Xploration • Curation • Recommendation
Hudson Electronics Capsule Collection
It may have happened a little later on, but as a direct result of finally meeting Michael Hudson face-to-face at the Leeds Pedal Show - I now own the Broadcast AP-II, as my 6th Hudson Electronics Pedal. He was evidently very persuasive at the time in showcasing how this version was significantly more potent than the standard Dual Broadcast I already had. The AP-II has 2 separate Preamp Circuits with wider gain ranges, which can then also be stacked, while on the standard Dual Broadcast you select between Low and High Gain outputs from the same circuit. There’s quite a bit more about the AP-II - including an FX Loop.
I acquired most of my Hudson Electronics pedals back in 2018 - per the below schedule - which interestingly illustrates just how wide-ranging I am in my pedal acquisitions - as the first 5 all came from diverse retailers. The latest AP-II one came from Andertons - so that’s the only place / store to date I have acquired 2 from! :
- Fuzz (Regent Sounds) - 4 August 2018
- White Heat (Mansons) - 22 August 2018
- Dual Broadcast (Northern Stompboxes) - 29 August 2018
- Sidecar (Andertons) - 17 October 2018
- Stroll On (Reverb.com) - 26 July 2019
My collection now consists of 3 earlier Germanium Tone Bender style compacts, and 3 core Mid-Size classics. Interestingly - if you check out the Hudson Electronics Product listing - you have 13 listed - of which 12 are Broadcast variants - editions and colourways, plus the Sidecar!
There are at least 6 separate Broadcast Models (available in different colourways), the single circuit Original, the 24V Single Edition, Dual Broadcast, Dual Broadcast 24V, and 2 Ariel Posen Models - the Single AP Broadcast, and AP-II Dual Channel Germanium and Silicon Broadcast.
Listed below is my collection to date, where I also intend to get the wider gain-range version of the Sidecar - known as the Motorcycle - and exclusively sold by my friend Joe Light / Joe’s Pedal. I’ve long intended to get now - and hopefully there should be a new batch in soon - I’m hoping it’s another Sparkle Green batch - as that was the most attractive version to-date!
Michael Hudson at the Leeds Pedal Show!
Here's my Hudson capsule :
- Compacts
- Fuzz (Tone Bender MK I.V) - £159
- White Heat Fuzz (Vox Tone Bender) - £150
- Stroll On Fuzz (Tone Bender MII) [battery only] - £150
- Mid-Size
- Dual Broadcast Class-A Germanium Preamp - £179
- AP-II (Ariel Posen) Dual Broadcast Stackable Germanium and Silicon Preamp £269
- Sidecar 808 Style Overdrive - £159 (£155)
The eagle-eyed among you will note that my AP-II has different knobs on it compared to the listed version. And that's because I bought those winged Marconi types from 'Love My Switches' - as I automatically associate those with Micheal's iconic Broadcast format. A Broadcast Pedal is incomplete to be without those iconic knobs - so it's the classic Maroon ones for the Germanium Channel, and the Lighter Blue ones for the Silicon Channel - those are actually still to arrive - they're mocked up in the visual!
The compacts are long since discontinued - while the 3 Mid-Size ones are current, and available from a number of retailers, including direct from Hudson Electronics.
Notably JHS's Josh Scott did a really decent feature on Hudson Electronics - as below :
Fuzz (Tone Bender MK I.V) [3 x МП20] - £159
Controls - Treble/Bass, Sustain, Volume.
A really interesting take on a MK I.V Tone Bender, but featuring 3 rather than the usual 2 Germanium Transistors. Interestingly all my compact Hudson pedals use the same type of Germanium Transistor - the Soviet МП20 varieties - which are universally full flavour and searing by default. I would have liked an external Bias for this one, while the only one here which has a Bias is the Stroll On / MKII Type. This Fuzz is also somewhat unique in have a Treble/Bass Tone Control. This is a fantastic full flavour take on the classic fuzz variety. Michael should do a 4 knobs edition of this with external bias!
White Heat Fuzz (Vox Tone Bender) [2 x МП20] - £150
Controls - Attack, Level.
A great take on the Vox Tone Bender - with the usual compliment of Germanium Transistors onboard All 3 of the Hudson Tone Bender variants are full-flavoured. As before I would have quite liked an external bias control - but the 2 knobs work pretty well on their own - you just don't get easy access to all the different fuzz timbres in not having and external control. Most importantly though - it still sounds great! I really like the look of the variant used in the demo - with the white knobs - that looks much stronger than the black-knob version I acquired. I've been thinking about sapping out those knobs for a while - but not yet got around to it!
Stroll On Fuzz (Tone Bender MII) [battery only] [3 x МП20] - £150
Controls - Attack, Level, Bias knob on side (White)
A fantastic take on the classic MKII variant Bender - really searing and full flavoured - and here with an external Bias knob to fully round out the pedal's abilities. The Yellow Dot between the two knobs indicates that this is a battery only pedal - so you need a 9V block to power it. All 3 Hudson Benders are excellent - it would be interesting for Michael to do take on the MKI and MKIII also!
Dual Broadcast Class-A Germanium Preamp - £179
Controls - Low Cut, Gain Trim, Level Low, Level High, Bypass Footswitch, Low / High Channel (High = Geen).
This version in the grey - with those maroon knobs - is the most iconic of Michael's pedals. This is a singular Germanium Preamp - with two output voicings - a Low Gain, and. High Gain one. You can only selectt one or the other, while the AP-II Broadcast has 2 Preamp Circuits onboard - which you can stack for even moe potency. For me this is just every way one of the most iconic UK Fuzzy-Drive pedals ever created - and a bona fide design classic in every way!
AP-II (Ariel Posen) Dual Broadcast Germanium and Silicon Preamp £269
Controls - GERMANIUM } Drive, Level, Germanium Channel Footswitch; SILICON } Drive, Level, Silicon Channel Footswitch.
Ports - Input, Send. Return, Output.
An every way improved version over the standard Dual Broadcast - this one has separate Germanium and Silicon Circuits - each with wider gain range - and you can stack them for even more potency. You also have a handy FX Loop included. If you liked the standard Dual Broadcast - then this is the ultimate evolution of that. You can see via its price tag that it houses dual circuit! This is the latest addition for me. I still love the original iconic Dual Broadcast - but feel that this AP-II variety will be my favourite!
In terms of how I set this pedal up - the Volumes remain in the same positions - Germanium @ 3 o'clock, and Silicon @ 4 o'clock. When I'm soloing the Channels - the Gain settings match the volumes, While when I combine both sides together I knock the Gain back to around 1 o'clock. The Germanium side has particularly great guitar volume cleanup - so you can afford to set the Gain dial quite high and then knock it back to the appropriate level on your guitar. That's how I tend to play with a lot of fuzz and fuzzy-drive style pedals - crank them to optimal peaks - and then just temper those outputs with the Guitar volume - works a treat on this AP-II - the Germanium side in particular - which I slightly prefer!
Sidecar 808 Style Germanium Clipping Overdrive - £159
Controls - Drive, Treble, Bass, Level.
Michael's excellent take on a Screamer type - with 2-Band EQ. Much like with the Broadcast there is anotherr version with a wider gain range the 'Motorcyle' which is sold by Joe's Pedals - a new batch of those is imminent - and I hope to pick one up them. I'm hoping it's another Green Sparkle batch - as that was super attractive. So I will end up with variants of the Broadcast, and 2 of the Sidecar - brining my Hudson Electronics collection to 7 - I will report back again then!
