NAMM 2024: The world’s biggest guitar gear trade show is back – and it’s returned to its rightful January time slot.
Yes, after NAMM 2022 took place in June, and NAMM 2023 hit the Anaheim Convention Center in April, NAMM is back where it belongs: the tail end of January. And it’s a good thing, too, because it means we can bring our old ‘Happy New Gear!’ pun out of retirement.
More importantly, NAMM’s return to its traditional month has enticed some of the brands – and artists – who were more hesitant post-Covid back to the fold.
As a result, we’re seeing more thoroughly exciting releases this year than we did in 2023 or 2022… and we are very much here for it.
In fact, we are literally here for it. Our roving Editor-in-Chief, Michael ‘Mike’ Astley-Brown, is scouring the show floor in search of the hottest, the most ground-breaking, and the downright wackiest guitars, amps, pedals and everything else besides.
Jetlag permitting, he’ll be bringing you snaps and videos from the thick of the action, posted right here in our up-to-minute live blog. This is 21st century journalism.
Back aboard the good ship GuitarWorld.com, our regular editorial coverage continues, with all the latest NAMM news and in-depth – and occasionally funny – analysis of the trends and products that have been grabbing our attention, while MAB will also be sourcing hands-on reports on the gear you want to know about.
Sound good? Well, prepare your wallet/debit card/overdraft, and join us as we bring you NAMM 2024… *LIVE*!
The weather's a little cloudier than we were hoping, but damn, it's good to be back at NAMM. Look how excited/overly caffeinated Mike is. The show hasn't officially started, but us press types get an early preview. And boy was there stuff to preview!
One of the most surprising launches of the show – before it's even started – is the Pacifica Professional and Standard Plus, Yamaha's top-of-the-line, Japanese-made takes on its long-running range, which is traditionally associated with beginners.
In a presentation opening NAMM's Media Preview, YouTube favorite Jay Leonard J took the Standard Plus for a test drive, showcasing its tonal versatility. The key word here is balance: every pickup position, even the bridge coil-split, just sounded… right. We'll bring you more on this one very soon.
Dig out the spandex: the Peavey Vandenberg is back, baby – and Adrian Vandenberg is on hand to promote it. He's very tall, you know. The guitar is being billed as a modern take on the original, and three different versions will be available, complete with a Floyd Rose original tremolo and Seymour Duncan pickups. Noice.
Thankfully, this isn't one of Martin's new models. This is, in fact, the 1870 guitar Kurt Russell smashed on the set of Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight, which is on public display for the first time ever at the show. It's also incredibly hard to photograph owing to its plexiglass prison.
We've covered the full story before, but Martin has also filmed a short documentary about the guitar, which we hope will see release online sometime soon. Suffice to say, they haven't exactly forgiven Tarantino – the company has since changed its loan policy regarding museum instruments. We don't blame them.
Gibson is not at NAMM 2024, but that’s not stopped it from hosting its own LA preview party at its exclusive artist showroom. It had a lot to show the world’s guitar press, too – not least, the long-awaited Epiphone Dave Grohl DG-335 signature guitar.
As such, we can confirm the much-rumored Foo Fighters signature model is now a reality and comes complete with some high-end appointments, including a pair of USA Burstbuckers. We even got to take it for a quick spin...
Ernie Ball has pretty much won NAMM with this string vending machine. It's more of a promotional tool right now, but we would like to see these in every rehearsal space across the world. Make it happen, EB!
Since Jack White first revealed his partnership with Donner earlier this month, the gear world has been abuzz with speculation about what exactly the guitar legend and the budget brand had created together. Now, we finally have our answer.
Featuring Echo, Phaser and Distortion effects, the Triple Threat is a 3-in-1 multi-effects pedal that's priced at $99.
