Difference between Princeton and Deluxe?

[jmcorey]

Can anyone give me the lowdown on these amps?

Princeton vs. Deluxe - what are the differences? Both of these amps get raved about. Reverb, I guess, for both.
Also, Silverface vs. blackface.

Tonal differences?

Lots of people LOVE recording with the Princeton. Lots of people love playing live with the Deluxe reverb, say it takes really well to pedals.

Which is cleaner? When does each tend to break up?

Thanks....

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Difference between Princeton and Deluxe?

In the case of the earliest Princeton, the tweed version, they are pretty much the same amp as a Champ and each uses a single 6V6 output tube although the Princeton has a tone control and the tweed Champ does not. The tweed Deluxe has TWO 6V6 tubes and more output. I'm not certain about the blackface or silverface version of the Princeton...never owned one. But I'm pretty certain they too would have less output than the Deluxe or Deluxe Reverb. Also, Princeton's tend to have a single 10" speaker and Deluxes have one 12" speaker. Lew

 

[kmcguitars]

Re: Difference between Princeton and Deluxe?

SF Deluxe's are rated around 22watts and have a 1x12
SF Princeton's are rated around 12 watts w/t a 1x10
To my ears Princetons just sound sweeter . I've been useing a Princeton reverb as my main gigger for the last 10 years. With a good speaker
and a Lil' help in the Phase Inverter. A princeton can come in closer to
18 watts and seems to be loud enuff to hang with a hard hitting drummer.
If you do go with a Princeton? PM me. I'll give you the lowdown on what
to do and what NOT! to do to it. I've been messing with mine for 10 year
And i finally got it sound like it should. (By UNmodding it!)

 

[jmcorey]

Re: Difference between Princeton and Deluxe?

Thanks. I thought more would chime in for sure, perhaps posting on a Sunday night....

 

[the guy who invented fire]

Re: Difference between Princeton and Deluxe?

It pretty much been summed up here. In the BF/SF Fenders a Princeton falls just between a Champ and a Deluxe. Princetons have a beautiful, sweet overdrive that happens at fair volume levels...it's only about 12 watts. If you are looking for a Princeton get a Princeton Reverb, that have a tad more gain and well...they have reverb!!! All that said there is nothing at all wrong with a Deluxe...great amp as well!

 

[Curly]

Re: Difference between Princeton and Deluxe?

I think everyone covered the bases ... both classic amps

I'll just add that the PR is fixed bias, the DR has a bias pot

you are right about the PR being one of the most recorded amps ever, due to the fact that it scales so nicely for a studio. like a lot of amps, it is very dependent on the right tubes, speaker, and set up. The PR has an extra half gain stage compared to the Princeton. The PR's vibrato circuit is also kind of unique, and some prefer it to the regular circuit of BF amps.
The PR can be a pretty darn LOUD amp for 12 watts or so.

as far as the SF/ BF question, I'm not an expert, but I'd suggest sticking with early SF versions, but most competent techs can do a BF conversion.

the DR is a little more gig worthy, with more power and the 12" speaker. It's probably one of the most versatile amps ... depending on how it's set up, it can be used for rock, blues, country, and jazz. there's a good reason why this was one of the earliest amps to be reissued - demand.

you can't really go wrong with either amp, it's just a matter of which one is right for your situation

 

[superreverb]

Re: Difference between Princeton and Deluxe?

i looked at some schematics and besides the obvious stuff (princeton is single ended, deluxe has 2 output tubes) the deluxe has two input tubes so probably 4 inputs and a bright channel and a cathode follower before the tone circuit. the princeton only has one input tube, so one input and one gain stage before the tone circuit. my guess is the deluxe will sound more like the super and twin amps than the princeton, which will distort earlier and have odd harmonics.

 

[kmcguitars]

Re: Difference between Princeton and Deluxe?

i looked at some schematics and besides the obvious stuff (princeton is single ended, deluxe has 2 output tubes) the deluxe has two input tubes so probably 4 inputs and a bright channel and a cathode follower before the tone circuit. the princeton only has one input tube, so one input and one gain stage before the tone circuit. my guess is the deluxe will sound more like the super and twin amps than the princeton, which will distort earlier and have odd harmonics.

UMM.. Take a better look at that schematic. The Champ is Single ended.
The Princeton is Class A/B push-pull amp with 2 6V6's . Maybe your looking
at a tweed era amp?