WoodyJ
Joined: Apr 05, 2006
Posts: 1547
Bethlehem, GA
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Posted on Mar 27 2014 10:07 AM
You married guys out there know that practicing at what we consider normal volume levels (LOUD) can be a challenge. Same goes for trying not to annoy your neighbors by blasting away after midnight.
My solution was to come up with a good sounding silent practice rig without spending a lot of money, using gear I mostly had on hand. Here's what I did...
I have a '90's tweed bronco amp that has a headphone jack. So, I bought a small 4-channel powered mixer, hoping that running a patch cable from the headphone jack into one of the mixer inputs would give me sufficient volume into the 'phones, which are $20 "Stupid Deal of the Day" specials from Musician's Friend.
Sometimes I like to learn new songs from CD's or a YouTube videos which is why I needed a small mixer since the old Bronco doesn't have an external CD/mp3 input.
So, how does it sound? HOLY CRAP!, let's just say that it might damage your hearing if it is cranked too loud.
To get a realistic surf sound I hooked my pedalboard with an old Holy Grail reverb pedal into the mixer. It works incredibly well. I am a tone freak and I am stunned at how good this thing sounds.
For bass, I plug an Ampeg micro head into it and the results are equally good although I use better headphones with the bass. Here's what the rig looks like:
— Jack Booth
(aka WoodyJ)
The Mariners (1964-68, 1996-2005)
The Hula Hounds (1996-current)
The X-Rays (1997-2004)
The Surge! (2004, 2011-2012)
Various non-surf bands that actually made money (1978-1990)
Last edited: Mar 27, 2014 17:15:15
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artdecade
Joined: Aug 30, 2012
Posts: 399
Twangsville
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Posted on Mar 27 2014 10:20 AM
Looks cool, but its overkill for someone like me. When I need to go silent, I just use a Fender Mustang (with a surf patch) into my headphones.
— To Boldly go where no Tiki has gone before...
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WoodyJ
Joined: Apr 05, 2006
Posts: 1547
Bethlehem, GA
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Posted on Mar 27 2014 10:34 AM
As I mentioned, this setup is for silent practicing while listening to a CD or YouTube. Or a mp3, which I forgot to mention. Otherwise, yep, it is overkill. 
— Jack Booth
(aka WoodyJ)
The Mariners (1964-68, 1996-2005)
The Hula Hounds (1996-current)
The X-Rays (1997-2004)
The Surge! (2004, 2011-2012)
Various non-surf bands that actually made money (1978-1990)
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artdecade
Joined: Aug 30, 2012
Posts: 399
Twangsville
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Posted on Mar 27 2014 10:44 AM
The Mustang has an input for an MP3 player. I plug my phone in and play along with whatever is in the playlist at the moment. Ha.
— To Boldly go where no Tiki has gone before...
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RobC
Joined: Oct 11, 2010
Posts: 152
Bainbridge Island, Washington
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Posted on Mar 27 2014 03:19 PM
I have four options:
1) My Egnater Rebel 30 has a "silent record" mode that bypasses the power tubes and uses an internal speaker emulator. I can plug that directly into my input box for recording (XLR out) and use my headphones (Shure in-ears) coming out of the input box for my computer.
2) I renovated a shed in the back 40 as my man-cave recording studio. I can crank it as loud as I want in there as long as it is during the day, or early evening. If it is cranked to 11 the neighbors can hear it if it is late.
3) I bought a Pandora PD5X handheld pre-amp. It has presets a million different tones for bass and guitar and 1/8-inch aux in 1/4 inch output for headphones and 1/4" input for guitar cable. The tone is not perfect but it fits in your pocket and gets the job done. Downside: It was $200 three years ago. They are probably cheaper now though.
4) my TC Electronics bass head has an aux input and headphone output for practicing bass.
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Hammond101
Joined: Feb 22, 2013
Posts: 342
SoCal USA
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Posted on Mar 27 2014 05:05 PM
Cool home rig. Thanks for sharing.
I use a Roland Micro Cube & headphones for private practice.
The little Cube and a travel guitar typically go with me on business trip.
— Keep it Drippy Brothers and Sisters!
