The 16 Coolest Things We Saw at Winter NAMM 2016

Our crew is back from NAMM 2016 and still buzzing from all the awesome stuff we saw. There were so many photos from our coverage of the show that we wanted to condense it all into the best of the best. So here (in no particular order) are the 16 coolest things we saw at NAMM 2016!

See All of Our NAMM Photos

Korg Minilogue

NAMM-goers try out the Korg minilogue polyphonic analog synth.

Korg was smart to stock their NAMM booth with Minilogues for the public to play with — even synth noobs were getting into the action. This little synth is incredibly beginner-friendly, with a small OLED displaying either the value for whatever control you’re manipulating (such as arpeggiator tempo), or an oscilloscope with the waveform you’re generating in real time. Turn the knob to adjust pulse width or blend two waveforms, and the display shows you what that looks like in real time. The mini-keys are larger than the usual mini-keys found on instruments like the microKorg — they’re 86% scale, the same size keys as Korg’s reissued ARP Odyssey (the hit of NAMM 2015.) That make it possible to get both hands comfortably on the keyboard — which you’re going to want to do, because this is a polyphonic synth that’s capable of playing fat chords. We tried the Minilogue, and it’s one of those “can’t make it sound bad” pieces of gear where every knob does something cool. Oh, and it’s under $500. Get your pre-order in now. – Maya

Orange Tiny Terror 10th Anniversary

Despite its diminutive size, the Tiny Terror has made a giant impact on the world of low-wattage amps in the past decade. To properly celebrate the influence it has made, Orange has introduced this 10th Anniversary model, complete with point-to-point handwiring within the mirror-polished stainless steel chassis. The head also includes its own British racing green speaker cab with two Celestion G10 Gold speakers. Limited to 110 pieces worldwide, the 10th Anniversary Tiny Terror is sure to be a highly coveted collectors’ piece. – Sergio

Arturia MatrixBrute Synthesizer

I’ve already written how Arturia’s MatrixBrute has made jaws drop. I still can’t believe Arturia had the gall to reintroduce a matrix-based synthesizer to the world. This isn’t just control that lay behind a data sheet or a screen shot, but a full-fledged touch-based viewable and manipulatable grid. Just as audiences were digesting Korg’s smashing minologue, Arturia came out of nowhere with a keyboard that travels the unjustly forgotten trails of synthesizer technology. I could only dream about owning a VCS3 synthesizer, but now it seems Arturia is trying to make dreams come true. – Diego

Fender’s Magnificent Seven Collection

American Special Jazzmaster With Bigsby

One guitar that stood out to me personally was this amazing Jazzmaster that is part of Fender’s limited edition Magnificent Seven series. Featuring streamlined electronic switching and the classic look of a Jazzmaster, this guitar’s real focal point is the big metal Bigsby tailpiece. Replacing the traditional Jazzmaster vibrato, the Bigsby really adds another level of vintage charm to the quintessentially vintage-looking Jazzmaster. Add in the white witch hat control knobs and three-way toggle switch and you have the recipe for a modern classic. – Sergio

American Standard Offset Telecaster

These guitars really started a lot of buzz at NAMM. Part of Fender’s Magnificent Seven series, the Offset Telecaster blends the style of both a Telecaster and a Jazzmaster — two guitars that have die-hard fan bases. With a tele neck, hardware and custom shop pickup set, you get the twangy tone that only a Telecaster can offer, plus the offset Jazzmaster-style body that indie and alternative guitarists love. Only 500 of each of the three colors (two-color sunburst, lake placid blue, olympic white) will be made, so there’s no doubt these super-limited guitars will be flying off the shelves! – Corbin

I’ve been into this idea for quite a while, and I’m glad that fender is giving it a run as a Limited Edition model for 2016. Originally only available as a pricey Custom Shop model, the guitar that many gear nerds dub the “Telemaster” or the “Jazzcaster” has been copied and tweaked by DIY custom builders for years. It’s great to see that Fender is recognizing the love of this configuration and is making a run of American Elite series Offset Telecasters. Maybe we’ll see this become a standard offering in the coming years. – Dan

