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 2010
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Vintage Traynor Series
Vintage Guitar Amps

Soon after Pete Traynor started designing and producing Bass Amps and PA columns, requests started coming in for Guitar Tube Amps. Pete, knowing no boundaries, dove headfirst into the world of Guitar Amps, with many of the models using the same technology as his Bass Amp designs. The following chronicles the evolution of the highly successful Guitar Amp line from Yorkville Sound.

Hi Tone
YGA-1 -- Signature
YGA-1A -- Signature
YGM-1 -- Guitar Mate
YGM-2 -- Guitar Mate
YGM-3 -- Guitar Mate
YGM-4 -- Studio Mate
YSR-1 -- Custom Reverb
YSR-2 -- Signature Reverb
YRM-1 -- Reverb Master
YRM-1SC -- Reverb Master
YGL-3 -- Mark III
YGL-3A -- Mark III

Hi Tone
Features
Dual inputs, volume, bass, treble, reverb, tremolo intensity & speed controls
Approximate Serial Number
0016 & 0017
Years Made
1965 only
Amp Type
Tube combo (2x12")
Power
??? 		Comments
Little is known about this experimental twin-style amp except that it was very loud, had a sloping top and an incurable design fault. Only 2 were made. Chalk this one up to the learning process.

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YGA-1 Signature
Features
Dual pairs of inputs, dual volume controls, bass, treble, tremolo speed & intensity controls
Approximate Serial Number
0014 to 0043 = 1965
7500 to 7600s = 1966 to 1967
Years Made
1966 - 1967
Amp Type
Tube head
Power
45 Watts sine-wave @ 8 Ohms 		Comments
Electronically this was a Bass Master with tremolo. When first introduced it was called the Signature only, not YGA-1.

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YGA-1A Signature
Features
Same as YGA-1
Approximate Serial Number
17500 to 17800s = 1966 to 1969
Years Made
1966 - 1969
Amp Type
Tube combo (1x15")
Power
45 Watts sine-wave @ 8 Ohms 		Comments
The 15" speaker was needed because there were so few 12" guitar speakers which could handle the amp''s 90 Watt max continuous output.

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YGM-1 Guitar Mate
Features
Dual inputs, volume, bass, treble, reverb, tremolo intensity and speed controls, 12" guitar speaker
Approximate Serial Number
0250 to 0600s = 1966 to 1969
Years Made
1966 - 1969
Amp Type
Tube combo (1x12")
Power
20 Watts sine-wave @ 8 Ohms 		Comments
Used two 6BQ5 outputs with a combination of 12AU7 & 12AX7 preamp tubes.

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YGM-2 Guitar Mate
Features
Same as YGM-1 but minus the reverb control and with slightly more power
Approximate Serial Number
0105 to 0600s = 1967 to 1970
Years Made
1967 - 1969
Amp Type
Tube combo (1x12")
Power
25 Watts sine-wave @ 8 Ohms 		Comments
Slightly more power than the YGM-1 but with no reverb to reduce the price. Same output tubes and all 12AX7s in the preamp.

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YGM-3 Guitar Mate
Features
Same as YGM-1 including reverb and with slightly more power
Approximate Serial Number
21200 to 22300s = 1969 to 1970
006#### to 911####
Years Made
1969 - 1979
Amp Type
Tube combo (1x12")
Power
25 Watts sine-wave @ 8 Ohms 		Comments
This replaced the YGM-1 in 1969. Same basic tube compliment as the YGM-2.

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YGM-4 Studio Mate
Features
Same as YGM-3 but with four 8s
Approximate Serial Number
203#### to 911####
Years Made
1972 - 1979
Amp Type
Tube combo (4x8")
Power
25 Watts sine-wave @ 8 Ohms 		Comments
Basically this was a YGM-3 with 4 8" speakers, the same as the ones used in PA columns. Sound was surprisingly rich.

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YSR-1 Custom Reverb
Features
Dual inputs, dual volume controls plus bass, treble, reverb, tremolo intensity and speed controls,
Approximate Serial Number
70000 to 719000s = 1968 to 1970
006#### to 306####
Years Made
1968 - 1973
Amp Type
Tube head
Power
45 Watts sine-wave @ 8 Ohms 		Comments
This was an all-new design although features and tube compliment were same as the YBA-1.

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YSR-II Signature Reverb
Features
Two channels (I) with dual inputs, vol, treb, bass controls+ bright switch, (II) with dual inputs, vol, treb, bass, reverb, trem. inten. & speed controls plus bright switch. There was also a master volume control.
Approximate Serial Number
80000 to 80300s = 1969 to 1970
006#### to 110###
Years Made
1969 - 1971
Amp Type
Solid-state combo (4x10")
Power
45 Watts sine-wave @ 8 Ohms 		Comments
Our first guitar amp with a master volume, probably also the first one on the market. Sound was full and clean.

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YRM-1 Reverb Master
Features
Dual inputs, volume, bass, mid, treble, reverb, tremolo intensity & speed & master gain controls plus treble boost switch.
Approximate Serial Number
306#### to 911####
Years Made
1973 - 1979
Amp Type
Tube head
Power
45 Watts sine-wave @ 8 Ohms 		Comments
Replacing the YSR-1, the YRM-1''s electronic design was more closely related to the Bass Master''s hence it was more versatile - thanks also to the master gain.

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YRM-1SC Reverb Master
Features
Same as YRM-1 with four Eminence tens
Approximate Serial Number
306#### to 911####
Years Made
1973 - 1979
Amp Type
Tube combo (4x10")
Power
45 Watts sine-wave @ 8 Ohms 		Comments
The tens were a bit mellow sounding but overall it was an outstanding combo.

