Hiwatt (stylized in all caps) is a British company that manufactures amplifiers for electric guitars and electric basses. Starting in the late 1960s, together with Marshall and Vox, Hiwatt contributed to the sonic image popularly termed "British sound".[citation needed]
 HIWATT amplifier with Fender Precision bass | |
| Company type | Pro Audio/Amplication |
|---|---|
| Industry | Amplification Effects pedals |
| Founded | Surrey, England (1966) |
| Founder | Dave Reeves |
| Headquarters | England |
Area served | United Kingdom, United States |
| Website | hiwatt |
History
editHylight and Sound City
editReeves started the Hylight company (the name came from an early 1960s band named "The Hylights" that a friend belonged to), registering the name in September 1966. To help finance the start of his company, Reeves contracted with Ivor Arbiter's Sound City music store to manufacture Sound City-branded guitar amplifiers. These amps (the so-called "Mark I") were Reeves' current amplifier design re-badged with the Sound City name. With as much power but a cleaner sound than their Marshall counterparts,[1] Sound City amplifiers were adopted by The Who's John Entwistle and Pete Townshend in 1967. After Jimi Hendrix and his manager Chas Chandler approached Townshend for his opinion on amplification, the Jimi Hendrix Experience began using Sound City amplifiers in addition to their Marshall amps.[2]
In late 1968 The Who approached Arbiter with a request for Sound City amplifiers with slight modifications. Arbiter declined the request, but Reeves agreed, creating customised Sound City L100 amplifiers. This model was named the Hiwatt DR103, which would be modified in 1970 into the CP103 "Super Who 100" model which Townshend used almost exclusively for over a decade. In 1973 the updated DR103W model was created, which has been the central piece of equipment around which Townshend's various rigs were built for the next thirty years.[3][4]
Hylight Electronics also manufactured amplifiers under the Sola Sound brand for the large UK musical instrument distributor Macari Ltd.. This arrangement only lasted for a short while as the popularity of the Hiwatt amps increased.
Establishing Hiwatt
edit
Hylight Electronics originally sold direct to the musicians so that they could reinvest the profits that would have gone to distributors and music stores back into growing the Hiwatt brand. One of the earliest famous Hiwatt users was Jethro Tull bassist Glenn Cornick. It was at Cornick's urging that the first 200-watt (and later 400-watt) Hiwatt amps were produced. Pete Townshend, who worked with Reeves on the Sound City amps, also became a Hiwatt endorser.
Hiwatt hired former band road manager Peter Webber, who demonstrated, promoted, and sold the company's amplifiers as quickly as they were built. In 1971, Hiwatt was struggling to keep up with production, so Reeves approached amp designer Harry Joyce to wire chassis for Hylight.[5]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Pittman, Aspen (2003). The Tube Amp Book. Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US: Backbeat Books. pp. 46–47. ISBN 978-0-87930-767-7.
- ^ Fryette, Steven (1 June 2018). "Signal to Noise: Being Heard-The Big Amp Revolution". Premiere Guitar. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
- ^ "Pete's Gear: Sound City L100 amplifiers plus Sound City L100 posing as a Hiwatt". Who Tabs. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
- ^ "Pete's Gear: Hiwatt CP103 and DR103W". Who Tabs. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
- ^ Fjestad, Zachary (24 August 2013). "Trash or Treasure: Hiwatt DR103". Premier Guitar. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
External links
edit- Hiwatt.org Hiwatt history and technical information
- TheWho.net page documenting Pete Townshend's transition from Sound City amps to Hiwatt