Anyone still wandering around London's Barbican Centre looking for the way out of the 1986 Guitar Weekend will (probably) be pleased to hear that the 1987 Guitar Weekend is about to start. Scheduled for the last weekend in the month, the guitar craft exhibition promises a slew of exhibitors including Frank Lernaux, Heart, Jaydee, Alligator, Chris Eccleshall, Labtek, the Mansons, James How strings, Kent Armstrong pickups, and Goodfellow basses, amongst many others. Piles of guitars — acoustics and electric — will be on sale, free concerts are also promised, as well as a number of seminars and clinics. Last year's show was not an organisational success, partly because of the labyrinthine nature of the Barbican itself; this year, improvements (like maps and signposts) are promised. Timings are as follows: Friday 27th November, 7.30pm-10.30pm; Saturday 28th, 10.30am-9pm; Sunday 29th, noon-8.30pm...

Probably coincidentally, Foulds Music of Nottingham will be holding their fifth annual guitar show on Sunday 22nd November, in the Albany Hotel, James Street, Nottingham. Free admission to see instruments by Fender, Martin, Kincade, Columbus, Encore, Larkin, and Lowden. Details on (Contact Details)...

Six hot new items coming soon from Yamaha, our Japanese spy Lobin tells us. The TX16W is the long-awaited Yamaha sampler, with stereo sampling and a maximum sample time of 120 seconds at an average 33.3k rate, and looking much like a REV7; the RX7 is a new drum machine with zillions of sounds, and is seemingly very attractively priced; there's a centennial version of the DX7II in a 'special colour' (white?); the V2 is a brand new FM synth looking a bit like an ironing board; the DEQ7 is a digital EQ unit, giving EQ presets in SPX90 style; and the TX1P is a piano tone-generator unit. Can't wait to get our 'ands on 'em...

Turnkey say hello to CAMP types (it stands for Composer/Arranger/Musician/Producer, they say). Come on down to the Hands On Show in central London for the weekend of the 14th and 15th November, between 10am and 5pm. Oxford Street's towering Centrepoint will be the venue for this year's 'get your mits on this' event. Names and makes at the show include Revox, Teac, Fostex, Synclavier, AKG, and Gateway. There'll be DAT tape machines, SMPTE and MIDI processors, and loads of seminars on anything to do with products. The organisers hope to have 'name producers' on display (well, talking), and even a Juke Box Jury for demoes. It's £2 for one day, or £3 for the weekend, and the price includes money-off vouchers...

As the nights draw in, the tour trucks take to the road. Latest motorway madmen are the Yamaha Centenary Roadshow team, which includes Bob Jenkins (drums), Tim Stone (guitar), Alan Thomson (bass), Mike Harchard (keys), Richard Ingham (WX7 MIDI wind controller, as it were), and Ronnie Westhead (guitar). All sorts of handsome equipment will be doing its thing at Haydock Park, Warrington — 30-31st October; Novotel, Nottingham, 13-15th November; and the Novotel, Hammersmith, 20-23rd November. Get down, etc...

Status' new Series 3000 bass is now available. It's got a bolt-on carbon graphite/composite two octave neck, two Status TM J pickups, and new active circuitry. And it's only £834. Yeah, well, that's cheap for a Status...

The Simmons Workshop Tour paradiddles on: how are Baz and Lloyd bearing up? Go along and find out at Dawsons, Warrington, 29th October-1st November; Jones & Crossland, Brum, 2nd; A1, Manchester, 3rd; Gwent Music, Newport, 4th; Carlsbro, Mansfield, 9th; Carlsbro, Sheffield, 10th; Carlsbro, Leicester, 11th; Supersonic, Rugby, 12th; Drum Cellar, Bristol, 17th; John Homes, Swindon, 18th; Music Village, Cambridge, 24th; Gigsounds, Streatham, 26th; Future, Brighton, 30th; Future, Southampton, 1st December. More next month...

We all went down to the Nomis rehearsals complex ("... say Amplex") the other week, had a few drinks, a few canapes, the odd sandwich, and peered at a guitar said to have belonged to "Jimmi Hendrix". Fender were launching their new A&R Centre in Nomis, a room stuffed to the gills with £250,000 worth of guitars, basses, and amps — including the new L Rick Clapton model. Old codgers like 'Handkerchief Marvin, Bert Weedon and Joe Brown, were joined by Hal Lindes from Dire Straits for the ceremonial glass-lifting. Fender hope that the A&R Centre will become a meeting place for guitarists (they mention Dave "Gilmore"), and promise 'exciting projects', such as an appearance by rather good American player Eric Johnson, and the presence of prototype models such as the Mary K Strat and Precision, and the "Fednder" Power Bass. Visiting Fender endorsees will be able to loan gear, and no doubt a good few instruments will be flogged to the choice selection of pop stars passing through Nomis. It remains to be seen whether the Fender Centre will be quite as efficacious as the Yamaha R&D Centre seems to be. We hope it's more successful than their spelling...

T C Electronic, the Danish manufacturers of the generally spiffing TC2290 Sampler/Multi-effects, have made a video of their owner's manual. Said video is 50 minutes long, and TC promise you'll be able to "utilize all the fantastic opportunities this machine offers" once you've seen it. Smart idea, we say. It's available at cost price "without profits or other price-raising things". We hope the video commentary is as elegantly phrased...

Coming this month from the wossnames (hallowed portals?) of Elka Orla will be the new Commander Electronics Lynex 16-bit sampler. Designed for use with the increasingly ubiquitous Atari ST 'puter, the Lynx has a pretty spiffing set of specifications, including ten seconds of stereo sampling at full bandwidth, eight separate outputs, full editing software, and enough clever features to frighten someone really clever. The Lynex will cost around £1500 from Argent's in London, Streetwise in Manchester, or McCormacks in Glasgow...

MTR are making a ten-band stereo graphic for only £122. Then there's a 40 way patchbay for £55, and a DI box for £30. More info on (Contact Details)...

Executive Audio (Contact Details) are offering 1024 sounds for the DX7 at 19p per sound. They all come together on a ROM cartridge for £195...

Hacksaw fans will look forward to the opportunity of cutting holes in their ageing MIDI-less Juno 6s or 60s. It just so happens that Groove Electronics have prepared a MIDI interface for installation in those keyboards, and all for a mere £100 (fitted). The Groovey persons are also making a MIDI thing to replace the DCB outputs in the Jupiter 8. Details on what you get for your £125 from (Contact Details)...