Traynor YCV40T 210 Combo

I've had this amp for 2 years. I own a 1969 Fender Princeton Reverb and was worried about taking a vintage amp on the road and I wanted something with abit more power for small to medium sized gigs. Bigger shows you obviously just mike the amp through the PA. I also didn't want to spend a fortune on the amp as I'm not a pro musician. I tried quite a few different combos but I really love the clean Fender tube sound. For some reason the YCV40T had just what I was looking for. Clean sound when needed and nice warm overdrive when pushed a little harder.
The big problem with this amp are the stock Celestion Tube 10" speakers it comes with. Give it nay kind of volume above 5 and they just start to break up. Low notes are just a disaster with heavy bass chords just producing a miserable "farting" sound.
the solution for me was simple - get rid of the amp and buy a Fender Deluxe Reverb or upgrade the speakers. After researching speakers I replaced them with Eminence Red Coat Ramrods. They are rated at 75w each and this amp has been totally transformed into a stunning combo. The weight did increase quite a bit but it's still a very portable combo.
The clean channel is great the overdrive channel is quite nice but you have to set the gain control carefully.
The reverb is a typical Accutronics spring reverb unit but it totally lacks the depth of the unit in my old Princeton amp so I don't use it at all - relying on the revrb from my Boss GT8 multi-effects processor.
This amp can deliver a fantastic sound ( replace the tubes it comes with for some good quality tibes and you will be amazed at the tone!

I use a 1976 hardtail Strat, a 2008 Am Standard Strat, 1977 Yamaha SG1000 and this amp is great for rock, country, pop etc. Just play with the tone controls and it will deliver.
There is a presnce control which works well and there is a "Brightness" switch for the clean channel that really makes the amp sparkle like a Fender. The provided footswitch allows you to select between the clean/overdrive channels and this works very well. There is also a boost feature switch for the overdrive channel. I find this "BoostS" the volume too much for soloing and the boost level is fixed.This can be a nuisance.
The clean channel will overdrive nicely at high volume but will ot break up woth the Eminence speakers. The overdrive channel will give any level of distortion you need, but I also use the distortion on my GT8 to really give the varaition I need

I would and do use this amp as my only gigging amp. I probably should take a back-up with me but I also own the band's PA so I have a huge amount of gear to move. Worst case I'd just go out of my GT8 direct to the PA!
This amp is solid as a rock and Traynor's unlimited 2 year warranty was definitely a very attractive deal at the time I bought it

2 years. Traynor even claimed they would replace the complete amp if you somehow physically destroyed it!
Never needed to call on any aspect of the warranty when it was still under it.

Been playing 35 years. It seems this amp is no longer made but I would certainly replace it with another Traynor.To my mind this is a great little working amp at a fraction of the price of a Fender.

My first review is below and all features have been covered before

Now I put a set of JJ in there and took it to practice and the stock speakers sounded very good with pedals and the second channel, last week my wife bought me 2 eminece rajun cajuns and i put them in there and Ive never heard in my 40+ years of playing so much sweetness, overdrive channel was used very lil by itself, now u don't need pedals. Im so in awe right now, cant wait to plug her in

not sure yet

I did have a rattle issue and I fixed it myself, the plate for the preamp tubes was rattling, i took it out

with speaker and tube change and the price these are going for, its well worth it
Only thing a Fender Deluxe 65 RI does better is the tube reverb

Just bought this from a local store, sat around since 2004. I go in there alot, plugged into it and loved the 2x10 sound.
2 separete channells, with a worthless boost as they all are. 2/10in Celestion 10's @ power tube 3 preamp, wish it had a master on clean or overall master volume

I use Strats, Anderson and Shur guitars. Clean is realll close to Fender with brite switch on or turn treble up a bit.
Nice but hard to describe o/d channel, kinda smooth. waiting for the tube 10 speakers to break in to see if i will replace them, prob will anyway.
Amp seems to have alot of bass responce from the cabinet and speakers

Just got it, seems well built, i'd gig w/o a backup

emailed them once and sent me to a guy who retails out of his house, He loves these amps but knew nothing about the product

Been playing since i was 8, going on 53 now, blues rock based player, lil jazz,country.
I have a Fender Blues Jr, A Fender'65 deluxe reverb ri, heavily modded[awesome amp].

