What's the Deal With Behringer?

if you've spent any time at all searching for new guitar pedals you've definitely come across that Berens your line of effects today I'm going to walk you through several of these units we're gonna talk about how they're so affordable and I want to warn you if you're a gear snob and highly emotional you need to get your Kleenex out because it's probably gonna get messy [Music] before we get started I want to explain a little bit about Barringer's so you know what we're dealing with here so the history of behringer is really simple it's started by a guy named uh Lee behringer and it was in 1989 that he got it all going well at this point it's huge and actually behringer fell underneath his larger kind of umbrella thing which is called music tribe that company has within it other companies that he has acquired or started so TC electronic turbo sound midas clark technic it's a big big operation they actually have their own little city in china called behringer city they manufacture everything on their own they own so many pieces of equipment have a ton of employees and a lot of facilities even to the point where there are certain parts that builders like myself and other builders buy from behringer there's a chipset brand that was called cool audio and they reissued the bucket brigade chipsets that were in the vintage analog delays but uh Lee bought that and so now most pedal builders buy their parts of that nature from him so it's pretty crazy and so one of the reasons that uh Lee can make these pedals so cheap is because of his facilities the massive infrastructure that he has it's pretty wild he has a direct sales force in over a hundred countries as well so it's just a big big company and you got to have that perspective when you're looking at these it's a totally different approach to pedals if you buy a JHS or a wampler or an earthquake er you're dealing with a guy like me in a city with a few employees making everything by hand that's not the case here so with that said that gives you a little bit of an understanding of what's gonna be seen today now the last thing I want to say is I'm gonna use this switchback device that I released it named I made this so that when I signed off on a final prototype of a new design it could be the tested against all the pedals built from that point on so it has to send in returns and I made it so you know you put the tester pedal in once in return and then the control the thing you want to test against and switch lets you go back and forth between the two loops it has a red remote Jack you're gonna see me playing the behringer pedal on one side that's gonna be the red and then you're gonna see the original pedal so like a boss pedal or an ibanez pedal and that's gonna be the green when you see that flipping back and forth it's because I'm hitting a button on top of the amp and you're hearing it in real time while I play so you can compare you know A to B and that's it let's get going here we go first up is the chromatic tuner tu 300 could it be the chromatic tuner to you - I think it is yeah and I tuned with it I'm not gonna show you that because that's weird but it Tunes the guitar so if you need a tuner the compressor limiter cl9 the Ibanez cp9 compressor limiter the colors right the knob labelings are right and the circuit is almost the same now it's definitely this circuit but this actually has a better bass response that I kind of enjoyed I I hate saying I like this more because this is a real vintage black label run run of this pedal and and I love it for that standpoint and the fact that it sounds amazing but I like the low-end response so it's a little bit modified I don't want to say I don't like this cuz I don't want to hurt its feelings you know I can't do that but like I'm torn here I'm really torn I'm gonna quit talking about just suits Nick you [Music] Ultra octave er UO 300 is a slightly tweaked boss OC to you'll notice there's a switch on the side that has a range of high mid and low so it's a little bit of a modification on this old classic and these are getting pricey so it's a really cool way to kind of try that sound and see if you like it really great on bass guitar as well the ultra tremolo UT 300 it's a 3 knob tremolo the TR 2 is a 3 knob tremolo very similar labelings identical sound there's a lot of these out there this is one of those cases where I'd probably just say by the boss cuz it's gonna last forever but you know if you're in a pinch it's a good solid and simple trim the digital reverb dr 600 and the boss digital reverb rv5 the controls are the same they're both stereo they're labeled identical but something's a little off and i've come to discover that in this line of behringer pedals when it's a true analog circuit it's pretty dead-on but in a few of these cases where they're copying digital circuits like this reverb it's quite off to me it doesn't mean it's bad it just I can't get the same sounds out of it the high end is very interesting like the tone control in some positions feels almost inaudible where this has a huge range of tone control so that being said I'm gonna put it on the spring reverb setting on each and shoot them out and I like both but I would not say that they're extremely similar [Music] the vintage delay VD 400 I use this in a previous episode it is a DM 3 so the DM 3 came along after the DM 2 so we're talking mid-80s and it is a true bucket brigade delay this holds up really well these aren't