Traynor 200 watts @ 4 & 8 ohms ?

[Bassist13]

I am currently upgrading my cab since I traded in my previous one, an Ampeg 1x15 svt for a homemade 4x10 which is now failing horribly... probably shouldnt have done that trade but.. life goes on. I'm purchasing an Ashdown 4x10t (8ohm) tomorrow for 600$. Im worried about lack of power with my head but it says it puts out 200 watts no matter which setting. To be more specific it is a traynor yba-1 200 tube head. Can someone please explain to me the easy technical understanding of this ? will I still get the same power or is this some technical mumbo/rating I dont get..

Cam

[billfitzmaurice]

Originally Posted by Bassist13

it says it puts out 200 watts no matter which setting. Can someone please explain to me the easy technical understanding of this ?

Tube amps can use multiple taps on the output transformer to allow the same power output with different impedance loads.

[rodl2005]

Thats right - it'll put out 200 w into 4 OR 8 ohms- YOU have to switch the impedance select switch on the rear of amp to MATCH the cab/s

So switch it to 8 ohms if U R using ONE 8 ohm cab- as in the ASDOWN 410 8 ohm. IF U add another 8 ohm 410 cab, then switch the impedance selector switch to 4 ohms-if USING Both cabs together.
That amp- I FIND - works real well & Should be loud enough for most situations- especially with enough speaker area- as a 4x10 or more.

Using a single 1x15 U MIGHT find it runs outta headroom, but when I've used it with a decent 410/610 or 215 I've always had enough clean(or dirty) volume outta her.

I LOVE my YBA200!!!!

[MIJ-VI]

Originally Posted by Bassist13

I am currently upgrading my cab since I traded in my previous one, an Ampeg 1x15 svt for a homemade 4x10 which is now failing horribly... probably shouldnt have done that trade but.. life goes on. I'm purchasing an Ashdown 4x10t (8ohm) tomorrow for 600$. Im worried about lack of power with my head but it says it puts out 200 watts no matter which setting. To be more specific it is a traynor yba-1 200 tube head. Can someone please explain to me the easy technical understanding of this ? will I still get the same power or is this some technical mumbo/rating I dont get..

Cam

Is your amp a YBA-1 (45 Watts RMS)...


...or a YBA200 (200 Watts RMS)...


...or a YBA200-2 (200 Watts RMS)?

[rodl2005]

GOOD POINT MIJ-VI

I think he's saying it's a YBA200 VERSION 1. BUT I totally understand what you're pointing out. What's that li'l 45w YBA-1 like?? Do you know?

I've got a YBA-200 version ONE & thankfully I've had NO problems with the biasing as of yet-touchwood.
I love it, myself. It's got plenty of headroom for most of our shows -especially thru a high sensitivity cab. I usually use a NV215 or 610. It does all I need. & at 1/2 the weight of my SVTII. woops - sorry to derail. out!

[Bassist13]

Sorry ya it's the yba 200. Didn't know that there was such a thing as the yba1. But I'm glad to hear I'll have enough headroom still. Would you guys consider the 410t to be a high sensitivity cab ?. But thanks again, this site never let's me down.

[MIJ-VI]

Originally Posted by rodl2005

GOOD POINT MIJ-VI

I think he's saying it's a YBA200 VERSION 1. BUT I totally understand what you're pointing out. What's that li'l 45w YBA-1 like?? Do you know?

I've got a YBA-200 version ONE & thankfully I've had NO problems with the biasing as of yet-touchwood.
I love it, myself. It's got plenty of headroom for most of our shows -especially thru a high sensitivity cab. I usually use a NV215 or 610. It does all I need. & at 1/2 the weight of my SVTII. woops - sorry to derail. out!

I last played through a YBA-1 (into a YC-610) in '75. I thought it sounded mediocre. In hindsight it didn't. My playing did.

I'd expect that paring a properly functioning YBA-1 to a fair-sized, efficient, modern cab (sans tweeters) would produce a big rock bass tone suitable for a static setup in a rehearsal space (it's heavy) or for gigging in small rock 'n' roll bars. (It's a lot of weight to schlep for a measly 45 Watts of head room though.)

In terms of power, features, weight, and Traynor's reputation, the YBA200/200-2 is the more practical gig choice in my view.

If you ever see a cheap YBA-1 out your way you may wish to snap it up for your guitarist in order to maintain a favourable 4 to 1 bass Watts ratio.

As for the YBA200's potentially dicey auto-bias? I believe that issue was clarified in the Yorkville/Traynor Club?! thread. Yeah it was. Here's the post.

[MIJ-VI]

Originally Posted by Bassist13

Sorry ya it's the yba 200. Didn't know that there was such a thing as the yba1. But I'm glad to hear I'll have enough headroom still. Would you guys consider the 410t to be a high sensitivity cab ?. But thanks again, this site never let's me down.

The YBA200 wins the Traynor bass amp beauty contest IMO.

If you haven't done so already you might want to download its Manual, Service Manual, and Quick Parts Guide to keep on file.

Do you have a spare set of new tubes? A good quality, matched set of power tubes is a must for use with the YBA200 due to its fussy auto-biasing circuit which can fail when forced to contend with mis-matched power tubes. One can also swap out the 12AX7 pre-amp tube in V1 (it's the 1st tube in the signal path--another reason to have all the manuals) for a 12AT7 whose relatively lower plate voltage will tame the initial gain stage of the YBA200/200-2's pre-amp yielding a modest increase in clean volume before the onset of distortion.

Caveat: Everything I've scribbled about the YBA200 here are things which I've read on TalkBass early last year back when I had an interest in getting one of these amps.

You can do a search for YBA200 in the Yorkville/Traynor Club?! thread for info on this stuff and then ask the folks who post there for additional details.

I'm not familiar with the cab you are looking at. Hopefully someone who is will chime in soon.

[WingKL]

Even if there was no impedance switch on the Traynor, it could still be making similar amounts of power at different speaker impedances. This is because it's a tube amp with a transformer output. The speaker impedance get's "reflected" back to the output tubes and the output tubes tend to be less sensitive (I think) to changes in impedance than solid state when it comes to output power since tubes themselves have high impedance. The only thing is you don't want to run a tube amp without a load since the transformer may not be able to handle the voltage spikes with no load.

[rodl2005]

Thanx for the reply re the YBA1, MIJ-VI. Yep- I used a properly matched set of KT88's & all's been fine. I love the YBA200- into a good cab- it's SWEET!! & not too heavy for a good tube amp!