playing with headphones?

birdxofxprey · #1 04-09-2007, 08:55 PM

since i do a fair amount of playing at night while everyone else is asleep, i have to be able to play though headphones and with cds.

i've been accomplishing this by plugging my stereo headphone output into the cd input on the practice amp, shutting off the stereo speakers, and plugging the headphones into the practice amp.

works ok, i can hear the music and i can hear my bass. but, the quality of the sound sucks.

supposing i'm using the microwave method, what's the gourmet method for doing this? (well, maybe the budget gourmet, since i can't really afford to buy a mixing board right now...)

PilbaraBass · #2 04-09-2007, 09:07 PM

BT-1 bass trainer may work better...but not necessarily

...It's important to get a decent set of headphones first...

Swift713 · #3 04-09-2007, 09:11 PM

Good phones are essential.

Johnny Crab · #4 04-09-2007, 09:17 PM

This works REAL good for me everyday(at work at lunch and at home when I've got to "be quiet" or figure stuff out with close listening). The POD has now been replaced with a POD XT LIVE but the idea's the same.

PC w/player-> POD + Bass-> POD -->phones

Pic:

Good, comfortable headphones make a real difference.
The ones I have are very old Koss "open" type that have excellent bass response and don't distort until it's "almost too loud". Even with "bass CD's" trying new phones in stores, I haven't been able to find any like this so they've been refoamed(ear pieces) twice already. Using a PC is also a big help for either cutting the bass out(to see how your stuff fills) OR boosting it(to figure things out very closely).

Figjam · #5 04-09-2007, 09:19 PM

cafe walter

jcm2012 · #6 04-09-2007, 11:40 PM

+1 on getting some good headphones, I have a pair of Sony MDR-7506 pro studio monitor headphones, best $100 ever spent.
I'll say that when I first got them I went nuts going through all my cd's listening to stuff on them, You'll definitely hear everything, good or bad.
I use a Bass Pod XT and a cheap Behringer 5 input mixer. I run the pod and the pc into the mixer and plug my phones into the mixer, it's a perfect setup for my tiny apt.

It's great for playing along to cd's etc. on the pc, but what I usually do is search out cool stuff on youtube and play along. The mixer was like 35 bucks and seems to work fine, I love the pod although I don't use many of the effects, I have a few amp settings I like and tend to stick with them.

steve21 · #7 04-09-2007, 11:52 PM

Here's what I've recently started doing (I record most of the time now)

My bass goes into my effects, and then into my amp. The amp is DQ'd however I like, but the master volume is on 0. Then, from my amp's Direct Out I go out using an XLR cable (with a 1/4 regular instrument cable on the other end) going into an M-Audio Fast Track. The Fast Track I can mix however I want in terms of my bass vs. what's playing on the computer.

Sounds really good, amazing for recording, and captures the amp's tone pretty well.

I'm happy with it.

Gene Leone · #8 04-10-2007, 01:22 AM

Good headphones are the way to go. Get the type that closes around the ear.

I use mostly the Sony MDR ones too. Sometimes Sennheiser but both work great for bass.

soniq · #9 04-10-2007, 01:50 AM

I use the Pandora PX4D hooked up to an iPod with Sennheiser HD-280s. Works great and no complaints from the family.

Shoewreck · #10 04-10-2007, 02:02 AM

1212M-equipped PC, winamp, headamp, AKG K501. I have active onboard electronics, though, so I plug in straight. You may need a preamp between bass and PC.

PocketGroove82 · #11 04-10-2007, 02:32 AM

I have my drum machine DR-880 plugged into my eden, and I just use the headphone out with the speaker off. I think playing through headphones gives me a very different perspective on my sound.

Jim Carr · #12 04-10-2007, 04:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by soniq

I use the Pandora PX4D hooked up to an iPod with Sennheiser HD-280s. Works great and no complaints from the family.

+1
Pandora!!!

AJ Brown · #13 04-10-2007, 05:17 AM

+1 to Sony MDR-7506 + Cafe Walter Headphone Amp + any PC with tunes on it.

Gintaras · #14 04-10-2007, 06:01 AM

Korg PX3B works great for me but quality headphones is always a must. don't buy cheap headphones!!! Thou I use it with headphones, when I go out of town I use my IPOD ear buds (not the ones that came with them but a set of Sennheisers!!!!)

Also there is a PX3B in the classifieds

Korg Pandora PX3B

HMZ · #15 04-10-2007, 06:08 AM

The Korg PX4B works great I use it all the time. You and loop parts of a song ,change pitch,it has Rhythm Patterns, effects.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Korg-PX4B-Pandor...QQcmdZViewItem

RobertUI · #16 04-10-2007, 06:14 AM

like many here, i've gotten really good success with a modelling processor (Korg Ampworks in my case) into the computer. it's no substitute for a rig by any stretch, but it really does make for a nice "quiet" studio.

the other cool thing about running into a computer is that you can record clips for practicing purposes. hearing what you've played REALLY helps you learn what you're doing wrong and right. for recording check out audacity (its free)

Peace

manicbassman · #17 04-10-2007, 06:19 AM

I run the "headphone out" of my Zoom B2.1U into my computer mic input and run the "headphone out" of the computer to a set of wireless headphones... that way, I can listen to music and play along at the same time... and only have one lead to get tangled up in...

I don't use the USB of the Zoom as I get latency problems and using the mic input means I can directly monitor the mic input of the soundcard with zero latency... plus I really haven't sussed out how to use the USB interface with JACK in Linux yet... KMix is plenty for simple mixing of Mic and synth audio

(I'm waiting for a kernel with real time support in Ubuntu which should reduce latency and xruns to a neglible amount. Sorry if I've lost you all there, but Linux recording support is still a little bit of a black art...)

Barkless Dog · #18 04-10-2007, 06:21 AM

I do all my music through headphones. I do not use an amp ever.

My biggest worry is what it is doing or does to my hearing. It can't help

BadB · #19 04-10-2007, 06:24 AM

PX4B here, too. Need to have it repaired, though. Bass cancelling function really helps.

fretlessrock · #20 04-10-2007, 07:58 AM

Gourmet: Raven PHA-1 (option-heavy, excellent sound)
Nouvelle-Cuisine: Cafe Walter (minimalist, excellent sound)
Asian-Fusion: Korg Pandora (option laden, ok sound, very compact)
Buffet: Tascam CD-BT1 (all in one solution, ehhh sound, battery hog)
Alternative Cuisine: Behringer mixer (multitasker)

Ok that was getting silly....

Lots of good options out there. I'm a bit of a headphone amp junkie so I acually own a Walter, a PHA-1, and a PX4D, along with the option of using my DAW setup for headphone practice. I like the sound of the Walter the best, the features/purity of the PHA-1, and the compact form of the Korg. Not surprisingly I use the Korg a lot because it is similar in size to the iPod that I use for the audio source, it has built in drum beats/metronome, built in effects, and I can clip it on the strap if I'm not using the ipod... allowing me to walk around the house practicing if I am so inclined. There are some weird compression artifacts on a lot of the Korg effect patches (and the PX4D has a lot of heavy-handed guitar patches) but you could always use it in bypass if you just want to hear your bass with no effects. Also, some of the basic EQ patches are great starting points for a clean tone with no compressor pumping/hiss.

Cans: I really like the Grado SR-60's beause they remind me the most of listening to speakers, they don't block out all outside sounds so I can hear the phone/dog/wife/door..., and they sound good at lower levels. All of that means to me that they image the stereo field well and they are easy on my ears. I also use a little ChuMoy-type headphone amp to drive my AKG240DF's when I want to have better sound or better isolation.