Behringer Bass V-Amp Pro

It's not that easy to get good sounds out of a mfx unit, at least for a relatively newbie like me (in the bass field). I mean, to use the software and the parameters is really easy in the vamp pro, but getting usable really nice sounds takes time and patience. Good thing is that the leds indicate you the actual situation of the parameters.

I use the vamp as preamp for a Hartke HA2500 and a BX410 box, connected in the return loop. So I'm not using the preamp of the hartke (which sounds good, btw, but I need more sounds).
My bass is a jazz Squier Vintage modified, which I like a lot.
It's not noisy, only in the really high gain field you get hiss and fsss, but like every amp.
I don't use too much the effects, so I don't have an opinion, but when I tried them for guitar, I don't have complains.
So far, I've managed to get good sound alla Burton, Harris, Glover's, and some others.
I've spent some time with the stomp boxes, and if you take your time you will need probably no aditional distortion boxes. But it's not easy.
Be careful with the input volume (D+E, then TAP so you have input volume), as my bass can saturate the input stage (to my surprise) if you go beyond a limit (more than 100 if I remember correctly)

I rate this "only" a 9, because I still think you can get better than this, but once you are in a room with a drumkit, you loose some ability to distinguish tones ;)

If you use it to record in a PC, the speaker simulation is fine, in fact I like it very much.

I bought it second hand, one year ago, I don't gig, but I use it regularly (every day, in fact). No problems so far. If I had a gig, I would ALWAYS bring a spare unit (stompbox, of whatever), no matter how good/expensive/boutique was my equipment. If something can go wrong, will go wrong.

No experience on this field.

While I have a background in classic music (violin) I play now mostly hard rock and metal (Iron maiden, metallica, megadeth, deep purple, you know that noise ;)). So far, if I can not be as good as Harris or Glover, is my fault, not my gear's fault.
I've been playing bass for a year, and this unit has been great help to learn bass sounds. I paid around 120 euro, and I would buy it again without any doubt. I also have the guitar vamp2, which is also great. Whit these two, a sequencer, a micro and a drum pluging, and you have in your hands something useful to play and record music. Years ago, not so long, this gear was absolutely out of reach.

Maybe there are better units, I guess there are, but if you are thinking about saving weight, money, or increasing capabilities, you should check it. If you are building your equipment, you must check it, you won't regret.

Forget the Manual... it is difficult to apply as a step by step instruction guide. I think it really lets the product down in that way, because as you have seen with other reviews... it is a terrific unit.

In general though, if you are not completely retarded, you can get through setting up, storing and using this unit well.

Layout is good.

This is where the unit really excels... and for the price... you just can't go past the value for money that this unit puts out.

Excellent reverbs and ambience. The delays are a little limited, but unless you're Steve Vai or are completely experimental... the delays that the unit employs will be sufficient. All the sounds are full bodied and true to the instrument... This is to say that this unit WILL NOT rip out all the natural inherent tones of your instrument. Instead it will compliment and enhance them.

I'm a bassist as well as a guitarist and I find that the flexibility of this unit is awesome.

All Amp models are particularly impressive. There really isn't one that is weak. There is also the flexibility of going completely dry... no signal processing.

I must disagree with the other who say that the stomp box models cannot be accessed through the front panel... THEY CAN!!!! Just read the manual carefully.

I must admit... the first unit broken down...

The slightest of hums were filtering through the PA desk ever so slightly... I think this is what some people are complaining about...

But Behringer were very good in replacing the unit altogether.

Excellent!!!

Go and Buy one for yourself.

Behringer will back their product.

I love my unit!!!

I like this unit, but the manuals are useless, if not less than useless. I've had ideas about how things work, gone to the manual, gotten confused, tried the wrong thing, and then just did it the way I thought it should be done and it's worked. I've learned to just play with the thing to see what it can do. Forget the manuals.

There are 1,000 settings on this thing, and after using it for about 6 months, I use about 5. Once they find the sounds they like, I suspect most players will do the same. It'll just take a bit of experimentation to find those sounds.

This question is why I decided to write a review.

A lot of people are talking about noise, and I can't identify. What noise? Seriously, this thing is dead quiet for me. No hum, no buzz, nothing. Not unless I have the settings and amp absolutely cranked, and even then you can do damage control with the 'denoiser'. I suspect there might be pickup/V-Pro/head/amp compatibility issues that will only arise in some cases. Not mine though. Maybe I got lucky?

Re: settings

I love the Ultrabass setting but it's an interesting sound you have to get used to. It's not really 'ultra' so much as it appears to be a layering of octaves, if that makes sense. So the note can splinter over the octaves as it rings out. It's a cool sound, but it's not for everyone.

