Fredenstein Bento 8 Pro - 500 Series Rack

[@hoopscentral1828]

This the 500 rack i have!! Great unit especially for the price!!! Durable! Perfect amount of power! Easy to use and the switches on the back to link them up or have them go in a row is amazing! Saves on cables!

[@johncoxe6329]

I have this exact one in my Sweetwater cart and was online researching it before pulling the trigger. It is funny, but oh so typical, how I came this. I was redoing my studio with a new 19" rack - old gear and some fun new stuff. I got a 12U roller and figured that would be enough. Oops, I have a 13th U to fill. Got a Phoenix Audio N-8 to patch keyboards, guitars, ... in to bring them to line level for the signal chain. I figured, well, I might be able to mount it on the backside of the rack, figuring though that the room probably wasn't all there. Now, I could span 2U with a few inches of wood offsets and center the unit with long screws through holes into the rack. But I decided to maybe just get a 6U or 8U 19" road rack to set on top. A 1U power, another Samson S Patch and the DI strip could then connect in the chain using my 3 patch bays. Ah, but then I could "justify" throwing in a 3U 500 series and doubling it up as a mobile recording rack. Main concern was line noise induced from the power supply and that there was enough power for the modules. Seems not a common problem with these. The Pro model costs barely more than the base, and those meters must be useful for gain staging. Only remaining questing is whether I might want a 500 series interface for mobile use. I got the Focusrite Scarlet 18i20 4th Gen as soon as they opened for preorder. It was painful to not go with RME, but I am extremely retired and the 4th Gen preamps and converters are really good. So, to get a 500 series interface or mobile with the old TASCAM 4x4? I might have patience on that one or get tempted with a post-xmas bargain.

[@joelglaser5657]

Perfect timing Barry! I'm getting ready to buy my first 500 rack and I think I just decided which one to start with!! Thank you. Looking forward to coming videos of 500 series gear!

[@HardyNahtal]

I love the Cranborne Audio 500 series, definitely not cheap but super versatile and awesome so far for a year. I highly recommend. Thanks for the video

[@gabo3k3k]

I own that Bento, the VU meters and monitoring selection are extremely useful for setting gain staging between the slots. I have it set with some bus compressor and mastering modules, so having the VU just before the limiter is a joy to mix. Only complaint is the power on the back is hard to reach, but for 8 slots it is a great deal.

[@AndredeBruinSoundengineer]

Like you said, the powersuply is the most important device in a 500 series rack, who needs meters? Rather have more rackspace(s) and do the metering in the daw/analog domain. Love your videos, Barry.

[@Auspexgetchell]

The timing again! Just unboxed my Bento 8 Pro. Hoping you’ve got some encouraging words! ;)

[@kshep39]

I have 2 of the pro and 1 standard bento 8 for the past year. No issues experienced thus far. I agree on the cabling it would have been nice to use 1/4 to 1/4 out of my patch bays. Honestly I rarely use the vu meters or the headphone out but the meters do make it look nicer in the rack :)

[@azeedogz]

Love the reviews and enjoy the info provided. 👍

[@BarryJohns]

Glad you like them!

[@oishikplays]

Hey Barry, I noticed in some recent videos the audio quality might have gone down, not sure if you were aware! Anyways, love your videos, I have the exact same 500 chassis in my project studio, and it has worked great for me for more than a year now. Somehow you have been onpoint with making videos specifically for the units that I am interested in, cheers!

[@oishikplays]

@@aleksamrkela831 no, i'm not talking about that

[@kevinlentz7604]

Thanks Barry

[@deiwar2994]

Looking forward to your videos on connectivity! I am considering the WesAudio 500-Series before the rest. All of them and the chassis are a complete system without need to worry. Can you explain the USB connection option

[@travisstoneham5656]

Any videos coming down the pipeline about the SSL big six I keep seeing in the background?!

[@BarryJohns]

Yes as soon as I finish the 500 series

[@henryheim8530]

Berry, I know Sweetwater doesn’t see Gefell microphones(I wished they did and I talked to Chuck about it several times, but nothing) I liked to have your opinion on them

[@cowabungaw9958]

HMMM...maybe next version may have a module in the rear for various connectivity. ADAT too?

[@thumbody1]

Other than having sufficient power, I have one main concern with 500 racks containing internal power supplies. 60Hz hum. I have never used a Fredenstein unit but I did have a 6 space API Lunchbox. Any device I placed in the last rack space next to its internal power supply had an induced 60Hz hum in it. I tried putting a Purple Audio Biz mic pre, a Great River MP-500NV mic pre and a Daking Comp 500 VCA compressor into that far-right slot and all of them had a hum that was probably 60dB or 70dB down. They didn't hum in any of the other slot locations. It's not a lot but it's there. I contacted API and they told me that was normal. HUH??? That's unacceptable to me. Especially for the price of the API rack. I needed a larger rack anyway so I sold the API and bought and built a Capi 11 space rack with an external power supply and it is dead silent. I will not tolerate induced noise if it is in any way avoidable. I have heard stories of other brands of 500 series racks with similar issues. Is there any hum-noise with the slot next to the internal power supply with the Fredensiein rack? You need to really crank the gain up to see if it is present.

[@BarryJohns]

I did not not experience any hum and it was a concern of mine too. I have been using two BAE 500 racks for many years of flawless use. That said, they were more than double the price of these. Capi is excellent!

[@richardaling5278]

I wonder how to get my Realphones software on that headphone output, otherwise it makes no sense...

[@djgalawak]

summing option .. ;)

[@npinero1]

How does it compare to Cranborne?

[@BarryJohns]

Cranbone is on a different level.

[@Auspexgetchell]

@@BarryJohnsis that due to the extra I/O options like Adat? Does it seem worth 2x the price?

[@npinero1]

@@Auspexgetchell it is more streamlined, leaving room for other gear on the same rack.

[@BarryJohns]

Their units do more than that, I’ll ask Sweetwater to send me one to cover.

[@barryfreeman4706]

Cranbourne 500RB over here… my favorite. It can be used as a standard 500 unit, a great DAW interface, or stand alone “mini mixer” for 8 channels (if you have 8 preamps). A lot more money of course!

[@julianwilliamsTSW]

flip it around

[@BarryJohns]

Next video shows me connecting it up to the new Artura Audio X8 units.

[@delvenhamric1200]

KZbin is FUCKED UP TODAY! It keeps stopping for GREED!

[@BarryJohns]

I know you are not talking about me or my channel!

[@delvenhamric1200]

@@BarryJohns No, it was the greedy KZbin AI! They expected me to watch a 20 minute political add, to see the second half of this video! I refuse to watch an add longer than the video! They now use adds that you can't quit! I do let reasonable adds run, but some days they get greedy! They break into the middle of a sentence, with unrelated adds! It was a bad day, sorry Barry, it wasn't you!😃

[@LoveMeBack]

It’s a waste of 4 slots though.