Inline balance (R/L) control for headphone line

[gtaus]

I have some backing tracks that have bass on the right channel, and everything else on the left channel. My mp3 player only has volume control, not balance R/L adjustment. I would like to jack my headphone output into my practice amp and adjust the level on the R/L channel to mix in the amount of bass I want, or don't want, while I practice. Does anyone know of a simple inline balance control device that I can hook up with my mp3 player and adjust my R/L balance? I know there are inline volume control devices for headphones that cost less than $10.00, but I can't find any such device to control the R/L balance of the output.

I already have small mixers that I can use, but I'm trying to reduce the amount of gear needed. An inline R/L balance control on the headphone line would be the ticket - if it exists. Thanks in advance for any help.

[seekir]

I was looking for the same thing and found this. Don't have one, and can't offer an opinion. It gets reasonably good reviews with complaints about the sliders moving too freely and excessive cord length: Amazon.com: Sennheiser HZR-62 Stereo Volume Control: Electronics

[Electricblue]

You need a blend pot.

[gtaus]

Originally Posted by seekir

I was looking for the same thing and found this. Don't have one, and can't offer an opinion. It gets reasonably good reviews with complaints about the sliders moving too freely and excessive cord length: Amazon.com: Sennheiser HZR-62 Stereo Volume Control: Electronics

Thanks for the link. Added the item to my wish list tonight. Looks like it is what I had in mind. Thanks again.

[gtaus]

Originally Posted by Electricblue

You need a blend pot.

I had not thought about a blend pot. I found 5 of them listed on Amazon.com Amazon.com: blend pot: Musical Instruments. They come in 25K, 250K and 500K. I don't really understand how the different K rating would effect the signal. It looks easy enough to wire up. What would you suggest would work best for my application?

Your suggestion is interesting because I am thinking that I could probably permanently mount a blend pot to the practice amp and wire it into the aux input lines, or have a short cord to jack into the aux input if I don't have easy access to the aux input wiring. Either way, it would be nice to have balance control over the aux input, and like I said, my mp3 player/guitar trainers do not have balance control, only volume control.

[Electricblue]

Probably need a 500k. It will let the best of your original signal through. Better still, 1000k.

[gtaus]

OK, so higher K value on the blend pot is better. Will check out what's available and how to wire it up. Also, depending on how much the parts cost and the time involved, I'll have to compare it to the other suggestion of the inline dual volume control for $28. That's a bit pricey, but I know that some of my previous DIY projects ended up costing more than an off the shelf solution. Either way, I appreciate the suggestions.

Oh yeah, one other solution I thought of today was just to make 3 versions of the song myself. One version just bass, one version 50/50 bass/backing track, and the the last version just backing track with no bass. Doesn't give me the in-between options that the blend pot or the dual volume inline solutions, but it would work better than nothing.

Also, and I don't know why I did not think of this before, I could just use my laptop instead of my guitar trainer/mp3 player and use the R/L balance control in the software. I have Transcribe, Amazing Slow Downer, etc... and I could just use the Windows volume and balance control panel with those programs and my backing tracks. It's not a very portable solution, compared to the inline cord option or blend pot, but using the laptop adds other features (such as video).

Again, thanks for the suggestions.