I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

[SoCalSteve]

This month marks the 1 year point that I've had this amp and after a few tube/speaker swaps I think I've got it where I always wanted it. I've gone back and forth with the Vintage 30 and I've settled on the Eminence Wizard. It has alot more low end and smoother highs.

I think the biggest breakthrough came with a tube swap that I just did yesterday. I put JJ KT77's power tubes in but I think the most prominent change came with putting a lower gain JJ ECC832 in V1 (ECC83S in the other two). This amp has plenty of gain on tap and it was difficult to use the boost switch function with all but very low gain or it would just get overly compressed and muddy. Well with the lower gain ECC832 I now have an extremely useable lead/gain boost across the entire range of gain. Now it BOTH boosts the gain AND the volume with a stomp of the foot without getting muddy. AWESOME! Thanks to Bob at Eurotubes for suggesting this preamp tube.

 

[Closed Eye]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

Wait, changing the tubes on the 50Blue changes the gain output? Does it change the frequency range too? or is that the speaker? I need more bass!

I also thought the boost was useless until you just posted this.

Gimme links! Sound clips!

 

[Rainmaker]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

Thanks for the info SoCalSteve! I've been wanting a Traynor Blue for a long time and I'm wondering what I should do with it. Are there any other combinations you have tried which you can shed a bit of light on?

Can this new setup do vintage Priest?

 

[erikm5150]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

Good to hear this, SoCalSteve.
How does changing the power tubes from EL34's and KT77's affect the tone of the amp? Does it still retain that Marshall flavor?
Do you have any soundclips of the amp..

How does it take the crunch box?... and other pedals?
how's the FX loop? can a delay pedal "survive" in the FX loop?

i'm considering buying one, any feedback is greatly appreciated.

 

[SoCalSteve]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

To answer your questions, this tube combination is the best. I've tried the GT12AX7-M and 12AX7-C but I think putting the lower gain ECC832 in the first slot V1 is really the way to go. This is the Blues kit at www.eurotubes.com but with the KT77's instead of the EL34L's. The amp is less buzzy and more smooth but still kills in the gain department-I can actually use the boost now!

As for the Crunch Box, this is the only distortion pedal I've hung onto. I went through a Keeley DS-1, Keeley MT-2, Marshall Jackhammer, Tonebone Classic, Line 6 DM-4 (all through the clean channel) and the MI Audio Crunch Box just slays 'em all. It has the same character as the amp's crunch but with more of the plexi type clarity. I use it as sort of a third channel with the amp at a medium gain and the CB with more gain. For anyone considering a CB, Michael at MI Audio is revising them to make them brighter. Alot of people found it too dark-I use mine on the clean channel with the bright switch on and love the sound of it-I won't be having mine updated. I leave the bright switch on the clean channel with my humbucker equipped guitars so it is a non-issue.

I hope to get some gear to make soundclips soon.

 

[jzap]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

Hi all
I've just spent the last hour toying with my ycv50 that I've had for about a year. I ALMOST love this amp...but then again, will I absolutely love any amp?

I just did a tube swap in the preamp...all jj's (yes from eurotubes!)ecc83s
I had previously put some svetlana el34's in and have been happy so I kept them. After the preamp tube swap, this is what I found...the clean channel just jumped out at me, much fatter, rounder and compressed than before. Love it...

I didn't notice much of a change in the Overdrive channel. I have found this channel to get a bit harsh on the top...approaching brittle sounding. When I say brittle, I mean texture wise, not volume. It annoys me and I have to get rid of it, I just don't know what is causing it. Could it be the el34's breaking up that I'm hearing? As you can imagine, its driving me CRAZY! So now after reading this thread I'm thinking, "hmm, could it be the speaker?!" UGH! Will it ever end?!?

Jzap

 

[wixedmords]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

That's great SoCal,

It is a great feeling of acomplishment when you get an amp to where you are happy with it.

Enjoy.

 

[Hendrix95]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

Hi all
I've just spent the last hour toying with my ycv50 that I've had for about a year. I ALMOST love this amp...but then again, will I absolutely love any amp?

I just did a tube swap in the preamp...all jj's (yes from eurotubes!)ecc83s
I had previously put some svetlana el34's in and have been happy so I kept them. After the preamp tube swap, this is what I found...the clean channel just jumped out at me, much fatter, rounder and compressed than before. Love it...

I didn't notice much of a change in the Overdrive channel. I have found this channel to get a bit harsh on the top...approaching brittle sounding. When I say brittle, I mean texture wise, not volume. It annoys me and I have to get rid of it, I just don't know what is causing it. Could it be the el34's breaking up that I'm hearing? As you can imagine, its driving me CRAZY! So now after reading this thread I'm thinking, "hmm, could it be the speaker?!" UGH! Will it ever end?!?

Jzap

What are your settings? I don't have this problem at all. I think the gain sounds really smooth. Maybe something's wrong with it?

 

[jzap]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

Well, I think I figured it out...

while the amp definitely changes its tone character as I turn it up...(it does get a little brighter), I think the brittle sound I was hearing was actually string buzz. I just had a refret on my strat and the action was set a bit lower than it used to be. I tend to be a heavy hitter and I think the sound was just amplified string buzz. It may have been the strings hitting the frets but I think the strings were even hitting the pole pieces on my Texas Specials that I have in the neck/middle. If you know Texas Specials at all, you'll know that the middle pole pieces are raised much higher than the rest. SO THIS IS GOOD NEWS FOR ME BECAUSE I CAN FIX IT!

