vintageHIWATTconvention.com

Welcome to the home for all things Vintage HIWATT.

Hi and Hello from from Austria/Europe! I´m a big Hiwatt fan and the owner of a ´75 DR103 and a ´76 SA212 (The next deal should be a vintage SE4122, but I will be another post).I´m working as a guitar teacher and I'm also "collecting" some , especially for me, exciting amps.
Thank you all
Best regards Rainer Gepart

welcome to the Vintage HIWATT Forum!
I have an email to write you.
be in touch soon.

Hello Dr. Hi-Tone,
Thanks in advance, I'm waiting for your answer

Hello all. Really glad to be part of this group. Hiwatts have been a love of mine since I first laid eyes on a clip of Pete T "playing" his amp by whacking up all the knobs, then seeing "The Kids are Alright" doc on HBO or some such. (Or maybe it was on a show called Night Flight that I thought aired in the late '70s but apparently ran in the '80s; I thought it was out of Atlanta on TNT, but it's apparently is back on IFC: http://nightflight.com/night-flight-on-ifc-episode-13/)

Got my first (pseudo) Hiwatt back in Orlando in the mid-'80s when I was looking for "serious" gear. In a small shop on 17-92 (also known as North Mills) run by two guys who used to work at Martin Marietta was a Marshall head, a Mesa head (Mk 2 or 3?) and a Hiwatt Lead 30. I plugged my Les Paul into the Marshall; sounded dead (possibly needed tubes/work). Plugged into the Mesa; while it sounded OK, I was adamant that the amp had to sound good without the onboard EQ, and it was so-so. Plugged into the Hiwatt; everything came alive. Guys in the shop said "turn it up," and I bought it (for $350, I think). Of course, not a "real" Hiwatt, but maintained the aesthetic of the originals, which always seemed to convey their inherent power. Looking inside the guts of my Lead 30 now, it's seems derived, at least in part, from Biacrown-era circuitry (derived, to whatever degree, from PCB-era Hylight circuitry). Finally got my first "real" Hiwatt, a '72 DR-103 with no serial plate but the right tranny and pot codes, on eBay in the late '90s, I think for about $800 after the auction ended with no buyer. My latest acquisition, coming from the UK, is a '72 DR-504 No. 2627.

I've acquired, ahem, a few more examples, and added to that herd with a handful of incredibly inspiring Hi-Tones, which I absolutely love as much as my Hiwatts. So thank you thank you thank you to Clayton and Mark for this site and for continuing the tradition of one of the most indispensable musical instruments on the planet!

Welcome CCL! Nice collection you have there.

CleanCrunchLead wrote: ↑Fri Feb 01, 2019 4:42 pm Hello all. Really glad to be part of this group.

I echo mark's sentiments and add that I've always wanted to mess with one of those PA heads - connecting all 6 channels to one guitar. Why? Just because .

Dave

I'm Jeff. 2 years ago I bought a 1975 and a 1976 DR201 6-EL34 type heads. I also bought a 1970's DR405 400 watt 6-KT88 head. One DR201 and the DR405 were bought from 2 members on the Talk Bass forum. The DR405 is in my storage unit and with some help I will be moving it to the tailgate of my truck where I will install 6 new matched JJ KT88's I just got from THE TUBE STORE. I will then take it to the Amp Shop in Encino CA to have it inspected and the bias set. I am also looking to find out if my 2 DR201's can have adjustable bias circuit added that will not affect the tone. It took me looking for about 10 years to find theses amp for sale and they will be at my funeral so dont ask about me selling them. I am a HORDER ! The amps will get plenty of use in my recording studio. I love the DR201 for guitar. I will hear how the DR405 bass guitar sound is compared to my 1970 Ampeg SVT blue line with a 1974 refridge cabinet with CTS speakers. That must have been the last year for CTS and Ampeg.

Welcome, Jeff. Nice set of (very heavy) amps you have there!

Hello guys, I'm Mauro Principi from Como Lake (Italy). I'm very happy to be here, me and my new/old Hiwatt DR103 '75.
I want to say a big thank you to Mark Huss for the site and to the admins of this forum.
I bought my amp two weeks ago and I'm still in honey moon with It
I love Rock music, in particular Pink Floyd.

Welcome Mauro,

I hope you spend many happy years with your Hiwatt.

Hello from France!

I'm a Gilmour fan as you could guess from my nickname I love 70's and 80's rock music like Pink Floyd, Led Zep, The Who...
I'm looking for a new home to be able to host a noisy amp made in Kingston-upon-Thames or Columbus if I can't find one in good condition.

Best regards

Welcome Echoes!

Hi I'm Patrick. I always knew Hiwatts were considered one of the best if not thee best. I now get it. I'm the proud owner of a 1972 Hiwatt STA-200. I look to find a nice preamp to pair with it as well as a 215. My bucket list includes a Vintage DR201 and a brand new Hi-Tone SAP200.

edit: got it! Thanks Dave. Thats some valuable info as I have lots of trouble posting images. Now I need some help finding a 2150 Cab. Think you can help me there ?:)

Welcome Patrick - you're off to a good start!

Photos have to be reduced in size, otherwise the forum's database would get bogged down. Try resampling to 640 x 480 pixels, at 72dpi. That should make it under the threshold.

Dave