NAMM 2026 Studio/Live Roundup: The Analogue Era Is Over… Or Is It?
NAMM 2026 Studio/Live Roundup: The Analogue Era Is Over… Or Is It? · Source: Remise 3 / Gearnews
In this NAMM 2026 Roundup, we discuss some of the highlights of the show in recording and live sound, and how the industry is moving as a whole.
NAMM Highlights:
Despite certain manufacturers and industry professionals constantly reinforcing the “analogue is dead” narrative, there were more newly released analogue studio consoles at the NAMM show than I’ve ever seen in my lifetime. Furthermore, there is a distinctive move from manufacturers offering high-end analogue gear with digital recall and plugin control.
NAMM 2026 Roundup: Recording and Live Gear
In the recording studio department, we saw three new consoles launched, and none of them feature fader automation. That’s right folks, the new EMI-inspired Chandler REDD Mixing System, the H2 Audio Helios Olympic 1100 Series console, and the SSL ORIGIN EVO series consoles are all designed with that authentic old-school approach for manual mixing.
Meanwhile, there were two ultra-high-end channel strips launched, offering an almost unfathomable amount of processing flexibility in a single rackmount unit. What’s more, both GC Audio Total Recall Producer Channel and the elysia channex studio are completely recallable and controllable in your DAW.
New compressors also shared the spotlight, with impressive new offerings in the form of the Cranborne Audio BrickLane MC4 4-channel recallable PWM compressor and the Rupert Neve Designs OptoFET with its modern take on the classic 1176/LA-2A combo. Meanwhile, WesAudio also expanded its recallable “ng” like with the ngSumBox summing mixer.
On the live sound side of things, YAMAMA unveiled its new MGX series digital mixers, designed for the new creator/broadcast/performance era we find ourselves in. Furthermore, there were more compact digital mixers from Proel and Peavey, as well as a range of wireless mic solutions from Shure, AUDIX, and Behringer.
Which Way is the Industry Heading?
If we look at the bigger picture, it’s certain now that digital recall has become the industry standard for all analogue gear. Whether you’re using it in studio or for FOH, the ability to recall your settings per session or per song has become enough to make you choose one piece of gear over another, and the new Manley/Apogee collaboration under Dirk Ulrich is moving steadily in this direction, too.
In live sound, it looks like more products are going to be catering to streaming and video content creators as well as fulfilling their usual jobs. Rather than having exclusive product lines, it’s likely that more pro audio manufacturers will be adding features that intersect with this ever-growing music-adjacent online content sphere.
More about NAMM 2026:
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