Interesting products are still streaming out from NAMM 2026.

Hammond XK-7/XK-7D organ

As teased, Hammond Suzuki have a new top-of-the-line flagship — the XK-7D.

• Multi-contact keyboard (6 physical contacts below each key)
• New XPK-250W mk3 pedal board (3 contact system)
• Four sets of harmonic drawbars
• Touch response percussion with vintage response
• Updated Leslie speaker models
• Half-moon Leslie control switch
• Enhanced combo organ division (Acetone, Farfisa, Vox)
• Enhanced pipe organ division (Classical and Theatre)

Listening to the demo, the XK-7D can get pretty snarly. Demo sounds nice although, when is the internal speaker sim engaged versus the external Leslie speaker? What’s live? What’s sim? Modeski will like the crazy effects.

Hammond XK-7D organ (NAMM 2026)

Tain’t cheap or light. The single manual XK-7 organ is $4,925 USD (39.6 pounds). The two manual XK-7D is $7,295 (68.3 pounds).

Casio sampler SXC1 (preview)

[Update] The Casio sampler has a name: SXC1.

Casio SXC1 sampler (NAMM 2026)

Casio are previewing a prototype stand-alone sampler. The sampler looks like a handheld retro game with a 4×4 matrix of playable pads. Preliminary specs:

• Sixteen pads (selectable backlight color)
• Two rotary dials
• 16 voices
• Built-in sequencer
• 16-bit 48kHz sampling (WAV format)
• 64GByte internal memory
• Ten banks with 16 samples per bank
• 1.3 inch OLED display
• Built-in microphone
• Built-in speaker
• Audio input, main audio output, headphone socket
• Two USB Type-C ports (one data, one power/data)
• Battery power (AAA)

Nothing else known about it except having “classic Casio sounds” in the factory content.

JBL Bandbox Solo and Trio

Upfront, let me state, I am an AI skeptic. I’ve seen too much Silly-con Valley hype over five decades… However! AI-based stem separation does work.

Riding the hype wave, JBL have incorporated AI-based stem separation into the new JBL BandBox SOLO and JBL BandBox TRIO portable speakers. It’s a new take on vocal suppression, separating audio into vocal and instrumental stems, letting you dial the stems in or out during playback. Both models also offer digital effects.

JBL BandBox SOLO (NAMM 2026)

The JBL BandBox SOLO is essentially a little Bluetooth boom box with smarts. Whatcha get:

• 30 Watts
• Single 2.25 inch full-range speaker, 73Hz to 20kHz (-6 dB)
• Bluetooth and USB (type C) connectivity
• 60 second digital looper (with overdubbing)
• Metronome, tuner
• 1/4″ input with MIC and guitar modes
• 3.5mm headphone output
• Rechargeable Li-ion battery (6 hours playing time)
• JBL One app control
• 4.25″ H x 8.31″ W x 3.07″ D
• 1.72 pounds

The JBL BandBox SOLO streets at $250 USD.

I’ve successfully used small Bluetooth speakers like the Bose SoundLink Color II as throw-in-the-bag personal monitors. It’s difficult to get a non-boxy speaker this small, however, so we will need to wait, see and hear. EQ presets (Musician Type) are Singing Guitarist, Guitarist and Singer — no “Keyboardist” and, thus, I’m nervous.

JBL BandBox TRIO (NAMM 2026)

The JBL BandBox TRIO is, of course, the bigger sibling.

• Separates vocals, drums and guitar in real time
• 135 Watts
• One 6.5″ woofer and two 1″ tweeters, 50Hz to 20kHz (-6 dB)
• Four channel mixer
• Top-mounted LCD display
• Bluetooth and USB (type C) connectivity
• 60 second digital looper (with overdubbing)
• Metronome, tuner
• GTR 1/4″ input, two XLR-1/4″ combo, 1/8″ AUX input
• 3.5mm headphone and 1/4″ pass THRU outputs
• Rechargeable Li-ion battery (10 hours playing time)
• JBL One app control
• 10.43″ H x 13.54″ W x 8.98″ D
• 14.68 pounds

The JBL BandBox TRIO sells for $600 USD (MAP).

