Traynor YCV40

You get three tones (clean, crunch and overdrive). The really great feature about this amp is the fact that although it has 2 channels, there is a boost on the lead channel that really sends it into overdrive(basically a 3rd channel). Also the reverb is great for playing clean stuff.
Knobs are all found on the top of the amp(rear mount), which I find makes it a lot easier to adjust levels when playing..you don't have to hunch over on your knees to get the right levels. Also the knobs are "chicken beak" style, which I find easy, and durable.

This amp is very versatile. For most fo my gigs I play everything from classic rock, blues, and even pop. I would say it sounds best for SRV, and Hendrix style guitar playing(blues and classic rock). The clean channel is absolutely great for blues, very rich & smooth. The lead channel is great for classic rock stuff, and the extra boost option on the lead channel is great for squeezing out that little more overdrive. With a Boss DS-1 or similar pedal, you can achieve even more of a heavy sound(keep in mind though it's not a Marshall stack or 5150 combo).
This is a 40 watt tube amp, so it's pretty loud for a combo. I play smaller to medium venues with a full band, and I've never had a problem with it not being loud enough. I find since it is a tube amp, it really shines at higher volumes.

The thing is built like a rock, very, very solid! I've hauled this to gig after gig, without any problems what so ever.

Never had any problems with the amp(this is my second Traynor I've owned).

For the price, I don't really think you can get a better bang for your buck. I've owned many amps throughout my years of playing, and I can honestly say I'm very pleased with this product. Great for gigs, and gives you lots of tube juice for a 40 watt combo!
I would highly recommend this amp to any player..especially if your into playing blues.

Don't know when it was made. I bought it used for $420. Features are kinda standard 2 channel amp features. The presence control is absolutely necessary. I was surprised to find it doesn't have a footswitchable FX loop, which would have been nice for an amp sold for over $700 new. DUH! I use this amp for everything now, but I must admit the speaker hiss is quite pronounced when it's on, even with the volume turned all the way down. Surely they could have done a better job with that, but hey it's still a low priced all tube amp so I can live with it.

I'm using everything on this amp: Pedals, no pedals, Les Paul, Tele, Strat, hybrid, etc. I give it high marks for accepting all of those inputs so well. That's what is so important to me: That I can have a one size fits all amp that still has character.

As far as sound quality: You've read it all below. Change the worthless speaker to make it into a good amp! I ended up with an Eminence Swamp Thang and figured I could get away it, since the amp is SO bright. (Does it really need a bright switch anyway? It's too bright already) I would have preferred a Greenback or Texas Heat, but this one works.

CHANGE THE PREAMP TUBES at the very least, so you can get a decent sound out of it. The stock Sovteks are very brash sounding. I will change the power tubes eventually, but I can live with them for now.

The clean channel is why I bought it. I want it to cut through anything yet not be shrill. GREAT eq on the clean side! The dirty channel(s) are worthless in my opinion, though I can get a couple of decent tones out of the crunch channel. That has more to do with the power tubes. I love 6l6's for clean stuff because they can stay so clean at high volumes, but I don't like the way they amplify preamp distortion in a tube amp.

It's a slightly less-right Twin sound for sure, but the reverb would have been better off left on the floor. The most terrible reverb in an all tube amp I have ever heard. Dial it above 7 and you experience a huge loss in volume. Junk circuit.

So I like it for the clean stuff and it's EQ flexibility, which is why I bought it.

I'm very confident in this product. Built very well and needs little care. The schematics from the website are by far the best I've seen from amp makers, including revisions. So clear and full of all the little tweaks done on the production line. I'm confident I will only have to call customer support if one of the transformers die. The rest of the parts are generally available.

However, see my note below about changing the tubes!

No idea.

One last thing: Design is still a little weird. Case in point: The preamp tubes are behind a shiled held up by 4 or 5 screws that are WAYYYyyyyy too over-torqued. It took me 30 minutes to remove the power tubes first, then the shield with it's super tight screws, then finally get to the preamp tubes. Lesson is: Don't plan on being able to swap out tubes in the middle of a gig. The power tubes will have to be removed to get to the shield, and they will be hot. Then you'll need a solid #2 Philips screwdriver. It would be best to "break" those screws open long before you actually need to. ;)

mine is a 2002 model 2 channel but its realy a 3 channel amp with the boost switch,it as a great effects loop ,bright sw on the clean channel,reverb is weak compared to my fender princeton reverb,thats why i give it a 9 and not a ten cause i realy like a good spring reverb,other then that the amp will do it all and with class, from super fender blackface clean to fender reverb overdrive to marshall super lead crunch to jcm 800 lead and realy agresive metal if you use a booster if front of the drive channel i use a tonebone classic distortion on overdrive setting and it sounds great a la modded plexi.

try one out youll see what i mean its not a plug and play amp it takes a bit of time and tweaking to get it to what you want just like anny good bootique amp its not bootique but it sounds freaking better then allot of bootique amp i owned and that lotsa,em,the clean channel sounds amazing like a cross between princeton reverb and vibrolux kinda thing, the dirty channel is kinda vintage sounding on its own but with a good booster in front of it and a bit of eq tweaking and a eq in the loop i get the best distortion or crunch i have ever got from anny amp from peavey to bogner and everything in between ,and the best part is its made right here in canada but i dont see it ever breaking down and it shows that canadian engenering is far superior than many in every way LOL.. ok im getting ahead of myself sorry,in sumary this amp sounds freaking great the complexity and harmonics of the tone is to die for.

the best waranty in the buisness, i dont think it will ever break down built like the persone who actualy made it cared..

i emailed them about the reverb thing and they emailed me back the same day best customer service ever..

at half the price of a marshall a quarter of the price of a soldano or bogner you get 10 times better tone then marshall 2 time better tone then a soldano and just a bit better tone then bogner xtc , that reminds me the distortion channel with my boost and tweaks sound incredebly close to my bogner xtc red channel with ts 808 in front of it to tighted it up a bit,,the amp is very dynamic to pic attack and nuances from you fingers, very punchy and the mid complexity is out of this world , its the best channel switcher combo i have ever had the pleasure to play it does fender vox and marshall all with the flick of the switch.....

and at this price range i dont know how they can do it, its an incredeble amp the rewards you with the best all tube tone ever created...

very loud 40 watt, 2 channel,2 EQ,reverb, boost for even more distortion, presence, bright switch, external cabinet input.All the great features that every amp must have.

The quest of the sound....I had a Marshall JCM900 head and 1960 cab, after i bought a pricy Koch multitone 2x12 3500$, it was not my kind of amp,a fender blues deville, too loud and the overdrive was just overdrive. I also had a fender superchamp xd 15 watt, low cost and a lot of features but not good to play with a band and finally i gave a chance to the traynor YCV40. WOW! I have a clean with a lot of bass, less brighter than a fender, very responsive like a boutique amp, you will forget fender clean after this. Because what you have with that clean, it's a blend of vox and marshall distortion, again , very responsive, a la hendrix and when you need that extra boost in that song or the entire song, you have it. It's simple to get a good sound too. I set the gain around 6 and it bring me back with a vintage marshall or a hotrodded with the boost. A nice clean and a nice distortion in one amp. Combined with my cabinet of 4 celestion greenback, it's the paradise. That's what i need !

Auto-bias. No need for a tech if you know a little on tubes.What can i say more. Very solid construction. Made in Canada in toronto.

I wish the canadians are as good as the french canadians ;)

For the price of around 800$, it's hard to find another amp with a nice clean and a nice distortion. I am plenty happy with the traynor. That's a hidden secret for the quest of the tone.

I have owned this amp for about 5 years now, and bought it used from someone who had it a few years before that, so it's been put through the paces. I love the size of this amp! It is just the right size cabinet to give a big enough sound without being a huge pain to haul around. I play mainly modern Alternative Rock and Blues Rock and I strive for a tone as close as I can get to John Mayer on his Continuum album. I also love the versatility the amp has. My favorite overdrive is when I have my clean channel cranked up to about 7 and let her scream. The overdrive is also very good and I tend to leave it on the OD channel without the boost most of the time. Generally, for the size of venues I play, which are usually small to mid-size, I leave my drive at about 4 and my volume anywhere from 2 to 5. It is MORE than loud enough for any venue I've played. I generally just love to rock out on rhythm and throw in an occasional screaming lead line.

I actually took the suggestion from reviewers here and put in a Celestion Greenback, and WOW. My amp went from great to even better! I like how the tone became more edgy but without any harshness. I like my sound anywhere from super clean, to a nice blues-rock crunch or even with a little twang. I always play through a strat so the sound is bright and driving. I generally use my beefy neck pickup and switch to the bridge for bright soloing. I rarely turn my overdrive past 5 because I don't really care for that much drive. It gets so driven that it nearly gets a Marshall-esque hard rock tone, but that's not really my bag. I think the amp is more in the Fender league to compare to a popular vendor. As others have said, think Fender Deluxe with better overdrive built in and more character. There is also a boost channel, which actually really rocks, but I rarely use it because it gets really crunchy. I also can't forget the spring reverb which I like to turn up and I love!! I prefer using this amp withouth any effects, but all I need is a tube tremolo and I'm set!

This amp is a trooper. I was stupid several years ago and left it in my cold basement during the winter. One day during practice it suddenly started billowing white clowds of smoke!! I had it serviced and $100 and a tube replacement later, I had an ever better sounding amp than when I cooked it. The repair tech said that if I would have played it 5 minutes longer, it would have been on fire. Other than that incident, which was my fault, of course, this amp has been lugged around all over the place without a hitch. I've bashed it all over the place and it still looks and sounds great. I also like the the tubes are very protected and won't get jolted around.

Never dealt with them and don't really see a reason that I'll have to.

I've been playing guitar for fun for about eight years now. I'm actually a college graduate in recording, so I am very picky about tone and getting good sounds, not as a guitar expert, but just as someone with good ears. The Traynor really fits the bill for me. I like having an amp that is really attractive and different from what everyone else has. As I said, I don't really use effects even though I crave a tube tremolo and I am considering adding a tap tempo delay. Other than that, I love sticking to the spring reverb. This amp is a great choice if you want to perhaps stray away from the Fender world. I don't know if they've changed over time, but I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at the tone and versatility that this amp has to offer.

Just an update to my previous review from about 2 years ago. I just replaced the speaker with a Celestion Vintage 30 (actually I ordered it from Avatar speakers, I got the broken in Celestion V30, which they have rebranded as the Hellatone 60). Wow, what a difference!! The improvement in both the clean and dirty channel is so huge, I wish I would have done this change earlier. That weird nasally sound from the 70/80 speaker is gone. The clean channel now sounds huge, clear and spanky, and the dirty channel sounds gritty (in a good way) and more articulate. If you don't have an extension cab with good speakers, I strongly recemond the Vintage 30 for this amp! Changing the speaker makes a much bigger difference than changing tubes.

No problems in the 2+ years I've had this amp.

good set of features. the reverb is pretty pathetic and can't be activated with a switch, so i'll give it an 8. other than that, the separate EQ for the two channels is excellent.

i'll go in depth here. i've had this amp for almost three years now, so i know it very well. here's the rundown:

clean channel -- very bassy, in a good way. the mids and highs can be a little bit 'spike to the ear'ish, so you'll probably find yourself rolling back the EQ on that and sticking with a bass on 10, mid and treble on 5 kind of setting, and ignore the bright switch altogether. the bright switch adds buzz and hiss anyway. the clean channel at first gives the impression of being shockingly loud, because with the volume on anywhere between 1 and 4 you can really fill a small room with sound. however, when you crank it to 10, it doesn't get a hell of a lot louder. it just breaks up a lot. so i'll say that the clean channel is quite loud, and it breaks up fairly easily. it sounds really nasty when you set it to 10 -- nasty in a good way (think Sister Ray). the clean channel also sounds great with a distortion pedal, because of that bass response.

distortion channel -- much, much less bass than the clean channel. less treble too. it's more of a low mid to high mid sound. sounds pretty mediocre at medium levels of gain. if you want to play a slightly saturated rhythm part, i would recommend a more classic tube amp. as someone below said, the sound you get for that is a little cold. however, if you turn the gain to 10 and hit the boost switch, you get a fantastic lead sound. with the gain on 10, turning up the volume knob really smooths out the tone if you like a brian may kind of tone (i don't).

reverb -- don't bother, it's junk.

re: changing the tubes -- i put in set of 6l6s from the 40s (actually, the ancient predecessor of the modern 6l6) just because i thought "well, if you're going to hear a difference in tone with any tube change, it'd be this one." guess what? sounds exactly the same. don't bother! save your money for alcohol or something.

re: changing the speaker -- never tried it. might be good.

mine has been slowly picking up problems, now including a buzzing input jack and some other little things. i've generally treated it pretty well. something tells me it'll end up in a dumpster someday...

it's a good amp. you can definitely get great sounds from it, and it's more than loud enough for live performance. but the reverb is bad, and a number of the settings yield cold or ear piercing tones. still, i recommend it, with the caveat that you can probably get a 60s or 70s tube traynor for $200 that'll sound like a marshall set on fire. this'll run you three times that new.

Features are well outlined elsewhere. The channel switching is a great feature with two independent Eq's and volume controls. Just hit the (included) footswitch. This is a great players budget boutique amp made by the legendary Traynor brand, in North America.
It is the most versatile amp I've owned and I've owned quite a few, if you need a sweet singing overdrive and fender cleans.

I play rock, country and 80's new wave with this. Just straight in or with a delay sometimes. I use Teles and a G&L Legacy.
I see this amp has attracted a few tweekers. Great. I just play through it. Although I did upgrade the celestion to a better one, i later traded it back out as it was TOO efficient and could not be played quietly at home for the home studio.
I am happy with it stock. Back off the levels to not exceed 5 on treble and it sounds pretty smooth even with a telecaster. Very quiet. Russinan tubes? Same as my marshall replacement tubes.

Tough as nails. Not too heavy. I use a cover ( the one for the fender deluxe fits.) I carry extra output tubes and they are a breeze to change out. No need to rebias and I appreciate that. Solid plywood cab with a hidden speaker grill made out of steel. Looks good too.Traynor stuff is legendary in this regard. Yup it is manufactured using modern production techniques. But it also isn't $20000.00
I'll buy that,,,,,and i did.

I can't say they're the best on the planet as I haven't used everyone on the planet, however they are the best I have ever used. They respond to emails usually in one day and are very helpful when trying to find matching cabinets, and about any other technical question. Also they speak in plain language ( used to dealing with guitar players not engineers.) Mike rocks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

Been playing long enough. I wanted a cross between my marshall jcm 800 2205, and fender super reverb. It comes very close. I still have the super for the studio, but this one is easier to haul around and I don't worry about caps failing or scratchy pots. I use the super in the studio but live, nothing touches this as an excellent compromise. I mean, it sounds good and it's handy. Kinda like me except I'm not handy. Well sometimes I don't sound too good either but you get it.Editor's pick award and under ( substantially under) 1 k . Try one. You'll find yourself in good hands. The best players amp I've ever used.!!!!!!!

2004 Traynor YCV40, 12" Celestion 70/80 speaker, Sovtek tubes, external speaker jack and effects loop, standby switch, 3 channel/2 button footswitch, solid plywood cab.

The good? I have a Les Paul and an American Strat so the whole guitar sound spectrum is more or less covered. Its a relatively quiet amp even with settings on high gain. Despite its stock arsenal of the cheapest of cheap pre-amp tubes (Sovtek 12AX7WA x 3)they deliver considerable distortion in the lead channel: (think Randy Rhodes even) The Sovtek 5881 WXT power tubes are considered harsh by many but I rather liked their gritty break-up. BTW, JJ6L6GC as well as most others will make the amp MUCH louder. In most cases, that is a good thing but the nice theing about these Sovtek cheapy 5881 tubes is that they overdrive and crunch at a little over half the volume of higher quality tubes. Bad if you gig, good if you play at home and don't want to go deaf but still want to enjoy some overdriven tube tone. (My Blues Jr. is as loud as the Traynor when both amps are running their stock tubes, and my Blues Jr. is only 15 watts!)So, its basically an extremely well built(solid plywood)Canadian made amp that is attractive in its black tolex skin with useful, although none-too-shiny chrome corner protectors. Fit and finish was excellent. Finally, it has AUTO BIASING, which means you can damn near shove in any tube that will fit in the socket(double check this though!) as long as they can handle the wattage and its supposed to balance them out; a seemingly attractive feature made to draw in those intimidated by the whole tube thing. Finally, the Accutronics reverb tank is the best I've ever heard as its 0-10 dial can make a smooth and consistent transition from no reverb at all to a rather ridiculous amount... and that is only on 9! Put another way, just enough to make it into any Pakistani rock band. So far I bet you think I just love this amp, well, now comes "the ugly".
The Ugly: Maybe not really ugly, if you like a solid state sound. Yes, as I said before, it will deliver some tube tone characteristics, their musical quality dependant on the tubes you run. Musically / harmonically the stock Sovteks are the pits, but they break up with a Les Paul at just under 4 on the volume. The most disturbing thing about the YCV40 is that so many of the "pros" listed above have a bad side to them as well. Any reverb setting above seven sees a drastic loss in volume. Many amps drop volume with increases in reverb but the Traynor does this a lot more than average. Speaker? Usually seeing CELESTION as stock is a great offering. I thought so too until I hit a Pete Townsend open-E chord at half volume. Until that moment I was sure I'd hear a big explosive chord. But rather than a chorus of six strings all shouting out, the speaker just farted out one big flubby fat note. Power chords are a horrorshow when you drive that speaker. Take it with a grain of salt if this is the only place you're hearing this complaint but I doubt it because swapping it out for a Celestion Vintage 30 put an end to that nonsense.
Auto-biasing? Perhaps, but I've never put in anyhting but matched duets in there. Ironically, the Traynor seems extremely sensitive as which tube in the pair can go where which basically means that 50% of the time I swapped out tubes to try another pair there was a lot of low moans and groans, static as if I was turning a dirty volume pot. Swithcing them always solved this.
The Traynor as a tube amp? If you're buying this amp because you specifically want a tube amp DO NOT make it this one. I did, and in retrospect, I wish I tried out the Fender equivalent, most noteably the Blues Deluxe. I always try to give credit where credit is due, and at low volume the Traynor's quiet no-hum running would make it a near unbeatable studio recording amp, its clean notes are glassy clean. But think, glassy.. this is all you wil get with the Traynor. It just feels cold and unedearing - and "cold" is THE LAST THING a tube amp should be described as. Try before you buy. I can see that the Traynor may appeal to some, many even, but not someone whose ears perk up when an amp is described as warm and creamy. Personally, I like those things rather than what the Traynor delivers in comparison to non-hybrid true tube amps. In my opinion it delivers a transparent rather than colorful tone, thin rather than fat sustain and is far too midrangey to my ear: rather shrill despite seemingly effective EQ adjustability.
To sum it all up: where's the bass? The Traynor comes across like a 4x8" rather than a 1X12" with a regrettable lack of bottom end despite a hardy solid plywood cabinet that is well sized for bass response. That's what makes this complaint so notable, it truly didn't have to be that way.
The primary thing you want in an amp is the sound it can make and its an easy thing to lose sight of when so many other things fog up the way. Solid Plywood? Boutique fit and finish? Totally tube with the reliability of solid state? Naturally it goes to reason that the tone will also be outstanding but not to me. It seemed to hit every mark but what good is it if it can withstand falling off a truck or take an RPG beer bottle and bounce it thoughtless from its steel reinforced grill: it sounds cold, shrill and SS (yeah, thats solid state but I'll coin the term right now SANITIZED STATE).
Reliable? Rather complex and touchy if you ask me. IF you want a tube amp get one with adjustable bias. If you're smart and have a healthy respect for high voltage, it is a VERY simple and fast procedure. The wooshing, graoning and static I heard when installing power tubes was troubling because it made me realize how clueless I'd be if it just stopped working. Keep it simple and look for the sound you want : try it first!

Gig without a backup? Sure, the beer bottles will be taken in stride by its tough construction if it fails mid-song and its big enough that a six foot man can hide behind it if I crunch myself into a small ball..

I've had to call Yorkville (maker of Traynor Amps) for a few issues and they were very nice indeed. Very personable, no hold times - just about the best I've ever witnessed anywhere for anything. In fact, there's a pang of guilt in me for the frank honesty I've shared in this review, BUT, great customer service and rock solid construction a great amp don't make, so I stand by it.

Stolen or lost? I wouldn't repeat the purchase. I must say though that Traynor should be commended for the attempt and their attention to detail and quality. The YCV40 is a stretching attempt to combine modern reliability while appeasing those that need true tube tone. But somehow, a balance was lost for both. From the things I liked about both the company AND the amp itself I can say this: if they were to put their crosshairs on competing with Fender in an ALL tube amp and leave their modern touches to other models, that Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, Deville and Blues Deluxe may be wishing they had a YCV40 to hide behind. I hated the YCV40 but I'll always keep an ear out for what they'll be offering next.

Just got this 3 weeks ago, and now that i have had some time to play with it. 3 Channels, use it at home for now but will be taking it out with me once i get the extension cabinet. Reverb, nice feature is independant eq for each of the 2 channels.

I am using an american tele HH, with seymour duncan custom custom and jazz in the neck. I like all types of music but find myself gravitating towards rock. The amp is relativly quiet, and the eq has a decent range, though it does seem to lack some bottom end. Very bright yet not twangy. I recently added a Krank Distortius Maximus Pedal as there was not enuf gain for me. Though when im not looking for that type of sound the natural breakup up the amp in the clean channel is quite nice. Im thinking of adding the extension cabinet, changing the speakers to the vintage 30's and changing the tubes to JJ's. The amp on its own is a great sound for the money and seeing the price on it, doesnt hurt to make some changes to it. BTW for those looking for some high gain, try the Krank pedal, sounds incredible through the clean channel on this Traynor.

Seems relativly solid, The only thing is i do notice a little ring in the reverb when cranked, i have heard a couple other people mention this, dont know if it is a flaw in design or just the type of reverb it uses.
It is too new to evaluate longevity but i have heard good things, and when i received the amp i can understand why. I intend to use this without a backup.

I have not had to use, and the warrenty is 2yrs

I have been playing for over 10 years now, have only had one other amp that i really enjoyed which was a Mark III simul class 75, have also used a line 6 1x12, marshall, fender vibrochamp, and assorted other amps. I think for the money the best value out there, as i think it is a great clean sound that handles pedals well, and im sure other effect. I dont care for the boost channel as it is lacking imo. If your on a budget and looking for a good, not decent amp, i would reccomend this one.

This amp was probably made in 2001-2002. I can't complain at all with it's quality! Versatility is endless...Great for anything from blues to metal. Came with a footswitch (most amps around here, have to buy separately). The OD channel sounds awesome, and so does the reverb! I've brought this amp everywhere, from rehersal to a gig! Still sounds awesome! Gotta love those tubes!

I'm using this amp with a cort 7 string electric! Sounds heavy as hell! Lot of weight! Also, just and old BC Rich warlock, can get either a heavy sound, or a nice clean acoustic sound!

It's all good! Never let me down at all!

Warranty was great, but this amp's so reliable that i never had to deal with them!

I would strongly recommend this amp! I went to the music store looking for a Marshall stack for approx 1500$, but the guy at the shop convinced me after trying it out, to buy this amp! He had said that I would get the marshall sound for half the price!....SOLD!
And also it's made in Canada!!!

Great amp. Features already listed. This is my third one!!!!40 tube watts of very giggable amp here folks.

I use a G&L bluesboy and a rickenbacker 330 with it. I love the channel switching so that you can go from one set channel to the other as well as to a boosted overdrive " on the fly."
What that means boys and girls is that you no longer need a footpedal for a tube distorted sound. This featuure makes it my best" players" That and the fact it is portable.
I've used premium celestions live and CTS alnicos and on and on and never ever has anyone noticed. Well, maybe that indicates I suck too eh? This 70/80 works well with this amp.I like to play, not tweak. I checked the tubes, they're sovtex, sound just fine. Not the clean sparkle of a super reverb blackface, but then again it isn't a super reverb, it is 1/4 the price and a lot more portable. ( The fender is in the closet for studio gigs.)
I have found it best to use little eq. I have nothing over 5 except the reverb. Otherwise this amp can sound harsh. ( That took me three of these to learn) My advice, go easy and play it hard.

Solid. The preamps tubes are hard to get at. Since they last about 5 years guess I'll deal with it later.
Customer service is the best on the planet. Polite and competent Canadian boys who rock.
This is my third one because I kept looking for a more magical clean sound. I found it in the blackface and another boutique amp. However neither channel switch and you need pedals. I don't like worrying about how long the battery will last in anything I do. Best to go straight and eat your wheaties.Live is tough enough without dead cords, pedals that sound different from at home etc. I keep buying it because it has a solid sound and is great live. Yeah someone figured out it is not point to point wiring. Well, best warranty anywhere so I guess they're confident. So am I. I'll keep it now that I've learned to dial back the eg. Figured this out by a/b it with the super reverb. Like a good lead, more is less.....

Excellent!!!!!!Listening Fender?????Marshall, forget it. I had a 40 watter, one tone overheating piece of refuse.

too long. Hvae other stuff but this is my " go to amp" for gigs. Great size, guitar in one this in the ohter. Line out if you need to be louder, go with the board, no mic needed. Reverb is a little understated though, have to really crank it.

2 channel clean/overdrive. Reverb. Extension Speaker Out(very handy). No Master Volume (which they have wisely added to newer YCV models I now see).

Straight out of the box it sounds good enough. The clean channel chimes through nicely with the help of the "Bright" button. The overdrive channel breaks up nicely, giving a warm, grainy, marshallesque distortion. The tone is also nice and transparent, allowing your guitar's personality to really come through.

