the Traynor YBA-200 thread

[Willem]

Hey Burning_sphere
you can get the traynor through thomann and other german online stores, and I know some people in Holland who have. So don't worry about the Voltage if you buy in Europe...
And as a matter of fact. One of those dutch people sold his 3pro after he got his Traynor.

 

[Burning_Sphere]

Thanks
But it's much cheaper to buy an amp in US and post it to Poland than buy it in EU really

If you say it sound so nice I think I should try one

greetz

 

[katzscratch]

'm interested in getting a YBA200 with the matching cab. However, the fact that it may be underpowered is kind of pushing me towards another amp (Fender Bassman 300).

How do you think it would fair with a JCM900 (4x10 stack) and an AC30? My two guitarists play loud and we have Animal on the drums. I currently have an Eden Traveler (300w) with an Ampeg 4x10 classic. I usually have to play with the gain and master volume at 3 O'clock to fit in.

Not only does the sound of this amp interest me, but it's so reasonably priced. However, I don't want to have an amp I need to replace in a few months because it's not loud enough. I'll be on the road gigging a lot at the end of this year and then probably back in the studio.

same situation here ... comments?

 

[Jeralya]

As far as volume, this thing can keep up with any setup IMO. Any venue too big for 200 watts is going to have a nice PA with subs IMO/IME. Change the preamp tubes to something low gain and it will be able to do even more.

 

[katzscratch]

So what do you Traynor fans think about this new Peavey VB2? This quote was taken from a Peavey thread: "Sounds like Peavey's come out with a YBA200 killer. This should be interesting and maybe drive the price down a bit! Yay for us!"

And it looks like they're even coming out with a 300 watt tube amp according to this Peavey NAMM video:


.. and BTW I'm not promoting Peavey at all .. I've been interested in picking up the YBA200 for some time, then I saw the Peavey VB2 so I'm just wondering how you think they might compare.

 

[peter G]

All you have to do is page threw a music123 catalog to realize tube heads are the hot ticket for guitar players.

I say good for peavey, bass players deserve choices also.

I bought the YBA instead of a V4BH because it was cheaper.

 

[Chef]

Peavey build quality is typically really high, but I'm usually not a first year buy in kinda guy.
The Traynor is a proven beat.
Not slammin' Peavey, just sayin'...

 

[katzscratch]

I'm in a three piece band that plays straight up LOUD rock AC/DC, MC5 type to Black Sabbath, Soundgarden sludge and I'm wondering if anyone can suggest a cab set-up to go along with the YBA that would fit the bill.

 

[tbone409]

www.drbasscabs.com

 

[Calaverasgrande]

the 300 watt peavey looks interesting. Its 300 watts with EL34's?! It only weighs 37 lbs. But a switchmode power suppply? C'mon, the MAGIC of the old Traynor YB1a and the SVT is the huge tranny!

 

[bassbmx]

I'd already swapped the stock tubes for two JJ's 12AX7's but I finally got around to swapping the #1 pre-amp tube for a JJ 12AT7 and it's made a world of difference. With the gain on 10 it now gives a nice gritty overdrive, instead of a not so usable (for me anyway) all out distortion. It has a better sounding mid range too.

JJ KT88's to come soon.

 

[slowneal]

Hi.... I liked my YBA200 only after I swapped the pre-amp tubes with JJs and or Tung-sols..... can use them in combination too... otherwise the highs were just ugly and offensive. swapped teh sovtek power tubes for winged Cs..... even better sound.....

I agree with another post that says it's your cab not your amp... admittedly for some reason I can't view your pics, so I don't know what cab you have.... but the mids I got out of my yba200 were very dependent upon the cab I was using.

I have to say... the YBA200 sounded great at band practice volumes, but in gigging situations, it farts out when you have to crank it.... I dunno, maybe I got a lemon. as well, I'm not happy with the bottom end out of it... it's not very tight.

I now use a YBA 3 custom special and that has all the balls the yba200 never had.... very full and rich.... but at low volumes, the yba 200 I think has better articulation and "jazziness" (with the tube swap..... without the tube swap, I don't think the yba200 is good for much)

 

[bassbmx]

JJ KT88's to come soon.

Just put them in this morning and it's made such a difference. Kinda like the pre-amp tubes, just more dramatic. The fattest lows, alost like there's a sub-octave thing going on. More mids and smoother highs. I've actually turned up the treble on the amp slightly as it's now much more manageable. I was looking at getting an MXR 10 band EQ but I think I'll hold off on getting it now.

KT88's seem sort out the problems that people have with this head; thin i the mids, brittle highs.

Overall, it's well worth the investment!!

 

[fish slapper]

Just picked up one of these babies second hand today.

