• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join freeLog in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Help Me Choose a Tube Head

I wish ashdown ctm’s would get more love and more people would try them and respond. And yes, it has a 2 ohm output, also.

I like Ashdown a lot and have always considered them atop my A list dream gear. Unfortunately, and more so fortunately, they never saturated the market to the point that one wound up in my sights.

Mesa and Ampeg advertising got them so much attention, accomplishing exactly what they set out to do... and at least in the case of Ampeg, ultimately led them to introduce a "crap" line for people with no interest other than to say I have an Ampeg. Markbass the same.

Ashdown stayed true to its roots, to my knowledge, and so while it kept its integrity, it never earned the popularity. I will some day have an Ashdownm, Layney, and Traynor, but... Having just spent 25 years chasing the SVT sound Mesa distinction, I'm just going to F*&$3ng buy them first so that I can finally get on with life!
 
  • Like
Reactions: BOOG
Never hear Traynor, but in my quest, it got massive love. In the other thread there's a sound comparison.

We're (Traynor) hit and miss in the states. We've always been available through certain dealers but never on the magnitude of Fender or (better example) Peavy. We used to have a stor (Long and McQuade) in New Jersey but that fell through in the 80s. FYI We have a distribution office in Niagara Falls and BTW we also O/O A.R.T. (based out of Rochester). I'm sure you can call our offices there and get a better handle on where YOU can check out the (my recommendation) our YBA200-2 or YBA300 All-Tube heads.

FYI I'm not a sales guy, I do the graphics for the products. Also, it's interesting to not how many bass players that have history embedded in Yorkville. The owner played bass (Jack Long plays trumpet primarily), the president of the company (Jack's son Steve) plays bass too (as do I - LOL). The company is still a privately held, family run operation... many on the people hear have been here a LONG time... I'm a young pup here, an employee for
Traynor.jpg
31 years LOL

Jb

Yorkville Sound USA
4625 Witmer Industrial Estates
Niagara Falls, NY
USA 14305
Phone (716) 297-2920
Fax (716) 297-3689
 
We're (Traynor) hit and miss in the states. We've always been available through certain dealers but never on the magnitude of Fender or (better example) Peavy. We used to have a stor (Long and McQuade) in New Jersey but that fell through in the 80s. FYI We have a distribution office in Niagara Falls and BTW we also O/O A.R.T. (based out of Rochester). I'm sure you can call our offices there and get a better handle on where YOU can check out the (my recommendation) our YBA200-2 or YBA300 All-Tube heads.

FYI I'm not a sales guy, I do the graphics for the products. Also, it's interesting to not how many bass players that have history embedded in Yorkville. The owner played bass (Jack Long plays trumpet primarily), the president of the company (Jack's son Steve) plays bass too (as do I - LOL). The company is still a privately held, family run operation... many on the people hear have been here a LONG time... I'm a young pup here, an employee forView attachment 2973677 31 years LOL

Jb

Yorkville Sound USA
4625 Witmer Industrial Estates
Niagara Falls, NY
USA 14305
Phone (716) 297-2920
Fax (716) 297-3689

Do you ever do business with Eastman machine in Buffalo? I have friends there, and we're all in graphics/ imaging.
 
Do you ever do business with Eastman machine in Buffalo? I have friends there, and we're all in graphics/ imaging.

Nope, or rather I should say that I don't know but probably not. We're a complete design and manufacturing facility here, wood shop, metal fabrication, circuit boards, assembly etc.

BTW I'm originally from Canarsie, Brooklyn... not too far off Atlantic City (LOL) Much of our family moved to Jersey in the 90s.
 
  • Like
Reactions: armyadarkness
Nope, or rather I should say that I don't know but probably not. We're a complete design and manufacturing facility here, wood shop, metal fabrication, circuit boards, assembly etc.

BTW I'm originally from Canarsie, Brooklyn... not too far off Atlantic City (LOL) Much of our family moved to Jersey in the 90s.
I'm from the North as well... Just played Brooklyn a few months back. Atlantic City is pure garbage, but property is large and cheap, neighbors are far away, and taxes are the lowest in Jersey, so it's great for music studios.

You can still buy a house with several acres here for less than $80k, and you're then 1 hour from NYC, Philly, Baltimore...
 
How does it sound compared to the Ampeg or Mess tube heads?

A bit more HI-FI than most (it's bright) but it's much more controllable due to the tweakable tone controls... you can easily dial in almost any sound you can think of. It's also got a passive tone stack which is very old school / vintage. One of my favorite features is the Resonance control, you can 'tweak' the damping factor of the amp to the particular speaker you're using (not just a switch like the SVT)... great for making your cab sound the way you want in the room you're in. The DI is sweet and with the tuner output you can actually tune on stage without sending any signal through the DI or speakers.
 
I owned a YBA-200 around 2005-2006. I wasn’t getting the volume I was expecting and sold it for a Sunn 300T. It was later that I found out that the Traynor has/had a Fender type tone stack. I was setting everything flat like an ampeg when I should have been 2-10-2 or something to that effect.