***IMPORTANT***
You will never hear the great sounds this amp is capable of if you don't:
a) replace the speaker in the combo
or
b)add an additional 1x12 or 2x12 extension cabinet to your rig.(recommended)

I found an old junker 20$ extension cabinet, bought two Eminence 12" speakers (Governor and Private Jack - great speakers) and the difference after this addition is night and day. Don't get me wrong, I love this amp in it's original form for lower volume/bedroom playing. However, to me the stock Celestion 12" just doesn't stand up to performance needs at higher volumes. Flip on the boost feature and you'll hear what I'm talking about. Not only do new quality speakers improve the clean channel and light distortion, it also allows you to push this thing hard enough to get some heavier distortion. Downright amazing. It's a 10 with the new speakers, but they're not included, so...

Had it for a 1 & 1/2 years. Other than one shot powertube there's never been any hassle at all. This should be no surprise considering the name on the amp.

I've sent a few emails asking about recommended tube replacements, etc. They've always been quick to answer and given exactly the info I've been looking for. Also, seeing as how Yorkville/Traynor and Long & McQuade pretty much go hand in hand here in Canada, I wouldn't expect to ever run into problems with replacement parts or servicing.

Great out of the box, amazing with the addition of a speaker or two. For pretty much nay genre of rock, be it soft or hard, there is no better, more versatile tube amp in this price range. I knew the first day I played through it I'd be keeping it around for a long time

This is a follow up review just to let people who are looking at getting this amp, but worried about spending extra money on a new speaker and tubes, know that you probably don't need to... For me (and I play loud blues/rock and clean country)the only thing it needed was a 12au7 in v2 (the middle preamp tube postion) this gave more clean headroom, eliminated the noise on the clean channel, lowered the gain on the overdrive channel (but only a bit, and I never run it maxxed) and made the boost usable rather than too loud.

Just recently I got a Weber "load dump" attenuator (they're cheap check it out)because I'm getting tired of ringing ears. Now my OD sound is just what I want 'cause I can actually use output tube distortion to get those beautiful harmonics going. I was happy before, now I'm even happier.

Still not the holy grail, but getting closer (almost a nine really)I'll try some Yellowjackets soon and let you know.

Has everything you really need.

It's a budget boutique amp, for real. Just give it some time and effort and forget about any other junk amps you have owned. You can coax about any useful sound you need out of the amp. Forget that you aren't getting the nth degree of tone, change something if you have to, and just rock on.

It blew a tube and took out a grid resistor soon after I got it. It could have been the other way around as the grid resistor was 22 ohms instead of 220 ohms.

Fixed it myself and installed a set of NOS Tung-Sol 5881 and JJ preamp tubes. Rocks better than new. Had the amp since early 2003.

The cabinet can take a real beating. Great amp for taking out and gigging. If you want to save a high dollar boutique amp, get this as your backup. Transformers are Canadian Hammonds and look fairly hefty.

Tech rep correctly guessed the grid resistor was the culprit. Went to the Rat Shack and bought some resistors and had the amp up again in 2 hours.

It's a budget boutique amp that you just buy and forget about while searching for the amp you want for the rest of your life. When you find it, this is your backup and rough duty amp. If you don't, I seriously doubt you have missed a lot anyway, so play on bro! PCB amps are a little harder to repair and lack the last degree of ruggedness. That's how the cost stays low, however. That said, I never heard of one with a serious failure yet. I'd take it over a Fender or Marshall any day. It's a reality amp. I bought mine used in excellent condition as it was a store demo unit. I quit buying new gear a long time ago.

this amp was 2003 production model


@ 40 watts this amp is mostly too powerful for a small to med sized room but i still really like it.

is very comparable to new fender production amps.
nicer overdrive.

I am still experimenting with most of the features but i would like to replace the prescence with a master volume knob so i could crank up the clean channel.

Has anyone ever done this? I would like to hear if it's possible.

IT also has wine coloured tolex and gold mesh over the speaker...looks very nice

Birch ply cabinet is what you want for the road.

the original footswitch burned out but i got a new one for free and no probs since

i use a variety of guitars with this amp

fender fat strat with a tapped seymore duncan in the bridge position

stock SG special faded series

'02 Les Paul Standard

parts Tele with symore duncan 1/4 pounder in the bridge position and cheap-o neck p/u

YCV40 really brings out the character of each guitar very nicely. I like the way my tele sounds through it especially

our band plays a wide variety of covers from Brittny Spears to Metallica. we gig every weekend ieverywhere from very small rooms to halls.

I have been reading many of these reviews for several months in an attempt to get some hints on how taylor my sound the way I imagine it in my head. Many people suggest retubing and replacing the stock speaker. I Spent all my money on the amp so my review will be based on the factory specs (stock speaker, Sovetek tubes). I also own the 80 watt 4/10 version of the same amp (YCV80). The reason i got the smaller version was because the 4/10 was too heavy to take to reheasal. The fist week i owned YCV40 i gigged with it in a town called Halibuton ON at the Northwood Inn (in case any of you know it you know the size of the room) which is a medium small room with high ceilings. In this place the amp sounede soooo good i couldn't believe it. Two weeks later we played in a room not much bigger than my living room and it sounded not great.

This led me to an important conclusion which i am sure many of you already are aware of - a tube amps tone is invariably affectd by the volume you operate it at.

I run the overdriven channel distortion at about 2-3 and turn the volume up between 5 and 7---- amazing, it sounds great. Anywhere out side of that its iffy.

tha is not an inherent flaw in the amplifier... it is the nature of tubes and speakers.

this amp at 5 will rip your head right off so for 50% of our gigs it's way too loud. the other 45% it's very nice. The other 5% (very big rooms the 80 watter is best.

I have tried every box you can imagine... tube screamer... Diamond Drive(a very nice Canadian made distort pedal incidently)... boss.. DOD...Danelectro..many types of pedals. All of them detract from the tone of the amp.

As for killer tone at manageabel volumes.. someone has suggested an attenutaor, which is a device that goes between the amplifier and the speaker and soaks up wattage, thoeretically allowing you to dial in your tone at most any volume. I priced the Marshall Power Brake..it costs more than a 15 watt version of this amplifier (YCV20). I personally think if you play small to medium sized clubs that is your best bet.. 15 watts cranked with a 12" extension. That's the way to go baby. OF course i prefer a warmer overdrive sound.


I have had this amp sounding a million different ways from sublime to total shite.It is quite good for anything except very heavy music like korn say or disturbed. It sounds best pushing the midrange. IT moves air well... cranked you feel it as much as hear it, i really like that. Zep - AC/DC - Who... that's what this amp was made for.

All you have to do is turn it way up.

excepting the footswitch issue, no probs so far......

Yorkville is an industry leader with their warranty. One of the best

I'v been playing a long time. it wa only until about 5 years ago since i graduated college that i have been able to really afford a nice amp. I still can't afford a very vintage Fender or custom boutiqe amp.. but for half the price of those i boutght two brand new traynors. I don't worry about taking them to gigs. They perform extremely well when applied correctly. Really great warranty. Made in Canada as well! Don't be afraid to buy Canadian. I could have bought a Hot Rodded Deville, but this one sounded better. I will probably buy the 15 watt version sometime in the near future. Super high end and ultravintage (amps that are impossibe or difficult to replace) are things i would have a hard time taking out of my home to gig where they could possibly be damaged or stolen. The Traynors i don't worry as much. They perfom as good (especially to your audience's ears as they are not as attuned to sublties in tone and are usually drunk anyway) as something twice the price.

This is a folow up to my previous review of a few weeks ago. This amp was made in 2002. This amps still has 'it'. I have added a few things....I replaced all the 12AX7s with 7025s, a more hi-fi version of the 12AX7/ECC83 family. I also switched from the 5881s to 6L6s for power.
This amp has now become a 'hard rock' machine....It is very much 'in yer face' kind of sound. Hard and loud enough to compete against Marshall, Fender, Boogie, and the 'boutique' kids.

I have used a friend's US Strat, A Godin Detour, A Godin Exit-22, and roland G-303...The Detour has 2-humbuckers (like an SG, but heavier sound), The Exit-22S has 2 single coils, and h-bucker at the bridge position. The Roland G-303 has a sound all its own. The Detour sounded thick and creamy in Channel 1, especially with the 'boost' on. The Exit-22 was superb in the clean channel, especially with the single coils. The g-303, works well on all channels, and funny enough the Boss Heavy metal pedal works wonders for this guitar. Is this a secret from Roland/Boss?

This amp is still working, both live and in the studio. No breakdowns yet.

You know what I feel about Yorkville/Traynor/Long&McQuade. Very good people.

Been playing for a few years. I am now thinking of buying the 2-10" speaker version of the same amp, and a couple of extension cabinets. The only advice I can give people who don't like this amp or the Traynor line is to 'really sit down, use good guitars, get their chops together, and work with this amp'. Good guitarists are not bad work-men that constantly blame their 'tools'. This amp rocks.

The amp is quite new about 2003/2004. At first the novelty of the amp lulled me into a false sense of satisfaction. However after listening to other bands /equipment I see how bad this thing really is. Even the clean channel sounds dull and lifeless. Distortion sounds like you just plugged a $10 cheapy effect box in. Very bad. Yes sounds loud but poor qualityntone generally

I'm using USA strat with Texas specials. Sounded sublime through my old Peavy 50 tweed. This Traynor 40 has no character. Distortion either too aggressive or too meek with very little variety

Reliability is a no go word at the moment. 6 months after getting this amp it has noe decided that it won't work. That is , on switching on it takes 15 minutes before it lets a note through and then it buffers and hollers like a choking gofer. After about 30 mins it seems ready to work. Th amp has been used very few times - only gigged it once!

No local dealer where I live - anyway the warranty expired

Been playing for 30 years - an old hand. Would never go for Traynor again. By the way what's the point of having a presence dial - it does NOTHING.I'll be going for Fender Hot Rod Tweed Reissue next.

Sorry but that's my experience.

This amp was made in 2002. I bought it used from the local music store that is the retail arm of Yorkville (&Traynor) This is a very versatile amp for so many styles that the it's amazing that it cost so little. It it a 2-channel amp (clean, and distortion, with a third stage switch for overdrive). there is a an effects loop (very handy), but no headphone jack (I don't need that).
This amp has all the features required as a small studio amp and for playing small club gigs. It is rated at 40 watts, but it sounds quite a bit louder. It kicks my Fender Deluxe reverb's ass, so I sold that for big bucks.

I have three main guitars..Godin Acousticaster (elctro-acoustic), Godin Detour solid-body with dual humbuckers and a vintage Roland G-303 guitar made by Ibanez for the Roland GR-Series synth of the 80s. The 303 has two humbuckers, but very unique tones that is neither Fender nor Gibson.
I think Pat Metheny uses one of those.
The amp is perfect for these guitars, especially for Studio work. The clean channel is nice and bright, while the distortion/overdrive channel is perfect for 'shredding' on lead parts, especially at lower volumes. Sometimes, to tame the distortion, I might use some Boss effx.pedals or the Lee Jackson (Metaltronix GP-1000 tube guitar pre.)to dial in some alternative tones.

I can depend on this amp. I have used it on gigs with no back-ups. I wish I could say that about my Marshall and Fenders.(I sold the Fender and the Marshall). The amp has not broken down yet. I am a careful owner and user. I don't thrash my gear. I have a stockpile of all tube types, for replacments. Did I say I run a recording studio? The motto is, always be 'prepared'

I have been dealing with Yorkville, Traynor, and Long & Mcquade (retail division) for over 25 years. The staff is top notch. Most importantly, their kits are built to last.The warranty is unbeatable. Having met one of the CEOs of the organisaton several times, all I can say I am very impressed with how focussed the company is about customer service and support. Most other corporation should take 'business' lessons from these guys, about being nice to your customers, replying e-mails, having a real 'human person' answer phone calls, and honoring your warranties unconditionally.

I have been playing guitars and bass for many years, and in many styles. I left the road to run a studio. I have owned a lot of guitars, basses and amps over the past 30 years, and I finally settled on the 79 Music-Man Sting-Ray Bass, Godin Acousticaster, Godin Detour, and Roland (Ibanez) G-303. I have owned and played thro' Marshall, Fender, Sound City, Simms-Watts, Jim Kelly, Music-Man, and Mesa amps. I still believe that for the price and 'features' the Traynor YCV-40 'smokes' all of them, at least to my ears. All the expensive 'boutique amp' manufacturers should take note, and learn from Traynor.....a production model that really 'rocks'.
Of course, there is always a wish-list, but I am having too much fun with this amp right now to care.
By the way, if you are discovering Canadian audio products for the first time, check out the 'new' Yorkville line of combo bass rigs for 'studio' and 'live'...If you are a studio owner, don't miss out BRYSTON POWER AMPS to power your studio monitors...that's another Canuck powerhouse company that gives you up to 20 years warranty on their products. I own 3 Bryston 4B power amps.

This is a 2 channel 40 watt amp, with ch. select switch (foot pedal included!), each with its own eq. and volume ch.1 has gain and a boost switch, ch.2 has a bright switch. Reverb is global as is the presence, standby switch and power lamp. 11 knobs to tweak your tone and volume favors, nicely placed on the top of the cabinet. On the back you will find the on off switch, effects loop ex. speaker jack, jack for foot pedal. 1-12 inch Celestion speaker. 2-6L6 and 3 12AX7's run this puppy, which is about the most common tube setup you find these days in amps this size. Built in Canada +1.

I wanted a smooth clean jazz tone with my Archtop, some twang for my Tele for country and also be able to grind some rocks with it when I feel in the mood using my SG or LP. I think this amps fits the bill, I did not try this amp with a Strat or the LP, but used my Tele, since I feel if it sounds good, with the LP will sound great. I was impressed with the over all quality of the several tones I could get. Not quite as Fendery as my Twin Reverb but way better than I expected. Once I got used to the amp's tone adjustments it was a breeze to find what I wanted. Very cool, warm and fuzzy yet not way over the top.

This is where I get fussy, so hold on to your hotdog. Several things I didn't like: Most important one first.

#1. The PC mounted tube sockets, that's a biggie with me, they work fine from the start but the chance of BREAKING THE PC BOARD when changing tubes will increase the chances of a faliure in the future, it also increases the heat transferred to the PC board and 6L6's run to hot for this to be a good thing. BE CAREFUL WHEN REMOVING AND REPLACING THE TUBES!!! Point is they should always mount the tubes on the metal chassis. This is one place not to cut corners.

#2. 1/4 watt resistors were used instead of 1/2 watt in several locations (come on there aren't Solid State amps), okay, I know just about everyone is doing these days it saves a few bucks but these are not expensive parts, and are part of the reason so many old Fenders are still in service today, they were over built with good parts through them. I'm sure the 1/4 watt grid resistors will hold up fine until a tube blows, and it will someday, then I would consider a 1/2 watt flame proof as a replacement.

#3. I don't like power chords that un-plug from the amp. I've seen it happen too many times, somebody forgets their power chord, bummer. Attach that puppy to the amp, I think the earlier YCV40 had them permanently attached on the underside of the cahssis and they should be.

All that said there some good points to ponder.

A+. The Cathode bias or what ever they are calling it is a good idea and may help tube life.

A+. A standby switch, so many companies are leaving off new amps, and I don't know why?

A+. Plywood cabinet, the best way to build a road worthy amp.

Other reports say they are good. I have no experience with them.

I've been searching for a new amp for about a year, I looked at several other amps and nothing has really caught my eye. I may purchase this amp because I like the tone and the size is right for my use. I have always liked Traynor amps but never owned one, most my 40 years of playing I've used Fender amps, but I am dissatisfied with all the new Fenders I've seen, cheap and poorly built, not the way I remember Fender. I'm putting this amp in the top 3 as a replacement for my '66 Deluxe Reverb.

I bought this amp secondhand a few months back. It is about 5 years old and was owned by a bedroom only player who only used it occasionally...so it was like new. Previously I owned an Ampeg J12-T which I was very dissappointed with and I bought this as a replacement.
There are about a million reviews here listing the features, and yes Traynor could have done a few more simple things to improve the design...but compared to anything else out there for the money this amp is SWEEEET!! I use it with a '52 Tele RI, a Patrick Eggle New York Broadway and a Washburn Falcon and this amp only ever sounds great. Clean channel is sweet, not raspy and the dirty channel is perfect. Stomp on the boost ant it gets nasty....I never use overdrive pedals anymore. Whether you play softly at home or crank it up for gigs, it just sounds good.

I love to play Jazz, and that's why I previously bought an Ampeg...apparently Jazz players love them...but the clean sound from the Traynor sounds much better, more subtle with better tone. I also play in a covers band that does everything from funk to hard rock, and I never feel the need to play through anything else. I don't have a lot to spend on gear as I am full time music student, but even if I spent 3 times as much, I would doubt that I would get a better amp. I guarantee this thing sounds better than any equivalent Fender (a few if my friends have Fenders...Blues Juniors, hot rod Devilles and twin reverbs).The other good thing is that this amp is very quiet no ugly hisses or hums...nice.

Have giged with it on several occasions without any problems....and always without backup.....who takes a backup amp?
Shortly after I got it, it needed a tube replaced...but it is 5 years old so that would be expected, and luckily it wasn't during a gig. I put a set of JJ's from Eurotubes in and it sounds great....not a problem since.
I'll have it serviced regularly and don't expect to have any problems.

Never needed so can't really comment....I did ring to speak with the Australian distributor once and he was very friendly and helpful in answering my question.

I've been playing for 10 years and studying music full time for 2 of those...I've listened to lots of amps including some of the legendary brands and honestly believe that there isn't anything as good as this amp for the money. I would also say that some of big name amps that cost 3 times as much as a new Traynor don't sound any better. The only gripe I have with this amp is that around the control recess, on the top of the amp the tolex covering is not applied very well. There is a very tight curve at each end and the tolex appears to have been cut to go around the bend and is showing some of the timber through the cuts...not a real big deal...and a very small thing considering that this thing is like having a budget, boutique amp.

I don't know what year this amp was made in but bought in June 2004 for 500 used because some guy bought it the upgraded the tubes and speaker himself and played one gig but decided to return it but had to sell it to the store second hand because he tampered with it himself and he wasn't licened to do that.
Its Got two channels clean and overdrive both sound awesome except if you have brightness on the clean and turned up high it makes a very wierd sounding feed back but if you just keep the brightness off on the high levels it won't happen.

I use dual humbuckers on my barracuda les paul copy.
I play alot of older rock like Rush, Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Thrown in with some Van Halen Stevie Vai Joe Satriani Yalming Malmsteen and Iron Maiden.
Since I live in The middle of nowhere I play basically all day so ill take the amp out side and put it around four since im 40 feet away from it when hooked up to my Dunlop Crybaby But this thing is plently loud @ 40 watts tubed. The distortion isn't very crazy but i don't really like it that way but if i want it to ill just hook it up to my Dan Electro overdrive.

very reliable Can't say much more since i live in nowhere ive only play in a few parties with it

never had to talk

Ive been playing since i was 8 and im 15 now so thats 7 years and am entirely self taught but use guitar pro on my computer. I also Own a 25 year old Yamaha jx50 75 watt version and this blows it alaw but i bought that for 75 bucks. this amp is unbelivable and I highly recommend it to anyone Thats starting to take guitar seriously or a step up from a practice amp

Amp was made in 2004. Before the speaker and tube changes, the amp didn't sound great when turned up, but was still better sounding and more versatile than a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe.. and it is very ruggedly constructed. The gain channels are both really nice and really useable, you don't need an overdrive pedal to sound good with this amp.

Once I replaced the tubes (SED 6L6s, EH 12AX7's) and speaker (Eminence Private Jack), my dream amp was born. It sounds exactly the way I want it to sound.

I am using it with either a Gibson SG or a Standard Telecaster or a Godin LG Signature. The amp makes the tele sound just like the Stones and then with the right pedal in front of it, I can get a great sound that has been described as the "meatiest tele ever".. but still British-like sound.

The secret was to put in Flying SED 6L6's and change out the speaker to a Private Jack by Eminence (Red Coat series).

Even though I had to buy the new tubes and new speaker, it was worth it, as total cost came to just under $800.. amazing! I can get Vox AC30 tones out of it, and it is very convincing on stage.

I've been gigging with this amp for just under 3 years now, and it is very very consistent. I take an extra pair of 6L6s with me just in case.

Traynor is one of the best in the business.

I've been playing for 12 years or so. I am tempted to buy a Traynor Blue to compliment the YCV40 .. they are like opposite twins.. but both really awesome sounding. I use a Marshall Shredmaster and a Boss CS-3 for overdrive and compression and boost. That's all that I need to get all of the tones from Jazz to Blues to Rock to Roll to crazy effects through a few other pedals I have.

Amp is well made, distortion and cleans are brillant.. made in 2005 and sounds fine with stock tubes and speaker in its own right. I like the size and the well made cabinet, it's a North American product unlike most small to mid sized combos made by other companies. I believe this to be the best sounding tube amp made for the price for the cleans and gritty channels. It records good as well. Has some hiss on the dirty channels due to no gain control, but a person can dial up grit on the clean channel as well, just not as much. Bought it off an ebay dealer for $475

Sounds great for the price cleans and dirty channels are tops!!

Dont know yet, since I had it a short time

N/A

Best for the price, records well, rugged and if you can find anything close to this price or near for an all tube amp (Traynor has a solid state retefier)then you just bought some junk...it has a real wood cabinet...wish it had 2 plug ins and maybe some casters

This amp is really no frills in the best sense of the word. Just enough to get you good tone + reverb and an effects loop. It is versatile enough in its 3 gain channels for most styles except heavy heavy sounds. I would have liked a headphone jack. The Reverb to me is strange, it goes from nice subtle echo to massive cavelike depths from 8-9. Not very subtle and the volume lowers during this change.

This is the best amp I have ever played, simple as that. I use a Gibson Les Paul and it matches suprisingly well. I had originally thought a Fender would be the only guitar for such a Fender sounding amp, but the amp give my Gibson a new bite I've never heard. I like the Clean channel especially really loud and the first dirty channel is very subtle and nice. The treble and presence is really cutting ( a good thing) compared to most other amps. Really versatile tone when combined with your guitar knobs. Unlike other reviewers, my amp is noisy. Don't know if this is due to old tubes, but there is an audible hiss. The most amazing thing to me was how the tone stayed good even as I turned down the volume to whisper. Loud is still best though.

Only had a for a couple of days but it seems very well built.

Wrote them an email and they responded immediately.

Get this amp first before you try for an expensive Fender, Vox, or Matchless. This really is a player's amp. The cleans are beautiful and the dirty is just right. This really is the best deal I found and I kind of want to keep it a secret for myself. If I could play it loud in my apartment everyday I would.

This is my first Tube amp, so it is an amazing improvement! The two channels, Clean and Gain, are perfect for any set, althought you wouldnt want to rely on only the Gain Channel for a good distortion. Reverb is a bit off on my amp, from 0-1 ther is no reverb, from 1-8 it sounds exactly the same light Reverb, and 8-10 sounds like you are in an empty stadium. But other that that the features rock!

I have an Epiphone Les Paul Standard flowing through it, and it sounds great on both channels, tho ther is a bit of feecdback whil not playing on the Gain channel. It is LOUD! when i play in my room i keep the volume of the Clean channel at 2, and when on stage at 3-4. If you like it loud this is a great amp for you.

Never broken down, of course you have to get new tubes every once in a while, but that is standard.

N/A

A Great quality Amp with just a little bit of flaws taht can be overlooked.

My amp was made in dec 2001. AS such it has the well hidden extension speaker jacks. Effects loop on rear panal, other features as described in other reviews.

As it was (used, worn out power tubes) the sound was OK but there were issues. On the clean channel only there was a lot of hum, hiss etc. Mike the Traynor rep said this was essentially normal because the Ch. 2 is run "wide open" as it has no gain control. I was dissapointed because I believed the low noise hype on their web site. Since I couldn't stand the hum/hiss crap on the otherwise good sounding clean channel I surfed the web for Ideas. This led me to experiment with low gain tubes. After some experimentation I settled on EH 12AU7 tubes in the splitter (V3) and V2 positions and an EH 12AX7 in V1. I now have a quiet amp with lots more clean headroom on Ch. 2 and really smooth and good sounding OD sounds on Ch. 1. The amp responds really well to pedals, but i havn't tried the FX loop. I'm now really pleased with this amp. It is not the holy grail or anything, but is truely a great sounding amp that whips amps twice its price.

I would depend on it as I don't tour or anything like that. If it died on a gig I could use an external preamp into the board to survive. There are issues that I will keep an eye on. The screws that hold the reverb pan down were quite loose and this caused a noise problem. Tightening them down fixed it. I also worry about heat on the circuit boards because the preamp tubes are encased in the chassis with no cooling fan. I'll probably replace the power tubes every year too.

This is the reason I wanted to write this review. I had excellent email support from traynor (thanks Mike!!) and my local store also offered a 90 day warranty. I know from past experience how hard it is to troubleshoot a problem via email or over the phone and would understand if their answer to every email was "get it serviced." It's amazing that they care enought to try, especially considering that I bought it used. Very pleased.

Good features, good sound, good support and well built. What more could you ask for at this price?

I'll start with a little intro. I waited a few months to put this review up. I wanted to make sure I put it through every situation I would put it through before I did the review. I gave the amp a good run stock with no mods. I then gave it another run with a speaker change, then once again with tube changes. Even further, since I play in two different bands with 2 very different sounds, i gave the amp a good workout using 2 different set of tubes, one normal gain, and one lo-gain. I'll explain further below how it all worked out.
Amp comes stock with a Celestion 70/80 speaker (you'll want to change this first thing without a doubt) and sovtek tubes which are ok.

