NAMM 2024: “Something cool this way comes”: Jack White is teasing his most affordable Third Man guitar gear yet – a collaboration with budget brand Donner

NAMM 2024: In a cryptic Instagram post (January 4), Jack White has teased a new collaboration between his pedal company, Third Man Hardware, and budget instrument brand, Donner.

The post includes a silhouetted picture of what, we’re guessing by the visible dials, is a pedal of some sort. It’s accompanied by the caption: “Something cool this way comes: Third Man Hardware THREATens a new collaboration.”

Jack White was quick to jump into the comments as fans started theorising what he was teasing. @allthinkingcat joked: “All right I looked up Donner. And it’s either going to be a piano, a guitar, or the most unlikely a ski resort,” to which Jack White responded, “It could be a bowling alley, a fella up in Terre Haute won a bowling alley.”

From our own research, we don’t think it’s any form of entertainment complex. But we may be wrong.

Donner, which makes budget-friendly guitars and pedals, as well as electronic drums and keyboards, was founded in 2012. It’s best known for its headless and “silent” travel guitar, the Hush-X, which was unveiled at NAMM in April ’23.

Pedal-wise, Donner currently has a three-strong roster: a multi-effects unit, a looper and drum machine, and a chorus pedal.

Third Man Hardware is an extension of Jack White’s label, Third Man Records. The brand is well accustomed to collaborations, having already worked with MXR on its boost/signal splitting pedal, Double Down, Gamechanger Audio for the Plasma Coil distortion pedal and Union Tube & Transistor for its Bumble Buzz fuzz amongst others.

Those pedals vary in price, with the Double Down coming in at $169, whilst the Third Man Triplegraph octave pedal, a collaboration with Coppersound Pedals, can fetch up to $449.

While there are no further details about White’s collaboration with Donner at the moment, it’s expected their creation will be one of his most affordable offerings yet, considering Donner’s commitment to accessible price points.

Jack White released two studio albums in 2022, the folky Entering Heaven Alive and Fear of the Dawn, which finds the guitarist at his most erratic, fuzz-ravaged best. He followed that up last year with a deluxe edition of The White Stripes’ seminal album, Elephant to celebrate its 20th anniversary.

For future developments, keep your eye on Donner and Third Man Records.