Behringer MS-5 Synthesizer User Review [Demo 01]

[@amsynths]

Nice to see the MS-5 out in the wild. I did the initial development with Behringer before covid stopped my inolvement. How close do you think the filters sound to the original?

[@gstormelectro]

@@amsynths hiya! Kudos to you it’s evident all the hard work that went into the circuitry. Especially the filters, I’m hard pressed to discern any differences.

[@Oceans_Resurrection]

Thank you, thank you, thank you very, very much, because I really needed this review. This synth really is amazing and sounds very gooood.

[@knoodle9908]

Best review so far after watching a half dozen which pretty much just showcased the amazing sounds the device produces. I appreciate your clarity and meat and potatos comments. Seems like the other guys are just showing off hoping they get discovered.

[@conk971]

great vid! really enjoyed the final jam. cheers!

[@InFamousProductions]

Alas, tis a magical review, that is fun to watch and ponder the available cash in the wallet to go to town with this fantastic beast.

[@AbsurdTV1]

Thanks for walking us through the features 🎉

[@AngrocSound]

Nice, thanks for sharing! Lovely timbres you're getting out of the unit. Also love that beat you have in the end there.

[@nickolasyounker]

Nice review Gman. Thank you.

[@H4NDCRAFTED]

Concise and engaging review , Ty for not waffling

[@astro_poly]

this is one of the little synths i still want

[@carriersignal]

Always great videos!

[@drstupid1]

Rally cool video mate. Top notch thanks

[@NicolasMelis]

nice video! thanks for the info 🎹

[@RJJNY]

Can use the VCF expression input to raise the main filter cutoff via CV, works to add accents using an SQ-1 sequencer. Haven't tried anything with the volume pedal input yet. Sequencing using the external trigger option so that the gate input is freed up to retrigger the LFOs creates a lot of sonic possibilities via external control (albeit not via midi).The possibility of the type of multi-layered sound you demonstrate at around 7:52 is one of the best things about the synth I think.

[@JeremyWiss]

I didn’t like mine out of the box but the more I playt it, the more I like it. I get why people say it was Roland’s answer to the ARP Odyssey.

[@soundescapetv4107]

Thank you for the video! I’d be great to hear your thoughts on how MS-5 filter compares to your SH5 VCF module

[@Wagoo]

Very interesting to hear your opinion on this one, as I have and love the SH5 filter module you produced. Behringer stuff used to be all metal shafted pots so it is a disappointment to see plastic shafted stuff being used on their recent releases. Cheers

[@InFamousProductions]

I think it's just to keep the price low. it's shocking to get this as cheap as it is. the sales guy at Sweetwater told me a few days ago they are blowing them out for $504 bucks.

[@Waldemar_la_Tendresse]

Good overview of that synth. All in all I would say: Better wait for MKII 😑.

[@Steril707]

Finally sounds we have never heard before from a synth/s... Actually you could just say the price in those videos, and leave it at that. Because that's the most interesting news about those Behringer clones.

[@thomaskolb8785]

Well, it's an old school analog monosynth, so I guess it sounds about the same as any other analog monosynth. It's sound can be reproduced with just about any other analog or virtual analog synth, software or hardware. I am waiting for it to become available second hand for €300 it shouldn't be long now.

[@JELmusic]

Sounds really good :)

[@Jehudi]

Tip regarding wiggly/wonky knobs: Put a piece of shrink tube (the right size) inside a knob and then push the knob onto the shaft. Repeat this process untill all knobs are done. Enjoy rock solid knobs! PS. Is there a way to change the "tuning" it tunes to with the auto tune knob? There does not seem to be a master tuning knob on the front and backpanel. I wish they add this in the firmware + editor as an "advanced feature" so you can choose your own master tuning.

[@fiddlestickzmuzik]

been waiting so long for this to arrive in the shops, its been in the hands of synthfluencers for 6 months already but nowhere to be seen in stores ?

[@user-rv8wb1nl1b]

I returned mine , too much money for a mono synth when there are things like the BS2 about . . . . . the octave switches bleed sound when moved , the midi didnt work unless i used a short cable , and the plastic shafts feel VERY cheap and flimsy .

[@philxdev]

Did you check the Behringer App... maybe some functions can only be accessed or enabled via app.

[@gstormelectro]

@@philxdev just synthtribe

[@Bata9999]

Weird video. You say the expression in doesn't control the VCF cutoff? Then what does it do exactly?