I got this for what a Fender blues jr cost. also have a blues Jr. This is a new amp, just sat in the store several years,I wanted somthing w/ 2/10's and coulndnt see buying a vibrolux.
I put a set of JJ tubes in it and the amp came alive. Stock tubes are usually junk in all amps I have seen. Im prob wouldnt buy it again but then again I dont keep stuff long, taking it to practice tonight.
I use only high end o/d pedals, courious to see what the fulldrive 2 sounds thru it. Really need to change out the speakers..these are rated 94db, i think they sound confused now I have good tubes in it.
Ill bust 'em a new 1 tonight.

Nice tube amp. Two channels with boost - each with pedal activation. Effects loop is quiet. Very versatile amp that cleans up well and makes enough "crunch" to satisfy most players' needs. Used with a Strat - treble boost is rarely used. You have to drop out the chassis to change the pre-amp tubes, but that's not a really big deal - and they are well-protected. Speaker jacks are in an awkward place - but I don't drive extra speakers, so it doesn't bother me.

No noise! This is a quiet amp; you will hear some "hum" with the boost on, but it isn't prominent. Clean is very good - not quite Fender clean, but danged close. The OD is good as well - the boost is too much for my style - Doobies, Babys, etc. - but it sounds good. I must note that I changed out the Celestion Tube 10 speakers and installed Jensen P10Qs - This change really brought this amp alive! Nothing wrong with the Tube 10s; for my taste they just have that "darker" sound to them. The Jensens made a huge difference in my sound.

Well-constructed amp. I haven't had the amp very long, nor have I gigged with it, but this amp is put together well. I would gig this amp without a backup with no worries.

Excellent! I had a question about channel switching and speakers. I sent an e-mail to Traynor and received my answer within an hour. Traynor also sent some follow-up information - great service to a guy who bought their product used.

I have played guitar for 35 years. I have played the same Strat since 1974. I have owned Fenders, Peaveys, Kustoms, Polytone, and Marshall. I heard my guitar through these amps and more. While I am a "Fender man", this amp - with the Jensen upgrade - is the most versatile amp I have owned. It really makes my Strat sing. I can dial in the sounds I need; I can easily change from the Dire Straits sound to Sammy Hagar. I bought this amp on the recommendation of my amp tech - I gave him my budget and asked what gave me the most bang for the buck? He recommended the Traynor and I am glad he did. This is a great amplifier.

2 Channel tube amp - 6L6 power tubes, 3 12AX7 pre amp tubes. Effects loop, extension speaker out. Standby switch. 2 X 10 inch Celestion Tube 10 speakers. Really all the features you need.

First of all, let me say I think an 8 is a very good score. I like the clean channel and the overdrive channel. The clean is not quite a Fender Deluxe Reverb clean, but close. The boost on the overdrive channel is also very nice to have. I had some "white noise" on the clean channel, but replaced the preamp tube for it (V1 if I recall), and that took care of the problem. Very little noise for a tube amp, really none to speak of. Sounds great with all four guitars I have - A G&L Tribute Classic ASAT (recently modded with the Fender Baja switching system), a Classic 60's strat that is modded, a American strat and Sheraton Epi that has Seymor Duncan pickups (JB and 59). Works well with other overdrive pedals, too. Only thing I do not like is it is a little raspy (or something) on the overdrive channel. I've been unable to put my finger on it, but the best way I can describe it is to say it is not as warm as I'd like. Also, reverb is OK, but I wouldn't rave about it.

Very well built and sturdy. Never a problem with it (I've had it over 3 years). Only downside is the controls turn very easy - feel flimsy. I don't think there is any problem with that, but it does surprise me from time to time when making adjustments, just don't expect it to feel the way it does. Difficult to change tubes, but you know they are protected, which is good. Speaker jack in an ackward plave, but not a real big deal once you get used to it.

