This is a joke, right?! Behringer V-Tone Power Pack 2

Mish

Mish

New member
Just received my Behringer newsletter in the mail, and I decided to click on some of the products that I haven't yet read about. This Behringer V-Tone Power Pack 2 caught my attention, so I decided to check the price on it.

http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/page/shop/flypage/product_id/35840

5f7d5b4cff252b779f017719bdfd9dde.jpg



UNDER 600 BUCKS??!! :eek::eek::eek:

I know Behringer stuff is cheap, but THAT cheap?
So I went to harmony central for yet another shock - people giving this amp head 9s and 10s on the sound quality/overal rating.

For this money I couldn't even get a 4x12 Marshall cabinet.

From my experience with V-amp, I really *love* the sound I can get out of it (that's after it's routed to my marshall combo.. amp modeler + amp - not exactly the best way to get a right tone). Here it's an amp head with authentic cab, 200Watt of it.

Hell, should I order it without trying? Anybody has experience with this amp?
 
Why? Do you need a half stack?

Seriously though, there is the school of thought that you get what you pay for. That said, it could on the other hand be a good deal. Personally wouldn't buy an amp without trying it first anyway.
 
Last edited:
People slag off Behringer (and Zoom) gear as a matter of course and out of hand. My experience with their stuff is not bad and with Zoom gear positively good. On the other hand I've had bad experiences with Boss gear, hell, most of the Boss pedals are 25 years old or more. I say check this amp out first though. If it sounds good then buy it. Behringer offer gear cheap because it is produced in large volume. But that doesn't make it necessarily inferior product. Let us know what you think.

K.
 
not to knock v-tone (it's all tech 21 ripoff, I have the gdi21 "sansamp" and they have their use - you can get useable tones) but there's also a school of thought that "NOBODY needs a half-stack" - with that kinda money get yourself some decent all-tube 2x12 or even a 1x12, whatever you find and mic it when needed.

This thing will get you kicked out of the band (if they have any taste/class) :D

but if you must, invest in earplugs.
 
All I know is I never played a cheap halfstack that I liked, and I've had a bunch. And with ONE exception, I've never been impressed with modelers - that exception being the Line6 Pods. You never know tho.. I own a lot of behringer stuff, no problems with any of it. Technology's come a long way, so maybe it sounds great. Not a gamble I'd be willing to take tho, I'm never buying an amp I haven't even heard.
 
I haven't tried the specific product mentioned, however I reviewed one of their keyboard amps and am currently reviewing one of their powered PA speakers for FrugalGuitarist.com and the general construction and performance at high volumes is very good.
 
What's wrong with half-stacks? Seriously, I feel like I'm missing some inside joke here!

Alright just a lamer's question then - can you GIG with that thing? I mean it's not just for studio applications is it? I mean, with a 200W cabinet and all :| ?
 
wbcsound said:
I haven't tried the specific product mentioned, however I reviewed one of their keyboard amps and am currently reviewing one of their powered PA speakers for FrugalGuitarist.com and the general construction and performance at high volumes is very good.
Click to expand...

Great review mate - and that thing is just $250?

I wonder if that would be a better solution for the price since I use a modeler myself.
 
Mish said:
What's wrong with half-stacks? Seriously, I feel like I'm missing some inside joke here!
Click to expand...

They are to a lot of extents uneccessary. They are uneccessarily loud for a lot of applications. If you are going to need that kind of volume live, chances are you'll be going through a PA anyway. I have a 6505 half stack. It's 120watts and it was pretty expensive at £700 for the head (I already had a marshall cab). I don't need that kind of power. It's in my opinion one of the best sounding amps I've ever heard for metal, but I feel that I was kind of naive and silly in my purchase. I don't even play in a band. I could have gone for the equivalent combo instead, and saved a buttload of money and space. However, now that I've got it, I wouldn't change it. On the other side of things, I also have a Marshall AVT150 head, which was only £300, and I really don't like the distortion on it, and consequently it rarely gets used unless I'm using it for the clean tones and reverbs, which I do like.
 
ggunn said:
I think his point was that many of us are going to smaller amps and lower stage volumes these days.
Click to expand...

Seriously, I play through a quarter-stack (that's rock star talk for 2x12 combo--it's all tube at 100W). When I bought it, I was tempted to do about $200 more for the same amp in head/cabinet half-stack configuration. I am so glad I didn't. In fact, I should've gone with the 50W 1x12.

The 2x12 is PLENTY loud for live--even when it's not mic'd; and it's too loud for in the studio. I'm much more about recording now than I used to be, but I'd rather have a stable full of small amps with different personalities than a giant amp or two that looks like it can crush your car.
 
Well I suppose I suffer from a 30-watt combo syndrome. At the rehearsal I can't even match the drummer's volume, and it makes me want to upgrade to something more than just 50W combo.
 
K Road said:
Behringer offer gear cheap because it is produced in large volume. But that doesn't make it necessarily inferior product. Let us know what you think.

