Rift Amplification - Hawker

RiftAmps · August 2018

This one has been in the pipeline for a while now, the first in my new line of original design amplifiers - each with the aim of capturing something different than what Rift has done in the past.

The Hawker is a 30w 1x12" combo that explores the sonic heritage of old British valve amplifiers that aren't Plexi, such as those from Vox, Selmer, and Watkins. I've always found the idea of men in lab coats tinkering with big-bottle audio circuits quite cool, and the Hawker is a little tribute to those guys who forged ahead with British valve amplification despite the increasing popularity of Fender stuff being imported. There's a definite 'British' tone that those amps all have in common which is very addictive and something I absolutely wanted to capture without the common downsides of low power, too much compression, and questionable clarity.

It's got a pair of cathode-biased KT66s with two power modes, 30w and 8w. A true-bypass buffered series FX loop with level control, a full TMB+Presence tonestack, and a very interactive Gain/Master volume control setup.

The Guitar Magazine review of the Hawker can be found online here - https://www.theguitarmagazine.com/gear/amplifiers/rift-amplification-hawker/

...and they've also filmed a demo video that can be seen here -

Image: https://www.theguitarmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/29_11-17.jpg

chrisv · August 2018

Congratulations, Chris. It really is an excellent amp.

Winny_Pooh · August 2018

That looks brilliant. You must be proud!

JerkMoans · August 2018

That looks - and sounds - utterly fantastic.

hotpickups · August 2018

Nice. Well done Chris

Fuengi · August 2018

Looks stunning. Nice review.

markr76 · August 2018

I've played this amp and it is fantastic. It sounds stunning in the flesh.

bodhi · August 2018

Blimey.

RiftAmps · August 2018

Thanks to everyone for your kind words, I'm ecstatic with this amplifier and the response so far has been fantastic. Cheers!

ThorpyFX · August 2018

Yeah this is bloody awesome.... massive congrats Chris

Lebarque · August 2018

Well done, mate. Great stuff.

tone1 · August 2018

First amp in a while where I’ve thought bloody hell that sounds good!! @chrisv stellar playing dude... @RiftAmps stellar amp dude.

chrisv · August 2018

Thanks @tone1 :-)

Zoolooter · August 2018

Jeeez, that's nice, just listened to the demo. Must sound stunning in the flesh. Especially like the circular cutout for the logo plate. Love it, want it, price?

Modulus_Amps · August 2018

This came out great, Well done! hope you sell thousands!

RiftAmps · August 2018

Lebarque said:

Well done, mate. Great stuff.

Cheers man, this is the inferno btw

tone1 said:

First amp in a while where I’ve thought bloody hell that sounds good!! @chrisv stellar playing dude... @RiftAmps stellar amp dude.

Thanks!

Zoolooter said:

Jeeez, that's nice, just listened to the demo. Must sound stunning in the flesh. Especially like the circular cutout for the logo plate. Love it, want it, price?

Yeah, I'm a big fan of it also, really sets it off. Price is £2299 shipped.

Modulus_Amps said:

This came out great, Well done! hope you sell thousands!

I bet you do

Anyway, you're in for a big payday now that Barry is taking a sabbatical!

TateFX · August 2018

Looks and sounds great dude

RiftAmps · August 2018

Stu_tate said:

Looks and sounds great dude

Cheers Tate!

hotpickups · August 2018

I'd love to hear one in person. I've grown to not believe YouTube videos anymore due to computer speakers etc. Looks great though and on paper looks great. Any shows coming up ?

hotpickups · September 2018

Gonna have to pay a visit to Rift's workshop and try this baby out. It could be what I'm looking for. Something different from my main gigging amp now

Where's my phone to arrange a visit

hotpickups · September 2018

Has anyone here ordered one yet ?

Danielsguitars · September 2018

That sounds great, i like that alot, nice job

Shame I'm always broke

hotpickups · September 2018

customkits said:

That sounds great, i like that alot, nice job

Shame I'm always broke

I'm always broke because I keep buying kit I shouldn't/can't afford

fandango · September 2018

What does this from the website description mean: "It delivers true single-ended tone with the benefits of a push-pull setup and hum reduction"?

In attempting to understand the circuit a little more, is it class A or class A/B or am I barking up the wrong tree?

RiftAmps · September 2018

fandango said:

What does this from the website description mean: "It delivers true single-ended tone with the benefits of a push-pull setup and hum reduction"?

In attempting to understand the circuit a little more, is it class A or class A/B or am I barking up the wrong tree?

I’ve used an old valve HiFi/Radiogram trick that shuts off the signal to one valve, so you get a drop in power and a change in harmonic content but still retain the benefits of a PP output stage. It’s entirely boring and unexciting to explain but it’s works incredibly well for the end user.

hotpickups · September 2018

Lovely lovely amp. Recommended. Still not decided upon one yet but I can still tell it's one hell of an amp. So is that Plexi 18 my oh my

Thanks for your time today @RiftAmps ;;;;;

All I can conclude is the video that exists of it doesn't really give the best rendition of what this amp sounds like in the flesh (what youtube video does eh?). Loved my delay/pedals in front of it. But that Plexi too hmmmmm. Can I afford both

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Rift Amplification - Hawker

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