Another excellent tip!! I also found shift+unison in unison mode toggles through the number of voices and when not in unison it toggles through 8 poly modes.
Thanks for the great video Starsky. I received my UB the other day and was hoping you'd post video. Two days later, there your were! This was a great help to me in learning to navigate the synth. Well done as always!!
Nice! Thanks for the deep dive! As an insufferable dork 😁, I am obligated to point out that LED's -- light *emitting* diodes -- don't require a backlight. That's an LCD display with the polarizer flipped, inverting the display such the the characters appear lit, rather than the background. In any case, nice review!
No one ever seems to win challenges, no matter how bogus the claim is. Their system for copyright enforcement is very much rigged in favor of the big companies.
@@iixorb Most people can't draw hands either. If that's the factor that qualifies one to be an arbitrator of such things, hardly anyone would qualify :)
Agreed. Nice review, thanks! I have had mine for about 2 weeks now, and the only 2 negatives are the notch-less encoder, which feels a bit flimsy and can move easily when pushing it to enter a value, and the display which can be unreadable at certain angles. Everything else is pretty much unbeatable, especially at this price point! One thing I forgot to mention is the fact that, even though this is an analog synth, it's pretty much in tune from the moment you turn it on, and the synth NEVER drifts off to the point of requiring to recalibrate it! The continuous background auto-tune works really really well!
Great review, as usual. It's a shame Behringer wouldn't "splurge" on panel-mount pots and/or OLED display. Their Eurorack modules feel top notch, so they are clearly capable of producing kit with non-wobbly knobs...
Its basically the same with their Eurorack modules. The pots are not panel-mount and, worse, not the patch inputs either. Its a shame as they are otherwise very nice.
Many thanks for this video - my UBXa just arrived, and you're right it's increased in price, but as you say still very much worth it for the sound and the possibilities at that price. I was surprised at the quality of the build, much better than my previous purchases from Behringer. I'd second the comments about the screen being too far to the right but really no problem in practise.
I hope in an update they make the Atrophy and Performance settings savable with a patch. As you mentioned, Voice Modes (2/4/8/ect) would be useful as well. They did mention they're taking notes and planning an OS update, so fingers crossed. BTW, there's some cool voice mod options in the mod matrix. Also, just a bit of info for people. Shift+Master Volume. This will be saved with the preset. This voice spread sounds nice to my ears, got it form a cool dude on gearspace. 1 = -5 2 = +5 3 = -95 4 = +95 5 = -80 6 = +80 7 = -65 8 = +65 9 = -50 10 = +50 11 = -35 12 = +35 13 = -20 14 = +20 15 = -110 16 = +110
@@markslandingsandaviationvi3123 Yes, I saw the announcement. There's actually quite a few updates. "tom noise" on youtube goes through them. Cool stuff.
The atrophy menu is what makes this a super versatile synth. You can mimic your own instability with it and more. I think with the update 2.0 these setting are now stored with the patches as well. What a great sounding synth
The screen on the in-progress JT-16 (Jupiter-8 clone, on the same form factor of the ubxa) has been moved, not to the center of the entire unit, but to where the center of the keybed is.
Well … he was more enthusiastic about the sounds, but disappointed by the some of the design choices of the OBX8, considering the price, if I remember correctly? Whereas, with this one, he is much more polite about and less enthusiastic about the sound, but considering the price, it makes for a nice synth? But his demos of the OB-6 … it was obvious that he loves that one. If you were using his demos to sway you one way or another to buy a modern Oberheim, then the OB-6 is a clear winner.
The Eventide Space pedal is my favourite purchase in the past few years. Another plugin to check out is Native Instrument's Raum... but it's no Blackhole.
Thanks for this, been waiting for your review of this one. Hope you were able to monetise it despite the filter sweeps. I like the UB-Xa but financially I’m holding off until they release the VCS3 clone later this year (fingers crossed)
The fact that he mentioned this in the video means he edited and re-uploaded minus the “claimed” piece. So hopefully this video can be monetized. The whole copyright claim system is horribly broken if it can claim a single filter sweep, essentially one note.
The copyright claims people have is so funny, its like claiming reving a Volvo 740 is copyrighted😂 Löve your videos, always make me wanna enlargen my synth museum
I already have the exact OLED alternative screen lying around at home. Someone posted the manufacturer and model of the original screen and they have an OLED variant that can be swapped. Maybe on this budget they wanted to achieve the 10~ were crucial to be saved.
I’ve been thinking about this… I think they’ve worked to a maximum price so stripped out things like metal shafts and bolted on pots, the screen, the memory (extra would be required for atrophy per patch) … none of these are large but added together they bring the total price nearer to other synths like the peak or rev2 8 voice. I think B are keeping it as low as possible to avoid bringing it into similar price ranges as others. What’s essential (metal body) what’s not (OLED screen and metal shafts etc). So nothing in its own results in a large price increase but … maybe with feedback they’ll decide the screen is a worthwhile addition.
It sounds.....very very nice. We prebies should see them pretty soon. Great taste, thank you and those who make it easier to own such nice bits at prices that let us afford to buy more from other makers too.
Literally cancelled my pre order from Andertons which was £899.99. I wasn’t ready to drop that amount on it, but I’m still gonna get it but after it’s readily available and it’s updates have improved it
This surprised me, I have an OB6 and the Sub Osc really makes a biff difference, the UBxa is great for brassy pads, needs a few updates to settings like layer transpose and better unison voice management like the summit, weird not saving the performance LFO settings with the patch but overall its lovely for the price, really amazing. needs a diff colour LED too, red sucks!
