NAMM 2024: Before the NAMM festivities officially kicked off last weekend, D’Angelico put in a strong claim for receiving a ‘best in show’ award with the announcement it would be reviving its iconic flagship archtop guitars in a format that made them better than ever.
As such, when the Anaheim Convention Centre opened its doors to show-goers last week, many gear fans flocked to lay their eyes on the new-for-2024 D’Angelico Style B – as well all the other luxuriously ornate D’Angelico models currently on offer.
That flock included Guitar World’s Paul Riario, who ventured to the D’Angelico booth to get the low-down on the brand’s latest luxury releases.
As “the big talking point at NAMM this year” for D’Angelico, the Style B was given the spotlight first. The aim for this model, as the company has explained, was to “update our core archtops to really bring out the nostalgic jazz New York City Art Deco era”.
The Style B does just that, thanks to its Throwback headstock, Grover Imperial tuners, Mother of Pearl Split Block inlays and stunning three-ply binding. Other noteworthy additions include the laminated flame maple body composition and ebony fingerboard.
Another key appointment is the DeArmond pickup – “one of the vintage single-coil floating pickups that players would have modified an old D’Angelico with”. This pup delivers an old school tone, harnessing the natural tone of the guitar’s inner chamber.
Riario was also shown the EXL-1 – another ultra-elegant archtop revival from D’Angelico’s recent release, which for the first time ever has been fitted with a full-sized humbucker and, for the first time in a while, an ebony fingerboard.
Completing the demo was the fully hollow, floating pickup-loaded Excel SS Soho – designed in collaboration with jazz legend Mark Whitfield – as well as an updated Premier DC, which has refined humbuckers and ebony control knobs for added class.
“Just a classic. Really, really nice update from the existing Premier DC that’s been around a long time.”
To find out more about each new release, head over to D’Angelico.
