BabyBlueSound

17 minutes ago, Velarian said:

The Vox headphone amp has three output level settings. When you press and hold the power button to turn it on, it will return to the previously used level. Pressing the button again will cycle through each level and the LED will change colour, red for the lowest output level, amber for the middle setting and green for the highest output. This may be why you’re not getting enough volume? You’re right that it’s quite noisy, I just roll of the tone as I don’t mind the reduced top end. 
 

Another headphone amp I came across recently is the NUX MP2 Mighty Plug which, from what I can gather is a much better product. I’ve not tried it I think other BCers have and might be able to share their experience. 

Wow I did not know this output level setting thing, thanks! However it was already on green, so yeah, still not loud enough  . And it's not like I want to bust my eardrums, but even with good headphones I can hear external stuff over it, it's just not enough. My pickups are as high as they can be without making contact with the strings, but I'm planning to install a EMG Geezer Butler PJ set shortly, so maybe that will solve it, and that should still be in my return window for the Vox.

Unfortunately the hiss is real and unrelated to pickups, it's happening even when there's nothing plugged in. It's just there.

The EHX I will look into if possible to get in the UK on a reasonable price  

1 minute ago, NancyJohnson said:

...

This is getting a bit off-topic here methinks, and you're making arguments against points I have never made  Don't get me wrong, I am not blindly against Amazon, I use Prime too, I know how great it can be, etc. All I am saying is, whenever I am presented with an option to give my monies to a huge global company that worth trillions, or the local biz around here and the price difference is like £5 or <5%, I try to make a conscious choice.

That's just my approach. Especially after talking to a friend who had a nice little online retail biz but now has to sell solely through Amazon to be competitive and is making a lot less money with the same amount of work as Amazon is taking it's cut and you have to compete with the cheap priced chinese stuff too, whatever you're making.

Yeah, what Jeff does with his money is his thing (though I always find it weird that people who have the most help the world oh so little which DOES weigh in to my decision), but what I do with my own little money is my thing, and if I have the option to give my money to literally anybody else, I will do it, as Jeff will be fine without me.  

Again don't get me wrong, I am no saint, I am just about to unpack a few Prime boxes here... which just underlines that even if you're trying to make a conscious choice, sometimes you just can't avoid the convenience and price. But I do believe I have to counterbalance the Amazon monopoly whenever I can, as no matter what they're trying to make me believe, I actually DON'T need EVERYTHING the next day  . And if I do... well Amazon is not going anywhere anyway, I will always have that option.

2 hours ago, NancyJohnson said:

 

As a society that have access to so many retail outlets, it still surprises me that people maintain this stance and would happily pay 20% extra for something simply because they don't like to use the cheaper retailer.  If Strings Direct went out of business today, nothing would change for the end customer, there wouldn't be any dip in demand and the manufacturers would just push more through Amazon (and Andertons and Thomann and and and..).

 

If we continue this train of thought, this ends when all small retailers are out of business, only Amazon remains, and then they can decide the price (which they pretty much already do). I'm sure Jeff needs another space rocket to be able to continue the spacefaring epeen-comparison game with his ultrabillionaire buddies, but I still try to support smaller retailers whenever I can, when the price difference is 5-10% or so. But the 20% extra plus shipping is a little bit out there, my pockets aren't infinite...  

2 hours ago, Chownybass said:

 

There are some improvements in the standard model that make up that price too. Chambering in the body to get the weight down some more. Improvement in quality of parts. A second battery compartment. Improved bridge positioning. Veneer on the headstock. etc.

 

Well, that sounds cool, glad to hear!

Are you planning to move the top strap button by any chance? It looks a bit weird behind/under the horn where it currently is, and a lot of review videos mentioned this too that it does not feel particularly comfortable this way, having to get the strap behind the horn.

So I've been looking for a micro amp just to be able to practice in another room without having to carry my small amp around, and so far I am not amused with the options available.

I tried the Sonicake "US Madness" microamp, designed for bass. Not great. The sound has no body at all, sounds like I'm listening through a tin can, and I could hear pops and weird noises too. Does not worth the £25.