Got the amp stock, turned it on, and I was bummed. Seems it was caught in a (not-so-listenable) mid frenzy. I couldn't dial out that certain "color" i was hearing. Sounded very limited. But, I knew that some amps just will not sound good no matter what you do at lower volumes, so i brought it to band practice. Indie rock/jangly clean natural breakup type sounds/was using the clean channel. Proceeded to rock out. I had the volume at about 5 and during some larger chords the amp's sound and bass response just crapped out. fart central. the 70/80 speaker could just NOT handle normal rock playing. I immediately ordered up a Vintage 30 to replace the speaker. Back to practice...wow. No more fart, the amp can actually handle normal playing now! Still a little too brittle though, and not nearly enough headroom. Clean channel on 5 was breaking up with a pretty heavy distortion for a clean channel. enter Bob from eurotubes. he prescribed a lo-gain tube remedy for me and dag nabbit it worked like a charm. I put a 12AT7 in V1, a 12DW7 in V2, and a balanced 12AX7 in V3, and 2 new 6L6GCs (all JJ Tubes) in the amp. Instant goodness. But, alas, i knew there was more to be had from this amp, so i got a 2x12 cab from avatar and now it sounds killer!
just to add about the two bands... one is pop-punk, relatively good amount of gain (ala green day, blink-182 etc.) and the other is jangly cleans (the clash, the kinks, the jam come to mind). with the pop-punk band i use either a Faded Gibson SG with humbuckers, or another SG with a Seymour Duncan Phat Cat bridge pickup. sounds awesome with both. For the indierock band, i use a Fender Tele with "Vintage for Broadcaster" bridge pickup. that thing rules. I use the normal set of 12Ax7s for the pop-punk band and my low-gain set for the indie rock band. Amp sounds awesome in either configuration. I would have given the amp a higher rating cause it sounds incredible, but I had to make too many mods for this to happen.

Seems pretty damn tough to me. And Traynor has that 2 yr. even if you break the thing warranty, which really can't be beat. I don't treat my amp badly or anything, so I can't tell you HOW tough it is. But it sure feels like a excellently built amp.

When I bought my amp, I registered on their website as a new Traynor owner. I got an email back from and actual representative at Traynor US, Not some form letter auto-reply. I had some questions about the amps configuration and things, and I emailed that same rep back. And he got back to me within hours. I've continued to work with the same rep since. Their customer service is the kind you WISH Fender had. The Customer Support really made me happy that I bought a Traynor. You don't find this kind of support anywhere these days.

Here's what you gotta do... *get that 70/80 speaker out of there and get a Vintage 30 (or if you know another speaker you love, use that instead). *get those sovtek tubes out of there. Bob at www.eurotubes.com was ultra-helpful with selecting the right tubes for my use. If you go with the JJ tubes, i'm sure you'll be pleased. *an ext cabinet will do wonders for you tone. i recommend a 2x12 partially open back like the ones they sell at www.avatarspeakers.com. I got the one with 1 Vintage 30 and 1 G12H30 Anniversary in it. I put the cabinet vertically to the side of my Traynor (G12H30 side down) and it balances out the volume between all 3 speakers very nicely.

This is a re-submission.

You know, after playing through tube amps for over 30 years, you'd think a guy would remember to have a few spare tubes on the gig... you'd think! I had my YCV40 out on it's third gig, and I noticed the great tone I got on the last gig was fading fast. I predictably thought the amp was going south, without even thinking of the preamp tubes - they are good ol' GE 12AX7s! Well the good ol' GEs were finally crapping out. I played the rest of the night, cursing the amp and generally pissed off. The next morning, I went out to the garage and started checking things out. I hooked up the amp, plugged in a cord and my Strat, switched on and a perfect high A began to crescendo immediately! - tube microphonics. I had some EH-12AX7s laying around, they're pretty good, so I began to swap out preamp tubes, one by one. At the end of it all, the only GE that was good was the JG-5751 in the V1 spot and it still sounded like buttah! With the EH-12AX7s, I was hearing the clean bell-like tones from channel two again. Whew!! not the amp. On a lark, I pulled down a boxed Jensen C12N 8 ohm speaker from the shelf, an slapped that puppy in the YCV40. I'm very glad that I did, because the amp took on a whole new character! The low end, although it was full and round with the 70/80, would "fart" at higher volumes. With the C12N, that problem was solved! Also, the high end is clearer and the mids are classic, smooth Jensen. If I were going to make only one upgrade to this amp, I would now change my opinion try a different speaker first. Whatever brand you prefer, make it a high-end speaker. Again, the 70/80 is not bad, but your YCV40 deserves better.
With the changes made, I hope they last a few months, I am again giving this amp a Five Star rating - for the money, you can't come close to the YCV40 tube tone with any other amp.

N/A

N/A

N/A

I just got mine a month ago, so I would hope it was built within the last 6 months - but that's not too important. As for the features - two channels, seperate EQ for each channel, reverb, blah, blah, blah... features are not what this amp is about.

What this amp IS about is the tone. I have been a working musician for over 30 years, and after owning a multitude of amps (vintage Marshall, vintage Fender, Mesa Boogie, Rivera, new Fender, Peavey-ugh-...), I have in my arsenal only four amps that I use now. One is a Koch Multitone 50W head (pure heaven!), a 1966 Fender Super Reverb (almost original), a Crate VC3112 (what a great blues amp!) and now, my YCV 40! Each of the previously mentioned amps have their own character and I would hesitate to compare any of them with another amp, ie; it sounds like a cross between a Marshall and a Fender.... yeah, right! - except maybe the '66 Super, it sounds like a Fender.
When I brought the YCV 40 home, I plugged it in just to make sure it fired up right out of the box, played a few notes in each mode, and turned it off. Then I replaced the power tubes with late '60s NOS GE 5881s, an old GE 12AT7 in the inverter socket, and two NOS 60s GE 12AX7s in the other two preamp spots. When I fired the amp up, I crossed my fingers that the old GEs wouldn't add any hiss, buzz, or other malicious sounds to this remakably quiet amp. To my suprise, the YCV 40 was still as quiet as before! I cranked up my Strat and heard tonal magic coming from the Seventy/Eighty that comes stock with the amp! Most reviews state that a V30 or G12H-80 works much better in this amp - well they might, but I don't think I'm going to risk it. The highs have that classic chime found in very expensive Class A amps, the mids are smooth and pronounced, but not overbearing, and the lows are full and tight. Even when the Boost is applied to the drive channel, all sonic values remain responsive and consistant! I am very pleased with the real tube tone this amp produces.

I imagine it will withstand the usual loading and unloading due to the solid Birch plywood cabinet - I'll let you know...

I hope I never have to use it, but the warranty is probably one of the best available on an amp - "for two years, you break it - we fix or replace it." Way cool!

For the money, you won't find a better amp with the authentic tube tone the YCV 40 expresses. I truly believe the design and functions of this gem will become the standard that all other new production tube amps will be judged by. Traynor has a definite hit with the YCV series of amps! If it were stolen or such, I woud not hesitate to buy another one.

This is an amp on which using the tone controls actually makes a big difference. You can actually get different tones by manipulating the bass, mid, treble, etc. That is not always the case, even with more expensive amps.

Great clean tone and great distortion. This amp has a great crunch to it. It's not a fuzzy distortion, but a true gain. People knock the stock Sovtek tubes, which kind of suprises me. Don't let that turn you off. They sound pretty damn good in my honest opinion. Only the most insane tone-o-philes would feel the need to replace them. I might do it at some point just because I'm curious to see how much better it can sound.

So far so good.

No problems with the amp so I haven't had to contact them.

This amp is the bomb! I've owned several Marshalls and Fenders over the years and have never felt like I've been able to get everything I wanted out of them. This amp does it all, giving you the best of both worlds. Nothing comes close to this amp in the price range. Period.

Purchased in 2004. I think it is that year's model. A tube amp, it is versatile and in fact perfect for my needs as a (non-gigging) musician. My playing style is a mix of blues, attempts at jazz, and Indian classical music in the northern (Hindustani) tradition, as I am also a beginning/intermediate student of the sitar. The amp has also delivered on the promise that it is "quiet" with a regulated power supply --an important consideration if you live with old-home electrical wiring and nearby sources of interference.

Two channels. The clean channel is very impressive, and the overdrive channel is also becoming more interesting as I learn to tweak it for the sweet spot, though for some reason it lacks the treble reach of the clean channel. Amp has channel switching by way of footswitch (supplied). Ditto effects loop. No headphone jack.
This amp has plenty of juice, and I will soon purchase an extension cab for fuller sound.

I wish it had a master volume, which I understand Traynor's new 50-watt "blue" amp comes with.

Sounds:

Getting a desirable sound from an amp obviously involves being able to ferret out its nuances. With this amp I have little need for extra gadgets. My Marshall Chorus pedal, perhaps a high-quality Delay pedal, those are the basic tools.

My one and only criticism is the slight rattling probably caused by the spring reverb.

As I treat amp and guitars with care (I used to smash cheap ukeleles as part of my high school era stage act), I can only guess that the Traynor is reliable. It does have a great two-year warranty.

My one question, concerning suitable extension cabs, got answered promptly and courteously by Mike H. Thus, stellar customer service so far.

I've been playing for 30 years but only four years ago bought my first electric guitar, a Guild Starfire IV. Since then a couple of Japanese-made Fenders and a Gibson Les Paul have been added. My sitar and my sarode (the world's most underrated instrument, in my view, with a killer bluesy sound even if you can't reach Ali Akbar Khan's stratospheric playing) hail from Calcutta, India.

I really like this amp. Can one retrofit a master volume to replace that dubious presence control?

All the features have been displayed prior to this, so I'm not going to repeat.

My main guitar is a USA Hamer Studio. To me, the stock amp sounded too bright... could be the JB and '59 Duncan pickups on my guitar, I'm not sure. I swapped stock tubes with a set of Blues tubes from Eurotube. Made a small difference. Smoothed the distortion channel a bit. Then changed the speaker to an Alltone 1250. Better tone and more noticeable than a tube change. Then upgraded that speaker to a Weber ceramic. That made a huge difference! I think the speaker upgrade will yeild much more noticeable tone than any tube change. Just my opinion. I still don't really like the overdrive channel all that much. A bit too harsh for my taste. Depends on what I'm doing in there. The clean channel sounds very good. If you can crank up the clean channel to just right around the break up point, that is where this amp really sounds amazingly awesome! You can then control some loudness with the guitar volume. The Traynor folks tell me that this amp is designed to sound its best at "stage volumes".

Seems well built, but I'm very easy on amps. Don't take them out much, just play at home most of the time at various loudnesses. I'm probably not going to knock anything loose by moving it around, as it sits in my music room most of the time. So, being as I do play at various volume levels, we'll see how well it holds up with playing vibrations.

Before buying this amp, I had literally months of conversations with several folks that were either dealers or employees. All were very professional, informative, and knew their products quite well. And they were patient with me, as I did pry for lots of info about these amps. If I have a serious problem, I'm hoping they are still nice guys. So far, so good.

Been playing many years, non-pro, mostly blues and classic rock stuff. Been doing a bit church music for a couple of years... some cool, fun chords! Just for fun stuff with a bunch of house parties and studio parties and gigs. Some recording. Been through many guitars and tons of amps. I change amps quite often just because I like a bunch of them. If I had some sayso in how to improve it, I'd like the boost to have a volume control. Also, if Traynor would put an excellent (Weber) speaker in as stock, most folks would not be changing tubes and speakers. But, for the price, a good amp. Best advice is to change the speaker first, if you still are not satisfied, then try the tubes. All my ratings are conservative.

It rocks

I bought it for practicing heavy metal at home. It is so loud that my balls ache when I turn it up. Anything over a 1 or 2 on the volume knobs will have people telling you it is loud. I play a Jackson Kelly mostly. I can make my balls ache it gets so loud in a home practice situation. I live in the country so I can jam with it full out. This amp thrives on running it balls to the wall. I like to get crazy loud with this amp, as it sounds in another league compared to solid states amps when you overdrive them.

I can't break the thing, and I turn it way up and distort it heavily for hours a day.

I think I may be getting a hearing problem, but I can now identify with Pete Townshend because when your amp sounds this good you don't want to turn it down. It is louder than 100 watt solid state amps I have owned, and sounds mucho better.

Well, this is known by now, clean channel with it's own EQ and a brightness switch, lead channel with it's own EQ and a boost switch, 40 watts, Celestion Seventy 80 speaker, FX loop which can also be used as a power amp in (return) or preamp out (send). Footswitch included that controls clean/lead channel selection as well as the boost switch. I just wish the second button controls the brightness switch on the clean channel like the YCV20. A detail, really. You can't get more versatile than this.

This amp sounds awesome. I used it with two different guitars equiped with many different pickups (SD 59s, DMZ Super Distoriton, Fred), namely an Ibanez SZ720 and my current Dean Cadillac Select with stock pickups. It sounds really awesome!

Clean channel : Excellent, compared it in the store with solid states and a Crate 50 tube amp and it blew them all out of the water. It's not as good as Fender clean but close enough unless you only play clean and precisely look for the Fender tone.

Lead channel: Now here you can get any type of crunch from mild bluesy breakup to really hard rock (think AC/DC, old Kiss and Aerosmith, Led Zep) to a T. If you want to go into metal territory, you simply have to hook your favorite booster to it (Boss SD-1, any flavour of tubescreamer, Rat, etc.). Even an OD-3 and a DOD-250 can give you good metal sound with it.

So basically, what I mean is that you don't need a MT-2 to play metal with this amp unless you go to extremes. If you're into Pantera or Slayer, I doubt you're actually reading this anyway.

Finally, I don't care too much for the boost switch. A little too muddy/farty for my taste. You're better off with a good overdrive pedal if you want to go beyond the lead channel.

It is a loud 40 watter that you used at 1 or 2 at home when you're alone and at 0,75 when someone's around. A little lound for a home use amp, but the 6L6 tube sound so much better than the EL84 that I prefered it to the YCV20. Besides, you never know when you'll need more power.

I will change the tubes for JJs soon, but I don't know about the speaker. It's loud enough for home use already, and the Seventy 80 is recognized as a good speaker in the generic market. I just think it lacks bass a little.

Bought it used and had it for 4 months, so I can't tell, but it's seems to be built like Fat Bertha.

Never dealt with them, but the warranty is amazing.

I've been playing for 23 years (eeeek!). I've been playing more seriously and regularily than ever before for 3 years now. I've own or rented many amps before this one, namely: Roland Cube 20, Peavey Special 130, Roland Cube 30, Peavey Bandit II, Marshall MDX50, Fender Deluxe 90, Tech 21 Trademark 10, Traynor YCV20, Roland Cube 60. In this exact order. So I've been a long way. At 450$ used, my YCV40 was a steal, because it is in perfect condition. After renting the YCV20 for a month, I concluded that I didn't like EL84 tube amps, so that excluded a lot of amps under $1,000. I would buy another one in a heartbeat, brand new if I have to. This is the best sounding distoriton I ever heard in a tube combo bar none in this price range. I hate to give all tens, but within its category and several others higher priced, you simply can't beat the YCV40.

Believe amp was made in 2004. Is a two channel amp, one clean one, one lead with a boost, clean channel has brightness switch too. Has EQ for each channel which is nice and they are useable unlike some amps. There is also a prescence knob, has nice reverb, effects loop, ext. speaker jack. only bad thing no headphone jack, but not that big of a deal.

This is the first time I have written a review here but felt the need to. I must say this is the best amp out there for the money, but you must swap out tubes with jj's ecc83s's for preamps and two JJ 6L6 for power will only set you back about 50 bucks through eurotubes. But believe me when you slap those babies in let em warm up you will be truly amazed! This amp blows away many boutique amps that i have heard, and cost twice as much. The clean channel is so crisp and chimey it's amazing, and the dirty channel just rocks so solidly you won't believe your ears! I still have the stock speaker in it a Celestion 70/80 which is nice for what I play has a nice chimey sound on cleans and dirty sound is crisp as well. But if you want to upgrade speaker i'm sure this baby would drip with tones that will never make you want to quit playing through it, I haven't put my guitar down for three days, i've just been in amp heaven!

Haven't had to deal with them yet but they have an excellent reputation for service, and the amp is solidly built, makes Fender Hot Rod look cheap by comparison, and sounds sooooo much better too.
Has grill in front of speaker too to protect it which is a nice feature. Easy to get at tubes too if you want to retube.

Like I said Yorkville/Traynor has excellent reputation for prompt, friendly service. Also comes with great warranty

I play a modded American Tele with Seymour Duncan Hot pup in neck, and Fralin Blues Special in bridge with four way switch and this amp makes my Tele come alive in all positions! It really is just amazing. I also own Washburn OE-30 which i love and is only $149.00 at Musicians Friend what a buy! and it sounds great too, but not as good as my tele, this amp really sings with single coils. I A'B'd this amp to Fender Hot Rod series and in my opinion there is no comparison. It is built much better, sounds better in both clean and dirty channels. And that's just with stock tubes and speaker. Once you upgrade tubes and speaker you will be amazed at the sound of this amp. If it were lost or stolen i would fall into a great depression till I bought another one! If you don't buy one of these you will regret it believe me. Great amp Traynor! keep up the good work.

Made in 2003, pretty versatile since I usually stay within the blues/rock/pop/country zone. Note - this is not the amp for you if you are shredding a thousand notes a minute with a heavily distorted 7-string. 2 channels, eq on both(!), the accutronics spring reverb sounds good to me - much better than the verb on my 4x10 Hot Rod Deville. Oh, and on that note, while the Fender sort of barks (ceramic speakers) the Celestions in this Traynor are smooth and sweet like buttah. Power-wise, I'm totally pleased. I've never had a 40W amp sound this loud and punchy. The master presence knob is a nice touch, as is the footswitchable boost, although it only works on the dirty channel. For that, and since it's clearly not a metal amp, we go with a 9 here.

Probably the quietest amp in terms of noise floor I've heard in its class. Playing it with a 1999 American Deluxe Strat (modified with a Dimarzio Air Zone in the bridge position) and a 2000 Mexican Tele with Rio Grandes. The Tele sounds great rockin', poppin', or doing the texas-twang sort of thing. The Strat sounds excellent doing anything. I even use my acoustics (Yamaha and Breedlove) through this thing. The clean channel dirties up just a bit (and nicely so, not a buzzy clipping) when you move the gain past 4 or 5 but that's so loud I'm almost never up there. Dirty channel is nice but gets a bit muddy in the upper pre gain settings. That's okay for me, I'm not looking for super saturated sound from the amp, anyway. I could find a vintage Plexi and spend a couple of thousand (if I'm lucky) and get that, but for me, a Rat, a Jekyll and Hyde, a Compressor and this amp are all I need for seven cascading stages of dirt (on up into the metallic spheres).

Gigged with it, moved with it twice, and it's taking what I'm giving. I do baby my stuff a lot, so others who aren't careful may have issues...but you gotta baby tube equipment anyway, and when it sounds like this amp does, I want it to last forever. I have another amp at home (Hot Rod Deville) that is way too heavy and doesn't sound nearly as good - and I don't bother to bring it to gigs as a backup.

Warranty is pretty much bumper-to-bumper, which is nice, and also transferrable, although it's only a two-year job. I'm giving no opinion here, since I've never had to deal with Traynor staff, but I do like the idea that they'll repair or replace it if YOU break the damn thing.

Playing 26 years, semi-professional. Have owned Marshalls, newer Fenders, vintage Fenders, JC-120s, old Randalls, Music Mans, and a laundry list of crap I wouldn't wish on Ashlee Simpson. IF THIS AMP WERE LOST OR STOLEN I'D RUSH TO THE NEAREST DEALER AND BUY ANOTHER THE SAME DAY. I compared this to the Devilles, the Crate tube series (which sounded horrible) and a number of boutique amps over a month or so, all of which were either sorely lacking in sweet juicy tone, or grossly overpriced in comparison. Other than the boost only working on the overdrive channel, I just can't find anything wrong with this amp. It is definitely, in 26 years, my favorite amp overall that I've had, including the '66 Super Reverb. If you're looking for kick-ass swamp boogie snarl, or warm, juicy, tubey-smooth vibe, it's definitely all here.

Brand new. 40 watt tube combo with 2 channels, bass, mid, treble, brightness switch, presence, reverb, channel switching pedal, etc.

My guitars are a Fender Strat Ultra and a new Korean made Lite Ash Telecaster. I play country (mostly Brad Paisley), blues, and rock of all types. This amp is amazing right out of the box, seriously. I bought it new from musician's friend a couple days ago, never hearing it and trusting the reviews on here that I would be happy with it. Thank you all so much, this is the best amp I've ever had and I've spent a lot of money over the years trying to find that tone and it's truly here in this amp. If I swap tubes like most reviewers say to do, I cannot imagine it being any better than it is stock, but I'll get some good JJ's and see what happens. I need backup tubes anyway.

The clean channel - It sounds like a Fender on steroids, just silly amazing. I don't use the brightness switch because it adds too much highs. The eq knobs are at noon, presence on 3 o'oclock, reverb at noon. I use an MXR super comp inline and it really adds the compression and balance needed to get the snappy country tone I like. I could go on and on about it, very addictive amp that makes you want to just keep playing.

The dirty channel (without boost) - Very useable for most basic rock and blues tones (SRV, Mellencamp, GA Satellites).

The dirty channel (with boost) - Kicks in extra gain and some volume. This is where you get into the ac/dc tones. Very nice smooth overdrive sound, not brutal distortion which I'm glad for.

I really have no idea. When I was ready to purchase a new amp, Traynor was not on my list because I'm just not familiar with them. Again, thanks to all the reviewers for posting high marks on this amp because that's what made me choose it. I hope it lasts until I'm so old I can't even pick up a guitar. I'm not worried though, it's very well built and solid. Tubes are the main issue for reliability anyway, so I'll carry some extras.

Never dealt with them, hope I don't ever have to because that would mean there is a problem and I don't like problems.

Easily, I give this amp a thumbs up for every reason. It's designed and built well, sounds perfect for my needs, and lightweight for what it is. If you plan on spending $600+ for an amp, go buy this one. Wow, to think of all the money I've put into amps, effects, and other miscellaneous gear over the years, it makes me sick. But I'm still smiling because my new tone monster is waiting for me at home and I'm gonna plug in as soon as the work day is over.

2 Channel, 1 clean, 1 overdrive - very basic AMP with the usual Bass, Mids, Treble, Presence and Reverb.

Great Sounding AMP. I was in the market for a Tube AMP in January 04. I bought a Peavey XXX because I didn't know anything about Traynor AMPS and Peavey was a reliable name. What a mistake, the Peavey has been in the shop and they can't pin down my troubles. I bought the Traynor due to desperation as a backup. Now it's my Main AMP. I'm gonna dump the Peavey XXX and by the 2/12 YCV80. This AMP is great. Plenty load, all kinds of tone.

Don't know, have only had it a few weeks. I can only hope it hold up better than the Peavey.

2 Year transferable Warranty - Unlike Peavey - 5 Years, but your stuck with the AMP.

Great Price - I was actually looking for a used AMP in this price range and end up buy new. Try finding a Marshall 112 tube amp for 500 bucks!

It's a real amp, not a box full of digital effects.

No kidding, this is a production amp at a decent price that beats some boutique amps at their own game. I guess Peter Traynor is still a great amp designer. I heard he died, but if this is his swan song, he went out in a big way and his last amp will make his justifiably famous in the amp world among real amp connoisseurs. Unless you have twice the money to spend, you really aren't going to beat this amp.

It's built a lot better than a lot of the production amps of today that are just crap in a black vinyl wrapper.

I needed a schematic and some advice, and I got them right on the spot. Schematics are on the website, and a real person answers the phone without punching in a lot of numbers.

Save a dollar a day for the next year and you can get a really clean used one like I did, plus have $15 left over for a case of beer to celebrate. You WILL celebrate. Man, this is a great sounding amp. I'm going to do some tube swapping when I get a bunch of tubes together, but for right now I am just letting the sound wash over me. It has been played with lots of different guitars, and they all sound good through this amp. Right now I'm mostly using an ES-335 and getting warm tones, but it also sparkles with my Ricky. It has plenty of bottom end for the ES-335. Its a 10 for the price when teamed with an ES-335. The Les Paul crowd may want something a bit more Marshally, and the Tele and Strat crowd may want something more Fendery, but this amp rocks if you want that semi-hollow gutteral growl from your semi-hollow axe.

A bit of quick background: I've only been playing electric for about three years after playing acoustic for quite some time before then. I messed around with small tube amps to learn how to play electric, but I quickly learned that the real joy of electric is blasting through a rich tube amp. That is pretty much what I get with this amp that I bought off a friend for a great deal. I love that the high,mid,low knobs actually DO something! I can get great versatility on this thing. The other reviews have already covered the features pretty well but let me just re-emphasize that this is a well equipped and very LOUD tube amp. (ya know, if you like that kind of thing.)

Does a big tube amp get any better? I'm not experienced with a lot of amps, but I have played a ton at the music store I worked at, and it's hard for me to find one that I like as much as the Traynor. I play rhythm in a jam-rock band with a Fender Strat (how typical, eh?). The thing takes quite a bit of volume to break up on the cleans, but boy oh boy is it nice. The drive channel is so smooth. I go back to those solid state amps I played in the store and wonder how I could ever even stand the sound before. For the band, I love how the richness blends in with my buddie's Fender cyber-twin on lead.

Only real problem I had was when it started billowing white smoke at a practice one night. I called the friend who I bought it from and he said it was only a power tube. We took it out and the thing worked fine, so all I needed to do was get a replacement. I've gigged with it for a year or so and no problems. The thing is heavy and beefy. I would certainly count on it. Actually, I wish the tube would have blown at our live show becuase it looked so cool! (ok, sad attempt to add humor to these reviews) I should also mention that my friend used it in his band several years prior to me on a very regular basis with no problems.

Since I bought it from a friend, he's basically my tech support.

