Fender Princeton 65

Solid state 65 watts blah blah blah notin special

I like the sound of the clean channel its pretty decent for the price could use mid knob tho that would make it perfect cause it lacks some bottom end i have gigged with it and the only situation the lacking a bottom end became a problem was an outdoor gig ive used it in two other inside gigs of about 200-250 people and it was perfect it takes my boss ds1 and electro harmonix small clone reall well as were a fender fm100h half stack couldnt take the ds1 for ****

Its pretty reliable and ive thrashed it around pretty good knocking it over roughly treating it banging the guitar on it for feedback (i play grunge/alternative rock) the only time its failed was at the outdoor gig and that was a sound issue anyway this thing is built pretty well and ive managed to smash the input power permanently in the amp and i taped it and it works fine

I donno know

Its pretty good loud enough for band practicee and small gigs takes pedals well could use a little bit more of a bottom end

the amp i have was probably made around 2000. i use the gain channel most of the time, but the clean channel sounds great, too. i gig in small bars and cafes, with a small pedal chain, nothing fancy. there's a lot of power in this little guy. a small but mighty combo amp that has worn well during repeated use is all i need.

i use a mexi strat with fender 57/62 pick ups in the front and a jb humbucker. the jb and the 65 give me enough gain that i don't need any pedal distortion. tube amps sound perfect, but this solid state piece recreates that (sans modeling technology) without the tinny, artificial feel of most solid states.

so far so good and the little fella's taken a few bumps.

mexican made. i guess around 2000. enough power for a rock type bar setting. i think the best thing with this amp is the weight. you can actually take the bus to your gig.

i use it with a les paul and a tele. it's too bright and lacks a little warmth. i tune the treble down, and the bass way up... it is good for blues. but to play clear and warm latin and jazz it's not suitable. i never use the amp's distortion. on the clean channel this amp makes one sound only. that would be enough if it werent too bright. it is so bright and lacks a low end that if you are playing without the bass, you get very lonely.

it broke down twice on me. once during a gig, and once at home. the repair guy said it was because of bad electrical installation. but my other amps never had that problem when I used them at the same places. so i am not taking this to any other gig.

i've been playing for 15 years. and semi-professionally playing for the last 4 years. i may buy one which doesn't break down every other week. I have a laney tf200 and a marshall vs4280 which are built like tanks and also heavy as tanks, so i don't like taking them to shows and having back pains. i actually like this amp. i wish i could rely on it.

Typical Fender Princeton 65 from Musicians Friend, the solid state model that is a reissue of the original one.

Use an American Strat - initially the tonal qualities were great but over time deteriorated into common place - in one case the amp died. I bought two at once since I like the initial sound. But both did not hold up to light home playing as a practice amp and no abuse either. But sound was really good for blues etc, that Fender sparkle sound.

Bad, Both experienced problems within one year of home use. One crackle, smelled like smoke and died. The 2d one has an intermittent problem of cutting out all sound and is soon to die too. Would never buy again. Looking at the new Tweed Fender Blues Jr NOS now, but the one I got from Musicians Friend died the day it arrived (sounded like a crashing heliopter as I was playing and it too sound sounded great for 15 minutes). So reliabilty is NOT GOOD.

None. Have to get them repaired through 3rd party repairman at estimate of $200, very close to what each cost new. Never buy these again.

Been playing Fender amps and Strats for over 35 years and these amps have been the worst. My two 1965/66 Champs are still chugging great. I wish someone would steal them both! DON'T BUY THEM.

Basic Fender solid state amp, made in 2002 in Mexico. Channel 1 (clean) has volume, treble, and bass. Channel 2 has drive, volume,treble, mid, bass; reverb control works on both; channel switching button with foot switch; power amp in and out.
The amp accommodates my styles (blues, jazz, r&b) well.
I wish the foot switch would work on the reverb as well.

Nice clean sound from channel 1. It sounds great with all my guitars. With a little patience and tweaking I managed to get some great distorted sounds from the second channel.

I can't say yet. This is my first Fender solid state amp. The pots are made of cheap plastic. So be careful when taking off the control knobs.
I have 3 other Fender (tube) amps which are built more solidly. Other than tube replacements, I never had any problems.

Over the last 40 I played many different amps. I tried this amp out of curiosity and really liked it. For me, the discussion about tubes=great vs. solid state=crap is not an issue. If it is for you, I suggest to start again with an open mind and compare newer solid state amps with tube amps. (In a recent test, blindfolded listeners mistook some solid state amps for tube amps...)
I believe this amp is quite underrated. If you find one in good condition, grab it. It's a small amp with enough punch. When I need more, I use my Twin Reverb. Another reviewer (Charlitunaman2002) said it best:"For the price, this amp cannot be beat! It has it's limitations, but if you need an AC30 with an extra head or a Marshall stack, forget this combo. It is what it is, a SMALL combo with a lot of power..."

It's all there. Treble, bass and reverb. If you want more, buy stomp boxes, like the pros do

This amp is just what it says, an amp. It gives 65 watts of LOUD sound when needed and everything in between when needed. It may not have all the tone adjustments you want but it you are looking for a low priced, high quality amp to gig with or practice, this is it. It's a no nonsense amp. If you want modeling, go buy a modeling amp. If you want to play at a volume above your steroid addicted drummer, get something else. If you think it's needed to push this amp beyond what it can do, combo amps aren't for you. Pushing 65 watts through a 12" speaker is pushing it so don't get your panties in a bunch if it starts to clip too soon. Don't ***** if it doesn't perform like a Marshall stack. You WILL get exactly what you pay for.