Trigon 6 - choose your own sub osc shape (with 3 oscs) and has 2 and 4 pole filter. Had P6 and OB-6 and my Trigon 6 has finally hit the mark (sits with my Prophet 10 nicely)@luke5100
Go figure, now this model is finally on the market in February 2024, I’m looking for other models to do only a little bit of what this one can do because they are more portable. I do like how Behringer went so far as to include the differing voice settings, kind of like a reflection on the Four Voice with its 4 independent SEM panels.
Is there some button or way to make the knob positions reflect the sound instantly? Some companies call it 'panel mode'. I think the Atrophy section that you demonstrated really well is probably the most interesting thing about this synth. It brings so much versatility to the sound and in a way provides lots of additional subtle LFOs.
WOW! Awesome review! Finally, someone who understands and explains the Atrophy modes! Now I absolutely can't wait to hear the real comparison with the Ob-X8! Please use the thick warm pads that you played at the beginning. I would like to hear if you get them close and which sounds better, warmer, or thicker at the end. Only you can do it!
You know what Id love to see? Behringers take on the OBMx, given that its hard to get, and pretty limited, Id love to see them reissue it and maket accessible!
Nice demo, thanks. It seems there are more of these in stock at the moment. One question you may be able to answer. Can you start and stop a preloaded sequence via a foot pedal. I'm mainly a Guitarist/Bassist however I'm thinking of triggering the chords to Jump with my feet.
Looks like a great synth, but the only way to get less than 16 voices in unison is to inhibit voices in the menu? You’d think there would be a “unison voices” option accessible by holding the button and twisting a knob like on Sequentials. Maybe in a firmware update. On the hold button & chord mode, would engaging Hold, then hold one key and while holding that one, strike each of the additional keys of the chord, then hitting the chord button work?
Have you seen anyone using this as a poly aftertouch controller? Some mention that this is best over USB. Oh dear, your demo is really selling it to me.
I’ve got mine controlling Peak and Hydrasynth modules via MIDI: poly aftertouch is working fine. The only issue I’ve encountered is the UBxa sending CC7, so turning its volume down silences the modules being controlled. Easily solved by either turning CC RX off in the modules, or muting the UBxa’s mixer channel.
Thanks… I normally use the Eventide Blackhole software, so that’s more than likely what I used here. A go to for me it just makes stuff sound great (and when I’m not fitting into a mix I normally simply use the default patch!)
Thank you for this test. I think the addition of polyphonic aftertouch is excellent, personnaly I regret my Ensoniq EPS which had this feature. For pads, strings and brass this is a realy good tool for expression. I think poly aftertouch should be a standard feature on all keyboards. Regarding the product itself I would be curious to see what's inside, the components, etc... But it could void your guarantee.
@@StarskyCarr Thanks, mate, you're the real boss! But does it looks like the original? Obviously I don't mean "actualy" looks like, of course it doesn't, but is the architecture, with different components, the same? I guess we need a genuine IC-otaku to know that 👽
Ok - the atrophy settings - especially the continual filter drifting is not like any vintage synth I've ever owned or played. A properly functioning vintage analog poly with VCOs should only exhibit very, very subtle differences between voices/tunings/timings - and if they do drift, it's over a much longer period of time - more like several minutes like in old Minimoogs rather than every few seconds. If any vintage synth's individual filters and oscillators are noticeably "drifting" as fast as those examples, especially like that "creamy" setting - it really needs to go to a tech for some major repair. If Behringer really wanted to get that type of effect, they should have not resorted to background auto-tuning. If they would've implemented the typical "tune" button found on things like their older OB brothers and other VCO polys (JP6/8, P5/10/T8/600, etc.) - one that you needed to hit every hour or so as things slowly heated and slowwwwwly shifted to an untuned state. That sounds natural - not that continual shifting like a broken LFO. Sheesh.
You can set drift speed to work over minutes - but it makes for a rather boring video 😂 I’ve had them where the envelopes were completely out of.. and yes I needed to open the hood, but here I’m trying to demo what’s tweakable. You can see it to perfect, subtle or disastrous
I put it in the most extremes setting for the purpose of demonstration it can be imperceptibly subtle… but a 10 min 15 cent frequency shift doesn’t make for an interesting demo.
Looking very pale today? Hope you're OK? 😂 great review as ever... super sounds eh... and for the money. Not for me. Have a 16 voice rev 2 DCO desktop and hydrasynth for the poly at. Not quite the same... but have plenty of synths to be going at. Slightly put off Behringer after my TD 3 MO, great sound for the money but plasticy... Am still tempted by the BARP as could never own a real one. I'm sure this/ these are better.
I always think, "is it a good synth for the gigging musician?" Is it a performance synth or more studio? If you had 5 different patches in a song could they be changed easily from the front panel?
Great review, as always! They have done a great job with this, but still there is a major mistake - they should have provided separate audio outputs for both engines in split mode. Without them it is pointless to have the split mode and so many voices. They should have got some ideas from how it was done in Hydrasynth. Also all those global settings, which affect the sound, should be saved with the patches. Most reviews show also a quite thin sound, and this is the first review, where it sounds acceptable to me.
You can pan voices 1-8 left and 9-16 right for separate outs in split or double mode. .. and cheers, I tend not to use presets as I program the tones to reel the ‘story’ as I run through the various functions.
@@StarskyCarr That's an option, but not very convenient in a live situation, if you want left hand played bass to stay dead center, and right hand played lead or pad to be panned. And by live situation I mean also studio recording live.
