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Roland Micro Cube Bass RX Battery-Powered Bass Combo Amp (Amazon Link)
The RX Micro Cube can also run on 6 AA batteries. I like to use rechargeable batteries. If I’m ordering on Amazon, I usually get the eneloops. But I think most brands work well. I’m using a high-quality isobar connected to . I recharge the 9V using the EBL.
In general, the sound usually works very well for about an 1 hour. After an hour, it will sound good but after about 2 hours, you’ll start to hear serious sound degradation, if you’re using rechargeables.
I like to change out the batteries in the amp and preamp about every 90 minutes. While you’ll get a cleaner sound using a good DC power-source, or new batteries, I use rechargeable because otherwise I’d spend tons of money and throw out a lot of batteries. I think in the long run I save money, even after the cost of the chargers.
Note: the above items link to Amazon.
I usually play with a violist (on the street).
I currently use two Micro Cube bass amps as a battery-powered PA. I use a battery-powered mixer, and a battery-powered reverb pedal. Since I was usually using this amp as a part of a duet that plays commonly on the street, I figure we might as well try it as a PA. The mixer (Behringer Xenyx 1002B) costs about $100, the rechargeable 9V batteries cost about $30, and I already had a stereo reverb pedal.
The improvised PA sounds way better than the two MicroCubes individually. Total cost – about $1000. And about $350 to upgrade from the two Cubes to the mixer.
I’m actually planning on taking up the street sound another notch. I hope to get a deep-cycle boat battery and DC-to-AC inverter and then use my regular PA, which is another step-or-two up the chain of live sound. Some people like the sound from whatever source the sound comes from. And it is true music does come from the fingers and heart. But having good sound reinforcement usually really helps both the musicians and the music.
One of my musician friends told me that the playing acoustic guitar through the Cube didn’t really sound that good on the gig. It’s true. The Bass Micro Cube doesn’t sound as good as a $700 amp with a $300 preamp.
So I decided to up my game. Since I alreay had a great speaker in the form a PA (RCF FD12A Powered DJ Speaker), I got an acoustic guitar preamp with XLR output and effects loop (Fishman Platinum Pro EQ) and a stereo reverb pedal (TC Electronic Hall of Fame Reverb Pedal). It sounds great!
The MicroCube sounds good in smaller places (without drums). When I’m playing mostly acoustically, but I need a little extra boost but not that of full-on-sound-system, the microCube is great! Or when I need a purely battery-powered amp, it’s a great choice. I do think if you spent more money (had a bit more space), you could get a better sound out the large portable PAs, but I don’t know for sure – I’ve never tried them, etc.
I just discovered that I can use the octave bass effect and my jazz guitar sounds like an organ. It adds an octave below the low notes so you can get decent walking basslines.
It’s light-weight (15lbs plus another pound for battery weight) and runs on 6AA batteries. I got the eneloop rechargeables and I’m set for 8-12 hours at a time, though I generally recharge after every other use. It fits in a grocery bag. In fact, I carry the RX around in a reusable grocery bag.
Today besides using it to play outside, I used it as a boom box hooked up to my phone using an 1/8″ cord. It sounds pretty good, though it doesn’t amplify the signal very much, so your phone’s batteries might get drained.
I still use the MicroBass Cube for gigs and on the street. I still like it!
I recently played with a saxophonist/clarinetist/singer at a retirement home. With my guitar (that’s pretty loud acoustically), I just added a little bit of juice from the amp and it sat at about the same volume level as the acoustic saxophone. I did plug in and didn’t play acoustically.
I saw my friend at the beach! He still has his MicroCube, but it stopped working after about 3 years of sand, salt, motorcycle rides and rainy seasons. I would say he definitely push the envelope. But the fact that it lasted that long is a pretty good sign. I don’t think most electronics would last much longer anyways.
My friend who plays viola still uses his amp. He’s had it for maybe 5 years now (actually 7 as of 2020). It seems to work well. A couple of things have broken, but everything still functions well. The thing that probably “breaks” first is the strap. It doesn’t break but it’s not really attached, so you can remove it when you want and people sometimes end up losing it.
I also used with a viola and bass trio on the street. Those guys ran through a bass amp and I played acoustic guitar through the microcube, plugged into an electric source. It sounded good! In general, plugging in the amp (versus using batteries) while help the sound quality.
It’s still the same as 2016. I use the (updated) RCF speaker with the preamp and the reverb pedal. Or, I’ll run the guitar through a good mixing board with some reverb (and 2 speakers for stereo!)
Roland Micro Cube Bass RX Battery-Powered Bass Combo Amp (Amazon Link)
I haven’t really used it much this year – I skipped out on busking and am just practicing (guitar, piano, voice, drums, violin/viola, congas, etc).
In any case, my cube is still working and I used it a lot in 2019. I did switch over to using a PA Speaker for some of my gigs because I wasn’t getting quite the sound quality I wanted (a fancy setup with a PA and preamp with a reverb pedal does sound great).
But it’s still a great amp for busking, smaller acoustic sets and busking (if you don’t have a car battery haha). I am definitely looking forward to playing some gigs with it in the future!
All best and peace and love!
If you have any questions, comments and/or ideas, please leave a comment or contact me!
4 replies on “Roland Micro Cube Bass RX Amp Review (Busking, Guitar, Bass, Violin, Battery-Powered)”
Very helpful to me.
If I want to run mp3s through the Micro Cube Bass RX, you said there is no onboard volume control. So mp3s are impractical?
Thanks!
I’ve played mp3s (or I guess AACs) via my iPhone with a 1/8 male-male cable. There’s no volume control on the amp for the 1/8″ input – I just usually use the volume on my phone.
It’s not super loud, but for a smaller party/background music, it works decent. For example, if I am playing a gig in a smaller room on acoustic-electric guitar, I’ll use iTunes or Amazon Music or YouTube (via phone) connected with 1/8″ cable to the amp. And it works fine as background music between sets.
In a much larger room (or a really loud room), like in a convention center, it wouldn’t work … I would use a PA.
Hope that helps and thanks for asking!
I have a mint Roland Micro Cube Bass RX. I bought it to play bass in a very small one room church. Then the bass player who was leaving decided to stay (his other new gig fell through. I mostly use it with my portable CD player in the barn, but it maybe has 10 hours as a low volume boom box. I listed it on Facebook, and immediately had about five buyers. I have decided to keep it. I play almost all lead guitar on my Mesa Boogie, so it’s a collector’s item at this point. It’s so close to new I just can’t see selling it for $250. This is a great little amp, and I have only used it under battery power. Now that they have stopped making this model, I’ll probably never sell it, and I’m glad I decided to keep it. I have a J-45 with a Baggs M1 Active, and it sounds pretty amazing for its size and cost. I think that mint examples like mine are going to be hard to come by, and mine has always been babied. Thanks for the cool info. Wally
Hi Wally! Thanks for the comment! My apologies on the delayed response!
Best wishes with all your musical endeavours and that’s awesome that you’ve used the MicroCube!
I have used it to play music on, though mostly from the phone. I didn’t realize they stopped making it – I will to start taking better care of mine!
Thanks and best wishes!