Straight from your intrepid reporter in Anaheim, CA, Dave Campbell begins his coverage of the 2008 NAMM show, and the hijacking of US musical instrument and gear companies by the Chinese. Ah, that's great. Now we can start recalling amps, mixers... what's next? The musicians?  — Ed.

Anaheim: The NAMM show opened in typical fashion with an all-star marching band, including many members of the world famous USC Trojan Band, leading the way into the hall as many of us, including your humble reporter, stood in line.  They sounded great, as usual.  What was unusual this year was the strict enforcement of badged access.  In the past, even though you were supposed to have your DL or passport, no one checked.  This year, if your ID didn't match your badge, you weren't gettin' in, period.  This is a radical change, apparently brought about by the exhibitors demanding it.

The other big change this year was the smaller size of the exhibits.  Several of the major manufacturers had half the space of years before, but were doing more business, possibly because no lookie-loos were interfering.

One major story this year is the belt-tightening going on among many companies, reflecting the general trend of the economy at this time.  Another is the attempted hijacking of the American musical instrument business by Chinese companies.  Loud Technology, the parent of several brands including Mackie and Ampeg, has closed all service centers in the USA, and cut staff by a major percentage.  The general public doesn't know, of course.  As one executive of Guitar Center, who wished to remain anonymous, put it, "We try to sell the customer other equipment than those brands".  Given that GC is the 800-lb gorilla in the MI room, the impact on Loud Technology products and users cannot help but be significant.