Behringer Reveals 12-Voice Polyphonic Analog Synthesizer

Behringer today released the latest teaser for its yet-to-be-announced synthesizer – and it reveals that the new synth will be a 12-voice polyphonic analog synthesizer. 

Details are still to be announced, but the fact that the new synth is 12-voice polyphonic promises to make it an actual game changer in the industry – and put Behringer on the map as a synth manufacturer.

Check out the video and let us know what you think in the comments!

86 thoughts on “Behringer Reveals 12-Voice Polyphonic Analog Synthesizer

  1. Could be a bit of a game-changer, this. Shame it’s only 4 octave!

    With 12 note polyphony I’d really want 5 octaves and simple two-way splitting (bi-timbrality) to make full use of the voices.

    1. I’m sure you can stack those 12 voices or split them, no need to have all 10 fingers to play them! 😉 Or imagine all those 12 voices stacked to be a monophonic bass patch with a sub osc feature! Massive sound!!!

        1. Nope, only VCO synth that comes near is Matrix 12… Rhodes Chroma is 12 voice in 1 VCO per voice mode. Not to mention Andromedas 2 subs, ring mod, dual filters, etc, etc…

    1. This not a workstation or arranger… this is a real analog synth for solos or pads… this is for performance

  2. Wow, 12 voices!

    I usually hate teasers but this has certainly been effective. Get people thinking it’s another mono and then BOOM… 12-voice polyphonic. No baby steps here. Crazy.

    I suspect many people that were about to buy a synth are now holding off to see how much this will cost. It will be interesting to see how this shakes things up and how the other synth companies respond. However it goes, competition is always good for us, the consumers.

    Synth enthusiasts haven’t had it this good in over 30 years. What a wonderful time to be alive.

    1. Wouldn’t he half the price with half the voices. One of the major costs is the hardware (as in switches and knobs) and the r and d, none of which would be that much lower with a 6 voice. With smt the space of an extra 6 voices isn’t such a big deal. They may even use the cem ‘synth on a chip’ clones that dsi use.

      1. I wasn’t estimating what a six-voice version would be. I was saying what I would have been happy with. Those are two entirely different things.

  3. Behringer is known for clones and low prices. They may soon to be known as clones and high prices. No way they will hit a 500-700 with a 12 voice analog synth. Now I know why they are teasing so much. Dam sure didnt tease a price yet.

  4. My guess is that it will be between $1599 and $1999 US street price. That’s a lot of money for sure, but much less than the street price of a Prophet 12, Prophet 6, or OB6, and far cheaper than that crazy expensive Modal 008. I’ve been a synth addict for almost twenty years now, and as mentioned above, we are experiencing another golden age of synthesizers! Now I just want a killer new FM synth and a hardware sampler in keyboard form.

    1. There are already “a killer new FM synth and a hardware sampler in keyboard form”.
      Yamaha Montage, Yamaha Motif XF, Korg Kronos.
      These monsters are more than enough.

      1. Uh, no. The Montage is not what I’m talking about. I’m not interested in a ‘try to be everything’ workstation synth that requires an associate degree in Yamaha UI to program the damn thing. I’m talking about the FM engine of the Montage or Korg Mod 7 in a stand alone synth with macro style quick editing ala FM-8…

        As far as a sampler is concerned, I’m talking something like the Ensoniq EPS / ASR-10, E-Mu Emulator / Emax, but with modern sample management, etc.

        1. they’ve released the MX with app real time editor, the FM engine can sound really killer compared to dx’s. needs more than it’s little LCD and havn’t made it much fun to program as a hardware synth, but very powerful. like montage engine.

  5. I have played synths for almost 30 years and only time I have had electric shock was when I used Behringer headphone amp. I got zapped my head via headphones.

    I’m really afraid those Behringer things and I’m definately not going to buy this.

    1. I’m also withholding enthusiasm based on their mixed reputation.

      I’ve had terrible reliability experiences with Mackie and Behringer. However, I’d be willing to change my opinion if this rolls out and has a good rep. I won’t be first in line, though.

  6. Does 12 voices mean 2 oscillators/voice? If so, its a 6 voice.

    Also, I thought at one point that the keyboard had been split as there were two distinct sounds playing at the same time.

    Personally I think it has to complete technically and cost wise with the likes of the Minilogue. The market is awash with more expensive synths, both old and new.

    1. “Does 12 voices mean 2 oscillators/voice?”

      No.

      There are many 1-oscillator/voice and 2-oscillator/voice synths, along with some well-known 3-oscillator/voice and even 4-oscillator/voice synthesizers.

      1. was there a part of this video I missed that actually said 12 voices at all….? this article and all the comments are still pure speculation it seems. The interview done about this synth about a year or two ago mentions he was going to keep it in a low affordable range so i wouldn’t price it at anywhere above 1000. That also leads to assume it is more like 6 voices at most.

      2. in this case “Yes”

        Uli Behringer on Gearslutz stated clearly.
        >I like to clarify that these are 12 voices with each 2 DCO’s and 2 LFO’s. The oscillators are DCO’s, which means these are digitally controlled analog oscillators; so the synth has 24 full-blown analog oscillators. Once we reveal the board assembly images, you will discover the thousands of discrete components that went into this design and the extreme density of the multi-layer boards. This synth is a true engineering masterpiece from our Midas engineers, a company that is famous for making the world’s best mixing consoles.
        https://www.gearslutz.com/board/12034678-post1406.html

  7. so…using 2 osc. patch it will be 6 note poly
    using a 1 osc. patch it will be 12 note poly…

    next did they also implement the roland 106 chorus in here too?
    or at least a jx3p- chorus.

    maybe keyboard splits…
    maybe polyphonic step sequencer (ala jx 3p)

  8. Larry – the number of oscillators in a voice doesn’t matter, voices are individual banks of oscillator(s)+vcf+vca.

    The prophet 12 has 12 voices with 4 oscillators and a sub per voice – that’s 60 oscillators in total, but it’s not called a 60 voice synth.

