AVI-SPL And JBL Professional VLA Line Arrays Blaze Audio Trails At The Rose Garden

Demonstrating the ease of installation and even dispersion of JBL VLA line arrays, leading audio video products and services provider AVI-SPL oversaw the redesign of the audio system at the Rose Garden, home of the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers. The new system features six line array clusters of VLA loudspeakers.

The redesign of the audio system at the Rose Garden was a part of a major capital improvements project that included a new video scoreboard, powered by a state-of-the-art HD control room. The improvements also included a facelift of the Rose Garden’s main concourses, restaurants, party suites, as well as upgraded LED stats boards and auxiliary scoreboards.

To meet these heightened entertainment standards, AVI-SPL needed a loudspeaker system that would provide powerful, controlled sound while retaining a visually discrete appearance. “If we had gone with a central cluster approach, the scoreboard would not have been able to recess all the way into the ceiling,” said Nathan Thomas of AVI-SPL. “We needed the scoreboard and loudspeakers to be located completely above the rigging points on the low steel frame so they could hold different kinds of events that used other rigging points.”

Because of their combination of power and flexibility, AVI-SPL opted for JBL VLA line arrays, installing six line array clusters. The two side arrays are each comprised of eight VLA901 loudspeakers, while the four corner arrays each include six VLA601 and two VLA901 array modules. “We chose the VLA loudspeakers knowing that we would need a highly controllable system,” Thomas said. “The VLA’s offer that controllability, and the horizontal splay angles drove us to ultimately go with that product.”

Building on the proven success of the legendary JBL VERTEC® line array series and Precision Directivity® series, VLA (Variable Line Array) series loudspeakers are designed for permanent installations requiring high-impact sound reinforcement at throw distances beyond the reach of traditional loudspeaker designs. The VLA Series includes six large format horn-loaded modules with three horizontal horn coverage patterns (30, 60 and 90 degrees). This modular horn-loaded concept incorporating JBL’s Precision Directivity series technology provides system designers additional flexibility to vary the horizontal pattern within a vertical array. This can be achieved by incorporating different modules with wider or narrower coverage patterns while still maintaining consistent vertical directivity.

According to Thomas, the system has performed beyond expectations since being installed. “The coverage is spectacular and the clarity is very good. With the current setting, we can get the system up to 115 dB with another 10 dB of headroom,” he said. “The main operator at the arena said it’s one of the clearest systems he’s ever heard, and I tend to agree.”


JBL is a unit of Harman International Industries, Incorporated (www.harman.com). Harman International designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of audio and infotainment products for the automotive, consumer and professional markets, and maintains a strong presence in the Americas, Europe and Asia, employing more than 11,000 people worldwide. The Harman International family of brands includes AKG®, Audioaccess®, Becker®, BSS®, Crown®, dbx®, DigiTech®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon®, Mark Levinson®, Revel®, QNX®, Soundcraft® and Studer®. Harman International’s stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “NYSE: HAR.”