The other effects are interesting as well, though I find myself coming back to a limited few. The Ambiance setting is really nice, and combined with some of the amp settings (like Jazz Tone/Bottom End/Tube Preamp), will give you a nice mid-range rock sound. The P-Funk'n is especially nice if you play a guitar through your bass rig, as I sometimes do. (This FX unit is also great for guitar players.) I find most of the FX are clean and useful, but I've settled on a limited few - maybe 5 or 6.

One thing I really love about this unit is that it standardizes my sound. We don't have a space of our own, and I try not to bring a rig to gigs, so this unit pretty much guarantees my sound stays more or less the same, as long as I keep the amp head dials at mid-range.

It allows me to literally put a pair of bases in the back seat of the car, stick the V-Pro on the floor and head out. Easiest set-up ever.

No problems yet, knock on wood.

Never had to deal with them.

We play both heavier music and Floyd-ish stuff. I've got a Fender acoustic, a Peavey Millennium, an old Fernandes, a Frankenstein I made from Fender and Ibanez parts, and my main bass, a Frankenstein I made from Washburn bass and Fender guitar parts. I've also got a Dean guitar I sometimes use. I've been playing off and on for about 15 years.

I would absolutely replace this unit if anything happened to it. I made a little hard-shell rack mount for it, and it goes everywhere with me. It's so simple to use (once you discover your sounds), and it gets all the chords and crap off the floor so that you can just play and not worry about stepping on anything.

I would definitively recommend this unit for anyone. You can pay more and get something with higher quality sounds, but most people won't need to go that route. This is an inexpensive and sturdy option for people who need some FX without breaking the bank - or their backs.

Fairly easy to use out of the box. Many presets are over the top, but there are plenty off good sounds right out ot the box.

The manual is a bit terse and unclear on many topics like the various live vs studio modes, or "live eq" that is mentioned but never defined. The windows software that can control the unit is not mentioned.

Did you know that the VAMP Pro has stomp box emulation that is not mentioned in the manual, and is apparently not accessable from the front panel?

There is software avalible on the behringer site that unlocks features unmentioned in the manual. Get it here:

http://www.behringer.com/LX1-B-PRO/index.cfm?lang=eng

If you use the software for for the VAMP Pro, the operation of the unit becomes much clearer, and the features unavalaible on the front panel (stomp box, additional effect parameters) are visible. The software presents an much simpler virtual front panel. Also, many effets are more configurable in the software than they are from the front panel.

It sounds fine to me.

The power button was loose in the box, but it snapped back in. I'm not sure this unit is very robust.

I am a beginner that has been playing for about 1 year. I have a Fender bassman 150 and a Squier Vintage Modified Jazz.

I plug the guitar into the VAMP, and plug the analog outs of the VAMP into the effects return on the bassman, essentially using the VAMP as the preamp.

I was wanting to get some more sounds, and a noise gate.
I bought on price alone, and did not compare with other similar units.

I am completly happy with it.

Great sounds right out of the box! The presets are very nice and I really dig the chorus and delay options

I am using this with a Crown power amp running a 2 X 10 cab w/ a tweeter.I have also been using it straight into m,y Mac recording with a Digi 001 unit.Live,I use it with an Ibanez CTBN fretless 5 string and a 10 string Chapman Stick.The Sticks crips highs and super rich and percussive lows are faithfully reproduced.I can get a really nice "acoustic" tone with a bit of chourus and delay for my Stick during solo work.My Ibanez's fretless "mwah" really sings with the "Ambience" effect in the mix.
I agree with most of the other reviews as to the onboard tuner being a bit touchy.I just use my chromatic tuner.

I have used this many times on many gigs and have not had any problems.The light-weight contruction is a back saver!

Never had to use it except for finding out where to get a firmware chip,but they were most helpful and professional.

I play a blend of jazz,new age,world,and prog.The Bass V-Amp delivers on all pistons.I use it along with the FCB1010 but must admit that I am at a lost with all the MIDI stuff so I just use the presets. I did ,however,program it to access the looping feature.I dig this feature but would like to see a bit more recording time than the measly 12-15 secs.As mentioned before,the tuner could be better.The manual is not the best,but a quick search of the web got a lot of my questions answered.
I had recently been using a Gallein Krueger RCB200 but it started to die on me.Now I will use my V-Amp exclusively.
The value is top notch.Sure,there are other units with a lot more bells and whistles but the price is the rub.The Bass V-Amp has great tones,presets,ease of use,great editing software,a classy look,and ya get a sticker!Well,maybe the sticker is not a deal breaker...

