JBL by HARMAN Helps Kinnon Entertainment Expand Their Business

JBL by HARMAN Helps Kinnon Entertainment Expand Their Business

March 16, 2017

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

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