Fender Princeton Chorus DSP

Made in 2000, I bought this amp as my first guitar amp a little over a year ago (Christmas of 2001). It has amazing features. How could you ask for more? It sounds like you have 10 effects pedals hooked up to a Roland Jazz amp.

I have two guitars, a fender standard strat (mexican), and an epiphone les paul nuclear extreme. I mostly use the strat because I like the coil sound. I was into the whole heavey metal and grunge music in the begining, so I really didn't get to appreciate the wonderful sounds of this amp. Hey kids will be kids right? I ran a metal zone and got an okay sound. Not enough low end, but what can I expect from 2 10" speakers? The clean sound is amazing and is NO WAY distorted at high volumes. As for the distortion, it sounded bad, real bad. But its more of a jazzy distortion. Its not the amps fault, I just picked something that wasn't in my range of tone.

This thing is reliable. The only problem I had was in the begining, I couldn't get any special features to work. My guitar teacher fixed that in about a second. I giged a few times with it, and it worked. You can't use it in a big area becuase the sound isn't too loud. I would say 50 Fender watts equals to 25 Marshall, Crate, Laney, or any other loud amp watts. Still going way strong.

I never dealt with the company, but the guys at C&C in Hazleton, Pa are great. We gotta stop buying from magazines guys cause its our little shops that need the money. They are there when we need them, not a magazine. How would you feel if someone came into your shop asking you to fix their amp that they bought from a magazine?

I've been playing for a little over a year now and my music style has changed. I still like metal and all that but I appreciate a nice clean sound. My Fender sounds great. I have a crate half stack to jam out on, but when i record on my 8 track on clean parts, I use my Fender. I dont think I would buy this again if it was taken. I might buy a head of this type but just because I want to crank it. I just wish maybe it would have a differnt set of settings for the distorted channel. Those effects turned up high can make ear cracking feedback!

2001 Fender Princeton Chorus DSP. This amp gives a variety of wonderful clean tones, easy to set for smooth jazz and crunchy blues. Mosty, I play ambient rock sort of things (Police, Rush, Radiohead, etc.) which its well suited for. 50W from two 10" speakers is fine for most gigs I play (small to medium).

The two channels run through one Eq., which I was skeptic at first, but it works fine if you eq for the room and not the sound. The foot switch allows you to switch channels, as well as, toggle reverb/delay and toggle chorus/flange which makes me _really_ happy. Check out the "Sounds" section of this review for more on the great DSP. The foot switch is great -- I have complete control over the amp. I don't even need to run through any stompboxes or effects (except for a WahWah if you're into that).

This amp is super clean and clear, the drive channel will take a few moments to get the sound you want, but I've been able to get everything I want. There is this mid-boost button on the drive channel which I press from time to time but leave off for the most part.

This amp also lets you run through a stereo effect loop, which is a must for me.

Though I wish it had a headphone jack (hence my score of 9).

I run a 1991 Fender Strat Ultra with the now deprecated Fender Lace Sensors, this amp appears to love them and reproduces each pickup perfectly!

I play rather spacey, so sound and delay is what I need. I either need warm and thick (which it does by default), or tinny (I have to set the bass eq to 2-3).

The DSP is awesome. The Reverb lets you pick Room/Hall/Plate, as well has a Delay which moves from a slap-back to a full on delay! You get to control the delay time and the mix. The Chorus is thick and wide (you'll never go back to mono-psudo-stereo!) and you get to set the Mix, Speed (Rate), and Depth.

Amp hasn't been too noisy, but I don't turn up much (4-5 vol on the clean channel), I mic. the amp at medium gigs.

The amp is still rather new but shows no signs of failure. I've banged it against one to many door frames and it doesn't even show much of a scratch. And it's all solid-state...no moving parts generally means no failures.

Fender slaps a 5 year warrenty on the amp, but one year for the speakers. The warrenty is fully transferable if you sign your name and the new owner on your sales reciept.

Generally, the Fender people are as good as your local Fender repair dealer. In the past, they've been good people, but that could just be my local shop. Finding a Fender dealer is rather easy...just hit their web site.

I've been playing since 1989. I also run a Dean Markley pop-in pickup in a Martin 6 String and a Seagull 12 through this amp from time to time and it is fabulous.

I couldn't imagine owning any other amp right now. I looked at a handful of Fenders (30w DSP to a Stage 112 100w w/celestron 12") and several twin 12" Peavy and Epiphones. Honestly, I wasn't even planning on buying this amp (I was looking at the Princeton 65 DSP), but I plugged in to this one in the store for fun and realized the choice was obvious. It's such great amp. Compaired to the Princeton 65 DSP, the Chorus DSP is much more flexible.

