Sometime around the late 2000s, Noel started using custom-made Hiwatt combos as part of his live rig. According to Noel, it seems he initially had just one made, and while Hiwatt attempted to replicate it by making a few more, they apparently couldn’t match the sound of the original.
For that reason, Noel eventually stopped using the amp. It seems he thought the original sounded so good that it would be impossible to replace if it ever broke down.
I have this Hiwatt combo, it’s a 100W combo, they made me, and it was a vertical stack. It’s unique, they tried replicating it but they just couldn’t. So it was one of those where I was like – I have to get myself away from this amplifier, because if I don’t, it’s gonna be the death of me.
The Noel Gallagher Guitars & Gear Interview
After Oasis split up in 2009, apperently Noel returned some of the amps to Hiwatt and one of the amps ended up at the Music Ground store on Denmark Street, London. Someone bought it, and it was at one point on sale at Reverb.
Based on the information posted on the sales page, the amp was not purely a DR103 in a combo version, but had a unique curcuit, and it was also fitted with two 12 inch Fane speakers.
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