Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 11/04/2007
at 01:53pm
by Rob
Features
:7
The "vintage looking" GX108 features one channel and basic controls, but the features work exactly as expected when matched up with a variety of guitars, and produces a good. tube-like tone at modest volumes.
The amp features 15 watts or so and an 8 inch speaker, and sounds very tube-like, when driven through the semi-ported/closed back cabinet. One of the features of this amp is that for low volume (home practice) this amp doesn't exhibit the annoying hum-hiss most tube amps exhibit at low volumes. If you have single-coil pickups or cheap guitar cables, your guitar may pick up some of the 60Hz power "RF" nose from your PC, and dimmer-lights. And there's a headphone jack.
For sound shaping, there are bass, mid, and treble controls. To control overall volume, there is a level control. To control gain-distortion there is a gain control.
There is a single power switch and power lamp indicator, and a removable power cord.
Sound Quality
:10
Sound quality is where the GX108 really shines. I have owned and auditioned high-end tube amps from most of the major manufacturers during recording, performance venues, and practice. I can honestly say that this amp is best in class for low volume applications. I still own a few tube amps for stage venues.
The clean tones, and mildly distorted tones of the GX108 are exceptional, and suitable for any genre of music. The amp and speaker exhibit a crisply articulated, tube-like compression and the semi-closed cabinet is tuned to exhibit an "alive" sounding guitar tone. The tone is not dry, but not overwhelmingly resonant. The tone works well with all the guitars I own. I use telecasters, strats, and hollowbody guitars. Here's the starting point that I use to set up the amp: Gain 2+, Level 6-, Bass 5-, Treble 9- ("+" means a shade over, "-" designates a fraction under).
I judge an amp by the clean tone it produces. If I can not get a good tube-like clean tone out of an amp, then I can forget about pedals or any other ideas of amp versatility. I nearly always practice blues, rock, and jazz clean, and this amp will tell me exactly when my technique falters because the cleans are that good. I also normally record with a mostly clean guitar track, and add reverb or other sound modeling to the guitar tone when mixing the tracks.
Now here's what is really surprising about the GX108. Top notch guitars will, of course, sound good through the combo. However, some entry-level guitars actually sound much better than expected, and almost as good as their $1,000 counterparts. For example, a blond squire affinity special telecaster neck pickup sounds very authentic when rolling off the volume 1/2, and rolling off the treble 1/2, then find-tuning the guitar controls for the room acoustics. Similarly, a squire affinity bullet (fixed bridge) strat with the volume and tone controls each at 5 bring out a very sweet and resonant strat tone to the guitar's neck pickup. Hollowbody and semi-hollowbody guitars with stronger humbucking pickups similarly sound very good, keeping in mind the fine tuning needed with the volume and tone controls.
Here's one caveat every guitar owner should heed when setting up a quality amp-guitar rig, before auditioning and making a purchase decision. Once you use the recommended-suggested amp settings you may have to adjust pickup height to get the preferred tone, and articulation-compression. A lot of folks end up trading in or selling perfectly acceptable amps and guitars, when they simply need to set them up as a system. If you audition amps any other way, you are really going by trial and error because the guitar setup makes a big difference in the overall tone and feel of the guitar-amp combination.
It is really almost unbelievable that a $80 amp and a $100 squire affinity bullet (or slightly more expensive blond affinity tele) can sound and play so exceptional as to be a viable option for recording and practice. On a double-blind session recording tracks this combination may be indistinguishable from tube gear and high-end instruments by most listeners and players, and may be even preferred by some because of the nice resonant tone imparted by the GX108.
Reliability
:10
I have never had any trouble with the GX108.
I have had much more trouble with the shipping carriers and retailers throwing the factory boxes around and stepping on them in their trucks. And I have had trouble with people stealing gear that was left unattended.
Behringer has taken care of the quality control, and the rest is what insurance is for ... but why insure an $80 product?
Customer Support
:No Opinion
Behringer's online customer support model is actually superior to some other support models. One big company (which will remain anonymous) is good at personal support only if/when you can get them on the phone. However, lately this "big company" has been using voice mail to catch incoming customer calls and simply loops on a marketing message.