too expensive so if you have a little extra cash I recommend this or the new Wazza analog delay by boss but this is a really affordable way to try a true bucket brigade analog delay the filter machine FM 600 the line six Auto filter they're both purple they both have the exact same knobs and the same switches and the same layout they're a little off though because it's a digital circuit and I think once again we're seeing here where it's really hard to copy algorithms and code and you know I'm getting the same sound I'm tweaking these two pedals and I'm making it work and they're pretty dead-on after I tweaked them but if I put the knobs in the same position I can tell that there's something slightly different not good or bad I don't prefer one over the other so with that said if you want to try a really versatile and fun envelope filter on the cheap this is a good way to go if you want to get more serious about that I do recommend something like this or even Accutron yeah cute Ron's my favorite [Music] [Music] the graphic equalizer EQ 702 7 band EQ could it be the GE 7 equalizer by boss yeah it is it's an EQ pedal it does what it should it's a replica this and yeah you need a cheap EQ why not this ultra vibrato UV 300 is possibly my favorite out of the whole line only because I used it for a year or two on my own board because I could not afford this this is the classic boss vibrato vb2 japanese made and highly collectible but guess what they are sonically identical when I say identical it is dead-on so I encourage you to try this a lot of people do not understand how amazing the vb2 circuit is because this is really expensive and hard to get a hold of they did re-release this in the Wazza craft series and it might still be hard for some people to afford I would say that you've got to try this circuit as a guitar player and this is the way you need to do it so go find one of these on the used market they're probably free by this point I don't know but check it out and just try it it's one of my favorite sounds [Music] you [Music] this is a fun one the ultra metal um 300 it is in fact the MT 2 metal zone here's what's great about this you love the metal zone it's already on each of your five separate pedal boards and you just adore it but you want another one on each board first of all that gets expensive but then people judge you because you have too many metal zones which we know is it a thing by this your bandmates your wife your family your mom they say oh you've got a different pedal good for you but you're sitting there going more metal zone the heavy metal hm 300 the cult classic heavy metal hm - bye boss this is an old Japanese boss that's very collectible it is iconic you dime all the knobs out and you have this extremely important sound that kind of created a genre if you've ever wanted to try this and didn't want to fork out the money this is a really good option I would say that it is definitely inspired by this and definitely has the same sounds but there's something quite different in the mid-range if you want to try this this is a really good way to check it out I would always encourage buying these classics because the resale is great and they're super collectible and fun but this is a really good way to try a ball semi metal [Music] you [Music] [Music] [Applause] [Music] the noise reducer in our 300 the knob of the the boss noise suppressor became a switch and it suppresses noise the ultra chorus you see 200 the boss super chorus ch1 yellow and blue same circuit I mean this is pretty dead-on [Music] you [Music] the vintage tube overdrive tio 800 everybody take a guess all right you guessed right ts808 so not only am I gonna play this against a real 808 I'm gonna play it against the first-year edition 808 black label Japan highly sought-after super expensive and super snobby so we're gonna hear these together I don't need to talk about this you just need to listen [Music] [Music] so behringer not only makes the small plastic enclosures they have a series that are in larger metal enclosures and sometimes include tubes inside of them this is the vintage tube monster vacuum tube overdrive and it's based around an old ibanez tube King I don't have that pedal but this is really really close I have a friend who has both I talked to him about it and it feels like this is quite modified but definitely in the spirit of that old Ibanez pedal so if you're into trying to over drive pedals you can check it out I always kind of question a tube pedal running at 9 volts it's starving the plate voltage and you know kind of pointless it just depends I'm not saying that's always the case so check this out I think it sounds really good the vintage time machine delay echo chorus vibrato I wonder what this could possibly be now there's no way there's no way it doesn't even look the same it doesn't even have the same switch locations yeah it is it is so this is a deluxe memory man here's what I think about this this is impressive but there are some differences so this does sound like the memory man because I believe the circuit is pretty close if not exact but there's one difference this runs at nine volts this is at 24 so what you see with this pedal is that it has less Headroom overall meaning when the repeats come they're a little fuzzier the tone of this is much darker so the repeat is more muffled and not as bright when you play this that repeat is a lot more clear and pristine and you could say a little more beautiful