It's a Fender. After the 3rd world war there will be cockroaches, Cher and Fender

Fender has a great way of making any customer feel like a red headed step child. They would rather not talk to anyone........ever, if they had their way. If they could, they would prefer to throw the product out of the front door and magically have the money show up in the bank. I get better customer service from a Tijuana street vendor.

For the price, this amp cannot be beat! It has it's limitations, but if you need an AC30 with an extra head or a Marshall stack, forget this combo. It is what it is, a SMALL combo with a lot of power

Pretty basic Fender amp. Clean has volume, treble, and bass. Distortion has volume, drive, treble, mid, bass. and of course classic spring reverb control.

Great stuff, right?

OK, first off, the distortion is good, but i dont use it. if im in th mood for a generic sound when screwing around i'll use it.

Now, where this amp truly shines is the clean. i only use the clean. i put it at about 7 1/2. wit the treble at about 6 1/2, and the bass at 7. i use humbucks so it's not to bright. very crunchy and punchy! which for a solid state amp, sounds pretty tube! i love this amp!

Princeton 65 > Electro Harmonix Pulsar > Electro Harmonix Big Muff Pi > Digitech Whammy WH-4 > Epiphone Dot Studio.

Very early White Stripes sounding set up. great stuff

One day i was playing and it was cutting on and off randomly and smoke starting pluming out of the back. scary huh? turned out the speaker was blown. GHEY. So i left it at a friends house. they got stoned and cut a whole in the grill cloth to get the speaker out (i know, WTF!?). This was before i owned it so i couldn't really do anything. So i offered my friends dad to buy the speaker-less, grill cloth-less Princeton 65 for 150$, knowing i could fix the little d00d up. I bought the standard fender design speaker from musicians friend for like 45 bucks and a 9 dollar sheet of fender grill cloth material. fixed it up, hand re-soldered leads.

before it was reliable, now it's more reliable than ever!

never talked to them. took matters into my own hands.
discontinued amp.

love this amp! i use the pre-out into a Fender 212R for live shows to make with the really loud.

I simply wanted and amp with more power than a practice amp, and at 65 watts, this little dude is plenty powerful. I also wanted an amp that sounded good with an acoustic guitar as well as electrics, and this amp sounds great with acoustics.

Very bright and clear. Very loud too. This amp does clean quite well, especially with single coil pickups. The drive channel is muddy though, but I don't intend to use it as I prefer outboard effects. The brightness is good for getting heard over bass and drums and should be evaluated in a band setting. Also a good amp for rhythm guitar.

Hard to say, but it's solid state and should work for years.

Fender has good customer support.

This is a good amp for people wanting a bright Strat or Tele sound. Great amp for acoustic guitars with piezzo pickups. Not good for distorted metal, etc.

Basic amp setup. Clean and Distortion Channels. Reverb 65 watts. Power amp in out (effects loop).

Great Clean sound. Sounds wonderful with a compressor. Gives it excellent country "chicken pickin". The distortion sound blew me away! This is the closest that I have ever got to the Van Halen sound on VanHalen 1. This amp is amazing. I have been playing for 25 years. I have owned several tube amps and this one sounds very "tubey". Put it this way, I bought 2 of them!

So Far So Good. Knobs are a little flimsy. I have to watch them when I am out gigging so I don't break one off.

Haven't used it , yet.

I will prob buy another one used if I come across one at a good deal. I really dig this amp.

Bought this new circa 1996, Fender Princeton 65 solid state amp. You've read the features here, basically a straightforward amp. This is a powerful 65 watt amp, and thats about the only positive with this particular amp.

Here is where this amp crumbles. If you like ear splitting highs with no definition, or muddy sounding ovedriven sounds where one can not recognize the difference between guitars despite dramatic tones and pickups, then this is your amp. The worst solid state amp I have ever owned--I have been playing 30+ years! I have played Les Paul Customs, Brian Moores, and Fender American strats--yeah, older pro that can afford this stuff-- and this thing makes them all sound like cheap guitars and crap. If you use an effect box or pedal, fuggetabout it, it gets even worse and muddier.

I have owned Peavey solid states, and a slew of others (kuztom, crate, marshall, older back you know) and none sound this bad even in the same price range. I even went to several music stores to see if maybe a got a bum deal or amp, but they all sounded the same way. They will neuter your humbucker, and make your single coil sound like an unrepentant red neck that does not know how to move the treble knob off of 10. Of course some people like those sounds...but not many.

I repeat, the worse sounding amp I have ever owned, dont be decieved by the fender logo, the speaker is a 'fender special' in these things and that means cheap, cheap, cheap. Try another solid state amp in the same price range such as peavey, custom, even crate, etc, and you will do better.

Unfortunately, too reliable to just give away, but will sell on ebay with an honest review. Treble, treble, and more treble with a paper sounding speaker.

Never contacted them

Absolutely abominable, I bought this thinking that a Fender could not be too bad...Dont buy this amp if you want even modestly decent sounds, but if your mother in law threatens to stay with you then by all means buy one. Also, for you teens, you can use this to defean yourself and thus never know what truly good sound is. A perfect amp for heavey metal hell, no one will even know what notes you are playing, and I kid you not.