The Monterey Jazz Festival, celebrating its 69th year, enhanced the auditory experience across the historic Monterey County Fairgrounds with d&b audiotechnik KSL and CCL loudspeaker systems. Production partner Live Box Digital (LBD) deployed a KSL system on the main Jimmy Lyons Stage and CCL loudspeakers on three secondary stages, addressing acoustic challenges presented by the fairgrounds’ location near residential areas and the Monterey Pines Golf Club.
The festival featured a lineup of jazz icons and rising stars, including Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Wynton Marsalis with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, David Sanchez, Ravi Coltrane, Aja Monet, and Brittany Davis and Black Thunder. LBD’s connection to the festival runs deep, with many core personnel previously managing audio for Monterey Jazz during their tenure at McCune Sound, the festival’s historic production provider.
“Our goal was to elevate the auditory experience across the entire fairgrounds while maintaining strict acoustic boundaries,” explains Jamison Valerio, CEO and Managing Partner at Live Box Digital. “d&b’s broadband directivity control gives us excellent pattern control, resulting in the clarity needed for delicate jazz performances. We can deliver powerful, articulate sound to every seat in the house, while keeping noise out of both sensitive stage microphones and the surrounding neighborhood.”
On the main Jimmy Lyons Stage, LBD hung nine KSL enclosures per side. The compact footprint and lightweight design of the CCL loudspeakers proved beneficial for the festival’s smaller stages.
“The cardioid performance of the KSL arrays makes a massive difference,” notes Orjan Bliven, Live Sound Engineer at Live Box Digital. “Because there is virtually no low-end spill off the back of the PA, the stage remains extremely quiet for acoustic bass, grand pianos, and vocal mics. In fact, festival videographers were able to mount a useable Robocam directly to the front of the stage structure for the first time without camera shake from subwoofer bleed.”
Bliven added, “And the CCL is quickly becoming one of my favorite boxes. Its clarity and detailed high end bring out every nuance of jazz instrumentation. Furthermore, its compact profile preserves critical sightlines for large LED screens while allowing us to deploy high-impact sound rapidly using smaller lift towers.”
Pete Bender, Production Manager for Audio and Video at the Monterey Jazz Festival, praised the ongoing partnership with Live Box Digital and d&b audiotechnik. “2026 marks the fourth year we’ve utilized Live Box Digital’s KSL system on the main stage, and it continues to impress,” says Bender. “Extending d&b technology to all stages—and introducing the new CCL system this year—has received positive reviews from our mix engineers and festival patrons alike.”
For more information, visit dbaudio.com.
