Behringer DCX2496 Ultradrive

This is not for a non-technical person, however what would a non-technical person be doing setting up an active crossover? As a Technician and an audiophile it was very straight forward. Every XO type and slope you can think of. If you know what your using it with and where you want to go, you can be in business in less than 10 minutes with a simple SPL meter for matching efficiencies and amps. Use the block diagrams and menu pages for quick setup. Very flexible with linking for matching sets (stereo L&R), preprogrammed factory combinations. The manual shows samples for common setups as well.

I have used this on Sound re-enforcement stacks with great results. Extremely flexible. I have set up three different ones now and they were all dead quiet. I still have one on my hi-end mixing monitors and it is dead quiet. Sound quality is the best I have ever had from an active XO. I've tried both the digital inputs and analog with the same results. It even has EQ built in and time delays to time align sections. I was totally surprised about the sound quality being so good.

I have had no problems with three over 2 years and I use one 24hrs a day. I use it only now for XO work.

I'd raise the rating up 1 more for every one of the next years used.

I've never had to deal with them, therefore 5 = neutral.

This was one of the exciting finds I have had in many years. If you need a completely flexible active XO for sound work or if you are developing speaker systems, save yourself time, time and more time by using this. I can't believe how fast and easy it is to setup, tweak or just plain experiment.

I'm thinking about another so I can bi-amp all of my personal system.

Not as user friendly unless you have a laptop! To use this thing well, you need to use a laptop with the free software. Takes a bit of time to setup.

Sound quality: pretty decent. My unit is very quiet. I replaced my Behr 3400 with this box.I have to say that my unit is more quiet than the 3400 was.

Not sure of this. My unit is still new. (2 mo)

No real dealings with support. So far, all my B- stuff is still working.

I supply sound for small events. 500 or fewer people. Rig runs about 7500 watts FOH. This crossover fits right in with the rig as I need to do some routing for different tops using the same signal, but seperate processing. This thing is worth looking into if you need flexible routing in one rack space. I'm considering another unit for monitor duty as well. Has built in comp and limit functions and timing adjustments for input AND outputs. Makes timing tops to folded horns very easy. Got to have a PC though to really control this thing. It's that busy!

This unit replaced a Rane analog crossover for a 3-way mono speaker stack.

The 2496 is not as "user-friendly" as the analog units, but hey, how often do you need to tweak the thing? The 2496 is a complex unit, but accessing basic features such as mute or doing basic crossover setup only required a few references to the manual. I have experience using sound processors so my learning curve may not be as big as yours. When compared to other processors, this is a more intimidating unit. If i get fancy and start using its more esoteric features, i will use a laptop and the controller software.

This is a tough one. The unit does a better crossover job than the Rane it replaced. However, this unit is fairly noisy. I am surprised no one has mentioned this yet. Noise is a pretty important criteria. When you hook this unit up to 1000W+ amps opened wide, the hiss is pretty noticeable. The Rane EQ hissed some, but it was not so bad- and that unit used unbalanced connectors! I expected better. I have some Behringer 4024 digital EQs and they are quiet. I don't know why this unit would be so noisy. Lesson learned- DON'T BELIEVE THE HYPE SPECS! I am still going to keep the unit because of price/performance. When i can afford to buy better, i will. In the meantime, I am going to buy a quad noise gate for the 2496 outputs to reduce the hiss to an acceptable level.

I have had some benhringer products go bad, either under warranty or afterwards. Generally, they do not fair too well in extreme environments, especially higher temperature environments. However, some products such as the 4024 digital EQ has faired very well. The 2496 is a very lightweight unit- not much inside. It also does not feel overly warm to the touch. These are good signs that the unit will do Ok.

This is based on my experience of using Behringer products in the past. I have had to return a few products such as a noise gate and a mixer. The noise gate was returned in the "early years" when Behringer only had a handful of products. Service was prompt. With the mixer, it was returned not even repaired. It was a heat induced problem and i described how it could be reproduced. I guess with growth comes changes. I buy Behringer products now with the assumption the service will be similar to the "fly-by-night" asian companies. It is part of the low price one pays.

Overall, the product has price/performance going for it. It is not cheap bunk, but it is not the best in the biz. Behringer has made some good products in the past. If they could resolve the noise issue- which i don't see why not as this just a DSP unit- this would be a product i would recommend to others. Knowing that glowing 9s or 10s in "planted" reviews are no help when you are trying to make an educated buying decision, i play is conservatively fair in this one. I have found honest reviews on other products when i was in need of advice, i am returning the favor. Hope you will do the same someday.

Peace out.