@@kristianborisov5928 I mean, it’s certainly not ideal, but I may be missing something, as I don’t see the issue with recording both simultaneously. If one set of voices is hard panned left and one is hard panned right, and you record the outputs as two mono channels, you can record them simultaneously fine, and pan them as you want. Now, if each set of voices had a stereo width that you want to preserve, it would be a problem, but do they? For reference, that’s how I used to record my kicks separately from the rest of the sounds out of my Korg EMX, and also how I currently feed the output of my main mixer into the inputs of my Syntakt when playing live, I treat left and right as independent buses to send stuff to.
Of their planned 5 octave dual timbre poly AT synths this is understandably the first to ship and to me the least interesting. The UB-X, Pro 16, JT-16, and DS-80 will hopefully not take too long to get into production.
It also depends on lighting ISO and lens settings so it’s not always possible. Annoying I know. .. and can be very frustrating! Sometimes one lense will and the other won’t etc.
It depends on the shutter speed only, and your luck - sometimes the pwm freq of the LEDs fits the camera refresh period. Set your camera to manual exposure, fix shutter at 1/30, and you have to adjust all the other parameters accordingly to avoid overexposure. Close the aperture up to F16, fix ISO at 100. If this all is not enough, try lowering the light, or apply an ND filter. Good luck, thanks for the review!
thanks for the info. The problem is often balancing the f stop ISO and shutter rate for a clear image. It’s easier on a f1.4 to do what you like but my zoom lenses are only f5.0 and f4.8 so sometimes to get better overall images the shutter speed can’t avoid flickering - other times I just don’t notice it on the tiny camera screen until I’m editing 😂🤦♂️
I’m hoping that there will be a mk2 version which will upgrade the screen etc. I don’t think that I can hold out though, it looks and sounds really great as it is.
How does "Compare" work as I would expect it should go back to the non-edited voice. Mine doesn't do anything. "Compare - when editing a patch it is often useful to compare your edited version to the original. If you select Compare while editing the display will show you the stored value and edited value of the current control you are using, with an arrow to indicate whether you are above or below the stored value." SO that sucks I wanted to compare the changes to the original sound and not a value if that's what it means.
Is the screen viewing issue a problem with contrast, or is it just set a little far back such than the edges of the panel physically obstruct your view?
@@StarskyCarr sure, lots of synths have LCDs that you can’t read from certain angles. My MS2000 is one example. Even the good ol’ DX7, with its LCD in the centre (and no contrast control) had that issue. I can live with that! (And I guess that’s why Yamaha added the two-digit LED numeric display). In my personal opinion, a way bigger UI crime is to have hundreds of patch slots accessible only with the “twiddle a knob and push a button” method. As far as I’m concerned, all programmable synths should have buttons that allow you to dial up any patch without having to look at a display, and without risking calling up the wrong sound because you inadvertently twisted the encoder a little as you pressed it. It’s not uncommon in a performance situation to need to very quickly and deliberately switch between patches, like between a verse and a chorus. The encoder method simply isn’t accurate and quick enough, plus it requires the player’s visual attention.
Usually in a unison mode or on monophonic synths there are two modes for triggering the envelopes. Single triggering -- envelopes won't retrigger if you play legato, only retrigger after all keys are up and a new note is played. Multiple triggering mode -- envelopes retrigger every time you play a new note regardless of playing legato. For example: on Behringer Mono/Poly, lower right on control panel ---Trigger - Single/Multiple switch.@@StarskyCarr
Thanks, I searched the web and the anemic manual. Hope they add it in firmware. Bought a demo model for $1K U.S. impressive synth and still love my DeepMinds. Your vids are awesome.@@StarskyCarr
If the sound or something very similar has been heard before I might throw a reverb on top next time to demo how it sounds with FX - people ask for it so it’s not always dry. Most of the sounds (over 85%) don’t have it. So sorry for the 15% that have clouded your ability to hear it.
I had a brief play on this keyboard and what lost me was the feel of the keybed - very light and just not great. I don’t pretend to be an expert on synths or keybeds, but my Yamaha SY77 and ASM Hydrasynth Explore both have significantly nicer keybeds. It’s a shame as Behringer appear to have done a stellar job on building essentially an affordable clone and have skimped out on the keybed. Better to add $100 to the price and put in a good quality keybed.
I’m hearing a persistent high pitch ting on every sound. Did something get tweaked and left on in the global settings? Could just be my ears, who knows.
Someone's gotta make the full Rush Subdivisions cover with this, the Toro and Model D. Once the Big B gets their PPG wave tribute done full Grace Under Pressure era covers...
I think Subsivisions polysynth was OB-X, not OB-Xa. So you’ll probably have to wait a bit longer for the UB-X. FWIW it’s not a complicated polysynth patch. The OB-6 can nail it, and I’ve come pretty close with JX-8P. As for the Minimoog solo, I have played it on my Behringer Model D and it’s perfect. Tom Sawyer too.
@@infindebula It is an OBX but I've gotten close with arturias's softsynth version of the OBXa. Is Behringer working on an OBX as well? The absolute madmen.
This looks like and sounds like Behringers best poly synth to date and yes I will say (as a previous Deepmind owner before I sold it) the Deepmind is a poor attempt at a poly synth.
Personally I love my Deepmind. I still haven't explored all its possibilities. It's a different sound sure, and getting thick sounds can require sacrificing half the voices, but having onboard effects and a nice screen for the mod matrix is lovely
Anyone else feel like the sound of the ubxa is a bit flaccid? Definitely decent value for just over $1k usd, but I haven’t heard a single demo that has gotten me excited. Compare the ubxa to the Obxa demo j3po did and the obxa feels transcendental and rich and deep by comparison. Yes it costs 20x more, but I was hoping behringer could still capture that depth, which in this case they haven’t imo
I owned the OBXA for quite some time. When it was working , itI was one of a kind. This UBXA gets close. Especially if you know what you’re doing program wise.
