Is the Behringer UBXA any good ? (demo / sounds / thoughts)

0:00 opening sounds
0:22 opening thoughts and build quality
5:00 vintage mode / atrophy
12:28 stereo panning with the mod matrix
18:00 making my own patch (pwm pad patch)
30:35 lets modify the celesta patch
36:00 closing thoughts

[@RandoCalglitchian]

Don't worry. That display will outlast a mini OLED by a factor of 10, and it's an established standard that you will actually be able to get spare parts for when it does eventually die. Behringer made the right call on the display front. These displays are actually more costly than mini OLEDs. Fred's Lab decided to use one in the Manatee for exactly the above reasons, not cost.

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

you can easily get oled module that use a HD44780 controller, which is the type of display I'm 99% sure they are using on the ubxa, they have the same pinouts as the lcd version thus you could replace them just as easily

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

@@MadelnMachines not easily, from the vent holes I can see the display and it is soldered in.

[@RandoCalglitchian]

@@YukiTheSynthDragon Yeah that's cool, I'd be more interested in a solution to replace an OLED in existing gear with an LCD character display like this. LIke I said, in a handful of years there's no guarantee that any of the competing OLED display interface options will survive and those displays are going to break much faster than an LCD.

[@Tiger.Arcade]

Very impressive ngl. Appreciate the demos and your thoughts.✌️

[@jaypkock]

This makes me mega excited for the VS-80 and the JT-16 - Behringer is on such a roll

[@joshuabpolys]

Awesome! Thx!!

[@synthsamuraiproductions]

Best demo yet man. Awesome finally.

[@FastLaneLyfe]

It makes beautiful harmonies.

[@MrPhillee1982]

Thanks for the review. I’ve been on the fence on getting one. Hopefully the desktop version gets released soon. I’ll be getting the desktop version.

[@vertigev]

Damn that sounds great ❤

[@juxty3102]

Thank you for a great demo of the Ubxa. I was a little underwhelm when I got mine, but that was mainly down to many of the presets being poor. Glad you able to demonstrate what the synth can do. Agree you need some effects to make it shine. Have subscribed. 😁

[@joeymc5272]

Thanks yuki for putting pedals in your videos. Makes synths shine so much more!

[@alex_darsen]

I agree with you on the the current menuing system being a bit of a pain. They should have included an exit button. But the easy way to think about it, I have learned, is you have to back out of it the way you went in. Go in reverse… i.e. you go in by hitting shift, global, do your tweaking, then press global, shift to get out. Also, I wish they made the “select” encoder a ratcheted one, because like you found it’s very sensitive and it’s easy to change something with the slightest touch. Maybe they can fix that in firmware. Don’t know at this point into the video if you have an opinion on the display, but I think that’s the only really bad thing on this synth. Too hard to read from side angles if at all. I would have paid $100 more for the ratcheted encoder and particularly a better display.

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

Display should be Oled given the cheapest synth Behringer makes has one.

[@musicrockzx]

You doing the good work! Thank you! When I play mine together with Hydrasynth ASM , nothing can stop me!

[@DreamscapesMusicCinema]

Good afternoon Yuki . Thank you so much for this awesome Demo. Super well done! I just resd in your comments that you live in Arizona! Me to im in Mesa....you? . Have a great evening. Mark Bensette Aux Bois 🇨🇦.

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

Mesa as well.

[@huntergalloway3944]

Mesa here too. Lol

[@huntergalloway3944]

I actually really like my UltraTap delay to design my own more modern style early rack style reverbs. Great review!

[@FastLaneLyfe]

Reminds me of a Juno or prophet 8 but with a classic updated twist.

[@ferenclucas2842]

Great job on this video thank you

[@FinnleysAudioAdventures]

Hey Yuki the Synth Dragon! As a fellow Arizonian, I really enjoyed your review of the Behringer UBXA. The string sound was fantastic, and some of the chords had a great Van Halen vibe. Regarding the rotary encoder’s sensitivity and slop, do you think slipping an o-ring underneath might help add some friction and improve the feel?

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

It could but I would consider the friction an issue as it will wear the o ring and potentially deposit material into the encoder.

[@VisionsMusicGroup]

Hey! Fellow Arizonian here too! Just stopping by to pick up any more tips I can to learn how to navigate my UB-Xa. Thank you for taking time with this wonderful instrument!

[@chokocat9064]

Nicely done Yuki. Quite sad about your Sequential experience. I wonder if this QA issue is reflective of the new management. Totally agree with the comment on Fatar AT. The Ensoniq AT system was very usable, even though those keys were actually made by Fatar too, but they didn't use the Fatar system. The new Arturia AT system looks very similar to the Ensoniq system. I was rather surprised you didn't run the Uliheim through The Big Sky. When Uli brought out the P800 there were a number of issues that got attended rather quickly, so there is hope that the things you outlined might see some attention as well.

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

I will be running the big sky Mx again soon, I want to use a reverb that was way more lofi for the synth wave character.

[@joshuaswannmusic6462]

This would definitely complement my Prophet Rev 2.

[@thomasmorus3406]

Thank for this nice video! How do like the UB-XA compared to the OB-6? Are they an overlap? Do they complement each other? Is one better a certain things? Will you keep both? As an owner of an OB-6 I am really intersted in your opinion 🙂 Since the release of the UB-XA I am thinking about this. Currently I think they are to close in sound to have them both. However the OB-6 is great and the UB-XA has a great value...

