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The 2026 NAMM Show, held Jan 22–24 in Anaheim, California, has wrapped up. While not as big an event as it was pre-pandemic, the Show still holds its place as the most important music gear industry event of the year.

The Winter NAMM Show used to be a four-day event, and has been reduced to three days. It’s smaller, too, with organizers eliminating the basement floor from the show, which formerly was used to showcase smaller companies. And, for electronic musicians, the show has had some attrition of vendors, as the new Buchla & Friends show offers an inexpensive alternative.

Nevertheless, the NAMM Show is still where many companies make their biggest introductions of the year, because it’s an event that draws over 100,000 attendees from music retailers across North America and beyond.

Here’s our take on the best new introductions of the 2026 NAMM Show. We have limited consideration to gear that was either introduced, or made its NAMM Show debut, at this year’s event.

Best New Synthesizer – The ASM Leviasynth

The ASM Leviasynth combines many of the features that have made the company’s Hydrasynth a hit – including rugged build, the Polytouch polyphonic aftertouch keybed and ribbon controller – with a new hybrid synth engine that combines the best of analog and digital worlds.

Like the ASM Hydrasynth before it, the Leviasynth is an audacious new design – offering a great combination of power, expressive control and creative tools.

The Leviasynth had tough competition, though, including the new UDO DMNO synthesizer and others.

Best Performance Keyboard – the Nord Electro 7:

Ahead of the NAMM Show, Clavia announced the release of Nord Electro 7, the latest in its Electro stage keyboard line.

The Nord Electro 7 features a new Synth Section, dedicated per-section effects and an updated panel design with high-resolution color display. It’s available in three models, tailored to different keyboard preferences.

Nord has responded to initial feedback on the Electro 7, and says that they’ll be adding a pitch stick and modulation wheel to the the 73 and HP of the Electro 7.

Kurzweil also introduced the SP8 Stage Keyboard, the latest instrument based on their legendary V.A.S.T. synthesis engine.

Best Vaporware (Tie) – The Casio SX-C1 Sampler & The Behringer JN-80

Two new electronic music devices generated a lot of interest at the 2026 Winter NAMM Show, but were presented as working prototypes, with no promise of an actual release.

The Casio SX-C1 Sampler is a fun portable sample and sequencing workstation. Our contact said that it will be released in Japan later this year, but that there’s currently no release plan for the US.

Many musicians have fond memories of Casio’s prosumer electronic music gear of the ’80s, ranging from its line of CZ synthesizers to its sampling music toys. The Casio SX-C1 Sampler promises to bring back that fun, combining an easy-to-use interface with some serious music-making power.

The Behringer JN-80 – previously named the Neptune-80 – is based on the Juno-60, but offers 8-voice polyphony, vs the original’s 6-voice polyphony. It also reduces the size of the control panel and uses a 4-octave keyboard, instead of the 5-octave keyboard of the original.

The JN-80 generated a mixture of responses from readers – ranging from hyped to ‘meh’ – because there’s no official word from Behringer on when, or if, the new synth will be available. The synths that Behringer hyped at last year’s NAMM show have never released, so musicians aren’t sure what to make of introductions like the JN-80.

Based on what we saw at the Show, the Behringer JN-80 is an advanced, working prototype, which tells us that it’s likely to be released – but, unfortunately, who knows when?

Most Scandalous Music Gear Introduction – the Groove Thing

Something that we did not expect to see at the NAMM Show was the Groove Thing (NSFW link) – a Bluetooth speaker system with wired ‘adult’ attachments.

The designers say that the Groove Thing is “like having a third ear,” but where the sun don’t shine.

Best Reincarnation In Electronic Music Gear (Tie) – Generalmusic & Music Mouse

At the 2026 NAMM Show, Italian keyboard and synth maker Generalmusic announced that it’s back in business.

The brand’s releaunch will mark the return of two historic brands: GEM, dedicated to keyboards and digital pianos;and LEM, focused on professional audio, installation, and broadcast.

There’s no word yet on what they’ll be introducing, but they’re promising to make introductions later this year.

Eventide Audio announced that it is working with electronic music composer Laurie Spiegel to bring back Music Mouse – an algorithmic musical composition application and performance instrument – after 40 years.

This announcement came out of nowhere for many, and has generated a lot of buzz because it’s a much-loved program for some of the musicians that worked with it back in the day, and there’s also a growing number of musicians interested in so-called ‘obsolete software’.

Eventide says that it plans to rerelease Music Mouse later this year, “carefully preserved and prepared for modern systems, without changing what made it special.”

