Princeton 65 type amp for occasional home use?

markblack

Hello all...

I was in andertons today trying a music man and they set me up with a '65 princeton. At home i always play with headphones and my helix. Which I'm happy with.

But when i go into a shop and play an amp i enjoy the experience. No choices, just a guitar and an amp.

So I'm looking for an amp i can use occasionally at home, i mention the princeton as somewhere to start. It doesn't have to be exactly that, but i liked the sound, it wasn't too loud to use (admittedly I only had it set on 2). It was more than I'd want to spend at £1600, i wouldn't use it enough to justify it.

So if anyone has any suggestions say around a £500 max budget? Ideally with a built in reverb?

I do have a THR10C... But if I'm honest i don't give it very inspiring to play.

I realise this is a subjective question and I'm sure one with lots of answers.

Thanks in advance.

Mark

TimmyO

Without wishing to draw down the “do they sound identical” arguments yet again - could consider a used Tonemaster Princeton. Might be a smidge more than your budget - I’ve not paid close attention to used values 

Acdeezee86

Edit: @TimmyO beat me to it  Tonemaster Princeton Reverb? I’m picking one up next week, hoping it will do exactly this

markblack

@TimmyO i did think that might be an option, but a bit more than I wanted to spend. As for sound I'm sure for me close enough is good enough

brucegill

Think @dangee has a vibrochamp for sale on here. Maybe that would work? 

HAL9000

Delta King 10 or 12
Blackstar Studio 10 6L6

markblack

@HAL9000 cheers, I shall have a look into them.

guitargeek62

TimmyO said:

Without wishing to draw down the “do they sound identical” arguments yet again - could consider a used Tonemaster Princeton. Might be a smidge more than your budget - I’ve not paid close attention to used values 

This.

TM Princetons are ~£5-600 used

Used 65s are ~£8-900

ICBM

Princeton 65.









Not '65 Princeton .

They made a solid-state amp called the Princeton 65 - later the Princeton 65 DSP, with digital effects replacing the older spring reverb - in the 90s to maybe early 2000s. They're actually pretty nice if you ignore the overdrive channel as most people do - although it's possible to get semi-decent edgy dirty tones from it if you're careful - the clean channel is very Fendery and the reverb is decent. They typically sell for about £100-£150 in good condition.

That's a semi-serious suggestion by the way...

Dontgiveupyourdayjob

FWIW I picked up a Tonemaster Princeton for £500 exactly on Reverb, but that might have been me just getting lucky.

RickLucas

Vibrochamp reverb

UnclePsychosis

FWIW, I have a Princeton 65 Reissue (whatever the modern valve one is called) as my home amp. Never gigged it. Sits at 2.5 on the volume and sounds absolutely glorious regardless. 

Admittedly they were a lot cheaper when I bought mine but I don't regret it in the slightest. 

guitargeek62

Dontgiveupyourdayjob said:

FWIW I picked up a Tonemaster Princeton for £500 exactly on Reverb, but that might have been me just getting lucky.

I’ve seen a couple at £500 but they don’t hang about! I might have to get one this year too…

wrinkleygit

I’ve just bought a Super Champ XD, after reading some of the comments on here, surprised at how well it performs, used it already at a small gig with another guitar player and bass player, light as  feather and great for playing in the house. Have to say I was put off the X2 version because of the lack of software support and any potential issues that might cause, good luck in your quest.

Wazmeister

Tonemaster PR

Acdeezee86

What about a vox pathfinder 15r? I’ve read glowing reviews, though never tried one

octatonic

I preferentially use Princeton type circuits for anything that isn't high gain.
Currently it is a Louis Electric Road Runner, which is an amazing amp and the addition of a mid control makes it more flexible.

But it is too loud for home use if you wan anything other that clean from the amp, which isn't really the point with those amps.

The Tonemaster Princeton is a good shout but if you are prepared to use a Tonemaster amp then any of them are potentially good. The Princeton only really makes sense if you prefer the Princeton circuit vs Deluxe, etc etc.

GoFish

On this quest I ended up with a Twin Reverb reissue (65). I figured if I could only get cleans from any Fender amp, I may as well get THE cleans, as well as the mids knob and two channels. 

It's lovely. I still glance at Princetons and the 68 Vibro Champ but that's because I have a problem.

ICBM

octatonic said:

But it is too loud for home use if you wan anything other that clean from the amp, which isn't really the point with those amps.

I don't agree at all, the clean sound from them is fantastic and easily worth having at home volume regardless of what it sounds like louder.

GoFish said:

On this quest I ended up with a Twin Reverb reissue (65). I figured if I could only get cleans from any Fender amp, I may as well get THE cleans, as well as the mids knob and two channels.

Exactly. The Twin actually sounds *better* than the smaller models at very low volume, in my opinion.

HAL9000

Acdeezee86 said:

What about a vox pathfinder 15r? I’ve read glowing reviews, though never tried one

Friend has one. Ridiculously loud for a 15W solid-state amp, and sounds good too.

I feel that a decent analogue solid-state is a better option than a digital one. The Orange Crush Pro, Peavey Bandits, and Award-Session items are all great sounding amplifiers with good response and dynamics, and weigh substantially less than comparable valve amps.

RickLucas

FS Fender 68 Custom Vibro Champ, Roland Blues Cube - one of them must go! - Amps £ Discussions on theFretBoard