Hudson Electronics BC-24V-USA

The Hudson Electronics BC-24V-USA is a limited-edition overdrive and boost pedal based on the company's Broadcast circuit, a transformer-coupled, discrete Class-A germanium design that takes its inspiration from classic recording console preamps¹. What sets this version apart is its power arrangement: it runs internally at 24 volts from a standard 9 volt supply, which Hudson says gives extra headroom and a tighter low end¹. It was offered exclusively through Hudson's US stockists for a limited time¹.

The Broadcast family has been around in several forms. The original Broadcast runs on a DC supply at anywhere between 9v and 24v², and Aion FX notes the line has since grown to include a variant that runs on 24V and another with a second footswitchable gain mode with its own level control³. The BC-24V-USA belongs to that 24V branch, with a three-position gain switch and a US-only release.

The circuit and what it does to your sound

The BC-24V-USA is built around a selected germanium transistor and a TRIAD Magnetics steel-core transformer, the same transformer-coupled, discrete Class-A approach as the regular Broadcast¹. Hudson describes the range of sounds it can produce as biting clean boosts, subtly colored and thickened signals with a frayed-at-the-edge quality, or an individual sounding overdrive with a fuzzy, fried texture when pushed¹.

The internal 24 volt operation is the headline difference from the standard pedal. Where the original Broadcast can be run at supply voltages between 9v and 24v², the BC-24V-USA gets there from an ordinary 9V supply instead of needing a high-voltage PSU. Hudson says the increased voltage gives extra headroom and a tighter low end¹. Aion FX's write-up of the circuit family confirms the 24V variant as one of the Broadcast's later developments³.

Controls and gain modes

The control set is compact: a gain trim knob, a level knob, a low cut control and a three-position gain switch¹.

The three gain modes give the pedal three distinct voices¹:

• LOW mode: the most headroom, staying nearly clean across its range while retaining coloration from the germanium circuit and transformer. Hudson suggests it for higher output pickups, baritone, bass or keyboards.
• MID mode: voiced to sound and behave as the regular Broadcast, still pretty clean but adding more grit and saturation.
• HIGH mode: heads into overdrive, distortion and fuzz, as with the regular Broadcast, but with a slightly tighter low end.

Because the LOW CUT control sits at the front end of the circuit, its effect changes depending on where the gain controls are set, so the two sides of the pedal interact rather than working independently¹.

Power and connections

The pedal takes a standard 9V DC supply through a 2.1mm negative center barrel plug. The supply must deliver 9v and a minimum current of 50mA, and Hudson recommends isolated outputs if you are sharing a PSU between pedals¹. Current draw is 50mA maximum¹.

There is no battery option: like the regular Broadcast, this pedal requires a DC power supply unit¹. RockBoard's PedalPedia entry for the Broadcast 24V lists the same arrangement, 9V DC center negative⁴.

Build and availability

Each BC-24V-USA is individually hand-built onto a high-quality PCB, assembled, hand-wired, tested and packaged by Michael Hudson himself¹. The build uses BI potentiometers, the TRIAD Magnetics steel-core transformer and a selected germanium transistor, with an Alpha heavy duty footswitch wired for true bypass¹. The enclosure comes finished in turquoise-green¹.

The pedal was made available exclusively from Hudson's US stockists, for a limited time¹. Players outside the US looking at the same circuit family can find the standard Broadcast and its other variants, including the footswitchable Broadcast PG-24V-FS, on the maker's regular lineup.

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