New old amp day- 60s Traynor YBA-1

SongsForTheDeaf

New member
Traded my Hamer USA Sunburst for this head as I don't need another guitar and did need a powerful head for my stereo setup(to match my other Ampeg)

This thing is awesome...I had a 70s model before but it was more beatup and just didn't sound as good as this one.

Only played it clean at home so far with the volume up a bit(by that I mean just under 2) this thing is LOUD...It is one of the rarer Script logo YBA-1s from the 60s. It has been modded and serviced by the last owner and has a Larmar (sp?) master volume and is modded to take any similar tube to EL34s (6L6,KT66) It also has a modded bright channel.


Really loud though which is exactly what I needed....Apparently the last owner said he tested it with an attenuator with a JMP50 and a JTM45 clone and they both didn't light up as much as this YBA-1 did with the lightbulb power indicator on the attenuator.



10352606_10201681631161534_2406577391098197750_n.jpg
 
Last edited:
Re: New old amp day- 60s Traynor YBA-1

Very cool man. I've been keeping an eye out for those older Traynors for a while now. I had three of the newer ones (2-YCS100Hs, and a Custom Blue 50) and they were decent amps. But I've heard that the older Traynors are very comparable to JCM800s and/or plexis. Very cool... as those are the tones and simple circuits that I'm into these days.
 
Re: New old amp day- 60s Traynor YBA-1

Man...that is a nice amp. Some day Pete Traynors name will catch on like Jim Marshall did.
I would rather have the Traynor.
Do you have a tech.?
Boy...I would hate to see anything happen to that head. LOTS of guys have modded lots of amps over the years. Must be 50% of them were a nightmare.
Other than having 8 pins...the 34 is not like a L6 or 66. Just make sure "the last owner" really knew what he was doing in there.
good luck
 
Re: New old amp day- 60s Traynor YBA-1

Man...that is a nice amp. Some day Pete Traynors name will catch on like Jim Marshall did.
I would rather have the Traynor.
Do you have a tech.?
Boy...I would hate to see anything happen to that head. LOTS of guys have modded lots of amps over the years. Must be 50% of them were a nightmare.
Other than having 8 pins...the 34 is not like a L6 or 66. Just make sure "the last owner" really knew what he was doing in there.
good luck

Yeah he sent me schematics and pictures of inside before we traded. Looks pretty clean and works with no noise.

He himself works on amps but I think the LarMar Master volume mod was done by someone else as the tube thing done by another tech. It has a pot I believe for adjusting when using different tubes. But he did do the bright channel mod himself....I forget what he said but something about a cap but not completely removing it. With the master volume pot full up it takes it out of the circuit which is where I am going to leave it. I want loud and clean...

Here are some inside pics and the schematics if anyone was interested. Definitely holding onto this amp as it sounds good with my setup and the script logo YBAs are alot harder to come by.



$_203434.jpg

$_20343434343.jpg

unnamed4545.jpg

unnamed.jpg
 
Re: New old amp day- 60s Traynor YBA-1

With the master volume pot full up it takes it out of the circuit which is where I am going to leave it.

There is no master volume on this amp...each "channel" has its own volume. On the bright channel, when the volume is turned all the way up, the "bright cap" is effectively out of the circuit...this is how the amp is designed. The tech changed the value of the bright cap that affects the circuit, but left the original cap connected on one end so it could be reconnected to the circuit if you so choose.

Cool amp. Congrats.
 
Re: New old amp day- 60s Traynor YBA-1

There is no master volume on this amp...each "channel" has its own volume. On the bright channel, when the volume is turned all the way up, the "bright cap" is effectively out of the circuit...this is how the amp is designed. The tech changed the value of the bright cap that affects the circuit, but left the original cap connected on one end so it could be reconnected to the circuit if you so choose.

Cool amp. Congrats.

Ah ok thanks for the clarification on the bright cap. I admit I am not very tech savvy ...

There is a master volume knob on the back of the amp though where the ground switch used to be. I'm not going to even use it though
 
Back
Top