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Post by jdto on Apr 9, 2016 19:49:22 GMT
Well, thanks to some top-notch enabling by Colchar I am now the happy owner of a new Traynor YGL1 amp. I spent a couple of hours in the store trying different sounds and different guitars and this little amp sounds GOOD! I can't think of another in its price range that I would prefer and even more expensive ones were not as nice-sounding. I tried a H&K as well as a few of the Fenders and Marshalls that were nearby (some at more than double the price!) and I can say that, for my ears, this Traynor holds its own with the "big boys". Made in Canada, too, which appeals to the maple syrup pumping through my veins. I'll snap some pics when I get home from this eternal dance competition. Here's the spec sheet and a stock photo in the interim. 15 Watts • Cathode Bias Circuit Design • Hand Selected 12AX7 (x2) and EL84 (x2) Tubes • Celestion 12-inch Greenback Speaker • Gain, Bass, Middle, Treble, Volume and Reverb Controls • Ultra-Smooth Belton Digi-Log Reverb • Three Stage USA / Brit / Pure Mode Switch • Accepts Optional Two Button foot switch: o Switch 1 = 6dB Gain Boost o Switch 2 = Reverb Defeat • Series Effects loop • External Speaker Jack Output • Solid Plywood Cabinet Construction • Two Year Unlimited North American Warranty Specifications: • Type: Class A Tube Guitar Amplifier • Cabinet Impedance (Ohms): 8 • Power @ min. impedance (Watts): 15 • Speaker Configuration - LF (Size / Power): Single 12 inch Celestion Greenback • Inputs 1: • Channel 1 - Controls: Gain, Bass, Mid, Treble, Master, Reverb • Channel 1 - Switches: USA, Pure, Brit • Line Out (type / configuration): 1/4 inch TRS / Rear • Effects Loop / Location: Yes / Rear • Effects Footswitch / Function: Yes / Reverb Defeat / Boost • Internal Reverb / Effects: Digital Reverb • LED Indicators: Power • Dimensions (DWH, inches): 10 x 18 x 20 • Dimensions (DWH, cm): 25 x 47 x 51 • Weight (lbs / kg): 35 / 16
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Post by Colchar on Apr 9, 2016 21:39:46 GMT
I couldn't be happier for you and am glad that you liked it as much as I thought you would! Just wait until you get to run your SG through it
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Post by jdto on Apr 9, 2016 22:59:27 GMT
I'm already loving it even more after a few minutes of noodling here at home with the SG. Next I'm gonna pull out the Tele. I snapped a couple of crappy photos of her nestled into her corner. You'll note my fancy "amp stand" (aka. IKEA Lack table). The lighting sucks, but you get the idea.
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Post by Colchar on Apr 10, 2016 0:41:07 GMT
They keep changing the logo on the damned things! Mine is like yours but both bottom bars are silver.
Once the speaker on that breaks in the amp is going to sound even better than it already does.
I am really curious to see how you like the combination of the SG and the Pure mode on the amp. I think the two will sound killer together.
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Post by jdto on Apr 10, 2016 1:30:30 GMT
They keep changing the logo on the damned things! Mine is like yours but both bottom bars are silver. Once the speaker on that breaks in the amp is going to sound even better than it already does. I am really curious to see how you like the combination of the SG and the Pure mode on the amp. I think the two will sound killer together. It sounds pretty fat and raw, from the little I've been able to use it. I need more time with it, as I've been largely occupied with attending to the three-year-old's needs for the last couple of hours and now it's late for any volume. There are a lot of possibilities for sound from this little beastie.
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Post by Colchar on Apr 10, 2016 1:52:07 GMT
I am thinking that the Pure mode might be great for slide playing. Once I get the LP and set my Sheraton up for slide I will give it a whirl.
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Post by jdto on Apr 10, 2016 3:28:33 GMT
I just noodled around a bit on the Tele at low volume. Wow, this is sweet. You're right that there's something about the tube amp sound. This Tele sounds great, ceramic pickups and all. I was considering going for some Texas Specials or maybe a TV Jones Classic in the neck, but I think I'll continue to explore these with this new amp. USA mode and a Tele makes some beautiful noise.
Pure mode for some slide sounds like fun. I look forward to hearing how it does for you.
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Post by Sinster on Apr 10, 2016 3:31:33 GMT
Nice!
