NAMM 2017: No Sunshine this year, new technology shining bright in Anaheim

Michael Hepworth

NAMM 2017 – No Sunshine this year, but new technology was shining bright in Anaheim.

National Association of Music Merchants

By Peter Peterson

Anaheim Convention Center (Perfect Music Today) 1/24/17–, Anaheim California, the sun did not shine at the 32^nd Annual NAMM show in Anaheim Ca this year, but the new technology was shining bright inside the Anaheim Convention Center. The yearly trek to the musical mecca in Anaheim Ca brought together hundreds of artists, educators, music support staff and music merchants.

I always like to review the hot new items hitting the music market each year. I connect with developers and merchants offering the newest industry products that will be on the musical shelves this year. Despite the inclement weather this year, it did not deter any show goers. As all artists say, “the show must go on” and on it did. Below are some of the new technology and new products from the show.

 TAYLOR GUITARS

Being a beginner guitarist and being a proud owner of a Taylor, which was a far step higher than the basic Yamaha that I used to practice on, I always like to visit the Taylor booth just to see what’s new and coming out this year. Taylor’s introducing three new products and some changes to some old products for 2017. Taylor will release their new Academy series. This is a full-featured acoustical series that was designed to make a great playing experience at an affordable as possible price to the consumer. The most notable addition is they have developed into the guitar an armrest for improved comfort. This bevel softens the edge on the strum hand. Very nice.

The second thing Taylor is introducing this year is the new GS mini bass, which is basically an acoustic four string bass. It was developed with custom nylon core strings and Taylor’s patented dual prawn bridge pens. I was able to play this bass for a little bit and as usual, it sounded wonderful as every Taylor product does. This is just one of those things you want to have in your arsenal for writing or recording demos or just jamming with your friends at the camp fire. It’s a great new product and I look forward to get one for my collection.

The last thing Taylor introduced is the ultra-refined rendition of their flagship 800 series. This adds to the array of tone enhancing refinements introduced in 2014.   The three most notable improvements include a new radius-style armrest, the same on the new Academy series. Adirondack spruce bracing and Gotoh 510 tuners. Taylor also released a few improvements on the already established Koa 200 models, Layered walnut 100 and mini-e series. You can check them out at their website www.taylorguitars.com

 MARTIN GUITARS

This year at the NAMM show, Martin guitars displayed their one of a kind 2 millionth guitar. The guitar incorporates many different materials with a GEAR theme. The most unique addition is the hand crafted RGM precision watch built into the headstock. It is beautiful. It will be worth the time going to their website.

Since the 2M guitar is an ultra-one off custom, Martin Guitars had the fore thought and creativity to build a similar model, at a modest price, and offer a limited amount to the public. Enter model D 200. This guitar is modeled after the original 2 millionth guitar. The D-200 carries the same GEAR theme using a variety of inlay materials. This model also incorporates liquid metal bridge pens unique to both models. Liquid metal is amorphous and it has no grain structure so therefore it’s very efficient at transferring energy. Because of this addition, the D 200 gets a decibel bump on the fundamental frequencies which doesn’t detract from the base of the richness of the sound. The back of the D 200 is traditional with pearl inlay. The D-200 is limited to 50 units. Each guitar comes with a custom guitar case and a premium RGM wrist watch. The cost of the D 200 is a paltry $149,000. Yes, the number is correct. But you get a case! Again, the series is limited to 50 units. Every guitar is numbered and even if you don’t play, this a gorgeous piece of art.

Martens also introducing for the first-time titanium core strings. Using a Titanium core, there’s no galvanic corrosion that takes place in most all other guitar strings over time. Also, due to the titanium core the strings last longer. The feel was soft and pleasant. No price at the show but check out your local music shop. www.martinguitar.com

 SENSEL

The SENSEL Morph is a multi-touch pressure sensitive input device built with some of the most powerful technology available on the market. The Pressure Grid allows the device to detect over 20,000 elements. The Morph understands what pressure you apply on it (5 g to 5 kg) based on the overlay you choose. They have created several different overlays for art, music, gaming, media and productivity. Overlays include an art pad, a drum pad, piano pad, device controller, and media controller. The device automatically recognizes what pad is applied and reconfigures for that function. If you want to switch from a drum overlay to a keyboard overlay, you just take the drum overlay off and put the piano overlay on. This is their first year at the NAMM show. This product was developed with the help of kick starter. The product is priced at a surprising $249 presale online, but the price will go up when the product hits the retail shops. The unit comes with the Morph unit and choice of one overlay. Additional overlays are priced at about $25 each. If you want a custom overlay, SENSEL will work with you for about $50 per overlay. The technology was built was developed in the United States, made in Mountain View California. It works on Mac or PC, iPad android devices. www.sensel.com

 ZERBERUS GUITARS

Zerberus guitars got my attention due to their unique guitar faces. It is a wooden guitar base with a       5mm piece of stone insert ranging from Onyx, Tiger Eye, Amethyst and White Carrara. This is their second year at NAMM and they’ve had great reviews from their product. Each guitar is a custom and has individual pickups and strings depending on who is ordering that guitar. They feel that their stone face has more resonance versus would guitars. It’s a fact that wooden guitars resonate through the wood grain. A stone face resonates through the entire piece giving it a much fuller sound. It took the company 10 years to develop the technology. The challenge was making the insert rigid enough not to break. The goal was to make the stone thin and stabilized. Check their website out to see these spectacular guitars. www.zerberus-guitars.com