it has more character in the upper range now the reason this is dark is with the delay design if you're running it at a lower voltage and getting noise you need to filter that noise out so you end up deleting the high end and that's probably what's going on here the fact that this is nine volts is causing some tonal differences but it is a memory man circuit and if you've ever wanted to try one [Music] you [Music] [Music] the vintage tube overdrive vacuum tube overdrive when something says overdrive twice that means it's double good in this case it is a BK Butler tube driver this is a vintage one this is actually one of Andy Timmons I have a few on-loan playing with them and I gotta say it's pretty dead-on and that's wild that's wild to me yeah so this has a tube in it just like this they both run at 9 volts I know I said earlier I'm not a fan of that and I'm really not but in the case of the tube driver I actually liked the 9 volt one I don't know why that is and at this point I'm not gonna worry about it I just think both these sound really good you'll see for yourself it's a really cool pedal [Music] [Music] compression sustainer CS 400 compression sustainer cs3 this was green this is blue so blue green green blue the TM 300 tube amp modeler I don't have the pedal that this is a replica of and of course I'm sad I'm usually sad about those things but here's a picture of it the great thing about this this is a really good way to try out a direct input guitar signal so this is a cab and amp simulator the sansamp gt2 that this is based on is phenomenal I can't recommend that enough because it's built like a tank it's an exceptional circuit so that's what this is this is obviously fragile but if you're wanting to put this on your board and go direct in and not use an amplifier this is a really good way to start to see if that's something that might be you know up your alley something you're into next up is my absolute other most favorite because I have a few obviously we'll just let that lie there it is the super fuzz SF 300 it is a replica of the now sought-after hyper fuzz FZ 2 it's dead on when I say dead on it is dead on it is a beautiful classic fuzz circuit with the high octave much like you heard on the octave fuzz 101 episode and to get into that a little further this gets more dramatic because they replicated this but boss actually replicated the old univox super fuss this thing is nearing $1,000 and the boss unit is now a few hundred bucks but this is like $30 so you've got to try this if you've ever wanted to try octave fuzz or question your belief in the ability to use octave fuzz go get this I'm just saying if you guys don't all go buy this I'm gonna be really frustrated with you like I'm trying to help you I'm trying to be like a Yoda at like a fuzz octave Yoda right now and I need you guys to just just buy in like don't question me get this put it first in your signal chain and play some acid man you [Music] today's record time is brought to you by 2008 Elliott Smith figure-eight album this is an exceptional record if you haven't heard of Elliott Smith you just need to know he's super important he's a prolific songwriter we lost him at an early age but he has some incredible work that he left behind and just super influential so many people tie their love of songwriting in the starts of their careers back to hearing his records this is one of those albums where my favorite track is every track I love how he writes I love his chord progressions I love the way that he uses the electric guitar to create melodies underneath what he's doing and he pieces together the instrumentation in such a unique way so if you have not heard this then you must go check it out in the comments below I want to know what you think about it and I also want to know about someone that you love a songwriter that's super influential that maybe a lot of people don't know about put that in there and tell me what album to listen to and I will check it out that's it for this episode I think the conclusion is that we have to admit they sound really good now they're made a little different than the actual units that they're replicating they're plastic enclosures may not be super reliable but I've used a few of these over the years and I never had one break I've heard that some people have so from my perspective they're definitely worth buying it's a really great line of pedals to get in and check out some effects you might not be able to afford otherwise and if you play a pedal and you like it it inspires you and you love the guitar more I think that it's worth checking out and these pedals fall into that category one other point to consider is resale value if you go by a boss vb2 you drop a couple hundred bucks on it you're always gonna get that money back if you buy the behringer model you're probably never gonna get your 2530 dollars back so you got to weigh that out and decide for yourself I would love in the comments below to hear about bérenger pedals that you own or have owned if you've used them out in the wild if you've toured with them if you've used them in the studio I'd like to know what your experience was and we could talk about that on there did they break did you like them do you still use them that'd be a really fun conversation to have if you liked this episode hit like subscribe to the channel and there's a bell icon if you click that you get notifications of every future episode until next time I'll see you later

