BossAreaForum

Update on the FM 212R.

I've had it for a couple of weeks now and my thoughts are:

• Volume is hard to control - I will change the volume pot for a logarithmic one at some point for sure. You can live with it for sure, but it would be better changed.

• Clean tone is excellent. Doesn't have the tube nuances of a Twin, but it's not bad at all.

• The distortion isn't terrible, particularly if you drive it with an OD pedal. With a ³²OD in front of it with a the bass boosted the distortion is credible.

• The speakers are good. There are some reviews that hate the speakers, but they are Jensens and I've had a bunch of Jensens. These sound as good as any.

• The build quality is good. The same as any other Fender amp.

In summary - if you can find one for a good price (USD$150 or less?) I'd say it is a worthwhile addition to the stable.

A pic........

Awesome guitar/amp combination!

Pepe wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 23, 2021 12:39 pm

Awesome guitar/amp combination!

Triple lipstick twang...
.

Interesting thread and a good read. Nice score Laurie! and good rig Simon!

I love picking up usable cheap(er) gear that has a charm and practicality. 

My first series gigging amp back in the day was the Fender Princeton 65 solid state which I believe is the precursor too/similar to the FM212, but with a 1 x 12 and a basic set of DSP effects. 

At lower volumes with a telecaster the drive was actually pretty pleasant  and usable, additionally (and this surprised me as a pedal freak) the DSP effects were very good, though I never used them at the time, lacking the footswitch (and only one effect per time). Interestingly when ordered, three amps arrived at the same time! My father and I lined them up and chose the one that had a less fiercely bright, warmer tone, oddly they were all slightly different. Anyway I was stoked at the time with it, and enjoyed the fact that it was different from the usual Marshalls everybody used at t back then. The only snag I have is a wee knob popped off and I'd like to source a replacement. They are a little smaller than regular Fenders.
On another note we have a completely different line of Fender Solid State amps here in Japan, including "Stage", "Sidekick", solid stater "Bassman", many derived from Fender's acquisition of the ELK line and featuring tube preamps (even back in the mid 80s).  SOme do find there way to the US and other markets. I tested a $40 Sidekick 15 the other day and was surprised how it had that Fender tone, sort of Champ-ish.