Behringer VD400 analog delay - trimpot adjust and it's awesome!

[ghostsauce]

Yeah I know, behringer... but I picked one of these up for $27 CAN and was really surprised by the results, so I thought I'd share since we're all poor from spending all our money on parts.

Out of the box the VD400 may as well be digital delay because the repeats are so pristine.. It's a bucket brigade circuit taken from the old Boss DM-3's but it just doesn't have much life to it. But... inside are 3 trimmers:

https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/551674_4517334806932_959259579_n.jpg

The one on the left adjusts the maximum repeat rate, and if you dial it counter clockwise to taste you get a fantastic warm analog delay! Imho it rivals some of the better ones out there after doing this, and for the price you just can't beat it. No noise, bypass signal has no audible tonesucking.. and you can stun everybody when they look at your board to see what awesome delay you are using, hahaha.

Not sure what can be done for mods otherwise, and not sure if you'd want to bother as the resistors are all SMD. I've no idea what the upper-left trimpot does, and the upper-right I've read has something to do with cutoff, but to my ears it wasn't worth bothering with so I left it the way it was.

[pappasmurfsharem]

Yeah I know, behringer... but I picked one of these up for $27 CAN and was really surprised by the results, so I thought I'd share since we're all poor from spending all our money on parts.

Out of the box the VD400 may as well be digital delay because the repeats are so pristine.. It's a bucket brigade circuit taken from the old Boss DM-3's but it just doesn't have much life to it. But... inside are 3 trimmers:

https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/551674_4517334806932_959259579_n.jpg

The one on the left adjusts the maximum repeat rate, and if you dial it counter clockwise to taste you get a fantastic warm analog delay! Imho it rivals some of the better ones out there after doing this, and for the price you just can't beat it. No noise, bypass signal has no audible tonesucking.. and you can stun everybody when they look at your board to see what awesome delay you are using, hahaha.

Not sure what can be done for mods otherwise, and not sure if you'd want to bother as the resistors are all SMD. I've no idea what the upper-left trimpot does, and the upper-right I've read has something to do with cutoff, but to my ears it wasn't worth bothering with so I left it the way it was.

Every time i see the name Behringer I cringe a little, I've never used their effects, but most seem to be near exact copies of "name brand" stuff Their Sansamp GT-2 Clone comes to mind. Makes me want to get it and rehouse it into a sturdier case, as it would be considerably more convenient then all the soldering.

The XLR out is a nice touch as well.

[ghostsauce]

I'm the same way, and normally I'd have never bought anything they made but I couldn't resist for the price knowing I could tweak it to taste.

I might rehouse this some day just so I don't have to look at the name, but until then it meets a need on my board and frees up money for other things. Like power tubes for my JCM900...

[pappasmurfsharem]

I'm curious though. Realistically  apart from potentially sub-par hardware (jacks and pots switches), how bad can their pedals be? Especially if they are near exact clones of others. I would imagine, at least for their analog pedals, that their components are manufactured by all the same people, So with a swap in hardware, how bad could it be?

[ghostsauce]

Their chromatic tuner is junk and doesn't function well at all.. and some of their stuff is noisy and their distortion pedals are if I remember correctly pretty bad, but there are some gems in there. The plastic enclosure kinda turns you off immediately but really there's nothing wrong with it unless you plan on running over it with a vehicle. And if you do bust it you can replace the whole thing for pennies.

Another problem is that most people who make video demos of these things are the typical teenager who's only been playing for a year and doesn't have good enough cash flow to get the pedal he really wanted, heh.. that doesn't help.

[Mark Hammer]

For the most part, the SMT boards Behringer uses that are 95% identical clones of discontinued Boss pedals should work every bit as well as the Boss originals, except with a less roadworthy chassis.  The only point of contention for me is that in some instances, Behringer has elected to use op-amps that draw less current, rather than op-amps that produce less noise.  If they were through-hole boards, it would be a no-brainer to buy their pedals and upgrade the chips.  While not impossible, unfortunately, for the majority of folks here, swapping out one surface-mount chip for another is a big deal.

[ghostsauce]

^ Gotcha.. so that is why they sound different. At any rate, having spent the last little while surfing video demos of their dirt pedals my opinion of them being mostly junk is reinforced imho. A few of them sounded not bad when the user was putting them through a tube amp, but for the most part they had nothing but gross tones.