@@StarskyCarr! Of course, because so far no one has done it on those instruments properly yet. Otherwise it will never be clear whether the UB-Xa shines as bright & clear OB-series is known for. So far, all the comparison videos made the impression that it does not match the OB-sound, mainly because they were merely fiddling around than comparing seriously.
@@leftmono1016There are block character displays like this one in black/red OLED. I think they could have used one of those as a compromise between form and function.
I would like to have a vintage led dot/alpha numeric or a cold cathode display and metal shafts instead. It would cost more, but for this synth it should be worth it. Bodyssey has similar orange LCD which I am not too fond of.
You can't argue with the Rev2 and Take5... an excellent combination. I've got the T5 and would definitely pick the Rev2 as the perfect all rounder if I didn't have the others.
Not much to say tbh. Theyre different to others and take some getting used to. You can invert them so pushing forwards or backwards increases/decreases mod. But they’re the same as the OB.
To turn independent Pulse width hold the waveform select Button and turn the Pulse width Knob
Excellent… pinned
@@StarskyCarrI don’t know if it helps to get out of a menu double click compare
Another excellent tip!! I also found shift+unison in unison mode toggles through the number of voices and when not in unison it toggles through 8 poly modes.
@@StarskyCarrwait did you read the manual? You know it’s not fair 😊
Thanks for the great video Starsky. I received my UB the other day and was hoping you'd post video. Two days later, there your were! This was a great help to me in learning to navigate the synth. Well done as always!!
I’m still waiting on mine.. where are you located?
South Carolina USA@@Studio55DavidV
Nice! Thanks for the deep dive!
As an insufferable dork 😁, I am obligated to point out that LED's -- light *emitting* diodes -- don't require a backlight. That's an LCD display with the polarizer flipped, inverting the display such the the characters appear lit, rather than the background.
In any case, nice review!
Haha… nice. 👌 😀
I can't believe a filter sweep gets flagged as a copyright strike.
Someone needs to finally challenge the filter sweep strike.
No one ever seems to win challenges, no matter how bogus the claim is. Their system for copyright enforcement is very much rigged in favor of the big companies.
Brought to you by AI. That wonderful innovation which can’t draw hands properly but will arbitrate and control everything we do! 😣
@@iixorb Most people can't draw hands either. If that's the factor that qualifies one to be an arbitrator of such things, hardly anyone would qualify :)
@@payt01Most folks, save perhaps cartoonists, follow the five-finger rule.
Agreed. Nice review, thanks! I have had mine for about 2 weeks now, and the only 2 negatives are the notch-less encoder, which feels a bit flimsy and can move easily when pushing it to enter a value, and the display which can be unreadable at certain angles. Everything else is pretty much unbeatable, especially at this price point!
One thing I forgot to mention is the fact that, even though this is an analog synth, it's pretty much in tune from the moment you turn it on, and the synth NEVER drifts off to the point of requiring to recalibrate it! The continuous background auto-tune works really really well!
Confused me when I first heard it, thought I had an instance of Valhalla Freq echo running somewhere :)
Great review, as usual. It's a shame Behringer wouldn't "splurge" on panel-mount pots and/or OLED display. Their Eurorack modules feel top notch, so they are clearly capable of producing kit with non-wobbly knobs...
Its basically the same with their Eurorack modules. The pots are not panel-mount and, worse, not the patch inputs either. Its a shame as they are otherwise very nice.
@@TheDrglas I've had good experience with their system 55 clones. For example, the 960 sequencer. Great build quality.
Many thanks for this video - my UBXa just arrived, and you're right it's increased in price, but as you say still very much worth it for the sound and the possibilities at that price. I was surprised at the quality of the build, much better than my previous purchases from Behringer. I'd second the comments about the screen being too far to the right but really no problem in practise.
I hope in an update they make the Atrophy and Performance settings savable with a patch. As you mentioned, Voice Modes (2/4/8/ect) would be useful as well. They did mention they're taking notes and planning an OS update, so fingers crossed.
BTW, there's some cool voice mod options in the mod matrix. Also, just a bit of info for people. Shift+Master Volume. This will be saved with the preset.
This voice spread sounds nice to my ears, got it form a cool dude on gearspace.
1 = -5
2 = +5
3 = -95
4 = +95
5 = -80
6 = +80
7 = -65
8 = +65
9 = -50
10 = +50
11 = -35
12 = +35
13 = -20
14 = +20
15 = -110
16 = +110
Hi, update 2.0 is out brighter filter from my understanding and ability to save Atrophy modes🥳🥳🥳
@@markslandingsandaviationvi3123 Yes, I saw the announcement. There's actually quite a few updates. "tom noise" on youtube goes through them. Cool stuff.
As usual, the ultimate review ❤well done
Outstanding video, as always. Nice to see options like this on the market.
The atrophy menu is what makes this a super versatile synth. You can mimic your own instability with it and more. I think with the update 2.0 these setting are now stored with the patches as well. What a great sounding synth
Thanks for showing the Atrophy modes. That is indeed a great feature. Poly aftertouch is not too shabby either!
VPO is voltage per octave, so it changes the tuning and the filter tracking per voice.