K.
Click to expand...

What part of the problem is IMO, is the lack of QC and most likely cheaper components that are used to build the stuff. I was unlucky to have a relatively new mixer crap out on one channel, and one of the main outs. It's not built very durably, so I wouldn't trust the roadworthiness of it. I speak from experience on this and am not just jumping on the bash bandwagon.

I will say that our band has been using three of their feedback supression racks, and they not only work but have help up. I guess it's a crap shoot.
 
I played for years, at some gigs that were fairly high-volume, with a 100-watt tube amp through a 2 X 12 cab. The other guitarist was typically using a Marshall half- or full stack but our volume levels were even.

Full stacks in particular are mostly about appearance. A half-stack makes sense if it's loaded with low-wattage speakers like Celestion Blues (15W ea!!) or if you just want some breathing room with regard to your cab's overall wattage capacity. A half-stack or full stack will yield a less directional sound onstage just due to the speaker spread.
 
wbcsound said:
I haven't tried the specific product mentioned, however I reviewed one of their keyboard amps and am currently reviewing one of their powered PA speakers for FrugalGuitarist.com and the general construction and performance at high volumes is very good.
Click to expand...

A very silly question - can you plug your guitar into it directly, or it needs a PA ?
 
Mish said:
A very silly question - can you plug your guitar into it directly, or it needs a PA ?
Click to expand...
The Ultratone is basically a PA pretending to be an amp. I gigged it (using a GNX3000) with a live drummer without issue outdoors. No "house" PA, just the amp. I'm waiting for a DVD copy in the next week or so and I'll have clips on YouTube. The only drawback (which isn't an issue for some) was weight. For its size it's deceptively heavy.

The powered PA speaker (don't know the model off the top of my head) has dual inputs (XLR or 1/4") volume and high and low eq. You plug your processor right in, no mixer is necessary. It's darker in comparison to the Ultratone which I felt was pretty transparent. Behringer rates it at a ridiculous 400watts (or something like that) which is clearly a peak rating. That being said, it's got power to spare and only weighs 35 pounds. Just rehearsed with it in a 4 piece combo (with a live drummer) and had volume to spare. Best part about it the ability to carry the whole rig (guitar, processor, and amp) in a single trip from the car.

Half (or full racks) are all about marketing in my opinion. Unless you're playing large outdoor festivals or huge arenas, there's really no point in something of that size.
 
My advice would be to save your money and buy an all-tube combo amp. Half stacks are big, heavy, a pain in the ass to move and carry, and generally WAY too loud for most applications. For that same $600 you could find a tube amp like the Peavey Valve King that'll be louder, have better tone, be easier to carry, and probably last longer than the Behringer stack.

You'll find that 30 watts or less from an all-tube amp will still blow the drummer out of the room.

And my motto on amps is "if it isn't loud enough, mic it". Don't just keep buying louder amps or you'll just piss off the sound guys at every gig you play. With a 30-watt tube amp you can have an acceptibly loud stage volume for your own hearing and control what the audience hears via the PA system.
 
Mish,

It's not just about "watts" and the number of speakers, there's also the actual amp design and quality of components and build.

I know from first hand experience of two 1x12" combos that will equal or better a 100watt Marshall half stack, one is a Mesa Mk IV (80watts) and the other is my Rivera 5512 (55watts). My son "owns" the Marshall and on numerous occasions he has taken my Rivera out and literally blown the band away with it's capabilities. Both "rigs" are here http://www.homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=124632&page=4 scroll down and you'll find the pic.

Personally, I doubt that the Behringer could match any of those amps in the long run.

:cool:
 
I'd love to get mesa, but man finding a dealer in the UK is a bitch. Same goes for Peavey - I'd be paying twice just for the shipment.
 
Mish said:
I'd love to get mesa, but man finding a dealer in the UK is a bitch. Same goes for Peavey - I'd be paying twice just for the shipment.
Click to expand...

http://www.andertons.co.uk is a pretty good dealer that sells Mesa stuff. I worked there for a while years and years ago.

http://www.gak.co.uk is where I generally go nowadays because it's not too far from me. They sell Peavey stuff.

Personally I'd chose Peavey over Mesa because of the price and I prefer the sound of a 6505. I think Mesa stuff is massively overpriced at £1700 for a Dual Rec head and whopping £900 for a cab. Fuck that. To me that's silly money. When it comes to metal, I personally think that a lot of people who buy Mesa's are just falling for hype or buying them because a lot of their favourite ponce-metal bands have them. They are versatile amps, but people who buy them soley for metal are quite often rather naive and foolish. I'm not saying that they all are like that though...But I do hear lot of metal kids harping on about how great the dual rec is when they've never been near one, and similarly dismissing anything by peavey as crap, when they've never been near one of them either. Similarly these are the same people who claim the Boss metal zone to be some kind of holy tone box.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top