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Post by Donal on Apr 10, 2016 4:33:29 GMT
Congrats Never heard of them until you guys started chatting about them
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Post by Colchar on Apr 10, 2016 5:21:37 GMT
Congrats Never heard of them until you guys started chatting about them Traynors are a Canadian manufacturer and their amps are built like freakin' tanks. Back in the '60s their first amps were copies of the Fender Bassman, just like the first Marshalls. They were so close, in fact, that vintage ones can be modded to JTM45 specs with just a couple of minor component changes. Their downfall at the time was shitty speakers. Vintage ones are rising in price lately as people realize that they are desirable. The YGL1 that we have is a reissue of one of their vintage GuitarMate amps. A couple of years ago they released reissues of the the YGL1 (15 watts), YGL2 (30 watts), and YGM3 (about 20 watts) as well as one of their YBA heads (40 watts scalable down to 0.1 watts). Unlike many reissues from other manufacturers, they went so far as to source the grill cloth, etc. from the original suppliers. The YGM3 is hand wired and the transformers are made by the original supplier according to the original specs. I believe that it might be the same deal with the transformers in the others. According to their website, the YGL1 and YGL2 are hand built but, unlike the YGM3, they are not hand wired so there is a circuit board in there. All of them are excellent amps. The YGL1, YGL2, and YBA head incorporate vintage features with a couple of modern additions. The YGM3 is built to the same specs as the originals. I had one briefly, a great amp but moronically loud (just like vintage Traynors) so I took it back and opted for the YGL1 which is much more manageable for a home player. Traynors last forever and they also have the best warranty in the business - two years 'even if you break it' (ie. you can pull a Pete Townshend and they will repair it under warranty) on the amp, and ten years on the cabinet.
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Post by Donal on Apr 10, 2016 7:38:15 GMT
Congrats Never heard of them until you guys started chatting about them Traynors are a Canadian manufacturer and their amps are built like freakin' tanks. Back in the '60s their first amps were copies of the Fender Bassman, just like the first Marshalls. They were so close, in fact, that vintage ones can be modded to JTM45 specs with just a couple of minor component changes. Their downfall at the time was shitty speakers. Vintage ones are rising in price lately as people realize that they are desirable. The YGL1 that we have is a reissue of one of their vintage GuitarMate amps. A couple of years ago they released reissues of the the YGL1 (15 watts), YGL2 (30 watts), and YGM3 (about 20 watts) as well as one of their YBA heads (40 watts scalable down to 0.1 watts). Unlike many reissues from other manufacturers, they went so far as to source the grill cloth, etc. from the original suppliers. The YGM3 is hand wired and the transformers are made by the original supplier according to the original specs. I believe that it might be the same deal with the transformers in the others. According to their website, the YGL1 and YGL2 are hand built but, unlike the YGM3, they are not hand wired so there is a circuit board in there. All of them are excellent amps. The YGL1, YGL2, and YBA head incorporate vintage features with a couple of modern additions. The YGM3 is built to the same specs as the originals. I had one briefly, a great amp but moronically loud (just like vintage Traynors) so I took it back and opted for the YGL1 which is much more manageable for a home player. Traynors last forever and they also have the best warranty in the business - two years 'even if you break it' (ie. you can pull a Pete Townshend and they will repair it under warranty) on the amp, and ten years on the cabinet. They don't seem to have many distributors in Europe and none in the countries I hand around. Must keep my eyes open just in case one would crop up anywhere
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Post by Maxwell on Apr 10, 2016 15:20:58 GMT
Damn you two... Got me itching for one... I'm sitting in my recliner looking right at my Blackstar Studio combo and my old ass oak & cane Legend A30, have amps in my music room, and now I want a Traynor... Damn you two...
My brother's shop in the 70's carried Traynors... I worked there after school and in the summer... He and his partner would leave me with the shop and I had big fun playing through them... My bro had a big bass head, and both guitarists in his band bought Traynors... We sold a bunch of em once folks played 'em...
Traynor's old Twin from the early 70's was like nuclear bbq... Loud as hell but oh so good.
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Post by jdto on Apr 10, 2016 15:42:57 GMT
I have to say, I was keen on a Princeton, which does sound very good, but after some time with the YGL1 in the store, well, you see the result here.