So I thought maybe I need a slightly more expensive quality brand, and tried the Vox one (amPlug2 AP2-BS Bass Guitar Headphone Amplifier). The sound quality is noticeably better, BUT the volume levels are not really satisfactory on my passive bass, and there's a LOT of pretty audible hiss going on that increases or decreases with the Tone dial. Not just your average everyday electric noise, this is a separate hiss (I can hear the regular electric noise as well, not that loudly, so that's normal), and SERIOUSLY loud.

All in all I can roll with the Vox, but I am wondering if there's any better options for such a simple goal: to be able to practice with headphones WHILE not breaking the bank.

----------------------------------------

EDIT: I got the NUX in the end, see my review below:

So I tried the following stuff:

VOX - https://smile.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00NAUKJTY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s01?ie=UTF8&th=1

Almost a solid choice, BUT. It's not nearly loud enough (at least for some passive basses I guess), and there is a terribly, terribly loud HISS. The hiss is not coming from the bass, because the microamp does it even when it's not plugged in to a bass. Sound quality is pretty decent, your bass sounds like a bass... a lot of compromises here.

Sonicake bass - https://smile.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B079FGN89H/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Ugh, sounds like rattling a plastic can inside a tin can. Very artificial, dull sound, and the deeps even end up being distorted. Would not give a penny for this sound.

Valeton RH-100 Rushead Max - https://smile.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07W3K92ZM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Like the Sonicake, terrible plastic-y sound without a real body or any deeps. Sounds like a toy.

EHX Headphone Amp - https://smile.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B003UIBQEI/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Now this one was a quality build, the volume was great, and there was enough bass too. But it does not have an AUX-IN for practicing, and compared to the Vox, it has basically no treble at all. If you're in the game for a very deep sound, this can be a pretty good choice. But I like my zing, so this was a no.

NUX MP2 Might Plug - https://smile.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B084JB519R/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

My choice! Sound quality is not exactly as great as the Vox or the EHX, but almost! And there is no hiss, there is enough volume, and there is enough treble. It actually has bluetooth aux-in which makes practicing very comfortable, it's got drum machines, and a lot of different amp simulators and effects. These were not really a factor for me as I rarely use any effects, and these sometimes (with some settings) sound a bit toy-like once again, but there are enough options to find a sound that works for your taste.

Hope I helped some of you.  

3 hours ago, Chownybass said:

Looking at the costs SWB-1 will go from £530 to £660 .

Oh god, I've been eyeballing the SWB-1 for a while now and that's quite a bit of a jump in price   But still happy to support moving production to the UK, good for you!

Wow glad I found this topic! Got myself a short scale Ibanez Talman TMB30 recently, which I love but it's definitely not without issues stemming from being a fairly cheap bass (£150-ish). I will do a proper writeup/review soon.

I try to avoid ordering on Amazon when anything is available anywhere else, but stringsdirect charging £59 for a short scale tapewound D'addario... No thanks, same thing is £48 on Amazon.

Your options are much more limited if you're using a short scale  

On 26/10/2021 at 09:23, Aalin said:

I also use tapewounds strings and as I read that products used on metal strings can damage them, I went  to classical nylon guitar site and read that they take the strings apart and wash them with soap.

I don't want to take my strings apart and didn't see how I could use soap on my bass, but I found a rather soft product that washes and greases the strings and the fingerboard a little. again, it's pretty soft. Purchased from Thomann. Not completely sure of the result, it works but it remains soft.

The one I use is this one

https://www.thomann.de/fr/lapella_no.34_single_cleaning_wipe.htm

There is also this one witch I don't know

https://www.thomann.de/fr/lapella_no.31_cleaning_wipes_set.htm

Thanks, might check this out too, for now I went with the Ebay fingerboard cleaner linked above.

I'm sure we should not wash the strings with soap 😁 Nylon guitar strings have no metal core on the inside, but tapewounds do.

thanks Everyone, will look into all these!

Hey fellow tape fans!

I just got my very first set of D'addario black tapewounds and while it's very different from the rounds I used for years, I am really starting to like them and get attached to them.

However, I got seriously sweaty hands, it's always been an issue. Even after 5-10 minutes of playing, I can already see the slightly wet sweat marks on my fretboard accumulating (even when playing in gloves!!!). So when I was using the rounds, I always, literally always wiped the strings and the fretboard off with a GHS fastfret cleaner after playing.

