Hiwatt Lead 20 Head

I am a new proud owner of this amp. I have been trying to get a lead 30 for many years But I have always been to late to nab one.But then cam across this one so fuc#ing lucky!This amp sounds smoking with vintage 30s or 75watt speakers. With a Gibson Standred or A Junior It will be mouth dropping. Loud little fuc#er one channel. Thats all you need to play rock&roll turn down the volume on the guitar and it will sweeting up to a nice clean.When it comes to metal style guitar playing back the mids and its not bad think tool but drop tuning is not its game.fender strat works great also the is plenty of gain & tone from this amp to make it scream jimi?

Ok here is where I have wood telling you how cool I think this amp is. I own 22 Amp's and when the hiwatt is put up to rock and roll Led Zepplen G&R Nugent Tesla zztop and so on it sounds so studio like these albums.ok what amps am I trying to compare this amp to well Fender Tone Master. Marshall 50watt Jmp. Marshall 81 100watt Jcm withe 6550 power tubes.Engl Screamer.Sovtek mig60.Budda 30watt. The only amp that comes close in my opinion is the Fender tonemaster.

This amp what I understand went on tour with a band from Chicago for many years all over the world. Sorry The sale was so fast that I did not ask the guy what band but rememberd he said it was used with a Marshall 2x12 jubilee cab with 30watt vintage speakers and just smoked in sound and was he so right!

Never dealed with them but as I see people out here are saying this amp came from the 80s when they where here in the USA And now that plant is no longer here for many years now.

I have been playing since 1984 and played though just bought every cool amp out there and owend most of them. Dumble 100watt super over drive. Marshall 2550 jubilee JMP. JCM. 1969 100WattPlexi Budda's VHT. ENGL.Boggner.newer Hiwatts Fender Tonemaster. Sovtek. Splawn. Wizzard. Bad Cat. Kitty Hawk. Bedrock. Diezel. Randall century 200 and rg100es. fender supersonic. Carr. Yea I know there is many more but when it comes up straight up rock&roll this is my amp of choice. And if I lost this amp I would be willing to put a ad out there for another one willing to pay a few thousand for one. That is no lie!

I have no clue what year this thing was made. It was given to me by a co-worker. Her son past away and she didn't know what to do with it so I said I'll take it! Never heard of Hiwatt until this amp. It is a bare bones, crunchy amp that sounds incredible with a Marshall 1960A 4x12 cabinet. I use this amp in the studio all of the time and also take it out to all my gigs. Even sounds great in big rooms with a mic into the board.

I use three guitars with this amp. A Tele, Strat and a Gibson double cut. Every guitar that plugs into it sounds strong. A little noisy with the Tele but that is the nature of beast with a single coil pickup.

Had it for a year now and it hasn't let me down yet. Always cary a spare.

I have searched on the internet and found that there is absolutely no support.....zip!!

I would be really bummed if this thing was either stolen or was un-reparable.

This amp is made in the USA in the mid-80's. It is of circuit board construction unlike the 70's Hiwatts which were hand wired. It is a single channel amp made for one thing-CRUNCHY ROCK AND ROLL! It has an effects loop which I never use. I use it for recording, and it is as loud as ant 50 watt amp I have ever heard! I added a standby switch as it didn't have one originally.

I use this amp witha 60's SG Jr. with a P-90. This thing is a rock tone machine! Crank the master to get the EL84"s nice and hot and dial in the grit with the preamp volume. I run it at 3:00 and it feeds back controllably while sounding nice and crisp. It doesn't clean up very well with the volume control unless you use a humbucker equipped guitar. This thing cooks like the hottest Marshall you ever heard!

I have never had a problem with this amp. It was retubed when I got it and it always runs great. I had an all day party I played at and it ran for 10 hours in 90 degree heat without a hint of problems. I would absolutely use it without a backup.

You are on your own with this amp. No schematics are available. The Hiwatt company that made this amp folded in 1986, and the current Hiwatt company has no records, etc. But, any competent tech can fix this amp no problem. Simple straight forward class A design

I have been playing since 1972, and own lots of other gear. A 71 Marshall 50 watt, 2 hiwatt 4X12 cabinets, a Hartke 5000 bass amp and an SVT cabinet for bass. If it were stolen, I would replace it. I love the tone, and I really don't hate anything about it except the bad rap it gets for not being hand wired. Hiwatt purists HATE this amp! For what I do which is kick ass rock, this amp is perfect!

These aren't British made! But you would think they were by the way they sound. Built in early to mid-eighties in California by Sterling Imports (authorized by Hiwatt). Very simple circuit. Class A, 20 Watts, dual EL84 output tubes, and 4 AX7's (although I think mine has one AU7). Effects loop, slave out, two speaker outs, gain, bass, middle, treble, master, presence. That's all folks. If you're looking for features and versatility - don't look at this amp. It's simplicity at it's best. Just a good old fashioned tone machine. I don't even use the effects loop.

