Berhinger, good or bad?

[Luke73]

I've heard lots of people talk about how they like their Behringer gear, and gig with it often.

If you like the sound of it, and are comfortable with the whole Behringer morality thing, then buy it.

 

[skoti89]

One other thing -
it really depends on what you can Afford.

For a person with very limited funds, I really do consider Behringer a viable option.

If your funds are less limited, but all means, Spend It
and buy higher end stuff.

If I was Bill Gates, I wouldn't buy Behringer.
But I'm not.

yeah. i have bout 120 in the bank, and a crate combo i could try to get 200-250ish.

 

[honeyboy]

I bought my 3000T Behringer head before I knew there was any "controversy" about their business practices (really, are they any worse than Ibanez copying Fender back in the early days of Ibanez, or all the modern day Fender copy cat companies?) But getting back to the original question, I've had this head for about 2 years, play it every day for at least 2 hours a day, used it on gigs with a 15 inch cab and have had absolutely no problems with it. It still runs as cool as ever and the sound really is excellent. It cost me only $225.00. What a bargain.Reliability? I'd say extremely reliable.

 

[SBassman]

It still runs as cool as ever and the sound really is excellent.

I noticed that about mine, too. I never felt a drop of heat come from it.

And I used to, ahem, *burn in it*, to the tune of leaving it on all day, and leaving it on in between sets at gigs. No heat whatsoever.

 

[SBassman]

(really, are they any worse than Ibanez copying Fender back in the early days of Ibanez, or all the modern day Fender copy cat companies?)

No, it's not.

What they do is what many, many companies do.

I'm not saying I support companies stealing from each other, because I don't. But, companies taking from each other what they are able to take - that's business that has been going on since the beginning of time. Let the courts rule when there is a foul, let the businesses pay when there is a real foul, and products that remain on the market should then be purchasable without committing some ethics sin.

The resulting assasinations in the past TB threads have been somewhat out of control. And the same people who vehemently call that stuff a foul are the same people who own the same types of products in other non-musical segments
- home and car audio
- computers
- other personal electronics - headphones, MP3 players, CD players
- cars
- motorcycles
- clothing
and on and on and on.

And so, if you live on some can't-buy-Behringer principle, if you want to live consistently, then you really need to empty your house, stop driving, and get naked.

 

[cheezewiz]

very bad
zeer slecht
très mauvais
sehr schlecht
πολύ κακός
molto difettoso
muito mau
очень плох
muy malo

 

[steve66]

I bought the Behringer BX4500H Head and play it out of a 2x10 Neo and 2x12 Delta Avatar Cabs. I needed a rig for my home studio. Cost under $1000.00 US. I also have the Behringer BDI21 (sansamp clone) Use it for a tube tone, also quiets the tweeters in the cab. I like the product. No issues noted, plenty of range, Tone and power. Id buy other Behringer Products.

as a side note: I probably wouldnt have bought Behringer at first if I listened to all the negative feedback on this forum.. I was lucky to have a friend that plays the BX4500H and he swears by them. He has had the Bx4500 for over a year and Plays every weekend. His back up Head is also BX4500H. He has never need to use it.

 

[shooter_mi]

I bought the 300 watt head two years ago when everything else, including its ashdown counterpart, cost more than i had. Since then I've gained the means to trade up for something more reputable, but haven't because there's absolutely nothing wrong with this head. It's done 100+ gigs without a problem, and I don't baby it. It's the best value and most reliable piece of gear I'll ever own, I'm sure.

 

[GreyBeard]

I have a good friend who is a dealer. His problem with Behringer was getting replacement parts. Now they have gone to direct replacement for the 1st year. Not a bad deal

 

[Bradweiser]

The pattern that I see here on Talkbass is that the people that actually own Behringer stuff swear by it (most of the time) and people who have never used it follow the crowd and call it garbage.
And it's not just stuff that is unpopular - for example alot of people jump on the bandwagon of something that's 'in' at any particular time (Sadowsky recently comes to mind).

I've had a BX4500H for about a year now and it's never missed a beat in the time that I've had it. Not only that, but due to the huge prices of equipment here in Australia, I know alot of people who also own Behringer stuff and none of them have ever had problems either.

 

[Spector_Ray]

The pattern that I see here on Talkbass is that the people that actually own Behringer stuff swear by it (most of the time) and people who have never used it follow the crowd and call it garbage.
And it's not just stuff that is unpopular - for example alot of people jump on the bandwagon of something that's 'in' at any particular time (Sadowsky recently comes to mind).

I've had a BX4500H for about a year now and it's never missed a beat in the time that I've had it. Not only that, but due to the huge prices of equipment here in Australia, I know alot of people who also own Behringer stuff and none of them have ever had problems either.

I think that people who have never used it choose not to because of Behringer's unsavory business practices. I don't think it has anything to do with what's in at the time.

 

[SamJ]

Behringer has the following pluses and the following minuses in my view..

+

-Cheap
-Cheap
&
-Cheap


-

-Crappy sounding
-Made in China with ripped of technology and (using what I like to call quasi slave labor)
-Cheap construction & hardware/speakers



If I have to explain to anyone in this thread why their stuff is crap, then they are unlikely to understand my logic and therefore I will not engage in debates over it.. That's my opinion, end of discussion as far as I am concerned.

and NO, most of the big ticket stuff I own IS NOT made in China, thank you.. so I'm not a hypocrite, as I take extraordinary efforts to avoid Chinese made products. Sadly, I do have some things which are unavoidable like my Apple PowerBook.. and a few other small electronic items..