    1. You’re right, but the point is that many synths have a stripped-down voice that you end up layering – synths that come to mind are the Gaia, the Poly-800, the Ensoniq VFX/SD/TS. I’d rather have 8 voices with 2+ oscillators each than 12 single-oscillator voices!

        1. Not necessarily…the Poly 800 is a classic example of synths that double the number of playable notes if you don’t use one of the oscillators.

          1. …but the Poly 800 was based on a “divide down” voice architecture – kind of like a 70’s string machine…

            😉

  9. The marketing team at Behringer must have been snickering as everyone including me complained about their synth only having 4 voices. Well played you sadistic bitches.

  10. i wonder if they will make a lower end model (under 500)?
    it is nice to have a powerhouse but keep in mind so many have little units that can get people in the door and look how many there are,, micokorg, micron, microbrute, reface (be nice to go keyless) , roland system-1 and its boutique cousins, morpho keyless

    i am sure the list can be added to

    I just look at the fact I do have a rack mount VA synth from them already hiding in the V-amp bass pro, that maybe they expand on that and make a rack mount and desktop modules, especially for us that are the greatest keyboard players but can make great tweaking jams

  11. Great another analog synth…whatever happen to doing something new, something with new technology? Instead it’s the same ole sh*t. Another boring synth that is about to be out of vogue, should have came out like 10 years ago.
    It’s analog y’all…it’s gotta be good!

  12. I always thought if someone could make something like this at the right price point (just under a grand) they would get volume sales margin as pretty much every synth head would wan one…. It’s all about the price pint now.

    I am curious about the fx….12 voices and effects!?

  13. It’s like the world forgot about how Behringer describes their ‘features’. This ain’t a 12 voice analog polyphonic synthesizer.

    1. I have the same feeling watching these teasers.

      They must be holding of on releasing the stats because there are 12 osc total for 12 voice.

      Anything other than that and this will be out of the sub 900-1000 dollar category.

  14. This thing sounds good. It has normal keys and I guess it won’t be pricey as the other synths with the same specs. I think this will be on my list for sure.

  15. Hey, Uli Behringer is a nice guy with a vision.
    The teasers are pretty, the sound is decent. If its 1voice per osc i jump on it.

  16. Look at 1:15
    Above the buttons FX and GLOBAL that’s definitively a screen displaying a waveform or an envelope. That’s why there is an EDIT button and a DATA slider.
    Also PROG and COMPARE buttons. This baby has patch storage and recall. BANK button means a healthy amount of patch memory locations as well.

    1. What do you mean DCO meh? It’s still an analogue oscillator, but its pitch is controlled numerically so it stays in tune. it’s super smart. VCO is impractical – it’s only misinformation that keeps people making them.

  17. The keyboard looks and sounds so far fantastic, but who is that woman standing pretty, smiling and nodding to everything, but doing nothing else?
    What is the point of her being there..?
    Am I missing something?

    1. She is Cerridwen the Celtic goddess of synths. All potential synthesizers must go through her first for approval. If approved, she then honors rights to the manufacturer for production, marketing, and sales.

      Cerridwen controls all things synth related. Remember the mini-key trend? That was Cerridwen. Mono-synth era? Cerridwen. Notice now the unraveling of new polys? Yup, she mandated that too.

      So now you know who controls that synth design of your dreams. Pray to Cerridwen from now on… Begging on forums won’t do you any good.

    2. The artists were credited in first video , the lady is the singing & synth playing half of Vile Electrodes duo , with her synth duo partner . She makes comments in the previous videos , just the way the cut happened in video 4 .

  18. Behringer has a bad reputation for reliability but other than a headphone amp playing up on one channel, I’ve not ever had any issues (have had a fair few bits over the years). I am super excited about this one though.

    The Behringer XR18 one band I play with regularly has never had a problem, same with the previous X32 desk they had and it goes out once or twice a week at least. My main bands A&H QU24 packed up after 13 months and if it hadn’t been for Thomanns 3 year warranty, we would have been stung for a new CPU, A&H were not interested.

    I still really want to get a DSI P6 but finances (or the Mrs) wont allow it right now. But I will certainly want to try one of these out. I discounted the minilogue as it has mini keys and I just cant stand playing them.

  19. They are building a synth division and trying to get all of you synth addicts hooked on their product. I could see this being under $1000… This is their loss-leader, their labor of love, and don’t forget they don’t just make synths like DSI or MOOG… They can afford to lose money on this synth to get it in every bedroom, studio and on every stage.

  20. Would be really smart to sell it at $999. The exact price point where everybody will buy it (it it turns out to be any good ofcourse..

  21. Behringer were once known for cheap and cheerful products but they have really upped their game in recent years and now produce high quality and innovative products at competitive prices; anyone who has used an X32 mixer can bare witness to this. I imagine this new synth will be an amazing piece of kit and that the price will be surprisingly low. As someone said much earlier, for analogue synth enthusiasts and newcomers alike, these are exciting times with much to celebrate!

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