ATV CORPORATION

One of the great things about attending the NAM M show is getting to see a lot of new technology. One of the unique items that stuck out this year was the Electroganic aFrame. This is a five-sided flat percussion instrument that you use your fingers to play. The company states that “the aFrame enables performers to organically express an artist musicality just as if they were playing an acoustic instrument.”   The player controls the subtlety of the performance of the Adaptive Timber Technology (ATV) and it responds to the acoustic percussion playing techniques of striking, pressing and friction. With practice, the player can produce sounds of have tonal variation and affect controls not possible with existing digital percussion. The aframe is played with bare hands so percussionist don’t have to change the playing style. They can use a natural technique to produce a diverse palette of sounds from classic accoustic to modern electric. The A-frame can be played standing up, with a neck strap or held flat. The aframe contains internal tonal controls to adjust the acoustics and electronic sounds. It is also enhanced with high definition stereo and has over 80 user-defined tones. There’s also a lot of support on the web form this product but it is not yet released. I’m going to follow this product to see how much it is where we can get it. www.ATVCorporation.com Click over the A-frame story.

 EARASERS

This product is specifically designed to be the premium of earbuds or earplugs in high noise situations. The actual design of the unit is based off hearing aid technology. The hearing aid tip is designed to be worn all day long, especially on the job site. The company states they are extremely comfortable because of its unique design. The difference is the unit gets closer to the eardrum which reduces the space between the product thus reducing ear drum abuse. Another benefit of the earasers, if the silicone starts to wear out or get colored you can just pull the silicone off and put a new tip on. This product is available at Guitar Center and most music shops. it’s been around for a while, price point is about $50 made in the USA. www.earasers.net

Hohner Harmonica

Ozzy played the harmonica part in the song “The Wizard” by Black Sabbath. Ozzy’s been playing the harmonica for years. So Ozzy and Hohner got together and designed the world’s most rocking harmonica out there. The harmonica packaged in a coffin box for storage and comes with 30 days of FREE harmonica lessons. Thanks Ozzy! Also, Ozzie wanted to step it up so in honor of the Ozzie addition harmonica 50 of them will have a golden ticket which you will be able to redeem and get a signed harmonica from Ozzie that was actually used during a live concert. Ozzie actually requested this specifically for his fan base. These harmonicas are made in Germany exclusively. The harmonicas in the key of C and the product retails for $69. www.ozzy.playhohner.com

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The music room makes a drumless drum kit that you play with the computer. Sensors on your drumsticks and your feet allow you to play “air drums.” This is a different twist from the aerodrums system, they actually use petals for the bass the system. It’s great for recording plus you don’t have the burden of driving a drum kit around. I was able to try this particular product, it was different than other VR drum systems, but very easy to adapt to the lack of a kit. The software by itself is $129 and that’s if you have one of the virtual reality headsets. It’s compatible with the Oculus Rift VR headset. I used the ACT five VR system during the demo. The Music Room is bundling a complete package at about a price point of $1300. The bundle will include a custom PC that is compatible with this system. It also includes the optical goggles, all the sensors, and the software. There is ample support. The company states they are going to scan famous artists drum kits so you could virtually play any other drummer’s kit. Check them out at www.musicroomvr.com

Yamaha Guitars

Yamaha’s new addition to their very expensive music line is the new silent electric guitar. This product was designed and built for the consumer that wants to practice in total privacy but also but still have the sound of a high-end guitar. The guitar price is about $800 and will start shipping in April. The product is very intuitive and allows many setting with the onboard electronic panel. You can plug in earphones so no amp is needed. The guitar has a built-in board that allows you to adjust reverb and tone. It’s a great product that yields a superior sound. The guitar is self-contained, battery-powered (but comes with an AC adaptor), very portable and has a sound great. Perfect for practicing when you need to be quiet but demand a quality sound. www.yamahausa.com

 Ultimate Ears

Ultimate Ears is a high end wireless custom ear monitor provider for the music industry. UE has introduced a monitoring system to complement their ear monitors. They are introducing at this year’s NAMM show their exclusive Sound Tap. The UE Sound Tap allows you to tap into any monitor system. This product allows you to tap into an existing monitor system on any stage. What you do is unplug your monitor feed and plug it into the tap, then you replug the tap to the monitor. Now you’ve created a pass-through with the ability to hear what’s going on through that monitor. It puts you in charge of your own personal monitoring system with no disrupting the stage. Each artist can have their own monitor making it easier to focus on the show. This product can basically eliminate onstage monitors.   The price point is $249 and be available in February. www.ultimateears.com

Until next year…

As the sun comes out and shines its rays through the clouds, it dries the memories of the NAMM show. We bid farewell to the people from all over the world returning home. We also thank them for all their hard work and efforts to promote the music industry. Attendees will remember this year’s experience and relish the 2018 NAMM show opportunities next year. I can’t wait for the next meeting in this musical Mecca. Until next year…