The screen on the in-progress JT-16 (Jupiter-8 clone, on the same form factor of the ubxa) has been moved, not to the center of the entire unit, but to where the center of the keybed is.
would love to see the challenge against $5000 monster!
I sold mine broken for over $5000
Well … he was more enthusiastic about the sounds, but disappointed by the some of the design choices of the OBX8, considering the price, if I remember correctly?
Whereas, with this one, he is much more polite about and less enthusiastic about the sound, but considering the price, it makes for a nice synth?
But his demos of the OB-6 … it was obvious that he loves that one.
If you were using his demos to sway you one way or another to buy a modern Oberheim, then the OB-6 is a clear winner.
Wasn't as much competition when the OB6 was released... @@79Glitch
v2 video would be amazing thanx for your vids!!
What a great video thank you . Got my ubxa last week I love it .
Where are you located ? I’m still waiting on mine 😒
They could have installed that display into the P800.
Thanks for the demo!
But then where would be the joy in emulating of the pain of using a clunky 80s interface. ;)
I for one don't mind the p800 interface, is my only polysynth, so it's easy to remember all the menu stuff for me.
Can't knock it for £1K. Nice one Behringer and Starsky
If the screen would be left, they could also have multi used the buttons (grouped in fours) as sequencer step buttons.
And that’s how you do an unboxing. 20 seconds and we’re down to business.
Good job by Behringer. I have an original XA and this doesn’t quite have the growl but sounds good.
After watching this video I am definitely buying an Eventide Blackhole.😊
The Eventide Space pedal is my favourite purchase in the past few years. Another plugin to check out is Native Instrument's Raum... but it's no Blackhole.
I fuck black holes because the space in raum is not made to pack my huge horn sound...
Thanks for this, been waiting for your review of this one. Hope you were able to monetise it despite the filter sweeps. I like the UB-Xa but financially I’m holding off until they release the VCS3 clone later this year (fingers crossed)
The fact that he mentioned this in the video means he edited and re-uploaded minus the “claimed” piece. So hopefully this video can be monetized. The whole copyright claim system is horribly broken if it can claim a single filter sweep, essentially one note.
Excellent definitely want to hear more of how it sounds
The copyright claims people have is so funny, its like claiming reving a Volvo 740 is copyrighted😂
Löve your videos, always make me wanna enlargen my synth museum
I already have the exact OLED alternative screen lying around at home. Someone posted the manufacturer and model of the original screen and they have an OLED variant that can be swapped.
Maybe on this budget they wanted to achieve the 10~ were crucial to be saved.
I’ve been thinking about this… I think they’ve worked to a maximum price so stripped out things like metal shafts and bolted on pots, the screen, the memory (extra would be required for atrophy per patch) … none of these are large but added together they bring the total price nearer to other synths like the peak or rev2 8 voice. I think B are keeping it as low as possible to avoid bringing it into similar price ranges as others. What’s essential (metal body) what’s not (OLED screen and metal shafts etc). So nothing in its own results in a large price increase but … maybe with feedback they’ll decide the screen is a worthwhile addition.
The two line red LED gives me JD-XI PTSD.
You actually used your nose, didn't see it coming. That's why I come here, the sheer dedication and integrity.
It sounds.....very very nice. We prebies should see them pretty soon. Great taste, thank you and those who make it easier to own such nice bits at prices that let us afford to buy more from other makers too.
This would look amazing next to my Ms 101
Literally cancelled my pre order from Andertons which was £899.99. I wasn’t ready to drop that amount on it, but I’m still gonna get it but after it’s readily available and it’s updates have improved it
The screen is very similar to the screen on the original Prophet '08, which I bought in... '08.
atrophy per patch is a really cool idea that sounds possible via firmware
As long as there's spare storage (guessing NVRAM) remaining
Some great sounds hear. The Celeste patch is lovely.
This surprised me, I have an OB6 and the Sub Osc really makes a biff difference, the UBxa is great for brassy pads, needs a few updates to settings like layer transpose and better unison voice management like the summit, weird not saving the performance LFO settings with the patch but overall its lovely for the price, really amazing. needs a diff colour LED too, red sucks!
you can poly chain them
@luke5100
Agree about the red LED , should be blue OLED.
Trigon 6 - choose your own sub osc shape (with 3 oscs) and has 2 and 4 pole filter. Had P6 and OB-6 and my Trigon 6 has finally hit the mark (sits with my Prophet 10 nicely)@luke5100
Go figure, now this model is finally on the market in February 2024, I’m looking for other models to do only a little bit of what this one can do because they are more portable. I do like how Behringer went so far as to include the differing voice settings, kind of like a reflection on the Four Voice with its 4 independent SEM panels.
They recently announced a desktop
The desktop is now out and we now have the 2.0 update with ability to save Atrophy!😄
Firmware 2.0 is coming today, Atrophy settings per patch and more!
Is there some button or way to make the knob positions reflect the sound instantly? Some companies call it 'panel mode'. I think the Atrophy section that you demonstrated really well is probably the most interesting thing about this synth. It brings so much versatility to the sound and in a way provides lots of additional subtle LFOs.
Yes there’s a manual button
WOW! Awesome review! Finally, someone who understands and explains the Atrophy modes! Now I absolutely can't wait to hear the real comparison with the Ob-X8! Please use the thick warm pads that you played at the beginning. I would like to hear if you get them close and which sounds better, warmer, or thicker at the end. Only you can do it!
You know what Id love to see? Behringers take on the OBMx, given that its hard to get, and pretty limited, Id love to see them reissue it and maket accessible!
Nice demo, thanks. It seems there are more of these in stock at the moment. One question you may be able to answer. Can you start and stop a preloaded sequence via a foot pedal.