Reverend BC1 Billy Corgan Signature

As one of the guitar heroes of the ’90s and beyond, Billy Corgan’s guitar tone and style is as diverse as his songwriting. Continuing this tradition of breaking the mold, Corgan has teamed up with Reverend guitars to create his striking signature model. The futuristic-retro look of the guitar’s split pickguard hides chambering in the body that increases the instrument’s resonance. One of the biggest features is the signature Billy Corgan Railhammer pickups, which combine the bite of P-90s with the hum-free performance of humbuckers. The innovative bass contour control tightens up the bass and helps the guitar create a multitude of classic Corgan tones. – Sergio

Jesse Hughes (of Eagles of Death Metal) for Orange Amps

Jesse Hughes of Eagles of Death Metal poses with Corbin and Robbie.

Jesse came by for a quick signing. He plays an Orange Rockerverb 50 with a matching 4×12 cabinet. Look for our upcoming interview with Jesse soon. – Robbie

The Moog Desert

Moog welcomed NAMM-goers to the Wild West of synthesis at one of the coolest NAMM booths we’ve ever seen. Against a backdrop of cacti, Moog piled the floor with pillows and set up stations with two, three, and even four Mother-32 synthesizers racked together with other Eurorack modules. The best thing about these multiple-Mother setups? They’re not just dream rigs — they’re actually within the price range of regular folks. Look for the Mother-32 to be back in stock at zZounds in February! – Maya

EarthQuaker Devices’ Pedals and Amp

EarthQuaker Devices has quickly risen to the top of the boutique pedal market. I’m always excited to see what they introduce at NAMM, and this year they had some great new pedals to offer. Being a Sunn amp enthusiast, my favorite pedal offering this year is a simple, one-knob distortion pedal that emulates the drive of a Sunn Model T, called Acapulco Gold. Originally an exclusive pedal, EQD has now added it to their standard line. Also, the new Sound Projector 25 amp reappeared at this year’s show (originally introduced at Summer NAMM 2015), with some more information and tolex options. Apparently the stripped-down amp will start shipping to dealers in the coming months, and that’s something I’m extremely excited about. – Dan

EQD Night Wire Dynamic Harmonic Tremolo

The Night Wire is a lot more than just a tremolo pedal. Sure you can get your standard tremolo warblings, but it also splits your signal split into high-pass and low-pass filters, and then modulates it via a LFO. From there you can adjust the center point of the filter and really warp your tone. The filter control has three settings: Manual, LFO and Attack and the rate can be set to follow your attack or manual knob settings. A lot of pedals with this many controls and tonal options have just as many pretty unusable tones, as well as golden ones. Right out of the box, the Night Wire has the tremolo tone you want, but this is also a pedal you can spend a lot of time really sinking your teeth into and exploring. -Corbin

EQD Acapulco Gold Power Amp Distortion

Where the Night Wire gives you a lot of controls to fiddle with, the Acapulco Gold takes the other road, with one giant knob sitting smack-dab in the middle of the pedal — but that’s all you need. Originally a limited release pedal, it’s back due to popular demand. Being that it’s a power-amp distortion circuit based on a cranked Sunn Model-T, I can see why they brought it back. Just turn up the knob and listen to an avalanche of dirt and grit come crashing down. While there are no EQ controls, fiddling with your guitars volume and tone knob can really color things, taking you from a spanky Neil Young-esque rumble to the roaring tone of a vintage Model T pushed to the limits — spitting and snorting gain. -Corbin

Gibson High Performance 101 with Jim DeCola

Who better to explain the ins and outs of the updated 2016 High Performance series than Jim DeCola, Gibson USA’s master luthier? Looking at the T (Traditional) models side-by-side with the HP (High Performance) models only yielded a few differences, but thanks to Jim and his explanation, we were able to get the full scoop on the 2016 HPs. For instance, in the control cavity in the back of the body, 5 tiny DIP switches could be user-controlled to create a staggering array of different tones. Jim also clued us in on nearly invisible improvements, such as how the HP models have a slightly different fret positioning than their T model cousins, allowing for even more precise intonation. – Sergio