My main instrument is actually keyboards, but I still feel very strongly about great guitar tone and overall sound quality as I am going to school for recording technology. Right now, I have no need for anything more that this Traynor. I love it for both its simplicity and its great tone and versatility. One of these days I'll get ambitious and try switching tubes or maybe try another speaker. If it actually gets better than this, I will be truly amazed. If you are one of those people who was like me and started messing in the world of solid state amps and even cheap little tube amps.. do yourself a favor and get something like this. You will understand why electric guitar players do what they do.

Probably made year 2003. Bought it about one and a half month ago so I've had some time to try it out. It was a little used when a bought it. I understood that some guy had bought it and didn't try it at all in the shop and then he had the amp for a few weeks, but then he thought the sound was too much fender-like, so he sold it. I think all the features are mentioned in the other reviews. I am not an experienced player, but I've tried to find a good tube amp, I never wanted a solidstate amp again after that I had a Marshall VS65R =P (But I think there was something wrong with it). I haven't been on stage with this amp yet. I think the amp is really loud, and the amp is pretty versatile.

I have an Epiphone Les Paul with DiMarzio pickups. I like the clean channel and I've tried to tweak to my taste. The clean channel is more noisier than the distortion channel, but none of them are actually noisy at all.

I like rock like AC/DC and Gun's and Roses... Maybe I should bought an Marshall cause I can't really get the distortion that you can get from Marshall, but as many other ppl said the YCV40 has it's own sound.

But anyway I like the distortion and I can get pretty brutal distortion if I want, but I don't that kind of music, but I get pretty AC/DC-like distortion.

My friend has a new Fender Hotrod-Deluxe, and I've compared them side by side with the same guitar, and I think that the Fender is a bit better, at least the clean side. It somehow has got a bit more punch. But I still use the original stock tubes (Sovtek), so I'm looking forward to the day I've got some money to change them =P Cause I've read that you can get a much better sound with a bit more expensive tubes.

I haven't tried if the clean channel distorts at higher volumes, but otehr ppl say that. I don't care so much about that. Don't almost all amps do that. Today I tried to put the volume at 3 but then it was so damn loud that I couldn't really play.

The only problem I see it that If you put the distortion at about 3 or 4, I can't really get a lot of volume from it, you have to have to volume at 5 or 6, and it's not so loud anyway. But I don't know so much about that, and I guess that happens to the most amplifiers when you turn down the gain, but the YCV40 seems pretty sensitive to that.

I can't really tell. I haven't had it for long.

Haven't tried to contact Yorkville.

I have only been playing for about two years now, but I've tried to find a good tube amplifier for a decent price. I live in Finland so the amp was way more expensive than in the states, so 700 ?, about 900 dollars is a OK price. Actually I bought this cause I couldn't really find any other good tube amp for a reasonable price near me. First I wanted a Marshall, but I couldn't find a used Marshall for a decent price anywhere near my hometown, but then we got a guitar shop to the town I they had that Traynor, so I bought it. Now I don't dont have any money at all, but I like the amplifier.

It's missing a vibrato, but it does have most other things any tube amp should have.

Beats some boutique amps. Especially when you find the right tubes and speaker. I'd rather take this to a gig than an expensive boutique amp. Your sound will suffer very little damage in the trade, but your bank account will be a lot healthier. Somebody said between a Fender and Marshall in sound, and that's a fair assessment, but I think it has more tonal range than either one but possibly not as good at the extremes those amps are noted for.

The birch plywood cab and steel speaker grille means major protection and ability to take hard knocks. A spare fuse and some spare output tubes, and you're all set to gig.

Schematics are downloadable from the website and the technician is very helpful. Yorkville Sound leads in reasonably priced gear. I compare them to Tech 21 stateside. The warranty is "no BS" and doesn't cost you extra up front like lifetime warranties from some people (Monster Cable, etc.)

Anything you plug in sounds good, and you can always get a useful tone for just about any kind of music. For the money you will probably not be able to beat it overall if you need a wide ranging amp for lots of different music. Leave the effects out of the loop and you'll generally get better sound from what's already built into the circuitry. I studied the schematic, and the amp is quite sophisticated, being a mix of tube and solid state circuitry. Dn't look down on the solid state aspects, as it allows many nice features at a reasonable price like auto tube biasing, voltage regulation, and rectifier tube emulation without the sound changing as the tue ages. Get some NOS Tung-Sol or RCA tubes like other guys have tried, and the tone is killer and probably even better than boutique amps using the latest Russian tubes. I think JJ tubes are the best I heard in it for those wanting budget tubes. Ei ECC83 tubes, the latest versions, in the preamp were really nice for those wanting lots of sparkle in the high end for country playing. This is an amp worth playing around with for your signature sound, but it's darned good right out of the box.

The most useful feature to me is the fact the tubes are autobiased by the amp itself. That saves on the necessity to buy matched pairs and allows you to buy single NOS tubes at bargain prices. I'm stuck on Tung-Sol 5881 tubes for their great bottom end, so this feature is important as most boutique tube dealers are getting ruinous prices for genuine NOS Tung-Sol 5881 tubes in matched pairs or quads. The only thing the amp misses is some effects gizmos that I generally never use anyway. A vibrato would be nice, but buy a small gizmo box for that, plug it into the backside effects loop jacks, secure it in the bottom of the amp (I suggest the velcro straps that hold the footswitch in place during transport) and it's as if the amp came with it.

The stock Sovtek tubes did not have the gutteral bottom end I like. A changeout trying various tubes resulted in the Tung-Sol 5881 taking top honors. RCA 6L6GC was no slouch either. JJ 6L6GC will work for the economy minded. If going to the add-on cab, I would have used the Celestion G12H30 speaker, but I chose the G12H80 instead to take the pounding in a single speaker while exceeding the 40W power rating in full output overdrive. I have heard that Traynor has put out a limited edition tha uses EL34 tubes for 50W of power. You would hear a tonal difference more than a volume difference. This is a LOUD combo amp for the size once you get a 99dB efficienct speaker in it like I have. I wanted a 100W Fane alnico speaker, but the price was too high. Some day..........maybe.

Ok, it's an easy guess that with the tubes and speaker I have installed, it's a lot like a good 70's tube amp. The sound is not as sparkly clean as a Fender from tha era, but not quite as distorted as a Marshall either. I think this has a heavier output transformer than a Marshall of the same power, because it plays tighter bass than a Marshall. You would have to switch over to EL34 tubes to get a more Marshally tone, but call Traynor before making the switch. I like it just fine the way it is. It reaches way down and shakes the room in the bass, but performs well on up through the midrange and treble as well. While the treble is not super extended, it is smooth. I hate overly bright amps anyway. Before buying an expensive boutique amp, give the YCV series a try. Even if you buy a boutique tube amp, this makes a really good tube amp for live gigs and will save your boutique amp from unnecessary wear and tear. If your YCV40 doesn't sound great, you must have it set up with the wrong speaker and tubes, or something is broke. The sound was good as I got it, but a bit underwhelming. Now it's a tone monster. I was after a classic tube rock amp, not a modern gizmo box, and this really fills the bill. Oh, and the reverb is quite good and is the long spring type that I like. Those short spring types like in the Marshall AVT series just don't cut it in comparison. This is more like a Fender reverb.

Hard to say. The cabinet and grill is gorilla tough. I'm a bit concerned about the jacks and pots. They are the PCB mount type that have to be soldered to the board, so not a really quick and easy repair. The PCB could be heavier and tougher. The tube sockets solder directly to the circuit board, so could be a future problem that needs resoldering. I'll modify the amp with standard sockets and standoffs then run wires between the socket and board if that ever happens. Almost all the high production tube amps have serious cost cutting features, and I feel this is a more reliable amp than the Fender Hot Rod series, and better sounding as well. I bought a Tech 21 SansAmp RBI preamp for a tube amp backup, and it serves a bass or guitar equally as well as a backup direct input box. Quite frankly, I would spend $300 on a new SansAmp RBI before buying cheaper tube amps with cheap construction and ratty tubes. Getting a cheap tube amp to sound right can easily cost over $200 in better tubes and speaker. As I mentioned, you can use any tube of the 6L6 type family and get them cheap from Ham radio operators and such as bargain prices. If they test good in a tube tester, they will probably fly alright and reliably because of the autobias feature. I'm going to stick my neck out and give it an 8, because of Traynor warranty.

They have the best warranty and service among the high production music amp companies. Others may equal, but probably do not surpass. Their schematics are online, and a service tech is there if you need to call and ask a question. Even if YOU broke it, they will fix it for two years (like if that tube swap you just did goes sour and blows a transformer or somrthing). That's plenty of time to determine if you like the amp and to tweak it to your taste. If it stays reliable for two years, it will probably go at least ten more with little hassle. Probably the safest call you will ever make in a tube amp.

Mine was a demo unit that had well used output tubes that were a bit weak in emission. New tubes brought it up to par, and the right speaker pushed the sound over the top for me. The output tubes make a big difference, as it should in any quality tube amp that has clean tone capability. This amp sounds better than a lot of vintage tube amps, and only 5 tubes are needed for a complete tube swap. You can do it for less than $75 with all new JJ tubes. Much less hum because of the DC heaters on the preamp tubes, and the regulated HV to the preamp tube plates gives stability of tone. If you want something between a Fender and a Marshall in tone, give this little monster a try. I think the others had better do some catching up or Traynor may take back a significant part of the tube combo amp market. Too bad they don't have a head version, but this is nice and plenty loud for most club gigs and any recording gig. Traynor made some mistakes in years past and let their guitar amp market fizzle away. These have the spirirt of their early days, like when their bass and guitar amps stood with the best available. It was a Traynor bass amp that inspired Ampeg to introduce the SVT bass amp. That Traynor bass amp head is still prized by some guitarists that want a simple head without effects or distortion and prefer a 4x12 halfstack arrangement. This makes a much better guitar amp all in one unit without adding processors into the inputs for tube overdrive tone. You have none of the flaky capacitor and resistor issues you have with vintage amps. Try this instead, it's less expensive and better. This amp is a standard bearer in its price range.

Bought new in Fall 2003. Foot switchable channels and boost (on od channel. Foot switch included. Vol (gain on od),bass, mid, treble for each channel. Master reverb and presence. Extension speaker out. Could use a master volumne.

Fender A.S. Fat Strat Texas Special(HSS)with minimal effects (delay, phaser). I play in an original band with classic rock influences. I've upgraded the stock speaker and tubes. A Celestion G12H-80 from Avatar(better bass reponse - no farting on the clean channel anymore)and JJ 6L6GC power tubes and JJ ECC83S pre amp tubes (smooths out the overdrive, eliminates the harsh edge it had). Clean channel sounds very good with Fender singles. Reverb is nice (I use lower settings around 4). Overdrive channel is versatile. Set to low gain (3) gives a bluesy break up. Mid gain (5-6) full sounding chords. Higher gain (8-10) sounds better at lower volumne levels to me (tone compresses too much for my preference at higher vol). Boost function adds mids and a little more gain. Makes single note lines stand out and gives a fatter tone to leads. Rock ,country and blues tones can be found in this amp.

I have had the YCV40 for one year with no problems. I've played dozens of gigs in the Philadelphia area, mostly three set shows. While I trust the reliability of the amp, I always have a back up amp or a Tech 21 direct box just in case (no sense in being unprepared).

Quick reponse and helpful information on the only email I sent. 2 year unlimited, transferable "even if you break it" warranty.

I've been playing for 20 years and am happy with the YCV 40. My other amps include a Music Man HD210 one thirty. I won't ever get rid of the Music Man but the Traynor is now my workhorse. I would not hesitate to buy another.

Needs a reverb switch, but otherwise fairly full featured.

Somewhere between a Fender and Marshall, but with the soul of a custom amp from a small manufacturer. For the price it's amazing. I did some tube comparisons, and settled on JJ Tesla tubes. Ei tubes also sounded nice in the preamp and driver section. Fender and Marshall have nothing at the price tha matches it.

It looks like it is fairly well made. The plywood cabinet looks incredibly sturdy. I would put on better pots, jacks, and switches if I were building them.

Yorkville stands behind these amps and their warranty is no nonsense.

This is the perfect amp for my Rickenbacker guitar. Forget that Vox POS that other Ricky owners seem to be stuck on for some unexplained reason to me. Everything you plug into this amp seems to sound better than what it was previously plugged into.

2001 model,2 channels,effects loop,spkr. out,a reverb switch would be nice,use this at home,so much volume ill never use it all!

i use a am.series strat with a voodoolab tremolo pedal for retro rock blues and country and this baby delivers the goods,dead quiet.The lead channel really sucked untill Bob at Eurotubes set me up with some jjs preamp ecc83s that have made channel one KILLER!thanks Bob!also my clean channel has taken on a much better tone thanks again to Bob,distortion now is like it should be,overall this is the best sounding amp going for up to twice the price

this baby was used when i got it ,a tear in the grill cloth shows how great the grill under it is,no speaker damage!rock solid construction all over,however somecrappy jacks on rear panel drops rating to 7

absolutely the best,

after 30 yrs playing thru countless amps the baby is on top,sound,price and support ,yes id buy another,beats the rest,a half power switch would be cool cause this puppy is loud!but nice..do improve your tube sellection for supreme enjoyment

Mine is a new amp, I actually got it today but ive been playing the SAME one in the SAME guitar store for like weeks, and its amazing! The speaker might be crappy for some people, but hey dont complain about it, DO something about it! its alright for me cause it sounds amazing! two footswitchable channels, clean and overdrive. wish the reverb was footswitchable too. :( i play like alternative rock, sometimes metal or blues, whatever im really into playing at the time, and this amp can cover basically all (for metal, i recommend a MT-2) Has an effect loop but i put my effectys thru the input to guitar. Tube amp, and its badass! I use the amp in my bedroom and for gigs, and its sure as hell loud enough! I cant put it past 1/2 without people getting pissed!

I use Gibson (BEST OF THE BEST) Faded SG with 490 p/ups. Sounds absolutely amazing! This amp isn't noisy at all, and its sooooo crisp and clean. Distro can be brutal, if u set it right

Well i got it today, well see how it goes. seems very sturdy to me and traynors warranty supports it!

Amazing amp. I absolutely love it. Sounds awesome, suits my needs. No amp can be a absolutey perfect, thats why i give it a nine of ten. this bad boy wont dissapoint you, so fender and marshall and mesa and randall, you should take some notes - yorkvilles made an amazing amp for a great price everyone can afford.

hybrid amp with more tubes in the circuitry than most other hybrids.

Traynor has pulled a rabbit out of the hat and managed to get a better sound out of it than an all tube amp would have had at this price level. I know electronics and studied the circuitry for quite some time. They skillfully used solid state and tube circuits in the best places for each to get the best sound at the lowest price level. This is a new standard for a hybrid amp, and they have managed to get the public to believe it is an all tube amp except for solid state rectification. The truth is, solid state figures very prominently in the circuitry and is used exclusively in the reverb and effects loop circuitry. It would have taken well over 9 tubes to get a similar level of sophistication. The preamp tube regulator, valve rectifier emulator, and automatic output tube bias are not to be taken lightly. It covers Marshall to Fender tones fairly well, but can go places they can't. Not as high gain as some Boogies, but an overdrive pedal takes care of that. Boogies are the next commonly available amp up the ladder and they offer more model choices so you can dial to your style. Traynor YCV40 is the Ford F-150 of the amp world because of it's versatility and value for money. I replaced a Mercedes with my F-150 and am happier because of it. A lot of more expensive amp owners would also like the Traynor better than what they are using if they gave it a try and tweaked it a bit. The circuit design will become a classic and is probably being studied and copied right now. Some all tube amps will probably try to sound like the Traynor before it's all over. I added some accessories to my F-150, and I did the same to the YCV40. This amp is a tweakers dream come true if they have some electronic sense. The circuit has been updated over early models, and the changes are listed on the schematic that you download from the company website.

It has a glass epoxy circuit board that is repairable. Soldering the output tube sockets to the board is a bit iffy. It's as good as anything else at this price level, and better than most. The birch plywood cabinet deserves special mention and seems gorilla tough. The steel mesh behind the grill cloth is a nice touch and should stop a beer bottle thrown from the audience.

This is where Traynor really shines. They back their products with no BS and are jackrabbit quick about it. Unless you only like expensive boutique amps, there is no reason to get any of its high production competitors.

This is the most amp that you will ever get at this price at this time. The circuit design is way ahead of anything cheaper that comes from Asia, and the sturdiness of the birch hardwood plywood cabinet is as good as anythig I ever saw. It's probably the finest hybrid amp in existence and has set a new standard for sound quality at its price point. No all tube amp or all solid state amp can beat it overall at this price point, because both technologies are used where they work best. The modeling amps are a few steps behind in sound quality. One real amp beats any copycat amp any day in my book. The Traynor makes a fairly good modeling amp if you know how to set the controls.

1st year manufactured, 2001. if you've read all the past reviews you already know the main features of this unit. i gig extensively with this amp, to a venue of 600 people. i'm a pro player, and this being one of many amps i own, fits the gig perfectly. reliable, warm round tube tone, decent distortion, very classic but slightly unique sound.

i'm an 80's shredder, at heart, but am more versatile than that in order to make my living. b.c. rich,, ibanez with air nortons, and classic, boutique pedalboard with the best pedals you can think of. this amp can be noisy when cranked, but remember , this is not the most expensive amp you can buy , with the most expensive components. it is what it is, an entry level to midrange priced amp. i don't use the amps distortion, too brutal, rarely have i found an amps distortion i've liked, in this pricerange. my original tubescreamer works just fine.

very dependable amp, but man i sure take care of her. never touched a thing in 3 years.

Playing 30 of my 43 years, I own boogies, fenders, marshalls, I would buy it again in a heart beat, I love the dependability, the warmth, the size for the venue, I compared it to the fender and the traynor blew it away. The distortion was better, more athentic sounding, if your into amps distortion. The traynor was less honkey then the fender, if you know anything about that. The traynor was lighter in weight, with the stock tubes, the traynor's head room is marginaly lower than the fenders. The traynor was $200 cheaper, if that matters to you, than the fender. On the downside, i would consider the traynors build quality, to be inferior to that of the fenders, still a very good buy. For the particular music, and venues that I play, it's all I need, let me also add, that I use an extension speaker with his traynor, for over-all stage fill, since its only a 112. Besides most of the time, we run d.i. or miked.

Fender, Marshall, Crate and Peavey had better hurry and catch up. Nothing else at this price sounds as good. This is not a 10 in the absolute sense, it's just the best sounding at it's price. Can't decide on a Fender or Marshall......or want both? This covers most of their tones fairly well, and you can stick some cash back in your pocket.

Birch plywood cab, and what do you get in some others......Particle board usually. Steel speaker grill also. Figure on keeping this one a long time.

If you figure in price, you can't give it less than a 10 because it's the best at its price I have ever seen or heard. Compare it to the Fender vintage reissues ot their other tube amps, you'll buy the Traynor. That goes even more for the new Marshalls.

what can i say,ive been searching for this amp for 20 years,ive owend ,a 65 super reverb, a twin,boogie, a rivera,ect.the thing blows away the clean and dirty sounds of any of those amps,and i dont want any more features ,i got simpicity and if iwant to run some pedals fine i start with just this great sounding amp,im very afraid to change tubes and speaker like everyone says,cause i cant imagine it sounding better.i play funk jazz ,solo guitar and rock,blues ect its great for all styles

About everything you could want except vibrato. Fairly full featured.

Everybody who has used my amp, from rockers to country pickers (sorry, don't know any jazzers), has been able to find a sound they like. From amplified acoustic, to electric semi-hollow, to solid body with humbuckers or single coils. This is the best all-around used buy in the under $600, or best new buy in the under $1000 price category. Sure, you can do equal or better in one particular area for the same amount of money, but nothing else for under a grand retail touches this amp as an all-around combo amp. It's only real sonic weakness is that it's too loud as a home practice amp, but for doing live club gigs and group practice, it's a tone monster. If you apply lots of money, you can do marginally better. My rating is after I modded it to my taste with premium Celestion speaker and NOS 5881 tubes. After tuning it to your taste, you will find that it probably sounds better to you than all but a few stock boutique amps. The tone stack is quite good and versatile. Did I mention it is LOUD for a 40 watt combo now that I have a top line Celestion in the cab? While there have been cost cutting measures to keep the price low, the basic circuit design is obviously one of the best out there, and absolutely the best overall for the price. Surprisingly, it doubles as a bass practice amp for home use, which seemed impossible due to the open backed cabinet. This became evident after the upgrade to a much better speaker. The Seventy 80 speaker can't play bass worth a flip. My rating is after I modded it to my taste.

The birch plywood cabinet is obviously made to take a beating and keep on working. Love that steel mesh behind the grille cloth. The electrical construction uses cost cutting features, like soldering the pots and jacks to the circuit boards. There seem to be plenty of standoffs for mounting the circuit board, but the glass epoxy board could have been thicker. Still, it's a lot better construction than the Marshall AVT series with cheap phenolic circuit boards and particle board cabinets. For less than $100 extra over the price of an AVT50 in Musician's Friend, you move up into another class of amp, equal in my opinion to the top end Fender tube amps, but of course more versatile in tone. I would rate the AVT50 about a 6 in reliability, for comparison. I would always take a backup to ANY tube amp. For me that is my SansAmp RBI preamp that I can play through the PA system. Taking a whole extra guitar/bass amp is overkill. The RBI doubles as the bass or guitar amp backup, so only one is taken. If you take a backup amp, make sure it's the PA amp.

You can pay three times as much and get much worse factory support. Schematics are available online, for you tweakers out there.

My upgrades cost $200, so the amp really cost me $600, minus what I can get for the old speaker and tubes. You'll never find another amp this good for $600 unless you run across somebody really desperate to sell their boutique amp. It get's a 10 because there isn't anything better for the price, but in an all-out sense it rates a 7 or 8 depending on how spoiled you are when you run across it. I really don't know how Yorkville Sound manages to build these in Canada for the price they charge. It must be the manufacturing economies due to the fact they are a big pro sound company, and they don't depend on guitar amp sales as much as their main line. They did most of the cost savings in the speaker and tubes departments, so figure on upgrading those first. The improvement in sound is definite, although the stock components will get you by until better parts are acquired. Look at what Vox gets for their reissue crap with limited tonal range that often fails, then go and try one of these for less than half the price. As far as all that vintage stuff goes, musicians used that stuff because they didn't have something like the YCV40 when they were making musical history.

This is a brand new traynor with red tolex. It has the features listed below but with an upgraded speaker. Information on that to follow. It is loud enugh to play live.

I play teles, les pauls and rickenbacker guitars through this amp. I think it favours single coil pickups ( to my ears) but perhaps 20 years of rock and roll is catching up with me. I like the distortion, it is warm and not unlike my marshall jcm 800 at lower volumes, and a whole lot more portable.The clean is chimey, like a fender only with a bit more of a rounded sound.say the difference between a 6 string and a 12 string. The ric loves it and it is a match made in tone heaven..
I used to use a 60 something fender bassmaster until a goof spilled a beer on the transformer and cooked it. I have played ( and owned) about 15 amps since then and this one is in the same league. It is ( was ) light and red. Who could ask for more.

It has a couple of minor problems
1) the overdrive light stays on even when the overdrive is disengaged,. Not a big enough problem to take it back as my ears tell me when I'm in overdrive. However it is a nuisance.
2) The red tolex is not glued tightle around the handle. Picky? Yup. It is tough as a traynor and well built. I love the speaker guard, very smart. However I do not love the speaker.At this price i think they wanted to " add a celestion". They are to be commended for that, but the bugdet celestion is a poor choice. I see they offer upgrades on their higher priced amps. So with what I read here and what I saw them do I decided to try it for myself( momma didnt raise no dummys, just guys who can't type). I contacted celestion and asked them how a G12 H 100 would change the amp. They responded ( the next DAY!!) and told me the characteristics were similair but that the g12 h 100 was more efficient ( louder) with a tighter bass. ( I'm paraphrasing here). I installed it and wow, no more 40 watts! It is louder and the better bass capacity adds a new dimension to the clean , but the distorted takes off. that is why I think it no sounds like a small Marshall JCM 800 at lowere volume levels. I do not know enough about tubes to change them, but will likely upgrade when these kick the bucket. I agree this is a great starting point. The amp is now heavier, but worth the extra grunt.

Yorkville sound makes traynor. They have the best warranty in the business. ( Perhaps that is why I'm not worried about the problem listed above.) The respond to emails in 2 days max, are helpful and obvious gearheads who love what they do, and good because they are amongst the best in the world at what they do. I have dealt with them for 30 years and they are the BEST. If you do not have this amp and you arer a player who needs to cover every sound and do not want someother tone deaf guy ( modeller) to do that for you, then this is your amp. Buy this amp and you'll still have beer money if the odd owner stiffs you.

30 years professionally. I'd replace it in a second. There are no competitors in this price category. People ask me how i get my sound all of the time. ( It is usually just how i hold my pick but oh well.....This is the most versatile amp I've ever owned and fender better scurry to catch up!

2003 Model with the metal logo

I play (and it covers) anything from blues to all out rock n roll!
I just wish it came with the tubes I use in it now.. more on that later

It autobiases any tubes you put in, this saves cash!
It also has a circuit that pushes the power tubes even at low volumes.. I believe it, it sounds good at any volume.

I could theoretically play a show without any pedals at all! I may just do this to say I have. I know no other amp that I would try this with. The reverb is accutronic and very good. Also, both drive and overdrive are very very usable.

For the volume this thing pumps out, it is lightweight too..

I changed the tubes to:
2 JJ 6l6 Power Tubes
3 Electro-Harmonix Preamp Tubes

Now I get pretty much any sound I want!!
I use a guitar with Seymour Duncan Jazz in neck, and Duncan Custom-custom in the bridge. This of adds to my versatility.

I like the speaker cuz I play in a rock band, so the bit of grit from the 70/80 speaker is really really good. A Vintage 30 would probably be too loud anyway.

I never turn this amp past 6 on stage (its mic'd of course!)

