Hotburst overdrive

Rival Amps Hotburst is an artisan high-voltage, pure valve overdrive designed for the lead tone.
The real deal, no compromises.

Two ECC83/12AX7 running at high voltage, unleashing their true iconic tone, tamed and squeezed into a pocket-size stompbox. 
No frills, simple controls and wide voicing range.
The perfect fit for any rig that asks for sonic greatness and tiny footprint.

TECH TALK

High voltage is internally generated by an in-house designed charge-pump that operates way above the highest audible thrill, not causing any 50/60Hz hum.

A power control circuit features protections against polarity inversion and over-voltage, eliminating the risk of accidental damage.

Heaters benefit from DC series wiring, that reduces noise emission and total current consumption.

A dual soft-start limits the inrush current on power-up, extending valves heaters life, preventing arcs on valves grid and allowing smaller power adapters(1).

(1) An external adapter is required, rated 12VDC (regulated), 500mA, centre positive.
Power adapter not included.
Ciocks DC7 is currently a great choice when using this pedal on boards, as it requires just one 12V outlet, with no need for double outlets adapter.

In order to achieve a beefy lead tone yet retain clarity and transparency, each of the four gain stages shapes the harmonic content fed into the next one, avoiding blocking distortion whilst building up the perfect mix of bite, texture, overtones and compression.

A simple yet effective late-in-the-circuit tone stack was built around the last valve stage, which has multiple duties: adding asymmetric even overtones and acting as a low-impedance output buffer to withstand line-level loads without any appreciable loss.

This is an inverting pedal: if you’re using it in parallel with other pedals, you may need to invert the phase of one of the two FX chains.

The choice of THT components and a 2oz-copper high quality PCB ensures reliability and easy maintenance.

 

Rival Amps - Hotburst inside view

The units are entirely handmade, built and tested one by one, before packing and delivery.
Thanks to the unique raw finish, there won’t be two identical models.
For this reason, discolorations and small dents are expected, as the result of moulding, machining and brushing process.

There may be slight variations in cosmetics over time, without notice, due to changes in suppliers’ components production.

We chose to avoid unnecessarily fancy packaging and stickers: only upcycled or recycled materials will be used.

Custom features may be offered in some occasions, where compatible with the existing circuitry. Get in touch here to discuss your project.

Power jack12Vdc regulated, 500mA
2.1mm barrel jack, center positive (1)
Internal B+224Vdc, 4mA, 100kHz
Heaters12VDC, 150mA each
Total current500mA
Input inpedance1MΩ
Output max load10KΩ
ControlsDrive, Focus, Tone, Volume
Valves
2x ECC83(12AX7)
Input/output jack1/4″ mono jack
Output
Inverted
Finish
Raw brushed
Special features
Soft-start, over-voltage and polarity inversion protections
BypassTrue bypass relay
Dimensions119x94x75 (mm)
Weight580g
Origin
Italy

 

(1) Compatible with Ciock DC7 – only a single 12V outlet (center positive) is required. Power adapter not included.

AUDIOCLIPS

GUITAR

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  • Metal / LTD - EMG 81
  • Rock / LTD - EMG 81
  • Funk Rock / LTD - EMG 60
  • Funk Rock / Fender Am Telecaster Deluxe - SCN Neck
  • Hard Rock / Fender Am Telecaster Deluxe 2007 - SCN Bridge
  • Glam Metal / Gibson Les Paul 1996 - 490T bridge
  • Dark blues - Fender Am Telecaster Deluxe 2007 - SCN Bridge
  • Blues / Fender Am Stratocaster 2015 - Fat 50s bridge

Signal chain
Guitar > Hotburst Overdrive > American Clean “Twin” Head

Amp EQ
Bass: 5/10   Mids: 5/10   Treble: 5/10   Presence: 5/10   Volume: 5/10

Cabinet
1×12″ Jensen JCH12/70

HAMMOND

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  • Hard Rock / High drive [LO gain]
  • Blues / Low drive [LO gain]
  • Dirty Blues / High drive on full-drawbars [LO gain]
  • Prog Rock / Medium drive [LO gain]

Custom option
“Low gain” mod

Signal chain
Hammond > Hotburst Overdrive > Solid-state Leslie speaker*

*Close-miked 2 horn, 1 drum

Warning Harmful high voltage runs internally. Do not open unless you are a trained technician. Do not expose to water or moisture. Do not touch valves during or right after operation as they run hot. If you have not been trained to work with high voltage, never remove the valves or touch the inside of the chassis, even when powered off, since some components may still be charged at high voltage. Do not stick metal objects into the vent holes.

Quickstart guide