At least with the Behringer online support model, I know my question is in the queue, and I can track the progress of my question.
Hands off to Behringer for using a customer support model that matches their product quality control. The other guys will have to catch up to this standard and level of efficiency.
Overall Rating
:No Opinion
For the cost, and considering what this amp can accomplish (it is a practice and recording amp, not a live gigging amp unless you mic it and use the house PA and monitors) at it's price there is no competition for this amp.
For $80 new, which includes the Behringer standard warranty, this has got to be the best deal going. For student guitarist, guitar teachers, or professional use this amp will give you quick pay-back and solid long-term performance.
I have been playing and performing all styles of music for 30 years, and have owned this amp for several years now. I would not hesitate in a minute to replace it if I needed another one. There are very, very few amps I would consider replacing or even keeping if given to me. For the price paid, this is one of the "keepers."
If I needed another one, I would simply google "Behringer GX108" and buy another one on the spot.
I have been playing and performing all styles of music for 30 years, and have owned this amp for several years now. I would not hesitate in a minute to replace it if I needed another one. There are very, very few amps I would consider replacing or even keeping if given to me. For the price paid, this is one of the "keepers."
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 07/18/2007
at 01:53pm
by Sertahn
Features
:8
Made in China of course, in 2002 according to the label on back. One channel. There's no channel switch. BUT. If you set gain knob all-the-way down to zero. You have a clean channel. And if you start to turn the gain up you can have an overdriven channel as well. No effects loop. But a headphone and tape in/out jacks at rear. It's a home practising amp and enough power for home.
Sound Quality
:9
As I said before if you set the gain zero and raise the volume knob at higher levels (6 or up) the amp gets some bassy voice. But at home, you don't have to raise it. But keep in mind that no hum at the clean sound. I am using Digitech's Genesis 3. Typically I set amp's gain "zero" and the volume level is 4-5. Even in rectifier mode in Genesis, the hum is acceptable.
Reliability
:10
I've been using this amp since 2004. No problem at all.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
Never needed to contact with Behringer so far.
Overall Rating
:9
I am a hobbyist, an amateur. Been playing for three years.I have a Squier Telecaster Std. with seymour duncan's quarter pound on the bridge and as mentioned above Digitech's Genesis 3. This amp should not be compared with tube or hybrid amps. This would be mistake. First of all this is a practice amp. Actually I don't like amps which are loaded with poor quality effects or etc. An amp should be only an amp. You should add distortions, effects and other things via stomp boxes or effects machines. With a satisfying device (like Genesis 3) you can get a lot of good voice from this tiny Behringer. In the future I want to buy a higher watt amp of course. But I think I'll keep this little friend too. Not gonna sale it.
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted 02/03/2007
at 04:51pm
by Bob
Features
:8
Like other classic amp designs, Behringer would be unwise to ever take it out of production.
This is a very simple and classic amp, with 3 band eq. (bass, mid, treble), master volume, and gain. No effects loop. No reverb.
Headphone jack, RCA in/out (I would prefer line in and effects loop).
Single 8 inch speaker. But, oh my, does it sound full with plenty of lows and sparkly rich in harmonics! This is a nice vintage paper speaker matched well to the cabinet, and perfectly suited for a low-wattage vintage amp.
This amp isn't about extra features and versatility. It is about a guitar player's tone at reasonable volume levels.
Go buy a 100 watt vintage guitar amp, if you want stage or stadium volume levels, otherwise check out this amp for practice and recording.
Sound Quality
:10
This is one of Behringer's finest achievements. Yes, I know that Behringer is venturing into high-end tube amps, but this amp (in the price range of $39 to $69) is unsurpassed.
In fact, the low cost, simplicity of the controls, and the vintage 8 inch speaker coupled to electronics that do sound a bit like tubes, gives this amp a tone (at modest home or recording volumes) unsurpassed at any price.
In fact, this amp, while not something you would use on an auditorium stage or in a stadium, has the tone of a vintage tube amp and vintage paper speaker, with the added fidelity (sparkly highs) of a modern boutique amp.
No kidding, this amp sounds as good as it's vintage cousins costing thousands of dollars. Of course, it won't compete on stage with 60 or 100 watts of tube power (nor was it designed for this purpose).
