After the success of their Dr. Robert Overdrive Preamp, we were wondering what would be next for the crew at Aclam. Well, their latest invention is here, and it harkens back to another band from the 60’s, and a particularly well-known guitarist. The Windmiller Preamp is based on a secret weapon that Pete Townshend of The Who used as a boost, and gave him his signature tone during the latter portion of that decade. Let’s see what all the buzz is about, shall we?
The Grampian 636 Reverberation units were what Mr. Townshend had in his sonic arsenal, using the preamp in them as a saturation tool along with his cranked Marshall amps. This preamp both boosted the guitar signal and fattened his tone, but was only utilized for a short while. That’s where we get The Windmiller Preamp, a recreation of this extremely specific piece of gear, used for a brief moment in time. Built using an actual 60’s unit as a reference, this extremely accurate replica gives you both improved signal-to-noise ration and increased treble response.
The Gain knob lets you control the amount of the signal boost of your instrument. Since The Windmiller is a “clean” preamp, the Gain doesn’t add saturation per se, but will clip an overdrive pedal or amplifier that follows it. This new circuit also features the addition of Lo and Hi Cut controls. The Lo Cut helps to reduce bass content and make the mid frequencies pop a bit more, while the Hi Cut lets you brighten up darker pickups, or remove the highs to tame the brightest of pickups.
The Aclam team even threw in the Overload light found on the original units, paying tribute and serving simply as a “signal in” indicator. Since The Windmiller Preamp and the original Grampian 636 were designed as studio tools, you can use it on guitar, bass, keys, etc….the sky’s the limit here! True bypass relay switching provides noiseless operation, while single coils and humbuckers alike will feel right at home here. Cheers to Aclam on another excellent, meticulous and precise re-imagining of a classic circuit – check out the demo below to hear this tone-shaping beauty in action!
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