Best Live Effects Box (Tie) – The Korg Kaoss Pad V & The AlphaTheta RMX-IGNITE

Another ‘when Hell freezes over’ introduction this year comes by way of Korg – the Kaoss Pad V.

The Korg Kaoss Pad line has been popular for decades, but the last hardware Kaoss Pad was released over a decade ago. The Korg Kaoss Pad V features an updated touch interface, new effects and a workflow improvements. It promises to bring back the fun of the Kaoss Pad, but with updated capabilities.

Ahead of the 2026 NAMM Show, AlphaTheta  introduced the RMX-IGNITE, a multi-effects box designed for live performance.

The RMX-IGNITE offers a variety of effects, sample playback via four pads, digital I/O and more.

Best Musical Toy – The Stylophone VOICE Sampling Keyboard

Dubreq/Stylophone has been expanding the range of their line into prosumer and professional territory for several years.

At this year’s NAMM Show, they introduced the Stylophone VOICE – an inexpensive portable sampler that combines the power of sampling with the fun and immediacy of the classic Stylophone stylus interface.

The Stylophone VOICE is expected to be available in Summer 2026, price around $50 USD.

Best Electronics Music Workstation – the Akai Pro MPC XL

The MPC went through hard times in recent years, with a series of computer-tied workstations that didn’t capture musicians interest in the same way as the classic hardware workstations.

That changed when AKAI Pro refocused on standalone MPC workstations, and introduced devices that are powerful enough and faithful enough to the classic MPC workflow that even MPC creator Roger Linn is a fan.

This year, Akai Professional announced the MPC XL, the most powerful MPC ever made. Akai says that the MPC XL can be the centerpiece of your studio, and that it offers “unprecedented processing capabilities, expressive control, and professional I/O connectivity, all without requiring a computer.”

Best New DJ Gear – The Rane System One

At the Winter NAMM Show, Rane announced the Rane System One, a new system that combines advanced standalone DJ technology with the feel and control of motorized platters.

The System One lets you mix among USB drives, SD cards, music streaming services, and DJ software sources like Serato DJ and Algoriddim djay, all without interruption. Other advanced features include an array of FX and the capability to DJ with Stems.

Best Open Source Gear – Bastl Alchemist, Kastle & Citadel

Ahead of the 2026 NAMM Show, Bastl Instruments announced that it is open sourcing the firmware for three of its designs, and making them available as DIY kits.

The kits include:

• Alchemist – Compact Patchable Hybrid-Synthesis Instrument with MIDI
• Wave Bard – Compact patchable stereo sample player
• FX Wizard – Compact patchable stereo multi-effects

Both standalone and Euro format kits are available.

Coolest Booth  – The Bob Moog Foundation

The Bob Moog Foundation always tries to bring its ‘A Game’ to the NAMM Show, and this year was no exception.

This year, the Foundation featured a unique Emerson Moog Modular at their booth, the prototype for Moog’s reissue, created by the late Gene Stopp. The giant system was Stopp’s proof of concept for recreating Keith Emerson’s modular rig – and paved the way for Moog to rerelease its classic Moog modular systems.

In addition to the huge modular system, the Foundation’s booth featured live performances throughout the show, including performances by Andrew Colyer (Circuline), Erik Norlander, Rachel Flowers, and Lisa Bella Donna.

Best New Mobile Music Making Software

Mobile music making software didn’t have a big presence at this year’s NAMM Show, but Roland made a splash by introducing Zenology GX for iPad.

Zenology GX for iPad brings the same synth engine that power’s the company’s FANTOM and JUPITER-X synthesizers to Apple’s popular tablet platform.

Built on the same advanced sound engine and core feature set as ZENOLOGY GX for desktop, the iPad version offers a massive library of sounds and deep editing tools, with a straightforward touch-friendly interface.

Best New Hardware Effects Pedal – The Polyend Endless

At the Winter NAMM Show, Polyend introduced Endless, a new hardware effects pedal platform that you can customize.

It’s not the first customizable hardware effects pedal, but it’s the first that we’ve seen that offers three options for customization:

• You can load effects from a stock library of options;
• You can code your own custom effects; and
• You can use Polyend’s Playground to ‘vibe code’ your own custom effects, with no coding required.

We’re interested to how this is adopted, and whether ‘vibe coding’ can really deliver new types of effects that people will want.

Best New Drum Machine – Drumboy Pro Edition

At this year’s NAMM Show, Randomwaves shared a sneak preview of the Drumboy Pro Edition, a new, open-source drum machine design that they say will be available to pre-order in mid-March for about $240 USD.