I have used hollow body jazz, telecasters, strats, 335, light and heavy strings, and flatwounds to play through this amp and every guitar sounds like it should. The 3 band eq allows me to tailor the frequency response to the guitar, and when I use a pair of these (or one GX108 Firebird and one BX108 Thunderbird) with Behringer's Digital Reverb pedal (DR100 set to spring mode), this amp reminds me of a '50s twin tube amp with real spring reverb. It really is a very convincing tone, and actually sounds better than big tube amps in small quarters like living rooms of your average sized home.
In case you don't know, lugging your pro gear into your living room will not improve your tone, because the big amps seems to get bass heavy in smaller rooms, and the tube hiss that is not evident in showrooms or on stage is very noticeable in your home. And you just can't turn them up (without damaging your hearing) to get the tube tone. It is often best to keep those pro tube amps out of the home, and stowed away for performance venues, unless you use an attenuator.
The Behringer engineers really know what they are doing, and this amp is evidence they have a winner for vintage sound quality in the home or recording studio.
For clean, unprocessed tube tone, this amp stands with the best ever built.
Reliability
:10
Behringer customer support in the USA is good, and I have not had trouble with any of my Behringer gear.
The ony trouble I have with Behringer gear is finding it in stock, as we often have to wait months for a boat from overseas to deliver the goods to our USA distributors.
I would and do continue to depend on this amp on a daily basis.
Customer Support
:10
Customer support has always been good (not always the fastest, though).
Overall Rating
:10
I've been playing for 30 years, and have played many of the amps produced in this time frame.
This is a high yield (good sound for the money) amp, and if high sound pressure levels are not needed, I don't think you can find better tone at any cost, if you like vintage combo tube tone.
This amp is truly a 10, if you are looking for vintage tube amp sound quality and practical volume levels for practice and recording.
Do yourself a favor, and check this amp out. Don't compare it to a 40 watt tube combo in a noisy music store. Take it into the lesson room, or a back room of the store (lounge)to find out how it sounds in a quieter living room type quarters.
You will not believe your ears!
Aspiring musicians and professionals alike need to check out the Behringer GX108 Firebird. This amp is a classic and Behringer would be unwise to ever take it out of production.
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: US $39
Submitted 05/19/2006
at 01:57pm
by Lorelie
Features
:10
VERY EXCELLENT, VERY BASIC, PRACTICE COMBO
I give this little practice combo's features a 10 equally for what it has, and for what it doesn't have. This 15W amp puts out a lot of sound for its size and is dead simple - no on board effects, no amp modeling - and I like that - FX and amp modeling suck on these cheap combos. Just the basics - you got one channel, a 3 band EQ, gain, and level - it gets pretty good overdrive, but if want heavy distortion or other FX, get a pedal. Very good clean sound. One nice thing is that this little combo has both stereo RCA INPUT and OUTPUT jacks - very cool. And they're cheap enough, you can get two of them and get stereo effects - try it with a rotary speaker pedal, for example.
Sound Quality
:10
This thing has excellent, full, transparent clean sound, and also sounds fine with my various effects pedals - I sometimes use two of these amps with an AB/Y box so I can get stereo effects with some of my pedals. The gain will give you fairly good overdrive, but I rely on my distortion boxes for anything heavier - I would do this anyway unless I was using a footswitchable 2 channel combo because I often move between and clean or mildly overdriven and heavily distorted sound.
There is no hum or background noise - and nothing to interfere with the sound of your guitar and FX chain. I've used it for guitars with single coils and for humbuckers - and they all sound very good. This little thing also puts out an amazing amount of sound for its size.
Reliability
:10
I've had two of these amps for about 1-1/2 years - they seem totally solid.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
Overall Rating
:10
Been playing more than 20 years, all sorts of genres, but mostly alt rock now.
If you're looking for a practice amp that doesn't have a bunch of crappy on-board FX and modeling, this is an incredible bargain - it is what it is, and it's very good. I would replace these in a minute -easy to transport, and easy to get good sound out of them.
