Princeton 650 Review

The 65-watt Princeton 650 gives you seven revolutionary timbre filters, including "Metal Drop Scoop," "Mid Squawk" and "Acoustic Scoop"; plus a digital chromatic tuner and FX select, FX level and time/rate controls.

Features:	9.3
Sound:	9.7
Reliability:	9.3
Impression:	8.7
Overall rating:	9.3
Users rating:	7.6
Comments:	9

overall: 10

Featured review by: unregistered, on july 04, 2006

Purchased from: Sam Ash

Features: The Fender Princeton 650 is a fairly new amplifier with multiple unique features. There are two channels, normal and drive. The amp is quiet enough for room practice, but can be made loud enough for a small concert. The effects are flat, bright, dark, deep, scoop, squawk, and can be set to sound like an acoustic guitar. You can set the FX level, and select the FX to reverb, chorus, flange, tremolo, vibe, and delay. They all provide excellent alteraion to the sound of the guitar. A tuner is built into the amp for convenience, and helps avoid the frustration of ripping your house apart looking for a tuner. The can come with an optional footswitch, and has a five year transferable warranty. I don't think that there is a headphone jack. // 10

Sound: The guitar styles that I use the Princeton 650 for ranges, but typically revolves around punk rock (Bad Religion, Pennywise, Social Distortion, etc). A lot of other times I'll play grunge like Nirvana. Sometimes I'll play reggae (Bob Marley), and funk rock like the Red Hot Chili Peppers. It works well with those types as well. The reverb, and chorus effects fit my punk rock style of music. The amp can be made noisy, but does not require noisiness to sound fantastic (you can put it on max volume, or level two volume and it will sound alike). It can be made noisy on any setting. The clean channel never distorts when it reaches high volumes, no matter what setting it's in. The amp can make sounds like the ones found in "Come As You Are", and can fade out. Other than my favorites, there are many other great effects. The brutality of the distortion depends entirely on what setting the drive is on. // 10

Reliability & Durability: The Fender Princeton 650 is a very dependable amp, and I would definitely use it in a gig with no backup. You can kick it over, jump on it, whatever, but it won't break. It has never broken down under any circumstance. // 10

Impression: As mentioned earlier, I play punk rock, and this amp matches every need perfectly from fading out, to reverb. I own two acoustic guitars, another amp, one electric guitar, and I have been playing for three years (I'm only 12). The people at SamAsh were friendly and told me everything I needed to know about this amp (you can demo it). I would never buy another amplifier until (if) I become a member of a major band, and are performing for twenty-thousand people. I would always keep my Princeton 650 amp, and because of its durability, I most likely won't have to buy another one. I love everything about from the features, to the effects, to all the timbres, and even the durability. I've compared this amplifier with smaller Fender amps, and a couple Crate amps. I've tried another giant Fender amp, and this one still wins. This is my idea of a perfected amp. // 10

overall: 9.5

Reviewed by: evo_intheband, on july 23, 2007

Price paid: $ 289

Purchased from: a local flea market

Features: I bought th Fender Princeton 650 today and have been jamming on it for about 7 hours straight. I like to play rock and this amp is useful for that. It has two different channels and I use the clean for when I hook up my acoustic. Now the drive channel lets you make your sound as heavy as you want it or even lets you play the blues. It has such settings as on board tuner, ex level, ex selection, and rate/time. It has reverb, delay, and five more settings. I use this amp at home for right now. I am going to start using it everywhere else. For 65W it does the job. // 10

Sound: I use Gibson Les Pauls (and some copies) with two humbucker pickups. The Fender Princeton 650 has the same sound quality on 10 as it has on 2 and even 1/2. The clean channel has a nice sound quality no distortion. I recommend using this amp for small venues and maybe even medium gigs. // 10

Reliability & Durability: I can depend on this amp anywhere I go. I would not use any other amp as a backup. I don't think I need anything but this amp for now. You can throw this amp through a window (not that you need to or even want to) and jump on it and it still won't break. Now maybe if you were 200lbs. + you would probably break it. I'm not saying to do all of this to check to see if I'm right or even to try to prove me wrong. This is a good amp all around. // 10