This is my sound, so I gotta rate it at 10.

I'd depend on it for sure. In time, we won't see the sagging grille cloth like a lot of Fenders because the Traynor has a steel grill behind the cloth. Great for those accidental kicks while playing with the band.

2 year unlimited warranty

Been playing for 12 years.

This is my amp for the band and I use an AA Godin LG Signature, which helps to overdrive the amp. I can get any sound I want with these two components. I also use a Marshall Shredmaster for leads and heavier tunes, plus a Zoom 303 for delays and echos and eq.

I'd have to buy a Fender with a really nice clean channel and a couple more pedals to get the same thing. No thanks! Especially when the Traynor does it all in one tight package.

By now, this is a famous amp and should need no introduction from me. Has lots of features except no vibrato, which most people don't use anyway. The amp is retro cool looking, and it seems to put out at least those 40 rated watts, if not more.

Once you upgrade the tubes and find what speaker works best in it for you, it starts giving the high priced boutique amps some really stiff competetion. The sound is very versatile, only the most extreme sound oriented musicians will fail to find the sounds they want after it's tweaked to taste. For the price, this is the standand against which all others near its price should be judged. VERY LOUD when something like a Celestion premium line speaker is installed. You MUST upgrade the tubes and speaker if you want to hear what this amp can really do. I totally agree with past reviewers who upgraded the tubes and speaker. Anyone who rates this amp on abused Russian output tubes or a speaker that hasn't been broken in is really short changing themself. It can really wail if given a proper chance. Those who say it can't do Metal need to get a proper Metal guitar and spend some money on tubes and a decent speaker instead of tattoos and whatever, and accept the fact that differentiating between notes is OK in Metal instead of letting everything go to sonic grit and sludge.

You can find tougher amps out there, but not at this price with all the features and tube power. Reliability goes up a notch when better tubes and speakers are installed. The birch plywood cabinet will probably outlast me. If you know how to repair/modify an amp, this can be the last amp you ever buy.

If you are tired of how slow Marshall and a few others have gotten, give a Yorkville Sound a try. Who could ask for a better warranty on reasonably priced gear?

I bought mine used and upgraded it. I tried several different brands of tubes in it. Tung-Sol, Philips, Amperex, JJ, Ei, Electro-Harmonix. Really, you just try several and see what you like the best. A tube amp junkie should keep plenty of tubes around for checking out what works best. I like NOS Amperex in the preamp and NOS Tung-Sol in the output, but switched to new JJ in the preamp because they sound almost as good and cost a fraction of the price, Ei was almost as good for me. Nothing beat the Tung-Sol 5881 in the output, unless you have some NOS RCA 6L6GC and like a later break up. My ears couldn't handle that, however. Home practice use might be better served by the stock Seventy 80 speaker due to its lower sensitivity, but to really make the amp roar a Celestion G12H80, Classic Lead, or Vintage 30 will do the trick. The supplied Seventy 80 speaker may take the place of a Greenback if you're not too picky. I think the Celestion line with 50 oz. magnets are the way to go in this amp, however. The G12H80 is my fave in this amp, and it's LOUD and will serve about any classic rock or hard rock style you can name. My Marshall AVT50 is sitting around doing next to nothing these days, and stays around mainly as a backup to this amp. It can't compete in volume or classic tube tone, and I once thought it was really good. A Vintage 30 or Eminence Legend in this amp may have your old Fender tube amp sitting around and gathering some dust as well. You can play a fairly large size venue if you install a top end Celestion in the amp. Wish I had this amp 30 years ago. Yeah, you can get a Mesa-Boogie or even costlier amp and exceed the sound in various ways, but few of them will be only a bit more versatile, and most of them will be less versatile. The bottom line is that this is a very good sounding amp with EXTREME versatility. I think by changing out tubes and speakers you can make it do almost anything, because the basic tone circuitry is extremely well done. Think of the tubes and speaker in there from the factory as only something to use for a while until you decide what really makes the amp rock for you. I can see the logic of not charging the owner for a premium speaker and tubes that might not suit the owner anyway. Put some time, money, and effort into finding the right formula for you, and the amp WILL perform for you. This is the gold standard combo amp at this price point. I didn't take this amp too seriously at first, because of the reasonable price. It cost me a couple hundred more than what I paid to get it upgraded, but it was the best $200 I ever spent on an amp modification. If I was Yorkville Sound, I would market this amp in a premium model with top end tubes and speaker to wannabe boutique amp owners. It killed my urge for a Mesa-Boogie, and the best Fenders and Marshalls can go take a hike as far as I'm concerned. Cheaper tube amps like Peavey Classics do not compare when talking versatility, they are more like one trick ponies next to this amp. This is built in Canada, so I don't even consider it an import in the normal sense. None of the Brit amps give the same value for your money. My Marshall is shoddy build quality next to this amp. Traynor is King at the under $1000 price point.

2003 model with metal logo.
This amp covers all my musical tastes from all out rock to country
I wish it had motorized knobs and presets, but hey, i guess that's pushing it!
This is my main amp for gigs in venues anywhere from 25 to 200 people

If you put good quality new tubes in it, this amp is fit for a king. I prefer it over a new marshall JCM, and new Fender Twin.
Of course its going to sound crappy with the crappy Sovtek tubes from the store that have been mishandled and abused by leaving it on all day.

I rented one of these Traynors that was clearly abused and looked ratty and it sounded like crap. Then I changed the power tubes (JJ's) and it blew away my friend's Fender Twin with stock tubes. Unbelievable!

2 year unlimited warranty...

This amp along with my pedals DEFINES my band's sound. Every single guitarist who hears it asks me about it and can't believe its not a Fender. I really honestly believe its much better than any Fender you can buy at a music store. SO much more versatile.

2 Channels is all I need. Reverb is excellent. Tone controls on both channels, shared presence. Footswitch INCLUDED. Perfect for what my needs are.

These amps sound great, and have multitudes of usable gig tones.
Ok, Ok ... I wrote this because there are some guitar players out there who cannot tell their elbow from their butt when it comes to tube amps. If you get an amp that sounds bad, and have read great reviews about it, maybe, just maybe, the tubes are worn out and need replacing. The amps in stores are left on all day by customers, and abused by others. The tubes also can be bad from the getgo. Either way, do not be foolish enough to think everyone else is the idiot, and you are the only one who knows tone. Try another amp. Most of the amps at Sam Ash have been blown or squeal like a pig when you turn them on. This is from people running them all day until they fry. Unless you do 5 straight 12 hour gigs without a break you cannot simulate this punishment at home. This amp wails, but if you cannot wail on your axe, this will not do it for you. Leesons might help.

Who knows. I don't know anybody who had to fix one yet, including me.

2 year complete warranty. They answer Emails.

Played for 30 years, gigged for 28 of those, and have owned the classic amps when they were first made. I need channel switching and a boost for leads. Others like the same basic sound all night (oh boy!! More Fender amp clean sounds!! I just cannot get enough of THAT!!). I personally will take this amp over any low watt Fender or Marshall. This is sooo much better than a Deluxe. And it is twice the wattage, has a clean and gain channel, included footswitch, and a speaker that beats the snot out of anything Fender/Emminence has put in an amp in the last 20 years. Oh, and $300 cheaper. This amp is an outstanding, I repeat, OUSTANDING value.

it's essentially a 3 channel tube amp. you have clean, old school crunch and a modern sounding overdrive with the boost on. the footswitch is built like a tank. effects loop & an accutronics spring reverb, which i don't use at all. i would have liked a closed back, but i can fix that myself with plywood and screws

i only own two guitars (an epiphone les paul standard and a godin exit 22 rosewood), but they cover most sounds aside from jazz and death metal. also, i've used a ton of different guitars with this amp, ranging from ernie ball music mans to ESP's to american telecasters. the ernie ball was great for a smooth modern sound, like incubus or dream theater. the ESP's did the same, but with more of a raw edge. and the telecaster was great for punk rock, and i was channeling tom morello with the neck pickup on. it also works well with my own guitars. my only real problem is that, while the base tone is great, it does make your guitars flaws stand out. for instance, i used to use an ibanez gio, and it's pickups were very muddy in the low end and harsh in the high end. this amp made sure i knew that. so if you're using a good guitar (or at least good pickups), you'll get a good sound. it also helps if you EQ the amp right. this amp NEEDS a good dose of midrange for it to sound right. thrash type folks should stick to their marshalls and mesas, they do the scooped mids thing much better. in a word, this amp sounds big, even with the stock tubes and speaker

i got mine used, and the previous owner wasn;t too kind to it. there were tears in the tolex and the speaker grille. but it doesn't look like it has anything other than cosmetic problems. another cool feature it has is the metal grille behind the grille cloth, protecting the speaker from whatever may come it's way, at least from the front. the preamp tubes are hidden away in such a way that you;d probably have tpo break the amp to break the tubes. the power tubes aren't quite as protected, but i'm not too worried about them, as they're secured with springs and what not

yorkville treats their customers like royalty

perhaps one of the best values today. it can do modern sounds, vintage sounds and it reacts well to pedals. add a 4x12 and it can probably do metal. upgrade the speaker and tubes and you have an amp that outperforms all other amps in it's price/spec range (marshall DSL401, fender hot rod deluxe etc)

The features are all well reported and they all work well Really good price performance. The reviews on this site are accurate. The difference with mine is that it has the vintage 30 speaker and stock tubes. OH yeah and Pete's signature.

I use a hollowbody archtop Vantage with humbuckers. The tone is fat and meaty and has balls when you want it to. Goes into the typical 12ax7 distortion (which is quite good) and cleans up nicely al Fender tone. Very rich sounds with tons of sparkle and texture. The clean channel is clean but it does break up when hammered on (which may or may not be intended)I think the vintage 30 and the fat guitar are more responsible for this though- a solid guitar may not provide the push. So if you want the headroom on clean you might want a 2x12 or 4x12 cabinet to run it through. The only problem was that the tubes do have some microphonic noise and generate some rather annoying frequencies. I can see why the other reviewers have noted this. You definitely DO NOT want to take this amp stock to a gig or studio without burning it in...so beware. Doesn't quite have that mystical feel of a Marshall or a Fender super... but still very good.

Unknown yet

Excellent.

Amp gets a nine because it hauls ass. The stock tubes suck and jury is out on the speaker. But for the dough, you can't go wrong. The circuitry has the tones, sounds, features blahh balh and it is an inexpensive amp. The only problem was the tubes, but for $100, hey!
I had a marshall and my buddy had a Fender super. Both amps rocked but were limited. This amp comes close to the tones of both but is way more versatile and is cheaper AND is made in CANADA. The warranty is great and the thing won't bust your balls carrying it around. You can turn it on, plug it in and sound good. End of story.

40 tube watts, birch plywood cabinet, 12" midline Celestion Seventy 80, clean and dirty channel, footswitch.

I don't know what happened with the guy below, but this is a good amp. There were numerous circuit mods over the very earliest models. They are listed on the schematic that you download from the Yorkville website. If you have an early model, you might want to check out bringing it up to the latest specs.

By all means change out the speaker and tubes for something better if you can afford it. Avatar Speakers sells Celestion cheap, and Angela Instruments has killer deals on Ei ECC83 preamp tubes. They may still have some Philips 5881 tubes for $18 each, but you can buy single Tung-Sol 5881 tubes from the Ham guys on eBay for a bit more and save a bundle over what matched pairs cost from audio amp guys. This amp has auto bias and doesn't need matched pairs to sound good. I prefer it with 5881 tubes, but the JJ 6L6GC tube bears checking out as well. It can sound a lot like a Fender or Marshall depending on how you play it. It's a great and versatile compromise between the two classic amp sounds. Blows a Vox in the weeds for versatility. Get the right speaker and tubes in it for your purposes, and it becomes a solid 10 for the price. Has a fairly good reverb unit as well.

Fairly well made. If you break it for any reason, they fix it for two years. Fair enough.

Yorkville is famous for customer support.

It has been played with a new Rickenbacker 650D, Gretsch solidbody with Filtertrons from the 70's, and a Washburn copy of a Gibson ES. Sounds good with all of them. Extremely good bass output after changing to a Celestion G12H80, so the thin sound the guy below is harping about is definitely not characteristic of these amps in general. This amp really screams hard rock tone after changing out to the G12H80. I wish Yorkville would sell these with premium speakers and output tubes, because they definitely help. JJ ECC83S, Tung-Sol 5881 and Celestion G12H80 do it for me. Another fave would be Ei ECC83, JJ 6L6GC, and Celestion Vintage 30 for those favoring the clean channel. I favor the dirty channel, and hence my choices.

READ THE OTHER REVIEWS FOR FEATURES.

see overall rating for the low down...

IVE HEARD THRE REALLY RELIABLE.....IT SEEMS VERY SOLID

APPARENTLY THE BEST WARRANTY IN THE BUSSINESS,SO THEY SAY....

I USED A BRAND NEW FENDER AMERICAN ASH TELE TO TEST DRIVE THIS AMP........I WAS VERY DISSAPOINTED. I READ ALL ABOUT IT.AND THOUGHT IT MUST BE GREAT.IT SOUNDED VERY TINNY AND TREBILY. IN FACT I HAD TO KEEP THE TREBLE AND PESENCE CONTROLS TO ALMOST O. THE CLEAN CHANNEL SOUNDED GOOD. THE DISTORTED TONES WERE NOT SO GOOD.the speaker is total junk. it did sound alot better when i plugged it into my buddys marshall 4x12. but still not even close to an amp i would use on stage. it would be suited for someone who is just starting out,and wants an all tube amp.it gets the fender type clean tones fairly good. but i couldnt get past how thin sounding the overall tone was.i wanted to smash it to pieces five mins after i plugged it in. why did i buy it? didnt i try it out first? of course. but i couldnt turn it up loud where we were when i picked it up. and everything sounds good at low volumes.my friends fender blues juniour blows this thing away..... I GUESS YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR. IF YOUR READING THIS, AND CONSIDERING THIS AMP. I WOULD SAVE UP SOME MORE MONEY AND GO GET SOMETHING BETTER=READ HIGH END= MESSA MATCHLESS ETC. IVE PUT IT UP FOR SALE RIGHT AWAY.

I just purchased this amp in January 2004 so it is the latest greatest. I play contemporary Christian music professionaly but sometimes when the mood strikes I'll jump off into some nostalgia kick and ROCK face. This Traynor fits the bill perfectly! It has a super nice clean channel that really sparkles. The dirty channel sings and has plenty of gain for my taste. The YCV40 features a bright switch on the clean channel and a boost switch on the dirty side. Channel switching and reverb round out the package. Everything is very usable and works as expected. 40 watts of tube power meet the need to match the drummer with extra volume to spare.

CLEAN CHANNEL: I use single coil and humbuckers both on the clean channel. The amp sounds really nice with the singles, a great balance of warmth and sparkle. The humbuckers pump more juice causing the amp to break up sooner and changes the tone a tiny bit, I like the bright swith with the humbuckers.

DIRTY CHANNEL: Again, Humbuckers and singles. The distortion from this amp is sweet! Both pickups sound good. I agree with the other reviewers that this amp is NOT for Metal. It does rock hard though and delivers a great rock tone. I find the boost is useful at lower volumes only, at stage volume (Drummer) it only seems to muddy things up. also I prefer the gain around 7-8 instead of 10.

So far so good.

No dealings with the company so far. With a two year fix it no matter what warranty, I have to rate it a 10? Ii hear Yorkville customer support is top shelf.

A truly great amp period! With the inexpensive price that just makes it that much more of a "must have" for my collection. Buy this amp!

Everything but a tremolo, so get a pedal if you're into surf music.

Tweak it to your taste, and consider it your own personal boutique amp. The money you save on this amp allows you to tweak the tone to your heart's content. You can turn this amp into anything you want for playing at club sized gigs and at a reasonable price. Spend your money on a better speaker and better tubes. At the very least get better output tubes. Not that it sounds bad as a stock unit, as it performs as well or better than anything else that's close in price.

I've seen heavier build quality, but I doubt that it matters all that much. It's built well enough for most people. Harder to do some circuit mods than a point-to-point wired amp, but I don't feel they are needed.

They set the standard in service for affordable gear. A real tech answers the phone, and no runaround, just the right advice with no hype.

Changed the speaker, changed the output tubes, and now it sounds glorious, for less than $500 total after the mods. I'm satisfied....TOTALLY!!! You CAN do better, but only at a higher price, and even then you might not do as well. This is amp #6 for me, and the best by far so far.

Recent model, perhaps 2003. Two channels (clean and overdrive with extra boost), master reverb, master presence. Very easy to figure out a good tone. Start with all the tone controls at 5, then adjust to suit your ears. All tube, solid construction. Not a real heay beast, either; at 45 lbs. or so, it's what I'd call 'heavy for one hand'. I play in an original rock band and in modern-style church settings. at 40 watts, it's plenty loud and has plenty of punch even at moderate volumes.

Guitars: Les Paul 1960 Classic, Parts-o-caster Strat with US Strat pickups, Tele copy.

Style: Blues/rock similar to Free, Skynyrd, Dead, Doobie Bros. I play completely fingerstyle (no pick at all).

No noise at all... incredibly transparent clean channel that takes effects well. I use an original Cry Baby, vintage analog DOD chorus, Flanger and delay. Occasionally use an octave pedal for a different color now and then. The clean channel does not break up much at ll at the volumes I play at. Plenty of clean headroom.

The overdrive channel has plenty of vintage style brown sound. Think of a vintage Fender combo like a Deluxe pushed to the max. With the boost on, you can really dig into some chunk. Think early hard rock like The Who. This is not a metal player's amp, but 40 watts with the boos is going to rock most clubs very well.

I have had no problems with the amp at all, and I have heard nothing but good things about Pete Traynor and his products. I had previously used Yorkville (Traynor's parent company) PA gear, and I had read some very good reviews here at HC about the YCV40. I would gig with this amp without a backup, even though it mkes sense to have one anyway.

A friend of mine is a Yorkville dealer and he has had nothing but good relations with the company. Their warranty terms are great, and even without a warranty, I am lucky to have two great amp guys right in my own neck of the woods: John at Hy-Way Music Mart in East Brunswick, NJ and Dennis Kager (considered an amp genius/guru/expert) at Central Jersey Music Service in Edison, NJ.

I have been playing for 15 years. I have owned a Twin Reverb, a Hot Rod Deville 4X10, and various other amps. This is the amp with the best combination of wattage, sound, weight, appearance and price hat I believe exists today. If it were stolen, another would be on its way to my house before my tears dried. Seriously, there are those whobuy high-end boutique amps and then play for giggles in their neighborhood tavern, then there are those who buy all the latest stuff that the magazines convince them to buy because some alterna-dork got paid to say they like it. Finally, there are those people who can start with a good sound and build their own individual tone from there, and play because they were meant to. Those people will love the YCV40 if a vinatge style rock and roll tube amp is what they need.

Check www.yorkville.com or other reviews. I will mention, because it's not common knowledge, that as long as you use 6L6 power tubes you don't have to re-bias the amp when you change tubes because it's auto-biasing. You don't need to buy matched sets of tubes. This is a great feature because you can quickly change tubes if one goes bad during a gig. I'll give features a ten because it has everything I need. This amp replaced a THD Univalve (which was a great amp but not versatile at all in a gigging situation). It's great to have built in reverb, a footswitchable volume boost for the overdrive channel, and a foot switch to go from the overdrive channel to the clean channel.

It should be noted that my review is solely based on replacement tubes which are Svetlana 6L6's and Chinese 12AX7 Preamp tubes. I changed the tubes immediately, based on so many other reviews I read that suggesting doing so. I play straight forward rock n roll and blues stuff. I play clean 50% of the time and I use the overdrive channel the other 50%. This amp is all I could ever ask for. The overdrive channel gives great rock tones and cleans up nicely when you turn the volume down. And there is good chord definition even when playing complex chords. I use the gain setting at about 5 and it's perfect. For what I play I won't have to turn it up higher than that. The clean channel is chimey. It's not thin or weak either. I waited to use the amp at gig volumes before writing this review because I heard things about the amp buzzing. I didn't get any buzzing (although I did make sure I tightened all the screws when I got the amp). This amp is loud too. I never had to turn the amp up higher than halfway on either channel. I also use a chorus pedal and ProCo Rat for a different sounding distortion. The amp takes pedals very well.

I purchased the amp off of ebay and when I got it, the volume boost didn't work. I had it replaced, free of charge under warranty, and it's been fine. I would gig without a backup simply because there's no way my wife would let me buy a second amp! However, I'm confident it would be fine. I'm giving reliability a 7 simply because of the initial volume boost problem and that I'm comparing build quality to a high end boutique amp (the THD Univalve I owned previously). You can't beat the build quality of a hand-built amp. It doesn't mean that there will be constant problems with the Traynor. I might never have another problem. However, based on build quality and components I would give the Univalve a 10 and the Traynor can't be a 10 in comparison.

I can't Imagine that there is a better company to deal with. Their two year warranty is for real. I emailed them twice and they got back to me very quickly. I had a problem with the dealer not wanting to fix the volume boost for free. I called Yorkville(Traynor) and immediately spoke to a human being (which is amazing). I explained what was happening. He called the dealer and then called me back in 10 minutes and the problem was solved. I cannot say enough about this company. There might be equals but there is no one better than this company as far as customer support goes.

I've been playing for twenty years and I've had three other amps. This amp is a keeper. As long as it keeps doing what it's doing I will not need another amp to play rock n roll, blues, or country. If it were lost or stolen I would buy another one in a second. You cannot beat the price for it's features and sound. Other than super high end boutique amps, I can afford to buy most any amp. This amp just makes sense. I sounds great, looks great, and has everything a gigging musician could need. It's very functional. I even love the fact that the knobs are all recessed on the top of the panel. I can't tell you how easy it is to walk through a door and break off one of the knobs that are exposed on the front of so many amplifiers. Again, only time will tell about reliability. However, I do wish the P.C. boards were a little thicker. I also wish the switches were the heavy duty type. Overall this amp is awesome and you won't find a better amp for the money and I believe you won't find many better amps for twice the money.

2003 Model. You know the features!
I play this amp in a Praise and Worship Band at church. Has plenty of power and sounds great at both high and low volumes.

I use a Carvin Bolt (Strat clone) with 2 single coils and a twinblade humbucker in the bridge position. I play Christian rock and good ole Rock 'n' Roll!

This amp does it all. Great clean channel for use with chorus and awesome overdrive channel.

I thought the YCV-40 was great out of the box...but as the tubes were breaking in, they started to sound trebley and brittle. I decided (after a lot of internet research) to buy JJ tubes. I bought a matched set of JJ Tesla 6L6 GC's and 3 JJ Tesla ECC83s's with one matched for the phase inverter ($54 for set). These tubes made this amp so much warmer and really smoothed out the overdrive. I played last Sunday without any overdrive pedal at all! It's AWESOME now!

Would gig with no backup...Have only had 3 months, but seems to be solid. I do have an extra set of tubes just in case.

I have emailed them at least 4 times....3 before I purchased. They were helpful and fairly quick to respond each time.

No repair issues....mostly just questions about the amp in general and then to find out if Traynor made covers for the amp..which they do!

Been playing guitar for 22 years....(I can't believe it!)
If Lost, I would look around at amps again (it's fun!) but wouldn't hesitate to buy another!

For the price you can't find another tube amp with the features and the sound.....

See the website. Upgraded with Tung-Sol 5881 output tubes, JJ ECC83S preamp tubes, Celestion G12H80 speaker. Could use a tremolo, and that's about all.

The sound was very good for an amp this price compared to Fender, Marshall, Peavey, etc. After the mods it is only one notch below the best boutique amps in tone, if not build quality. Writing about tone is like dancing about architecture. It moves my monkey bone. It sounds considerably better than the stock unit. At least invest in a set of decent Tung-Sol or Philips 5881 tubes. The sound improvement is very noticeable and the mod takes about 2 minutes. After installing the G12H80 speaker, the bass became so solid that I can even use the amp as a bass practice amp! The Seventy 80 will fart out when you drive it hard with bass. The G12H80 speaker is brutally loud. I've never seen a night club too large for this amp as it sits now. The JJ preamp tubes added a bit of refinement. If you play Heavy Metal or Hard Rock, make the mods I did and you will be standing in mighty tall cotton. The clean channel and reverb works for a country musician that likes to get damn loud. You'll be grinning like a jackass eating briars!

I went through the amp and tidied up a few loose ends. Always go through a new amp and tighten up the loose cabinet screws. The wood generally shrinks back a bit and you'll get cabinet rattles if you don't. Check the tubes for proper seating, check the speaker bolts, check electrical connectors, etc. It's been reliable after initial modifications.

One of the best customer support centers in the business. Yorkville service is top notch.

My price reflects the addition of over $150 of upgrade parts. It is mandatory you change out the output tubes for best sound. If you don't use USA NOS 5881 tubes, then go with JJ 6L6GC. The JJ tubes may work better for heavier playing styles, as they are slightly more powerful. The Seventy 80 speaker needs upgrading if you play a bass heavy style or need a bit more volume. I got my amp used for under $400 delivered on eBay. I suggest a used amp in good condition if you upgrade like I did. Try to get the amp and mods for under $600, then it will flat out blow away a new stock unit for the same price or less. Avatar Speakers had new G12H80 speakers on sale for $42 each, so I grabbed a couple for $100 delivered in case I add the 1x12 cab at a later date. This amp can go a lot louder than it would seem at first glance, so try this one before shelling out the cash and straining your back on the YCV80 version. If I were forced to get a new one, I probably wouldn't, as the cost of upgrades would push the final price as high as $800, and you can get lots of nice used boutique amps in great shape for around $1000. I paid about half of what a good used boutique amp costs, and it definitely runs in that league now that I've tweaked it to my taste. For my style, it is actually better than a lot of boutique amps. The build quality isn't in that league, though. Neither is a Fender or Marshall, which cost more.

