KVR Audio

Uncle E · Post by **Uncle E** » Fri Jul 14, 2023 4:31 pm

kcearl wrote: Fri Jul 14, 2023 4:14 pm I think thats it, “great for the price”…I have near 30 synths but this will just be a flavour and a great unit to take around the house as most of my synths are keys. Pair with some decent pedals I think Ill get what I want out of it

Yes, certainly. That reverb-heavy video is a great example. Sometimes the fatter synths get lost in the effects whereas the sharper/buzzier sounding synth cut through.

zerocrossing · Post by **zerocrossing** » Fri Jul 14, 2023 6:14 pm

Uncle E wrote: Fri Jul 14, 2023 4:31 pm
kcearl wrote: Fri Jul 14, 2023 4:14 pm I think thats it, “great for the price”…I have near 30 synths but this will just be a flavour and a great unit to take around the house as most of my synths are keys. Pair with some decent pedals I think Ill get what I want out of it
Yes, certainly. That reverb-heavy video is a great example. Sometimes the fatter synths get lost in the effects whereas the sharper/buzzier sounding synth cut through.

I think about this all the time when I play my REV2. Even I admit that outside the context of a musical track it can sound... well, less than "fat," but when I have a bunch of guitars and drums with high hats and rides going, there's nothing better.

egbert101 · Post by **egbert101** » Fri Jul 14, 2023 9:29 pm

Well, if it's going to get lost in a mix, then may as well use vst!

Uncle E · Post by **Uncle E** » Fri Jul 14, 2023 9:41 pm

Stop making sense.

ghettosynth · Post by **ghettosynth** » Sat Jul 15, 2023 1:56 am

egbert101 wrote: Fri Jul 14, 2023 9:29 pm Well, if it's going to get lost in a mix, then may as well use vst!

Absolutely, but, I'm still getting one. It's not because I think that it will sound so much better than a good plugin, it's because the form factor let's me stuff it into my modular rack and have a polysynth at with knobs that fits in 3U. While I don't think that the P600 is anything to write home about, I think that most budget polys from the 80s are right there with it. Further, while I think that current plugins are great, they generally sounds as good as, but not really better than the same level of analog technology. In other words, it is an 8 voice analog poly with knobs. That's, for me, much better for a performance oriented approach to composition than plugins.

Related, it's similar to why I still prefer paper books for studying. There is an interaction bandwidth that is hard to replicate with screens, even multiple screens.

But, to be clear, it's also why, for me, the Pro-800 is a better solution than a full sized synthesizer, that is, that it fits in 3u matters a lot. It's neither too small and constrained with controls hidden behind menus, nor is it too large and expansive requiring me to walk a countable number of steps to interact with or make room in a stack for the various keyboards. Because it's analog, I don't have to think about whether the digital model is correct at the edges, it's analog, I know the resonance will sound as it should when it's rapidly modulated.

Mantras · Post by **Mantras** » Mon Jul 17, 2023 11:17 am

I have a question. In the manual lots of MIDI CC# numbers is listed for the parameters. MIDI CC# is 7-bit information (0-127) but when people operating the Pro-800 turning knobs it is showing a finer range of values in the display 0-1000? How does it add up? Anyone with a unit who knows?

kcearl · Post by **kcearl** » Mon Jul 17, 2023 12:02 pm

Spent yesterday with mine, no issues with updating it, and its very impressive. Smooth, less bottom end than some, but sounds great…very 80s. Loved the strings and brass tones coaxed out of it. All felt well built and plenty of easily accessed options through the firmware and membrane buttons.

Cant believe this is $400, it will easily be the best selling synth of 2023 if they can get the units to retailers, and likely deserves to be.

egbert101 · Post by **egbert101** » Wed Jul 19, 2023 9:13 pm

How bad are the plastic membranes on this? Will they last at all? I can understand people wanting this for such a cheap price but what good is that if it breaks after a few months (like my Model-D for example).

ghettosynth · Post by **ghettosynth** » Wed Jul 19, 2023 9:34 pm

kcearl wrote: Mon Jul 17, 2023 12:02 pm Spent yesterday with mine, no issues with updating it, and its very impressive. Smooth, less bottom end than some, but sounds great…very 80s. Loved the strings and brass tones coaxed out of it. All felt well built and plenty of easily accessed options through the firmware and membrane buttons.

Cant believe this is $400, it will easily be the best selling synth of 2023 if they can get the units to retailers, and likely deserves to be.

Absolutely. For where analog polys fit into my music these days, this is fantastic. Yes I wish that they had pushed it even further away from being a clone, e.g., LCD, no membrane buttons, third EG, more LFOs, but I get that they need to sell them and that the fever for clones is absurd.

One aspect of their approach I really do appreciate is the choice to keep digital effects out to keep the price down. Just a single mono out. Yes I like stereo in the synth yadi yadi, but, that still is done 90% at the mixer/send level for me.

I'd love to see them tackle something like the MemoryMoog (+LAMM, of course) in 6U.

ghettosynth · Post by **ghettosynth** » Wed Jul 19, 2023 9:35 pm

egbert101 wrote: Wed Jul 19, 2023 9:13 pm How bad are the plastic membranes on this? Will they last at all? I can understand people wanting this for such a cheap price but what good is that if it breaks after a few months (like my Model-D for example).

They seem reasonable to me, but, who knows. I guess we'll tell you in a few months

zebrasive · Post by **zebrasive** » Thu Jul 20, 2023 3:19 am

Any tips on how this would complement a setup with a Super 6 and a Sub 37?

ghettosynth · Post by **ghettosynth** » Thu Jul 20, 2023 4:36 am

zebrasive wrote: Thu Jul 20, 2023 3:19 am Any tips on how this would complement a setup with a Super 6 and a Sub 37?

It's not going to give you much architecturally over the Super 6. It does have a different 24Db/Oct filter, but whether that really matters much to you I'm not sure. Of course it will give you 8 voices, but do you need that?

egbert101 · Post by **egbert101** » Thu Jul 20, 2023 2:09 pm

Updated review by Starsky Carr for those who care (not me)

NorbertVarga · Post by **NorbertVarga** » Mon Jul 24, 2023 12:06 pm

egbert101 wrote: Wed Jul 19, 2023 9:13 pm How bad are the plastic membranes on this? Will they last at all? I can understand people wanting this for such a cheap price but what good is that if it breaks after a few months (like my Model-D for example).

I wouldn't say they are bad at all. Of course time will tell, but the keypad feels solid, there is a firm click when you press a button, unlike those "spongy" membrane switches, if that makes sense.
I've been using the Pro-800 on a daily basis since the beginning of June and I'm totally happy with it.

DJMaytag · Post by **DJMaytag** » Mon Jul 24, 2023 1:09 pm

I’ve generally been anti-Behringer, but this might be the first synth from them that I’ll buy. I’ve been a long time Prophet-600 owner (since 1995), but I don’t have room for it in my setup anymore.

The Bro-800 sounds pretty damn good, and adds velocity and aftertouch, so I’m sold. I’m still on the fence about how well built these things are, and hopefully B has improved their quality since their first synths.

Behringer pro 800