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Post by Colchar on Apr 10, 2016 16:17:17 GMT
They don't seem to have many distributors in Europe and none in the countries I hand around. Must keep my eyes open just in case one would crop up anywhere Contact your local distributor and they will be able to tell you which stores carry them: traynoramps.com/dealers/international_distributorsPete Traynor was originally a tech working at the first Long & McQuade store. They rented out amps (rentals of every piece of gear they sell is still a huge part of L&M's business) but found that Fenders and Marshalls kept breaking down. Pete told Jack Long that he could design an amp that kept working. Once he did, they went into business together. Back then, when they would design an amp they would take one of the first ones made to the roof of the store and throw it off. They would then clean up the broken glass from the tubes, put new tubes in, and if the amp still worked it went into production (Vox apparently did something similar by chucking their amps down a concrete staircase). This practice continued when they moved to a larger production facility and the amp drop area is still sectioned off in their parking lot to this day. If you hear someone talking about how Traynor amps are bulletproof, this is why. I highly doubt they continue that practice today but their quality is still top notch and, as I have mentioned, they also offer the best warranty in the business and will repair an amp under warranty even if you broke it. In other words, not only do we guarantee our workmanship but we will also cover your own recklessness. What other company does that?
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Post by Colchar on Apr 10, 2016 16:18:44 GMT
Damn you two... Got me itching for one... I'm sitting in my recliner looking right at my Blackstar Studio combo and my old ass oak & cane Legend A30, have amps in my music room, and now I want a Traynor... Damn you two... My brother's shop in the 70's carried Traynors... I worked there after school and in the summer... He and his partner would leave me with the shop and I had big fun playing through them... My bro had a big bass head, and both guitarists in his band bought Traynors... We sold a bunch of em once folks played 'em... Traynor's old Twin from the early 70's was like nuclear bbq... Loud as hell but oh so good. You've played plenty of them and know how good Traynor's can be! And yeah, their version of the Twin was loud as all hell. Just insane. Actually all vintage Traynors were loud as hell because they used such huge transformers. Those things were freaking massive. They are also the reason that you didn't have to worry much about speaker impedance because they were so over specc'd that they could handle any damned thing you threw at them without so much as noticing that something wasn't quite the way it was supposed to be. It is also funny that so many of their amps were made to directly compete with Fender's offerings with amps such as the YGM being a direct competitor for the Deluxe Reverb and the original Guitarmates (what the vintage YGLs are known as when they were designated as YGMs) being competitors for the Princeton. That still continues today with the YCV40, for example, being Traynor's answer to the Hot Rod Deluxe. They never got their due, mainly because they used shitty Marsland speakers back then. But people who are familiar with gear know how good they are. Part of their problem here in Canada, especially in the Toronto area, is that everyone had a small Traynor as their first amp or had a Traynor at some point. Many of them had those when Traynor went through a solid state phase and put out amps that weren't very good (although their more recent solid state amps, the Dynagain series, were excellent for inexpensive solid state amps). Their early experiences soured people on them but many have come back to the brand in later years as they got over their preconceived notions and figured out just how good they are. Many younger players, who never had their opinions soured, buy them as they are priced very reasonably and thus make a great first tube amp for many people.
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Post by Colchar on Apr 10, 2016 16:19:30 GMT
I have to say, I was keen on a Princeton, which does sound very good, but after some time with the YGL1 in the store, well, you see the result here. Would you agree with my assessment that the USA setting can cover most of the territory that a Princeton or a Deluxe can cover? Or am I slightly off in thinking that?
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Post by jdto on Apr 10, 2016 17:35:58 GMT
I have to say, I was keen on a Princeton, which does sound very good, but after some time with the YGL1 in the store, well, you see the result here. Would you agree with my assessment that the USA setting can cover most of the territory that a Princeton or a Deluxe can cover? Or am I slightly off in thinking that? I got what I wanted out of it, so on that front, I agree. It's not a direct match replacement, but it's most definitely a very good alternative. It can cover similar ground, but it sounds damn good in its own right.
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Post by Colchar on Apr 15, 2016 2:39:33 GMT
How are you liking the amp now that you've had a few more days with it? Then again, that might be a silly question as you will still be in the honeymoon phase.
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Post by jdto on Apr 15, 2016 12:48:56 GMT
How are you liking the amp now that you've had a few more days with it? Then again, that might be a silly question as you will still be in the honeymoon phase. I think it's great, but I will have a chance to crank it a bit once my brother sets up his place with his music room. So far, in my apartment, I've enjoyed the sounds I'm getting, but I know there's more in there. And yes, we're still in the honeymoon phase.
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Post by Colchar on May 21, 2016 2:24:11 GMT
So what are our thoughts on the amp now? Or has your medical issue interfered with your playing lately (I'm hoping that it hasn't)?
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Post by Catfish on May 21, 2016 14:59:47 GMT
Sweet amp, grats!
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Post by jdto on May 21, 2016 15:46:50 GMT
So what are our thoughts on the amp now? Or has your medical issue interfered with your playing lately (I'm hoping that it hasn't)? Unfortunately, I have barely played a note in the last month. The pain is getting better, but it's still going be some time before I can play. I've changed my mechanics for using a keyboard to relieve pressure on the ulnar side of my hands, so hopefully things recover more quickly now. I am doing some exercises and also resting and icing as much as possible. Hell, I've even decided to cut down on booze to speed the healing process, so you know I'm desperate!