I'm mainly a Guitarist/Bassist however I'm thinking of triggering the chords to Jump with my feet.
Not that I know of. Sorry.
They’ve done a great job with this eh. 👌
Sounds gorgeous
'Our limits of the infinite have never been defined
Spirit lies in atrophy in a state too late to unwind' DB '88
I only know Silver Machine.
Hawkwind?
@@Dudderlyful on Xenon codex in 88
Looks like a great synth, but the only way to get less than 16 voices in unison is to inhibit voices in the menu? You’d think there would be a “unison voices” option accessible by holding the button and twisting a knob like on Sequentials. Maybe in a firmware update.
On the hold button & chord mode, would engaging Hold, then hold one key and while holding that one, strike each of the additional keys of the chord, then hitting the chord button work?
No there’s another way - Shift + unison toggles through the number of voices - just found it today!
Have you seen anyone using this as a poly aftertouch controller? Some mention that this is best over USB. Oh dear, your demo is really selling it to me.
I’ve got mine controlling Peak and Hydrasynth modules via MIDI: poly aftertouch is working fine. The only issue I’ve encountered is the UBxa sending CC7, so turning its volume down silences the modules being controlled. Easily solved by either turning CC RX off in the modules, or muting the UBxa’s mixer channel.
great video as always!
Nice one thanks.
Great run through! Id love to put this head to head with the real thing!!
theeres a few videos of that already on youtube
Fair review and great job as always. Thanks! I agree that the display could be better but meanwhile I am used to it.
Great demo, learned alot here. What reverb are you using...it sounds fantastic!
Thanks… I normally use the Eventide Blackhole software, so that’s more than likely what I used here. A go to for me it just makes stuff sound great (and when I’m not fitting into a mix I normally simply use the default patch!)
@@StarskyCarr thanks
Sounds great to my ears. Thanks for another excellent review 🙂
Here we go! Great idea as well man.
Thank you for this test. I think the addition of polyphonic aftertouch is excellent, personnaly I regret my Ensoniq EPS which had this feature. For pads, strings and brass this is a realy good tool for expression.
I think poly aftertouch should be a standard feature on all keyboards.
Regarding the product itself I would be curious to see what's inside, the components, etc... But it could void your guarantee.
I'm sure I've seen a picture somewhere online.
facebook.com/Behringer/posts/10157066694248914/?locale=ms_MY
@@StarskyCarr Thanks, mate, you're the real boss! But does it looks like the original? Obviously I don't mean "actualy" looks like, of course it doesn't, but is the architecture, with different components, the same? I guess we need a genuine IC-otaku to know that 👽
It would be great to have a daw plugin that could control the atrophy ( and other) settings from the daw in real time.
Is it right that many say that Ensoniq were years ahead of their time? I have the TS12 and it just has a phenomenal sound and colour/flavour to it😄🥳
Ok - the atrophy settings - especially the continual filter drifting is not like any vintage synth I've ever owned or played. A properly functioning vintage analog poly with VCOs should only exhibit very, very subtle differences between voices/tunings/timings - and if they do drift, it's over a much longer period of time - more like several minutes like in old Minimoogs rather than every few seconds. If any vintage synth's individual filters and oscillators are noticeably "drifting" as fast as those examples, especially like that "creamy" setting - it really needs to go to a tech for some major repair.
If Behringer really wanted to get that type of effect, they should have not resorted to background auto-tuning. If they would've implemented the typical "tune" button found on things like their older OB brothers and other VCO polys (JP6/8, P5/10/T8/600, etc.) - one that you needed to hit every hour or so as things slowly heated and slowwwwwly shifted to an untuned state. That sounds natural - not that continual shifting like a broken LFO. Sheesh.
You can set drift speed to work over minutes - but it makes for a rather boring video 😂 I’ve had them where the envelopes were completely out of.. and yes I needed to open the hood, but here I’m trying to demo what’s tweakable. You can see it to perfect, subtle or disastrous
I put it in the most extremes setting for the purpose of demonstration it can be imperceptibly subtle… but a 10 min 15 cent frequency shift doesn’t make for an interesting demo.
Starsky is obviously enlightened 😂
Shining brightly!!
@@StarskyCarrlike a diamond ;>
Looking very pale today? Hope you're OK? 😂 great review as ever... super sounds eh... and for the money. Not for me. Have a 16 voice rev 2 DCO desktop and hydrasynth for the poly at. Not quite the same... but have plenty of synths to be going at. Slightly put off Behringer after my TD 3 MO, great sound for the money but plasticy... Am still tempted by the BARP as could never own a real one. I'm sure this/ these are better.
We've a sun allergy in Liverpool.. Thanks .. I wouldn't be put off by the TD3 MO - it was as plasticy as the original.
Is there a screen contrast control because turning contrast down often improves viewing from oblique angles?
Yes there is.. it does what you expect but obtuse angles are still problematic
I always think, "is it a good synth for the gigging musician?"
Is it a performance synth or more studio?
If you had 5 different patches in a song could they be changed easily from the front panel?
Those four buttons on the bottom right of the panel allow you to have quick access to four user-specified presets.
@@peterkenney915815 in total
You have 15 accessible presets with the four buttons. Pressed simultaneously as below:
1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 12 / 13 / 14 / 23 / 24 / 34 / 123 / 124 / 134 / 234 / 1234
Ah cool, that’s even better then.
WOW comes with Eventide fx? Amazing!