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: US $40 new
Submitted 05/08/2006
at 10:35pm
by ozman
Features
:8
built in early 2006. dark grey cover, red grill, red control panel.
solid state, 15 watts, single channel, 8in speaker, open back cabinet
gain,level,bass,mid,treb, rca jacks for recording or playing along.
headphone jack, VERY COOL retro look and sound.
plenty loud enough for home practice. would not work for the world tour.
Sound Quality
:9
i'm using it with an ovation acoustic/electric. very cool sound.
no particular style, (still learning) no buzz or hum. with a little tweeking, it sounds like an acoustic amp, nice clean, crisp sound.
can get a little harsh if the gain is set too high. but keep it around 3-4 and it makes that classic blues growl.
Reliability
:No Opinion
haven't had long. too soon to tell. would never gig with it, practice
amp, hello?
hope to have a long time.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
never dealt with them, one year warranty, hopefully won't need it.
Overall Rating
:9
great little practice amp. best overall value for price and features.
compared it to many other small amps. kept going back to this one.
if lost or stolen, would have to hurt somebody, i mean get another
one just like it.
no bells or whistles just good solid performance.
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: US $45.
Submitted 09/15/2005
at 07:22am
by N/A
Features
:9
It has all you need for a practice amp..
15 Watts.
gain, level, bass, mid, treble, power, and a power light.
headphone jack and rca type in/out jacks For recording or listining to a cd player?
8in speaker. dk.grey leatherette covering. (possibly a nauga died for this naugahide covering?) it looks retro.
one channel its a practice amp, dont try and compaire it to ya marshall or your carvin legacy.
Sound Quality
:9
It is surprising how good this sounds, for the price you cant beat it.
It only has one channel but it is a practice amp.
the tone knobs are quite responsive, and actualy effect the sound, great at this price.
more bass than I expected. from a small 8in speaker.
It is quiet when your not playing, no hum or hissing.
A good complement to my tube amp, its warm and full of depth even at lower volumes,
I used my 61 SG ri, and a Steini w/emg's and it brings out the best of both.
the gain sounds believe-able, and if ya rollback the vol or pick softer it responds. lay into it and it growls like it should.
Reliability
:No Opinion
dont know just gotit
Customer Support
:No Opinion
never delt w/em.
1yr warr. hope i dont need it.
Overall Rating
:9
Cool vintage vibe. sounds good for a practice amp.
cant compare to a 2x12 tube ,
it blows other amps away at this level.
I would buy it again.
GO AND BUY IT NOW!
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: US $25.99 used
Submitted 09/03/2005
at 03:30pm
by tim
Features
:7
i bought it brand new off a guy on e bay .it has all the knobs you need . bass , treble , etc... no channel switching . does have rca jacks for tape in and out .its a soild state amp .
Sound Quality
:4
to be honest , it does sound not very good .but , i play trough a old fender super reverb and i have a bad cat black cat .so with that said , i would not gig with this amp ( dont think it was made for that anyway )but it is good for practice . ( which it was made for )i had to turn the treble ALL the way down . and i like treble , but it was too much on this amp.the gain is ok .
Reliability
:10
i have had it for about 3 months . so far , so good.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
Overall Rating
:5
its a good practice amp , keep that in mind .its a soild state amp , NOT an old tube amp . so its not going to sound as good as that old super reverb or deluxe or etc....
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: #19.99 (UK pounds)
Submitted 11/10/2004
at 09:04am
by Ian
Features
:7
Made 2004. Excellent little retro-styled practice combo with copper coloured speaker mesh porthole and whale grey naugahyde covering, red control panel. Single channel, volume and gain, headphone jack, rca in and out, bass middle and treble controls. No frills, no nonsense.
Sound Quality
:8
I use this amp for practice with a year 2000 Mexican Standard Fender Strat. The amp is very quiet with no hiss, and the speaker reproduces the sweet strat tone as good as any bigger amp. Turning up the gain gives a nice overdriven tone. I play mainly jazz and melodic lead, and this little amp is really superb for playing at home, because it delivers the tone without annoying the neighbours.
Reliability
:8
I haven't had it long. I've had no problems so far, and I'm not anticipating any. It sits in the corner of my dining room, and it's not going on any stadium tours that's for sure.