2001 princeton chorus dsp ss amp, 2x25w 10", stereo chorus, flange,delay, reverb, distortion, fx loop, 3 button footswitch, etc. lots of features in this amp. only wish the delay was more usable. the chorus is awesome and very tweakable (unlike delay). this can get pretty loud with out sounding bad. no line out or headphone jack though.

i use a 72 thinline tele RI with wide range humbuckers thru it and it sounds amazing. very punchy on the bridge and very warm on the neck. i also play a homemade strat w/ a lace sensor silver at the neck and a duncan lil 59er at the bridge. the lil 59er wails with distortion on this amp. the dist. channel on this amp is very...harsh. its extremely digital sounding. not too usable. but i didnt buy it for that. as bad as it is distorted, it is a thousand times better clean. the most clean sounding amp you might ever hear, very bell like with my silver sensors.

love this amp

2001 Fender Ultimate Chorus DSP made in mexico. I used to own a Line6 AX2 which was flexible for me but I have decided that less is more. I play 80's Hair, Metal, Neo-Classical and Jazz. This amp covers them all.

The amp is 130 Watts (65 X 2) equipped with two (2) Fender custom designed speakers. Has two inputs, digital effects (Chorus, Delay, Flange, Reverb) and wheels. 2 channels with A midrange boost switch. A 3 button footswitch. The amp has enough power for the bedroom, den or small to medium sized gig.


No headphone jack or speaker out :( so I'll give features and 8.

First off, I immediately yanked the fender speakers out of the cab and put in two(2) celestion vintage 30's I had from a previous cab. WOW! I recommend this upgrade. This emphasizes the sound and pronounces the distortion edge. Also I just love the way the DYNA-TOUCH SS Distortion feedsback at the top, just like a pushed marshall. It's hard to describe this amp initially. I thought it was a one trick pony, but I was so wrong. This amp has multiple personalities. It can sound much like a Marshall, Soldano/5150. There is a mid-range boost switch, when pressed gives a little more gain that can push your solo over the top. I MUST EMPHASIZE THAT THIS AMP IS EXTREMELY CLEAR AND ARTICULATE. The notes are clear and distinguished and don't get lost in the mix.

I play a modified Fender strat S/S/S with dimarzio HS-3 (Bridge) and Virtual Vintage 2.1 (Neck and Middle). I get a "scrunchy" sustaining sound from the amp that is the sound that I desire. This amp has unbelievable sustain. I also play a Steinberger GM and a Peavey Wolfgang which sound awesome as well. I use a DOD overdrive pedal in front of the amp only when I play the Strat; the HS-3 is a low output pickup and I need a little more gain.

On the CLEAN Channel I was blown away by the clarity and headroom. When I added chorus, I got an angelic bell like sound that fender is famous for.

For months I snubbed this amp when I passed it at Sam Ash, because I owned a Line6 AX2. Little dd I know that these Solid State amps from fender sound a hell of alot better than anything else out there.

No need yet. Still under warranty though.

N/A

Very versitle amp that has a diverse tonal range. It's a great practice/gigging amp in my opinion because of superior OD and Clean channels and power.

I bought the amp at Guitar Center for $500. The amp's features create a wide range of sounds. It has two channels between clean and overdrive which can be activated with the included foot petal. In the overdrive there is a mid-range boost. The overdrive features a limiter and gain control to create a wide range of distortions.

The amp also has a digital signal processor for delay, reverb, chorus, flange effects. These effects can sometimes be used to create ambient clean tones, or glam rockesq sounds, but be careful cause the effects can sometimes be overbearing or annoying. These effects can also be activated with the included footpetal.

Overall the amp has a nice selection.

I play an American Standard Fender with a Seymour Duncan hot rails in the bridge position. Overall I can get nearly any sound I want within the range of a solid state amp. I cant get that warm bluesy sound like a tube, but for a solid the sounds are really good. The amp produces a low hum no matter what channel it's on.

I give the sound an 8 for one reason. The bass knob. When playing at practice or comfortable solo levels the bass must be turned down to a 2 or 3 otherwise the low E string roars and drowns out the other strings. To have a bassier sound I must also increase the volume and crank up the mid and high knobs in order to compensate for the bass sound.

With the bass at a 2 or 3 the amp sparkles.

I have only had it for a month.

5 year transferrable warranty.

The amp is only 25 watts on each speaker so the clean channel only gets so loud. The overdrive can get quite a bit louder. This amp could be used for small gigs for sure.

