Harry Joyce Custom 100 Head

Delivered in December 2001. Very basic features. The amp has four inputs Hi/Lo Normal and Hi/Lo Brilliant. There is a separate volume for the Normal/Brilliant Channels. There is also a master volume, and bass, middle and treble, and presence. No effects loop. The back panel provides two speaker outputs, switchable to 16/8/4 ohms, and a slave out. That?s it ? refreshingly simple.

I really must note that the tone controls are as interactive and useful as any I?ve tried. Wide ranges of sounds are available. Also, like old 4 input Hiwatts, you can jumper the inputs to blend the normal/brilliant channels.

Sound quality is subjective, so instead of rating the sounds I will describe the experience as best as I can. I?ve played the amp daily for two months now, so I think the ?newness? factor has been sufficiently mitigated.

First of all let me get this out of the way ? the amp can be very loud. And I like it that way (that?s what musicians earplugs, large venues, and soundproofed studios are for). Seriously, in general the amp will also produces fine sounds at slightly less than earthshaking volumes.

Normal/Hi Input (top left) ? produces clear, clean, rich tones. The sound has a quick attack that blooms quickly. Like a Hiwatt (I own two), the sustain is fairly short but has a wonderful electric, sizzling quality as the note decays which is a great element to the overall sound. This input loves all types/configurations of guitar and pickups.

Normal/Lo Input (bottom left) ? provides the same basic tones as above, but it is a much hotter input designed for lower output pickups. This input produces full, round, rich tones. Adding the proper amount of Bass and Mids, can produce a smooth powerful tone with a great deal of decay. Unlike a Hiwatt, increasing the channel(preamp) volume can produce a surprising amount of gain. The gain has none of the buzzing, squealing quality I find in many current modern high-gain amps. For guitars with high-output humbuckers, this input can be a little overwhelming although this is my favoruite ?channel? in the amp.

Any guitar plugged into either of the Normal inputs will easily cut through the mix of a live band setting ? including a band with highly mic?ed horns. In a band situation, the tone remains full and rich and not thin or shrill.

Brilliant/Hi Input (top right) ? this channel is much brighter and not quite as full sounding as the two Normal inputs. If you are not careful here, and don?t dial in an adequate amount of mids/bass coupled with too much treble/presence, it is possible to produce some of the most unpleasantly shrill sounds imaginable. Of course, that?s what tone controls are made for. The only guitar(s) I have that really sounds good in this channel are a Rickenbacker 360 and a Rickenbacker 6-string bass.

Brilliant/Lo Input (bottom right) ? this channel is very versatile. Even though it is ostensibly created for use with lower input pickups, high-output pickups sound fantastic here. While this input produces less bass/mids then the Normal channel, adjusting the tone controls yields an impressive palette of tones. Cranking the preamp volume can produce higher gain sounds that really cut through the mix. This channel loves my ES-335, Heritage 555, and P90 equipped guitars.

Caveats: I have experienced several guitars that really don?t work that well with this amp ? particularly two home-made instruments with Moses graphite necks. Normally. I really love these instruments for their piano like clarity, even in overdriven situations. With the Harry Joyce head, the clarity turns into shrillness (in all but the Normal/Lo input). Also, the amp can be somewhat picky with pedals. It really loves pedals that fatten the tone, like my ToneBender and Sparkle Drive. It really sounds bad with the high gain channel of the Mesa-Boogie V-twin and the Diaz Texas Ranger (which is normally one of my favorite pedals).

So far so good ? there has been no problems. The design and construction of this amp is stunningly clean, neat and simple ? which typically translates into something that is very reliable. And because the design is so clear, should any problems arise, a good amp tech should have no problems. Oh yeah. The construction seems as solid as a tank.

Unfortunately Mr. Joyce is no longer with us. I dealt only with Mr. Charles Bertonazzi who was a fantastic to work with. He answered all of my questions and was always forthright and straight-up. When some delays arose (because of Mr. Joyce?s health) he went the ?extra-distance? service wise. If Mr. Bertonazzi and Mr. Scholz choose to continue the operation, I trust that quality and service will remain first-rate.

This is a superb amplifier that fills a key part of my tone needs. I'm not exactly young (OK, kinda old), and I've been playing bass, guitar, and drums for 30+ years. I originally bought this amp to replace a 50-watt Hiwatt that I've retired. But this amp does more than just replace the hiwatt - it adds a richness and variety of tone that the Hiwatt just didn't have. Also, when this amp is blended with my Budda SD or my Hiwatt Lead 50 (Higher gain, non-Hylite amp) the complexity of sound is wonderful. This amp is not a toy or a high-tech beauty, it is simply a very useful tool and a definite keeper.

This is a new 2000 model 100 watt HJ head. Looks like an old Hiwatt on the outside (typical layout). For now, I use it through a Marshall cab with 4 weber VST 12's in it. Someday when the HJ cabs are more available, I will try one. This amp has four inputs (2 normal, 2 bril), seperate volume for each, a master volume, and bass treble, and presence. No effects loop (I ordered it that way).

Sounds like it should--very "old school", loud as hell. Pure tube tone and nothing else. Crank the knobs up and it gets the most classic natural tube overdrive. If you hear this "dimed" through a 4-12 cab, it will imediately remind you of some of your favorite recordings/bands from the 60's/70's. Awsome feedback (usable controlable feedback, not out of control squealing).

Most of the other ratings I am leaving blank because those things are subjective. If you are reading HJ reviews, you already know what they are about. This section however gets a 10. The build quality of these amps is second to none. If you have seen the inside of one (or the inside of an old Hiwatt that HJ designed) you will be speechless. Each wire is layed out perfectly at a right angle. It looks to good to be true. This was not done for looks though, it is the way Harry learned to wire during the war. It is military spec, which is layed out that way for easy field repair. Just thing of how easy it will be to get your amp fixed if it ever breaks down in the middle of the jungle!! Also, massive Drake tranny's - the best. Jumbo CTS pots, turn one of them, and it feels like an amp from yester-year. No cheap downscaled sized pots etc. Lifetime warranty (I know, I know,--whos lifetime??)

Ahhhh another 10. This part of the review is quite funny. When I heard that HJ was still alive and kickin (and building his own line), I started to research them. I quickly found out that they are hard to get, and that Harry has been jerked around by some of his US distributors. After a while, I learned that his newest US connection was a guy in Florida. Before I just sent a pile of money to this guy in FL, I wanted to find out more about the amps. After some very creative research, I obtained a phone number in the UK that was supposed to be Harry's. One rainy afternon I figured I'd try it, and sure enough, some old guy with a British accent got on the line and introduced himself as Harry Joyce. He told me all about the amps, how they were built, the real power figures they put out-hehe, etc etc. He also told me about Dave Reeves, Pete Townsend, Jim Marshall and the others that he had worked with in the old Hiwatt days. He is beyond friendly, and he closed the deal on the amp without even knowing it (or trying). I feel that these amps are collectors items the minute you buy them. I did not buy mine to stuff in a closet and look at though. I plan on working the hell out of it and using it the way it was designed to be used. Try getting Jim Marshall on the phone for 45 min!

I have ben playing for quite some time, I play hard(er) style rock. The HJ suits this fine. If I need more gain, I just throw a distortion pedal in front of it and its heaven.