Neil Diamond celebrates 40th anniversary of Hot August Night with JBL

Celebrating the 40th anniversary of his live double album Hot August Night, Neil Diamond recently embarked on a three-month tour with Harman’s JBL VTX Series line arrays, taking in five nights at LA’s Greek Theatre where the album was recorded.

For the tour, New York-based Firehouse Productions deployed 32 (16 per side) JBL VTX V25 full-size arrayable loudspeakers for the main PA system, with 28 (14 per side) VERTEC VT4889 full-size line array loudspeakers for the wraparound side fill, 24 (12 per side) VT4889 loudspeakers for additional side coverage, 24 (12 per side) VT4888 mid-size line array loudspeakers for the left and right rear corners, 12 VT4886 subcompact line array loudspeakers for the rear fill, a centre cluster of eight VT4886 subcompact line array loudspeakers, eight VT4886 subcompact loudspeakers at the stage lip for the near field, six (three per side) VT4887 compact line array loudspeakers for side fill washes and 24 (12 per side) VT4880A full-size arrayable subwoofers.

The system was powered by 96 Crown I-Tech 12000 HD amplifiers, while Firehouse Productions also provided a variety of AKG wireless microphones and dbx DriveRack 4800 loudspeaker management processing.

The decision to tour with the new VTX series loudspeakers was made after Diamond’s FOH engineer Stan Miller and monitor engineer Bernie Becker heard a demo of the system earlier this year. 

“There is a significant sonic improvement in the JBL VTX series,” Miller stated. “The high-end response of the loudspeakers is quite amazing. We are never close to pushing the system too hard, which is unique. The peaks in various venues are usually under 100dB, making it exciting yet comfortable. It is a very musical system.”

Keep up to date with the latest developments from the world of pro audio by registering for our free daily newsletter.