I've contacted Traynor a number of times with speaker and tube replacement questions. Both by e-mail and telephone. Always very helpful and knowledgeable. I think they are a very good company that stands by their products. I'd buy another Traynor without hesitation, if it had the sound I was looking for at the time.

Very solid amp with good versatility. I read somewhere that these amps were Traynor's answer to the Fender HRD series. I think these YCV40's are a lot better than the Fender HRD's. I haven't owned a HRD, but played a number of them at various music stores. Good company when you have support questions.

I bought it new about two and a half years ago, so I guess it's 2003/2004. I find a decent clean and mid gain sound and eq it to the club's acoustics and leave it there all night. So I guess it's versatile in the fact that I can cue it to alot of different rooms pretty quickly. It's got two seperate channels (clean/dirty) and a gain boost for solos which is preset. There's an effects loop. It's short a master volume and a headphone/line out. Two power tubes, three preamp. So I like how little a re-tubing costs compared to re-tubing you messa or something.

First off, like many other's have already said the tubes that come in this thing aren't the best, I've put in sovteks and groove tubes since and both really made a huge difference, sticking with groove tubes though. I personally think the speaker is junk too. I loaded an old 70's traynor 2x12 with some speakers out of a junked fender twin, wired the cab to input one 8 om load to each speaker, so I just disconnect the speaker in it and run both outs to the cab. It obviously doesn't have alot of sounds to it, compared to modeling amps and all that. It's just a tube amp and you gotta tweak it into whatever the best straight up tone you can get is. I play a Tele and a Les Paul, I like 60's and 70's guitar tones, and I find this amp does deliver a good warm sound with a musical breakup to the tubes. Cranking the preamp gain makes the amp sag a bit I find, but it doesn't get harsh, it gets thick. I personally think the solo gain is set too high and never use it. There is no clean channel once you turn it up, you get more of a rolling stones rythm guitar sound, but I dig that.

It's a pretty tough amp all and all, I gig most weekends and lug it around to lessons and rehersals everyday and the only problem I had was a design flaw with a compacitor I think? Easy fix anyways.

I want to say it's a two year warranty. When I had the above mentioned issue I sent an email even though my warranty was up, and Guy Besford emailed me back that day with a schematic of what to do. I was impressed.

I've been playing 20 years, other amps I've had are a fender75, a crap mid-eighties twin, and an old traynor custom reverb. The traynors are the ones I've kept, I like 'em. Of course I've played way nicer amps but for what I can actually afford to spend on gear, this was the best amp for me.

This is a great with some standard features work well. The channells are seperate and have good eq systems. The reverb is really nice but I wish I could have seperate ones for each channel. The boost adds a lot of bass to my amp which makes it sound pretty bad, I never use the boost just an overdrive. This amp is pretty loud and the volume has never gone past 4, enough to blast people out of the room. I wish it did have a master volume control.

I love the sound of this amp. The clean is very sparkly and nice, it just sings. The distortion is great for music of the 60's and 70's but you probably need to overdrive it if you want the best distortion. The amp alone is not noisy at all ( doesn't feedback when I have the gain on ten) but if you use the boost it gets bad. I have hum canceling active EMG pickups so it plays a part in that. This amp is great for most music styles from Jazz to metal.

this amp has never put any problem, it's reliable.

no basis for judgment.

Overall this is a damn good amp that sounds great, has tons of volume, and is cheap for a tube amp.

The one biggest feature this baby is missing that annoys the crap outta me, in my opinion, is a master volume knob!!! Other than that, separate EQs on drive and clean channels are great, reverb, FX loop, etc... I dont seem to notice the presence knob doing much, but then again i never understood what presence did anyway so... Also, the speaker out jack is annoyingly placed deep under the cabinet, which is also frustrating. Finally, the knobs turn way too easily, making it very easy to accidentally mess them up if someone brushes up against the amp. Note that this version of the amp is a 2x10.

