Can anyone recommend a good headphone amp?

terribilino · #1 12-06-2008, 05:00 PM

I want to practice without harassing my family.

Stumbo · #2 12-06-2008, 05:21 PM

http://www.google.com/custom?hl=en&c...w.talkbass.com
search is your friend.

AQUANOVA · #3 12-06-2008, 05:32 PM

I have a Rockman Bass Ace and love it.
http://bass-guitars.musiciansfriend....RWXO1&ZYXSEM=0

dunamis · #4 12-06-2008, 07:53 PM

Cafe Walter is very good basic headphone amp. Also PJB Bass Buddy (for a more versatile, full featured unit).

Ric5 · #5 12-06-2008, 07:55 PM

Line6 Bass Pod

Dave Muscato · #6 12-06-2008, 08:17 PM

I have a Bass POD, a Dragonfly, and a Tascam Bass Trainer. The Bass Trainer is the best for practicing at home; the Dragonfly is the best for practicing on the go, and the POD is best for home recording.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/navig...ss+trainer&st=

jazzblade · #7 12-06-2008, 08:24 PM

I use my zoom B2 for practice with headphones ..and its a pretty good effect pedal too. 2 for one deal $99 new pretty cheap used. Really quiet for effects too.

newbold · #8 12-06-2008, 08:27 PM

Phil Jones bass buddy?

I think someone on here was trying to sell one awhile back.

Youngspanion · #9 12-06-2008, 08:28 PM

http://www.voxamps.com/amplug/

Newest and fastest selling product.

dunamis · #10 12-06-2008, 08:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by newbold

Phil Jones bass buddy?

I think someone on here was trying to sell one awhile back.

I use mine far too much to consider ever selling it!

::::BASSIST:::: · #11 12-06-2008, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by newbold

Phil Jones bass buddy?

I think someone on here was trying to sell one awhile back.

I love my PJB Bass Buddy

jaseOZ · #12 12-07-2008, 01:16 AM

+1 on the VOX Amplugs.

I got the AC30 and it is amazing. I also plug it straight into my USB audio interface when recording to garageband as a valve pre-amp for both bass and guitar and it sounds fantastic.

I'm gonna get the BASS amplug to try soon but am very happy with the AC30 model. Just have to turn the gain down to 3 or 4 so that you don't get to much overdrive.

Wicked.

I found practising through headphones all the time is not very good on the hearing though so I alternate between plugging the output of the amplug into some like iPod speakers. That way you hear your bass and whatever MP3 you want to practice to through some stereo types speakers so it's fairly quiet and doesn't wreck your hearing.

Not a great way to do it but it's OK for practise.

Through good headphones it sounds awesome.

terribilino · #13 12-07-2008, 04:00 AM

I was snooping around youtube last night and I saw that marlowedk uses a Korg px4d pandora. It seems he had to get a friend to rig up a special cable so that he could use headphones with it, though... or am I missing something?

I remember back in the 80s when a friend used a headphone amp for his guitar, they were pretty limited. Distortion, flange, tremolo - not much else. Now these things seem to do everything. What I would need would be something with a metronome and a tuner, if possible. Is that standard, now? This is very confusing to me. The possibility of playing along to an mp3 tune where the bass has been cancelled seems like science fiction to me - but that seems to be what these things do nowadays. I'm a bit overwhelmed. Will the Korg px4d work with with headphones? Or is it more meant to be a kind of effects pedal? If it won't work, will any of the above mentioned headphone amps be able to do the things that the Korg can do?

Thanks!

dannybuoy · #14 12-07-2008, 05:53 AM

Raven Labs PHA-1 (I think) and Rolls PM-351 are good and haven't seen a mention yet.

KarateKid25 · #15 12-07-2008, 07:12 AM

I use a Tascam Bass Trainer when I need to be quiet. Its a great little unit that really helps with learning songs.

Dr_Funkdamental · #16 12-07-2008, 07:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by terribilino

I was snooping around youtube last night and I saw that marlowedk uses a Korg px4d pandora. It seems he had to get a friend to rig up a special cable so that he could use headphones with it, though... or am I missing something?

