Best way to practice < 100$?

[RicoTheBassMan]

I use the iRig HD. I record our rehearsals on my phone so I can play along and improve my bass parts. I can also play along with Spotify, etc. It helps improve my fretless intonation. [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[MostlyBass]

 

[drummer5359]

I picked up an Ampeg SCR-DI for exactly this purpose and I love it. The tone approximates my Ampeg amps that are in my music room well enough, is easy to use and seems well made.

New they run $200, I stumbled upon a used one with the box and power supply for $130. It was well worth it.

 

[ThePresident777]

Behringer Xenyx 1202FX

Behringer Xenyx 1202FX
8-ch Mixer with Four Xenyx Mic Preamps, Four Stereo Channels, 3-band EQ, 100 Effects Presets, and 1 FX/Aux Send Per Channel

$99.99

 

[MNAirHead]

amplug or small mixer.

 

[knumbskull]

Line6's POD / Toneport interfaces are great, you get amp and pedal sims, and recording software bundled too.

The GX should be in your budget range: Line 6 POD Studio GX USB Recording Interface.

 

[Opdelibears]

+1 to the Vox Amplug. I have one, and it has pretty decent audio quality. It has 2 gain settings, 3 different drum tracks for practice, an AUX in, and fits in your pocket.


EDIT: It has 9 drum tracks. Thanks for the clarification.

 

[odarellmc]

Zoom B1on - $50 bucks

headphone out
Aux in for mp3 practice
it has tuner
metronome
drum machine
amp emulation
FX for some fun

Get this and you'll be good, I have it and love it

 

[Gospel Bass Player]

I cast my vote for Korg Pandora PX4D. It works great for guitar and bass.

 

[NKBassman]

Maybe a little over your budget, but keep an eye on the Effects classifieds for preamp pedals with headphone amps.... I use a 3Leaf Enabler with headphones for home practice. I also bring it to gigs as a security blanket/"just in case"/"all else fails" DI.

Ampeg SCR-DI
EBS Microbass II
3Leaf Enabler

Edit: For $50 that Zoom looks like it'd be a good solution.

 

[Remyd]

headphone out
Aux in for mp3 practice
it has tuner
metronome
drum machine
amp emulation
FX for some fun

Another vote for the good people at Zoom! I use mine as a preamp for DB also. Best $50 bass accessory ever!

 

[rtslinger]

So I've been meaning to get something that produces sound for practice at home without disturbing the neighbours.

Now the problem isn't finding what sounds the best, but rather, what type of device should I use?

So far the contenders have been:
Headphone amp - Intuitive choice, but battery driven, falls apart in six months, half can't even do aux in
Mixer - Can't do aux in. No EQ.
Cheap combo - Works I suppose, although bulk is a factor
Pre-amp - And just pray it sounds anywhere decent in my headphones
Multieffect pedal - Would be ideal, but I worry that the output will be that of a drained childrens' keyboard.
Run it through the PC - Would be nice, worried about input delay.

There's probably a few more I'm missing.
Like if someone said "Go for a mixer" I could at least objectively compare them and find out how far I have to reach to not get craptacular sound. But right now the options are so many that it's downright overwhelming


Any input would be appreciated.

AMP PLUG

 

[Ethan117]

Vox bass headphones are crazy good - separate gain/volume, aux in, only $70, great battery life...

Amazon.com: vox bass headphones

 

[audreycashin]

Box bass headphones are crazy good - separate gain/volume, aux in, only $70, great battery life...

Amazon.com: vox bass headphones

these get my vote also...

 

[TrevorOfDoom]

+1 to the Vox Amplug. I have one, and it has pretty decent audio quality. It has 2 gain settings, 3 different drum tracks for practice, an AUX in, and fits in your pocket.

It actually has 3 gain stages and 9 drum tracks.
Sounds great.

