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Author: chris
HH was one of the earliest UK-makers of solid-state sound-reinforcement kit. They were bought-out by Laney many years back. Read all about ’em here! BTW, these look very very similar to Farfisa’s 1970s line of PA and instrument amps. Is there a connection?
Also this: (70’s users of this kit). Amazing.
And WTF. ultimate high-school dance via HH kit. good lord.
1979: The ‘Hustler,’ a little-known entry in the ‘aluminum-neck’ race of the 1970s (see also: Kramer, Veleno, Travis Bean). Anyone? Apparently it has a hollow fiberglass body, and at least two years ago it was tough to move at $300! Seems like it could give some unique sounds,,,,
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1978: Pete Townshend ‘Boogies’
Goddamnit I hate that word. ‘Boogie.’ Yuck. Instantly brings to mind brain-dead root-fifth/root-sixth endless nonsense non-songs. Really sounds like s$%t. And you do know that boogie-riff inventor chuck berry was later famous for… NSFW) Eii Yii Yii. I wonder if Mesa Engineering would sell more units if they dropped that word. Cause they sure ain’t bad amps. But boogie! No thank you! Never!
Three years before he would buy his first electric bass, and then go on to pretty much define the vocabulary of that instrument, James Jamerson poses with his first bandleader Washboard Willie. You can keep yr Jimi, yr Page, EVH, all those wheedley-wheedley motherfuckers, I’ll take JJ over him any day of the ever. The fkkn best ever, a true innovator with a genius instinct for both rhythmic drive and counterpoint.
Also see: here.
Sansui’s late-70’s line of hi-fi equipment is fairly collectible; I’ve had several of them over the years, and they generally sell for good money. My last pair, a tuner and integrated amp, actually went to a prop stylist for a film… I wish I could remember the name of the picture. Anyhow, aside from the usual amps, preamps, tuners, and integrated amps, Sansui also made this very unusual device during the ‘first-wave’ of home-music-production: The AX-7 ‘Audio Mixer.’ A four-input HI-Z mixer, the AX-7 was designed to allow the user more easily use multiple stereo tape decks to ping-pong tracks into a layered production. It also offered global spring reverb!
There is a good-looking example on eBay right now for $99 BIN, which is a great value just for the spring reverb!
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1978: “Record It At Home!”
Sometimes it’s the right move. Also if yr gonna rock a shirt like that, might be best to stay in for the day. whoa.
Moog? Arp 2600? Let us know…
1978: The HIWATT 100-watt Bulldog combo amp offers a challenge to Mesa/Boogie in 1978. These must have been very rare; I can’t find a single one online. Read all about them at this link. The ‘mini-monster’ hi-powered-combo concept was introduced by Mesa/Boogie in the late 60s when Randall Smith modded a Fender Princeton by adding the power supply and output section from a Bassman, essentially making a little tiny (but heavy!) 50-watt combo amp. Curious about exactly how much of a ‘feat’ this was, I actually did this very thing many years ago to my brother’s Silverface Princeton. A decade on, the thing is still cooking. The perfect ‘vintage’ amp for NYC, or any city where you’ve gotta share a taxi to the gig!
Holy WTF. Also, it’s basically a filter with an envelope follower. But WTF. Read all about at this dude’s website. Watch the video. And yea it sounds pretty neat. Only 100 ever made, apparently. And unsurprisingly. And goodnight.