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

The ob6 has a very different sounding filter but I actually really like the sound of the ubxa a bit more oddly enough. Epically for soft plucked style sounds.

[@Sonikbytes]

Well, that was totally unexpected after you told me last time when we met that you will likely get a desktop version in the future. I'm the guy who got your B solina, btw. Looking toward more videos with UB and MX or Big sky (since that's what I have)

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

I couldn’t wait !

[@jamiesingleton5558]

Thanks for another cool video. How does it compare to the peak for sounds? I'm tempted to get a peak after seeing your previous videos, but wondering if I should wait for the desktop version of this one to come out!

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

Peak is still a better synth for ambient stuff imo. The raw sounds of the peak are unmatched and then it also has the one of the best reverb, chorus, and delays only matched by the wavestate. Plus it’s way more versatile. I will say if you like the filter on the ubxa you won’t get that out of the peak, the filters are very different.

[@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene]

I hear people talk of the "sound" of a synth, I have heard (owned) some really bad sounding synths, but when they talk of Moog, or Prophet, or Oberheim sound I can only hear minor differences in pure unedited oscillators, then add the filter and the sound differences widen....a little. I can understand this need for pure Oberheim sound if your music uses just one synth without overdubbing. Once synths are orchestrated with other synths and instruments, that pure sound is watered down to no value. In a pure blind sound test everyone has to guess which synth is making a sound (as Marc Doty has proven) and most get it wrong. I own 18 high quality synths/grove box/sampler/pianos/ to make music, it is unlikely my music will change if I own a Moog and add a Sequential or Oberheim. (been performing on keys 56 years, audiophile and audio engineer, critical listening has been a part of my life for all these years). Maybe I'm just no good at listening yet?

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

most synths sound similar when you make similar patches, usually the differences come in the filter and how they deal with resonance and driving them. The ubxa / oberhiem sound is very smooth compared to my other synths when you push resonance.

[@tonyhill2318]

Idk, but I can always recognize the Ob-xa in a song. It has a very distinctive sound. And Sequential polys all have a sort of buzzy sound that I don't like.

[@ageshero]

Not sure if you can but if you’re down, Share that Eventide Blackhole Preset! 🎉

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

Look my video on the cloudburst vs blackhole I have some settings I that for the blackhole.

[@nagchumpalot]

My 0b6 knobs are rock solid 😅 and on the I dried it’s built superb! Real Seperate voice cards super easy to replace.. that’s a big deal… have you looked inside the UBXA??

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

Yes I have looked on the inside, it looks similar to the pcb on the new obx8 so no voice cards.

[@nagchumpalot]

@@YukiTheSynthDragon voice cards are better that’s my point😃

[@birdie17uk]

More please! Quite a lot of videos of initial impressions on this synth, but so much coloured by the 'political' arguments of the whole Behringer discourse. Would love to see more of a deep dive that gets into the sound design possibilities.

[@KiR_3d]

I could forgive all these little things (like a moderate quality keybed and no post effects) if UBXa has the multitimbrality! Otherwise... No... I don't have space for this synth. If I'll find a space then I'll better buy Polybrute 12!

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

It is Multi-Timbral…

[@KiR_3d]

@@YukiTheSynthDragon Bitimbral AFAIK.

[@chokocat9064]

@@KiR_3d Indeed, with 16 voices it could easily have been a one synth powerhouse if they had given it a proper dynamic multi-timbral engine, and bi-timbral isn't a proper substitute. It is find for layers, but not really useful for sequencing.

[@KiR_3d]

@@chokocat9064 yeah, it could be a kind of "replacement" for Andromeda A6

[@kenshiro2022]

Going to wait a couple of years to get this synth cheap, 1200$ is too much imo.

[@crhkrebs]

So what analogue, bitimbral, 16 voice polysynth with 2 VCOs per voice, 2 LFOs, 2 EGs, dual pole VCF and polyphonic aftertouch can you get for $1200?

[@kenshiro2022]

@@crhkrebs yeah true that

[@crhkrebs]

@@kenshiro2022 well, we all have different financial circumstances, so no one should should say what is, and what is not affordable for others. I’m just pointing out what that synth offers for the price point.

[@novalogue]

Not quite sure but isnt that slushy lubricant noise a good sign, because a lot of the force doesnt get directed to the solder point of the potentiometer?!

[@YukiTheSynthDragon]

Some lubricant sound is normal but they didn’t sound normal, it was the most I have ever heard but it wasn’t constant either some pots moved like they had no lube in them at all.

[@dalelaushman8749]

Good build quality….Just wait 5 or 10 years….

[@leftmono1016]

Or wait 5 or 10 days if you buy Sequential or Oberheim.

[@MusicZeroOne]

@@leftmono1016You’d be covered by warranty.

[@ElectroPanPipes]

⁠@@leftmono1016This didn’t last 1 day…

[@leftmono1016]

@@MusicZeroOne - warranty isn’t the issue, it’s the build quality / quality control of the expensive synth manufacturers. It’s a stick people like to bash Behringer with, which is ironic.

[@kevingort4926]

Uhhhhh, for that cheap I will just buy another.