 

[daffy]

I think that people who have never used it choose not to because of Behringer's unsavory business practices. I don't think it has anything to do with what's in at the time.

So on that note, we should not buy Ibanez, Lakland, Boss, or any of the other brands that have had official warnings or legal hassles over the years due to their 'borrowing' from other companies?

The world is rife with that sort of stuff and Behringer, like all the others mentioned, went too close to the line in making some of their pedals look like another particularly litigious company. It was not a complete rip off copy with same circuits, box and brand name - only the look was similar, and they have paid for it in court.

There will always be a market for high end enthusiast gear at inflated brand name prices, just as there will be a market for cheap and functional stuff. I personally needed an amp, not a brand, so I chose functional and invested more in my pedal board.

But then, I have three Ibanez guitars as well

 

[ak50324]

Put it this way...could you imagine if the ONLY basses with the "jazz" style were the Original Fender Js, the only P's would be the fender Precision, the only EVERYTHING would be the original, no matter how expensive, out-dated, ect.

So would you like to have to fork over $400 for your FIRST bass, only to find you're stuck with itself is no one can make copies of single coil pickups, no one can make pickguards in that shape, no one can maker CORDS that aren't those overpriced Fender pieces of squier.

You'd then be stuck with a Marshal amp, playing simple I-IV-V proggressions in a blues scale (since NOONE could rip-off that style of music to make rock)...actually, scrap that, you'd have to not play anything at all, since PLAYing the bass would be copying someone!

So how's that pride taste? To me it tastes like Bullsquier.

 

[Spector_Ray]

The world is rife with that sort of stuff and Behringer, like all the others mentioned, went too close to the line in making some of their pedals look like another particularly litigious company. It was not a complete rip off copy with same circuits, box and brand name - only the look was similar, and they have paid for it in court.

From what I've read, Behringer didn't just go "too close to the line". They actually copied the circuits and pcbs right down to the markings without even trying to hide it. That would be like Lakland producing a bass and installing a headstock they made with the name Fender on it. Just because the world is rife with it doesn't make it right or acceptable. If that were the case, it wouldn't even be a point of discussion.

I have used a couple of Behringer products and to be honest, I didn't like them one bit so I sold them. The only reason I bought them was because they were cheap. I guess you get what you pay for.

 

[deebee]

Behringer has the following pluses and the following minuses in my view..

+Cheap, Cheap & Cheap

-Crappy sounding
-Made in China with ripped of technology and (using what I like to call quasi slave labor)
-Cheap construction & hardware/speakers

If I have to explain to anyone in this thread why their stuff is crap, then they are unlikely to understand my logic and therefore I will not engage in debates over it.. That's my opinion, end of discussion as far as I am concerned.

and NO, most of the big ticket stuff I own IS NOT made in China, thank you.. so I'm not a hypocrite, as I take extraordinary efforts to avoid Chinese made products. Sadly, I do have some things which are unavoidable like my Apple PowerBook.. and a few other small electronic items..

Don't suppose you'd even consider Eden's Nemesis gear , then (which is also made in China - and by " quasi slave labor"?), and actually rather good!

 

[el_Kabong]

If I have to explain to anyone in this thread why their stuff is crap, then they are unlikely to understand my logic and therefore I will not engage in debates over it.. That's my opinion, end of discussion as far as I am concerned.

Well good for you big fella.

And for the rest of us who won't have to read it.

 

[Crescent Seven]

I don't bag on Behringer stuff because I don't really care that they rip off designs, and frankly, if you buy a $199 amp made by anybody, it's not going to be top quality. Except for the most rank amateur, almost everybody that plugs into one knows this, and they buy based upon affordability rather than an expectation of quality.
So they don't sound like an Eden or an Ampeg, big deal. It's like buying a $800 car; if you drive it for a year and don't put much into it, it's totally worth your money.
C7

 

[daffy]

From what I've read, Behringer didn't just go "too close to the line". They actually copied the circuits and pcbs right down to the markings without even trying to hide it.

If you limit yourself to the scuttlebutt on this forum then that would be the impression you get ... And if you then repeat it without checking your facts first, it becomes truth.

There was a fair bit of the actual filing info from the suit around on the net and it was over the look, writing and colour of the pedals. Check this out for a couple of quotes: http://www.sonicstate.com/news/shownews.cfm?newsid=2054. Behringer has had two other suits filed against them and both have been settled out of court, like the one above. The first was from Aphex about pedals looking similar again and the second was Mackie over the design of the preamp stage of one of their mixing desks. In the latter case, Mackie simply wanted them to stop selling the units in the US - if it was a total rip off I would have thought they could have pushed for something a lot bigger than that!

If you don't really know what you're talking about then perhaps you could refrain from joining the throng casting stones

 

[mike_v_s]

Amazing. I've got a great idea. This WHOLE agrument, from the accusations, to the "prove it" mentality, to the "evidence", to the "I'm reading it, but don't care" attitude, to the total denials, and to hell and back, this whole thing has been done before. Multiple times....please do a search. Every word. Every angle. Every attitude, argument, defense, accusation, denial and comeback. Every "what about Sadowsky?" and every "it looks just like_________". Not one of you is offering anything that hasn't been beaten down, mugged, and left for dead. Let it die. Feel free to flame me or whatever, I'm going to have trouble caring less about your response. I'm posting this as a public service for those that think they must have thought of something new: you haven't. To make this fair, I probably won't even come back to this thread, much less respond to any accusations. Have fun kids.

Mike