Oh, don’t trust me - I’m the worst 
But you can trust the others here!
Also: @howard is the Yamaha expert here. He can say a few words about your choice…
1 Like
Hi! I tested the Joyo BA-30 today. It is good and I like it.
I didn’t test to see how loud it can go (because of the neighbours), but it is very good for indoor practice. I also tested it with headphones, and I find the sound is even a little better than my Katana Go.
The Joyo can be connected through Bluetooth to a cell phone or other device. I connected it to my phone, and I played some songs, and I could play along with them with my bass. The volume of the music coming through the Bluetooth is adjustable on the phone. The volume button on the amp is for the bass only. It worked very well.
When the bass is plugged and the amp is on, I can hear a very slight static sound, and I can hear it only when I’m not touching the strings (it is such a faint sound, hard to notice). It disappears as soon as I touch the bass. Interesting. I don’t know whether this happens with other amps, it is quite possible (please someone tell me @Al1885 @howard ? . Also, I don’t know if other people can hear it (I often can hear sounds coming from lamps and electronic devices, and other people say they can’t hear it). I would be interested to know if other people who have this amp can hear this. @Al1885 ?
The advantage of having this Joyo is that you can hear yourself playing without headphones. When eventually you will want other people to hear you playing, it will be useful. If you had the Vox, then if someone wanted to hear you playing, they would have to hear you through your headphones. But, if this is not a problem, then maybe the Vox could be a better choice for you at this moment, because it is much cheaper. Later you will be able to purchase the Joyo or a better amp. The Vox will still be useful for when you want to go somewhere and play, because it is so small and useful as a travel amp.
4 Likes
I used a Sonicake one for a while. It got the job done, but it had kind of a weird effect on it that kind of annoyed me after a while. But for a first amp I think it’s just fine.
Edit to add: I also have a TRBX174. I personally like it, but I don’t know all that much about bass and am not that good. I mainly use it for playing at home and I play at church.
1 Like
That’s a probably grounding issue, though usually you hear humming not hissing. Only one bass or both?
Never!
Could you check for three things, pretty please?
- Connect your PC to the Joyo via USB and play a video where people are talking. Is the audio coming from the Joyo lip-sync? So there is no delay between audio and video?
- Play some good quality music from PC through USB, if possible with real instruments (so no Techno). How does the music sound in terms of tone?
- Connect your headphones to the Joyo. Does the Joyo mute, so audio plays only through the headphone out?
Looking forward to mine!!!
1 Like
Both basses. It isn’t a humming nor hissing, or maybe it is. Too faint to say. I notice it gets louder if I turn MIDDLE all the way to 5 o’clock. MID FREQ also influences a little. When I connect the headphones, the noise comes through it. I stop hearing it when I touch the strings.
No delay, but I wouldn’t expect any, since it’s connected directly through an USB cable.
It is OK. Probably not the best option to use as speakers for listening to music through a computer. For that I would prefer 2 speakers to listen as stereo. The Joyo is best for playing bass. I listened to some YouTube videos, like an interview, and a video of classical music. It is OK. I prefer to listen to my computer through headphones.
Yes. Connecting headphones to it means the sound will only come through the headphones.
I hope you will get it soon. Did they send it already? They seem to get sold out always very quickly!
Correction, you’d always want a bias reviews. It’s much easier to get to what you want from there. 
That’s your grounding on your bass. Somewhere in your electronics is not properly grounded, looks like the bridge. If you roll off your tone it should reduce it. When you touch the metal string that connects to the bridge it completes the loop and no static or 60 cycles hum.
Joyo is very good in a small room as it offers rich bass tone at plenty of volume. Bluetooth is another great feature because you can connect to your source without any cable. I keep the Joyo under my computer desk shelf for when I want to play some quick tunes from my computer.
1 Like
And it is the same with both basses, the Squier and the Danelectro Longhorn. 
Probably you guys would know how to fix this, but I really don’t.
I don’t hear this sound when I use the Katana Go headphone amp, so I was unaware of this.
If I try to record myself playing through a DAI to my computer, will there be any noise? I hope this only happens when using an amp.
It is really disappointing to hear both my basses might have a grounding issue. 
But both basses have that issue!
@andrea-slndr - can you connect the Joyo to a Powerbank (must be 65W or higher, I read somewhere) and run the laptop from battery (so no connection to any outlet in the wall) and test again if you hear any noise?
Nope - they said 2-3 weeks, now it’s 5-7. I refuse to celebrate Christmas without my Joyo!
