Ok...better late than never. Here's the review of the Cube Baby...and some clips for comparison.
Cube Baby Bass
First off..this thing is $38 and has no balanced out of any kind. But it's tiny. Here it is compared to the JDI used in the clip (which you will need if you want to go direct...but more on that later).
So let's get down to brass tacks. No, this isn't a piece of kit you can stake your career on. But what it is good for is practice. It has bluetooth so you can pair your phone to it and get STEREO music out the headphone jack as well as your bass. For hotel rooms or bus practice this would be ideal. It's also battery powered by an internal rechargeable battery, so you don't need any power. If you want to groove in the woods on your next camping trip, rock on.
How does it sound you ask? Well, much of tone is subjective and one man's sweet dulcet tone is another man's fingers on the chalkboard. I like what I like, and that may be different from what you like or what the FOH guy likes. I tried to set the Cube Baby up to get the sound I like. I failed. I got somewhat close, but you are limited by the EQ on the device. Remember folks...it's $38. The rechargeable battery and bluetooth radio are probably worth $38...so the rest is gravy.
In my opinion, the midrange just never sounded right. The cab sims weren't great. I even tried some OwnHammer IRs with it, and they sounded...meh. The software for it is...well...awful. And you have to hunt it down on a website that has a lit of Chinese writing on it. But folks...it's $38.
So what about the sound clips? I don't want to spoil it for you...but the Cube Bass can't stand up to the HX Stomp. DUH!
Here is the signal chain for my tried and true "Tin Man" demo. No cab sim on any of the clips. I just don't like cab sim, even on the HX Stomp.
Fender Am. Pro Jazz Bass --> JHS buffered splitter -->
Split 1: [--> HX Stomp (SVT amp, Becos Stella Comp (in FX loop), Regal DI, Walrus Audio Canvas)
Split 2: [--> Cube Bass --> Radial JDI
Presouns StudioLive AR8c mixer --> GarageBand --> Uncompressed WAV file
And the clips:
Cube Bass (Radial JDI)
HX Stomp
And what happens to the Cube Bass when you put a $600 tube DI behind it?
Cube Bass (Khan DI)
So the verdict is....this is not a preamp/DI in the same vein of the others I've tested here. It's a preamp that requires a DI. It's also mostly a practice rig or you could use it as a backup in a pinch...just toss it in your gig bag. The nice thing is, in "preset" mode, the knobs don't change anything unless you select "Live" mode, so no worry about bumping knobs.
It's a neat little rig for what it is. If it cost, say, $100....I'd say skip it. But for $38...buy one just to mess around with it. Give it to a friend as a gift. It's also great for new players just starting out to practice quietly (because we all sucked at some point, and some of us still do).
