With the live music industry still shut down for the foreseeable future, Hamstead Soundworks wanted to create something that would give back to guitar techs. Those sterling professionals that keep bands from AC/DC to The 1975 sounding great on stage have, in the face of the ongoing pandemic, had to pause their livelihoods.
To give them a boost, Hamstead has, well, given them a boost.
The brand-new Ascent: Amplitude Controller is a clean boost pedal hand-soldered by select pro techs, giving paid work to these out-of-work craftspeople. In addition, 10% of the company's profits from the pedal will be donated to Help Musicians UK to benefit other struggling workers in the live-music industry.
The team that Hamstead has compiled is truly impressive. The Ascent's tech-builders include Simon Murton (AC/DC, Guns N' Roses), Gert Marckx (Iggy Pop, Nile Rogers), Matt Randall (Queen, Mumford & Sons, Ben Howard, Royal Blood, Bloc Party), Dave White (Biffy Clyro, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Kasabian, Jeff Lynne’s ELO), and many more.
Each tech will sign and date every pedal they hand-solder, making each pedal a unique piece.
Hamstead explains:
"Ascent has been designed to be made remotely by backline technicians who we can pay for their time and skills, creating a really special pedal, built by the pros, in the process.
We have an amazing group of techs from bands including: AC/DC, Iggy Pop, The 1975, Mumford & Sons and Queen on board to build the pedals. Each pedal will be hand soldered, signed and dated by the tech that built it.
Another key part of the concept is to give techs who are suddenly out of work a project to be creative and a distraction from the sad state of the industry that we all know and love. The Ascent project is not just a quick fix, but designed to offer both financial and mental health support to people that make live music happen.
The pedal itself offers 20dB of gain with near-zero tonal coloration, and is available exclusively on Reverb for £159 / $199 USD. Features, according to Hamstead, include:
- Incredibly Transparent Circuitry
- 20dB of Clean Boost
- ±15v High Headroom Internal Power
- Linear VCA Controlled Gain Structure
- Premium Through Hole Components
- High-Quality Buffered or True Bypass Operation
Order your Ascent on Reverb now. Click here if you're in the US or here if in the EU/UK.