Hiwatt Studio/Stage Head - Custom Hiwatt 20/40W Head

The SS20/40 is the flagship of our Custom Shop Studio range, packed with powerful, intuitive features like power scaling, footswitchable reverb and boost, and a wide gain spectrum. Designed for professional session players seeking versatility without option paralysis, the 2025 update brings higher headroom in Stage mode, a Bright switch, footswitchable Boost, and enhanced reverb control—available in both combo and head formats. The circuit begins with High and Low impedance inputs to tailor gain response—Low impedance is ideal for high-output pickups or players wanting less preamp compression. The new Bright switch works across both inputs, adding sparkle to clean tones or tightening higher-gain sounds. The Boost adds preamp gain for harmonic richness and interacts with both the Bright switch and input impedance. It’s now footswitchable for on-the-fly dynamics. A traditional 3-band EQ shapes tone before hitting a quad of EL84s, delivering 40 watts in Stage mode or just over 20 watts in Studio mode via smart power scaling. As one of our few Custom amps with reverb, we’ve refined the onboard spring tank for lush, versatile sound. A new Dwell control adjusts input to the tank, while the Reverb control blends it back in—offering everything from subtle ambiance to expansive textures.