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YGL-3 Mark III
Features
Two channels (I) with dual inputs, vol, treb, mid, bass controls+ bright switch, (II) with dual inputs, vol, treb, mid, bass, reverb, trem. inten. & speed controls plus bright switch. There was also a master volume control. Dual 12" 8 Ohm Eminence speakers.
Approximate Serial Number
110#### to 911####
Years Made
1971 - 1979
Amp Type
Tube combo (2x12")
Power
80 Watts sine-wave @ 4 Ohms 		Comments
Although control features were similar to the YSR-2, this was a totally new design with four 6CA7 outputs & 12AX7s in the preamp plus a 6BQ5 for reverb drive. Common user comment, "like a Twin on steroids".

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YGL-3A Mark III
Features
Same as YGL-3 but no speakers
Approximate Serial Number
110#### to 911####
Years Made
1971 - 1979
Amp Type
Tube head
Power
80 Watts sine-wave @ 4 Ohms 		Comments
Commonly used with the YGC-412 cab singly or as a stacked pair. A thyrector in the output stage provided open-load protection.

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Vintage Traynor Series Overview

The DynaBass The following takes look at the history of original and groundbreaking Yorkville products. Each link above represents a comprehensive archive of our Traynor creations and experiments. If you are the owner of an original Traynor product, you can reference serials numbers to specific models and years.

If you are interested in finding out more about Yorkville's history there is a very detailed document written by Yorkville's Mike Holman that you can get by clicking here. It is quite an interesting read.

SOME EARLY TRAYNOR/YORKVILLE HISTORY
1963-1970

Pete Traynor and Jack Long joined forces in 1963. Jack, a brilliant music retailer and owner of Long & McQuade Music, saw promise in Pete, a young bass player with creative skills at repairing things. Later it turned out that Pete could design things too. Thus began a relationship which would result in the formation of Yorkville Sound and development of many of the world’s leading amplification and pro audio innovations.

Peter Traynor Today, ongoing breakthroughs keep Yorkville at the forefront of music industry technology. Still, we look back frequently at those early days, usually in response to worldwide web enquiries. The present, and even the future it seems, will always pay homage to history.

Here are some early milestones along that 37-year pathway:

  • 1963
    • the YSC-1 portable PA column (6x8" speakers, 150 watts, 5.3 Ohms) filled a huge gap. Portable PA was unknown at the time and they could be used with any commercial PA amp.
    • the "Dynabass", later re-named the YBA-1 "Bass Master" was a tube head (45 Watts rms, no clipping @ 8 Ohms) cleverly designed to please bass and guitar players alike.
  • 1966
    • the YVM-1 "Voice Master" 4-channel, 45-watt PA head
    • another "first". But this one had a few extra "firsts". All inputs and speaker outputs were standard 1/4-inch jacks, there were In and Out effects patching jacks, switchable speaker impedance matching and a Master Volume control!
  • 1967
    • the MX-1, a battery-powered mini-mixer could add 4 channels to any PA
    • the YBA-3 "Custom Special" (130 Watts no clipping rms @ 4 Ohms) made it the most powerful bass head then on the North American market, and possibly in the world.
    • the YC-810 (200 watts, 4 Ohms) "Big B" bass cabinet with eight ten-inch drivers was the first of its kind and originally came on a massive tube steel "swivel dolley".
    • the LS-1 lighting system (8 floods on 2 t-bars with switch controller) was many years ahead of its time.
    • the TRC-2A "Roto Master", rotating horn box for guitar, was a unique forerunner to the flanger and chorus.
    • the YGM-1 "Guitar Mate" tube combo (12" speaker, 20 watts no clipping rms @ 8 Ohms) was an instant success and, when replaced by the updated, 25-Watt YGM-3 in 1969, quickly became one of the industry leaders for its quality and versatility.
  • 1968
    • the YBA-3A, "Super Custom Special" fan-cooled bass head (minimum 250 Watts rms no clipping @ 2 Ohms) could put out over 400 watts if driven hard enough and had to be used with two YC-810 "Big B’s". The 100-pound monster used four 6KG6A TV verticle hold tubes for output and was a "first" for Yorkville, and the world.
  • 1969
    • the MX-8, a nonpowered 8-channel mono mixer brought club PA into the multi-channel era.
    • the YPM-1 mono power amp (100 watts @4 Ohms) went with the MX-8 & MX-24.
    • the MX-24 was the world’s first 24-channel, multi-bus mixer designed specifically for full-scale live sound contracting. Such an operation was run by Pete Traynor from 1969 to 1971 ("Strawberry Fields", "Lighthouse at Varsity Stadium", "Gordon Lightfoot at Massey Hall", "Johnny Winter at Maple Leaf Gardens", "Steve Miller in Toronto", etc., etc., ). With no others known to have been in existance yet, this operation was a "first" in its own right.
    • the YSR-2 "Signature Reverb" combo (4x10", 2 chan., 45 watts) was a "first" in that it introduced the guitar amp world to one of its most enduring features
    • the Master Volume control.
    • the "wedge" floor monitor was created for Pete’s contract system. A later spin-off, the YSM-1 (not to be confused with the present day studio monitor), was another "first", not only because it was a wedge monitor when there were no others, but also because its unique design provided two different up-facing angles.
This covers the first seven years and only some of the products introduced in that era. There are many more innovations to be found in our history.

Vintage Traynor Series Characteristics

The following links are to sites developed by Traynor fans from around the world. We have no association with any of these sites, so the information contained there is not necessarily correct or the view of Yorkville Sound. You know the drill !!

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