Great review, as always! They have done a great job with this, but still there is a major mistake - they should have provided separate audio outputs for both engines in split mode. Without them it is pointless to have the split mode and so many voices. They should have got some ideas from how it was done in Hydrasynth. Also all those global settings, which affect the sound, should be saved with the patches. Most reviews show also a quite thin sound, and this is the first review, where it sounds acceptable to me.
You can pan voices 1-8 left and 9-16 right for separate outs in split or double mode.
.. and cheers, I tend not to use presets as I program the tones to reel the ‘story’ as I run through the various functions.
@@StarskyCarr That's an option, but not very convenient in a live situation, if you want left hand played bass to stay dead center, and right hand played lead or pad to be panned. And by live situation I mean also studio recording live.
@@kristianborisov5928 surely you’d just record them as two mono channels and then pan them accordingly?
@@AlkisT What about if you want to record both parts together?
@@kristianborisov5928 I mean, it’s certainly not ideal, but I may be missing something, as I don’t see the issue with recording both simultaneously. If one set of voices is hard panned left and one is hard panned right, and you record the outputs as two mono channels, you can record them simultaneously fine, and pan them as you want. Now, if each set of voices had a stereo width that you want to preserve, it would be a problem, but do they? For reference, that’s how I used to record my kicks separately from the rest of the sounds out of my Korg EMX, and also how I currently feed the output of my main mixer into the inputs of my Syntakt when playing live, I treat left and right as independent buses to send stuff to.
I absolutely love mine. Money well spent.
Sounds fantastic, and well priced ! Thanks for the review Starsky :)
Of their planned 5 octave dual timbre poly AT synths this is understandably the first to ship and to me the least interesting. The UB-X, Pro 16, JT-16, and DS-80 will hopefully not take too long to get into production.
Set the shutter speed to 1/30 on your camera to avoid flickering.
It also depends on lighting ISO and lens settings so it’s not always possible. Annoying I know. .. and can be very frustrating! Sometimes one lense will and the other won’t etc.
It depends on the shutter speed only, and your luck - sometimes the pwm freq of the LEDs fits the camera refresh period.
Set your camera to manual exposure, fix shutter at 1/30, and you have to adjust all the other parameters accordingly to avoid overexposure.
Close the aperture up to F16, fix ISO at 100.
If this all is not enough, try lowering the light, or apply an ND filter. Good luck, thanks for the review!
thanks for the info. The problem is often balancing the f stop ISO and shutter rate for a clear image. It’s easier on a f1.4 to do what you like but my zoom lenses are only f5.0 and f4.8 so sometimes to get better overall images the shutter speed can’t avoid flickering - other times I just don’t notice it on the tiny camera screen until I’m editing 😂🤦♂️
Goes the filter frequency higher than 15k in version 2.0 ?
I’m hoping that there will be a mk2 version which will upgrade the screen etc. I don’t think that I can hold out though, it looks and sounds really great as it is.
I doubt it … I think it’s a winner in its current state. I don’t think they’d sell enough extra to make it worthwhile.
@@StarskyCarr makes sense. I’ll get my order in. Long waiting time now.
Sounds great, but they should've asked someone like you for sensible suggestions on what "quirks"...or rather design flaws to iron out.
The atrophy is pretty much the same concept Hammond Suzuki implemented on the XK3 and onwards.
Why is the 4 pole not volume compensated, the originals dont do that do they?
Apparently they do.
How does "Compare" work as I would expect it should go back to the non-edited voice. Mine doesn't do anything. "Compare - when editing a patch it is often useful to compare your edited version to the original. If you select Compare while editing the display will show you the stored value and edited value of the current control you are using, with an arrow to indicate whether you are above or below the stored value." SO that sucks I wanted to compare the changes to the original sound and not a value if that's what it means.
Is the screen viewing issue a problem with contrast, or is it just set a little far back such than the edges of the panel physically obstruct your view?
There’s a contrast control - but contrast changes with viewing angle. It’s not a huge issue by any means - just an odd design decision.
@@StarskyCarr sure, lots of synths have LCDs that you can’t read from certain angles. My MS2000 is one example. Even the good ol’ DX7, with its LCD in the centre (and no contrast control) had that issue. I can live with that! (And I guess that’s why Yamaha added the two-digit LED numeric display).
In my personal opinion, a way bigger UI crime is to have hundreds of patch slots accessible only with the “twiddle a knob and push a button” method. As far as I’m concerned, all programmable synths should have buttons that allow you to dial up any patch without having to look at a display, and without risking calling up the wrong sound because you inadvertently twisted the encoder a little as you pressed it.
It’s not uncommon in a performance situation to need to very quickly and deliberately switch between patches, like between a verse and a chorus. The encoder method simply isn’t accurate and quick enough, plus it requires the player’s visual attention.
@@infindebulayeah my mate had a go and that’s what he pulled out.. for live work the encoder isn’t ideal.
It sounds great to me - especially at that price..! 🙂😎
Unison Mode --- I cannot find a setting for multiple triggering in the manual or elsewhere. Your thoughts?
what do you mean... sharing of voices or key priority etc?
Usually in a unison mode or on monophonic synths there are two modes for triggering the envelopes. Single triggering -- envelopes won't retrigger if you play legato, only retrigger after all keys are up and a new note is played. Multiple triggering mode -- envelopes retrigger every time you play a new note regardless of playing legato. For example: on Behringer Mono/Poly, lower right on control panel ---Trigger - Single/Multiple switch.@@StarskyCarr
Gotcha… there’s no retrigger at all as far as I can find. It’s legato with high low or last note priority. Theyre set in the app not on the synth.