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LeeVanCleef
Joined: Oct 05, 2011
Posts: 744
France
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Posted on Mar 27 2014 05:13 PM
I bought an Ibanez Valbee -- one of those 5W tube amps -- for home use just because it had a headphone out. Turns out the sound through a (decent) pair of headphones is pretty good, much better than through the crappy 6" speaker. I plan to rehouse it in a larger enclosure with a bigger and better speaker someday, and get rid of that awful electric blue tolex at the same time, but in the meantime it's an excellent (if somewhat bulky) solution for silent practice as is.
For bass, I plug my earphones directly in my small multi effect unit and turn on the amp & speaker simulators. The sound's not really breathtaking, but for bass who cares? 
— Old punks never die... They just become surf rockers.
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Ariel
Joined: Aug 29, 2009
Posts: 1556
Israel
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Posted on Mar 27 2014 10:04 PM
Guitar or Bass -> Radial DI -> NI external sound card ->PC: various FX, amp modeling and cabinet IR's -> monitors/headhones. I totally bypass the pedalboard, that way no setup necessary, I plug and play. Many many software options, all suck the same, but for practice I need nothing more. Tracking, composition, playback, drums samples...
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so1om
Joined: May 10, 2012
Posts: 492
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Posted on Mar 31 2014 09:47 AM
This is really cool. My stage gear is for gigs only.
For home I have my Vibro Champ (guitar) or Musicmaster bass amp (bass).
I do not run any effects (I don't count the Boss/Fender 63 with my vibro champ an effect). Once in a while my DOD overdrive 250...
I do like how you've mixed in the CD/MP3. I'm going to look into some of these possibilities.
My daughter's first amp is a Vox Mini3. That "does it all". For a 14 year old, she mixes her vocals, guitar, music, headphones if she likes.. $90. wow. what a great time to be a kid!
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el_camello
Joined: Jul 04, 2010
Posts: 369
Ottawa
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Posted on Mar 31 2014 09:28 PM
I'm in a apartment so silent is important.
Guitar -> Radial DI -> Computer -> Amplitube Fender
It sounds pretty good and lately it's been motivating me to record.
— -Pierre
The Obsidians! (Ottawa surf)
The Obsidians debut EP
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SanchoPansen
Joined: Jan 04, 2011
Posts: 1588
Berlin L-Berg
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Posted on Apr 01 2014 06:06 AM
Apartment practice:
Git/Bass -> Pedalboard (not always) -> Marshall JMP-1 -> Behringer USB Mixing Console (Xenxy) -> PC with Headphones.
The great thing about it, is the possibility to play along to the mp3s on the computer. I use Audacity/CoolEdit to open them, so I can select different parts and slow them down without altering the pitch and just play along and raise the speed up to normal again after a while. You can even mark and loop single notes, just to get the lick 100% right.
Oh and the mixing console isn't really necessary, but has some nice effects and provides an easy access to all volume levels on the fly.
— The Hicadoolas
Last edited: Apr 01, 2014 06:11:39
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Skiltrip
Joined: Mar 09, 2014
Posts: 92
New York
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Posted on Apr 01 2014 08:20 AM
The Master Volume control on my Bugera V55HD 55 watt head manages my volume enough. Fortunately, my studio room is downstairs, while everyone sleeps upstairs. There's not a lot of separation, and my wife has mentioned that she's heard me singing while recording vocals. But luckily I haven't heard her complain about me playing guitar at night. Sometimes I'll sit on the floor in front of the amp. It sounds crazy loud to me, but when I stand up or sit in a chair I find it's not nearly as loud as I think it is. So if I need a little volume boost, I just sit on the floor. I've tried playing with headphones. I just can't do it. I can record with headphones, as it's a necessity, but I can't play for enjoyment with a cord hanging over my shoulders.
— Guitarist for Northern Tides from Hudson Valley, NY.
Northern Tides on FB
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Noel
Joined: Mar 15, 2011
Posts: 8528
Back in Piitsburgh, Pennsylvania, where I grew up.
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Posted on Apr 01 2014 08:33 AM
I have discovered the most amazing noise-cancelling device. My neighbor runs his bulldozer all summer long, as he hasn't finished clear-cutting the five acres of woods he bought next to us. The constant drone of the roaring engine, snapping tree trunks and the chainsaw all day long is very annoying. The noise is loud enough to fully penetrate the walls of our house.
So, I put my Music Man 212-130HD out back facing his property, play it on Hi with Master Volume, Channel Volume and guitar volume set to 10. I wear ear plugs and ear muff hearing protectors over them, and presto... I can't hear the bulldozer or even the chain saw. I can hardly hear anything at all.
