Tour Summit in Singapore, for their A6 launch event at Sydney’s The Star in 2023."

"MadisonAV’s Head of Tour Sound, Peter Kubow, has been taking their extensive demonstration inventory to festival stages around the country and putting them to work."

"Both a system tech and FoH engineer, Peter has been letting production companies trial A Series on live stages with their reputations on the line, and backs his product 100%. At every demo rollout, Peter and his crew are there to install and tune the system, ensuring the best results."

"It's a strategy that is working. It’s simple, but so few do it – get your product in front of the right people, let them use it in the course of their work, and trust the quality of the product to make its case. It’s seen A Series appear on major events across the country since Peter joined MadisonAV a year ago."

"We talked to production managers and sound technicians about their experiences with A Series, and the feedback has been excellent."

Rolling Sets Festival and Let the Good Times Roll Festival

Dec 2023, The Entrance NSW 

“The VTX A system surpassed all my expectations,” says Ryan Hazell of Roll In Production Services. “I was expecting it to be good but not ‘that’ good. We were able to compare it pretty much side by side next to the big German manufacturer's latest system on the main Rolling Sets stage. The VTX A more than held its own and covered the space beautifully with a perfect deployment. For eight A8s on the main hangs, I did not expect the fullness and quality of the sound image coming from such a small format PA. This is what makes the A8s so versatile; lightweight, small footprint and a huge sound. The A8s married perfectly with the A6 infills, the sonic signature was seamless between the two boxes. Those A6s pack a punch! The sub deployment was also super impressive, 10 G28 in array pattern and cardioid configuration. It's rare to get such even sub coverage around the entire audience area. There were so many comments, it definitely had the edge in this regard over the main stage.”

Tristan Forbes is the production manager for Let The Good Times Roll Festival, and is similarly impressed. “The efficiency of the VTX A Series system was demonstrated to be outstanding. Whilst in operation, I visited numerous locations and found it sounded Rolling Sets Festival and Let the Good Times Roll Festival LIVE JBL A-SERIES LIVE Integration | Audio | Lighting | Video | Staging 45 just as clear up front as it did further back, including with changing crowd numbers. Feeling very confident that the VTX A provided clarity in multiple listening situations, I walked away with a smile on my face. I could feel the full impact of a full range of frequencies and levels up past the FoH mix position when the headliner was on. I glanced around FoH position to see what other people’s reactions were like, and it was a dance party with everyone really enjoying themselves, dancing around as though they were front row.

For more details, read the full article on our website.

BIGSOUND

Brisbane, September 2023

“I've been Production Manager at BIGSOUND for 12 years,” says Eddie Gresack. “Last year, Peter Kubow from MadisonAV and I walked around and looked at different venues and talked about what would be a good fit for JBL A Series. We settled on Soapbox Brewery, which was a brand new venue for us and a brand new venue in terms of offering live music, plus Blute’s and The Sound Garden, which had existing PAs, but I wanted to make this special and was looking at ways to improve what was already a good space.”

“The JBL A Series rolled out very well. I was really happy with the way the system sounded in Soapbox Brewery, and both Blute’s and The Sound Garden were both huge improvements over their house systems. Tim Roberts, who is production manager for Blute’s, Black Bear Lodge, and The Brightside, liked the rig in Blute’s and he definitely thought it was an improvement on what they have. He was impressed enough to carry on the conversation about perhaps outfitting Brightside Backyard with JBL A Series. The Soapbox Brewery people were thrilled.”

Read the full article on our website for more insights.

St Kilda Festival

St Kilda VIC, 17-18 February 2024

“The PA did a great job of creating a nice rich sound across the listening area”comments Andrew Stanley, managing director of Light & Sound Solutions. “The size and weight are good, and I think A Series will fit into the market nicely’”

“The rigging capability is great,” he continues.. “It's all integrated, which makes it so much easier. We were ground stacked at the New Music stage, but whether it's hanging or ground stacked, you're using the same pins.”

Having assessed the A Series’ performance throughout the festival, Andrew is open to hearing more of it.“We’re always looking for that new box,” he explains. “In the recent past JBL hasn't been up there in the tier-one range of PAs. A Series is bringing them back into the market. It’s a fresh look, fresh sound, and represents a return to form for JBL.”

Head over to the full article on our website to find out more.

Enlighten Festival Canberra

Hoodoo Gurus with Canberra Symphony Orchestra, 10 March 2024

“We had about 80 lines off stage,” reports Marshall. “Hoodoo Gurus were playing through smaller amps than they usually would, backed by the 38-piece orchestra. The show was about two hours long, with an interval. Peter Kubow was system tech, I mixed the Gurus and Chris Neal mixed the orchestra.”

“We had 12 A12s per side, A8s as infill, and 15 subs in five stacks of three, run in cardioid. With just a single hang of 12s per side, it was very, very efficient PA. They expected 8,000 people to this free concert, and the final guesstimate was 15,000, almost double what they expected. It broke the record.”

Read the full article on our website for more information.

Peter Kubow, Category & Market Specialist for Performance Audio Solutions at MadisonAV is working with industry partners to demonstrate the JBL VTX A-Series, and can be contacted on proaudio@madisonav.com.au

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