Yes, I only paid $125!! I got it at a Guitar Center before they were available in guitar blue books. They didn't know what they had. I saw it and was intrigued. When I saw the price tag, I verified it, and bought it on the spot.
40W Tube 1x12 combo. (That's equall to 100W solid State).
Two channels with separate eq. Reverb, presence, and effects loop. Speaker out. Two button footswitch for channel and drive.
I believe it is a 2002 model, I got it in the fall of 2002. I have had it ever since and amd still impressed with it. 40W is enough to keep up with a drummer, but it is best to use an extension cab if you are doing that.

I use both humbuckers and single coils with this amp. My Les Paul sounds chunky and rich through this amp, but the Strat suits the amp better. It is very dynamic and sensitive to your playing style. I play hard rock, blues and clean stuff. To get a really heavy hard rock tone out of it, I like to push the front end with a Tubescreamer. The clean channel (channel 2) has a nice chime and fullness to it. Again, I can't stress how dynamic the amp is. Channel 1, the drive channel, has a great voice. It's not tight and grainy like my Mesa, it's a bit smoother. At volume I find the drive button/footswitch useless. Once you get it cranking, the pre-amp get's hot enough that the drive switch just makes it muddy. Again, the Tuebscreamer pushes the pre-amp very nicely. I have ran this amp through a few cabs. 1x12, 2x12 and a couple 4x12's. Through a 4x12 with V30's (Mesa and a Marshall), the amp has more low end than my Mesa Dual Rectifier.

The only complaint I have is that the reverb is never truly off. Even at 0, there is still some reverb. I may re-wire the drive footswitch to turn on and off the reverb.

Haven't had any problems with it yet. (Knock on wood). I have also not used it for a gig yet. It's just an amp I use at home to noodle with my Strat.

No expereince.

I have been playing for 12 years, and am a tone junkie. This amp delivers the goods in spades. It puts the Fender Hot Rod Deluxe to shame even though they are considered to be in the same class. I play a Mesa Dual Rectifier with my band. If the music didn't need the tight grit that the Mesa Delivers I would use this amp. If they come out with a Head version, I'm definitely getting one. The only thing I wish it had was a footswitch for the reverb.

2003 model great for classic rock and blues IMHO.Two channels tube amp that is self biasing (great) I used KT66 power tubes in mine and it sounded great.

The amp has a good clean channel not great and a good overdrive channel and was very easy to dial in a good sound. The clean sound will break up when you crank it but thats good IMHO.

This was the problem Mine started having problems with the sound changing and the volume dropping out. I changed tubes and spoke with the MFG and the place where I bought it and they both were aware of this problem happening and it seems like a design flaw. If you look inside the amp(which is hard) It's made of very flimsy looking circuit boards IMHO and it's very tough just to get at the preamp tubes also the cab seems solid but the combo makes a lot of rattling noise. The MFG offered to send me a new one but the more I read about the amp and when I looked inside I just got my money back. It's a shame because for the money I thought the amp was great.

The company was great. They were very suportive and offered to give me a new amp and pay for shipping.

playing 30 yrs have had every amp none to man. The sound and the two channels and the size for small gigs was perfect but quality was not there . I would not buy again.

Aug 2003 production run. The amp has all the features I was looking for, except that a third channel would have been nice for extra distortion. The boost switch on the gain channel is just a +20dB volume step. At volume this amp produces a nice range of distortion.

The other new amps I considered were the Mesa F-50, Fender Pro Reverb, and a Marshall DSL. I bought two YCV-40's instead (more on this later).

I play play a Gibson ES135 w/PAH57's for jazz, and a Gibson Les Paul studio and a Strat for various styles of classic and current rock. The YCV-40 circuits are sensitive and very revealing of your other equipment choices, which I like.

The amp can produce beautiful clean sound and distortion depending on your tube choices. I've finally settled on JJ 6L6 power tubes. For rock I've settled on the new EH 12AX7 preamp tubes which to my ears produce a richer distortion sound than the JJ 12AX7. I also use the new EH 12AT7 tubes when I want a bare minimum of tube hiss, e.g. recording or home use. The AT7's work well if you don't need full gain in the tone stack (i.e. the full range of tone control boost). For jazz I sometime use an external Presonus tube pre-amp in place of the Traynor pre-amp circuits, by plugging the Presonus output into the amp return jack.

Once the Celestion seventy80 speaker broke in, it far exceeded my expecations. I had ordered a Vintage 30 when I bought the amp, but in the end I stayed with the seventy80 and returned the Vintage30.

The amp has an exceptional reputation for reliability among working musicians. I haven't had it long enough to form any of my own impressions about that. I'm totally impressed with the high quality of their construction and assembly however. When I first got the amp I had a minor cabinet buzz with low frequency humbucker inputs. I fixed this simply by tightening down the screws.

I made a couple informational inquiries to Traynor's Canadian plant and they were very helpful. I understand from other musicians that the factory is always quick to respond. Their warranty is terrific -- "we'll fix it even if you break it".

I had expected to buy a Mesa F-50 or Fender Pro Reverb for myself, and a Marshall DSL for my two teenagers. I like this YCV-40 so much that I bought two -- one for me and the other for them. Now they're as hooked as I am on the sound! "Dad thanks so much for getting this instead of the Marshall." It's rare -- *very* rare -- that I can pick gear for them and get away with it! That's how much confidence I had in the Traynor sound once I spent some time with it.

A special word of thanks to the dealer, Rock City Guitars in Somerville MA. The owners Justin and Corey are such good people, through and through. Rock City is what you always try to find in a shop but rarely can.

No need to go into that, see the other reviews.

Don't compare this to anything else, or you might suffer needless disappointment. This amp and its associated brethren are Peter Traynor's crowning achievement in guitar amplification. It has a lot of tubes in the circuit, but it has a lot of solid state devices in there as well. It was designed as a hybrid amp that has an extremely wide range of tones without resorting to digital effects that kill natural tone. Those who are disappointed because it is not a Marshall, Fender, Vox, or Mesa Boogie should just appreciate it for what it is and realize that none of those brands offer a combo amp with such a wide range of nice tones and rugged build quality for so low a price. I prefer to think that NONE of those brands can sound like this Traynor in its range of tones at anywhere near the price. It was made for a guitarist that can only afford or carry one good analog amp and needs lots of range without resorting to something like a digital modeling amp. Like any tube amp, you can change the character of tone by changing the tubes. I got considerable improvement by experimenting around, which is something you can't do with solid state digital modeling designs. Try the right type of tubes for your style before giving up on the YCV40. Ditto for the speaker. Consider this amp a STARTING POINT for your customization to your needs. The money you save up front allows you to do this. This amp is NOT a one trick pony, but the chameleon of affordable tube amplification......tweak, Tweak, TWEAK until you get your sound, and you can always change it to something else later if need be. I heard a difference with each type tube I tried.

I studied it closely, and this will be about the best you will ever get at this low of a price. Peter Traynor spent the money where it needed to be spent so the price doesn't elevate into the boutique category. It was made for a working musician. You can afford two or three of these for the price of a single boutique brand, and always have a backup if that is your need. ANY tube amp can break, because all tube amps use the same tubes from the same manufacturers. In any well built tube amp, tube failure and regular replacement will be your biggest headache. You can decide for yourself what quality of tubes you need. Reliability is the sum of many factors. None of the tubes are run really hard, like in some Marshalls. The birch plywood cabinet is the toughest type you can get. You have to spend major bucks to get a small increase in reliability. This is real world reliability that you can afford.

Yorkville Sound is legendary for customer support. No mass manufacturer does it better.

This amp, and its similar brethren, will develop its own cult following. It is not any other amp. Traynor does not need to sound like any other amp to gain credibility. What Peter Traynor has designed speaks for itself, and Peter Traynor is one of the giants of tube amp design. He just knows how to wring more tone and substance out of a dollar than anybody else. Other manufacturers should strive to produce a similar build and tone quality for a similar price. Traynor was responsible for other innovations in the past, such as the master volume control. They had been out of the guitar amp business for a while, concentrating on PA and sound reinforcement equipment, but are back into guitar and bass amps in a serious way. As always, their equipment is moderately priced with quality beyond the price tag. Some of their old equipment is legendary and still sought by guitarists in the know. The YBA 1 started the high powered tube bass amp wars, leading to a 250 watt model that challenged the Ampeg SVT. Today it is probably used by more guitarists than bassists who need a clean basic tone for use with effects and don't want to pay the price of one of the overpriced vintage amps. The YCV40 is a worthy successor to the Traynor legacy. Welcome back, Traynor! If you are a newcomer that has never experienced a Traynor, you should take a look just to see what you have been missing from the other popular brands: THE BEST VALUE FOR YOUR MONEY. Of course,it CANNOT be all things to all people, but it is more things to more people than anything else at its price.

The features on this amp are simple, effective and very straight forward to use. They have been covered well by most other reviews.

I bought this amp to use with my Gretsch Sparkle Jet with Filtertron humbucking pickups. They did not complement each other. I had read previous reviews on this amp that mentioned the YCV40 as having a clean side like a Fender Hot Rod deluxe. I did not find this to be accurate. The YCV40 had a clean sound but did not seem rich in tone.
When reviewing Fender amps the word TONE pops up very often and after trying the YCV40 I know why. The YCV40 has it's own clean tone which seemed rather plain or sterile while Fender amps seem to enrich the sound of ones guitar, TONE, TONE, TONE! I did not have a chance to crank up the YCV40 so it may be that it gets better at louder volumes but I did play it as similare volumes to the Fender. My mistake was thinking I would get another amp manufactures sound out of the YCV40. The overdrive channel was mid-rangy (great if you like this) but this was to much coloration for what I was after. The overdrive channel at low volumes was disappointing. I was hoping to play the YCV40 at low volumes for practicing but as with many tube amps at low volumes it did not sound good. This amp needs to be cranked up to show it's true self. I was hoping to get close to a Fender blues tone out of this amp and could not. This is not a put down directed towards the YCV40. It is a mistake on my part. One really should take their guitar and other gear and run it through this amp at various levels to get a feel for it and it's own tone.

Did not have the amp long enough. After one day I knew it was not right for me and shipped it back.

Did not deal with customer support

I have been playing for several years, mainly rock and blues. I played through a Seymour Duncan convertable amp and had about twenty interchangable tube modules (and the instructions to use them right). I could get just about any sound out of it, it truly was amaizing. I sold it and got a Line 6 Flextone II as it had varity and I did not have to switch tube modules but I could not get that great blues feel and tone that a Fender amp has. I was going to get a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe but changed my mind after reading the reviews on both the Fender the Traynor YCV40. It sounded like the YCV40 was the best of both worlds a clean channel like a Fender and a better overdrive. However the YCV40 is not a Fender or anybody elses amp. Try one out and if you can tweak it into getting the sound you need buy it but if it fails in being what you think it should be dont blame the amp.

I bought this amp in May 2003 brand new from Musiciansbuy.com, which happens to be right up I-95 from me in West Palm Beach Florida. As they were so close and I found nobody else had one, I went over and tryed the Ycv40 out. The feature have been well documented and I see no need to keep repeating them, just that they and the tone and possibilties for this amp sold me within a minute.I'm going a 9 because I've been playing for 15 years and played alot of amps professionally and none, and nothing perfect. But damn good. Pretty much everything I wanted in a one 12 combo amp exept a balanced recording line out.

I play and write original rock ,blues rock, and progressive and was looking for a combo to use in spots for gigging, jamming and recording were you don't need a half or full stack to get great tone and volume.That is also the majority of the places that most are going to play most of the time. But no amp will cover all bases so a musician is better off to have more than one amp.In this amp, I wanted a light weight combo with 2 channels both with there own eq and footswitchable. This amp delivers. I will say that the stock form is not going to give everybody what they want though. The stock Sovtek tubes sound like crap and they were the first thing I changed. I called up Bob at Eurotubes(Eurotubes.com)a great guy by the way and very knowledgable and had him send me a matched set of JJTesla 6L6GC's and 3 ECC83S's one balanced. This changed the sound from flubby harsh tone to smooth and balanced,clearer and warmer tone. Just smoking.This was a big improvement.Like so many others have said change the tubes.This was good but not good enough. The speaker (70/80 Celestion)far from gave me the clear crisp but warm distortion I wanted and this amp can do, plus a clear smooth warm clean tone that I wanted. The JJ's do this but were still held back by the Celestion. So I changed the speaker out to a Weber High Power Californian C12CA paper dome. This brought want was a very good amp to a great amp! The Weber has a 60 oz. magnet were the Celestion has a 30 oz. magnet and is way more efficient.It brought what was a loud 40 watts to even louder. The tone went from still kind of muddy and farting out at higher volume to clear and smooth with a huge bottom end and smoking sustain, never farting out and just kicking.The distortion was also muffled by the 70/80, I turned down the gain on the distortion channel by one and a half and got just as much. This amp can do pretty much anything if you just set it up right. Both changes were not that expensive(64.00 for the tubes and 94.00 for the speaker)and easy to do yourself.Pop out the old tubes and put the new in and pop off the grill on the amp unscrew the old speaker and screw on the other.Wham!!! Like your girlfriend hit you in the head with her purse for checking out the hot chick that walked by.

This is were it get sticky.The first one I got must have been an older one. The sound was good but the board they used for the tube protecter was broken which I didn't realize till I got home and had it a few days. Also someone screwed on the front grill. I guess because of rattling. BAD QUALITY CONTROL YORKVILLE!!! They seemed to have fixed alot of amp and circuit problems now and the one I exchanged for is great.I've emailed them a couple of time an response is pretty much next day. I'm going to order the extension cab soon and I better not have any problem Yorkville or I'm getting my jump boots from the army out and I'll be showing you what it feels like on the back your ass!!!! I do know that there warranty is the best but I don't want to have to use it.

Like I said pretty good and the warranty is #1. If it does break I guess I'll see then and write a follow-up.

Overall a great amp if you set it up how you want it. Great features , great punch in a small package and smoking sound. I compared it to Marshall's, Mesa's,Fender, Line6, Rivera, Soldano, Vox and others which all have good sound but for what I wanted and the money the Traynor beat them out. I've had and played alot of them, my favorite being the Soldano and Rivera but a SLO and Knucklehead can be overkill sometimes. I am looking at for my next amp in collection to be a Rivera Quaina 212.I hope this helps those looking or who own this amp, the other write ups helped me. Remember no one amp can do everything and every amp can be setup to do more of what you want. Overall this little YCV40 rocks.

Anything it doesn't have, you probably don't need.

It can do anything from ABBA to Zeppelin, and a few other things besides. I prefer it to a lot of boutique amps I've heard. The range of tone is incredible, and unsurpassed at its price. It doesn't do surf music as well as a Fender, but it does things a Fender cannot. For rock tone, it's every bit as good as a Marshall......actually better than both my Marshalls, as a matter of fact. For those who think it will not do metal music well, it's probably because they can't do metal and need some kind of gonzo gain amp to compensate for lack of talent. Ever heard of pedals for metal? I use everything from vintage Gretsch to Asian cheapo guitars (actually some of the best for our experimental stuff, try the Peavey EVH Wolfgang Special EXP @ $600. Fabulous! The One Knob Wonder.), and this amp makes any halfway decent guitar sound good. We cover a lot of different music from classic rock to pop rock to experimental metal, and the amp keeps up.

Very good for a high production amp. 8 is about as high as any tube amp should get. A Roland Jazz chorus 120 would rate about a 10 if any amp could, but it can't get the rock tone like this does. I replaced the stock Russian tubes with better ones, of course.

Yorkville sets a service standard that few other companies can match, much less surpass. Their warranty is for real, with no BS.

Best guitar amp I ever owned, and it is my 5th combo amp, not counting a couple of RBI preamps (for direct PA hookups) and a Peavey bass amp. The search is over. Anything that sounds better costs so much more that I am not even interested. That would be the Gibson GA-30RV Super Goldtone Combo at nearly 3 times the price, if your pockets are deep. For the money you save, you can buy a really nice guitar to go with the YCV40. The whole band gives this amp two thumbs up. This amp is for "real world" musicians without deep pocketbooks.

This is a review of a 2002 model that I purchased used at Guitar Center. I basically don't write reviews but felt compelled to do so becasue this product is one that is worthy of comment and will certainly stand the test of time because of it's build quality!
In general, it's easy to see why Guitar Player has given this particular amp an editors pick award because of it's price/performance ratio as compared to other big names.
I was always skeptical of these types of awards but believe every word when you read it...because it's spot on!
One cannot go wrong with this purchase if you're seeking a versatile tube amp that can be used in ANY situation!
Whether you're a bedroom artist, a giging musician or a pro, this amp will cover all the bases except metal!
If you play Blues, Rock, Country, or Jazz, the YCV40 will deliver the goods and then some...all at a price that blows the competition away plus it's backed by a solid 2 year warranty even it you break it!
This is a "no brainer" purchase here and it will not dissapoint.
Features are covered in other reviews so I won't go into them to avoid repetition.
I do wish Traynor would put in better power tubes and have personally replaced the stock Sovteks that came with it with a pair of new Groove Tubes which just made this amp sing even more...think of a hot rodded Deluxe Reverb on the clean side and you've got the picture!
I also swapped out the speaker for a Vintage 30 which also improves the overall sound/performance...better clean headroom but have to say it still sounds very good in it's stock form!
In addition, I think Traynor should use a rectifier tube to kick this baby up a notch and a "real" metal script style logo in lieu of the silkscreened type which I feel would really make this amp look totally retro, but that's just my opinion.
I have to agree with a reviewer below that the footswitch cable needs to be longer PLUS the addition of a 3rd button to turn the reverb on and off would be helpful.
What I truely love about the YCV40 is that one can use it at low volumes and still have that "cranked" sound even on the overdrive side...really cool especially when practicing at home!
This amp at 40 watts has sufficent power to handle small to medium jobs...it's LOUD and if one needs to move more air, buy the extension cab or move up to the 80 watt model!
As mentioned, I think this is one of the most versatile amps on the market today at a very reasonable price and am giving a 9 here and hope Traynor will make the suggested improvements in the very near future! I'd certainly pay a few dollars more to have them and bottom line...it will still be ahead of the competition at it's price point!

I use a Fender C.S. Strat loaded with older Texas Specials and a old Univox L.P. copy with humbuckers. It certainly suites my needs for blues, rock, jazz/fusion and have to mention this amp also loves pedals! It's also very "pick sensative" and reacts to any playing style! I also plugged in my Ovation acoustic with it's built-in e.q. and couldn't get a bad sound out of it!
In reference to "noise", I'm not a techie but know it's been desinged with a special DC powered filimant supply on the pre amp tubes and a fully regulated power supply that ensures ultra low noise.
This engineering marvel helps keep hum to a minimum and is the quietest tube amp I've ever listened to in a long time...certainly less noisy than the competion and that's a big plus when recording!

If you'd like to hear a few sound clips, just log onto Musicians Friend website and look up the Traynor YCV40...one can view the specs and listen to clean and overdiven clips! Better yet, go down to your dealer and audition one for yourself...hearing is believing and believe me you will not be disappointed!

I would certainly rely on this amp because it's "solid" like a rock!
This amp is made like they did them in the good ol' days with the execption of a few modern construction features...excellent plywood cabinet construction with a good tolex covering, chrome metal corner guards and a really cool grill cloth that protects the speaker from damage by utilizing a perforated metal panel that's wrapped with the Fenderish cloth fabric.
One point to mention here is that earlier models may develop a buzz/vibration at higher volume levels which Traynor has a "fix" kit for free of charge if it's within the 2 year warranty period.

I've dealt with customer service and they where very helpful in resolving the "vibration" problem I mentioned above and was experiencing. I contacted Ken at A Sound Choice in Branford, CT and he was extremely helpful in resolving the issue/problem and got right on it! This is what "Customer Service" is all about and am thrilled to see a return of it! Traynor definetly stands behind there products and can recommend them highly!
It was easy to find a service center/dealer and their product(s) have FULL coverage for a period of 2 years even if purchased used within the warranty period!

I've been playing on and off on a part-time basis for over 40 years and have played through all the major amp manufacturers at one time or another including "botique" amps.
If it were stolen or lost, I would without a doubt purchase another one...Im that satisified! I'll most likely purchase the extention cab in the very near future as well! As mentioned, I love everything about it and feel it "got the tone"! I compared the YCV40 to it's competition and for the money, this one wins "hands down", I feel it's that good!
I do wish it came with better power tubes, a rectifer tube and a 3-button footswitch! (3rd to turn the reverb on or off)
It would be cool to see a 2-12 version of this amp as well and hope Traynor will take up on the above suggestions!

This is a brand new although I've had it long enough to avoid the "Honeymoon" review I think. Having the boost footswitchable is great but a ten ft. footswitch cable isn't near long enough. I guess I'll make a longer cable. They glue the grillcloth to the steel grill. The glue is the tacky type that never quite dries. I wonder about that in a hot van. I replaced the red Celestion with a Celestion G12-H reissue right off the bat because the amp didn't have enough clean headroom on the clean ch. Taking the grill off was difficult because it's wedged into four very heavy metal clips. The metal grill itself is cool of course for the protection but I've already had some problems with the cloth not staying put. The preamp tubes are up and behind a steel plate. Not very easy to get to or test for microphonics. The pots are too easy to turn and I agree with a lot of people here that they feel and look kind of funky in the bad way. Some of this stuff is just nit-picking in the end because this amp sounds great and has a killer warranty.

At a medium small gig this amp sounded really good. I was playing a Warmoth hardtail Strat with Van Zandt Blues driver pickups into a Analog Mike Silver mod. Tube Screamer and that's all. This is all through the clean side: I had the treble and bass low at about "3" with the mids up around "5" and the presence off. This amp wants to be too trebley. You do have to crank the reverb up to about "6" or so but it sounds great once you can hear it. Once I make a longer footswitch cable I'll have a lot more options with gain of course. I'm usually better off with just a good Tube Screamer. Whoever voiced this amp did a great job especially on the clean side. I own a lot of amps and most of them don't have that open, healthy ready to go clean sound. There are so many great pedals out there that all I really need is a good place to start from on the clean ch. Having said all that this amp. has a very cool distortion ch. too...plus the boost.

Not problems yet. Please see other comments.

No problems yet. See other comments.

For the money and considering the warranty I think this is a great amp. It's weird because it has some high quality features about it and also some cost cutting "cheap" features if you're use to older amp construction methods. Some of these newer amps seem a little like toys if you're use to looking at something like an old Fender amp. Time will tell if it holds up. It's a great sounding amp.

No tremolo or vibrato, but a good reverb and effects loop. It does every style you could want, except surf. Get the right effects, and it can do that. Absolutely nothing better all around at this price point. Any feature it lacks is more than made up for with its basic soul.

First off, this is NOT an all-tube amp. It has a solid state rectifier, solid state IC's in the effects loop, solid state regulators, solid state switching, and solid state bias adjustment of the output tubes. It is mostly tube in the signal path, whereas the new Marshall Valvestates are mostly solid state in the signal path. I own both, and unless you are wanting ONLY Marshall sounds, the Traynor is the better amp, no contest. I'm talking build quality as well as tone. This amp works equally well with single coils or humbuckers. The only things I would have liked to see improved were a better speaker and better tubes from the factory. I upgraded my tubes and I will upgrade my speaker to a Vintage 30 soon. Upgrading the output tubes to NOS Tung-Sol 5881 made the most difference. This amp is a MOSTLY TUBE hybrid amp. It is BETTER than most all tube amps because solid state devices were used where they do a better job at a lower cost and higher reliability, while tubes were used ONLY WHERE TUBES WORK BEST. That is, in the preamp stage and output stage signal paths. I downloaded the schematic and studied it. There were quite a few circuit changes noted from the earliest models, so I would suggest getting one of the latest models because Traynor definitely had a bit of a learning curve. According to reviews, those who had problems seem to have been mostly users of the earliest models. I would say that Traynor has the circuit design nailed down tight now, and you better buy one before prices rise further. Prices have went up at least $50 this year alone. The amp has a huge range of tone. It is more versatile than many boutique amps. The gain channel has lots of gain, and the clean channel simply sparkles when top quality tubes are installed. Can't decide between a Fender and Marshall style amp? Buy this amp and have both! Find the right tubes (it took me a while), and this baby is a solid 10. I do NOT want a boutique amp when I can have something that sounds as nice and enough money left over for a really nice guitar. I have my eye on a Peavey Wolfgang Special EXP. The money I saved over a Gibson Goldtone will more than buy me the guitar, and I gave up very little in tone, if any, after I swapped out the output tubes for NOS Tung-Sols. The bottom end on this amp is great. The Seventy 80 speaker is better than I would have thought, but I know from another guy who has the Vintage 30 in his YCV40 that it's the speaker you want. Clean or dirty it excells in this amp, and there is NOTHING you can do that will overpower the Vintage 30. The Seventy 80 loses it a bit at the highest volumes in the bass. Other than that it's a really decent speaker for this amp. Did I mention how QUIET this amp is? Plenty of solid state amps have more noise than this amp, and it's quieter than most boutique tube amps that cost much more. This amp has a lot of soul once you toss the mediocre tubes.

The birch plywood cabinet like you see in this amp is VERY rare at this price point. This amp just may outlive me. Much better built all the way around than both my Marshall Valvestate amps. I have no fear that I got a quality amp that can take some abuse. I will not rate it higher than an 8 as only time will tell if an amp deserves a 9 or 10 rating. That steel behind the grill cloth is a great idea for protecting the speaker. Workmanship is to a fairly high level for a mass produced amp.

I called with a question, and they were very helpful. Yorkville Sound has one of the best "no BS" warranties in the business.