I really like this amp and do recommend it.

I bought this amp two years ago at Mars Music. It was a floor model. This is a very versatile amp, but that deos'nt affect me too much as all that I aspire to play is Metal. I would suppose the clean sound is as impressive as others here think it is , but I only go there to tune. It has no headphone jack and that is indeed a pity. Would'nt mind having a speaker out jack either. I dont use alot of the effects on this amp. I've got it set to a flange and big-room reverb and I have not touched those settings in a year. This amp stays mostly at the house and has very much more than enough power for the living room. It deos get loud, and my 8yr. old son runs for his room every time he sees me reaching for the volume knob.

I am playing an Epiphone Les Paul, 95 Gibson Les Paul, 81 Gibson Explorer thru this amp. Dimarzio Super Distortions are on all of those beasts. I've got the overdrive gain set at 9, and the presence set at +4. I am very satisfied with that sound at low volume. No limiting here, but I have the mid-boost button engaged. Once again, the amp has been set this way for at least a year. Now, it deos at times seem to be a bit noisy, but it turns out that might not be the amp. I've recently discovered that the hovel I reside in has no grounded outlets--just 3 prong wall outlets that have no ground wire hooked up at all. Because of this { I am convinced } I have changed speakers that I thought were blown. When it is clean it some times breaks up rather badly when I strike the srings in a ah....vigorous way. I intend to check that anomaly out with another Princeton Chorus DSP that a friend of mine owns, but I suspect it might be that grouding thing I mentioned above. The manual that came with it says it must be plugged into a grounded outlet. If that is the case then I am surprised that I have'nt blown it up yet.....

It seems to be very reliable. I mean, every time I turn it on it actually comes on. It has never broken down. I have encountered no anomalies while in operation, and if I was a gigging guitar player I would rely on it absolutely with no backup { who can afford one of those any way???? }.

I don't know about the warranty-- I forgot to send in my card. I don't have any idea about Fender's customer support either.

I've been doing this guitar thing since 1976 and I would rather not think of that in terms of actual years thank you. I grew up with a 1972 50 watt Marshall head and slant top cabinet, EH Electric Mistress, and a DOD 10 band E.Q. I have owned a Lab Series L7, and ran the same stomp devices thru it. In addition to the little Fender I own now another old Marshall 50 watt. A JMP going to a 2-12 cabinet which I overdrive with either a classic SansAmp or a very old Chandler Tube Driver I didnt know I had { it fell out of the closet, one day, and hit me on the head! }. Really I cant decide which one of those to use--they both have thier good and bad pointes. I dont have that problem with the Fender. It won't let me use either one! I had thought it would be nice to have a different type of distortion going thru it but every time I try to hook it all up I get way too much noise even using the clean channel. Could be my peculiar grounding problem again though....don't know yet. But I don't really need it. For me the Fender distorts & sustains just peachy all by itself. My only other possible complaint about this amp would be that it did not seem to have very much definition at band-jam volumes. I have only gotten to do this once with this amp, and I did not have any time to attempt to sculpt a high volume sound with it. In these reviews I have read of others describing the "Fender distortion" sound of this amp. I must say that if it had sounded anything at all like the Fender amps I had to play on in the late 70s {Twin Reverbs--the only other Fender experience I've had} I would have never bought it. Those things were impossible to get a tone out of. For a transitor amp, they got it right with this one. I am very pleased with it, and that is no small concession for someone who grew up with ancient Marshalls.

This solid state amp is brand new in 2001; made in Mexico; lists for $719 USD.

Here's the very impressive list of features:
* 2-10" Fender-branded speakers
* 2x25 watts for 50 watts in stereo
* 40lbs - light and portable
* mono and stereo effects loop (mounted on back, instead of front like its non-DSP predecessor)
* 3 button switch for overdrive/clean, reverb/delay, and chorus/flange
* clean and overdrive channels
* treble, bass, mid controls on each channel with mid-boost and limiter controls on the drive channel
* low impedance and high impedance inputs for gutiars with preamps and ormal guitars
* Rotary dials for DSP-based effects:
- Reverb/Delay:
: hall, room, plate with several flavors of each
: several types of delay
: several delay and reverb combinations
- Intensity control for reverb and delay
- Chorus (about 10 types) and flanger (4 types)
- Rate and depth controls for chorus/flanger
* Overdrive channel has gain and volume controls along with mid-boost and presence. All other EQ knobs are shared between the two channels.
* Blackface type cosmetics; blue sparkle grill cloth - very pretty amp

If you want separate EQ controls for each channel, you need to look at the Ultimate Chorus DSP amp (dual 12's, 2x65 watts, lots more money).