Granted, this was before I knew about different tone stacks and cabs...I used an Avatar 2x12 with it...probably not the ideal cab either. It was my first tube head and I had just joined Talkbass. I didn’t know anything about gear at that point. Was playing a new Ric at the time too. I had bought all this gear and I couldn’t figure out why it wasn’t all working out. My wife at the time was questioning why the new $1000 Ric sounded so weak compared to the Mexican Jazz I had previously. I didn’t know the answer and it was frustrating.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: GrapeBass
I owned a YBA-200 around 2005-2006. I wasn’t getting the volume I was expecting and sold it for a Sunn 300T. It was later that I found out that the Traynor has/had a Fender type tone stack. I was setting everything flat like an ampeg when I should have been 2-10-2 or something to that effect. Granted, this was before I knew about different tone stacks and cabs...I used an Avatar 2x12 with it...probably not the ideal cab.

I've NEVER had any issues with volume, in fact I've been told I'm too loud LOL.

Yeah, once you get used to the tone stack things begin to open up. It's a true all-tube amp and has it's own charm.

For some reason I've never liked the voicng on 12s... I like 10s, sealed 10s. I guess it's also to do with their reaction time and feel for the style of my particular playing. I typically use a sealed 410, a sealed 210 and/or a bass reflex 115. Many people like the way it sounds with the Traynor TC1510 (1x15 + 2x10 + horn).
 
  • Like
Reactions: Joshbazz
I agree. A ported 2x12 was not a good choice. I prefer sealed cabs as well, or did until I’ve started messing with these vintage JBL’s. I guess my point to the OP is that it’s 3 parts...bass, amp, cabinet.

I’m sure if I would had bought a 62 RI P instead of the Ric (same price at the time) and learned about the tone stack, I would have probably kept the Traynor. Live and learn!
 
  • Like
Reactions: GrapeBass
Out of curiosity, do you faithfully play a specific bass, and if so, have you made any changes to it in order to get as close as possible to the sound that you're after?

I ask, because when I was in your position many years ago, I bought a used P to operate and experiment on, and I was able to dramatically change it's tone into exactly what I wanted to hear. Ever since then, tone is much easier for me.

All amps and cabs are colored a bit, so by making my bass more transparent, I have greater flexibility when I get to the amp... At least that's how I'd describe it.

I'm curious if other have done the same
 
IMO experience, I have discovered broken in LaBella 760FS strings and a quality pickup in a Precision bass is what I want out of a bass. I used to avoid P basses because they seemed so boring looking. I started with Rickenbacker’s and then moved onto Jazz basses. Two of my earliest influences were Chris Squire and Berry Oakley. However, the Ric never fit the type of music I played with the band I was in - we certainly weren’t playing Yes songs in my outlaw country/southern rock band. I moved to a nice 62 RI Jazz after the Ric in 2006, and immediately noticed I was getting closer to the sound I was looking for. When I finally decided to try a Precision after reading on TB, I became hooked. I have bought several Jazzes since then because I love their tone was well (and other basses) but I always go back to the split-coil Precision.

I have owned several 70’s P’s and several AVRI P’s. Right now I am really loving my LPB American Original. I have thought about putting a Lollar in it, but I think I’m going to keep it stock for a while.

Long story short, I need a great feeling neck, broken in LaBellas, and a great pickup in my P into my Ampeg V4 or Sunn 200s to get my tone. Cabs are SVT210av’s and a Guild 1x15 loaded with a JBL d140. I have two k140’s waiting for cabs.
 
Out of curiosity, do you faithfully play a specific bass, and if so, have you made any changes to it in order to get as close as possible to the sound that you're after?

I ask, because when I was in your position many years ago, I bought a used P to operate and experiment on, and I was able to dramatically change it's tone into exactly what I wanted to hear. Ever since then, tone is much easier for me.

All amps and cabs are colored a bit, so by making my bass more transparent, I have greater flexibility when I get to the amp... At least that's how I'd describe it.

I'm curious if other have done the same
Yeah, I basically only play a Lakland DJ5 for everything. I'll occasionally play a MiM jazz and Cort A5. I'd like to get a PJ someday, but for now it's like 99% DJ5.
 
  • Like
Reactions: GregC
A bit more HI-FI than most (it's bright) but it's much more controllable due to the tweakable tone controls... you can easily dial in almost any sound you can think of. It's also got a passive tone stack which is very old school / vintage. One of my favorite features is the Resonance control, you can 'tweak' the damping factor of the amp to the particular speaker you're using (not just a switch like the SVT)... great for making your cab sound the way you want in the room you're in. The DI is sweet and with the tuner output you can actually tune on stage without sending any signal through the DI or speakers.
Sounds like it's closer to a Mesa than an Ampeg then, huh? Both use KT88's. Ultimately, I'd like to find something similar to the SVT with a tighter low end and better upper mid presence (and not 80lbs!)
 
  • Like
Reactions: GrapeBass
Sounds like it's closer to a Mesa than an Ampeg then, huh? Both use KT88's. Ultimately, I'd like to find something similar to the SVT with a tighter low end and better upper mid presence (and not 80lbs!)

Then check out the 6L6 YBA300 at 51 lbs. You can even remove half your tubes and it will still work! Traynor Amps
 
Sounds like it's closer to a Mesa than an Ampeg then, huh? Both use KT88's. Ultimately, I'd like to find something similar to the SVT with a tighter low end and better upper mid presence (and not 80lbs!)

Check out a Reeves or other Hiwatt-ish amp. Still have the scoopiness of the mesa, orange, etc, but a lot of gain in the high mids/high end and tighter bottom. Or a V4B if the SVT was too low mid heavy for you. Has the same flat tone stack as the SVT but a flatter overall voicing.