2020 marked the 16th annual Jakarta International Java Jazz Festival (JJF) which featured performances from both local artists and international acts. Now one of the largest jazz festivals in the world, this year the theme of JJF was “Redeem Your Self Through Music”. The event, which spanned 3 days from February 28th until March 1st and was attended by 110,000 people from Indonesia and surrounding countries, was held in Jakarta International Expo (JIExpo), known as one of the largest exhibition venues in Indonesia. The main headliners included The Jacksons, Omar Apollo and 34 other international acts, while more than 80 local artists performed across 8 indoor and 3 outdoor stages.
NEXO loudspeaker systems were highly visible at the Java Jazz 2020, thanks to an energetic initiative from Yamaha Commercial Audio Indonesia. Yamaha was appointed as national distributor of NEXO products in Indonesia last year, and has already had a major success in building a network of high-quality rental users. Chick Harai from Yamaha assessed that “this year’s JJF gave us a fantastic chance to showcase the latest products launched by NEXO, along with many Yamaha digital mixing console models.”
Two indoor stages, the Be One Hall and the Brava Radio Hall, were chosen to feature NEXO’s new mid-sized line array, the GEO M12 system, making its first appearance at the Java Jazz event.
At the Be One Hall stage, the main PA system comprised of 12x NEXO GEO M12 as main speakers, 6x RS18 setup as cardioid subwoofers, and 3x PS15-R2 placed horizontally with rotated horns as front fills. Powered by 3x NXAMP 4×4, the system provided enough SPL to cover the 38m x 35m hall. Initial system design was made with NEXO’s NS-1 simulation software, programmed by Yamaha’s Technical Support team, later verified and adjusted based on the actual condition of the hall. Norman Hajadi, the systems engineer overseeing the setup, notes that, “compared to other halls that had more or less the same dimension, I’m satisfied with the result of using NEXO GEO M12, considering that we used fewer cabinets than other halls. The NS-1 software is so accurate that it gave confidence to the systems engineers, hence minimizing setup and tuning time.”
Agi Hardono from DSS Sound System added that “the main problem that we always face at Be One Hall is the acoustics of the room which are challenging because it is a huge hangar-shaped building with a dome-shaped roof. A loudspeaker with directivity that can be controlled accurately is necessary; NEXO GEO M12 proved to be very capable of conquering the problems in the room and also producing a natural yet beautiful sound.”
The sound system in the Brava Radio Hall was provided by Peplus Audio, one of the many satisfied Yamaha console users at the event. Main PA consisted of 12x NEXO GEO M12 speakers, with a matching cardioid subwoofer array using 12x NEXO MSUB18 subwoofers, and 2x NEXO GEO M10 speakers set up as front fills. Powered by three of NEXO’s latest generation NXAMP4x4Mk2 amps, using Dante connection with analog-fallback function activated, the system gave a very safe, anti-dropout performance.
Rizky Pohan from Peplus Audio said, “as an integrated system consisting of prediction software, various installation accessories, configuration and monitoring solution for the amps, NEXO helped us form a fast yet accurate workflow. The accurate prediction software and the built-in DSP inside the [NXAMP] amplifier helped to minimize the negative effects, so we only needed to do minor adjustments to compensate for the room acoustics. This time-cost efficiency is crucial for a rental company.”
Mr. Pohan continued, “Personally, I really like the frequency response of the NEXO MSUB18 subwoofer. It sounded really full, even though it only has a single 18” driver. Matching the sub’s crossover with GEO M12 can be easily configured with built-in presets. Choosing the right cut-off point for the application in the venue was really quick.”
Peplus Audio and PT. Don Sistem Suara Indonesia (DSS Sound System Indonesia) are both considered as Yamaha rental partners as they have inventory of Yamaha CL, QL mixer series. DSS is in fact the first RIVAGE PM7 system owner in Indonesia. NEXO speakers and amplification were supported by Yamaha Musik Indonesia Distributor (YMID) with additional items supplied from IM Solution as one of Indonesia’s NEXO dealers.
Almost 80% of the stages were using Yamaha digital mixing consoles for FOH and Monitor control, proving that Yamaha systems have a very high degree of acceptance in the Indonesian market. Other Java Jazz vendors choosing to go the Yamaha route included Soundworks and Total Audio. One RIVAGE PM10 and a PM7 digital mixing system were stationed in two indoor halls (Top Coffee stage and Be One stage respectively), while the outdoor Java Jazz Stage had a PM7. Eight Yamaha CL5s and a Yamaha TF5 were provided for FOH and monitor duties across various stages, with a Yamaha CL5 provided specifically for the performance of the all-star Yamaha Music Project in one of Java Jazz’s headline shows.
Yamaha was also there in its own name, with a booth to showcase its musical instruments with various live performances, all amplified beautifully by a pair of NEXO’s new P12 point-source speakers plus 4x new NEXO L15 subs to handle the bottom-end.
Chick Hirai from Yamaha comments, “this year’s Java Jazz event was very special for us; being delivering natural jazz sound is something we do especially well so it’s a win-win for everybody. We thank our rental partners, users and dealers for supporting us, and for being appreciative of how Yamaha consoles and NEXO PA systems performed during the JJF event.”
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