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Post by Colchar on May 21, 2016 18:11:12 GMT
So what are our thoughts on the amp now? Or has your medical issue interfered with your playing lately (I'm hoping that it hasn't)? Unfortunately, I have barely played a note in the last month. The pain is getting better, but it's still going be some time before I can play. I've changed my mechanics for using a keyboard to relieve pressure on the ulnar side of my hands, so hopefully things recover more quickly now. I am doing some exercises and also resting and icing as much as possible. Hell, I've even decided to cut down on booze to speed the healing process, so you know I'm desperate! That sucks, sorry to hear that. I gave my right wrist a rest by not using a pick for a good while and it seems to have helped. Hopefully you'll get more relief too.
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Post by Bill h on May 21, 2016 18:52:35 GMT
So what are our thoughts on the amp now? Or has your medical issue interfered with your playing lately (I'm hoping that it hasn't)? Unfortunately, I have barely played a note in the last month. The pain is getting better, but it's still going be some time before I can play. I've changed my mechanics for using a keyboard to relieve pressure on the ulnar side of my hands, so hopefully things recover more quickly now. I am doing some exercises and also resting and icing as much as possible. Hell, I've even decided to cut down on booze to speed the healing process, so you know I'm desperate! Wow, that's just awful man. I went thru something similar years ago so I can relate. I know you've posted a few times about it so I might have missed it but have you thought about seeing a specialist? Anyway, hope you figure out a way to deal with it.
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Post by jdto on May 21, 2016 19:21:45 GMT
Unfortunately, I have barely played a note in the last month. The pain is getting better, but it's still going be some time before I can play. I've changed my mechanics for using a keyboard to relieve pressure on the ulnar side of my hands, so hopefully things recover more quickly now. I am doing some exercises and also resting and icing as much as possible. Hell, I've even decided to cut down on booze to speed the healing process, so you know I'm desperate! Wow, that's just awful man. I went thru something similar years ago so I can relate. I know you've posted a few times about it so I might have missed it but have you thought about seeing a specialist? Anyway, hope you figure out a way to deal with it. I have been and it's helping, but the best solution right now is rest and healing.
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Post by Bill h on May 21, 2016 19:39:47 GMT
Wow, that's just awful man. I went thru something similar years ago so I can relate. I know you've posted a few times about it so I might have missed it but have you thought about seeing a specialist? Anyway, hope you figure out a way to deal with it. I have been and it's helping, but the best solution right now is rest and healing. If you know it is something that will resolve itself in time you can take comfort in that. I know it just sucks know matter how you deal with it.
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Post by jdto on May 21, 2016 23:12:49 GMT
I have been and it's helping, but the best solution right now is rest and healing. If you know it is something that will resolve itself in time you can take comfort in that. I know it just sucks know matter how you deal with it. Right now, I don't know if it will or how long it will take. It's a wait and see. I am going to call my doctor on Tuesday and see if he can get me in to see a proper hand specialist, rather than just physical therapy. While the day to day pain is a bit better, I still get pain for dumb things that seem like they set me back, especially on the left, to square one or close enough. That's no way to heal.
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Post by Colchar on May 21, 2016 23:24:29 GMT
Wow, that's just awful man. I went thru something similar years ago so I can relate. I know you've posted a few times about it so I might have missed it but have you thought about seeing a specialist? Anyway, hope you figure out a way to deal with it. I have been and it's helping, but the best solution right now is rest and healing. Exactly. It sucks, but the pain is your body sending you a message and that is a message best heeded. Take it from someone who ignored his own body's messages a couple of years ago and made a serious health issue much, much worse - when your body speaks, listen!
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Post by Colchar on May 21, 2016 23:27:06 GMT
If you know it is something that will resolve itself in time you can take comfort in that. I know it just sucks know matter how you deal with it. Right now, I don't know if it will or how long it will take. It's a wait and see. I am going to call my doctor on Tuesday and see if he can get me in to see a proper hand specialist, rather than just physical therapy. While the day to day pain is a bit better, I still get pain for dumb things that seem like they set me back, especially on the left, to square one or close enough. That's no way to heal. Everyday things can be the worst because you do them unconsciously so, even though you are aware of your limitations, you really can't stop yourself from doing more damage.
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Post by Maxwell on May 22, 2016 0:15:03 GMT
Get better jd!
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