I bought this amp for one thing and one thing only. POWER TUBE SATURATION!! This little head accomplishes that task quite easily without blowing out your ear drums like Pete Townsend. Don't get me wrong, it's still very loud, but tolerable in a small environment like a studio or small club. I play a '67 Gibson SG Standard into this head with a Jenkins Highway '61 2x12 cabinet fitted with Weber alnico's. SO SWEET and SO SIMPLE!!! Just "dime" all the EQ knobs, presence at about 12 o'clock, Master volume also "dimed" (cranked), pre-amp volume to taste. Natural compression, smooth distortion, endless sustain, and controllable feedback. What else could you possibly ask for?

When I first put this thing on top of my cabinet and cranked it, I noticed some bad rattling, which in turn caused some nasty shorting out and static coming through the speakers. I brought it to an amp tech, who looked at me and said "what the hell is this?" He had never seen one. He took it apart and found that it was built pretty poorly - but the components were good. So he re-soldered a few connections, and basically gave it an overhaul. I've since replaced the power tubes w/ sovteks because one the old ones sounded "glassy" and had some strange resonant vibrations. Voila! Problem solved. Now this thing truly rocks as per my decription in the sound section above. Now I would gig with it without a backup? Yes.

Customer support? Yeah right. Sterling Imports doesn't exist anymore and the Hiwatt name is owned by Fernandes last time I checked. There's a company in Britain by the name of Audio Brothers who currently sells genuine Hiwatt gear, but I've tried contacting them 3 or 4 times and they NEVER respond. I think maybe they just hate americans or something. Manuals and schematics for this amp do not exist. I've searched high and low.

Well, I've been playing close to 8 years now. I own too much gear to mention. If this were stolen I'd be pissed because it sounds so good and they are very rare. I only give it an eight because of the condition it was in when I bought it. I think I paid too much - but then again, I've seen them go for more on ebay. If you can find one in good condition and you're looking for a nice simple high-gain type of amp - give it a shot. I guarantee you won't be disappointed.

I purchased the LEAD 20 head, somewhere around the mid 90's from a local luthier. After searching out an electronic schematic for said amp (Head), I was informed that HIWATT or Fernandes threw away a lot of documentation from the 80's era, so a schematic diagram was out of the question, TOO BAD! Versatility: I seem to be able to get most hues of the audio spectrum out of this amp except a real good clean Fenderish tone, especially with the master volume circuit set for extreme clean, although if the wattage is actually 20Watts vs. 35Watts that would tend to explain the headroom limitations. Maybe if I changed out the power pentode EL84/6BQ5's for some Groove Tubes EL84/6BQ5's and some JAN 12AX7A's (Phillips and Sylvania)from the local electronic goody store. Anyway, I play in the blues, rock, and jazz vein. Rock and Blues predominate with this little (Head). I have always used this head (HIWATT LEAD 20) with a Straight Front Marshall 4X10 cabinet w/35 Watt 10" Celestions, with reddish brown grillcloth, circa? One channel, no channel-switching, yes to effects loop, headphone jack no. Once I get it "cleaned" up so to speak or "Fenderized" I plan to give it a little spin around the block. My overdrive modus operandi for gain/overdrive is either an "OLD" Rockman X100, or a Mesa Boogie V-Twin (w/ (5) old style metal Tele nobs & (2) Groove Tube 12AX7R2's). Believe me this amp is a "Tone Dawg". As stated in a previous post, Wattage is what? 35Watts. I really think it is more like 20W of great overdrive tone. Powerful yes, punchy yes, perfect yes, or as close to it as you can get. Talk about your Gary Moore, Billy Gibbons, Jimmy Page tones you got'em and all right there in that explosive little package. I give it a 9 only because I'm not currently getting the clean tone that I expect. Maybe, it's because I've been playing through old Fender tube amps for some 25 yrs. now.

Stock or Seymour Duncan is my ticket to pickup paradise. I have 8 lefty electrics: A Gibson 335 RE-issue w/stock Gibson 57' PAF's, (2)Fender Strats - 57' SurfGreen w/Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro Staggered APS-1R's & 62' BabyBlue Re-issues w/Seymour Duncan Antiquity Texas Hot 1024-02L & -03L's, (2) Fender Teles - 52' Cream MIJ RI w/Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro Lead & Rhythm APTL-1R/APTR-1R & a Fender 3-Tone SB American Std. Tele w/Seymour Duncan Vintage 54' Lead STL-1R/Fender Delta Tone Rhythm PUP, (1)Greco Les Paul w/stock PAF PUP's circa 60's according to Blue Book (1) Honeyburst 10" Top PRS copy w/matching split Zebra Coil Seymour Duncan 59's, and one Tokai righty 57' Strat w/3-Tone SB and stock *awesome* PUPs. Very versatile amp for most styles of music. Naturally with any amp as you turn up, noise is there as well. The master volume distortion that this amp uses is a good design. It also helps to have an additional pre-amp gain stage (which this amp has) so there are (4) 12AX7A's instead of the typical (3) as found in the Marshall Model 1959 100W Lead Head or 1959 Fender Bassman. Mesa Boogie was the first to explore this circuit commercially. This amp can be a Mesa Boogie on steroids, as I said before if there were more headroom before breakup this amp would be just like a Bassman or Super Reverb, but until I change out the tubes, I wont know. The distortion is not brutal

Might need new tubes & maybe new filter caps to really kick ass.

