In this video, synthesist Ben Edwards (Benge) shares a head-to-head comparison between a vintage Oberheim SEM and a Behringer 2-XM.
“The idea is to see if the VCO, VCF and envelopes sound and behave the same,” he notes, “or are there subtle differences that mean that I won’t be selling my Four Voice any time soon ?”
The Behringer copy definitely gets in the ballpark, so the bigger question for most is probably whether the 2-XM offers you sound design options that complement your current setup.
Check out the video and share your thoughts in the comments!
Shocking results! (And that must be a pretty big ballpark…) All kidding aside, I guess it’s a good thing that people who are just starting out or want to set aside their plugins and delve into hardware have an inexpensive option to get their feet wet. I don’t like the idea of these clones, though, do something original, Behringer.
these clones are not simple straight copys.
Im having so much fun with the cv modulation and audio routing.
I have 3 of these so called “unoriginal copies of original synths” in a rack.
Its a semi-modular system that I enjoy to use and it didnt cost an arm and a leg. 🙂
Nothing noob or unprofessional about it.
It’s not insanely far off except for the filter which has a similar curve but just isn’t in the same zone.
The filter basically is the synth, though. That’s what makes people really want them when they hear these things.
*snuggles in the comfy chair with a bag of popcorn*
Thank you for the truth reveal. I knew they would be very close. Originals are for collectors and everything else is for normal people. There is NO WAY you tell the difference between the two in a recoding. There is nothing like saving 5-10 times the money. Plus, with Behringer you can now stack reliably. I think spending insane amounts on originals is fading fast as seen by items on reverb no longer moving. The Oberheim 1000 has been sitting on reverb for over a year at $1,000-$1,500 and not budging. Eventually sellers will get the message.
Not only do you save 5-10 times the money, but you also get MIDI and a patch bay and Eurorack compatibility.
To be fair, there is also no way to tell the difference to a plugin in a recording. And 99% of listeners couldn’t even tell the difference between this or a Minimoog. From a listener‘s perspective, you can basically use any synth.
“And 99% of listeners couldn’t even tell the difference between this or a Minimoog.”
If they cant hear what PWM is doing then there is no hope and we can all blow on a comb. 😉 ^^
Yeah, there was a trend for a few years where prices went nuts. Speculator nonsense that seems to have settled a bit. There’s always the occasional rich guy buying one of the classics at a high price, but if you want to sell one of these to buy new gear, you have to rein in those stupid prices quite a bit. Let alone that people buting these things as museum pieces, so to speak, do more harm tovthe electronics than those who keep using them.
I wouldn’t get a Behringer. But I wouldn’t get a machine from the 70-80s either. That sound has been done to dead, and as said, emulation has got all these instruments covered. Today’s analog is where it’s at. And those who feel nostalgia for those will die over the next decade or two, and the new nostalgia will move forward in time accordingly…
If you’re A/Bing solo tracks you can hear a difference, but throw it in a mix or play it at a bar where people are drinking and I don’t think it would matter. Benge has his own personal synth museum and his albums Twenty Systems and Thirteen Systems are worth checking out for synth nerds.
Damn, that is one big chunky synth. If the original sounds a 10/10, this b-clone is a solid 8.7/10. I’d have to hear how the NRSynth Solo clone compares to the OG, which for the 1390€ they are asking, it better be not less than 9.8/10.
Hi, Stephen from NSRsynth “the SEM” is amazing, sound like an OG to me!!!!I have some demos, I love them, straight back to the 70’s
I’m missing a feature to reliably save and recall presets on these Behringer units.
I love B’s but they never sound as good as the originals….but after running it thru a board & FX? Doesn’t matter that much.
That said I agree I wish B would put their skills and all their tech into original stuff. The deep mind 2 is a rare example of letting the B engineers get interesting and the result is not perfect but still really, really great.
in my opinion, the star in this video is Benge’s programming of the Sequential Drumtraks and sound engineering. The toms, the ride. The Drumtraks has only a couple of tunable samples, but it sounds alive in the hands of a true master.
If you’re looking for something in this Obie 2V vein, singularly unique and patchable and you are prepared to pay a fair price for quality, please do check out Musonics / STG’s Vanilla Synth. I have an SE Omega 2 with Moog and OB filters which I love very much, plus a new to me OB-X8 desktop (my ’emotional support synth’ 🙂 but Musonics / STG is very much on to something, and with the personal blessing of Tom O himself. Check it, true believers…