Amp Speaker Change Question

[Tiga]

Getting ready to start a thorough cleaning of a Fender Princeton 65 Solid State amp I picked up on the cheap a few weeks ago. A little messing around with I find the cleans pretty good overall but maybe a little bright/ice picky. Also the volume seems to go from nothing to screaming loud with barely a tweak.

If this seems to be continue after all the controls get cleaned I was thinking a trying a speaker swap. One question I have is if I replace the current 8 ohm Fender branded speaker with something that is 16 ohm - would that lower the volume of the amp? I would find this a good thing.

Second - Any budget friendly speakers you'd recommend trying in this amp?

Thanks all!

[jtcnj]

I dont think swapping speakers to a higher impedance is the answer for the volume thing.
It might but then you get into the whole impedance mismatch discussion.
A less efficient speaker would be a bit quieter, but I dont know if you will find the sensitivity spec. for the stock speaker.

Rolling back the guitar volume is worth a try, and also help tame some of the highs, unless you have treble bleeds

[mozz]

Since it's solid state, upping the impedance should put out lower watts. If that's going to make it quiet enough is really hard to say. You can put a 8 ohm or more resistor in series with the current speaker. That will be the easiest and cheapest way to make it quieter.

[Tiga]

Since it's solid state, upping the impedance should put out lower watts. If that's going to make it quiet enough is really hard to say. You can put a 8 ohm or more resistor in series with the current speaker. That will be the easiest and cheapest way to make it quieter.

That's a great idea and I'm sort of kicking myself for not thinking of it!

[andrewsrea]

+1 for @mozz .

The lower the ohms, the more current, watts and loudness. Solidstate can typically go as low as 4 ohms (2 ohms on specifically designed and built amps) and as high as 600 ohms, before causing trouble with the components.

If the tone of your speaker is good, then Mozz's fix is good. A single series resistor equivalent to your speaker ohms will still sound good. As you start adding more ohms in series, you'll start to notice a degradation in tone.

Weber speakers builds me dummy speakers which amplifiers think really are speakers, so no degradation of tone. You can get these in a variety of impedances, but you have to call and ask for them. Since I have mostly tube amps and even the best ones can only stand impedance mismatches of + or - 8 ohms, these 'speaker motors' are very useful for cutting volume.

If the current speaker isn't doing it for you, consider Warehouse Guitar Speakers (WGS), Weber Speakers and the typical Eminence and Celestion all make great sounding affordable speakers. I'd suggest doing your homework on Youtube and forums.

My advice is to get what you want vs. being thrifty with speakers. IMHO, a speaker swap is the one amp mod that makes the most drastic changes in tone. Don't mistake my advice as more $ = better as an inexpensive speaker can sound fantastic. My advice is more: find what you like and pay the lowest price you can for it vs. making substitution concessions.

[Tiga]

+1 for @mozz .

The lower the ohms, the more current, watts and loudness. Solidstate can typically go as low as 4 ohms (2 ohms on specifically designed and built amps) and as high as 600 ohms, before causing trouble with the components.

If the tone of your speaker is good, then Mozz's fix is good. A single series resistor equivalent to your speaker ohms will still sound good. As you start adding more ohms in series, you'll start to notice a degradation in tone.

Weber speakers builds me dummy speakers which amplifiers think really are speakers, so no degradation of tone. You can get these in a variety of impedances, but you have to call and ask for them. Since I have mostly tube amps and even the best ones can only stand impedance mismatches of + or - 8 ohms, these 'speaker motors' are very useful for cutting volume.

If the current speaker isn't doing it for you, consider Warehouse Guitar Speakers (WGS), Weber Speakers and the typical Eminence and Celestion all make great sounding affordable speakers. I'd suggest doing your homework on Youtube and forums.

My advice is to get what you want vs. being thrifty with speakers. IMHO, a speaker swap is the one amp mod that makes the most drastic changes in tone. Don't mistake my advice as more $ = better as an inexpensive speaker can sound fantastic. My advice is more: find what you like and pay the lowest price you can for it vs. making substitution concessions.

Great advice thank you. While still shopping around for speaker replacements I remembered I had an EQ pedal lying around and found that with a few tweaks I could make that amp sound a lot better. Using it's level control helps too.

[andrewsrea]

Great advice thank you. While still shopping around for speaker replacements I remembered I had an EQ pedal lying around and found that with a few tweaks I could make that amp sound a lot better. Using it's level control helps too.

The EQ pedal is one of the most underrated pedals. Smart move!

[redman]

My advice is to get what you want vs. being thrifty with speakers. IMHO, a speaker swap is the one amp mod that makes the most drastic changes in tone. Don't mistake my advice as more $ = better as an inexpensive speaker can sound fantastic. My advice is more: find what you like and pay the lowest price you can for it vs. making substitution concessions.

Very wise advice YODA (the Force is strong with this one).

[tlarson58]

I have a Princeton Reverb and was having the same ice pick-y issues. I was recommended a Cannibus Rex so I bought one and am very glad that I did. Got rid of the highs and smoothed everything out.

[Sinster]

Look at the Frequency response chart as well to check it characteristics.