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Fender Princeton Reverb??? Putting feelers out


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I'm looking for an original fender princeton reverb ... not one of the reissues. It doesn't have to be in perfect cosmetic shape as long as it sounds really really good. I like those early "brownface" models or blackface of course or the first silverface models. I'm not a collector and I don't have the money to pay insane prices. But I have been working a lot and do have a little disposable income. Whaddya got?

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Ran a little Reverb search trying to cull out as many things as I could to eliminate false positives.  Click here to run it for yourself.  I suppose success depends on your definition of "insane" pricing.

As an alternative (not that I'm any expert, at all), consider the Mesa Subway Blues.  The one I bought from Carfish and sold to RobB was the best "Princeton" I've ever played (that said, I've not played many at all, so maybe I have no idea what I'm talking about).  It is built like you'd expect from Mesa with an incredible sounding reverb, but also with features never found on a Princeton like an effects loop and silent recording out.

Maybe others with more experience will chime in with opinions on the suitability of a Subway Blues.

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Chiming in as the owner of a 63 brown princeton (nfs) - to me the sensible play is a 70s PR. Cheaper than 60s and fender didnt screw up the little amps till the late 70s. The made changes onnthe big amps Earlier than the little ones  

 

also dont pass on nonreverb old princetons. They are cheaper and great amps (some like the nonverb more than the amps w verb -i had a 64 deluxe nonverb that was lovely  wish i kept it)  and the brown and tweed princetons obviously no verb  

 

There are so many modern variations, too, that are probably great amps. Lots of options. 

 

Good luck with your search!

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1 hour ago, stedge said:

Chiming in as the owner of a 63 brown princeton (nfs) - to me the sensible play is a 70s PR. Cheaper than 60s and fender didnt screw up the little amps till the late 70s. The made changes onnthe big amps Earlier than the little ones  

 

also dont pass on nonreverb old princetons. They are cheaper and great amps (some like the nonverb more than the amps w verb -i had a 64 deluxe nonverb that was lovely  wish i kept it)  and the brown and tweed princetons obviously no verb  

 

There are so many modern variations, too, that are probably great amps. Lots of options. 

 

Good luck with your search!

I'll second this. If I were looking for a vintage princeton, I would probably target early non-boost silverfaces. That being said, I ended up, after a bunch of back & forth with a Vintage Sounds clone. It's actually a recent PRRI that has been gutted and handwired by them with an upgraded speaker. It's my favorite amp.

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I have a '66 blackface one, meh... just a little 6V6 amp.

All I ever think when I play it is... I wish I had a Deluxe.

It has a weird sort of "hard edge" to it... a very stiff amp for a 6V6.

I grew up with a '65 non reverb Princeton and that thing sags, squishes and gushes tone all over the place... very smooth and dark... you can CRANK the treble and it sounds magnificent. Princeton Reverbs have like triple the presence than the non-reverbs... gotta be careful of that treble knob and use the tone knob on the guitar too.

The perceives loudness of the PR is maybe twice that of the non-Reverb princeton. I can go toe to toe with a loud drummer with the amp on 5... the non Reverb Princeton would need to be on 10 and still be a tick too quiet.

Fucking reverb is insanely good... vibrato is killer as well. Sounds like a mini version of my Super Reverb but doesn't have the volume of it's little brother... is more like a smaller but similarly powerful cousin.

You think it's a fucking Marshall but are brought back down to earth when you realize the sonic limitations of the 10 inch speaker. Ughhhh... not a fun speaker to swap and find the right one. I just went with a greenback and said, "fuck it"... lost a ton of high end and some of the deepest octave but gained all of that midrange presence and I'd rather have the midrange presence so there you go.

I would not under any circumstance pay more than $1500 for a blackface PR... you'll have to wait for the right deal because they are just not worth $2000 IMHO.

 

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3 hours ago, velorush said:

Ran a little Reverb search trying to cull out as many things as I could to eliminate false positives.  Click here to run it for yourself.  I suppose success depends on your definition of "insane" pricing.

As an alternative (not that I'm any expert, at all), consider the Mesa Subway Blues.  The one I bought from Carfish and sold to RobB was the best "Princeton" I've ever played (that said, I've not played many at all, so maybe I have no idea what I'm talking about).  It is built like you'd expect from Mesa with an incredible sounding reverb, but also with features never found on a Princeton like an effects loop and silent recording out.

Maybe others with more experience will chime in with opinions on the suitability of a Subway Blues.

Dragan has a killer original 64 Princeton and it sounds amazing, the guitar player in my band has a Subway Blues and it also sounds amazing, but dirtier, a little more angrier. He converted it to a head and its putting it through an Orange 1x12 with V30. 

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IIRC, one of Gerald Weber's (he of Kendrick Amps fame) books said that there's a relatively easy mod for giving a Fender Princeton non-reverb model as much if not even more gain than the Princeton Reverb...the only downside is that the Tremolo feature has to go, as the 12AX7 tube for the Tremolo gets used for the mod.

I had an original non-modded Blackface '66 Princeton non-reverb amp once, my stepdad loved it for playing country rhythm, but I found that it had no gain whatsoever...it was just too clean sounding for my taste, even when cranked...and I LIKE clean.  I just couldn't get/find the typical Blackface Fendery sweetness in it that I could from other models.  I didn't keep it and mod it, though.

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Thanks for all the great ideas, Guys .... I really do appreciate it. However, the main thing that occurs to me is that i really need to listen to each amp in person. Especially the older Fender amps. I would probably be ok with the MB Subway Blues or a newer rewired version but even at that ...

What is the Hamer of Fender Princeton amps? lol

 

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A 70's silver Princeton Reverb is pretty much the Hamer.  Basically unchanged since the blackfaces other than cosmetics.  Biggest differences from one example to the next can be found in V1 and the condition of the rectifier tube.  A new, strong one will give you that brighter, stiffer feel (and less farty low end), a tired one, the opposite.

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I have been keeping my eyes peeled for a super clean silver face Princeton Reverb for quite a while and I can tell you that they have gotten ridiculously over priced. I have a '72 Deluve Reverb and I recently got my hands on a '77 Vibrolux that was in mint condition with the original tubes. I got that one for less than those Princetons are going for lately. WTF? I am thinking about just getting a Headstrong Little King instead. Pretty much a killer version of a Princeton for about the same money and sometime less if you can find a used one. I have also been hearing the the new '68 Custom Princetons sound very nice. Those can be had, used, for a decent price. 

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