Fender Princeton Reverb speaker choice?

**PAG** · 02-19-2025, 09:02 AM

Dear Gitterbug,
I was trying to answer the original question, where there was no mention of Alnico, and as I wrote, Fender never made one back then. For me – and I apologise for that – Princeton is a point to point wired amp, so Rivera era is the last one I'm including here. Of course, you can argue about this, but jc77's question also included an SF Princeton and it definitely hadn't been made with Alnico speaker (most of the time it was equipped with Oxford 10J4 or CTS 10 after BF era's Jensen C10R), for many reasons, both economic and constructional. Similarly, I wouldn't put a Ceramic speaker into my Vibro Champ, but that's really just my personal taste! As for the sensitivity, I completely agree. I would go in that direction too, which is why I suggested the Jupiter 10LC with its 99db, the MC (MA) serial has lower, medium high headroom. On the other hand I would be careful with the Ohm number, because the Princeton amplifiers that I know (BF, SF, II.) are working on 8 Ohm without exception.

**Jimmy Mack** · 02-19-2025, 05:53 PM

Yes you can use a 4 ohm spkr but you are risking not having enough resistance to the transformer and power tubes. Could be trouble at high volumes.
And... I bought a Weber A125 12" for my Princeton R II. Without a long break-in time, I didn't think it was a very strong choice for heavy use. I bought it to try and match a 1960 P12R I had in the amp. I was after an old 1950's tone and not considering heavy usage. It didn't fulfill my expectations, although advice I'd gotten on the internet pointed me in that direction. An A150 would probably be better.

**PAG** · 02-19-2025, 07:53 PM

Yes, C.J. from Weber Speakers specifically recommends the 150 series for this purpose.
Sure, but if you put a lower impedance speaker on the output (e.g., 4Ohm), it will reach its current limit before it reaches its voltage limit. So the sound will be distorted above that point (will be clipped). It is not the best way to achieve more clean headroom...

**PAG** · 05-03-2025, 02:13 PM

Originally Posted by omphalopsychos

I might have tested more speakers in princetons than 99% of guitar players.

Top:
- Jupiter Speakers - they have a lot of good ones with different characters, I think the 10SA and the M10C are best in a princeton. The 10SA gives it a slightly overdriven sound and feel due to the small alnico magnet. The M10C sounds like a vintage jensen C10N.

A lot of people recommend the a125 series from weber, but to me they sound nasal and sound nothing like a vintage Jensen. If you are looking for the Jensen vibe, Jupiter and even modern Jensens sound way closer.

What you wrote is interesting, it shows that in addition to objective opinions, the assessment of speakers is quite subjective. I bought a large-magnet Jupiter 12LC 50W speaker into my BF Princeton Amp precisely to have as much clear headroom as possible. As for the Weber, I recently finished my Vibro Champ project, where it was rebuilt in a new cabinet with a 10" speaker. I bought a Weber 10A125 for that – it is impossible to get a 4 Ohm Jupiter within the EU – which I'm very happy with. I consider the manufacturer's description to be accurate: "Bright, punchy, later/smooth breakup, aggressive, articulate, compressed/fattened at high volume", not nasal at all in the Vibro Champ. I should add that I have not tried it in my Princeton (which is 8 Ohm).