It’s been known for a while that Mad Catz was going to be releasing some officially licensed Rock Band instruments but it appears the wait for more information may be a LOT shorter than we might have thought. The guys over at RockBandMods.net happened to snag some details from the short-lived Amazon.com entries for a new guitar, microphone, and multiple drum kits.

Continue on for the juicy details…

How do these new instruments differ from the originals? Thankfully, they’re not simply the same functionality in a newly designed shell. Mad Catz has taken the liberty of actually trying to enhance ease of use for us fake musicians out there. Let’s take a look at what we’ll have to choose from:

• For $69.99, we can expect a wired bass guitar featuring dual strum bars, for those bass pluckers out there that like to pluck strings with both your thumb and index/middle fingers just like “real musicians” do. This bass guitar will be out for the 360, then PS3 and finally Wii, roughly one model per month. Following that, Mad Catz plans to roll out a wireless version of the bass at an undisclosed cost.
• A nice addition for the lead singers out there, Mad Catz will be releasing a microphone that has a built in controller for menu navigation and character customization. I hated always having to lug my controller with the microphone when playing Rock Band, it seems this may be the solution. The microphone also includes a pop/wind screen (or as I like to call it, a belch-filter) and a lock/unlock button.
• Mad Catz also has a Fender Telecaster guitar coming out that is said to include a “programmable strum” but the description of what exactly “programmable” means wasn’t given. If I could program entire songs in and have them play back perfectly, that might be nice. Wait, I guess that’s what CDs are for. Never mind. We’ll have to see about this guitar. Information on platforms wasn’t complete, but it’s probably safe to assume this will be coming to Xbox 360, PS3, and Wii as well.
• The drum kits Mad Catz will be offering is where things really get switched up. What’s the #1 complaint about Rock Band drums? They’re big, bulky, and hard to store/move. Mad Catz hears you and is answering with their portable drum kit. Expect drum pads you lay on a table or other solid surface and tap with foam-tipped drum sticks. From the picture shown, it almost looks like you could slip the portable drum kit in a generously sized coat pocket.
• For those of you not bothered by storing your official Rock Band drum kit, Mad Catz has one upped it for you. Three upped it actually, by adding a second pedal for the high hat, two cymbals, and a folding collapsable frame for easier storage. The drums look great until you realize they’ll set you back almost the entire cost of Rock Band itself… Expect to pay $149 for the premium drum kit.

With all these new licensed controllers coming out, is this a sign that Rock Band 2 will stay instrument compatible with Rock Band 1 when it comes out? It seems like there is a steady progression to add features and doohickeys to instruments each year but with drum kits now far surpassing $100, I think people do (and should) expect some longevity from their investments. I’m glad to see competition in the marketplace for instruments for Rock Band and I hope the quality is up there… Mad Catz isn’t synonymous with quality in my book…

With as much money as I’ve spent on various music games, I think it’s about time I start booking some gigs to pay for this stuff. I wonder what the Rock Band groupie scene is like… on second thought, I think I’ll skip that.