NAMM 2026: Neural DSP has taken its smash-hit Quad Cortex amp modeller and shrunk it by more than 50 per cent, and despite all this the unit is for all intents and purposes unchanged.
None of the processing power of the original unit has been lost in this downsizing project. The 7” touchscreen remains in place, no dominating the enclosure a little like a smartphone, and you still have the four stainless steel rotary footswitches, plus a heap of connections round the back.
In so many ways, it really is the same MusicRadar-approved Quad Cortex, using the same Neural Capture tech (V1 and V2), the same access to the ridiculous number of guitar amp and guitar effects pedal captures in the library, compatibility with the same Archetype guitar plugin suites, it is just that it is really small. How small? It weighs in at 1.5kg. It measures 8.9” x 4.6” x 2.5”.
“Quad Cortex mini represents our belief that size shouldn’t dictate what a professional rig is capable of,” says Francisco Cresp, co-founder and CPO, Neural DSP. “It carries forward the same sound quality, the same processing depth, and the same creative control that define Quad Cortex, while opening up new possibilities for how and where that level of performance can be used.
“The goal was to ensure that whether a player is in the studio, on stage, or on the road, they can rely on the same technology, the same results, and the same level of trust in their rig, regardless of form factor.”
It is a big day for Neural DSP hardware, but so too for its CorOS operating system, which has been updated to v4.0.0, a move that welcomes some new sounds to the party.
There is a big ‘ol “cinematic” hall reverb (named Nordic Concert Hall), Blossom, a reverb with swell, “a smooth, vintage plate reverb tailored for musical decay and mix integration” named Studio Plate 70, and Phase Doctor, which will come in handy if you are running a stereo or multi-amp rig.
When you consider all this with the usual features – there are so many that we haven’t even mentioned the fact you can use this as a 16-channel USB-C guitar audio interface, or the myriad features that streamline your workflow – the Quad Cortex mini might make you wonder why you’d want to choose its larger sibling.
Both could be all you need for a live-rig, and as Douglas Castro, Neural DSP’s co-founder and CEO, explains, that was the whole point of the Quad Cortex in the first place. Sound-wise, feature-wise, the mini measures up.
“Since the introduction of Quad Cortex in 2020, our goal has been to define the standard for what an all-in-one digital rig can be,” said Douglas Castro, CEO and Co-Founder of Neural DSP. “We set out to combine machine-learning-based modelling, studio-grade audio quality, and a fast, performance-focused workflow in a single unit.
“With Quad Cortex mini, we’ve carried that same philosophy forward, preserving the processing architecture and Neural Capture technology that allow us to create ultra-accurate digital replicas of amplifiers, cabinets, drive pedals, fuzzes, and compressors, now in a more compact form without compromise.”
The Quad Cortex mini is out now, priced £1,129/$1,399/€1,299. See Neural DSP for more details.
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