[@gstormelectro]

@@Bata9999 it expects a Passive expression pedal but not designed to to take active input cvs

[@RJJNY]

@@gstormelectro CV out from a Korg SQ1 works to raise the main filter cutoff via the VCF expression pedal input. According to the quick start guide: ""allows the filter frequency to be swept upwards from the setting of control 44." I've been using it to modulate the filter frequency on different SQ1 sequence steps.

[@Bata9999]

@@gstormelectro Do you know how an expression pedal works?

[@gstormelectro]

Sorry for all the confusion. Let's see if I can clarify. An expression pedal is the only thing designed to change the VCF cutoff for the expression VCF input. But wasn't designed for anything else, as an example, a eurorack CV patch cord. A standard expression pedal is nothing more than a potentiometer. As such the plug needs 3 TRS connections - sleeve/ground, ring/wiper, and Tip/+5v. In contrast, a eurorack patch cord plug is only TS - Tip/CV and sleeve/ground. If we connect this eurorack TS patch cord plug to the synth expression pedal jack we will be shorting the eurorack Tip/CV signal with the synth Tip/+5v. Moreover the synth ring/wiper jack connection will short on the eurorack Sleeve/ground. But all is not lost, it's possible to workaround all this with additional hacks explored on the internet or products available on the market designed to address these issues.

[@gstormelectro]

@@RJJNY @RJJNY I sold my SQ1 so I haven't explored the possibilities you added, but it sounds pretty cool.

[@progwaver]

I dont know.. on one side its an interesting synth, on the other side its limiting things like the delay only on the sine wave.. I personally like vibrato more doing with triangle lfo wave... cause in sine its so "egging 😅 " in triangle it has more substance, for me at least.. I think I will go first on the proton anyway... from space perspective as well...

[@gstormelectro]

@@progwaver that Proton is interesting and I have Neutron. Thanks for checking my video

[@ArtFluids]

I really wish the Arturia Keystep Pro allowed four melodic tracks AND the drum trigger outputs. Then I would want one. I don't know if their engineers just don't know how to properly mux that many analog outputs from one CPU or what... Baffling decision.

[@gstormelectro]

@@ArtFluids maybe use a beatstep pro alongside?

[@EnervatedSociety]

Sounds great, but man it's cheaply made. Of course there's gotta be a trade off a that price.

[@Sturzi]

What do you mean with cheaply made? The thing is solid and heavy, nothing wiggles, sliders and pots feel good. Never had any issues with Behringer stuff (except the early stuff). Feels definitely better that the Matriarch in my studio. No Idea how it will hold up against time, but then that's uncertain with all new stuff.

[@EnervatedSociety]

@@Sturzi First off, just to put it out there, I'm not a Behringer hater. From from it. I'm pro-Behringer all the way. I love what they're doing and I think they should clone everything. That said. "Nothing wiggles" Did you actually watch the video? Many a things where a wiggling. He literally wiggled them. Also, the bender is super cheap looking. The casing seems sturdy. Seems like a decent chunk of metal too, but it's pretty irrelevant to the operation of the synth if we're being honest. Look, I'm just being objective, as much as I can be, based on what I'm seeing in the video. I actually have a Pro-1 (next to an original) right in front of me, and the knobs do not wiggle as much as what I'm seeing in this video. Neither did the Model D, from memory.

[@Sturzi]

​@@EnervatedSociety I didn't just watch the Video, I have a MS-5 at home to wiggle myself 😀 And It doesn't feel too cheap (maybe Garren just got an over wiggly exemplar, which would explain why you and me have been happy with our Behringer stuff so far). Not as great as a Sequential, of course, but solid enough. Although my new Prophet 10 suffers from lazy buttons which doesn't speak for perfect building quality. I personally prefer solid and heavy equipment, because it tends to shake less when played and sits sturdier on/in the table/rack - sure it doesn't say anything about the quality of the electronics inside. But it would have been another item to save costs and the didn't. I just can speak for myself, and I think with the MS5, I got more than I expected for the money. And I too have a lot of gear to compare, from vintage to contemporary stuff, cheapo and expensive.

[@RJJNY]

@@Sturzi Totally agree, mine arrived a few weeks ago and the first thing I noticed - due to having to carry the box up five flights of tenement stairs - is that it's a hefty piece of gear. Pots and bender all fine for me.

[@ElectroPanPipes]

You can see them wobble, and that bent slider. Guy above comments on how to stop the wiggle. So yes, they are cheap manufactured, all the gear. But some people here act like they've bought premium quality, when that's not the case. Probably last ok with light home use, but long term... it's put me off.

[@ozzy3ml]

Nice