Channel: JHS Pedals

Views: 1,877,510

Rating: 4.9291191 out of 5

Keywords: JHS, JHS Pedals, Guitar, Guitar Pedals, Electric Guitar, Guitar Effects, Guitar Player, Guitar Playing, Pedal Demo, Guitar Demo, New Pedals, New Guitar Pedals, Josh Scott, Guitar Gear, Music Gear, Guitar Tones, Pedal Tones, Good Guitar Tone, Best Guitar Tone, Best Electric Guitar Tone, Analog Guitar Tone, Guitar Sounds, JHS Guitar Pedals, JHS VLOG, JHS Videos, Behringer Pedals, Cheap Pedals, Inexpensive Pedals, Behringer Effects

Id: ApJZa8yCMCQ

Length: 24min 58sec (1498 seconds)

Published: Thu Apr 11 2019

Reddit Comments

[u/slap_me_thrice]

I hope Behringer make a video called "What's the deal with JHS?"

😜

[u/kidkolumbo]

Some thoughts as I watch:

1. Pedalmakers buy supplies from the Big B. Huh.

2. Juan Alderete says he's able to hear the difference between the uv300 and VB2 in a blind test, but also uses the uv300 because price/availability. He used it until the EQD vibrato pedal just came out, and it's neat hearing the JHS man uses it too (I'm blanking on his name). I've got one on my bass board.

3. The HM2 clone sounds very different in this vid when in others I feel like it sounded more similar. I like they way they both sound.

4. I'm surprised at some of the clones. For example, I always though the tube overdrives wer muffs, but the big one is actually an Ibanez Tube King and the small one a tube driver?

5. I think Behringer's tube modeler pedal sucks when used DI'd (like it's meant to). I wonder if I'd find the GT2 equally terrible?

6. Knew the SF300 was a clone of the HZ-2, didn't know the HZ-2 was itself a clone.

[u/DavidTCIC]

Don't think the fz2 is a spot on super fuzz clone. Inspired, of course. With that being said, i need to pick one of those sf300 behringers

[u/EspressoSeagull]

Never been a big user of a tube screamer, but I'm still genuinely surprised that I thought the Behringer TO800 sounded just as good (if not better) than the Ibanez. Might look in to buying one or two Behringer clones and modify the flimsy enclosure or at least change the knobs.

[u/zinobythebay]

I love JHS channel on YouTube. One thing I don't think he mentioned is build quality. Sound wise, many of Behringers pedals are great. However, they can't take a such abuse because of the plastic enclosure. I used a Behringer reverb for a while and it got to the point one day where it was creating a lot of unwanted sound and buzz. I think they are good but beware if you're a gigging musician.

[u/guybrush_threepwould]

Dammit, dont make me like you JHS. This video was pretty good

[u/joomommyhappy]

This video is affecting stock levels and online classifieds 'round the world.

I just clocked a used Vintage Tube Overdrive (in an ad that mentioned this video), even though I think the original 808 sounded noticeably better.

But half off an already "practically giving it away" price? Yes, please.

The SF300 seems like the no-brainsiest pedal to ever exist. Gonna have to wait for that one, though.