Need a new amp/cabinet

throw_this_away · Post by **throw_this_away** » Fri Oct 07, 2005 11:48 am

Kevin... was the head a v4-b or v-4bh? The V4-bh I had sent down was new but had been kicking around the store unsold for a while (800$). If they have a vintage v4-b I might be interested...

I actually got my fireglo 4003 from a local guy in Moncton (John also) who got it in Montreal.

Be sure to tell me the next time you are in the city... I would love to see the 4080 (I think Morrow might also be interested).

kcole4001 · Post by **kcole4001** » Fri Oct 07, 2005 11:59 am

I'm not sure what model the Ampeg was. It was worn looking & the cab paired with it looked pretty beat. I think it was a 4X12, but I was there to check out the SWR, so I didn't look closely. You can call them toll free to ask which they have in stock. I was there in Feb. so it might be gone now anyway.
I'm looking forward to showing off the 4080. Can't wait to try it through that Super! It's an awesome guitar amp. Not real loud though>

david_schwab · Post by **david_schwab** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 7:19 am

The master was on about 50% and the gain was 75%

You should try the master all the way up and then turn the gain up as needed. This usually gives a cleaner overall sound. If you turn the gain up too far you will either clip the pre amp or the power amp.

This is why they started putting master volumes on guitar amps.. you crank the gain all the way up and turn down the master, and you have a lot of distortion at lower levels.

You might also want to try and run the bass through a compressor or limiter. Those can help tame transients that might lead to clipping.

I find my 150W Trace combo to be quite loud! I even played at a rather large hall with it (with my 4X10 Mesa cab) and it was almost too loud!

henry5 · Post by **henry5** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 9:42 am

David, I recently sold my Trace 300SMX to a friend, and he says it's twice as loud as his Hartke 3500; he's never had it past 3 and soundmen keep telling him to turn down. In fact I never had it past 3 either, even when backlining....and that was driving a single 8ohm 1x15.

throw_this_away · Post by **throw_this_away** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 5:30 pm

David, I like to overdrive my amp slightly... that is why I have the gain up. With that being said it was not long after boosting the gain that I killed my speaker... the cost of good rock bass tone.

lowendbob · Post by **lowendbob** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 4:52 am

John, Have you read the reviews at Harmony Central on the YBA-200?
http://www.harmony-central.com/Bass/Data/Traynor/YBA200_Head-1.html

I have had mine now for about 7 months and like it a lot. I also have the matching cab, and it too sounds nice. Before I bought the cab, I ran it through a Hartke VX410, and it sounded pretty good, but not a nice as the 2 10's and the 15.
I just put some NOS preamp tubes in mine to make it sound even smoother.

Lindsay wasn't happy with his, and shipped it back, but he may have had some damage that occured during shipment. Who knows.
Jim recommended Avatar cabs and I think in one of the reviews the guy was using Avatar cabs and was very pleased.
Good luck!

turlu · Post by **turlu** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 6:14 am

The YBA200 is a great all Tube Head, but more hi-hi sounding in my opinion. I also preferred the YBA200 not with the matching cabinet like Bob, once again in my opinion.

Change the tubes for JJ/Tesla and you will be really pleased with how warm it can get. It is a clean head and matched with a Avatar 212, it would be really good.

I just ordered replacement tubes for my SUNN 300T for the preamp section and will try them shortly and will let you know what difference it makes.

I played again last saturday at a gig with the SUNN 300T matched with the Yorkville XC808 Cabinet, and, once again, received several compliments on the Tone I got, which cut through like I never experienced before with other heads/cabs configuration.

Definitely, an all tube amp is a good match for the Ricks.

admin · Post by **admin** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 6:20 am

Bob: I have the Traynor cabinet with a Bassman 100 Head (1972) and it is a great combination. The Traynor equipment is excellent value, built like a tank, good tonality and a fantastic warranty. The cabinet, is very heavy for me, by the way. You don't want to carry it up too many stairs by yourself.

lowendbob · Post by **lowendbob** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 6:46 am

Ahh, come on Peter, that cab only weighs 82 lbs.

It's a brute, that's for sure. At least the handles are mounted up high on the cab.

Stephane: What kind of tubes did you replace yours with? I dropped the gain down on mine by dropping in some NOS Telefunken 12AT7's to replace the Sovtek 12AX7's.

BTW: I just made a pretty good score on a bunch of NOS 12AT7's. Mullard, Amperex bugleboy, and Valvo. They all test at 90-100%.
If anyone is interested I can sell some at a decent price. Just drop me a line.

turlu · Post by **turlu** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 7:23 am

Bob,

I just ordered the JJ\Tesla ECC83S to replace the 12AX7A and one ECC81S ( I believe that is the right appellation ) to replace the 12AT7 in my SUNN 300T. I am very satisfied with the original Tubes that are in the SUNN 300T ( Groove Tubes ) but I tried the JJ\Tesla tubes in the Traynonr YBA 200 head once and it did make a big difference in Tone and warmth.
Yorkville has the best warranty in the market and they build to last. I really dig my 8X8 Cabinet XC808. These 8" speakers go low, low, low, and deep bright focused Tone, with the right head !

throw_this_away · Post by **throw_this_away** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 8:22 am

Bob, I have looked at the harmony central reviews.

How hard is it to get a little "dirt" in the tone with some natural overdrive? I'm not a hi-fi kind of guy (many people say this is a very bright head... I have no issues cutting highs). Also... what does the "range" knob do? Does it change the boost of the mid frequencies? I like to boost frequencies around 3k

"It is a clean head and matched with a Avatar 212, it would be really good. "

Funny you say that because I was thinking about pairing it with a 2x12 from avatar. Would you rate avatar cabs as clean or colored (like ampeg)?

turlu · Post by **turlu** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 8:41 am

John,

I tried the B210 Avatar and B212 and they sounded more colored to my ears than a HI-Fi sounding EDEN cab for instance. This is just my opinion. For the price, the Avatar are hard to beat as well as the Yorkville, but not all of the Yorkville line.

david_schwab · Post by **david_schwab** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 9:09 am

David, I like to overdrive my amp slightly... that is why I have the gain up. With that being said it was not long after boosting the gain that I killed my speaker... the cost of good rock bass tone.

It might actually be the clipping that killed your speaker. Hard clipping can do that.

throw_this_away · Post by **throw_this_away** » Wed Oct 12, 2005 9:16 am

yeah... I had a limiter but I can't remember how high it was though. Probably not high enough.

Funny that I know very litle about these kinds of things... it is not until you break something that you are really forced to learn.

Any good links on "caring for your amp"? My firt lesson was that I need a larger amp (or a quieter band)