Denon DJ MCX8000 DJ Controller

Serato DJ has been one of the most popular digital DJ software platforms since it first gained favor with DJs for its breakthrough digital vinyl simulation (DVS) some 10 years ago, In recent years, all-in-one DJ controllers like the Numark NS7III or Pioneer’s DDJ-SX have been dominating the digital DJ game. But these Serato controllers weren’t standalone — they required DJs to bring a laptop running Serato. Enter the new Denon DJ MCX8000. With this bad boy, you don’t need to bring your laptop at all — just use Denon’s included Engine software to export from Serato to a USB stick. Plug into the MCX8000’s USB port, and bam — your Serato crates appear with all your hot cue points intact on the MCX8000’s two huge hi-def displays. With two USB ports for thumb drives plus a powered USB port for a hard drive, there’s plenty of room for multiple DJs to switch off without interruption. And of course, you get velocity-sensitive performance pads and responsive jog wheels. Highly recommended for Serato DJs looking for an all-in-one controller! – Maya

Exploded View Guitars at Fender’s Booth

Just what is it that makes Fender’s new Elite series of guitars so special? Take a look at each component!

Fender always goes above and beyond with their displays at NAMM and this year was no exception. One of my favorite visual displays was the real-life exploded view of the American Elite series Strat and Tele. Each part of the guitar, from the body, to the neck, all the way down to the tiniest screw was suspended by countless wires so nothing could possibly be left to question when it comes to how these high-quality instruments are built. -Dan

Pioneer’s Star Wars-Inspired Controllers

The force was strong at Pioneer’s booth this year — the popular DJ gear company showed off a few Star Wars-inspired entries of its Art Mix program. The program brings artists and DJs together to create one-of-a-kind pieces based on a CDJ-2000. The pieces will be auctioned off and all proceeds benefit the VH1 Save the Music Foundation. – Mason

Reverend Airwave 12

Reverend Guitars CEO KEN Haas showed us the new 12-string Reverend Airwave.

There’s something about an electric 12-string guitar. Throw in an up-and-coming brand, a cool offset design and some custom P-90 pickups and I’m sold. The Reverend Airwave 12 was definitely one of my favorite guitars from this year’s NAMM show. It may have taken a back seat to the new Billy Corgan signature model (an equally cool guitar) that won the coveted “Best In Show” award, but don’t overlook the Airwave if you want to step outside the box for thick 12-string tone. – Dan

Mastodon’s Bill Kelliher

Mastodon’s Bill Kelliher poses for a photo with Corbin.

One of the best things about winter NAMM is the people. If there is one word you can use to describe musicians, it’s passionate, and all weekend my head was on a swivel, looking at the people as much as the gear. At a point where I was just standing off to the side taking a breather, I saw none other then Mastodon’s Bill Kelliher roaming down the hall — you can’t miss that mustache. To start, I like metal music, and while Mastodon isn’t my favorite band in the genre, they have never disappointed. Once I put on any one of their records, I have to keep it spinning until the end. Starting out as a punk kid, around the time they put out Leviathan, I started testing the heavy metal waters. Seeing just the cover art alone, I knew it was a record I wanted and instantly bought it. Both Bill and Brent’s guitar style was vastly inspiring to me and I will be the first to say I have definitely stole riffs or two from them. Bill was clearly on his way to do just what I was doing, check out some rad guitars, so I didn’t want to take too much of his time. Mastodon are famous for being goofy, down-to-earth guys and Bill humored me when I asked him for a picture together, as I have been told on more than one occasion about our resemblance — despite my goofy grin. If only I could grow a mustache like that… -Corbin

See our exclusive interview with Bill Kelliher

Universal Audio’s Booth Becomes Heritage Studios

Universal Audio went all-out for their booth at NAMM 2016, turning back the time to bring us Heritage Studios, a space reminiscent of studios like the landmark United Western. The early ’60s modeled studio proved a popular photo spot and even drew a few famous faces like Stevie Wonder. See if you can spot any on Universal Audio’s Flickr page. – Mason

D’Angelico Deluxe Series

D’Angelico’s new Elite series looks truly superior.

D’Angelico gave its six most popular standard models upgrades for their Deluxe Series, including a matte blue finish, Seymour Duncan/D’Angelico and TV Jones/D’Angelico pickups, six-way switches, and gold hardware. – Robbie