Ranks right up with the harder units out there, Midi interface makes it easier from a laptop

Hmmm, kinda mixed on this one...I guess it depends on what type of music and at what volume level we are talking about. The overall sound quality and the models are good, I am just incompatible with the note breakup/noise at the end of briefly sustained notes...it seems like the unit decides for me that I am finished with a note and cuts it off for me. For quieter type things where the bass is a featured instrument, this is quite noticeable and disrupting to me, kinda like I have a noise gate set too high. However, if you are playing in a metal/thump type band, it would not matter very much at all.

No problems so far

Haven't even needed it

Overall, it is a lot for the money, and except for a few minor personal preferences, it would serve many purposes well

The catch is that this thing pretends to be easy to use as you've got dials for the basic presets such as bass, treble, etc. Then you find out that there are many, many hidden prefs that need to be dealt with in order to get a good sound. So the V-Amp's greatest drawback is that it lacks a proper text display. So I'd recommend to buy a midi cable and connect the V-Amp to your computer's gameport. Behringer's free editor software not only makes tweaking VERY easy, it also lets you access many controls you simply can't access by any other means (e.g. some effects have up to 7 parameters, but only 2 can be accessed by the front panel controls)

Some people here seem to think that only "low budget bassists" are able to like this box. I play an Alembic Rogue custom 5-string (among others) and amplification gear in the same league, and I still like the V-Amp very much. It has some drawbacks like a marked silence when switching programs, but I've encountered things like these in much more expensive units too. As for the FX section, using the editor software helps a lot (see above)

I play 40 to 60 gigs a year and have used the V-Amp for approx. 8 months. No probs so far

A very solid piece of equipment, especially for the price, which is rediculously low (in Germany, it sells for a third of the price of a Line 6 Bass Pod Pro). Sound is very good, especially with the ampeg models, versatility is great. I haven't used it in a studio yet, but I wouldn't worry to do so

It is easy to adjust this thing (when you fiddled around with it and learned to know it) to give an awesome sound for playing a Cliff Burton solo on bass to play the Theme from Shaft. The manual is okay but could be better.

I use the Behringer BX4500H head, with a 1500 Watt slaveamp, two Mach subwoofer speakers and a Peavey speaker. I play with both a Samick cheap-bass and a ESP LTD B154 bass. It sounds awesome.
The unit is a little bit noisy when using some effects. The effects sometimes seems to have a life on their own, but it's nothing compared to how loud i play :D
There are a lot of powerful effects. You dont have to buy any effectpedal anymore. This unit has it all. Chorus, flanger, Ultrabass (Behringer's Octaver effect), Reverb. People complain about there are no actual overdrive settings. But they have just overseen all the gainmodels. They sound awesome for a Cliff Burton solo or some death-metal.
I really like the ambience effect, and the amplifier simulations. There are also speakercabinet simulation, but i don't use them.

It seems quite solid. It's not a thing you have to walk on like a pedal.
I would use it on a gig without a backup, since there are no high-effect components which generates a lot of heat that can cause meltdown.
It is also very easy to transport. You can easily carry it in a bag, and take your bike to a gig if you don't need to carry anything heavy.

Never needed. But they are very kind and helpful. (That's what i've heard)

I play primarily rock and metal like Metallica and AC/DC. There are not a lot of soundmingling with AC/DC, but it gives me around all the sounds i need for playing Metallica.
I also play a lot of other music. It also have some awesome sounds for slapping. You get almost every sound you want with every bass you have, with the amplifier and speaker simulation.
I have been playing for 4 years now. As i said before: I use the Behringer BX4500H head, with a 1500 Watt slaveamp, two Mach subwoofer speakers and a Peavey speaker. I play with both a Samick cheap-bass and a ESP LTD B154 bass
If i lost it or it were stolen i would definately buy a new one.
I love almost everything about it.
It help me making music very well.

If you dont get the manual in your own language in the package, go get it at www.behringer.com. It is in a couple of languages.

I have had this unit for about four months and I like it overall quite a bit. Fairly easy to use once you get the hang of it and twist the knobs alot and listen to how you are changing the sound. That seems to me to me the best way to get the most use out of this unit. Even with the "deeper" functions that you can use by pressing and holding the 'tab' button, the best way is to listen to how the sound changes and then save what you like. The manual is OK but really not comprehensive and at times is confusing.