Impression: I have been playing guitar since I was 15. I own an acoustic guitar, a Harmony Strat, and I have a little bitty Stone amp. Now that one is for warming up and practicing on. The one effect I do wish this amp had was a wah effect. Man that would be great. Who knows maybe Fender is iventing a new amp with the wah feature the sounds exactly like the Princeton 650. // 8

overall: 8.3

Reviewed by: >>AlbiN<<, on november 06, 2006

Price paid: $ 408.09

Purchased from: Digital Village

Features: I purchased a Brand New amp (the Dyna-Touch III model is fairly new, as far as I'm aware), and it has all the features one would expect of a 21st Century amplifier: onboard tuner, a selection of effects, two channels with an optional footswitch, and an effects loop (the output of which can also be used as a line-out). The onboard effects are not necessary (although they are useful) and can't quite compete with effects pedals - however, for me they were a desirable feature on the amp in the short-term as my budget does not stretch to include buying hundreds of pedals at the moment. A solid-state combi in the range of 50-80 watts was what I was after, and this 65watt beauty fits the bill perfectly. Loud enough to fill small to medium-sized venues and affordable and portable enough for a small-time musician such as myself, in the grander scale of things the Princeton is a formidable amplifier. // 8

Sound: I chose a Fender amp because I use Fender (and Fender copy) guitars. My Pacifica (my main guitar) has two single-coils and a humbucker at the bridge - I tend to play using the middle or bridge pick-up. This amp brings out the deeper tones of the single-coils perfectly, and provides a crisper, biting sound at the bridge pick-up. Both channels are very adaptable, and the onboard reverb brings out the best sounds whether you want a deep, resonating clean tone, a squawking, screaming distorted tone or anything inbetween. The clean channel stays totally clean up to level 9 or so, and the distortion can be kept at a very low level to add a gentle, crisp bite to your sound. Depending on your guitar and leads, the amp may hum a little when the volume is up. However, I use shielded jack-leads and the amp is almost silent when not being played. // 9

Reliability & Durability: I have only had this amp for a week, and have played Live with it twice. As a new model I expect it to last for several years without any problems, and will be gigging without a backup. It is strong, sturdy and also small and portable, it will be a tricky amp to damage. // 8

Impression: I play everything from rock to funk to acoustic-based music and this amp has the diversity to fit with my styles. It is the best amp in its price range that I have ever played (I've been playing intensely for four years). The onboard tuner, the great range of sounds and EQ options are all brilliant, my only real frustration is that the footswitch isn't included! // 8

Comments

[i<3h]

yea, these things are tanks, i own one as well.

[Weybl Himself]

Fenders are some seriously underrated amps.

[Klayy]

"I don't think that there is a headphone jack."

Hm... maybe you should stop thinking and go look at the amp if the jack is there...

Other than that, nice review, helpful. I dont plan to buy an amp anytime soon, but it is a good thing to know about different amps.

[jasonkan]

i

[>>AlbiN<<]

RE: headphone jack - there is a line out which can be used with headphones, but it doesn't bypass the speaker. Hey, this ain't no practice amp.

Also, my review says that I paid £408? (or is that dollars?) - I paid £220 and that's what I wrote.

[Anchoret]

Fender's dumping these and Musician's Friend is selling them for $199.99, shipped. Unfortunately, they've received what -- for Musician's Friend customer ratings -- are really scathing reviews: Failures, high noise levels, etc., etc. This seems completely opposite to the reviews here. What gives?

[JulesZappa]

I don't know why anyone would say this failed them unless there was a horrible manufacturing incident. I've had my Princeton 650 For 2 years and its tremendous.

[evo_intheband]

this is the best amp ive used so far and its for shows. why would they add a headphone jack to it. it was made to be loud so let it be loud. great review though. ive notice the same exact things and i just bought mine today. i love it.

[GettintheLedout]

Ive had mine for a little over a year. its a very nice amp, but i would much rather a tube. the effects are great and the amp itself is very versatile, i have had no structural defects with it.