VOX Headphone amp...tried it?

totallyfrozen · #1 10-18-2010, 08:42 PM

Has anyone here tried one of these VOX headphone amps for bass?

Opinions?

totallyfrozen · #2 10-19-2010, 01:57 PM

No one, huh?
I figured someone would have given these a whirl already since they are substantially cheaper than a Tascam trainer.

kraigo · #3 10-19-2010, 02:27 PM

I've got one. It works. It's fine for practicing. Pretty bright but you can hear yourself. I haven't used it enough to say what the battery life is. It's nice that you can put an audio source through it and mix via the volume on the device and the headphone amp. I had an older AmPlug or whatever they called it. Same company and it sucked. I almost didn't buy the "Vox" because of it, but it sounds fine. Bear in mind it is for guitar, but it does what I need it to do, which is be portable and let me hear what I'm playing while not sounding too obnoxious.

KO

karter2000 · #4 10-19-2010, 02:35 PM

I have both the Bass and AC30 versions. Personally, I love them both as far as practice goes. The sound is "decent" but good enough for practice. I like the fact that I can quickly plug everything in, as opposed to dragging out an amp, etc, and the audio-in works great.

Battery life seems decent, but I also use rechargeables. The Bass version is great, but I like the grind I get from the AC30. Basically, I won't practice through anything else anymore!

hdracer · #5 10-19-2010, 02:39 PM

Biggest POS I ever spent money on. I ended up getting it for free because I called MF to complain about it and they refunded my money and didn't even want me to send it back. I would rather play my bass unplugged than use it. The sound is horrible.

G2K · #6 10-19-2010, 02:40 PM

Like previously mentioned, good for mobile practice and very portable. I do have a very good set of headphones thus the sound is decent. I have the bass version, not sure about the the other models.

totallyfrozen · #7 10-20-2010, 10:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by karter2000

I have both the Bass and AC30 versions...

So is there a tonal difference between the Bass and AC30 versions?
Can you actually hear a "bass like" (warmer) type tone on the Bass one? Or is it just a matter of the Bass is clean and the AC30 has a bit of OD dirt?
...or what?

karter2000 · #8 10-20-2010, 11:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by totallyfrozen

So is there a tonal difference between the Bass and AC30 versions?
Can you actually hear a "bass like" (warmer) type tone on the Bass one? Or is it just a matter of the Bass is clean and the AC30 has a bit of OD dirt?
...or what?

Yeah, there's a pretty noticeable difference. The Bass version is cleaner, up until you switch on the "boost/compressor" mode and turn the gain past 5 (with my basses anyway). The AC30 is brighter, plus it breaks up sooner. I actually prefer the breakup on the AC30 as opposed to the Bass. I've read that those who own the AC30 say it's more amp-like.

BassDeluxe · #9 10-20-2010, 03:12 PM

I got the bass version recently and I'm happy with it. It is a practice tool, and you can take your beloved bass where you want and practice/play. It's probably not super-hifi, but I like it, particularly with my studio headphones.

- as karter2000 said you can dial in some gain (and volume, and an FX switch for whatever reason) and get some distortion so you need to play a bit to have the right volume without distortion...

- it's a cheap piece of plastic, looks robust enough but, well, I wanted to feel like I bought a real "VOX Amp" for myself but... I need to convince myself a bit that I own something "special" each time I look at it.

- consider that there's a cheaper alternative, http://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_jackamp.htm so that might suffice for you.

- there's a 3,5mm input for your mp3 player, but how do you plug it in? It's a "female" 3,5mm jack, so you will have to bring your own cable.

So, it does the job and is a relative inexpensive piece of equipment, so why not.

AciDBatH666 · #10 10-20-2010, 03:29 PM

I have it and love it. I had my girlfriend order it last christmas because I'm so difficult to shop for. Currently I keep my 4X10 and head in a storage unit where we practice so I have nothing at home. We're working on thrash Metallica covers currently...
So I'll run a wire from the Headphone out jack of my computer speakers into the VOX, and jam along to that. Whole list of MP3s to jam out to. Just buy a male to male 1/8" cable and you can plug it into your computer, stereo, Ipod... I use my iphone on the road for it.

I can honestly say that if you've got some good quality headphones it'll sound great. Ones that can generate a really good/warm bass tone. Cheap little ear buds will just turn your low bass tones into a crappy buzzing sound. Also, if you've got good Eq/tone controls on your bass you can really tweak the sound to come thru really nice. I have an Ibanez BTB 5 string and I can cut/boost the bass, treble and mids.. And with the gain up about half way it sounds great. I used to think that I'd love the distortion/"FX" setting they have, but I find myself going more towards the normal tone to get a warmer more real sound. It's got great clarity to it.

Now thru my B.C. Rich Warbeast it needs a little more tweaking to get to sound how I like but it's not that difficult. Sounds good thru all my basses. It's great for what it's designed for. Battery life is really good. I tinkered with it pretty often a few times a week since I got it last christmas and I JUST replaced the batteries last month.
I live in an apartment complex too, so even if my gear was at home I couldn't really jam on it and not piss my neighbors off.

It's a good buy. If you're in the market for something like this, I'd recommend it.

totallyfrozen · #11 10-25-2011, 11:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BassDeluxe

... I need to convince myself a bit that I own something "special" each time I look at it...

That comment made me LOL!

Yes, I know I'm resurrecting an old thread. Sorry. I've been away from TB for awhile and didn't revisit this thread for quite some time.

Anyway, I'm actually quite surprised at the good user reviews I'm reading here about this little gizmo! Thanks for the info. I think I'm going to get my hands on one of these and give it a try.

landry.bass · #12 10-26-2011, 12:24 AM

I also give this little piece of equipment a thumbs up. I own the bass version. I don't use rechargeable batteries, and I find the battery life to be good.

I think it would be unreasonable of anyone to buy this and expect to get the tone of their dreams out of it. However, that being said, I think if you play with the settings, you can get a very decent tone without much trouble. I actually really like the tone I get out of it.

When I'm playing my SR5 HH with a pick, I bring the gain up to about 7, and the master to 6 and the tone up to about 7. I like the sound I get out of those settings. It's not perfect, but it's great when my girlfriend is asleep in the other room, and I need to play some loud dirty bass.

I think this is one of the better (and cheaper) investments I've made in bass gear. So damn convenient, and lots of fun.