Traynor YGM-3 design issues?

[galaxiex]

Yep. And also that you removed the permanent "presence on ten" cap. Flip that switch much? Or does it just pretty much live in the no NFB position

Ya, you nailed it, pretty much lives in the no FB position.

[The Dude]

Yeah.. the circuit looks so much more similar to a Plexi.. what was I thinking. Ok yes a different EQ design and PI differences but the final sound is in the same ballpark. That amp was designed to compete against Princetons and Deluxes and did just that since day one. Ask any sellers in music stores, even the reissues are competing with same Fender reissues as 50 years ago.

Really? You're gonne give me a thumbs down? I'm not sure why. My post was not a personal attack on you. I simply stated this amp wasn't anything like a DR. Now you bring up the Plexi? Look, it doesn't have to be a clone of or similar to anything. It's not a Marshall. It's not a Fender. It's a Traynor. Regardless and again, I was not personally attacking you. I was simply stating my opinion. If you're opinion differs from mine- fine. I don't see any reason to hit the thumbs down because we disagree. For the record, you won't have to worry about me commenting on your posts any more thanks to the ignore user list.

[Leo_Gnardo]

It's not a Marshall. It's not a Fender it's a Traynor.

That EQ section is Ampeg. What it is, is a mutt. A lovable mutt. IMHO Pete Traynor hooked up a little bit of this to a little bit of that. Room for improvement thru mods if you dare. Def not worth a thumbsdown.

[Chuck H]

Pete Traynor hooked up a little bit of this to a little bit of that. Room for improvement thru mods if you dare.

My Bassmaster was the one with four inputs across the front panel. Not even one most people adore and I have to say it didn't need a thing changed. Fair to say that the Traynors have been popular mod platforms, but I think part of the reason is that no one feels like they're drilling holes in a classic amp on the same level as a Fender or a Marshall. I remember when half the old Fenders or Marshalls I ran across were modified. Everyone was doing it. Then, suddenly, no one was. And I remember when it was ok to mod SF Fenders, but not the BF amps. Then everyone wanted to undo all the mods on any old amp and put the old stuff back in and some wouldn't even change the AC cord to a grounded one. I even remember reading posts about how to restore NOS filter capacitors some guy bought and wanted to install in his amp to replace the crappy newer ones, etc., etc...

Someday these old Traynors are going to be recognized as the excellent amps they are.

Favorite Traynor tale/rumor? Ever notice how tough the construction is on most Traynors? I read that every now and then Pete would go to the roof of the building and toss an amp off just to test the construction.

[Enzo]

When some amp maker comes up with a product that resembles existing products, there is no need to decide it is a clone or that he "stole" the design. They all look similar because audio electronics has come to certain design conclusions over the last 100 years. And any designer can do what Leo did, look in the tube reference guides for applications. There is nothing in an old Fender that did not appear in the RCA manual. Baxandall came out with his tone stack design in the 1950s, no guitar amp company unvented it.

By 80 years ago, tube technology had matured and was quite sophisticated. After all, though the consumer didn't have it, they had TV back in the 1930s. And radar. And pentagrid converter tubes.

I am not patting myself on the back tosay I could sit down in the tavern and draw a working amp schematic on a napkin. I bet most of you could too. And if parts of it look like something you know, fine, but I didn't steal it.

[galaxiex]

Wish I still had my YGL-3 Mark III combo.

But holy crap that sucker was heavy. I'm sure it out weighed a Twin by 20-30 pounds.

They call it a "Twin Killer" these days and I can attest to that.

Super loud and clean! 4 EL-34/6CA7's at over 500 volts and 2X12" worth.
Did I mention it was loud... like instant ear bleed loud.

Built like a tank.

I miss the amp, but at my age, I don't miss the weight of it.

[The Dude]

^^^^^ Yes, that's what I was getting at, Enzo. There isn't much that can be done with a tube gain stage that hasn't already been done. So are all amps clones of each other? The word clone by definition means identical or at least implies something is a reasonable copy of something else. IMO, that's different than saying "was made to compete with". It's sort of like saying the Mustang is a clone of the Corvette. You can't say amp A is a clone of amp B and then go on to list all of the ways they are different. It makes no sense.

[Leo_Gnardo]

Favorite Traynor tale/rumor? Ever notice how tough the construction is on most Traynors? I read that every now and then Pete would go to the roof of the building and toss an amp off just to test the construction.

I heard Pete's amp defenestrations were out the 2nd story window. But, what's a few stories between friends?

Same advice I got from the lady who used to handle UPS customer desk for several decades. If you think your package will survive a fall out the second floor window onto a concrete pavement, then go ahead and ship it. Brrr..... but she's right. To this day I avoid shipping amps as much as possible. And insist on shipping combos with speaker(s) in another package. I've had some arrive looking like a Picasso painting. Yikes!

[Enzo]

I always liked Traynor stuff, And yes, they were built like tanks, and they were not crammed into a chassis. Lots of room in there. I mean if I wanted to use the chassis and iron for a project, there was room to add a few extra tube sockets if I wanted plus room for me to sit in there with a cold beer and chips while I did it.

[Pauledc]

I have a 1970 YGM III that I "Fenderized" as the poor thing had so many mods and problems when I got it.

I would never have done this if the amp had been pristine.

Schem of my Fenderized Traynor...

[ATTACH=CONFIG]58079[/ATTACH]

Here's a thread with some details...

https://music-electronics-forum.com/...ad.php?t=46546

So How do you like the sound of the amp? Does it come close to a Deluxe reverb without the 3rd gain stage?

[galaxiex]

So How do you like the sound of the amp? Does it come close to a Deluxe reverb without the 3rd gain stage?

I like it just fine.

Not really "Deluxe Reverb-ish"... more kinda Marshall-ish, likely due to the EL-84 power section.
Say, a Deluxe Reverb meets Marshall kinda vibe.

I don't think it's possible to get a really "Fender-ish" sound from those El-84's, at least, not easily.
Probably can be done with some tinkering, but classic Fender sound seems to be based on, and rely's, on 6L6 and 6V6 power tubes.

[Chuck H]

I don't think it's possible to get a really "Fender-ish" sound from those El-84's, at least, not easily.
Probably can be done with some tinkering, but classic Fender sound seems to be based on, and rely's, on 6L6 and 6V6 power tubes.

Unless you're Fender?!?

[galaxiex]

Unless you're Fender?!?

I'm thinkin' you can coax a clean "Fender-ish" tone out of almost ANY amp at low volume....

Indeed, my much modified Blues Junior with EL-84's can sound kinda Fendery at low volume.
But it does so much more when you crank it, and you'd never think it was a Fender in a blind test.