The describe Drumboy Pro Edition as ‘studio quality’ hardware, with a large screen, lots of hands-on control, flexible input/output, and a rechargeable battery for portability.

It’s designed to be hackable and modifiable, with complete source code to available on Github.

Most Creative New Instrument – The Korg Phase8 Acoustic Synthesizer

The Korg phase8 is one of the most unique instruments introduced at this year’s NAMM Show – an electro-acoustic instrument, based on the concept of acoustic synthesis.

Acoustic synthesis has been a fairly niche concept to date, implemented on instruments like the Vo-96 Acoustic Synth and the String Armonica. It’s based around the idea of using electronics to control the vibration of physical objects – like strings on a guitar – which makes it possible to create sounds that would not otherwise be possible on an acoustic instrument.

The phase8 is probably the most limited of these devices – offering a small range of notes and relatively constrained sonic possibilities. The phase8 is not going to be a ‘go to’ instrument for ‘bread and butter’ synth and keyboard sounds. But the phase8 is also the most polished acoustic synthesis instrument we’ve seen, with sturdy hardware, a user-friendly hands-on interface and lots of options for expressive performance.

With the phase8, Korg is testing the waters for making acoustic synthesis mainstream – and we are excited to see where this leads.

The Best Of NAMM 2026

That’s our take on the best of the 2026 NAMM Show. Did we miss anything that wowed you? Do you think some instruments don’t live up to the hype?

Leave a comment and share your thoughts on this year’s introductions, and what you think is the best new gear introduced at the show!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Native Instruments has filed for “preliminary insolvency”, according to documentation reported by CDM (Create Digital Music) today.

Preliminary Insolvency is a court-orded phase where an administrator steps in to protect debtors’ assets, and to see if changes can be made to enable a company to stabilize its financial situation.

In the case of Native Instruments, as of Jan 26, 2026:

• Enforcement measures, including the execution of an attachment or a preliminary injunction against the debtor, are prohibited, unless immovable property is affected; measures already commenced are temporarily suspended.
• Mr. Prof. Dr. Torsten Martini, Attorney at Law, has been appointed as provisional insolvency administrator. Dispositions by the debtor concerning assets of the debtor’s estate are only valid with the consent of the provisional insolvency administrator.

Dr Martini’s role is to secure the debtor’s assets, and to determine whether the debtor (NI) is capable of covering their debts. He will create a special account to manage payments coming in to Native Instruments, and will collect these funds and disburse them as he determins appropriate. To fulfull this role, he will have full access to Native’s facilities, books and business documents.

The announcement is a huge one for Native Instruments and its customers, and reflects both industry struggles since the pandemic and broader trends of industry consolidation.

Native Instruments was founded in 1996, and was one of the first companies to capitalize on the emergence of software synthesizers. For many years, the core of its business was offering a suite of virtual versions of ‘bread and butter’ electronic instruments, including synths and electronic keyboards. In recent years, though, the company had focused much of its energy on content.

NI has been facing stiffer competition in the virtual instruments space from companies like Arturia and Cherry Audio, which have been moving faster to introduced new virtual instruments, and the growing category of synth knockoffs from Behringer, which is now offering hardware instruments that are competitive with many of NI’s virtual instruments.

We’ve included the original German Preliminary Insolvency announcement below.

3612 IN 602/26

|

In dem Verfahren über den Antrag

NATIVE INSTRUMENTS GmbH,

Schlesische Straße 29 – 30, 10997 Berlin,

vertreten durch den Geschäftsführer Bernhard Schütze

Registergericht: Amtsgericht Charlottenburg HRB 72458

– Schuldnerin –

Geschäftszweig: Entwicklung, Vermarktung und Vertrieb von Software, Hardware, Inhalten und Dienstleistungen in den Bereichen Musik und Audiotechnologie

auf Eröffnung des Insolvenzverfahrens über das eigene Vermögen

|

Beschluss:

Zur Verhinderung nachteiliger Veränderungen in der Vermögenslage der Schuldnerin bis zur Entscheidung über den Antrag wird am 26.01.2026 um 17:15 Uhr angeordnet (§§ 21, 22 InsO):

1. Maßnahmen der Zwangsvollstreckung einschließlich der Vollziehung eines Arrestes oder einer einstweiligen Verfügung gegen die Schuldnerin werden untersagt, soweit nicht unbewegliche Gegenstände betroffen sind; bereits begonnene Maßnahmen werden einstweilen eingestellt (§ 21 Abs. 2 Nr. 3 InsO).

