Why choose? I think you should have an interface and a combo amp. I must say, after a few false starts with bass in the past and even after a year of getting back into it, it wasn't until I got my 250W amp that I appreciated my sound and truly enjoy playing.
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Interface adapter Vs Combo (for home practice)
- Thread starter Sa1kon
- Start date
A combo with a headphone output (with a switching jack that cuts out the speaker when the phones are plugged in) and an audio-in jack for backing tracks is what you ideally want. 30W is plenty for home practice or playing along with acoustic musicians, but to work with a drummer or electric guitars, you probably want something with 60 or 100W.
For me it's been interface+headphones for the longest time now. I can set the audio levels between the instrument and whatever i'm playing along to to be just right, I can hear details way better and accurate and I end up learning material way faster that way. Always having a tuner in front of me on the screen is also an advantage. Sure a lot of smaller amps have aux in but then you are dealing with another cable for your phone, and rewinding songs back and forth to nail a specific part is so much easier when you are just tapping arrow keys on your computer keyboard than a touch screen on your phone.
And since there is no high end roll-off like on a bass speaker, string noise is very articulate so you end up paying a lot more attention to your technique and muting.
And since there is no high end roll-off like on a bass speaker, string noise is very articulate so you end up paying a lot more attention to your technique and muting.
Same for me for home practice, but only because I've got a couple of interfaces and a couple of computers in addition to my stack and small combo. It's great when I'm alone but a lot less useful when working with others. If I only could plug my bass into one thing, it would be my EBS Drome combo.
Exactly my point in my previous post. Besides, if you don't practice on a rig you can possibly gig with, I dunno how you would figure out how to sound good live. It takes a long time to sort it out even then.
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Big combo with a jack wins for me, because I turn it up to 11 when nobody is home, or put the phones on when the wife is asleep.
- Apr 1, 2000
- 17,398
- 9,830
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Roscoe Guitars, DR Strings, Aguilar Amplification
I exclusively practice with a MacBook Pro now. I use a Tascam 2x2 and some Session Ace quad drivers. Makes me totally happy, and keeps those around me from going crazy, too.
How does that all work? I'm old lol... I live alone in my own house so I practice at gig levels. At a minimum. That may change at some point, so I may need to adapt.
- Apr 1, 2000
- 17,398
- 9,830
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Roscoe Guitars, DR Strings, Aguilar Amplification
MacBook handles all the audio minus bass parts. Bass into the interface is blended with audio out from the laptop, into my ears. Very simple setup, and very effective. (Works great for hotels on the road, too)
He didn't specify what interface he was using. Most computer audio interfaces these days can handle high-Z instrument inputs directly - a 1/4" input from the bass. They also have audio outputs, typically 1/4" also, and usually a dedicated headphone jack. So the signal path is bass to interface via 1/4" high-impedence audio, interface to computer via USB (or Thunderbolt/FireWire), signal processing/recording/mixing on the computer, then back out via USB audio out to the interface for conversion to 1/4" audio out and headphones. XLR doesn't *necessarily* come into play.
He said he uses the Tascam 2x2 interface. I checked it out and it only seemed to have XLR and USB inputs, but I dunno exactly what the setup is. Didn't see a 1/4" input. Thanks for the comment though. It was helpful.
Those XLR inputs are dual XLR & 1/4". You can plug either flavor of cable into it.
- Apr 1, 2000
- 17,398
- 9,830
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Roscoe Guitars, DR Strings, Aguilar Amplification
I agree with the above. If your plan is to do recordings, get a interface and DAW for your songs. But if it's just to practice, a good practice amp (low power) with headphone and AUX in would be the best for home practice. If you want to sound good practicing at home get a good practice amp that delivers good tone. I use the Warwick BC-20 for my practice and studio amp. Not a lot of loud power, but very good clean tone for recording, and enough for practicing.
