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.