I remember back in the 80s when a friend used a headphone amp for his guitar, they were pretty limited. Distortion, flange, tremolo - not much else. Now these things seem to do everything. What I would need would be something with a metronome and a tuner, if possible. Is that standard, now? This is very confusing to me. The possibility of playing along to an mp3 tune where the bass has been cancelled seems like science fiction to me - but that seems to be what these things do nowadays. I'm a bit overwhelmed. Will the Korg px4d work with with headphones? Or is it more meant to be a kind of effects pedal? If it won't work, will any of the above mentioned headphone amps be able to do the things that the Korg can do?

Thanks!

Yes the Korg has a tuner, metronome, even alot of different style beats put in it. You can record clips of yourself to play back and listen to. It has an auxillary out for MP3 players or CDs. I love mine and will never get rid of it. You do need a 1/4 adapter to put your headphones into the output.

What you see Marlow rigged up with is a way for him to record into the computer. He plugs up a headphone splitter in the output so one can go to his headphones (for latency) and the other to the computer. Also he uses a different smaller chord for plugging in the ipod to the aux of the Korg. You can buy those little cords at walmart for like 7 bucks. I use his setup and it works great for recording or making clips.

Ebelow · #17 12-07-2008, 08:51 AM

For me the the SAMSON S-MONITOR works out very well!

Very powerful, you can mix the audio input with your bass and has two headphone out, and the xlr balanced input/output just great, you can hear what you will hear on stage, if you using inear system, but you have to use your amp DI out or a direct box to plug in your bass. Nice balanced bass in your ear!
Check it out!

ihateusernames · #18 12-07-2008, 12:56 PM

all good suggestions here. i prefer the zoom b2 but those vox deals look intriguing. didn't know they came out with a bass specific model!

AJ Brown · #19 12-07-2008, 01:12 PM

+1 for the Cafe Walter Amp. What you hear is what you get, no colorization.

Dave Muscato · #20 12-07-2008, 01:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AJ Brown

+1 for the Cafe Walter Amp. What you hear is what you get, no colorization.

The same is true with the Dragonfly amps, and they are only ~$25 (or free, if you contribute to Talkbass!)... Needs no batteries, either. I'd take it a step further and say, what you play is what you hear: notes, sustain, string noise, sloppy technique, fretting out, and all. You'd be amazed at how "bad" you are, the first time you hear yourself through one. I'd compare practicing without one of these (for example, unplugged) to practicing without a metronome: Better than nothing, but you're certainly not getting the most out of your practice time and could be developing & even reinforcing bad habits & bad technique without even realizing it.

I'm not getting paid to say this; I simply think that every bassist/guitarist who's never tried one doesn't know what he's missing, and it's a LOT less than a Cafe Walter. The only things I don't like are that 1) since it's truly acoustic, it lacks a volume control (I wasn't kidding when I say what you play is what you hear) and 2) you can't use it to play along with an external source (such as an MP3 player) very easily (no input, as it's not an electronic device).

Like I said, it's perfect for practicing, especially technique and dynamic control. There are better devices out there for learning songs, or for doubling as a DI for recording

If you do session work and need to perform to an extremely high standard re: noise & precision, a Dragonfly is for you. This is what I use to practice scales, technique, sight-reading, etc.

If you need to learn songs by ear, either for session work, fill-in gigs, playing with a cover band, etc, a Tascam Bass Trainer is perfect: you can play along to CDs or MP3s, slow down tempos without changing pitch, change keys without changing tempo, loop parts, etc. It can EQ out recorded bass parts, karaoke-style, if you want to play along to a recording without hearings yours along with the recorded part. Has a tuner and a metronome built in, bass booster for hearing recorded parts better, and can also just function as a regular portable MP3/CD player (depending on the model). When I do fill-in gigs and need to learn several hours of original material on short notice, this is what I use. It has built-in effects, but they're not that great.

I have a Bass POD xt Live, which has great built-in effects, amp, and cab models, and can function as a direct-to-computer recording device. It does have a headphone jack, but I don't really use it for practicing, as much as for songwriting (it has lots of different, foot-switchable tones that make it useful for electric guitar, acoustic guitar, and bass, and it's frankly harder to write a rock song without a little tubey goodness in your tone). I mostly use it for recording in the studio and playing live.

What are you going to be using yours for, primarily?