Can anyone recommend a small, lightweight and hopefully inexpensive DAI to use for practice while traveling? Thanks!
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The Scarlett Solo is pretty small.
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I just got a behringer umc202hd plugged it in for the first time yesterday. It works. Price was right.
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Next will be a behringer u-control uca222 to connect my digital daw to the umc202hd. Similar pricing.
Full disclosure. I’m new to all this and my use case may be different than yours. So for reference from google.
The UMC202HD is a vastly superior choice for recording audio directly from microphones or instruments, while the UCA222 is a basic, affordable “sound card” for connecting line-level devices.
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Fender (previously PreSonus) AudioBox Go is small and weighs almost nothing. 100 bucks new.
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I’ll second the Focusrite Scarlett Solo for traveling. It is well-made and has a rugged metal case. It has 2 inputs, one mic and one Instrument or Line. You can plug your bass into Input 1 on the front and select Inst via the button for bass or guitar. It also has a headphone output with a separate volume control, in addition to stereo Left and Right outputs for a pair of powered monitors (speakers). It is bus-powered only, meaning that it gets its power from the USB-C port you plug the Solo into. Focusrite’s software is solid. It’s easy to spend less, but you’ll have no issues with a Solo. It’s also perfectly good for home use as long as the limited inputs work for you. I have an RME Fireface UCX II for home studio use, but I have a 4th gen Scarlett 4i4 for mobile use. The driver has multiclient support and now has a native Windows ARM version, perfect for my Surface Pro Snapdragon X Elite tablet.
The Focusrite website lists an MSRP of 160 €. The 4th gen Solo is 125 € at Thomann.
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The Katana Go is tiny, plugs directly into your bass, and can be used as a DAI via USB-C. Or you can just plug headphones into it and play.
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Thanks!
The Zoom AMS-24
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^^^ this would be my recommendation, Zoom is great for these on-the-go kinds of things.
Johnny Dibble recently reviewed this one and it looks pretty good. Synodo Live Duet.
I would never get a DAI that needs “third party ASIO drivers” (= Asio4All) or is from a lesser known brand, cause: drivers issues…
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What’s the ultimate need here, a DAI, or something to practice with while traveling? I think most advice here is keying on the DAI part of the ask. If it’s the latter, I’d go Katana Go hands-down.
If it’s the latter, I’d go with the new Fender Link I/O. It has an instrument input and a headphone output and works like a DAI into the free Fender Studio app (a simple version of Fender Studio Pro (the former PreSonus Studio One Pro). The Fender Studio app is available for Windows, Mac, Android and iOS and include bass and guitar amp and pedal sims. Fender Studio Pro can directly import saved sessions, including the bass amp and pedal sims. I have the free Fender Studio on my Windows ARM Surface Pro and my Google Pixel Android tablet. Both work flawlessly. 77 € from Thomann.
Fender Link I/O from Thomann (for example)
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Is this also a headphone amp? So just one device to play/record?
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That’s correct. There’s a 1/8” headphone jack on the top next to the USB-C port (which also powers the device). The 1/4” instrument jack is on the bottom, and the volume control for the headphones is on the left side.
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OK, so if one is on the road you can use just this to practice/record. In your opinion what’s the advantage of the Fender Link I/O vs Nux Mighty Plug Pro?
The major advantage of the Fender Link I/O comes when you have the Fender Studio Pro DAW (formerly PreSonus Studio One Pro). When you’re on the road, you can record into the free Fender Studio app using the very good included bass amp sims and then import that project directly into Studio Pro, retaining all of the amp sim settings.
If you don’t have Studio Pro or plan to purchase it, I suggest going with the NU-X Mighty Plug Pro. I have 3 plugin headphones amps in addition to the Link I/O and IMO, the Mighty Plug Pro is the best of the bunch, with great support for bass.
OK. My technical needs are very low - just need to be able to record videos of me practicing songs. Sounds like the Mighty Plug Pro will do the job. Some reviews complain of a high buzzing noise with it tho. Any thoughts?
I haven’t had that problem, so can’t offer any comment other than that.
That said, at some point you have to make a decision. I think you’re starting to over-think this.