Thanks, I searched the web and the anemic manual. Hope they add it in firmware. Bought a demo model for $1K U.S. impressive synth and still love my DeepMinds. Your vids are awesome.@@StarskyCarr
would be cool if they open sourced the firmware to allow their community to pimp out the UX a bit.
Thanks for the huge REVERB clouding the impression!
If the sound or something very similar has been heard before I might throw a reverb on top next time to demo how it sounds with FX - people ask for it so it’s not always dry. Most of the sounds (over 85%) don’t have it. So sorry for the 15% that have clouded your ability to hear it.
Yeah, because this is the only video on the internet where you can hear it. Jesus...
I had a brief play on this keyboard and what lost me was the feel of the keybed - very light and just not great. I don’t pretend to be an expert on synths or keybeds, but my Yamaha SY77 and ASM Hydrasynth Explore both have significantly nicer keybeds. It’s a shame as Behringer appear to have done a stellar job on building essentially an affordable clone and have skimped out on the keybed. Better to add $100 to the price and put in a good quality keybed.
I ordered UBXA Desktop to pair with Hydrasynth Keyboard
Got one on back order ready to ship.. should. I do it?
Mine comes today, perfect timing!!!
Mine too! Happy UB-Xa Day!
I’m hearing a persistent high pitch ting on every sound. Did something get tweaked and left on in the global settings? Could just be my ears, who knows.
£789 on the link you've provided. Incredible for what you're getting.
Wow that’s amazing.
It is a bit odd that the screen is not centered.
I really wonder if there’s a technical limitation - perhaps the boards have to be located a certain way. Weird.
Someone's gotta make the full Rush Subdivisions cover with this, the Toro and Model D.
Once the Big B gets their PPG wave tribute done full Grace Under Pressure era covers...
@@luke5100no, Rush!
I think Subsivisions polysynth was OB-X, not OB-Xa. So you’ll probably have to wait a bit longer for the UB-X.
FWIW it’s not a complicated polysynth patch. The OB-6 can nail it, and I’ve come pretty close with JX-8P.
As for the Minimoog solo, I have played it on my Behringer Model D and it’s perfect. Tom Sawyer too.
@@infindebula It is an OBX but I've gotten close with arturias's softsynth version of the OBXa. Is Behringer working on an OBX as well? The absolute madmen.
This looks like and sounds like Behringers best poly synth to date and yes I will say (as a previous Deepmind owner before I sold it) the Deepmind is a poor attempt at a poly synth.
Personally I love my Deepmind. I still haven't explored all its possibilities. It's a different sound sure, and getting thick sounds can require sacrificing half the voices, but having onboard effects and a nice screen for the mod matrix is lovely
Please please tell me what’s the deal with the pinstripes? Is it an 80’s thing?
I think they were going for the original yuppie suit look!
Really needs to be a cool computer editor to make edits a snap.
Anyone else feel like the sound of the ubxa is a bit flaccid? Definitely decent value for just over $1k usd, but I haven’t heard a single demo that has gotten me excited. Compare the ubxa to the Obxa demo j3po did and the obxa feels transcendental and rich and deep by comparison. Yes it costs 20x more, but I was hoping behringer could still capture that depth, which in this case they haven’t imo
I owned the OBXA for quite some time. When it was working , itI was one of a kind. This UBXA gets close. Especially if you know what you’re doing program wise.
weeewoooweeewooo - Envelope Police here.
Did I just hear the sound of the Stranglers Golden Brown?😮
Awesome!
What's with the crazy camera exposure.
Oh I know 🤦♂️ .. the problem with big windows and variable cloudy/sunny days.
Looking forward to the comparison, hopefully with an init saw patch with completely opened VCFs on both machines.
That’s the first port of call 😂
@@StarskyCarr! Of course, because so far no one has done it on those instruments properly yet. Otherwise it will never be clear whether the UB-Xa shines as bright & clear OB-series is known for. So far, all the comparison videos made the impression that it does not match the OB-sound, mainly because they were merely fiddling around than comparing seriously.
Thats a pretty lush reverb, which one is it?
Eventide Blackhole plugin.
An OLED display wouldn't break the bank...
An OLED would ruin the aesthetic. If you’ll pardon me for sounding pretentious 🙏
@@leftmono1016 excellent argument, didnt think about that.
@@leftmono1016There are block character displays like this one in black/red OLED. I think they could have used one of those as a compromise between form and function.
OLEDs wear out with time, you shouldn't put them in anything which has to last more than a few years.
I would like to have a vintage led dot/alpha numeric or a cold cathode display and metal shafts instead.
It would cost more, but for this synth it should be worth it. Bodyssey has similar orange LCD which I am not too fond of.
Shame on the filter sweep. We need another Filter Sweep February. Also maybe someone at YT who actually cares.
I was very in to this thing 5-6 years ago but got a Prophet rev2 & Take 5 instead - it does have that Curtis sound to it though 👣
You can't argue with the Rev2 and Take5... an excellent combination. I've got the T5 and would definitely pick the Rev2 as the perfect all rounder if I didn't have the others.
Hmm strange by mine it's called ''atrocity profiles''
Haha.
super sounds ♥♪
The screen is VERY hard to read and the knob posts are wobbly.
Pleaaaaase talk about the freakin pitch benders and If they’re good and how they compare to others please please 🎉
Not much to say tbh. Theyre different to others and take some getting used to. You can invert them so pushing forwards or backwards increases/decreases mod. But they’re the same as the OB.
@@StarskyCarr that’s pretty great that they did a good job with that (it seems hard to get used to , I would think)