Bought it used for $150, seen it go for around $1100-$1200 out on the west coast of the U.S.A. As I said before, I hit a brick wall in trying to get a schematic out of these people (no dice).

DO NOT WANT TO CONSIDER LOSING THIS AMP HEAD, IF I EVER SEE ANOTHER ONE OF THESE AMPS YOU'LL HAVE TO BEAT ME TO IT. A WALL OF THESE W/MARSHALL 4X10 CABS WOULD BE ABSOLUTELY PHENOMENAL! THIS AMP IS A COMBINATION OF MARSHALL, HIWATT, AND MESA BOOGIE ALL ROLLED UP INTO ONE NICE LITTLE PACKAGE. IF I COULD DUPLICATE BUILDING THESE HEADS I MOST CERTAINLY WOULD. THERE WOULD BE NOTHING LIKE A WALL OF 4X10 MARSHALL CABINETS w/HIWATT LEAD 20 HEADS, THE OTHER WALL WOULD BE COVERED w/FENDER BASSMANS & SUPER REVERBS WITH AN A/B FOOTSWITCH TO SWITCH BETWEEN THE WALLS (DAVID GILMOUR EAT YOUR WALL OUT!).

This amp is fantastic. 1 channel, effects loop, 2 El84 power tubes (20 watts RMS 35 watts cranked), 2 12AU7/ 2 12AX7 preamp, no reverb (why they invented the Line 6 POD!). Frankly I have stood in front of many an amp (JTM 45 reissue, Fender Deluxe, JCM 900 (yuck!), Valvestate VS100R(nice for clean)) this thing has bite. The chicken head nobs are nice retro and the distortion is amazing. It could use a few more watts but really I run it through two 80 watt Celestions and its plenty loud. Blues just roll out of this thing furthermore it has got some strange sort of harmonic feedback to.

I play through only a few guitars it is your technique that makes the sound anyways. I play a fender Strat (60 something sounds good eh..), Mitchell classical, and a Ovation. So basically I play the fender alot. This amp is perfect for R&B you can "push" it easily. I can get loud as hell almost as much as my JTM 45. Those corkers at Mesa have nothing over this little bullet in the distorsion section either. Getting it centred on my 2X12 is a little precarious if I am drunk though. BUY THIS AMP. My other amps are shite compared to this one (except JTM 45 and Valvestate (yes i like them !)). PLug in a Line 6 POD in front of it and it is tone heaven. Line 6 gives me reverb delay and everything else. Only other pedals I own are a Big Muff and a Crybaby Wah. 9 just so I get my review posted

I am a raging alcholic on stage and this thing has had every sort of drink spilled on it so I call that reliable. I replaced the EL84's with EL84S's and the tone got much brighter. Orginally had all 12AU7's in preamp change those to a wee half/half of 12AX7's and tone goes dark but sparkly dark eh?

Never talked to them never will never want to!

Great Amp. I have been playing since I was a mere 12(?) years of age so that would be about 13 years give or take a week. I would buy one again if it were stolen then go find the guy that stole it. I love the fact that I have it. I hate the fact that it smells. I compared with what I like already when it beat that I bought it. I wish it had some sort of telekenetic amp powers like Huggehs and Kettner those things look like they are about to take off!
America is Great but I am leaving soon!

I really enjoy the Hiwatt Lead 20 Head, I bought it from a friend that wanted to upgrade his amp (stack).First off, I want to say it's a Head, I geuss you could call it an amp, I have a HiWatt cabinet that is the home of 2 Celestian speakers.The amp head was made in the 80's, I am not really sure of the exact year, The amp is excellent, It really sounds great. I've only changed the tubes and had it rebiased..I do, however wish it had a Standby mode and the capability to have a footswitch for a clean sound, but hey,what the hell huh ? I am not sure of the others, but the head runs off of EL-84' tubes. I love the sound and enjoy the use it has to offer..

Not to sound like a bragger, but I use numerous guitars with it, The main guitar I use is a Ibanez and a Washburn..The pickups in both guitars are DMarzio, I have one with a Seymour Duncan and it sounds just great. The distortion setting is nice you can turn the volume all the way up and use the Master volume, by doing so, you achieve some great distortion, try it, if anyone has any other ideas, please let me know.

I can greatly depend on it. I Love this thing, I would use it on a gig without a backup, If I ever get one that is..ha,ha. The amp has brocken down once and that was due to a bad tube.

I did contact the company once. I looked up HiWatt on the internet and it directed me to Fernandes Guitars. I wrote them and asked for a catalog and they took my name and address and said they would get a 2000 one off to e in January..

Playing for 7 years, alote, some good and some junk,I would buy it again for sure,I wish it had a footswitch assembly, Can anyone tell me how to find another HiWatt cabinet ?