PLS HELP - practising bass quietly

[Amy Smith]

Hey guys, desperately in need of some advice as I don't know much about this so please bear with me.

 

Long and short of it is, I live in a flat/apartment and like to practise at night so need a way of practising where I can hear an amplified sound in some headphones.

 

I have a small basic practise amp, sounds good when playing through the cab but I tried plugging headphones into the 6.35mm headphone hole on the amp and it sounds horrendous. (I don't have headphones with a 6.35mm jack so used an adapter with some normal everyday headphones. I have no idea if the problem is the adapter, the headphones being too basic, or the headphones input/system on the amp. Not keen to buy some expensive headphones and then find that it still sounds bad.)

 

I've been down a massive wormhole trying to figure out how I can use my current amp to practise with headphones, and have established that another method may be better. In the process I came across the mini headphone amps, 'amPlugs', from VOX/Blackstar and the like, which seem good as I wouldn't need to go through my regular amp. However I'm not keen on the fact that they're battery powered as I'd get through a fortune in batteries. No idea if a mains powered version of something like this exists.

 

I've read some things about using an audio interface to plug in both the bass and a pair of regular headphones. I have no idea what I'd be looking to buy though.

 

Basically, I don't have hundreds to spend and I'd ideally like a mains-powered solution, where I can use either normal headphones that I already own or a pair that don't cost too much. Does that solution exist? What method should I use and what category of product should I be looking to buy? 

 

Thanks so much.

Sincerely, a helpless noob

 

 

[Bassfinger]

Tascam GB10. Headphones. Lead. Batteries. Sorted.

[fretmeister]

If you have the budget the Boss Waza Air Bass is great.

It needs a smart phone and it's wireless. It's headphones with a wireless dongle.

Or if you have a smart phone then a cheap interface and a free download of Amplitube is a great option. Bass into interface, that into the phone. Headphones either plug into the phone or the interface depending on what make and model. Amplitube can import from a music library as well and change the speed and pitch of the thing you are playing along to. Amplitube Free comes with a few guitar amps and a nice Ampeg. More models can be bought for a few quid if needed.

Or an interface for your PC and any number of free or cheap amp sims.

 

 

Do you have a budget in mind?

[Maude]

Hi, and welcome to Basschat. 🙂

 

There's lots of ways to achieve a decent silent practice set up. 

Personally I use a cheap, old multi effect pedal (Line6 Pod). Runs on mains, bass and phone in, headphones out. Lots of effects and amp sims to play along with whatever you stream from your phone. 

 

It can be as cheap or expensive as you like. 

[songofthewind]

Plus one for the Boss headphones. Fantastic sound. My amp stays in the cupboard now.

[BassBunny]

If you practice amp sounds ok through the speaker, it sounds like your headphones are not up to it.

There's another post on the headphone subject and ones that come out well are Sennhieser HD206 @ £20. 

I'd be inclined to go this route first as the headphones are great and it might be worth trying this first as it's minimal outlay.

[Eric.C.Lapton]

You should look for a PJB HA-1 Bighead.

The latest model is the HA-2 and I’ve seen HA-1’s go for as little as £60 secondhand. 
The tone is really top notch, they  recharge from mains and last hours on the internal battery.

You can also hook your phone through them so you can play along with media. 

 

Edited December 2, 2022 by Eric.C.Lapton

[PaulThePlug]

And another shout for the Sennies HD206... I'd start there.

Vox amplugs and the like arn't all that and break, so don't bother and save that cash... Uf thats the sort of thing you are after the EHX Hradphone amp is basic but metal and bomb proof.

Or Look out for a Zoom B1on or Zoom B1Four...

 

Edited December 2, 2022 by PaulThePlug

[ead]

1 hour ago, Bassfinger said:

Tascam GB10. Headphones. Lead. Batteries. Sorted.

 

This.  I have the slightly earlier bass version and a (GB-10 as a spare).  Really easy and you can do cool stuff like slow playback down without affecting pitch.  They don't come up that often preloved which probably tells you what you need to know.

 

If you're anywhere near Preston happy to lend you the spare one to try out.

[Cuzzie]

If you are an Apple user - garageband, that’s free and  iRig is decent

 

Darkglass element

[ordep]

I got loads of good gear, but the one that gets the most use for learning songs/practicing is a zoom B1on/apple earphones combo. Amp sims are decent enough, got an ok drum machine, and looper if I want to go to that solo bass stuff. 
 

Apple wired earphones because I find it balanced enough for music, so I can approximate the bass tone that I want.