In a nutshell, this amp has got some sweet cleans, close to a Fender Blues Deluxe, but not exactly, and a nice overdrive that's very versatile, but more vintage in sound (which i wanted). I find it very articulate and clear, and it really lets my choice of guitar shine through. That being said...

I use two main guitars, the first being a Fender Lite Ash Telecaster. With this guitar, the amp produces some incredible cleans, wow. Again keep in mind it's not a Fender clean, but very close, especially considering the price tag and versatility this amp gives you. Very low noise on both channels. The drive channel is great with the Telecaster for a light overdrive at about 6, but cranking the gain to 10 leaves something to be desired. Although noone is claiming this amp to be a metal amp, the drive just wasnt saturated enough to sound nice and full with the Telecaster.

Enter the second guitar, an Ibanez S370 with Dimarzio Super Distortion Bridge. One thing i will say is that i tried this guitar with a Fender Blues Deluxe, which broke up terribly at decent volume on the clean channel with my bridge pup, but the Traynor did marvelously well up till at least a 4 or 5, which is mostly loud enough for band playing in any bar or pub. I havent really tried it at higher volumes beyond that. What really makes the amp shine with this guitar though is the drive channel, which distorts beautifully with the Super Distortion bridge pup. I compared it side by side with my JCM800 2210 head, and i found the drive channel sounding quite similar tonewise, with the Traynor having a bit of top-end trebly harshness that the JCM800 didnt. For comparison purposes, the cranked Traynor drive was a bit less heavy than the cranked JCM800 drive.

So yes, not a metal amp, but with the right guitar/pickup, you can get a pretty sweet drive tone out of this amp, which i couldnt with a Fender Blues Deluxe.

Also, the boost button on the drive channel makes for a nice lead tone (though too bassy for rhythm).

No idea, i've only had it for about 3 weeks, used it in a few practices and one gig, no problem with it yet.

No idea.

Ive been playing 13 years now. I own 3 guitars, 2 of which were mentioned above, and a crappy Fender squire strat. I own 3 amps now, this one, a Marshall JCM800 2210 head, and a Fender RocPro. I'd definitely buy it again if it was stolen. It's not my dream amp, but for the price, it's quite versatile, got great cleans, and a pretty good drive channel, so i love it. Great gigging amp for the money. Like i said, biggest complaint is the lack of a master volume knob. When shopping for this i tried out every amp in a close price range i could get my hands on, including a Marshall DSL100, Peavey, Soldano, Line 6, Fender, etc... I also tried out the other variations of this amp, eg the 1x12 with a Vintage 30 speaker in it, and one thing i noticed, in my opinion, was that i liked the 2x10 configuration better because the Vintage30 gave out a much more soft warm clean tone, which in my experience doesnt cut through the mix as well, whereas the 2x10 had a much more solid bold round clean tone (i experienced this same conundrum when comparing a Marshall DSL100's clean tone to my Marshall JCM800's, respectively).

THis amp was made in 2006. Bout brand new for #617.00.
I bought it because it had three different variations that could be set from the footswitch something that my current ams did not have, (Orange, Vox,).
We play everything from Jazz, through Blues and Rock but not metal and this amp supplies me with the sounds I need for everything except for acoustic work.
2 Channels with a booster switch on the first channel. Effects loop which can also be used as a DI out.
It has all the features that I need as I prefer simple amps with not much fiddling about. The old Vox AC30 is just great but quite limited. So this amp fills a needed gap.
I use this amp in our band Moontagu in small to larger gigs and it has enough power for any job given that mostly we go through the PA as well at larger gigs.
This is an all tube amp with the exception of the rectifier stage which is solid state. 2 X 6L6 and 3 X 12AX7.
Comes fitted with Sovtek tubes which MUST be thrown out before you even turn this amp on!!! And also you MUST spend some more money and buy some decent speakers before even listening to it, otherwise, like me you will think that you have bought a melon! Put some Jensen PQ10s into it and it sings. Even better with an extension cab.
Which brings me to the point of the extension cab. The socket for which is right under the amp and is very difficult to get at without actually tipping the whole amp on its front so that you can see where you are putting the plug. A bad design fault in my opinion. And the little push button stand-by switch is really el-cheapo and I do not know how long it will last.
Reverb is nice, but you have to have it up pretty far in order to actually hear it. However, it adds a nice ambience when on a low setting.
I changed the tubes to Electro-Harmonix 6L6GC's and 3 X JJ 12AX7's and you should be prepared to spend some money in this way as this amp is almost unusable as it comes from the box! SO be warned.
However, once the mods have been done and the extension cab is plugged in (Jensen 12" PQ12N), my opinion is that it is as good as most amps for double the price. My Orange Rocker 30 is so sweet but it doesn't have reverb. So this one is a gem once the mods have been done. The FEATURES right out of the box are good but the amp is not useable as it is.