I know the tapes do not need to be cleaned as there's no tiny gaps like on the rounds where the mess could build up, and the GHS page specifically says: "we would not recommend using FastFret on coated strings".

But I still want to keep my fretboard clean of the sweat residue and obviously I can't take the strings off every time after the daily practice session just to apply the fastfret.

Should I just try to dry-wipe the frets with a microfibre cloth under the strings? Is there a better way?

Thanks!

By the way there seems to be a serious shortage of these short scale Ibanez basses at least in the UK (unless you want the boring black coloured one), it took me quite some effort to get one (and then I ended up with two  ). Some shops are promising stock availability anywhere between November and FEBRUARY 2022. So that's why I decided not to send it back to Germany (and the costs too of course) but rather try to sell it here, hoping someone else is longing for a nice short scale practice bass whom I can help  

Ibanez TMB30 SHORT SCALE bass for sale! Brand new. All I have done is I have opened the box, inspected it and played around with it for a few minutes only. Still got the foil on the pickguard and the pickups (so those are not scratches on the pickguard).

Has a small weird chip on the fretboard AFTER the last fret (see photos), so it's a minor cosmetic issue (played this same TMB30 bass at a friend, that had small inconsistencies in the build too, seems "standard" for this price range).

Happy to answer any and all questions, I can take some closeup photos about specific parts if you want me to, etc.

The £150 includes UK delivery (with Parcelforce, but if you prefer any other courier, let me know, and we can adjust the price accordingly). It will be double-boxed of course for safe delivery. Alternatively you can collect in person from Peterborough in which case it's yours for a mere £130!

You might want to ask: why am I selling? Well I actually got 2 of these accidentally, looked like it became out of stock when I ordered it so I ordered it from Ebay too - but my original order still arrived, which I have already played and re-stringed etc, so I can't call that brand new. This bass is from Zoundhouse by the way.
 

Thanks Phil, some great info in there! I'll definitely keep this pedal option in mind.

I still do prefer the small amps, as every now and then when the rest of the family goes out I like to let it rip a bit   And I have it hooked up to my PC via Aux where I can sample my own drum loops.

Warwick Stainless Steel 40-100 42210 ML.

Unopened brand new, just got them lying around and I got a short scale - these are standard length strings.

UK Postage included

1 hour ago, Bunion said:

Is say hit the stores try a few out and get whatever you like best. 

Unfortunately not a lot of stores in my city   and still being a bit on the careful side with intercity travel.

3 minutes ago, bassman7755 said:

 

A bass amp is generally a fairly straight forward beast and doesn't really do anything magic with the sound, with the EQ set flat your amp will sound pretty much the same as a bass amp setup similarly especially through headphones. The EQ / tone controls on your guitar amp wont work very well for bass though as they are aimed a different set of frequencies. I think its probably worth getting a rumble and selling your amp, as they both go for similar money you would probably not be out of pocket if you bought second hand, just don't expect a miraculous change in sound, mainly just a more useful set of tone controls.

Thanks this is basically what I needed.  I expected there to be some more difference apart from the speaker design and the more bass-y box, but never really compared two combos based on headphones only

4 hours ago, bassman7755 said:

What is it that you perceive as the deficiency or limitation with your current setup ? 

Well I don't know if my bass has a "weird guitar-ish sound" since I have never heard a Rumble for comparison, basically don't know if the two amps would sound the same via headphones, or if a bass would sound better on a bass combo instead of a guitar combo? Maybe someone tried both.

Obviously there would be a difference on loud volumes, but that's not a concern for me.

Hey folks, hope someone can help me. Got back into the bass biz after skipping 10+ years, and enjoying it a lot.

I currently have a Fender Mustang LT25 as a practice amp. I only play at home, 90% of the time with headphones on, and only about 10% of the time on the speakers, but always on very low volumes.

Question is, given my low volume / 90% headphone use, does it even worth considering to swap my Mustang to a Rumble? Don't really care about the different bass-centric fancy effects and sounds, playing clean with minimal EQ and some compressor and that's it.

I'd expect all I need is a set of good professional headphones but want to get some expert opinion on this.

Thanks in advance!