The TRIO is a serious beast. At almost 15 pounds, it’s a bruiser. Ain’t gonna sling this one into your gig bag. Still, one expects much better fidelity through its sound system than the super-portable SOLO.

Copyright © 2026 Paul J. Drongowski

Thank goodness the actual NAMM 2026 exhibition begins tomorrow! New keyboard stuff has been flowing like a river.

Today’s additions are long boards for the stage.

Kurzweil SP8 Stage Keyboard

Kurzweil Music Systems are introducing the SP8 Stage Keyboard. The SP8 joins a long line of 88-key Kurzweil stage keyboards. Some of the basic specs:

• 88-key fully weighted hammer-action keyboard
• 2GBytes of factory sounds, 1000 factory programs, 200 Multis
• 256 voice polyphony
• German D and triple strike pianos with string resonance
• 6-op FM synthesis
• Vector synthesis waveforms and textures
• Five zone MIDI controller

No price information yet. The comparable K2088 V.A.S.T. synthesizer streets for $3,000 USD.

Studiologic Numa X Piano GT SE

Put on your sunglasses. The Numa X Piano GT SE has a bright orange metallic finish and wooden sides. Aside from the AMC Gremlin orange paint job, Studiologic revised the sound engines (Studiologic TrS2). As usual, just the facts.

• 88-key Fatar TP/400 wood hammer action keybed with escapement and aftertouch
• 200 factory patches
• 4GByte sample memory
• Acoustic piano enhanced by physical modeling and new AP samples
• Electric pianos graduate to Electric Modeling 2 (new tine sounds and amp simulation)
• New virtual analog synth engine
• 4 Zones assignable to internal sounds or external MIDI
• Weight: 22,0 Kg / 48,5 pounds

No price information yet or availability. The plain old black non-SE model sells for $2,200 (MAP).

Roland Zenology GX for iPad

The core feature set of Roland Zenology GX is coming to Apple iPad. It is scheduled for “early 2026” release. [I guess Roland managament hasn’t learned to pin down its software developers.] You know it won’t be totally free, quoting Roland:

ZENOLOGY GX for iPad is scheduled for release as a free download with all features unlocked for a limited time. After the debut period ends, the instrument will be available through free and premium Roland Cloud memberships or a Lifetime Key purchase.

Copyright © 2026 Paul J. Drongowski

Stylophone On-The-Fly

Dubreq also teased a black box. It’s the Stylophone On-The-Fly “no menu diving” performance sequencer. On-The-Fly expands the CPM (Compact, Portable Modular) series (DS-2 synth, DF-2 analog filter).

• 16-, 32- or 64-step sequences
• Switchable directions: forward, reverse, bounce
• 24 sequence memories
• Hand-on control, real-time tweaking
• Loop record performances up to 1024 steps
• Eurorack-ready CV and gate

Who would have thought that Stylophone would steal Korg VOLCA’s game? I’ve still got my SQ-1 because of its immediacy.

No price announced. Join the wait list.

Roland GO:MIXER Studio

The Roland GO:MIXER product line marches on. Roland are adding the GO:MIXER Studio or “Content Creation Station” in marketing-speak.

• Portable USB audio interface and mixer
• Color display
• Up to 24-bit 192kHz record and internal 32-bit float processing
• Two XLR inputs
• TRS line inputs and Hi-Z input for guitars
• TRS line outputs for studio monitors and headphone output
• MIDI input/output on minijacks
• Built-in effects (compression, EQ, reverb)
• Sixteen scenes

Roland clearly are coming for the Yamaha AG series. The user interface makes good use of the color display showing knob assignments, values, etc. [Beauty.] Even better, the GO:MIXER Studio has MIDI I/O (on 3.5mm jacks). The GO:MIXER Studio has a gazillion goes-in and goes-out, so check the specs at the Roland site.

Shouldn’t a mixer for the studio be called “STAY:MIXER”? Well, anyway, it’s small enough to throw in a back-pack. $300 USD street.

Casio Dimensions Shifter

Casio are pitching the Dimensions Shifter Wireless Expression Controller at guitarists. Attach a small transmitter to your guitar strap and it sends expression to a receiver on your pedal board (standard TRS EXP input).

I’m sure there are a zillion ways this thing can be abused by synthesists, keyboard players and wind controller people, too. $300 USD street.

