78 princeton reverb...change the speaker or add a cabinet?

Jamie Mitchell · Post by **Jamie Mitchell** » 18 Jan 2016 9:44 am

Ben Waligoske wrote:I've also read about folks using a rig like that with no issues

Ben! hi!

it'll be fine. people do get weirdly sensitive about tube amps, though.
those Fenders are built robust. i mean, they're built with an extension cab jack. that wouldn't be there if Fender was afraid people would actually use it and they'd be flooded with returned broken amps.
i've had occasions to try to blow up all of the old Fenders i've had, always at incorrect impedances. outdoor gigs, everything dimed, w/ an extension speaker. they're all fine.

check out Ryan Adam's rig...
two Princetones, extension cabs.

it does look like w/ a stock speaker that'll put the amp in a place where it's not making full power, and that might be a step backwards even with the extra speaker. only one way to know!

j

Ben Waligoske · Post by **Ben Waligoske** » 20 Jan 2016 11:52 pm

Sir Jamie! Hello yourself. I agree, this type of thing is always in danger of being over-thunked

....

Anyways though, I adore my Princeton, and OP - some great discussion up and down this thread. Try for yourself and see!

Ariel Lobos · Post by **Ariel Lobos** » 22 Jan 2016 4:39 pm

Thank's for all the advices. Ill add an external cab, keep it original and then ill tell you. The amp has a pretty sound and if you look, it is at higher price than my Mesa boogie, wich is a great amp for guitars.

Hope to see you at Dallas!

Regards

Patrick Rusert · Post by **Patrick Rusert** » 26 Jan 2016 11:05 am

From another "Small Fender Amp" thread:

Patrick Rusert wrote:I have a 69-70 Silverface Princeton NR that I use with a JBL K-110 for folk, americana and church gigs as well as almost every recording session I do. It really is clean almost all the way to the top, and even more so with RCA 12ax7 short plates from what I can tell.

If I need a little extra to stay with an electric guitarist/drummer I'll swap out the baffle and put in a JBL D-120F.

If I want more bass response on stage or a fuller/more 3-D sound I have a 15" extension cab that I've been using with a stock Fender Blue label 15, but just bought an Altec 418B which I'm excited to try!

If all else fails and I still need more headroom (outdoors, rocking/loud band) I'll lug the '74 Twin.

PR

Update: The Altec 418b is fantastic, as advertised.

Ariel Lobos · Post by **Ariel Lobos** » 25 Feb 2016 11:44 am

I heard about 12AY7 valve. Someone told me the old princetons came with this valve. It supposed to put it to achieve a cleanear sound. What you think?

John Billings · Post by **John Billings** » 25 Feb 2016 1:35 pm

I have a '74, but it's been modded a lot. Allen power trans, which will handle 6L6 tubes too. Dr. Z output trans. It also has the power supply circuit so it's 20 watts now. The original speaker was poopish, so I tried a Weber, but it sounded like I'd thrown a blanket over the amp. Went to a 12" Celestion. Tilt-back legs. It's a killer amp that I can set on the passenger side front floor! Great reverb, great Vibrate-Oh!
Jerry Brightman used it to test all the Performance guitars we built. He loved it! Used it to play the Patsy shows.

Ken Metcalf · Post by **Ken Metcalf** » 29 Feb 2016 3:53 am

10 inch JBL

Matt Berg · Post by **Matt Berg** » 17 Mar 2016 1:06 pm

Ben, How does that Cannabis Rex 10 sound? The 12 seemed very efficient and took a beating with its stiff cone.

John, have you ever used your Princeton with a Vibratone? (I think I saw your Avatar on a Leslie site, still got them spare foam baffles?) I've used mine with a Cordovox CL10, but it didn't come with the box that filters the signals to just midrange which folks speculate that puts less load on the output transformer. I've been a bit nervous about blowing up the Princeton doing this at high volume levels, so I picked up a Tremolux and maybe will acquire a spare cab for a K110 for doing this trick instead. Then of course I'll wanna upgrade the CL10 to a K110 too, I guess!

Ariel, depends what spot you put the 12AT7 or 12AY7. It supposedly is good for the reverb position because it gives you finer adjustment, but not in the first preamp spot.

AA1164 Tube layout (Seen from behind, V1 is to the right side)
V1 12ax7 = Preamp
V2 12at7 = Reverb send
V3 12ax7 = 1/2 Reverb recovery and 1/2 Reverb mix
V4 12ax7 = 1/2 Vibrato and 1/2 Phase inverter
V5 6V6 = Power tube #1
V6 6V6 = Power tube #2
V7 5U4GB = Rectifier tube

12AX7 has a higher gain factor than the AT which is higher than the AY.

John Billings · Post by **John Billings** » 17 Mar 2016 1:11 pm

Matt,
I did build a little Leslie. Just a small box with a Sixties Jensen in it, with one of my baffles on it. It sounded really cool! And yes, I still have a whole bunch of the foam baffles! Love to get rid of them as I could use the shelf space!

Eric Philippsen · Post by **Eric Philippsen** » 20 Mar 2016 2:15 am

I kinda like Princeton Reverbs. No, I take that back, I''m a sucker for them.

I broke the mold this last week and got an '80 model. I really don't think it was ever used or played through. It sounds absolutely amazing and I have 3 earlier ones here to compare it to. I say "broke the mold" because this has the much-dissed and maligned pull-boost feature on the volume knob. People, myself included, have been told that they are to be avoided.

Wrong. What they didn't tell you was that pulling out the volume knob ("pull-boost") just engages a different circuit. Don't use it and you've got the original PR circuit. Whatever, it's all in the ears - yours. Do you like the sound? Does it make you blurt out the word "wow"? For me this one did and I'm ditching that old myth.

admin · Post by **b0b** » 20 Mar 2016 9:26 am

The only speaker improvement I've heard was with a 10" Tone Tubby. It really brings out the low end. It's a beautiful sound.

The Fender Princeton Reverb won't cut it for steel in a band with drums, but it's fine in folk music situations with acoustic instruments. It absolutely needs to be miked on stage.

Bruce Derr · Post by **Bruce Derr** » 20 Mar 2016 10:00 am

In some ways I prefer the pull-boost PRs. The pull boost circuit is easy to remove, and then you have a pull switch on the volume control that can be used for adding a bright switch or something else useful. Also, if I remember correctly, sometime during the silverface era the Princeton Reverbs got a slight change in the power supply that gave them just a little more oomph.

The downside is the heavier cabinet and the set-in baffle, but I wonder if those changes may have actually helped the low end a bit.