Behringer Studio XL Monitor Controller

[Sokel]

They are completely different companies. Topping is hyper focused on best possible measurement. Behringer is after what feature list people want and offer it at lowest prices.

If Topping wanted, they could do far better.

They didn't get there with their interfaces though.
Yes, they are decent overall but 100dB SINAD for the line and HP outputs is 20 years ago performance.

Nowhere near this mess though.

 

[Blumlein 88]

They didn't get there with their interfaces though.
Yes, they are decent overall but 100dB SINAD for the line and HP outputs is 20 years ago performance.

Nowhere near this mess though.

I wonder how much of that comes from other issues in audio interfaces that include mic preamps. What is the best performing audio interface with mic inputs?

miniDSP with their pocket ADC and Adept get numbers not too far from the RME ADI Pro FS (which also lacks mic inputs). But RME's other devices with mic inputs are not really any better in general than Toppings or not by much.

 

[Sokel]

I wonder how much of that comes from other issues in audio interfaces that include mic preamps. What is the best performing audio interface with mic inputs?

miniDSP with their pocket ADC and Adept get numbers not too far from the RME ADI Pro FS (which also lacks mic inputs). But RME's other devices with mic inputs are not really any better in general than Toppings or not by much.

It's the ADC's themselves too I think. RME does 117dB, same with ADEPT while Topping around 110dB THD+N on the ADC side.
Complexity is a factor there, for sure.

 

[Blumlein 88]

It's the ADC's themselves too I think. RME does 117dB, same with ADEPT while Topping around 110dB THD+N on the ADC side.
Complexity is a factor there, for sure.

RME only has that on the ADC side for the ADI Pro which has no mic inputs. For the Babyface Pro they list -108 db and for the more expensive UCX II -104 db which are lower than Topping. Among those Amir has tested only the Motu Ultralite mk5, UAD Apollo X16 and Lynx Hi-LO are a bit higher than Topping's ADC. The miniDSP Adept on line level signals claims -116 db SINAD.

EDIT to add:
I misremembered the Apollo X16 as having mic inputs. It does not (I was thinking of the Twin X). Neither does the Lynx HiLo. So the Topping is the highest SINAD of any interface with mic preamps built in of those tested by Amir.

I think some this is because most interfaces have the circuit for the mic preamps and use it for line level signals by padding down the input with resistors. While devices like the RME ADI Pro, Lynx HiLo and Apollo X16 are going straight in at line level with no need to work with microphones.

As an example here is a Julian Krause measurement of an Audient ID44 mk ii. First thru the line level via mic preamp circuit. The ID44 mkii lets you also bypass that via a Return input and go straight into the ADC which gives a SINAD of -116 or -117 db which is near the RME ADI Pro FS and miniDSP Adept.

 

[andymcbain]

The first alternative for a low cost studio monitoring controller that comes to mind is the SSL 12. It’s twice as expensive, but it does have better specs (for one, it’s a newer 32 bit interface, and it specifies THD @ -1dBFS and a more realistic input level for the mic input).

Note that a studio monitoring controller is more than just a studio interface (ADC/DAC). It has more connectivity and routing options, and talkback. If these options matter people need to decide for themselves.

The SSL 12 is an audio interface. I’d typically define a studio monitoring controller as an analogue mixer type device in a tabletop format.

Mackie combined a monitor controller and audio interface with the Big Knob Studio+ , which the Behringer is directly copying here. It retails at double the price -

Big Knob Studio+ | Monitor Controller And Interface | MACKIE

Enjoy the high-resolution Onyx recording and playback solution that the Mackie Big Knob Studio monitor controller and interface has to offer and improve your studio.

mackie.com

Here’s some examples of cheaper monitor controllers -

Drawmer CMC2 Compact Monitor Controller at Gear4music

Drawmer CMC2 Compact Monitor Controller at Gear4music

www.gear4music.com

PreSonus Monitor Station V2 Table Top Studio Control Centre - Secondhand at Gear4music

PreSonus Monitor Station V2 Table Top Studio Control Centre - Secondhand at Gear4music

www.gear4music.com

Palmer Monicon XL Active Studio Monitor Controller at Gear4music

Palmer Monicon XL Active Studio Monitor Controller at Gear4music

www.gear4music.com

I’d consider these quite expensive devices for their feature set, which is why the Behringer XL is of interest. It’ll be my lack of technical knowledge but I can’t figure out from this review whether the analogue circuitry of the Behringer is fundamentally broken, or just the USB audio interface component?

 

[Geert]

The SSL 12 is an audio interface. I’d typically define a studio monitoring controller as an analogue mixer type device in a tabletop format.

The SSL 12 has a tabletop format. It has a big volume control, multiple speaker and headphones outputs with dedicated volume controls, and talkback.