Customer Support
:10
I've dealt with Behringer's UK team for advice on getting the best out of my BX1200 bass combo. They're a helpful bunch, and they respond quickly.
Overall Rating
:10
I bought this new at the last minute in an e-bay auction and it's one of the best bargains I've ever had. I have a number of combos. This one sits next to my Roland ST100 in my dining room, and I use it more because it doesn't annoy the trouble and strife. I heartily recommend this little fellow as an effective and simple practice amp with high quality tone.
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: US $59.78
Submitted 05/28/2004
at 09:04pm
by Anonymous
Features
:8
I've had mine for a year. The thing I love about this amp is the quality of design for the price range. In this price range, it hasn't started any fires. No other amp I've been able to find for as cheap as I got this one can make that claim. It has some knobs. They move around and change the sound. I do like the overdrive on this model alot. It's simple, easy, and sounds nice enough for sixty bucks.
Sound Quality
:7
I use PAF style humbuckers with my own trademark shielding on an epiphone special. I play just about anything from indie/punk to Elvis to finger-picked classical. The amp sounds like what it is, and the best I could find for the price. Sure, it ain't the Brian May Vox Amp, but who here has money to throw at hobbies like they do at women?
Reliability
:10
It hasn't broken once. I've taken it apart and put it back together just for fun and it still works great.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
Ich kann Deutsch sprechen. I don't know. Never talked to them.
Overall Rating
:9
I've been playing for the time that I've had this amp. It's my first. I'm in no hurry to upgrade. This one does the job I need it to do for such a low cost, I feel no need to upgrade. Look, when I can shred like Vai, I'll look into one of his Carvins. Until then, I need to work on my hands. That's what this amp lets me work on. It has just enough versatility to allow me to improve my fingers.
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: US $70
Submitted 07/31/2003
at 04:46am
by Anonymous
Features
:8
You can read the features in the review below.
In one sentence solid state, practice amp with headphones out. Has enough features for a practice amp.
Sound Quality
:9
I havent purchased this, but I played couple of times with it in the local store.
Practice amp with 8" speaker for 70$ which actually sounds good both clean and distorted, is loud enough for doing low volume jams with your friends - you gotta be kiddin' me!
But there it is. It has amazingly good sound for such a small solid state and cheap amp. Clean is good enough /I am not a lot of clean player/. You can get great overdriven and especially distorted sounds when the amp is pushed hard enough. BUT it is a practice amp. You cant expect 2000$ Messa/Boogie 3,4,5,<whatever> dimensional sound from it.
For what is it it sounds quite acceptable. Great for hard-rock, even some heavy-metal sounds. Because clean sound is good enough, when you put a decent distortion pedal in front of it, it handles it very good. And you cant get even more distorted sounds. Yeah, it doesnt have too much bass, but it is just an 8" speaker, hey.
Reliability
:9
I have some Behringer stuff. Never failed on me.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
N/A
Overall Rating
:9
I've been playing for some 16 years and owned this and that. I have 6 guitars, Marshall tube amp, some old-but-gold Dynacord tube combo and a bunch of other effect units and preamps /Koch Pedaltone, H&K Tubeman , a Boss GT6 and so on/.
I can say that this amp has great value for the money and for what is it.
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: US $70
Submitted 02/11/2003
at 07:09am
by Anonymous
Features
:7
Bought in 2002, see previous reviews for features. All ratings are given in the context of a $70 amp with an 8-inch speaker.
Sound Quality
:9
First, this is a tiny practice amp - why compare it to a regular rig? I've played by Am. Strat and Carvin through this thing, and my friend plays his Gibson ES135 though it. Hey, for what it is, it sounds great. I think that for semi-dirty to raw, crunchy distortion this amp puts out surprisingly good tone. We jam with it all the time, and I'm constantly amazed with what's coming from it. Again - for what it is, it sounds great. Don't expect earth-shaking bass, and yes, overall it's midrangey, but what do you expect from an 8inch speaker? Nice for chording and soloing, both.