I used to use a Invalid Link Removed because it didn't matter much to me what I sounded like when learning tunes or running scales, only that I could hear myself. I know what my bass and amp sound like, I don't have to worry about sounding like that when just putzing and practicing.
However, I vastly prefer the Vox Amplug because of the 3 gain stages, 9 drum tracks (one of which is just a straight metronome), Aux in, and I can use whatever headphones I want (I prefer my IEMs).
Plus the wife loves it at 11pm when she's trying to sleep.

 

[Big Hoss]

So I've been meaning to get something that produces sound for practice at home without disturbing the neighbours.

Now the problem isn't finding what sounds the best, but rather, what type of device should I use?

So far the contenders have been:
Headphone amp - Intuitive choice, but battery driven, falls apart in six months, half can't even do aux in+

I have had my Vox Amplug 2 Bass for about a year now I am guessing, I use it several times a week. Yes it is battery driven, no it doesn't fall apart in six months unless you abuse the living crud out of it. Mine has taken a worse beating than my cell phone and it keeps chugging along. Yes I can do aux in, but it has to be 3.5mm input. I keep mine in my gig bag for practice during lunches at work. Works great.

Mixer - Can't do aux in. No EQ.

What kind of mixer are you looking at?! Even my Behringer Xenyx 502 has EQ, and can do a couple of aux ins. Try again...

Cheap combo -

Works I suppose, although bulk is a factor

Not a terrible idea, but not a great idea. I used to have a 15 watt Crate Bass combo for practice, but honestly, I hated it.

Pre-amp -

And just pray it sounds anywhere decent in my headphones

Most likely a bad idea due to impedance mismatch. I am no expert in this though, I would check to be sure...

Multieffect pedal -

Would be ideal, but I worry that the output will be that of a drained childrens' keyboard.

Depends on the pedal. I have used the output from my Zoom B3 for practice while my wife is on the phone with her sisters. Sounds good, but I prefer going through the B3, into the amp, and running headphone out from my amp... In your price range though, I don't think you will find anything acceptable unless somebody is dumping off a B3 or similar at way below market value. IF you can find a Zoom B3 in good shape for the money you are wanting to spend though, I would snatch it up and make it your first choice!

Run it through the PC - Would be nice, worried about input delay.

Tried this one too. Too clunky for my tastes.

Out of all the options, IF you have an amp, or larger combo amp already that has a headphones output, I would simply run headphones out of your amp. It should shut off the external speaker and just jam. Lacking that, in your budget, if you do not need it to be mobile, I find the best sound, is going to come from a small, but not too small mixer.

Again, given your budget, looking new, you can get into a Behringer XENYX Q1202USB mixer. I know not a ton of love for Behringer here, but they work. I have several Behringer mixers, a 502, a 1202FX, and a X2442USB. The Q1202USB is the same basic mixer as my 1202FX, minus the built in FX which are more or less useless to me anyway, good options for inputs, usable EQ, and big enough you can use it for a small band as long as you aren't trying to run everything through it and the PA. Plus this gives you built in USB audio interface.

Second best is the headphone amp. It works, I am happy enough with it, but it does leave me feeling a bit less than enthusiastic about the sound. I get close enough to know I am playing what I want to, but not close enough I would want anyone else to hear what I am playing...

 

[Aaron Mc]

I have the previous version of this mixer:
Alesis MultiMix 4 USB FX

When you plug the USB into your computer it takes over as sound card. I have used it with Windows 7, 8, and 10 and never needed to manually install any drivers. I can't speak to the effects as the older version did not have any.

 

[joenoone]

If you like the warmth of tubes, there's the "Little Bear Headphone AMP" on Ebay.

 

[DavC]

VOX ... Amphones ...

seems safer than the little AmPlug thingy ... i have one of those , ... and i see how it would break if used a lot !

pls .. find your own link

 

[Real Soon]

You really can't go wrong with a small practice amp. Under $100, finding, say, a 15-W 1x8" one with a headphone jack for silent practice, RCA inputs (plug in a playback device or metronome), & basic EQ will not be a problem. And if someone brings an acoustic guitar over to jam, it's got the perfect output level to match volumes comfortably.