Props to Casio for thinking outside of their usual box!

Copyright © 2026 Paul J. Drongowski

Time for a few NAMM 2026 musings. Tis the season.

Hammond-Suzuki are teasing a new model. If the video shows the new model, you had better save up your pennies. The new model does not look entry-level. Gotta wonder how import tariffs (tax) will affect USA pricing? [Free the markets!]

No new hardware (yet), but Clavia Nord have released new sounds:

• “Supreme Horns by e-instruments is an exclusive collection of premium horn samples featuring four different sections and a wide range of articulations.”
• “The Astoria Grand is a mid-sized grand piano, crafted in New York in 1916 during the renowned “Golden Era” of American piano making.”

The Astoria Grand is compatible with Nord Stage 4/3/2 EX/2, Nord Electro 6/5, Nord Piano 6/5/4/3 and Nord Grand 2/1. Supreme Horns are compatible with those models plus Nord Wave 2/1.

Yamaha will be announcing two new keyboards at NAMM 2026. Of course, they will promote the new MODX M series keyboards. One — or maybe two — of the new keyboards will be the long-awaited PSR-E483. The PSR-E483 has a sibling — PSR-E583 — and both share the same digital logic board. The PSR-E583 is just a bit more expensive than the PSR-E483, so who knows? Given the naming, I don’t expect a major break from the current E-series models.

So far, Roland have announced the KIYOLA KF-25 and KF-20 Artisan digital pianos. They are intended to be art for your living space as much as they are musical instruments. The Artisan pianos are the result of a collaboration between Roland and the Japanese furniture manufacturer Karimoku. “The instrument’s carving takes cues from Hikimono, a technique in which wood is carefully prepared to achieve smooth, round shapes.” Aesthetically, the design is a cross between Scandinavian and Japanese influences.

Roland are taking a page from the Yamaha CSP playbook. The featured instruments are available through the minimalist front panel while other tones and features are accessed through Roland’s Piano app. You’ll find the KIYOLAs at the MoMA Design Store starting at $5,720 USD (non-member price).

Korg have not made any announcements at this point. The Korg USA and Japan sites mention the BM-1 Bluetooth MIDI interface, Nu:Tekt NUTUBE Overdrive BK, FISA SUPREMA C aero digital instrument (AKA digital accordion) and the usual gizmos. The BM-1 Bluetooth MIDI interface looks and behaves a lot like the CME Widi Master. I hope someone asks Korg about interoperability.

Speaking of CME, CME will be promoting the new H12MIDI Pro USB HOST MIDI interface. Quoting CME:

Presale starts March 2026 with shipping in April. Only 400 units available in the first run! Priced at US$199 (MAP/MSRP). US$139 during the presale period.

The H12MIDI Pro has six IN/OUT TRS MIDI ports (type A and B) plus USB Type-C. Like all upper-end CME MIDI boxes, it supports routing, filtering and mapping. CME seem to know their business and I recommend their gear over cheap knock-offs.

Ashun Sound Machines (ASM) will show its new ASM Diosynth wind synthesizer. The Diosynth has two Hydrasynth Wavescan Oscillators that allow you to choose 8 waves out of the 219 waveforms and morph between them. A new sample-based synth section adds multi-sampled instruments (separate attack, breath noise and key-off samples). The Diosynth manual mentions the much-rumored ASM Leviasynth (har-har). Given ASM’s recent denials, I wonder if the Leviasynth reference will be [redacted] from the manual?

Fender are pushing further into the studio market with a wide range of audio products. The Fender Studio AudioBox Go USB-C Audio Interface is a single audio channel interface at the low end of the range ($100 USD). The Fender Studio Quantum HD 8 USB-C Audio Interface is a 26-in/30-out rack box at $1,100 USD. Fender are also moving into the studio/MIDI controller market with the Fender Studio Motion 32 Production and Performance Controller at a very reasonable $330 USD. It does most everything one would expect from a modern groove box (Smart Scale, Smart Chords) and is tightly integrated with their Fender Studio Pro DAW software. Too expensive or want something APC-like? Try the smaller Motion 16 at $270 USD. Both Motion controllers are expected in “Spring 2026”.

Copyright © 2026 Paul J. Drongowski