2. Zum vorläufigen Insolvenzverwalter wird

Herr Rechtsanwalt Prof. Dr. Torsten Martini

Kantstraße 164, 10623 Berlin

bestellt.

Verfügungen der Schuldnerin über Gegenstände des schuldnerischen Vermögens sind nur noch mit Zustimmung des vorläufigen Insolvenzverwalters wirksam (§ 21 Abs. 2 Nr. 2 2. Alternative InsO).
Der vorläufige Insolvenzverwalter ist nicht der allgemeine Vertreter der Schuldnerin. Er hat die Aufgabe, durch Überwachung der Schuldnerin deren Vermögen zu sichern und zu erhalten (§ 22 Abs. 1 Satz 2 Nr. 1 InsO). Der vorläufige Insolvenzverwalter hat zu prüfen, ob das Vermögen der Schuldnerin die Kosten des Verfahrens decken wird (§ 22 Abs. 1 Satz 2 Nr. 3 InsO).
Der vorläufige Insolvenzverwalter wird ermächtigt, für die zukünftige Insolvenzmasse ein Sonderkonto einzurichten und zu führen, Bankguthaben und sonstige Forderungen der Schuldnerin einzuziehen sowie eingehende Gelder entgegenzunehmen.
Die Konten der Schuldnerin führenden Kreditinstitute werden dem vorläufigen Insolvenzverwalter gegenüber zur Auskunftserteilung verpflichtet.
Den Schuldnern der Schuldnerin (Drittschuldnern) wird verboten, an die Schuldnerin zu zahlen. Sie werden aufgefordert, Leistungen unter Beachtung dieser Anordnung nur noch an den vorläufigen Insolvenzverwalter zu leisten (§ 23 Abs. 1 Satz 3 InsO).
Gem. § 8 Abs. 3 InsO wird der vorläufige Insolvenzverwalter beauftragt, die Zustellungen des Beschlusses an die Schuldner der Schuldnerin vorzunehmen (§ 23 Abs. 1 Satz 2 InsO) und hierüber Nachweis zu führen.
Der vorläufige Insolvenzverwalter ist berechtigt, die Geschäftsräume und betrieblichen Einrichtungen der Schuldnerin einschließlich der Nebenräume zu betreten und dort Nachforschungen anzustellen. Die Schuldnerin hat ihm Einsicht in die Bücher und Geschäftspapiere zu gestatten und sie diesem auf Verlangen bis zur Entscheidung über die Eröffnung des Verfahrens herauszugeben. Sie hat ihm alle Auskünfte zu erteilen, die zur Sicherung der künftigen Insolvenzmasse und zur Aufklärung der schuldnerischen Vermögensverhältnisse erforderlich sind.
Hinweis:
Die in einem elektronischen Informations- und Kommunikationssystem erfolgte Veröffentlichung wird dort mindestens für die Dauer der Wirksamkeit der Anordnung gespeichert. Im Falle der Eröffnung erfolgt eine Löschung spätestens sechs Monate nach der Aufhebung oder der Rechtskraft der Einstellung des Verfahrens (§ 3 Abs. 1 S. 1 InsOBekV); falls nicht eröffnet wird, erfolgt eine Löschung spätestens sechs Monate nach Aufhebung der veröffentlichten Sicherungsmaßnahme (§ 3 Abs. 1 S. 2 InsOBekV).

Let us know what you think of this news in the comments!

 

 

 

 

At the 2026 Winter NAMM Show, The MIDI Association presented the 2026 Lifetime Achievement Awards, honoring pioneers whose work helped define MIDI, computer music, and modern music production.

The honorees include:

• Chris Adam — Co-founder of C-Lab and Emagic, key architect behind Notator and Logic
• Roy Elkins — Connector of artists, technology, and community across the global music ecosystem
• Greg Hendershott — Founder of Cakewalk, who democratized MIDI sequencing on personal computers
• David Kusek — Founder of Passport Designs and pioneer of computer music and MIDI education
• Gerhard Lengeling — Co-founder of C-Lab and Emagic, creator of Logic and architect of modern DAWs
• Dave Oppenheim — Co-founder of Opcode Systems and pioneer of MIDI sequencing and DAW workflows
• Charlie Steinberg — Founder of Steinberg, visionary behind modern MIDI sequencing and virtual studios
• Emile “Dr. T” Tobenfeld — Algorithmic music innovator who expanded MIDI’s creative boundaries

The Association has profiles of the honorees and their work at its site.