Reliability
:No Opinion
don't know - had it 6 months, no problems.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
n/a
Overall Rating
:10
Nice tones for a small price, if you don't mind a raw, raunchy rock sound. Nicely dynamic, too. I've been playing for about 20 yrs and have other guitars/amps/etc. I wouldn't use this as my main amp, but as a small "leave it at the rehearsal space" amp, this is great. Plenty of volume, too - we sometimes play with a (quiet) drummer (didn't know they made those!), and it keeps up fine. There are plenty of crappy, small practice amps. This one gets some good, useable tones, and is versatile enough to do the basic job. If you want to compare a $70 amp against your main rig, this thing doesn't stand a chance, but take it for what it is, and it's a nice little box with groovy looks, to boot.
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: US $59.99
Submitted 01/22/2003
at 09:24am
by Anonymous
Features
:8
Single channel, volume and gain, headphone jack, rca in and out, solid state. For the price, it has appropriate features. Looks pretty cool, too.
Sound Quality
:1
Sounds like crap. I play a Les Paul Standard, Les Paul Junior, and Amercian Tele - doesn't matter, this amp makes 'em all sound extremely thin - like nails on a chalkboard. The distortion channel is especially annoying. Amp has way too much treble. Clean channel is just ok. I bought it to use with headphones and a tape/cd player, but the headphone sound is poor.
Reliability
:No Opinion
n/a
Customer Support
:No Opinion
Overall Rating
:3
I sent it back - just can't get over the sound. Maybe I'm spoiled by my Marshall and Fender amps. I'm looking for some sort of headphone/practice rig with tape/cd inputs at a reasonable price that sounds halfway decent. Although it has a cool look, this ain't what I want.
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: US gift, but they cost around 70
Submitted 12/25/2002
at 10:40am
by Will
Features
:5
this is a basic practice amp, but it has enough features for that purpose. I play classic/jam band rock and blues. It's got tape outputs for recording/playback and
Sound Quality
:7
I'm using a godin sd with rio grande pickups. I play jam band-ish rock (phish, widespread panic, etc.) It's pretty quiet. The amp doesn't have a whole lot of variety, but the tone knobs have pretty good sweeps. It can do a good 'cheap 60s tube amp' bright clean sound, and some good low gain sounds. The distortion isn't great, but is usable unlike many other practice amps. This is a great amp for practicing and low-volume jams (it holds up to a relatively soft drummer if you don't have to compete with another guitar). it's great for taking on the road. For what it is, I'll give it a 7.
Reliability
:No Opinion
Haven't had it that long, but behringers got a pretty good name and its a ss practice amp, not much to go wrong.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
Again, no opinion
Overall Rating
:8
I've been playing for a few years. My main amp is a traynor ycv80 4x10 combo. This doesn't compete with it tonewise, and doesn't have the roundness and warmth of a good tube amp, but it sounds very good for what it is. If it were lost or stolen, I would either buy this or one of those marshall mg amps for my solid state, take-around amp. I wish it had reverb, but hey, seventy bucks. it's a great deal.
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: US $69
Submitted 11/22/2002
at 05:40am
by Anonymous
Features
:7
Mine is brand new 2002. It looks good. It sounds good. More specifically: It has minimal leather (I'm a semi-vegan), what little leather it has is only on the handle and easily removed, given proper burial, and replaced. The amp sounds lovely for cost. No, it won't be the miracle amp for the next Hendrix, but it will give you a nice tone and leave some money in your bank account. Features are simple enough, level/gain/treble/mid/bass, some nice ins and outs that come in handy, mentioned in another review. A great practice amp.
Sound Quality
:6
I use a modified Epiphone Les Paul. It sounds alright, I reckon. I wouldn't take it to the stage, but it isn't marketed for that. This is a practice amp. It has some variety, but all in all, it doesn't really suit any style at all because it suits a lot of them in some ways. Thus, you can practice at your style, but never quite achieve it. The best thing here is the level/gain knobs. Your key to achieving the near-sound you want is with those little knobs.
