Some Traynor YGM-3 Guitarmate Questions

[dero]

Hey all,
new to the forum, Looks like a great place though!

I just dug out an old YGM-3 that I had almost entirely forgotten about.

It was missing tubes and a speaker (1x12), so I popped in some Hammond Tubes (4x12AX7, 2xEL84), and hooked it up to the 12" 8ohm Fender speaker from my 3 year old Fender Blues DeVille.

I am looking to play my Wurlitzer 200a through the Traynor. Everything seemed to operate fine but the sound was very "brash" or "harsh." Could this be something wrong with the amp, or are there any good mods or preferred tubes that might lend a more mellow, fender Twin-type sound to this amp?

I am good with solder and safety but my knowledge of theory is a bit lacking.

The schematic can be found here:
http://www.informatik.uni-bremen.de/...mate_ygm3a.pdf

thanks very much for any help! i just might have to start hanging around this place!

[Paul P]

Hammond tubes ?? If your amp is as old as the schematic you provided, 1973,
it may very well be in need of servicing. Some, if not most, of the capacitors,
especially the electrolytics, may have gone bad as they don't last forever.
You have the choice of taking it to a qualified person and have them put in
back in shape (quick, maybe expensive), or learning what needs doing and
doing it yourself (could take quite a while but would probably cost next to
nothing). If you search on "cap job" here and on the 'net you should find
lots of information.

Be aware that safety has a more important meaning around tube amps.
Voltages are over 400v DC. The AC in your wall will produce a mild tingle
compared to this. See the following for more info :

http://www.aikenamps.com/SafetyTips.html

That said I don't believe any of us have died from this (though maybe we
just aren't hearing any more from those that have ).

Welcome to the club,

Paul P

[Alex R]

Normally these have quite a lot of (rather boomy) bass, due partly to the closed-back cabinet. The tone controls have a huge sweep though, you might be able to dial up a better sound with them. IIRC if you turn them to zero there's no sound.

Otherwise it will need a closer look. People complain about the standard speaker in these but I think it sounds ok.