The price is now $600 mailorder in the USA. That's $50 more than just a few months ago. Get one NOW before they go up even more in price. If the street price were the full $800 MSRP, the amp would still be worth every penny because that's what a Fender Deluxe Reverb costs at street price, and the YCV40 is definitely the best all around amp between the two. I repeat, it's not just as good, it's better. I can see no other amp that is better all around at this price. If you don't want the tubes and the retube cost, check out the Roland Blues Cube 60 1x12 combo. It's the only solid state amp at this price that is real competition for this amp. The YCV40 just does the tube tone thing better and with more versatility, and it's worth a few tubes now and then to me to keep that killer tone. A full tube and speaker upgrade would raise the cost to around $850 if you shopped carefully and did the changeouts yourself. A similar sounding boutique amp will set you back at least $1500, and will probably not be as quiet.

I think this amp was made in 2001.
This amp does alot of different styles, I have read alot of reviews saying you can't get a good hard distortion from this amp. but I have hade no problem with that at all, I play anything from Pearl Jam to Nine Inch Nails. And I would say it does lack a little for the Nails stuff, the Pearl Jam side of it has no problem and I have even gotting sounds for Ramstine with no problem.
It has three channels, Clean (which is on of the nicest cleans i have heard),dirty, and full distortion. There is a great effects loop, but no headphone jack, but for that matter I don't think I have ever seen an all tube amp that did.
For the price you pay for this amp I can't thinck of anything eles you can get, or need. This amp has everything that matters. Great build quality, great sound, alsome reverb, and it's all tube.
This bad ass stays in my music room for jamming and recording. The 40 watts it has is more then enough for in the room, and would work great on stage to. I gave it a 9 just because there is alot of features that are on other amps like dual reverb, or effects but you would pay alot more for them. But if you ask me it has all I ever need in an amp. I can always add effect pedels to the effects loop.

I use all my guitars with this amp. and they all sound great. I have a Fender Strat with a hot rails that sounds real hot with the rails, and when I use the other fender lace pickups I get a real nice vintage clean sound. Also have a Tradition 450 that I put a set of vintage Gibson Les Paul pickups in and i'll tell you for a no name korean guitar it has a great sound and looks better then some well known guitars out there. My Ibanez AX 7221 7-string has a real nice deep sound to it on this amp. My Parker P-38 has so many good sounds, And my Fernandes elacoustic even sounds grat even though this is not an acoustic amp.
This amp fits evey music style from blues and jazz to hard rock and some metel.
This is really on of the least noisy amp i have. my solid state crate puts out alot more hum.
Can't really say if the clean channel will distort at high volumes since I use it in a room and it never has been over like 2.

I wouldn't even give a second thought to useing this amp on a gig. It is built like a tank, but just like every tube amp. the tubes can always break.
I have only had it for 4 months, but have not hade a single problem.

Warranty is only good for one year, my other crate amp hade a 5 year warranty. only difference I had to use my Crates warranty.
Never really delt with Tranyor or Yorkville. emailed them one time to get a foot switch and an amp cover( new they come with the foot switch) and got an email back the next day, but they said I hade to go through my dealer for both items.

I have been playing for about 15 years, and I never had a all tube amp. Always felt that you can get a good solid sate amp that has effects that can sound just like a tube amp. I was about to buy a line 6 when I saw this at my local dealers shop and gave it a shot. I will never go back to solid state again. The clean is so crisp and clear and the two distortions are perfict for rock and harder stuff.
I love everything about this amp. it has eveything you need in an amp. simple to use, retro looks, and the sound to match.

Smooth vintage distortion channel and a warm rich clean channel. Spring reverb. Presence. Floor switch for channel and distortion boost. Effects loop. External speaker jack.

Playing a Les Paul, Strat, Tele, ES-335, Rick 12-string, Firebird, ... I play rock, blues, a little jazz, and a little country. The amp is quiet with minimal hum and hiss. The boutique like distortion is good for classic rock, blues, and jazz. You'll may need to use a tube screamer or some pedal for metal or if you need more crunch. The clean channel in similar to a clean Fender, warm with plenty of headroom. The clean is a good channel for my PODxt with the POD's vibe set to 2x12 plus -9db or -12db high cut rev(v1.04). I love great tube amps, but I don't like tube snobs. Line6 is getting very very good at capturing classic amp behaviour and does well straight to the PA or piggy-backing on a good tube amp. So there's the other way to get nice crunchy metal tones and many other great tones I might add.

This amp has a lot of midrange. Unless I hook up an external speaker, I sometime put an eq into the effects loop. This works very well.

It is a very strong, well built amp. It has a 2 year warrenty.

Haven't needed them.

I paid a little more than some have for this amp, but I gotta tell ya, I haven't played an amp in this price range that can beat it. I really think I got my money's worth. The Peavey Classic 50 is the only one that comes close, but it's a little different sound, I just like the sound of this one better.

- 2003(?) 40 watt RMS all-tube combo (I think it's back from the 60's)
- two 6L6B power-amp tubes and three 12AX7A preamp tubes
- 2 channels: overdrive and clean
- separate volume/gain and EQs (Bass, Mid and Treble)
- boost on overdrive channel and bright switch on clean channel
- master presence and Accutronics reverb (very "vintage-y")
- standby switch
- stereo footswitch included! (channel and boost)
- FX loop, 1 additional speaker extension jack
- 12" Celestion Red Label Seventy 80 speaker
- fully regulated power supply; very quiet for a tube amp
- built like a rock and quite heavy (20.4 kg)

Great vintage-sounding amp, quiet enough for the bed-room and loud enough for medium-sized gigs. I usually have my amp mic-ed up through the PA. The boost on the overdrive channel makes it like 3 channels which is just nice for me to get my clean/overdrive/lead flexibility.

I use a PRS Santana SE with PRS/EMG humbucking pickups (medium/high output, alnico magnets). Great blues and rock guitar. Suits the amp perfectly. I play mainly rock, blues, contempory gospel (at church) and a little bit of jazz, classical, metal and funk. The amp is pretty vintage but with more grunt than a Fender and less than a Laney/Marshall/etc. I wouldn't recommend it for metal players and shredders or anyone looking for a monster amp or real modern sound.

Sound is nicely saturated on both channels. Clean channel is soooo warm and nicely balanced that you can do just about anything with it. Overdrive channel provides sweet distortion. Lower gain levels good for nice crunchy rhythms and higher gain levels makes this baby rock!

Got it quite recently. No problems yet. But judging by its construction and reputation I think she'll last forever. I never have a backup amp. Maybe I should get some backup tubes?

Never dealt with them, though they seem to have the best warranty but only if you're in the US or Canada.

Been playing about 6 years now. I play live regularly and also on a couple of albums so far. In addition to my PRS, I also have a Yamaha FG-401 acoustic, a Boss RV-3 Digital Reverb/Delay, a Boss CE-5 Chorus Ensemble and an old classical that sits under my bed. I'm very much a purist.

If the amp where stolen/lost, I'd most definitely replace it. For its price it just kills the competition (got a Guitar Player Editor's Pick Award). When purchasing, I also looked at the Laney LC30-II, H&K Edition Tube and the H&K Tour Reverb. They're all good amps but the Traynor came up above the rest. It does ITS job well.

Wouldn't mind if it had a 3rd channel instead of a boost for lead, but that doesn't bother me. I recommend it for everyone except shredders and metal players.

Don't know the year but bought it new from the store.
I play a wide variety of music. Mostly classic rock but also play country,blues, folk, bluegrass etc. No matter what I'm playing listeners tend to ealk up to me and say " I'll bet you like the blues.". I would have liked an effects loop bypass on the foot switch, a recording out and possibly a boost on the clean channel.
I will use this amp to jam with friends and do Home recording. This is the quietest ube amp I've ever heard. It has plenty of power for any situation. Any situation it's not loud enough for would have to be large enough that everything is miked anyway.

I have a wide variety of guitars but as it is brand new I have only used my prefferred axe. It is a custom made walnut strat style guitar with Van Zandt handmade pickups adn a Torres wiring harness. Friend have told me love the sound/tone of my guitar and just told me that through this amp it is the best they have ever heard it.
I was amazed out how well it sounds even when it is turned down as low as it goes so as not to drown out a flatop.
The distortion sings and sustains even at low volumes. I can't wait to record with it.

Haven't had it long enough to know but seems to be very well built and designed.

I've not had to take ADVANTAGE OF THIS BUT THE WARRANTY IS THE BEST i'VE HEARD OF. @ YEARS EVEN IF YOU BREAK IT AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO FILE A WARRANTY CARD JUST KEEP THE SALES RECIEPT!

I've been playing for 32 years. I have a large collection of guitars. I would buy it again in a heartbeat. I love everything about it.
I tried a Marshall AVT50 and it hummed so loud I don't know how you could possibly record with it. I tried the Vox valvetronic and the volumes changed drastically from preset to preset. The same is true for the line 6 flextones. I have an old Legend Hybrid 30 watt amp that Sounds pretty good and I recieved a lot of compliments on when I played out and an electar tube 10 which sounds pretty good.. I've also owned a yamaha solid state combo amp,peavey solid state head and an old supro tube combo. I 've alos played through a sans amp tri-od into the P.A. or recorder.

The only reason it's getting an 8 out of me is the lack of a master volume and reverb switching on the stomp pedal

I play through this amp with a Tempest Custom, an old Danelectro and an old Ampeg SuperStud, three totaly different sounding guitars but the slightest EQ adjustments and each one sounds like gold. Soundmen that the band hire kinda laughed at me at first when they'd see me hauling in this little thing to compete volume and presence wise against the bassist's ampeg SVT or the other guitar player's Messa half stack. I find they all shut-up about it after sound check! This amp is a just awesome in my mind.

It hasn't steered me wrong yet, it's built to be used and abused and the warranty covers just about anything. Compared to the other tube amps I've owned this thing worries me much much less.

Along with this amp I have several other yorkville products and they're really built to last. The one time I broke anything from them (a jug of beer fell into a stagelight fader) they didn't even ask, just sent us a new one.

I play a fair amount of gigs, in fact, one of my bands just celebrated our 1000th show together. I've owned alot of different amps and over time learned that 200 watts, 2000 bucks and six feet of amp is just overkill. Unless your playing stadiums, this little 1x12 is all the amp you'll need. Don't be fooled by the price!

pretty simple setup, but very versatile. effects loop, footswitch. 2 channels plus a booster, which essentially makes 3 channels. the brightness switch adds a bit of funky spank to the clean channel. i wish it had a headphone jack, but it sounds excellent at low volumes regardless

my axe is an ibanez GAX 70. stock pickups, unfortunately. after i pay off the amp i'll upgrade to dimarzio PAF's or a seymour duncan jeff beck/jazz setup. i play different styles of rock music ranging from rage against the machine/incubus to hendrix/beatles. the 3 sounds i have going are an audioslave-esque drive, ac/dc crunch and hendrix cleans. it sounds great. this is my first tube amp, and i can definitely tell the difference. heck, even my family can tell. my only complain is that the highs can be a bit piercing, but not nearly as bad as my older solid state amps. that's more than likely from my guitar, though

this thing is built like a tank. the preamp tubes are safely hidden out of harms way, and the power tubes look to be pretty sturdy as well

i bought it used from my local store, so they should be pretty helpful

what i like most about this amp is how it makes even a bad guitar sound great. i can really grow into this amp, because it lets the natural tone of the guitar comethrough, whereas a solid state or hybrid amp, while not terrible amps, don't really allow the beauty of a great guitar to shine through. i've played this amp with godins, gibsons and ESP's. all sounded great. i would buy this amp again in a heartbeat. maybe with the red tolex next time

This is an update from my other review. I've really really started to like this amp even more!

I'm really getting a feel for this amp now. I never realized just how much it SCREAMS when you turn it up. It's still not a metal amp, but it can get VERY vicious. just remember to keep your EQ levels set properly. This is a very very very mid-frequency ranged amp, so watch out if that's not your thing. If you want to play classic rock and hard rock, humbuckers will bring out the best in this amp. The crunch is god-like. It just fills the room up with this great full organic tube sound that only a tube amp can deliver. It's not an amazing amp, but it's very good. I don't see how any serious guitarist could go wrong with it.

Never had a problem, but then again I baby my gear. It still sounds and looks just as new as the day I bought it.

Never dealt but if the super duper warranty is an indication, then I give them major props.

If this amp were stolen, I probably wouldn't buy it again, becuase there's still so many amps out there that I would like to try. I'd probably search for a higher-gain amp, but since those usually cost quite a bit more than this Traynor, who knows, maybe I'll stick with the YCV. This amp, despite not being able to play metal, is quite versatile for low to medium gain applications. But be warned: don't crank it past 1 inside the house! You have no idea how loud it is...

40 watt 2 x 10 combo. All other features as per previous posts.

This amp is it from clean jazz to dirty blues to classic rock crunch and singing lead. Don't think it will do NuMetal without a pedal. The boost really kicks for the leads. Some report that swapping the tubes makes a big difference. The 2 x 10 sounds more focused and 3D than the 1x12. I also feel the bass is tighter. Well, it sound pretty god right now. This amp is too loud for bedroom practise as is so I use a Weber MASS 50 attenuator and it works great to bring the volume down.

So far so good. Great warranty.

The warranty is solid.

This is an awesome amp for the money. I think you would need to spend 3 times as much to get a better amp. Great for all things but NuMetal
This amp sounds much better than a Peavey Classic 30 or similar Carvin amps I've tested.

1x12 channel switching combo. Fender clean and Marshall drive with separate eqs. Celestion 70/80 speaker, brite switch on clean channel and boost/scoop on the drive channel. Footswitch included. 40 watts comes with sovtek 5881 power tubes and 12ax7 preamp tubes. Effects loop doubles as a direct out. Lots of other features I won't go into. I rate it a 9 only because I got spoiled using a Tech-21 Trademark 60, which has a footswitchable lead boost function that is great. The boost function on this footswitch way alters the tone, making it unusable for a lead gain boost. It's designed to create a more heavy metal (scooped) sound, which it doesn't do too well anyway. So I just don't use the boost at all. Lost opportunity, Traynor, just make a simple volume boost out of it. That's a lot more practicle.

I play in a cover band that does about 2/3 blues and 1/3 classic rock. Nothing real heavy, but I like to range between slightly overdriven to Marshall type distortion with more sustain. This amp does that pretty well, although I rely on my Route 66 pedal to create the range of distortions I need. The 66 has a tubescreamer od and a compressor, which works nice as a lead boost. The od on the clean channel suffices for most of our blues material. Then I set the drive channel's drive to about 6 and use it and the 66 together to achieve a very nice distorted sound for classic rock. However, as is the case whenever you start to compress your sound, the compressor can't boost the sound of the drive channel beyond what it already is. Here's perhaps the biggest limitation of a small 1x12 combo. When the sound is compressed, it doesn't have the reserve to boost it for solos. You can compensate somewhat by cranking the channel and turning down your guitar's volume, then turning it up for solos. But even that doesn't work too well. It's a small complaint because usually I'm pretty loud when in that mode anyway. One complaint I do have is that the speaker farts out at around 5 on the clean channel. The bass gets real flubby. I've adjusted by turning down the bass on the amp to about 2, but I'd rather have a speaker in there that can handle more bottom end. Traynor has recently put out an upgraded model with a Celsetion Vintage 30. That would probably be a much better match and would improve this amp's performance considerably over the stock 70/80. That said, the 70/80 ain't bad. Bottom line: I've gone through several small combos--peavey delta blues, reverend hellhound, tech 21 t-60 and others--and the Traynor is the best of the lot in my opinion. It's not perfect but it does what you want a 40 watt combo to do, and it can be upgraded if you're really picky. For the money, it's a total winner. A slight downgrade for the speaker. PS, the reverb is nice, though I have to turn it up to about 7 to hear any real effect from it when I'm gigging.

NO problems so far. No buzzing or rattling like others have reported.

N/A

Been playing a long time. I'm pushing 50 and have gotten more active the past few years, playing in a blues band (dejablues.org) for 3 years now. Lots of fun. I just bought 2 new amps, a Tech 21 T-120 and a Fender Super. I play Fender and G&L guitars. Having the right amp for the situation and room size is very important. I haven't found the one perfect amp yet, probably because I'm not willing to shell out $$$ for some boutique number. I paid $450 each for the fender and Tech 21 and $500 for the Traynor. Those are prices I can live with. The Traynor is my main amp right now, but that could change. Regardless, if you're looking for a versatile small combo, this one outperforms the others in its class and price range. You can't go wrong here.

I think the amp was made in 2002...yes, it covers the style of music I play (mainly blues, blues/rock, a few jazz standards...), it has 2 channels, switching, effects loop (you all know the tube configuration and the fact that it has a solid state rectifier component). This amp has all the power I need with the exception of a master volume (the 80 watt version of this amp does!)

I run my Strat (P-90's), Tele, and Les Paul through it. The amp brings out the best of each guitar. It sounds very much like the new fenders however...I think the clean channel is a little more versatile. The distortion channel works really well and again, a little more versatile than the new fenders. Overall...this amp is being marketed to the mid-level player who wants to hear a variety of "sounds". I work hard for a living and as such, I'm interested in "bang for the buck"! This amp won for me hands down! The Fender was fine but this was a better piece of gear for a little less money. That was good enough for me!

This leads me to the reason I'm writing this review in the first place...

Please note that I have not used the term "tone" once in this review. The reason being is that "tone" is a by-product of a players ability. I read a review of some Peavey product and the author wrote "...I ain't interested in 'tone'...I just want the most aggressive sound I can get!" The truth is an amp is just a medium for great tone! A $3,000 Dr. Z is still gonna sound like a solid state Crate if you can't play!

Another reality...if you want to talk tone...let's save that discussion for Acoustic Instruments!

Off the soap box...the 40 watt Traynor get's the job done. I REALLY enjoyed the sounds I was able to get out of the 80 watt version with the Master Volume but as I'm strictly a basement player these days (not always the case) the 80 would have been overkill.

Quick notes...the best sounding amp I've ever played was an 18 watt Buddah. I've never even played a close second but again...a Buddah is a total waste in my basement (not to mention more money than I'm willing to part with for an amp).

Traynor has a great service plan...(2 year replacement even if you toss it from a moving car!!!)...so reliability is not an issue yet...so far it's fired up without a hitch...

Overall...the amp sounds great and it's really a good deal for the money. While I have not owned "tons" of gear I've had owned a Marshall Stack (JCM 800 100 watt with a half-stack of Greenbacks), Mesa half-stack, Fender Deluxe Reverb, Peavey equipment, and various other tube and solid state amps over the past 30 years.

If it got stolen I'd buy another Traynor for sure! I think they make pretty good stuff and really don't get the recognition they deserve...

I sincerely hope that the reader sees this is a real review from a real consumer!

Features have been catalogued extensively, but to shorthand it: 6L6 tube amp, 1x12 combo, 2 ftsw channels w/independant 3 band EQ, master presense and reverb, bright switch on clean, ftsw boost switch on crunch, fx loop. Your basic almost-no-frills tube combo, obviously designed to go head to head with the Fender HR Deluxe.

Some interesting notes on this amp: I still have yet to actually lay eyes on the 12AX7 preamp tubes, but I have determined that they are under an access plate on the bottom of the chassis instead of being built to stick straight out of the chassis like almost all other amps. I have no idea why this was done, maybe there is a reason but to me it seems like begging for heatsink problems; I will update my posting if this proves to be a problem as the months and years go by.

A warning to those who go and try out this amp, the boost switch is rather unsubtle when you demo this amp standing alone. Believe me though, when you get onstage (especially if your band is like mine and given to a fairly loud stage sound) it is just about perfect to switch from crunchy chords to a thick, smooth as glass lead sound. I thought I was going to wish for a variable control on the boost until the first time I gigged with it, and as it turned out it was exactly where I wanted it to be. When you demo it, though, the boost will seem WAY too loud. Go with it.

The one feature I will probably not get much mileage out of is the onboard reverb, I'm not impressed with the sound so far and it's very touchy, the ideal range for me is around the 7 mark and it's very easy to miss the mark on either side. I recommend a reverb pedal or a processor like my Yamaha DG, your results will be more predictable and controllable and you'll have footswitchability.

I play mostly with a 94 Am Std Strat with custom switching and a Chinese ES335 copy for slide and low/alt-tuned stuff. We play a wide variety of covers from classic rock thru modern/alternative rock, with some blues and reggae thrown in, and some originals that range from bluesy to reggae-y to sort of indie rock I guess (we aren't shooting for some kind of record deal so we revel in being all over the board). I think the sound I get out of this amp is pretty much great for everything. On my Strat I can access about 9 different pickup combinations, and this amp makes them all sound very distictive compared to my old Carvin s/s. The bass is very pronounced, which is a big difference I'm still getting used to, and I find myself gravitating away from the neck-mid notch that was once my main rhythm setting; I now go more for the mid-bridge notch and my mock-Tele neck-bridge setting. The clean channel is very smooth but will break up a good bit if pushed, esp with a humbucker (I may actually go for a 12AT7 preamp tube to push that breakup point a little higher); crunch channel is nice and dirty but cleans up very quickly if you lighten your picking (lots of things I used to footswitch back to a clean channel for I am now just finessing on the crunch channel; it's true when they say that tube emulation just doesn't really deliver the tube experience OK?), and the boost makes it sing and opens the door to all kinds of nifty harmonic feedback type things. First night I played out with it I turned around while holding a long last chord and got the PERFECT feedback note... actually the whole first night I played out it seemed like everything I did was like gold.

For what I play this amp is a gem. Probably not for hardcore metal whatever types, but for jazz or blues or just about any kind of rock I would say this amp will get you where you want to be. The low end response is nice and tight, can get a little overblown if you crank the low end up past about 8 but coming off a solid state that kind of low end is what I've been craving and this amp scratches that itch excellently. For the money it's about a 12, but I'll make my rating on an absolute scale and give it a solid 9. Probably one of the best amps out there for Strat and Tele players.

I've gigged 3 times with it, so can't really give an absolute opinion on long-term reliablity. The tubes inside the chassis gives me some cause to pause, so for a while anyway I will probably be hauling my good old solid-state around as a backup.

No experience here, but the warranty terms are great on paper anyway. Who else gives you a 2 year "even if you break it" warranty?

I think ideally I would want this amp to have at least some control over the boost level, even though as I said it's really right where it should be onstage. And I really wish the pre tubes were mounted to be a little more accessible, because if one ever goes out on me in a gig I'm essentially F'd unless I have a screwdriver and about 15 minutes to put it up on a table and operate on it.

But fundamentally, this amp is one of the best deals going. I shopped the Fender HR Deluxe, the Carvin MTS, Ampeg Reverborocket, and this amp runs with any of those and came in less than even the Fender. No it's not gonna blow doors on a Soldano or a Mesa or a Bogner, but not all of us can afford amps that cost that much; frankly I can't afford a car that costs as much as those amps. Tremendous value, an amp I am glad to have gotten my hands on, and if it was lost or stolen I am about 90% sure I'd replace it.

This is the custom red model.Were you guys high?!@#$!$#%
40 watts 12 inch spkr celestion
Like the balls to mass produce that Bright red color...heh
-Tube amp gives more of an alive feel-warm sound than solid state.
-Features below in other posts so I will NOT re--re-reiterate.
I owned a 1965 Fender Deluxe reverb in great condition.Also a 68 ab763 Super reverb Fender... Thats the kind of sound I like.
If you can put aside the name game..and really listen to the amp..This is hard...I only tried the amp on a whim. REally ask yourself with eyes closed...
you will hear..I beleive... an amp that real amp enthusiasts must have spent ALOT of time with..This is a real professional musicians amp. Do not be fooled by the unbeleivable price.
My 65 vintage fender all 1700 dollars worth of it..sounded great but this amp can do more (2 channels-self biasing-effects loop)
and I do not miss the sound of my 65 as I feel I have what I liked about it in this amp. Surprised?..not as surprised as I am!
The old fenders are Great amps that were designed to be produced in mass and therefore cost effective.
Leo used the most affordable parts he could get his hands on..the wonder of those amps is that they sound so good and yet are so simple and low budget.
I beleive this amp to be built better than the deluxe I had.
It can do vintage tone-yet its not a vintage amp its a 2003 amp.
YOu wouldnt want to use an elevator designed in 1911 would you? Give me modern ammenities-toilets vs outhouses
antibiotics verses leaches and bloodletting...and the most useful ammenitie of all..money in my pocket.
how in the world can you guys afford to give a 10 year warranty?
2 of which covers anything that happens?
I do give tens because..if Im happy with it...its a ten.
I like the effects loop..I use it with a deluxe memory man.
It quiets up that box and the two work wonders together.
---heres a tip for all you people wanting headphone jacks.
Go to radio shack...and ask them what you need to play your guitar through your home stereo..(a few 3 dollar adaptors most likely...go through your pedals..effects etc..put your headphones into the stereo and on aux and play til 3 am without waking anyone up.Headphone jacks do not belong on a serious amp

use w/ vintage maple neck strat

IF your looking for an amp that you wont have to replace when you get good enough to play out professionally. This is the one.
in its price It cannot be beat by ANYTHING I've ever played.
-QUIET ENOUGH FOR RECORDING-
-NICE HEADROOM ON CLEAN CHANNEL-40 WATTS LOUD
-DECENT DISTORTION FOR MOST STYLES OF MUSIC.-
I do however play lots of clean stuff- I like to use the amps natural sound and overdrive it with the volume up.
May use pedals for additional distortion colors.

Do not know yet...but with a ten year warranty form a company thats been in business for as long as Ive been alive...I feel good about it.

Not sure but a warranty like that...and the sound of the amp for the price..I think these guys are losing money at this point...
id like to see them profit from this amp as I know most people wont try it because of the unfamiliar name and the musician love of fender/marshall/matchless amps

If stolen i would look for a man running with a bright red amp and
gently coax it out of his arms.Flogging would be optional.
Hmmm...The color does not go with my hardwood floors and earthy interior decoration.Were you guys on crack?Bright red..who makes bright red amps..aye? I got one of 100 what a lucky guy I am..heh.Do you sell amp covers?
O.k o.k I bought it because it was the only Traynor at the shop and inspite of the color..I Love it. Tone is what music is about.....100% satisfied customer.I cannot beleive it.I will be trying Molson beer very soon.What else do you Canadiens have up there that we dont know about?


