NAMM 2026: Northampton-based guitar amp manufacturer Blackstar, known for its ability to blend British valve tone with modern technology has revealed its compact Beam Mini desktop amp on booth #6802, Hall C at the Anaheim Convention Center in California.
Blackstar has squeezed decades of its amp manufacturing expertise into a portable acoustically-tuned, IP66 weather-sealed cabinet for accurate, articulate guitar tones and exceptional music playback, whether you’re jamming at home or on the road.
But it is its partnership with Tone3000 that makes the Beam Mini big news in the small amp market, because it is the first amp – ever – to allow players to load Neural Amp Modeller (NAM) captures. Players can access more than 200,000 "hyper-realistic" captures created by the community at Tone3000.
Sound-wise? Well, don’t be fooled by its slender proportions, inside features powerful tech including two 60mm full-range drivers, two passive bass radiators, DSP (Digital Signal Processing) and advanced component-level digital modelling.
The British amp company promises “immersive sound in a small, portable format suitable for home, studio and on-the-go use”. Those who have heard it in action tell us Blackstar is as good as its word on that score.
There are no less than 12 component-level electric guitar amp models split 50:50 between Blackstar and Ampton designs, plus a further three bass amps, two acoustic voices and acoustic simulator and Blackstar’s patented ISF (Infinite Shape Feature) control.
So whether you play electric, acoustic or bass guitars, or just want to experiment with different guitar sounds, you’ll have plenty of options. There are also thousands of user and artist-generated patches from the ever-growing community accessible through the Beam app.
The portable Bluetooth amp has an 18 hour battery life and is charged via the USB port on the rear. There’s also the standard 1/4” guitar jack on the side of the cabinet and a ‘SpeedDial’ on top for quickly changing settings. In addition, there’s a Light Beam display with five simple dials for Patch, Gain, EQ, FX and Volume as well as buttons for power and Bluetooth.
Blackstar says every Beam Mini is meticulously voiced by its engineering team to deliver authentic tone and responsiveness, and that its Super Wide Stereo technology can deliver expansive, room-filling sounds that defy its dimensions.
If you think it would make a neat addition to your desktop you won’t have to wait much longer as the Beam Mini hits the shelves in Spring 2026, and will retail for £169/$229/€189.
If you’re attending NAMM 2026 this year you can head on over to the Blackstar booth (#6802, Hall C) to see it in action before it goes on sale.