Fuck it
I can’t seem to get the joyo on amazon or local shops
Sooo vox it is (it’s gonna be my first headphone amp but when cash us okay I will definitely get either a zoom or katana)
What the worst that could happen I don’t need to record or something I just need it to play!
Also can never seem to mention it more LOVE THE SUPPORT AND HELP
Going to the city next week love to find ur guy’s recommended stuff to try
Regards
A really happy beginner
2 Likes
What? That’s really disappointing! I hope they’ll get more soon.
I’ll test later. I was reading old messages on the forum about grounding issues, and it seems the problem can also be somewhere else than in the basses. It could be the cable, or the amp, or the power socket. Our apartment is old and not all power sockets are grounded. I’ll later have to try a kitchen socket! The ones in the kitchen and bathroom are the only ones that are grounded. That could be it.
If I had another cable or another amp, I could try them. I also could try taking my bass elsewhere and try someone else’s amp.
I have no power bank good enough, unfortunately.
The first thing I will do is try another socket, and then we’ll see. 
But time to make dinner first.
Is the Vox around 50€?
For that price you can get a Positive Grid Riff currently (at Thomann, possibly not where you live). That will be much better (but also not my first choice).
Try it with the strongest you have. It’s a method to find out where the issue is…
1 Like
It’ll be a great bass, you’ll love it.
Especially as a beginner though, you’ll be fine with just about anything. I wouldn’t go with a crazy cheap no-name instrument, but basically anything from a recognizable name at any price will be just fine.
I mention this because you say it’s at the top of your budget. There aren’t many brand new basses that are cheaper, but if you can find something used for less it might leave you more room for a better headphone amp or whatever. (But if this is the one you really want, you should get the one you want.)
It’s a very good idea to have a strap too. You should definitely have a tuner (though you can get away with using an app for this at first, and better headphone amps may have one built in). And a stand is a good idea, though you’re fine without one as long as you have a spot to keep it where it will be safe from damage or getting knocked over.
2 Likes
Yeah what convinced me was the fact that it goes away when she touch the string. Dirty usb power is usually constant.
2 Likes
My laptop has a metal case and I also get the same phenominon near the laptop, especially when I touch the case. Of course when I touch a string or a tuning key, the hum goes away because I have now become the grounding plane for the bass, even though the laptop is causing it.
2 Likes
Sounds like you’re off to a good start, try as many basses as you can!
You already mentioned the Yamaha TRBX174 - that’s a good start. For entry level Yamaha I would also recommend trying the BB234 and TRBX304.
You’re looking for the one that feels best to you and looks the coolest (so you’ll want to pick it up.) Don’t stress too much about sound just yet (though all three of those just mentioned sound great.)
4 Likes
Hi guys! I have good news! The problem is not with the basses nor the Joyo. It was the power socket!
Our apartment is old and not all power sockets are grounded. The last time there were renovations in the building (when they renovated the apartments’ kitchens, bathrooms and also the power cabinets, with the fuses and internet) the condo chose to update only some of the power sockets of the apartments. Everything is grounded in the kitchen and bathroom, and in the living room only the ones behind the TV are grounded. The other ones closer to the sofa are not.
There is also a power socket between the kitchen and living room which is grounded, and much more accessible than the one behind the TV. So I tested the amp with both basses on it. And good news: no hissing nor humming. 
I can easily plug the amp into that power socket, and play in the living room. 
I’m really relieved!
Thank you for your support and suggestions! 
6 Likes
Noooooo! Now I cannot make fun of Americans with their sh#tty power system anymore from an elevated European perspective 
Or …. hmmmm … is Finland actually part of Europe? I remember that some Swedish friends make fun of you all the time … you don’t even speak “Scandinavian”
3 Likes
New apartments and houses all have grounded power sockets and there are a lot of rules for new buildings. This building is from 1969, and I’m glad at least the main power has been upgraded. They (the head of the condo) decided to cut costs so they left some rooms without grounding. I wish everything had been done at once, but the renovation of the water pipes and sewage lines and all the bathrooms and everything was so expensive, and some older apartment owners wanted to vote against the whole thing (they didn’t want any renovations at all), so I’m glad in the end we got the majority to approve it, even though some things were left out.
By the way, Finns make fun of Swedes too, but in the end the countries stick together and there’s a deep feeling of friendship and partnership. Except during hockey championships. But if one of the two countries drops out, we will wish the other wins.
4 Likes