I traded in my vintage fender deluxe and got $1150 u.s plus this brand new cherry red amp. I honestly do not miss my old fenders tone.
I miss the nostalgia and cool looks but the tone is here.A good strat helps keep it fender sounding. yet this amp has its own sound and its ok to go with a new tone.I really think it sounds as good as my deluxe..does all the things I loved about that amp. Except vibrato....but I can live without out at this price.
My unwarranted suggestions to Traynor:

#1 I think the emblem design is almost there but tweek it more..
I think I know what you were going for...art deco styling... I like the design but maybe get an artist- designer to tweak it redefine the lines and maybe make it a bit smaller when it comes to the wing span.I agree with one o fthe reviews below.I like the art deco idea.How about a silver series amp?
Also...Most American guitarists under age of 30 do not remember your products-bassist may but most guitarists do not know you.I didnt know you had been around for years..Look sharp.

I want you to keep selling these amps as I beleive you people are giving the best value in a professional amp out there.
There was a stigma about the amp I just wasnt attracted to it and I didnt even want to try one out.Im not sure what that was about.
If people could just hear these up against a vintage deluxe some
ears /heads would do the old rca dog head tilt thing.
YOur amps are soo good..They do not need hype..But They need realistic professional representation. I feel this may be one of the reasons Traynor hasnt caught on like it could til now. Marketing!!!!and representation.The product is already a gem.
#2 Although the amp gets tones unique to Traynor...remind the vintage crowd about its vintage tones... maybe even express its capabilities of getting fender deluxe reverb type
sounds. It may not be legal for yall to mention that in adds..but I can vouch that it does. We all love those old amps and very few of us want to spend 1200-2000 to own one.(not including the costs and risks of maintaining and performing with a 30 plus year old instrument...It is one of the most in demand amps ever made for a reason.People want them! This amp sounds so similar...plus it has an effects loop and gain channel for that broken up sound at low levels.SOmething the old fenders never had.PLus its new.(yes..important for practicing musicians who do not own 2 amps) 40 watts and light weight! WOW..I do not get hernias carrying this to the car!
I forgot about the review in guitar mag until i saw that guitar mag tag.Great idea.I wasnt looking at it simply because I thought it was too expensive and unkown to be worth it or too cheap and unknown to try it.
yes I was very wrong. I read the little review in Guitar player magazine a year or so ago... It was random that I ever tried one.It must be frustrating knowing you have the best product out there and people arent really aware of it yet.I thought it was too cheap to be any good..I thought I had to pay at least 1000 to get that tone I like.What a value.....I almost didnt even try it.

2 channels with boost on the overdrive channel. Reverb. Seperate EQ for each channel. Footswitch for clean/overdrive/boost.

Used amercian series strat, ES135 w/humbuckers. The amp had a great midrangy overdrive, but that was about it. I was very dissapointed. I ordered it based on guitar player review and reviews here since I couldn't find anywhere to try it out. I sent the amp back today. The clean channel was very unexciting, and the amp seemed to be without any bass. My princeton reverb with a 10" speaker seemed to have more bass.

Only had it a week before I sent it back.

Great warranty, but I won't be needing it.

If you want an amp to produce a great midrangy overdrive without much bass maybe this is it. I couldn't get any snap of of my strat with the clean channel, although the clean channel did seem to break up nicely when cranked. I am going to look for a Fender.

Year...?!? It looks new enough to me...

I play anything from jazz to metal. It don't do really mean metal, but it works fine for anything else. Has 2 channels with gain boost for channel 1 (shouldn't the od channel be no. 2?!?), bright switch for ch.1. Prescence control, eq for both channels... yeayeayea, you know this already. Has 40 tube watts, quite enough for me.

Sound... rather transparent, kind of fender feel over it. Slightly glassy, hard sound. Way too much bass on the OD bosst channel. The EQ is excellent, even the slightest change affects the sound, and there's no need to tewak it for a year before you fin your sound, I just add a bit more treble. That's it! Sounds lovely...! Wonder what happens if I change to EL34? It's worth a try... Noise is remarkably low, but I never run the volume above half because it distorts. But it's quite enough. Sounds really good, but not perfect.

Only had it for about a month, been playing it like hell... nothing's happened yet.

I know I can count on the guys I bought it from. But I don't want to try, and don't think I need to either..

Been looking for a small, light, cheap tube combo for quite a time, and I think I've found it. I still have my Fender RocPro 1000 (the best amp I've owned so far), but the Traynor will be my main amp from now on. Only wish it had EL34s from the start... But it's still a great amp, and I'm not letting it go for quite a while yet.

It's missing a headphone jack, but you don't turn on a tube amp and wear out the tubes while listening to headphones. It's a least a nine for the price and quality of materials.

First off, this uses mostly tubes in the audio circuitry, but it also includes some diodes, transistors, and integrated circuits. It is rightly called a hybrid design. The rectifier tube emulator is all solid state. It uses solid state regulation of some heater and plate voltages, so it is definitely not a vintage design, in spite of the vintage tones you are able to get. It is a modern design using old and new technolgies to get the best sound and reliability at the lowest possible cost. I have never seen a better price/performance ratio in a guitar amp. The gain channel is not quite as distorted as a Marshall, and the clean channel is not quite as clean as a Fender, but the range of tone is amazing. All of this is accomplished without any digital circuitry, and the reverb is a genuine long spring type that sounds very good. Only the most radical styles of music would fail to be well served by this amp. With the right effects added, it could probably do just about anything that any 40W amp is capable of. For only 40W, this amp really screams and it basically has a warm vintage tone as the base on which the tonal range is centered. I might want to change out the speaker in the future, but the Celestion Seventy 80 sounds good for the price. I think a Vintage 30 or G12 Century would give the best performance, but no manufacturer could put them in an amp that sells at this price. I installed NOS Tung-Sol 5881 tubes, and that gave a richer tone. 5881 tubes are supposed to last a long time, and the standby switch will help reduce startup and shutdown stress on the power tubes to extend the useful life of these expensive and now rare tubes. I have only used solid body guitars so far, but may get a Washburn HB30 later on to get that Gibson ES335 tone. I think the two would work well together. ES335 owners should investigate this amp, as well anybody who plays classic rock, country, blues, or jazz music. This is not a metalhead amp unless you add some effects, as long as 40W and a single 12" is enough honk. Don't think this amp can't play loud because it is only 40W. It will sound as loud as almost any 100W solid state combo.

The birch plywood cabinet and steel mesh speaker grille really add durability. This might not be important if you play only at home or in the studio, but this amp was plainly designed to take the everyday abuse that professional use regularly dishes out. The steel chassis is well constructed. Preamp tubes are under a removable cover that prevents their shaking loose. The output tubes have coil spring tube keepers. The pots are smooth and quiet, but I would have liked more resistance in turning them. The input jack is a metal Switchcraft type, not that plastic crap most cheap amps come with. The standby switch helps with power up and shutdown of the power tubes, but do not use this feature for long when the amp is powered up, or it will induce "sleeping sickness" in your power tube cathodes unless a 5881 type is installed that was made for long idle periods. Use the standby switch as intended for startup and shutdown. None of the parts used are expensive, just good quality of parts that offer outstanding value for the money you spend. If you want designer parts, get a boutique amp. It might sound a little bit better. Maybe.

Yorkville has the best warranty in the industry. Their schematics are available for free on their website. The service department is helpful on troubleshooting. You will have no trouble maintaining this amp if you have any electrical sensibilities at all. Yorkville has been around since the 60's, while most of the boutique brands will fail in the future. Traynor guitar amps have a very good past reputation.

This is the best guitar amp I have ever owned. It seems to have the rugged reliability of old Peavey solid state amps while including the tone of boutique amps. Of course, tubes will have to be changed on a regular basis, but you can totally retube it for well under $75 if you buy your tubes right. The 10 rating is for the price you pay. The absolute sound/build quality compared to the best regardless of price would be an 8 or 9, but most of us have to count what we get for what we pay. At it's price, this is the guitar amp against which all others should be judged. I would buy another one without hesitation. This amp will put Traynor back on the map like they were in the late 60's through the 70's.

Very recent model - probably a 2002. Bought this used - was a rental return at local music store.

Amp covers all the 'musical ground' upon which I move. Good clean tones, some nice over-driven - don't use the extra overdrive boost.

If you are reading this, you've either got one or are looking at getting one. Only feature truly lacking is the headphone jack.

Power? I use this primarily when practicing or in small jam settings. When miked, it can be used live - but I usually really on my grossly over-weight 'evil twin' ... sometimes it just makes the right noises ;)

This is a practical, user-friendly A/B amp - tolex covering is good, controls are easy to use, foot-switch is nice, treble/bright boost has its moments, presence and reverb .... this thing has all the fundamentals.

Usually run a Fender American Deluxe Telecaster, Hardtail Strat or a G&L ASAT thru this ... does a good variation on the vintage 'fender' tones - but it's not a fender. problem? not at all.

Type of music? 60s and 70s rock, some blues, jazz and the occasional trip into country .... this amp can handle all the fundamentals. It ain't a shred machine - if you want one of those, then go back to your Marshalls, Mesa's or other sonic destroyers. The Traynor is about fundamental tones.

Effects - Pro Co Rat, EH Small Stone, Danelectro Delay and occasional use of MXR Blue Box (a story all of its own).

So why only an '8' you ask? It's good - it's not great, nor perfect. This amp is GOOD.

Have had this for about 6 months. No problems - despite dropping it a couple of times while loading/unloading for practice/gigs.

Would use it on a gig sans backup. It has enough power to be heard, or it can be miked.

No breakages yet - have a couple of places I could go for repairs, however, this thing still had the warranty included when I bought it.

Have not had to call anyone about this little beast - however, all the sales people I have dealt with at L&M have been helpful.

Overall, I have been playing about 20 years - other amp right now is an over-weight Fender 'evil twin'. Have thought about other amps, including some of the Rivera products, Mesa, and of course Fender ... but this little beast (YCV 40) is one of the best bangs for the buck.

As I said about, this ain't about shredding or sonic disturbances ... it is about fundamental playing and basic tube tones.

I like it - it covers all the things I need and want when I'm making noise (and trying to sound like I know what I'm doing).

This rating was on a 2001 model. This is a GREAT amp if you play blues, jazz, stoner rock or anything requiring a nice clean and a very thick, sludged out overdrive. The effects loop is cool. No headphone jack, but, honestly, if it had one you wouldn't use it because this amp is LOUD!!!!!! I haven't gigged this amp yet, but in a bedroom it is really overkill. It has one Celestion seventy eighty 12 in. speaker. A greenback would probably sound better in this amps cab. if you also coupled it with some tung-sol 12ax7 and 6L6 tubes. The Sovtek 12AX7 and 6L6 tubes are O.K. The cool thing about this amp is that you can use any 12AX7 preamp and 6L6 power tubes without having to re-bias. I give it a 7 only because, lets be real here, no amp is REALLY worth a 10. None of 'em do it all.

I use a Les Paul Standard w/stock 496R and 498T pickups, a Gibson Explorer '76 re-issue w/stock 498R and 500T pickups and a Gibson SG w/stock 490 pickups and they all sound good through this amp. A freind of mine tried out his Fender Strat through this amp, but, it didn't sound near as good. The single coils didn't seam to get very dirty with this amp. He had to kick in the lead boost channel just so it would get somewhat dirty. The clean channel sounded good however. This amp sounds as if the manufacturer had stoner rock in mind while building it. If you play nu-metal or hardcore you will HATE this amp. If you know how to play more than three chords without having to play in dropped D, you may dig this amp. If you know how to solo, you will LOVE this amp. Nice warm, vintage , fat tone. My pickups are a bit noisy through this amp, but after I threw a Boss noise gate in the loop, it simmered down alot. For me, this amp is pretty versitile. I play alot of different styles, rock, blues, jazz, latin rock, cumbia, salsa, tejano, reggae, ska, pop. This amp can handle all of my needs for my style, but I would highly recommend giving this amp a good long workout with the volume set at least at 5-6. You never truly hear what a tube amp sounds like until you crank them a little. If at all possible, take your own guitar to the music store when you try one out. That way you will know for sure what your guitar sounds like through this amp. The clean is nice and bright and breaks up nicely when cranked to about 6 and beyond. The overdrive is insanely warm and smooth and the lead boost doesnt add much volume, but it thickens up the tone without messing with the eq very much. I give this amp an 8 due to its versitility and great tone.

I would gig this amp anywhere. But, you should never, ever gig a tube amp without a backup. Anyone who has played them long enough knows that tubes never fail unless you are in the middle of a set. I have had this amp for 3 months and have played it everyday for at least 2 hours a day sense I bought it. I havent had one single problem with it yet. This amp seems to be built rock solid. I have had it open and all the screws seem to be really tight. The cab is pretty solid and the tolex, although a little sloppy at the corners, is strong and durable. The thing I like the best about it's construction is the perforated steel grill they installed right behind the grill cloth. This is a great idea. If you ever bump it on something, or someone throws a beer bottle at you from the croud, misses you and hits your amp, your speaker will not be the martyr. I really can't say enough good things about the construction of this amp. I'm giving it a 9 for this only because of the sloppy tolex job.

I had a question about swapping the tubes in this amp and there was no info on this subject on the Yorkville website. (Yorkville is the company that builds Traynor amps.) So I emailed a tech from a link on the site and to my surprise had a response the very next day! I don't think I would have a problem if I ever had to get this thing repaired. There are two authorized dealers in my area. The warranty on this amp is unheard of. Two year "even if you break it" warranty. That spells peace of mind in my book. Im going to give this catergory a solid 10 due to the manufacturers' speedy response to my question and their awesome warranty.

I have been playing guitar for 13 years. I also own a Marsall 1960A 4x12 cab(which this amp sounds killer through!) Boss DS-1 distortion, DD-3 delay, CE-5 chorus, GE-7 graphic eq, MT-2 distortion, OC-2 octave, TR-2 tremolo, NS-2 noise gate, Morley BAD HORSEY wha, Digitech Grunge distortion, and Digitech Classic Fuzz pedals. I use Monster Performer 500 cables. I don't think anyone who cares about their gear could really loose an amp, but, if it were stolen, I would track down the theif, kick in his door, shoot him in the left eye, take my amp and his wallet and go home and play guitar while enjoying the beer he just bought me and my buds. I compared this amp to a Fender Champ and a Marshall Blues Breaker re-issue. The Traynor got dirtier than the Fender and has a nicer clean sound than the Marshall. And this amp costs about 1/2 of the price of the other two. I do wish Traynor would consider putting at least one rectifier tube in this model, that would push the sound rating up to a 10. I cant stress enough that if you play styles like Korn or Gimp Bisquick, you will not dig this amp. If you remember hearing Stevie Ray Vaughan on FM radio and loving every note of his insane guitar solos and that was your muse for even asking your mom and dad for a guitar, you will love what this amp can do. I give this amp an overall rating of 8. I think all the ratings for all the catergories will average out to be an 8 anyway. If they don't, oh well, what did you expect? Im a musician not a bean counter.

Great features for price payed!!! FX loop (tho I never use it), Great inbuilt reverb!!! And 12" Cel!!!

THE AMP IS AMAZING!!! The tubes absolutely sing thru the 12"!!! I've managed to compete with 100-watt stacks with my little 40-watt dynamo!!! The in-built reverb is also a god-send and I use it constantly. Now the inbuilt distortion sings any tune you want it to, just as long as you are really pushing the tubes!!! I play everything from Pink Floyd to Tool to Zeppelin to Pearl Jam... This baby handles them all!!!

Thius thing is bomb proof I think... Never had a prob, and have taken it to countless gigs!!!

Never dealt with Traynor... but love em anyway!!!

I've been playing a little over 3 years so I guess you'd call me a junior to the guitar world. But I've played everything from Vox to Mesa... Traynor have made a little beauty with this amp.. lite enought to carry, loud enough to be heard. I play a les paul and a strat.. and both sing through this swwet, sweet amp!!! And for the price of a solid-state!!! YOU CAN'T GO WRONG, BUY ONE NOW!!!!!!!!!!

2003 model with red tolex. features, all tube 12 inch celestion.

Telecaster studio les paul. Better with single coil.

2 and 10 year guarantee even if you break it. The best warranty in the business. bar none.

This is my second one. I sold the first to a kid who was looking for a great all around amp. Then I waited 6 months, tried the competition and bought the same amp,. Traynors service ( I've used traynor amps for 28 years) is legendary.

Marshall JCM 800. Playing for 30 years. Lots of telecasters, a les paul studio.
The red tolex is really cool. They have bolted the amp to the cabinet from the top as an improved design based on listening to feedback. As well the logo is a little more understated. A keeper. I've added a cabinet with 2 12 celestion G12 H 100. for bigger rooms/ It rocks for everything I need. Finally I play a Marc Beneteau cut away acoustic with a fishman pickup through it and it sounds great. I've never seen an amp that is this versatile.

Everything you really need.

There have been several circuit changes since the amp was introduced. If you have an early amp, go to the Yorkville website and download the latest schematic. Make the changes noted on the schematic, then make sure you upgrade to some premium 5881 or 6L6GC tubes. Tighten down all the fasteners, then you will have one really jamming amp. Some have described the tone as between a Fender and a Marshall, but I prefer to think that it sounds like a real Traynor amp! This is a premium sounding amp, without the premium price tag.

Build quality is very high for the price you pay. The birch plywood cabinet is really tough. The steel chassis is fairly thick and strong. The transformers look plenty big for the task at hand. It may last longer than you do.

The tubes are not up to the rest of the amp, especially the output tubes. Change them for better ones ASAP.

Very helpful over the phone.

Yorkville Sound is well regarded for customer support.

This amp is a "must audition" in it's price category, or even if you plan on spending 3 times as much.

I'm not giving a number rating because I haven't played all the competition, but I do know it smokes most of what is available at anywhere near its price.

See the other reviews. Pretty much standard control features. The best ones are the sturdy birch plywood cabinet, metal backed grillcloth, and decent speaker.

This amp automatically sets the output tube bias, so you NEVER need to buy matched tube sets or anything like that. It is a tube swappers dream come true, at a bargain price.

To get the best sound, you must change out the tubes and snug things up a bit. Don't forget to check every screw you can get to, as new amps are notorious for loose screws. At the discount prices you pay these days, no music store can afford to go through your amp and give it a proper setup, so just plan on doing it yourself. The supplied Sovtek tubes are just a junky starter set to get you going. My output tubes tested borderline when I tested them in my tube tester. The major problem was low emission, coupled with grid leakage when fully warmed up. I actually bought this amp to use up my box of NOS 5881 tubes, and I have about a lifetime supply at my usage rate of the amp at present. Those Tung-Sol 5881 tubes sure sound good in this amp. Several preamp tubes were tried, with my favorite being the JJ Tesla ECC83S. They are actually better than most American NOS preamp tubes and are based on a Telefunken design. The good NOS 12AX7 type tubes were used/bought years ago, and what is left that is really good has a "Rolex" price tag, which means more than they are worth. Most of what is left are the NOS tubes that the quality sellers rejected and sold to shady dealers. You are mainly buying past reputation except for the very expensive ones from quality dealers, and sometimes not even then. The E-H 12AX7 tubes were also good if high gain and ruggedness are major priorities. They were my second favorite. Ei ECC83 tubes sound fabulous and are cheap (I gave $45 for 10!), but I noticed greater microphonics and they have a reputation for going microphonic. They are based on the flat plate Telefunken design that audiophiles go apeshit over. They work best for home stereo gear, so save them for that. I have two Rickenbacker 650 guitars, one with vintage pickups and one with humbuckers. This amp sounds fabulous with both. The Celestion Seventy 80 speaker gives a very bluesy tone, similar to a G12M Greenback. A Vintage 8 or G12H speaker should modify this amp very well for other styles of music. For classic rock music, the supplied speaker is just fine, with plenty of bottom end when used with real 5881 tubes. I would give the JJ Tesla 6L6GC a try if I did not have or could not afford real NOS 5881 tubes. Angela Instruments is selling Philips NOS 5881 tubes right now for $15, and they are nearly as good as the Tung-Sol 5881 tubes. For future supply purposes, I would get my amp voiced with JJ or Svetlana output tubes as few guitarists are as lucky as me to have several spare sets of NOS 5881 tubes on hand. This amp, like all tube guitar amps, will sound different according to how you voice it with your tube/speaker selection. Take with a HUGE grain of salt any previous reviews where the owner did not change out the tubes and get it voiced to his taste. If you do not want to go to all the tube troubles, get a Marshall AVT50 for about the same price. The AVT50 build quality is not in the same league, but the sound quality is when it is compared to a YCV40 with the stock tubes and you only have to worry about one little preamp tube at $10 a pop. Upgrade tubes will shove the YCV40 a notch or two above it, but you have spent considerably more money and trouble for that improvement. I own both amps, so I know. If I were just going to play at home and not worry about tubes, the AVT50 would get my vote. If modifying to personal taste and using professionally is the goal, the YCV40 wins hands down. The extra maintenance expense is well worth the better sound and more rugged cabinet/circuit construction. When properly modified/setup, the sound for price becomes a 10, best in its class.

The materials and construction methods are the best you will find in this price and power class. However, it is a fast built amp and will need a thorough going over for loose fasteners and tube upgrade at your earliest convenience. The next step up would be a Fender Deluxe Reverb for about $800. Better to put the difference in price into the YCV40 and have a better amp suited to your tastes when you are finished, in my opinion. If you need more reliability, you will need to look into expensive boutique amps.

Yorkville has a complete list of schematics available for download on their website. I fix my own amps, so that is what I mainly need.

The best in its price/power class when you take a little time to snug things up a bit. Compare it to a Marshall AVT50, its other real competitor. Both these amps own this price/power class right now, and one will suit you the best. Both these amps blow away the Blues Junior, so they are worth the small extra expense. The YCV40 can be made to outperform the stock Deluxe Reverb for less than the difference in cost. Do not get hung up on expensive NOS tubes. Recent improvements in tubes coming from eastern Europe have pretty much laid the overpriced NOS tubes to rest. JJ Tesla ECC83S, E-H 12AX7, JJ Tesla 6L6GC, and Svetlana 6L6GC tubes should be investigated at the very least. The Seventy 80 speaker is quite good, so try tube swapping first, then try a speaker changeout if more improvement is needed. Those supplied Sovtek tubes are bottom of the barrel in sound quality, but reliable enough until you can afford a new set. The overall rating becomes a 10 when you take the necessary steps to tweak it to your taste and relate it to the low price.

Brand new 2003 YCV40. Replacement amp; see Reliability. All plywood construction. Metal Traynor logo mounted on front on new models; Rubber one on older models. Standard features, and that's all I needed. All tube, 40 watts, separate tone controls for each channel, FX loop, 1x12" 70/80 Celestion, reverb, presence. No headphone jack. No master volume. Footswitch included. Check Yorkville's website for detailed specs and specials.

Sounds really good. Tried a lot of other tube amps (Mesa, Marshall, Fender, Soldano, Laney, Peavey; prices up to 1000 euro; all stock tubes and speakers) and tried them several times in a period of four weeks, 'cause I really wanted to have something I'd be happy with for years. I just kept coming back to this baby.
I use a variety of guitars (US Fender with tex/mex, US BC Rich with EMG 81s, Epiphone AlleyKat, Gibson SG) and this amp really lets the character of each guitar shine through. I play lots of different styles, from jazz to death-metal. The clean is absolutely beautiful. Deep lows and sparkling highs. Breaks up nicely when cranked. The gain channel suits (classic) rock perfectly but isn't really suited for extreme metal, but hey, that's where pedals are for. I use a ProCo classic Rat and it sounds great with my down-tuned BC Rich to play my share of death metal. Overall the amp is really quiet except for the normal tube-hiss.
It's useless to compare it to other amps because this is a Traynor and not a Fender or whatsoever. If you want a Fender-tone, buy a Fender! It has a character of it's own that I very much like. Of course it all comes down to personal taste in the end but be sure to give this fine amp a try if you're looking for a new one!
Eight points because it's really, really good. Nine points could be for a $3000 boutique amp and ten points doesn't exist.

This was where I had a problem with my first Traynor YCV40 (floor model, 1 1/2 years old). When I cranked the volume past 4 there was a nasty rattle somewhere inside. Really annoying cause I can't stand rattles. Of course I didn't notice this till gigging four months later so I had to drag it all the way back to the shop since I couldn't fix it myself. They sent it back to dealer and within a week they received a new one to replace the rattling one. No questions! I was a little worried because the two-year "no matter what" warranty is only valid in Northern America, but it was handled quite adequately here as well! My advice is to carefully check it before buying. I was not bothered at all by this, because this is just the right amp for me.
Apart from the rattle the build quality is good. It seems that Yorkville has acknowledged the fact that many people experience buzzes and rattles, since they changed the postions of the screws holding the pcb's from the side to the top of the amp.
The replacement I got is very reliable. Have gigged with it, dragged it to rehearsels hudreds of times and no problems at all.

Received a new amp in one week. The two year warranty is US & Canada only, but I got a two year warranty at the shop I bought it. So dunno for sure if it's been the shop being nice or Yorkville in general, but anyway, I'm happy.

I'm no guitar-hero but been playing for a while so I've had my share of amps (both SS and tube) but never been entirely satisfied with any of 'm. So I started looking for one in the "reasonable-price" category (up to 1000 euro) and this little diamond just was the brightest. It's no big name but it was the big sound that won me over and after 1 1/2 years I'm still completely satisfied with it.
Been thinking to deduct some points for the buzzing but I just love the tones it produces. And for the price no one should have to think twice. Would definately buy it again!