One other aspect of the amp I'm curious about: Some people have suggested to me in the past to turn the master volume all the way up, and adjust desired volume by the channel volume,

Others have said to turn the channel volume up all the way and adjust master to desired level,

still other use both, not turning one or the other up all the way.

Which approach do you think gives more preamp tube distortion, and which approach gives more power tube distortion? I've heard different responses from different people.

Thanks

 

[Hendrix95]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

The only way to get power tube breakup is to crank both, and that will be insanely loud. However, this amp gets most of its sound from the preamp and sounds really good at low volumes. Having the channel volume high and master low will produce all preamp distortion. I used an attenuator for a while with it and liked it, but ended up thinking that it sounded better without it.

Here's my current settings for the drive channel:

G 6.5 V 5.5 T 5.5 B 5.5 M 5.5 Master 3.5 Reverb 4

This will be still kinda loud, but not too bad for playing at home. I found that if you go higher than 7, the boost will have too much gain, but it works well where I have it. Also, if you have the master under around 3, it might start to sound too fizzy becuase you won't be pushing the speaker enough. I play mostly classic rock with it. Semi dirty rhythm and blues on the drive channel, heavy rhythm with the boost on and guitar vol on 7, leads guitar vol on 10 with boost on. I also like the clean channel alot too.

 

[jzap]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

Hendrix95,

Thanks for the iinfo. It gives me more to play with. Actually, at the moment I'm not using the boost. My current settings are (about):

Gain: all the way -I like this setting, but it makes the boost unusable.
volume: 12o
treble: 11:00
bass: 12:00
mid: 1:00
master about 12:00
These are "clock" settings, not clicks on the dial.
Clean channel is straight up on all.

I use the above settings with my trembucker'59 strat. For my Les Paul studio with stock pups, I have the gain channel straight up too.
I am happy with these settings BUT I can't use the boost. I'd like to try your appoach. It would be great to have a lower gain/crunch from the o/d channel, and also a heavier and usable tone with the boost. I hate volume changes when playing live, but turning the volume down on the guitar would work.

So now I'm excited to try this setup and I don't get out of work for another seven hours!

What type of guitar/pickups do you use with those settings?

Jzap

 

[Hendrix95]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

Jzap,

My settings were clicks on the dial, not o'clock, just to clarify. I've had this amp for a year and have had all sorts of different settings that I would change periodically. For a long time, I wasn't using the boost, for the same reason you stated. However, I really wanted to be able to use it, to have more tone options and realized that it doesn't sound too overbearing if you have the gain up around 12 o'clock-1:30.

I have JJ's in the preamp and the stock electro harmonix in the power section. I'm using either a stock strat or Heritage H-150 (les paul clone) with seth lovers. Since these are both lower output pups, the gain doesn't get too harsh.

I play mostly classic rock and British blues rock type stuff. I find that I don't have to change the eq at all when switching guitars, since everything's sort of neutral. The regular drive channel seems to work well for AC/DC type distortion and I can get a decent early Clapton sound when soloing with the boost on with a Les Paul. These settings may work for you, but you may have to tweak them, or prefer your original settings, but it's worth a try.

 

[Hendrix95]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

I forgot to mention. I usually end up playing rhythm with the boost on and guitar vol rolled back because I like the mid range crunch it has, but if I need a slightly cleaner sound, but still dirty, I'll keep the boost off and have my guitar vol all the way up. So, basically I can get 4 different sounds out of it.

 

[jzap]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

Hendrix95,
Sounds like you have a great setup. It sounds like we play similar stuff. I actually like having the flexibility to go from les paul to strat because they each have their own great distinct sounds, but the pickup volumes are so different, it does creat an issue. I'm experimenting with either a boost pedal for the strat. With my current setup- volume and tone wise, I use the les paul with no effects on O/D channel and Strat through a tubescreamer on the clean channel to get a nice crunch. I'll always have someting to play with or experiment with.

Have you played through an extension cab? If so what was your experience?
I'd like to get one and I'm wavering between the matching traynor 1x12 or actually purchasing a 2x12 cab so that I can use it with another guitar amp head that I'd llike to eventually get.

Jzap

 

[Hendrix95]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

I haven't tried it with an extension cab, but I've heard of people having good results. I ususally just plug straight in, but a clean boost does work well on the clean channel. I used one for a little while but then realized that I'm more of a no pedals kinda guy.

 

[jzap]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

Have you miked the ycv50 in a giging situation? If so, what is your experience with the v30 speaker? Do you mike straight on? Has it retained its smoothness? Once again, so many areas to tweak to make it perfect...I often drive myself crazy!

Jzap

 

[Hendrix95]

Re: I think I've finally got my Traynor YCV50Blue into it's sweet spot

I haven't gigged with it, but I have jammed with other musicians. I found the boost to be useful to cut through the mix because it adds alot of mids. I tried micing it a few times to record and it worked fine. If you find it getting too farty or booming, try tilting it back against the corner of a wall. (the power supply hooks up in the back, so you can't lean it straight against anything) I usually just leave it on the floor though, because I think my speaker has been broken in enough that it stays smooth. The tilting thing can help you hear yourself better in a live situation too. I did that for a while because you get better projection, but I just leave it on the floor now because it has more low end that way.