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Three years since it was first announced, today, Behringer announces that its 2-XM, a Euro format knockoff of the classic Oberheim Two Voice synthesizer, is now shipping.

What they have to say about it:

“The original design consisted of two single-voice modules coupled together. With its 37-note keyboard, it was a considerable size but introduced a feature no other synth was capable of at the time: polyphony.

The 2-XM combines all the features of the original with all the awesome stuff that we’ve all come to love in modern synths, such as MIDI and USB implementation, stereo, as well as a ton of CV and GATE ins and outs that’ll allow you to transform and shape sounds any way you want!”

Though it lacks a keyboard and has been reimagined in a Eurorack-friendly format with some modern enhancements, Behringer’s duophonic 2-XM nonetheless recreates the design of the Two Voice faithfully. Each of its two modules is equipped with two VCOs based on original Oberheim designs, with saw and pulse waveforms, PWM and oscillator sync on offer.

These run through a VCF section based on the SEM’s legendary 12dB/oct multimode filter, which morphs between low-pass, high-pass and notch modes with a single knob. An additional band-pass mode is accessible through a switch below. Each module has a noise generator, along with two ADS envelope generators and a single sine-wave LFO on modulation duties.

On the right-hand side there is a master section with level and pan controls for each module, which let you create some interesting stereo patches, along with portamento controls and a switch to choose between 2-XM’s unison, duophonic and split modes, the latter of which splits each of its modules across a keyboard. Here you’ll also find a level control for 2-XM’s dual external audio inputs.

These can be found on the 2-XM’s 32-point patchbay, which provides plenty of scope for integrating 2-XM into a broader hardware set-up or Eurorack rig. Further I/O is provided by a 3.5mm stereo output and MIDI input on the front panel, joined by a 1/4″ stereo output, MIDI thru and USB port on the back.

Behringer 2-XM Video Intro:

Features:

• Copies synthesizer circuitry from the ‘70s
• Analog signal path(VCO, VCF and VCA)
• 2 independent voices for polyphonic, split or 4 oscillator unison sounds
• 2 variable oscillator shapes with adjustable pulse width
• Oscillator sync
• 2 multi-mode filters with low-pass, high-pass, band-pass and notch modes
• 2 analog LFOs with sine waveform
• 4 analog envelope generators for control of filters and amplifiers
• Noise generator
• Extensive modulation capabilities, including internal and external sources
• 2-channel mixer section featuring level and pan controls for intense stereo sounds
• Portamento for pitch gliding effects
• 2 external audio inputs for processing external sound sources
• Dedicated audio outputs plus a combined stereo output
• CV and GATE In/Outs
• 16-voice Poly Chain allows combining multiple synthesizers for up to 32 voice polyphony
• Eurorack compatibler – main module can be transferred to a standard Eurorack case
• 67 controls to give you direct and real-time access to important parameters
• MIDI and USB implementation with MIDI channel and Voice Priority selection

The Behringer 2-XM is shipping now, with a global list price of $319 and a US list price of $399. It typically takes a month or two for their shipping synths to become available at retailers. Find out more on Behringer website.

Tiptop Audio & Buchla have released the latest module in their series of reissues of classic 200 Series modules in Eurorack format, the Quad Sample & Hold Model 264t.

The module features four independent sample-and-hold circuits, plus a specialized logic circuit for expediently implementing polyphonic patches.

This video offers a hands-on demo of the module and its capabilities.

Topics covered:

0:00 Intro

0:45 Panel Layout

2:31 How can we Polyphony?

3:50 Quad OSC Audio Example

7:44 Sample vs Track & Hold

9:17 Offset parameter

10:03 What’s a Quantizer?

11:33 Sample Rate Reduction?

12:29 Compared to the 266t

13:56 The REAL quantizer!

16:32 Gate length

17:18 Different modes

18:26 Free lanes on the 245t

19:26 259t in ART mode

21:20 Why all this is a BIG deal

22:33 Outro blipblopping

Sample-and-holds are essentially one-cell analog memories. They are useful for “remembering” the instantaneous value of a control voltage, for generating equally spaced steps from a constant slope input, and for converting any continuously changing voltage into a series of discrete values.

The 264’s sample-and-hold circuits have two operating modes: sample and track.

• In the sample mode, the value of the input is sampled and applied to the output whenever a pulse is received. The output remains at this value until the next pulse arrives.
• The track mode differs in that an input is applied to the output for the duration of the pulse. The output tracks the input until the end of the pulse and remains at a constant value until the next pulse.

To use the 264t as four independent channels set the separate/common switch to separate. A single CV can be set to all four channels by setting the operate/common to common and plug CV in the the back jack on the with right side.

The Model 264t includes a polyphonic adaptor, which performs the logic necessary to implement four-voice polyphony. Facilities are incorporated for fine tuning and f.m. modulating the oscillators; light emitters display the adaptor’s operation.

The four voltage control outputs are internally routed to a quad-channel quantizer with four ART outputs for use with ART-equipped oscillators, such as the 259t Complex Oscillator. A 12-stage switch selects the key, while the knob above chooses the scale: Minor (m), Chromatic (ch), or Major (M).

For more info on the 264t, Visit the Tiptop site.

Behringer founder and CEO Uli Behringer has appeared in a rare interview with music gear retailer Sweetwater. Mitch Gallagher and others join Uli Behringer in which he discusses his upbringing, creating Behringer, his journey along the way and sheds light on the company’s pricing strategy.

Behringer is widely known for releasing highly affordable instruments and studio gear that take influence from the design of popular products released by other manufacturers. In the past few months alone, the company has revealed inexpensive products inspired by the PPG Wave, LinnDrum, Roland CR-78 and Universal Audio 6176, among others.

In the interview Uli Behringer reveals that his decision to price the company’s products so competitively is driven by a mission to make music technology accessible to a broader range of customers. “We have not invented synthesizers, nor will we ever claim to, but hopefully people will remember us for having brought all these jewels back to life,” he says.

“Only a few people can afford those, and I think it’s important to make them accessible to people who do not have deep pockets. That’s something we feel strongly about and that’s our purpose, it’s why we exist.”

Speaking in more detail about how the company decides on its prices, Behringer says: “The way that we price our products is that we look at the cost and we add a small profit on top of it, and that’s the sales price”. Behringer then compares this to the company’s competitors, who he believes are overcharging their customers.

“We don’t go out like most of our competitors and say, ‘how much could I charge and get away with it?’ We say it doesn’t matter. We just take the cost, add a small margin, and that’s the sale price. Customers will appreciate it, and then you have a long-term or lifetime customer, and that’s what matters.”

While the interview didn’t touch on the criticisms levelled at Behringer’s imitative designs by LinnDrum designer Roger Linn, who recently questioned  the ethics of the company’s business practices, Behringer claimed that his decision to recreate vintage instruments isn’t driven by financial gain, but the desire to make historic pieces of gear – most of which are now either too expensive or too rare to purchase for many musicians – attainable for music-makers that cannot afford them.

“We made it our mission to bring these products back and give them to people like me who, at that time, couldn’t afford them,” Behringer says. “I can tell you that in many cases, we build synthesizers and there is no commercial incentive behind it. In some cases we even lose money, it doesn’t matter. But perhaps my gift to these musicians is to make these synthesizers affordable.”

Watch the video and share your thoughts in the comment.