Doubt I'll find another I'd consider buying :s

[pappasmurfsharem]

^ Gotcha.. so that is why they sound different. At any rate, having spent the last little while surfing video demos of their dirt pedals my opinion of them being mostly junk is reinforced imho. A few of them sounded not bad when the user was putting them through a tube amp, but for the most part they had nothing but gross tones.

Doubt I'll find another I'd consider buying :s

Check out the GDI21 (Sansamp GT-2 Clone) Seems fairly decent.

[ghostsauce]

Hey, that one's pretty impressive. Not really something I'm interested in but definitely one I'd recommend!

[pappasmurfsharem]

It's a great direct to board, direct recording tool. They also seem to function decently as a stompbox. My favorite use for them (at least my Sansamp Bass Driver) is to run it into the effects return of my SVT4 Pro (don't hate, it's dry and the tone is garbage IMHO) so it becomes my pre-amp. Really makes my Geddy Lee Sig Jazz come alive, I don't really use it on my 4003 rick because it's so punch anyway it seems to oversaturate the sansamp and becomes way to bright.

But if you have an effects loop on your amp, I would definately try it direct to the return so your are just using the power section. Sansamps are pretty sweet for pre-amps.

[paulyy]

After reading this post. I think I might get one. I also like the Behringer EM600 Echo Machine Delay. It seems to sound pretty good from some of the youtube vids I've seen. For the price. Why not.

[Mark Hammer]

The EM600 is one of several Behringer makes that are clones of the Line 6 Tone Core pedals.  I don't know how they arranged it, but the EM600 is an Echo Park.  The one feature they do not incorporate well is the tap tempo.  Line 6 included a dual-switch system such that lighter presses would actuate one microswitch (for tap tempo, or ramp-up/down in the case of the Roto-Machne), while you had to press harder to click a 2nd microswitch.  Behringer uses an arrangement that employs a single momentary switch which enables the tap tempo function when held down for a certain period of time.  It works, but it's awkward.

[Johan]

you can have 5 Behringer US600 for the price of 1 Boss PS6....makes life on stage easier and I have yet to break one..
J

[Mark Hammer]

And I hasten to remind folks that what you see here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xszB3pAGrdw&feature=plcp - is also frequently applicable to Behringer pedals.

[scuzzphut]

Paulyy :  I would heartily recommend the EM600. I have one on my pedalboard (I couldn't justify buying an echo park !) and I love it. I have never felt the need to replace or upgrade it - it's quiet, flexible and has some great modes (ducking, multi-tap).  As Mr Hammer says, the tap tempo is clunky, but apart from that it's a bargain.

[pappasmurfsharem]

And I hasten to remind folks that what you see here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xszB3pAGrdw&feature=plcp - is also frequently applicable to Behringer pedals.

Off Topic: but Mark you sound eerily like my optometrist

[Mark Hammer]

Paulyy :  I would heartily recommend the EM600. I have one on my pedalboard (I couldn't justify buying an echo park !) and I love it. I have never felt the need to replace or upgrade it - it's quiet, flexible and has some great modes (ducking, multi-tap).  As Mr Hammer says, the tap tempo is clunky, but apart from that it's a bargain.

There is a "swell" (SWL) mode on both the EP and EM600.  Set the mix to all wet, the delay time short, and zero repeats, and you have a digital Slow Gear with much more reliable triggering.

I sound like your optometrist?  Dammit Jim, I'm a doctor not a visual assistive devices technician!!

[Paul Marossy]

The plastic enclosure kinda turns you off immediately but really there's nothing wrong with it unless you plan on running over it with a vehicle.

There are Arion pedals from the 80s with plastic enclosures that are still going. You're right, you'd have to run it over with a truck to break it.

[StephenGiles]

I think Behringer was going to issue an all singing all dancing phaser with a barberpole effect, possibly lifted fron the PH3 (was it?)

[ghostsauce]

Mark, that remote switching is so frickin' cool! Frig, you could build a board that had all the pedals in a little box hidden from view, and just a big switchboard on top for the ultra clean look! Or just have a small switchboard out front and run a 15-pin midi cable back to a flight case with your pedals inside! That's really quite an interesting idea