Pretty darn good I would say overall. It has some noise but the Behringer 'de-noiser' works fairly well. The unit DOES have some very pronounced digital type noises that aren't to my liking at all. These just seem to have a life of their own sometimes....but overall it's a great buy for what you get. A straight "distortion" isn't among the effects and I wish they had put that in there. You can get many many types of sounds with this unit. Much better than chaining together several pedals in my opinion.

Seems OK....but, as I said, I have only had it for four months and gigged it twice so....I take care of my bass gear and I expect that this will be OK and last a long time.

I have used the Behringer website to ask a question about the unit and they responded in two days with the answer that worked....

I play rock in two cover bands right now and this unit certainly covers what I need to do and then some. I'd say it is a step up too from the $75/100 dollar range multi floor pedals too. I have been playing bass for ten years now and own a USA P bass and a Peavey Axcelerator bass, both four string models. I use Trace Elliot or Peavey cabs with an Ampeg SVT III Pro amp and ETA power conditioner I'd buy it again as it is a great bargain I think for the average player. As stated by others here, the tuner is twitchy but does work...they should have put more LEDS in there I guess. You MUST create different patches for different bass guitars if you use more than one...the patches I created for my P Bass will not satisfy my active Axcelerator bass and vice versa. The unit has plenty of space to do this easily. If looks mean anything, and they always do I think, this unit looks very cool. Overall a very good buy I think.

It's a bit complicated if you want to use the controls, but with the Behringer editor software (via MIDI) it's dead simple, even better than the Line 6 POD software.

Once you have the software, you barely need the manual.

I had the regular V-Amp Pro and found it too bassy and lacking in highs. So I sold it and got this one.

I use it for GUITAR, not bass (since it has both guitar and bass amp models). I find it much better EQ'ed than the regular V-Amp Pro, it has the proper balance of highs and lows and a lot more EQ options (two controls for bass and two ones for mids). This gives you a TON of tweaking options.

Sound quality? I play mostly extreme metal (with a low tuned baritoned) or just soft cleans (from one extreme to another).

For doom/death metal the Modern Hi-Gain preamp has given me the meanest, heaviest, ugliest, most brutal guitar tone I had ever gotten out of any gear (and I had a lot of it: Boss GT-6, Digitech Genesis 3, SansAmp PSA-1, ADA MP-1 MOD 3.666). It's just a massive, saturated ton e with palm mutes that can move mountains (I throw in the Booster Line Driver stompbox model before the preamp).

For solos, I prefer to use the same setup, but with a bit more bass in the EQ.

For cleans, I throw in the Big Bass stompbox model before a White Panel/Red Panel preamp and I get excellent, sweet cleans. I tried my friend's guitar with an EMG 60 in the neck and it sounded PHENOMENAL!

My usual direct recording setup is:

Agile AB-3500 BK baritone -> Bass V-Amp Pro -> FX loop out -> Alesis DEQ230D -> Rocktron Xpression -> BBE 482i Sonic Maximizer -> back to the Bass V-Amp Pro via FX loop in and then into its ULTRA-G cabinet simulation in L3 mode.

The key to getting a great tone out of this box is to disable all digital cabinet sims and use only the ULTRA-G cabinet sims available on the XLR outputs, it's a night and day sort of difference.

The effects on this unit are good, but limited (e.g. you cannot use reverb and delay and chorus together). I got a Rocktron Xpression for effects and don't use the Behringer ones, very happy with the total results.

This is one of the most underrated GUITAR preamps! Don't be misled by the BASS name, the guitar preamps in this unit are better sounding than the ones in the regular guitar V-Amp Pro, EQ'ed quite differently (much better in my opinion).

I give it a 10 for pure preamp sound, but 8 if you take into account the weaker effects which require an extra fx unit.

So far very reliable. Seems to be build like a rock, very solid.

No experience so far. Did not need it.

I play doom/death metal and alternative/clean...two very different styles (Napalm Death one moment, Cocteau Twins the other). This unit does them both very well (especially the cleans are very, very warm, not digital at all).

Overall, I went througn the POD XT and a ton of other digital modellers (and solid state and tube preamps as well). Tweaked them for hours and days. With this unit I found a great tone in about 2 days.

With the Rocktron Xpression (or any other good stand-alone FX unit) it's a killer combo. I hope Behringer will improve the effects in the next version (basically they sound good, but you can't use them independently of each other) and they could kill the competition. This unit costs a fraction of the price of a POD Pro XT and has the same ins/outs (or more), a mono pre-FX loop, a stereo post-FX loop, XLR outs, global EQ, full MIDI control, software editor...for $169??? ($105 for me used). C'mon, killer deal...and the sound is both total metal mayhem and sweet clean heaven at the same time. Best $105 I ever spent on gear.