Reliability
:5
It ain't broke yet. Of course, I've owned it for three months, and I haven't spilt my beer on it, yet.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
Overall Rating
:9
I like it alot for less then a hundred. If you're looking to get your kiddie their first axe, then this is the amp to give with it. The overdrive is a nice first feature to play with. And you can buy cheap pedals to emulate the other stuff, when your kiddie is ready to step up to the reverb. Also, if you travel alot (I do) and you need something small that won't get you kicked out of wherever you're crashing this is the one to get. It get's left-behind/stolen? Eh, seventy bucks. Go get another. No biggie. It breaks? Eh, seventy bucks, go get another. If you want to craft your wild live sonic adventures, this may not be the amp for you, but it works for what it says it does. This is a practice amp. And for that, I give it high marks. Also, I should mention the light weight. I don't know if it's lighter then it's counterparts, but it's big enough not to get forgotten or shoved somewhere dangerous, and it's small enough to be real easy to carry. Good design by Behringer. Not everybody's an Angus Young. Not everybody needs a gigantic behemoth of an amp.
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: US $59
Submitted 10/07/2002
at 08:28pm
by Jim Thomas
Features
:9
2002, 15w 8" speaker. Gain,level,bass,mid, treble. Tape in/out RCA jacks, headphone jack. Single channel. Plenty of volume for home use. I play blues/hard rock etc. It's a very cool retro looking amp. Not flashy to look at, but has a great tone to it. Reverb would be nice, but my EH HG fills that void if needed. It sounds great with the CE-2 also.
Sound Quality
:10
Use with a JV Strat and a Fat Strat. Great clean and awesome gain channel, best gain channel I heard in the small amps I tried. Just need your guitar and amp and your ready to go. Great sounding little booger. I tried out many small combo's and this one for 60us is a steal.
Reliability
:10
Haven't had it long, but it seems to be built like a tank. No problems at all.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
Never dealt with them
Overall Rating
:10
If your looking for a no nonsense practice/small jam amp this is it. Great for playing blues all the way to crunch. I was really suprised how good this amp sounded for the price. It's light, sounds great and has a input and headphone jack to boot. Pound for pound it's the champ! My search for that home/travel amp is over. Try one out!
Product: Behringer GX108 Firebird Combo Price Paid: US $70
Submitted 09/24/2002
at 02:42pm
by Roy
Features
:10
It's a new 2002 model. Most 15-watt amps I've played had suck-ass distortion but this one has excellent gain for such a low wattage, which really surprised me. It's easily the best basic amp I've played and at $70 new, the price is nice too. It only has one channel like most basics but that's fine. One feature that I do like though is the RCA in/out for connecting it to your stereo, TV, or whatever else you feel like. The in/out is designed in a way to where it doesn't cut off your guitar signal, so you have full control over your guitar sound while playing a CD or some other sound source in the background. That's a nice feature for a $70 15-watt (I had the PS/2 running game music in the background for my in-home "test drive," and it's a nice feature I'll quickly get used to). The instructions say you can feed your signal into your comp with the right tape connector for recording, or whatever else, but I haven't tried it yet. I wish it had a soft chorus or reverb, but I have a bigger amp with those so I'm not complaining about not having them.
Sound Quality
:9
I use a Jackson 24-fret Dinky and an older Ibanez RG on it, both factory-stock with no modding, and the Jackson sounds better on it, but that's been the case with most amps I've owned. :) The bad part of the RCA in/out feature is that the secondary source has to rely on it's own volume controls since the amp's volume is dedicated to the guitar, so if you use something like a TV signal for routing a Playstation or X-Box audio, you're going to get some background noise as you turn the TV up. Otherwise if you have something else with a bit more power to play the guitar against, like a stereo, then just stick with using the stereo for the secondary source.
Reliability
:No Opinion
Just got it. I'll add reliability once it's aged with experience.
Customer Support
:No Opinion
Overall Rating
:9
I first played from 1988 through 1998, put the guitar down for a few years while college became my all-consuming focus, then recently picked it up again. Right now the only other gear I own are the two guitars mentioned above and a 50-watt Crate solid state. If it were lost, I'd easily get another one. It's just too much fun for a basic. I do compare it to other mini amps, and for the price this one is easily better IMO. The distortion is excellent for such a low wattage. I've played many many 15-watt ones that had such lame watered-down distortion that the first thing to reach for is a pedal, but no pedals are needed for this, unless you want reverb/chorus.