Hiwatt Custom 100 Amplifier Head

As spotted on the Green Day website, Billie Joe Armstrong is using a Hiwatt Custom 100.

This amp head is used by Dave Grohl for live shows mainly after the release of Wasting Light.

Can be seen in this photo of them playing at Coachella in 2009.

In an interview where Noel Gallagher talks about his guitars, gear, and his band High Flying Birds, he reveals some of the amp choices, and how he focused on trimming down and taking away from the "excesses" of the [Oasis](https://equipboard.com/band/oasis) sound: "Hmm…[long pause] Well, it is a new sound…but only from taking things away. I didn't invent anything. I just took elements…and the excesses of Oasis, like the extra guitars and the fucking…I just took 'em away. I didn't add anything; I just left the space. The new sound is me singing all the songs and there's one less guitarist. "As far as amps and stuff, what did I use?... I used a Hiwatt Custom 100, a Blackface Fender '64 Deluxe, a 1980's Vox AC30… I'm not sure I've used any of these on Oasis records before… I can't remember!" Original article can be found [here](http://www.musicradar.com/news/drums/interview-noel-gallagher-talks-guitars-gear-and-high-flying-birds-512993).

Jimmy can be seen on this photo playing his guitar with a violin bow. Behind him there are two Hiwatt custom amps that he used on the Royal Albert Hall concert.

During most of the 70s Roger's rig consisted of Hiwatt Custom 100 DR103s and WEM Super Starfinder 200 (4x12) cabinets. This setup would last utnil about 1978 when Phil Taylor built him a new Phase Linear 700 amplified bass rig.

Used when recording 'Let it Bleed'

In the article, we can see that he uses the Hiwatts.

["Here is the somewhat complex HiWatt saga: I found Krist his first one at a Seattle pawnshop for $300, and it had been previously drilled for a preamp output on the back. Andy Marshall at THD Electronics upgraded the preamp line out and modded the amp for KT-90 tubes (see below for more info). We bought a Groove Tubes speaker emulator to run the entire amp through the power amps and into the array of Boogie & Marshall cabs. The line out direct from the preamp sounded best, so we typically ran the HiWatt not utilizing the KT-90 output section at all, with the exception of the Crocodile Cafe show where I believe we used the HiWatts with 2 Marshall 4×12 cabs, and the recording of In Utero. For In Utero the HiWatts were sent out as was a 100 watt 1968 Marshall plexi Super Lead converted to 6550 tubes."](http://www.livenirvana.com/equipment/krist.php)

This site states that Keith used the Hiwatt Custom 100 with his leslie cabinets

used on Hemispheres album, and live slightly before, afterwards. Two heads power 2 bottom cabinets, a 3rd head for the Leslie rotating speaker cabinet (under the Tapco Reverb and EQ to the left of the Hiwatt stacks) and a 4th head is the spare. From the 1979 Hemispheres tour book: Alex Lifeson My amplifiers are three Hiwatt 100's spread over four 4x12 Hiwatt cabinets and one Leslie cabinet, with one spare amplifier and two spare cabinets. A Fender J.B.L. Twin Reverb is used for primary p.a. miking. My guitars are one each Gibson ES335, Gibson ES355, Gibson Les Paul Standard, Gibson Custom Double-Neck, custom built Pyramid, Fender Stratocaster, Roland Guitar Synthesizer, Gibson Dove, Gibson J-55, Gibson B45-12, Gibson C-60 classical, and a Ramirez classical. I also play a set of Moog Taurus pedals. The effects I use are three Rolands 301 Space Echo's, one Roland chorus, an Electric Mistress, a Morley volume pedal, a Cry Baby Wah Wah, a Maestro parametric filter, Ashley pre-amps for the acoustic guitars, and a custom build effects board designed by L.B., and built by Steele-Power Supply. Here's the link to the original article http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/main/HEMtourbook.htm There's a ton of info in his 1980 Guitar Player cover interview... http://www.2112.net/powerwindows/transcripts/19800600guitarplayer.htm

This is either a Custom 100, 200 or (just maybe) 400, I can't tell. However, I think it's a 100 as the 200/400 amp is shaped slightly differently. Anyway, you can see this amp from the start of the video behind Phil on top of a huge silver cabinet. Hiwatt logo and general design is unmistakable.

Supposedly used during the Joy Division days, based on footage from that time. "Only a small amount of footage of the band playing live exists, so this data is based on that little footage, several live audio recordings, interviews with various people, and eyewitnesses. Some of this is likely to be incorrect. If you witnessed a Joy Division performance"

"You're mine now."

As explained by him on video rig rundown

Visible in this picture from *Total Guitar* magazine.

Lindsey used Hiwatt Custom 100 Heads, in 1975-1976 2 Heads and 2 Cabinets were used, In 1977 3 Head and 2 Cabinets were used, Lindsey settings aren't comformed, but judging by photos of the hiwatts they were... Normal=65% Brill=45% Bass=45% Treble=35% Middle=40% Presence=80% Master=90%, Now the Presence changed alot, in 1975 Presence=50%, in 1976-1977 Presence=80%.

Jesse Lacey's Hiwatt Custom 100 is visible at 5:34 in this rig rundown.

In the music video for 'Summer of '69' the Hiwatt Custom 100 Head + matching Cabinet is shown. Time: 3:04-3:06

"My favorite rig was a Hiwatt – I think 100 watts."

Pete and Joey both used Hiwatt amps for both sound and studio.

Two of them can be seen very briefly at 1:28.

"I'm using a Hiwatt head through the KG cabinet. The guy is actually making me a KG head that sounds like the Hiwatt, so I might end up using all KG stuff."

you can see Jeremy using one on Coachella 2010

He used these in the early 80s when he played with the 'Electric Gypsies'

In this Instagram video, we can see that Deryck owns Hiwatt Custom 100 Amplifier Head.

A Hiwatt 100w guitar head (rumoured to have been owned by Peter Green from Fleetwood Mac) was used by James during the recording of Beastwars 2nd LP

"I use an old Custom 100 Hiwatt amplifier with two different Gibson SGs—one has the standard humbuckers, but my brown ’68 SG has its original P-90s that seem to cut through when I play with the band a bit more."

HiWatt 100watt head, homemade 4x12 cab, Vox AC30, Fender Jaguar, Hohner Tele Deluxe.

Visible in this Twitter post by Kemp. Also visible in [this post](https://twitter.com/garyjkemp/status/971082292734103553).

hide used this amplifier head on several recordings and live concerts.

In this photo of Greenberg's studio, the Hiwatt Custom 100 is visible.