— This is Noel. Reverb's at maximum an' I'm givin' 'er all she's got.
Last edited: Apr 30, 2014 06:54:36
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Surf_Skater
Joined: Sep 06, 2012
Posts: 1300
Lawrenceville , GA
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Posted on Apr 01 2014 11:41 AM
Noel wrote:
So, I put my Music Man 212-130HD out back facing his property, play it on Hi with Master Volume, Channel Volume and guitar volume set to 10. I wear ear plugs and ear muff hearing protectors over them, and presto... I can't hear the bulldozer or even the chain saw. I can hardly hear anything at all.
That should help in clearing the trees!
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cambeezy
Joined: Jun 26, 2007
Posts: 399
Cleveland, Ohio
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Posted on Apr 01 2014 02:23 PM
Noel wrote:
My neighbor runs his bulldozer ...
My neighbor runs his backhoe, chainsaw, 2x/week riding mower, leafblower and assorted power tools all summer long. So yeah, I take advantage of those situations, too. In fairness to him tho, he heard our band practicing last autumn with the windows open and said we rock -- so we get along OK.
But this all reminds me of a handout I got from a class on "School-Community Relations" 30 years ago where the late/great USC coach John McKay replied in an interview: "My neighbors are great - I never see them".
I should mention that my silent running rig centers around an eight y/o Jamman looper. I'd be lost without it.
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Canopy
Joined: Apr 28, 2014
Posts: 41
South West Coast
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Posted on Apr 30 2014 05:02 AM
These!..
RobC wrote:
2) I renovated a shed in the back 40 as my man-cave recording studio. I can crank it as loud as I want in there as long as it is during the day, or early evening. If it is cranked to 11 the neighbors can hear it if it is late.
When the mrs and I were buying our house one of the deal breakers was that I had to have a space for me to put computers/guitars. I ended up converting the garage into my man cave/studio. the mrs is a teacher and spends a lot of time marking in the evenings. upshot, i'm in there for at least an hour a couple nights a week, and often sunday afternoons through the winter.
i'm continually improving the space and can have it set up to record through my mixing desk too.
3) I bought a Pandora PD5X handheld pre-amp. It has presets a million different tones for bass and guitar and 1/8-inch aux in 1/4 inch output for headphones and 1/4" input for guitar cable. The tone is not perfect but it fits in your pocket and gets the job done. Downside: It was $200 three years ago. They are probably cheaper now though.
i have a px4d i originally bought it for night practice back when i was still living with my parents, but now i use it as a mobile set up with a danelectro honeytone 9v amp every week when i teach my dad and jam at a friends.
the thought of having to spend 15 mins building up and tearing down a practice rig is just nuts. if you can, make a secure permanent space with a shed, garage or something, or make something that is instant.
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WoodyJ
Joined: Apr 05, 2006
Posts: 1547
Bethlehem, GA
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Posted on May 23 2014 09:43 AM
UPDATE
The previous setup just took up too much space so I downsized it by replacing the two amps with a SansAmp Acoustic DI that I already had. I don't know why I didn't think of this before, obviously another "senior moment".
Anyway, here's SPR (Silent Practice Rig) Version 2.0. It works as well as the previous version with guitar or bass. The pedalboard is still in use, just not shown in the pic.
— Jack Booth
(aka WoodyJ)
The Mariners (1964-68, 1996-2005)
The Hula Hounds (1996-current)
The X-Rays (1997-2004)
The Surge! (2004, 2011-2012)
Various non-surf bands that actually made money (1978-1990)
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zzero
Joined: Jul 09, 2010
Posts: 1153
Lillian Alabama
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Posted on May 23 2014 10:40 AM
i just run my rig simple. a mustang I and headphones and a cd player. my neighbors don't like loud anything--makes 'em nervous. condo living has it's drawbacks. the little micro cube looks good too, may give that a try. 
— Enjoying the surf,sun and sand!!
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NYStan
Joined: Jan 10, 2012
Posts: 68
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Posted on May 23 2014 04:15 PM
I use my Peavey Vypyr 120. I can easily plug in my computer with backing tracks into the external input then plug headphones in and jam away without the wife getting pissed off. When she leaves the house I still play backing tracks using the Peavey but I play my guitar thru my pedal board and into my Fender Supersonic 100 head on the 25 watt setting with matching 4X12 cab crank it up and let it rumble.
— http://www.reverbnation.com/nucleusaccumbensstimulation
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