I did that with my earplugs on vacation, attaching them to the bass somehow and moving my head so the cord was just stretched out. Worked somehow, so this, obviously beeing more practical and thorough, should do a decent job =)

[quote="TheGrandEnigma":1vhlwlx6]Anyone ever hear or use one of these? Sheldon, you see these at NAMM? http://www.truenorthmusicproductions.co ... Order.html[/quote:1vhlwlx6] I've got one and I never use it. It works okay, but my hearing has long been shot, I'd rather plug into my amp. Probably work well for a dorm or apartment or finicky newborn in the house.

I had it and hated it because: 1)The earbuds were very uncomfortable and rigid and 2)Any time anything comes in the slightest contact with the tubing, it causes major noise. It is, however, a neat concept and truly amazing for hearing the essential, resonant, unplugged tone of the bass clearly.

So it has it's place, but won't replace an amp. I see. Just thought it was a neat idea - I live in a condo so noise is a concern. The website does a great job of making it sound like the greatest thing to happen to music. Maybe I won't get one - we'll see. Thanks for the input.

Get a good set of headphones and a Tascam trainer. That's what I do and it works great. It will run you a few hundred dollars when all is said and done, but you'll have a nice little practice setup.

[quote="Smallmouth_Bass":3a7i3jl2]Get a good set of headphones and a Tascam trainer. That's what I do and it works great. It will run you a few hundred dollars when all is said and done, but you'll have a nice little practice setup.[/quote:3a7i3jl2] This. I use a Korg Pandora and a set of Sony MDR-7506. Works like a charm. All of my home practice is done this way.

There's also the Vox BassPlug. http://www.voxamps.com/us/amplug/ Haven't tried it but their guitar products always seem to sound good.

[quote="TheGrandEnigma":37z0gxhn]Anyone ever hear or use one of these? Sheldon, you see these at NAMM? http://www.truenorthmusicproductions.co ... Order.html[/quote:37z0gxhn] If you're interested in one, PM me, I'll either give it to you or trade it for something of equal or lesser value you're not using

Another cheap option is the Rocket pocket amp-the size of a pack of gum-plugs into your bass' jack and has its' own phones. I got mine for 50 bucks at Musiciansbuy.com. However, IMO the Korg Pandora is the best, since it incorporates a tuner, some drum rhythms and has more versatile volume/gain adjustments. It also provides a useless looper and some silly but fun effects. The Tascam is great for learning cover tunes and has the ability to alter pitch, but i find it hard to get enough volume out of my bass with its' gain structure.

When being noisy is an issue for me I just run headphones out from my amp with the speaker turned off, not the most portable solution, but I'm sure it's the cheapest if you have an amp with a headphone jacks.

+1 on the Tascam. I use mine every day in the woodshed and I travel with it. Great in hotel rooms. You can also play CD's to play along with.

I bought the dragonfly and sold it. One thing to remember, it only works on solid coloured basses/guitars and not transparent ones, like many dingwalls are. All in all, I think it's a bit overpriced. If you are used to fooling around with the bass in your bed like I used to it may have a use for you, though like others said it's uncomfortable and noisy. A headphone amp would be much preferred imo.

There are many alternatives to this all-acoustic solution, as previously mentioned, that would at least allow you to use the on-board tone controls, and perhaps mix in your portable CD, iPod, or MP3 player. I use the Caf

I received a Dragonfly thingie when I upped my TalkBass membership. It was cool for about one day. It's been on a shelf for about a year now. Maybe I should sell mine as well. Kind of a gimmick if you know what I mean.

Well, I got Rollerberg's Dragonfly Amp (thanks again ), and been tinkering with it. I now see why everyone thinks it's gimmicky (that sound from touching the tubes is IRRITATING). I like the idea of it, and sofar I like the sound, but we'll see how much I like it in a couple of weeks. I moved it around on the back and front of my bass, sound changes a little but not drastically. The interesting part was when I compared my C bass with my MTD Kingston. The MTD sounds a little more muddled through my amp, and what I heard through the dragonfly was very representative of that. The tone isn't the same as it is through a real amp, but I would totally be able to tell the basses apart in a heartbeat by listening to them through this. I might just use this regularly instead of my amp. The way my place is set up, it's a pain to keep moving the basses around and this might just be the ticket. Thanks to everyone that contributed - I appreciate your input.

[quote="Brim":3p13g9p1]I received a Dragonfly thingie when I upped my TalkBass membership. It was cool for about one day. It's been on a shelf for about a year now. Maybe I should sell mine as well. Kind of a gimmick if you know what I mean.[/quote:3p13g9p1] Ditto here, I got mine when I upped my TB membership and had no use for it. I guess I would have need of something like it when they wheel me in the nursing home, but if my kids still like me when the time comes, they'll put me in a ROCKIN nursing home!