The New Best Acoustic Gear From NAMM 2025

The NAMM Show came back at its usual winter time and place this year with some of the major manufacturers such as Gibson, PRS and Fender that had been absent since the outset of the pandemic returning in at least in some fashion to Anaheim, California amid the tragic backdrop of the L.A. fires, which continue to wreak havoc on the City of Angels. Those traveling south on I-5 Wednesday — including the Santa Cruz Guitars crew and me — arrived just as a new fire popped up in the northern mountains, forcing folks to turn around at the “grapevine” and go the long way around.

But the show went off without a hitch and turned out to be well worth the trip, even as the same mountains were covered with snow on the way home! The following is a quick snapshot of what I found on the acoustic guitar front walking the show floor. Three trends seems to be taking shape or continuing onward: value-conscious efforts to curtail rising costs and the glut of guitars hanging on store walls as the great guitar boom of the pandemic era goes bust; more unique offerings to suit an evermore customized consumer base; and exciting developments in the ongoing acoustic-electronics arms race.

MARTIN GUITAR