The PC-DSP has plenty of power for my hobbyist playing and i figure I'll be able to play small gigs with it. It's plenty loud enough and versatile enough to satisfy my urge for clean jazz and raucous Rock 'n Roll!

There are no preset programs and no way to save any - thank goodness!No programming - YES!

OK, if there was one feature I'd like to see on the amp is MIDI in/out - just for the future. If it had that, I'd give it a "11"!

So far, I've only played my Washburn HB-35S through it. I have a couple of deep body jazz archtops to try out as well, but for now I'm getting to know my new HB35 a little better.

I play jazz, blues, and rock and this amp is perfect for all 3 genres!

I like effects like chorus, reverb, and delay and prefer those effects be on-board as they just sound better to me when they are part of the amp's internal circuitry as opposed to an external $300 multi-FX box.

There is some very, very low level hiss that you can hear in a silent room when the amp is completely idle and you're not breathing too heavily :) Crank the overdrive and the hiss increases slightly, but certainly no more than any tube amp I've ever had!

*** REVERB *** The digital reverb on the PC-DSP is much better and offers way more variety than the long-tail, solid state, 3 spring reverb on the regular PC's. I know, I've owned both. In fact, it is better than any of that solid state Fender reverb that so many folks mistake for "classic Fender reverb" (which is tube-driven).

*** CHORUS *** The digital chorus on the PC-DSP is mroe versatile than that on the regular PC, but the regular PC's chorus is richer, but more one-dimensional. Still, you'll lvoe the PC-DSP's many varieties of chorus.

*** DELAY *** Excellent and many varieties.

*** FLANGER *** Eh, sounds liek wild chorus to me. In tandem with the overdrive channel, the flanger allows you to get glamour-rock tones! Nice! Without the overdrive and it's a bit much for me, but - hey - just dial the intensity back some and it sounds decent clean.

*** CLEAN CHANNEL ***
Very clean, jangly, expressive. The PC-DSP actually sounds better naked (no effects) outta the box than does the regular PC. I expect it will sound even better naked when those speakers break in. This channel is fine for jazz and clean rock or blues. Of course, with only 2x25 watts at your disposal, cranking the clean channel will only take you so far, so don't buy this amp hoping to play to a crowd of a thousand unless you mic it.

I had a 70's Super Reverb that sounded better naked and clean than the PC-DSP, but that's an all-tube amp with 4x10" speakers and essentially a one-trick pony (70 watter, clean all the way). That amp was the eptiome of clean tone and the PC-DSP and any other SS amp can't touch it for naked, clean tone.

*** OVERDRIVE CHANNEL ***
Excellent, especially with a touch of 'verb and chorus/flange. Without the effects, the OD is one-dimensional, just like a tube amp. Vary the gain and add in the ffects and most any tone is possible on the PC-DSP! OK, maybe not death metal, but I don't play that, so I don't care.

Compared to other SS amps, this baby gets a "10"!

If I was comparing just the clean tone to my ex-Super Reverb, the PC-DSP would get a 6-7. If I was comparing just the reverb between the PC-DSP and my ex-SR, the PC-DSP would get a 7.5-8.0.

Liking an all-in-one package, I had a yamaha DG80-112 digital modeling amp which won rave reviews everywhere. I couldn't find but one negative comment against the amp.

The PC-DSP kills the DG80-112 in the clean department! The PC-DSP kills the DG80 in the chorus and reverb department, too! The DG80 had more EQ controls like low and hi-mids which were quite nice and handy, but there wasn't a clean tone in that amp, though the effects-laden OD tones were nice.

My PC-DSP is replacing the DG80, no questions asked!

Remember, I'm giving this guy a "10" compared to other SS and many smaller tube amps, but not to vintage SR's, Vibroverbs and such which I had also considered, but when I thought about spending $800+ for a tube amp that would be heavy as heck and another $400 on a decent multi-FX pedal, I said, "forget it!".

I can grab my PC-DSP and go and get any sound I want, so why bother with other amps?

It's new for me, so I can't comment. If it is built anywhere as near as good as my 1988-91 ex-Fender red-knob Princeton Chorus, it'll be just fine. One thing, my ex-PC had all metal connectors, while my PC-DSP sports plastic ones.

Have not needed it with this amp.