Very excited with my first venture into all tube. I am carefully noting the tube swapping in this thread, although I am technically challenged so I might rely on one of the great amp techs here to do the dirty work.

 

[Passinwind]

Just picked up one of these babies second hand today.

Very excited with my first venture into all tube. I am carefully noting the tube swapping in this thread, although I am technically challenged so I might rely on one of the great amp techs here to do the dirty work.

4Mal has one coming in this week too Mark. More than likely I'll be popping the hood on that one, so I'll keep you in the loop as well.

 

[bassbmx]

There really isn't althing too technical at all about swapping tubes in this head, as long as you put the right ones in.

I'd seriously recommend JJ's throughout. Two 12AX7's or a 12AT7 & 12AX7 in the pre, leave the phase splitter tube, KT88's in the power section.

With two 12AX7's you can get some serious overdrive/distortion with the gain on 10. With a 12AT7 in the 1st position & the 12AX7 in the 2nd position I've found the gain to be far more useable. With gain on 10 it's still fairly clean, with a bit of grind.

Keep in mind I'm using a passive jazz into the passive (0db) input.

Hope that helps a little

 

[blowinblue]

I posted the following in the 'I think I may get a Traynor YBA200' topic. I thought it might be helpful if it was posted here as well:

Last year, after doing a lot of research, I bought a brand new Traynor YBA-200. Almost all reviews I read were glowing and it's weight was a reasonable 41 lbs. Its width was slightly narrower than my Aguilar GS-212 and Epi UL's, which were the cabs I planned to match it with. It was gonna be perfect!

Alas, it didn't work out like I was hoping. There were two problem areas. It just didn't have enough horsepower to keep up with our moderately loud blues trio. No matter how I adjusted things, there was just too much farting on the lowest notes...even with a 4-string. That issue I could have lived with. I was going to use it at home just for 'shedding and very low volume situations.

Here was the dealbreaker. No matter which of my cabinets (all 4 ohm) I paired it with, no matter which bass I used, no matter which room in my house or which rehearsal studio I was in...the note C# jumped out at me. Much louder than any other note. Proximity to walls and corners of rooms did not change things. This occurred with the rig in the middle of a room. Knob twiddling did not help. I thought about doing some tube-rolling but decided it was not worth the financial gamble. This was not a review period of a few days...this went on for 3 months.

I reluctantly sold it. I really wanted it to work out. Besides the fact that it was so cool to see those tubes glowing, no one likes to admit that they have made an incorrect buying decision. I had to admit that for me, it was not the right piece of gear. My bandmates finally asked me to stop bringing it to rehearsals. I was instructed to bring only my WT-400!

On the upside, build quality was good, tone controls were effective (except for the C# issue). Its overall sound could be described as open and airy, if a bit too bright. It painted a large sound picture (larger than my 400). But in a live band situation there was no comparison, to my ears. It just didn't have the commanding presence and ability to be heard in the mix like my 400. Considering all the positive reviews found here, on Harmony Central and BGRA.net, it sounds like my experience is a rare one. One that should be heard, nonetheless.

M. M.

 

[Hawkeye]

My YBA200 / Peavey 210 TVX is a very even sounding combo, no notes stick out more than others. I'm actually surprised at the balance across the strings that this combo gives me. I'm still working with the stock tubes.

The head / cab combination is a system. As a system it deserves to be matched together with care and attention. This holds true especially with heads and cabs from different manufacturers. Experimantation with a variety of cabs is the order of the day.

As for one note sticking out, could be a microphonic tube also. Tube rolling could have been just the thing to help you track down what that sympathetic resonance was.

 

[blowinblue]

Hawkeye wrote:

As for one note sticking out, could be a microphonic tube also. Tube rolling could have been just the thing to help you track down what that sympathetic resonance was.

You could be right, my friend. If the amp hadn't farted out on the lowest notes at the volume I needed to be at, I would have gone the tube-rolling route. As it was, it seemed moot at that point. It's a great amp for the money. Many folks love it, so I'm sure my experience is the exception. Rather than deter players from buying one, maybe my post will encourage those who run into that problem to be more patient than I was. There are moments when I wish I'd kept it. Hindsight...gotta love it!

M. M.

 

[4Mal]

Just picked up one of these babies second hand today.

Very excited with my first venture into all tube. I am carefully noting the tube swapping in this thread, although I am technically challenged so I might rely on one of the great amp techs here to do the dirty work.

Did you hit the one from Beaverton on CL ? I almost did but I was in process on SevenOrchids head up in the GFS.

We need to come up with matching cabinets so you can go scare someone with your DB and 400 watts of tube behind you ...