I use all P90s now and these sound just perfect with the amp with mods. The humbuckers tend to be a little too powerful for it as it has a huge lower end which can blow the front off your speakers and will do if you do not change them to something more powerful. The stock Celestion 10's are only a total of 40 W and you need at least double to actual wattage of the amp in any amplifier.
It is one of the cleanest and noise free amps I have owned, even with the single coils, provided that you do not stand right near it, it is nose free almost, compared to my Orange ROckeverb 50, it is really noise free!
THis amp has a multitude of different sounds because of the 3 stage switching, bright switch and brilliance knob, although this knob seems to do nothing!
The clean channel will distort nicely at higher volumes, but you would never use it at full throttle anyway as it is quite loud.
The distortion can be anything from a nice little break up to a full on metal jacket potatoe!

Just bought it three weeks ago so give it some time, although it has a PCB it is one of the better ones provided you do not press the tunes in too hard and treat it harshly as they are right on the PCB! Which is never really good.
Really difficult to get at the 3 12AX7's though. You have to take out a metalplate and then they are placed such that you have to be a yoga teacher to get them back in!
Also, the back of the amp has a non-removeable lower piece which makes it difficult to get the speakers in and out. Really difficult if you do not have the correct small screw driver for the speakers as you have to get under the amp template and need a short fat phillips srew driver of exactly the correct size as the screws are of poor quality and burr really quickly. I though at one stage that I would have to saw the speakers out!
The metal front grill (hidden under swome nice Fenderish sound material) does not seem to bother the sound.
There is some vibration at lower frequencies and higher volumes but I am trying a set of much higher wattage Cenestions to see if this solves the problem.

Have not had any reason to contact them as yet.

Beenplaying for 45 years. Amps I use and have had in the past: Vox, Engl, Orange, Fender, Gretch, Laney, Marshall, Mesa Boogie, Univox, I have had them all basically. GUITARS: Also had em all. Dean, Fender, Gibson, Epiphone (when they were great and made in the USA), Grestch also from when they were great), Ovation, Martin, Burns Bison, Burns Marvin, Burns Tri-sonic, Burns Steer. Etc, plu saround 119 more over my life time.
I have given this amp a 4 because of its sorry state right out of the box! However, after the mods I mentioned above, I woudl give it a 9. So if you aren't prepared to spend the extra money that Traynor should have done in the beginning, then do NOT purchase this amp as you will be disappointed. BUt if you are willing to make the mods, then you will be very happy with the result.

Purchased in fall of '04. See other reviews for specs.

I only use it in the house, it's a little too powerfull for this job. To get good tone I have to turn it up.

This amp has very nice clean tones, the distortion isn't my favorite, but is good for classic rock.

I play a fat strat with a hotrail in the bridge. This amp used to serve my style better when I played more mellow stuff and softer rock. But now i'm playing way more metal and the distortion doesn't do it for me.

It has been reliable, but I've never used it for gigs or pushed it to extremes.

Very good warranty, it's 1 or 2 years I think

Been playing 6 years. if it was lost or stolen I would replace with a different amp. I chose it for it's price, it was very cheap compared to other tube amps. I'm probably going to replace it soon to get a more 'metal' amp.

consider this amp if you play rock or country etc.