[paddy109]

👆before building a bass shed this is how I practiced and it kept the family happy. Cheap option if Apple user.

The family are far happier now I am in the shed though!,

[neepheid]

FWIW I use a Yamaha Sessioncake SC-02 as my headphone amp. Can take an aux in and has aux out for things like a tuner app on your phone etc.

[lemmywinks]

I use a small USB mixing desk, ideal for home practice. Takes aux in from a computer over the USB cable and also functions as an audio interface, also it's a small mixing desk (obviously!) so can do all the things a small mixing desk can do on top of that.

 

I use a Soundcraft Notepad 5 but you can pick the Behringer Xenys USB models up pretty cheaply used, like the price of a pack of strings cheap. A pair of KZ ZS10 in ears will set you back around £25 on top of that and are decent sounding bass IEMs.

[ezbass]

12 minutes ago, neepheid said:

FWIW I use a Yamaha Sessioncake SC-02 as my headphone amp. Can take an aux in and has aux out for things like a tuner app on your phone etc.

Another Sessioncake user here, I can recommend them.

[Skybone]

Zoom B1 Four?

[pbasspecial]

I use a Zoom B3N for home practice and also use it for live too. 

[paul_5]

iRig and my iPhone, and sometimes a Vox amplug with rechargeable batteries, although I mostly play unplugged.

 

Another vote for the excellent KZ ZS-10 in ears. They're available on amazon for less than £50. 

Edited December 2, 2022 by paul_5

[Saul Panzer]

I use 3 methods for my quiet practice:

 

1 - Regular Fender Rumble Bass amp with a pair of headphones using an adaptor for the earphones...works great.

 

2 - Vox Bass Amplug pocket amp with rechargeable batteries and a decent set of earphones, lets you move around and the batteries last a while.

 

3 - PC with a USB to jack adaptor that plugs the Bass into the PC as a microphone device, works great if you figure out what software to use on the PC side.

 

Key to all of them is a set of headphones that actually handle Bass frequencies, lots of earphones are just not good for Bass.

[Hellzero]

Ampeg SVT-300 + 810 turned all the way up.

 

You won't even hear the police helicopter launching missiles at your window.

[Velarian]

A couple of things come to mind. Firstly, what amp and headphones have you been using? When you say it sounds horrendous, why is that? Is it because it’s distorted, or perhaps not loud enough? It seems a bit odd that they don’t play nicely together but It could be an issue with the an impedance mismatch between the amp output and the headphones. Can you try borrowing some other headphones to see if that solves the issue? Alternatively, the jack plug adapter you’re using could be faulty, I’ve had a dodgy one before but a few quid could fix the problem if that’s the case. 

 

Secondly, you mention the Vox Amplug and worry that it’s battery powered. The batteries do actually last a reasonable time. However, the Amplug is a bit basic and limited in capability. They’re currently £38 on Amazon but for £58 you can get a Nu-X Mighty Plug which is like the Amplug on steroids. It’s rechargeable via USB and has built in effects and a good selection of drum loops. To get the most out of it it needs to be used with the accompanying free smartphone app which connects via Bluetooth to allow control all the settings and also stream backing tracks to play along to. Because the only cable is from the plug (in the bass) to the headphones, it allows you freedom to move around and not be tied to other devices on the floor. Good value IMHO.

 

As others have mentioned the Boss Waza Air is like the Rolls Royce of headphone systems but at around £350 a tad expensive. 

Edited December 2, 2022 by Velarian
Typo

[pineweasel]

I’ve used quite a few headphone systems over the years and my current favourite is the Nux Mighty Plug. Very convenient, good sounds, battery lasts for ages, and you can play along with any audio you fancy played from your phone over Bluetooth. 

[nekomatic]

If your amp sounds OK through its speaker then I can’t think of a good reason it shouldn’t work through headphones, unless the headphones are rubbish. Do they sound good for listening to music from another source?

 

It seems unlikely that your adapter is at fault, because there’s not much to it except some contacts, but it’s always possible. 

[kuetsum]

I use below equipment for mid night practice or on the road..depends on situation

 

 

 

-Boss Waza air (bt headphone)

-Back beat (big sound with vibration but heavy need ac transformer for charging)

Fender mustang micro ( so tiny and 10 times better then vox amplug which has enough power to push my iem)

 

You are welcome to run a trail If you are in central London 

 

[Boodang]

Use a small mixing desk. The Behringer xenyx 1202 is currently £50 at Gear 4 music.

Job done.