Nux Melvin Lee Davis Preamp vs laney digbeth DB-PRE vs palmer pocket amp bass

[soulstar89]

Hey Peeps. 
 

I am looking to get a practice amp/pedal for while I travel about and when I am not home. 
 

 I have whittled down to the three listed in title. 
 

I read the thread on the nux preamp, and laney digbeth here. 
 

I wondered if anyone has had all or more than one of the above. If so how do they stack up against each other. 
 

note I will be using it with headphones and using the AUX in to practice atm. 

Edited November 6, 2023 by soulstar89

[Supernaut]

I think the Digbeth has had nothing but universal praise on here and competes with preamps double the price. 
 

I have an MXR M-80 but always wish it had headphones out...

[miles'tone]

https://blackstaramps.com/fly-bass/

 

I have no experience with the ones you mentioned but I love my Fly3 for doing the same job. Plus I can play at volume when circumstances allow.

Fits in a gigbag and only 60-odd quid too!

Edited November 7, 2023 by miles'tone

[AxelF]

For this job I'd go for the Nux Mighty Plug - connects to phone via Bluetooth to play along with songs and has an amp/cab sim app too. Tiny, battery powered, has a built in tuner. It's perfect for travelling and playing with headphones at home.

[Mcgiver69]

If the Mighty Plug is too expensive for you then I would go for the M-Vave Bass. £38 and packs a ton of features (Including Bluetooth playback for  practicing).

Edited November 7, 2023 by Mcgiver69

[Bassmidget209]

I have no experience of any of these other than the digbeth. It is a great preamp but the headphone out has always struck me as an afterthought. Quite quiet and no way to adjust the volume separately. Always sounded a bit thin to me but that may have been the headphones I was using. 

 

Everything else about it is great though, if you just need to be able to hear yourself while having a powerful gigging platform it can work.

[soulstar89]

On 07/11/2023 at 09:09, Supernaut said:

 

 

appreciate peoples input 

[soulstar89]

14 hours ago, Bassmidget209 said:

I have no experience of any of these other than the digbeth. It is a great preamp but the headphone out has always struck me as an afterthought. Quite quiet and no way to adjust the volume separately. Always sounded a bit thin to me but that may have been the headphones I was using. 

 

Everything else about it is great though, if you just need to be able to hear yourself while having a powerful gigging platform it can work.

 Oh that’s interesting. I had just decided on the digbeth as I found it at the best price. 
 

In regards of it sounding thin and quiet. When you raise the volume of the doesn’t it sort the quietness?

 

Does it sound much quieter than you plugging headphones into an amp head which has a headphone port? 

[Bassmidget209]

Yes basically. I've not done it in a a while, basically when I first got it. I was hoping this would be a great silent practicing tool that was compact. However it did not create an enjoyable practice experience. If I ever have to do this I set up my amp (ampeg pf350) alongside the pedal board and plug my headphones into the amp. 

Genuinely it's a great pedal but I would think of it as a DI/preamp/eq/drive pedal that happens to have a headphone out rather than a practice headphone amp. But hey for the price they had to get something wrong I suppose lol 

[MartinB]

16 hours ago, Bassmidget209 said:

I have no experience of any of these other than the digbeth. It is a great preamp but the headphone out has always struck me as an afterthought. Quite quiet and no way to adjust the volume separately. Always sounded a bit thin to me but that may have been the headphones I was using.

The headphone out on mine sounds the same as the line out/DI out. I haven't come across any volume problems, but what's loud enough is a bit subjective. Are you using high-impedance headphones?
I can see how it would be a pain to have to rebalance the channel levels when using the "Mix" mode just to make the headphones louder/quieter.

[Bassmidget209]

I'm gonna go with 'no' haha. Don't have a decent set of headphones in the house sadly, that may have been part of the problem, however as I said through the amp was ok. I hardly ever do this though. If I'm practicing I play acoustically with no effects and no amps. I have a small house and two kids, as well as two house rabbits. I don't even have a flat surface to call my own so setting up a practice rig is messy, uncomfortable and rarely worth it to me. 

 

I may not be the most useful person to have in this conversation but thought I would contribute with my own experience.

[soulstar89]

1 hour ago, Bassmidget209 said:

I'm gonna go with 'no' haha. Don't have a decent set of headphones in the house sadly, that may have been part of the problem, however as I said through the amp was ok. I hardly ever do this though. If I'm practicing I play acoustically with no effects and no amps. I have a small house and two kids, as well as two house rabbits. I don't even have a flat surface to call my own so setting up a practice rig is messy, uncomfortable and rarely worth it to me. 

 

I may not be the most useful person to have in this conversation but thought I would contribute with my own experience.

 
You have been helpful. Let’s find out what martinb headphones was and impedence and then we have learnt something 😁

Edited November 8, 2023 by soulstar89

[soulstar89]

1 hour ago, MartinB said:

The headphone out on mine sounds the same as the line out/DI out. I haven't come across any volume problems, but what's loud enough is a bit subjective. Are you using high-impedance headphones?
I can see how it would be a pain to have to rebalance the channel levels when using the "Mix" mode just to make the headphones louder/quieter.

Hey, what was the headphones you used? Also the impedence? 
 

(noob question alert) How’s impedence affect the sound we hear? 

[MartinB]

AKG Y20 (cheapo in-ears), which are 16 Ohms, and Audio Technica ATH-M50 (entry-level closed-back studio headphones) at 38 Ohms.
Apparently anything > 100 Ohms is considered high impedance, and may lack volume and dynamics when used with devices that can't supply enough voltage - which is why I wanted to check. This science is a bit beyond me though, so I may just be muddying the waters 😆