The Steel Guitar Forum

My question is for those that have used smaller Fender amps. The Deluxe Reverb is some smaller and lighter than my Twin. The Princeton is even smaller. Those that have heard or use those are they favorable?

Has anyone upsized the speaker in either of these? Looking at smaller types for future so not having to take my Twin out. Course then comes smaller steel...lol. Any comments are welcome.

I think I would like the Milkman but have to take hard look at the dollar sign on that. Maybe the Quilter?

Wayne I have a 1974 Princeton that I put a weber in and it's great. I also have a 1966 Deluxe reverb and a 1967 Pro reverb. The Princeton gets the most use. They basically all sound the same, it just depends on how much horsepower you need.

My main workhorse amp is a modded silver face deluxe reverb. I replaced the transformer with a 1968 bandmaster tranny (4 ohm) and use 6L6 power tubes. I have reverb in both channels and have a JBL K120 8 ohm speaker. The mismatch of ohms bring the output down a little. I have a D120 in a spare cabinet that I can use if I need more but 99% of the time I don't need it. I rarely need more than that since most gigs I play have good sound reinforcement. It sounds great too. I get lots of compliments on my tone and I don't use effects except spring reverb and I have a gain pedal for my 6 string underarm guitar.

Can you upsize the speaker in either the Princeton or Deluxe? Let's say you want to try a 12 inch in the Princeton. I don't know enough now to wonder if that's a problem or not. The speaker size? Thanks for comments.

Deluxe's come stock with 12's. The box isn't big enough for a 15. Princeton's come with 10's and I've seen plenty with 12 inch speakers.

Are you talking newer, solid state amps, or the older (or newer) tube amps?

Donny
When talking about tube amps probably newer. I did notice the Quilter was lighter and the Milkman 50/50. Probably they be newer, as well unless see a used one. I had never used a tube amp before I got this Fender Twin. I remember years ago using a Peavey Session 400. Years later I got a Peavey Studio Pro...65,watt (not for my steel something else) I use it a little practicing but can't quite dial it in. I guess the NV 112 might be better. Maybe getting use to Sho Bud and tube sound...lol. Anyway, not really knowing what I was doing with respect to size not sound, the Twin is bigger and thought I would look at smaller amps that sound good. I don't mean this wrong but unless I get the Jazz sound going or find a good country church, I would probably be looking at small venues, God willing. That's why i am checking on smaller amps I use to play in church but that was years ago. The problem I have is I don't seem to sell things very well that belong to me. So checking things out ahead of time with veterans on forum so don't have to worry about selling...lol.

The Milkman 'Mini' is an incredible amp. With the 12" Telonics neo speaker weighs around 35#, very compact as well.

a vintage fender "small" amp will cost you as much as a milkman and you will have to have it worked on at some point. 40-50 year old amps may be cool, but they have to be maintained.

the small amps are popular because the boomers and rockers can play them at less volume and they break up real nice.

if you are looking for a steel guitar or an underarm guitar amp at lower vol for a decent price..i would buy a 4 10 tweed bassman. there are many variations out there. i just bought a recent fender model with a point to point wiring rebuild for $450. it can be used for any gig you can do. my favorite amp i take to many jobs is a weber kit tweed bandmaster with 3 10s. the tweed amps have the best tone of any fenders. dont discount them.

if you are only playing underarm guitar, you cant go wrong with a small roland cube cosm amp.

I've been using a Silverface Deluxe Reverb with a JBL D120F for pedal steel. The amp is stock, as far as I can tell, except for the speaker. I've really been liking the sound I get from it. It can get a bit hairy turned up above seven and really riding the volume pedal. But if I've got enough of myself in the monitor, it's not really an issue.

These are still fairly affordable...

Forget where I heard this, but it always stuck with me:

" Would you rather fight it getting to the stage, or fight it all night trying to get a good tone"?

I don't care how heavy my amp or guitar are--I am a believer that you gotta have weight to get "that tone".

Small amps can have great tone......

Most of the guitar players I work with use vintage Fender Princeton Reverb amps, which they maintain diligently. I find them a bit underpowered for steel, though. The next step up is a Deluxe Reverb (22 watts & a 12" speaker). I've never had one, but I would expect it to be pretty good.

I have a black-faced Princeton (no reverb) in my little studio and it's great for recording. I wouldn't use it on a gig unless I knew it was to be mic'ed and/or it was a very quiet concert stage.

Could some one tell me which is a better Amp for Steel Guitar. The Fender tube amp or the Fender solid state amp.I have a solid State for sale on the Forum it is a Fender Champion 40 Watt and it is brand new I bought two to three weeks ago and I found I do not need it.
Sam White

I have a '66 Princeton Reverb with a 12" coffee can EV SRO for smaller gigs with guitars and it's remarkable.. for pedal steel it is fine but I prefer an 80's Peavey Bandit 65 with a Sica speaker for smaller rooms, and a '69 Fender Dual Showman Reverb w/Fox cab/15" EV SRO "coffee can" if more power is needed...

I have a late 70's PR, with a 10" weber ceramic speaker. I have used the amp on a lot of gigs that I've played guitar on but never for steel. I practice using this amp and it sounds great. It does not have a lot of headroom. I would only use this amp, for steel, on a gig, if I were certain that the band was not going to get loud.

Another thing is that a PR with a particle board cabinet and an upgraded speaker isn't exactly a light amp. I've never weighed my PR, but I think it's heavier than the Steelaire combo.

The smallest amp I use (occasionally, on small gigs) is a Fender Stage 112SE. Rated @ 118 watts, I replaced the stock speaker with a G12neo...to get the weight down to around 30lbs.

Lots good comments. Not familiar with some of the amps mentioned but good information. This is good feedback. Thanks. Good to have experienced gentlemen and diverse backgrounds with their opinion.

Samuel E. White wrote:Could some one tell me which is a better Amp for Steel Guitar. The Fender tube amp or the Fender solid state amp.I have a solid State for sale on the Forum it is a Fender Champion 40 Watt and it is brand new I bought two to three weeks ago and I found I do not need it.
Sam White

It really depends on the situation in which you'll be using the amp. I think those who like Fender amps prefer the tube sound. The Fender Champion 40 is a good amp in my opinion, though, especially if you want a cleaner sound. It's a bit underpowered for live use with pedal steel, though.

Samuel E. White wrote:Could some one tell me which is a better Amp for Steel Guitar. The Fender tube amp or the Fender solid state amp.I have a solid State for sale on the Forum it is a Fender Champion 40 Watt and it is brand new I bought two to three weeks ago and I found I do not need it.
Sam White

I've never heard a Fender solid state amp that I liked for steel (or for guitar). The original design of the tube amps was exceptional. That's why so many people still use them.

I've been recording pedal steel with a late 60's Princeton for a while now and love it. I've never tried it on a live gig but probably will since, more often than not, I'm playing in venues with good sound reinforcement.

For console steel, I love my Deluxe reissue. It certainly doesn't sound as good as a great vintage one but sounds more good enough to my ears.

I have a 72 Deluxe reverb that is well maintained with a Weber 12f159 50 watt speaker and it is loud enough for sure.
Also have a 1967 blackface twin and a Fox Vintage Tweed bassman.
Hard to pick except the Deluxe is handier.

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

What ohm speaker are you using for your extension speaker with your Princeton amp?

I have an 8 ohm spkr that I use with my Deluxe Reverb.

Geo