 

[Geert]

It’ll be my lack of technical knowledge but I can’t figure out from this review whether the analogue circuitry of the Behringer is fundamentally broken, or just the USB audio interface component?

The alignment of the maximum signal level received via the USB input with the internal mix bus or buffer headroom is broken, resulting in clipping. Next to that, the performance of the outputs is also pretty mediocre since THD is limited to 80 dB @ 4dBu output and gets much worse over that. (And going by Amirs measurements, we can even question if it meets the 80dB THD @ 4 dBu spec). So if you consider the device because of its price and features, keep input and output levels in check (and understand that even than you still wont have top notch performance).

 

[Chr1]

Definitely sounds like too many corners have been cut. Presumably just to keep the production cost down.
Big fail, I reckon. If I was ever in the market for such a device, I'd be buying something better.
Possibly for the same price, if purchased secondhand.

WTF. Doh, Behringer!

 

[Scrivs]

If they were dead, my DEQ and DCX2496 would be rolling in their (landfills) graves.

But, 22 years later, both are alive, well and can't be replaced for less than $4000.

I paid under $500 for the pair.

This "studio" monitor controller is an abortion of an abomination.

 

[TNT]

Someone said the RSS feed for review page has stopped working. I need to investigate it. That page doesn't expose the link hardly at all. How did you subscribe to it?

By entering "https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?reviews/index.rss" into my news feeder application.

It's very handy - please try to get it working again.

//

 

[amirm]

By entering "https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?reviews/index.rss" into my news feeder application.

It's very handy - please try to get it working again.

//

Oh, I see what happened. Please use this link instead:

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?Audio+Reviews/index.rss

 

[enricoclaudio]

Not a surprise here. Most Monitor Controllers are flawed and introduce lot of floor noise due to poor implementation. I have tried Drawmer, Grace Design and SPL, all of them had high floor noise. I stopped using monitor controllers and moved to a Benchmark HPA4 + Apollo Twin audio interface instead.

 

[Geert]

I have tried Drawmer, Grace Design and SPL, all of them had high floor noise.

The analog SPL's are pretty popular in better studio's, but their noise levels is also not top noch indeed (the more expensive newer models are better in that regard). But certainly to be prefferd over the all in one analog/digital budget solutions. But now we're talking 700 to 1400€ for volume controller/headphone amp/routing/talkback without ADC/DAC...

 

[enricoclaudio]

The analog SPL's are pretty popular in better studio's, but their noise levels is also not top noch indeed (the more expensive newer models are better in that regard). But certainly to be prefferd over the all in one analog/digital budget solutions. But now we're talking 700 to 1400€ for volume controller/headphone amp/routing/talkback without ADC/DAC...

The only one I haven't tried is the Antelope Audio Satori Gen 2, which on paper, looks very promising:
Dynamic Range: 132dB
THD + N: -127dB

Satori & R4S | Gen 2 | Antelope Audio

Introducing the second generation of Satori, an improved version of our TEC Award-winning monitoring controller. Maintaining its legacy of digitally controlled true analog monitoring and summing, the new Satori Gen 2 brings further advancements, making it an even more essential tool for modern...

en.antelopeaudio.com

Before getting the Benchmark HPA4, I was going to try the Satori Gen 1 but reviews were not encouraging because it had lot of software bugs and very poor CS. Looks like with Gen 2 they fixed most of those bugs, not so sure about their CS.

 

[neRok]

I tested the DAC on my Monitor2USB, and it seems to perform similar to this one, in that it clips badly at "max". However, the manual does say to operate it "between 20 and 80", and the performance seems close enough to the specs when used like that.

It seems a common trend that Behringer DAC's are quite "quiet". I started testing with my Presonus set to "line-in mode", but it wasn't even registering a blip on the VU meters. So I had to turn that button off, then turned the input gain up until it got to ~0dBFS, which was about "10 o'clock" on the knob (probably +10dB, considering the minimum is -15 and the max +65).

 

[boxerfan88]

Nice to see that they made their specs

 

[Geert]

the manual does say to operate it "between 20 and 80", and the performance seems close enough to the specs when used like that.

And this manual does specify input sensitivity, showing a value I expect to see for this type of device:

To much cost cutting or lack of quality control when the manual for the newer Studio XL controller was made.

 

[elvisizer]

standard behringer stuff lol

 

[zachary80]

The SSL 12 is an audio interface. I’d typically define a studio monitoring controller as an analogue mixer type device in a tabletop format.
....

I think this is key, I have recently been in the market for something similar and I can't imagine running the USB or conversions on this except in a pinch, just like no one buys their $99 mixers to function as an audio interface. I do think the terrible implementation worth reporting since they shipped it anyway