I have been playing for about 10 years over the last 25 years, taking 15 years off to raise a family etc. I have recently owned Fender SR, PR-II, Super 60, Champ, PC, Stage 112-SE, 185, Yama DG80, Gibson Skylark, and a while lot of other stuff (see: http://www.geocities.com/oasysco/gearidx.htm ).

If I lost it, I'd get another one. It's the end of amp searching and ravenous gear consumption for me - I hope :) Now, I can get back into playing.

has all kinds of goodies....distortion, 2 chorus, flange, a million reverbs, delay.....2 inputs, footswitch

it makes my POS squire strat sound better. i won't say great because you can only do so much with a peice of junk, but for the price it is good. i think i actually like the amp distortion better than my boss sd-1. it also eliminates the need for my ice box

i have only had it for a short while, but from what i hear this thing is a beast

never dealt with them

i think this is a great second amp. i use it in the church band i am in and mike it, but it is plenty loud for smaller places. i've only been playing for about 5 years, but this amp is just the next logical step up in my gear. i would recomend it to any starters turned amatuer.(if you play christian or blues or classic rock and have some settings you wouldn't mind sharing please email me)

This is a 2000 model with a digital signal processor (hence DSP), high and low gain inputs, two channels (clean and fuzz), stereo and mono effects loops. It boasts 2x25 watts and has 2x10 speakers, and comes with a three button foot switch (channel, reverb/delay and chorus/flanger). The effects are a really neat feature, but they are not of the highest quality and I doubt they would be suitable for recording or serious live performances. It is great for a practice amp and can dial up many different sounds.

I use a wide variety of guitars including customized Yamaha Pacifica and Kramer Seven String, American Strat (stock) and Ibanez Studio (stock). This amp is solid state so it is very clear and quiet on the clean channels. I play everything from classical and jazz to speed metal and techno so one amp won't cut it for me, and I bought this amp as a practice amp mainly for the clean tones which are very nice and "fendery". The distortion is typical of fender solid states and not a marshal. One cool feature of this amp is boosting the gain on the distortion to about 8 with a good load of bass on the equalizer while at the same time setting the reverb channel to 10 on the smallest combination of delay and reverb. It sound just like standing outside a concert hall when a metal band is playing!
The distortion is a little noisy, but not more than one would expect, and the breaking up of the clean channel is very bluesy (and LOUD).

This amp was a floor model at guitar center and had bad connections somewhere, but imagine the abuse it gets there. The DSP probably makes it a little less sturdy compared with other amps, but overall it seems fairly solid.

As I said this amp was broken when I got it, so it was sent to Fender even before I could take it out of the shop. The guys at Fender take their time after what I've heard and I was told it would take from four to six weeks, but it came back after almost two, so I couldn't complain. Fender also has a good warranty covering almost all kinds of breakdown, except for that resulting from abuse or misuse, for five years.

I have been palying for seven years and have owned JCM800 head with 4x10 cabinet(still have it), crate stereo chorus of some kind (I hate the Crate sound, so I sold it), Valvestate 8080 (still have it), a roland of some kind (sold) and this one.
This beats any of the above mentioned amps in value (for 160 bucks!), but is not worth the street price of about 500. It is a great versatile practice amp and includes useable effects and it has the "glassy" sound of fender. It serves a purpose as a small jamming amp and my friends drool over it when I mention what paid for it. If I was rating this by the 500 price tag I would give it a 5, but for what I paid its 10, so that's the verdict.
If it was stolen and I could get it for less than 300 I would probably buy it again, but I would rather spend to hundred more than the 500 tag and get a DeVille tube amp.

BTW Feel free to email me if you have any questions.

?2000? Fender DSP, 2 channels, chorus/flange/delay/reverb... This is an incredibly versatile and dyanmic amp.
let's see
chorus 1,2
flange - I never use, but it's good
delay,a few kinds of reverb (plate,hall...)

2 inputs-jame with friends or plug in a mic

I'm playing a new US Telecaster, and I find the I can get good crunch around 4 or 3 on the gain. More would be too much more me and my psuedo blues bits, maybe 5 for punk and the presence up a little. It offers a lot of distrtion a low ass volumes...like less than 1. Not noisy. Has two inputs so I jam around with my friends or plug in a mic for a song and dance bit.

It's pretty loud, had a few noise complaints at home.

n/a - never had any problems ...but it IS my backup now, or If I jsut feel feel like messin around for a few hours later night.

n/a

Been playing for a few years, play punk and blues, like the amp for both of these. It could do a small gig. Give it an 8 only cause it's solid state, but it's excellent value. I was sure I was gonna sell it, but I like the Fender DSP too much to get rid of it!