Behringer BCF2000 Control Surface
Today in music it seems almost everybody is using software over hardware. This is because software is usually cheaper, has more functions and even takes less desk space. The downside to software is that you don't have the same feel as you do with hardware. This is all supposed to change with control surfaces and midi controllers. Control surfaces have been around for some time, but at the beginning they were expensive and mostly for use with a few selected programs. Since then we have come a long way into having Behringer bring out a control surface with motorized faders that is so affordable. Personally this is my 2nd Control Surface that I have used (the first one was a Pro Tools control surface in a studio that cost almost a hundred times more). Behringer are known to make inexpensive, but still good quality products. It is no wonder that we have reviewed a few in the past. The BCF2000 control surface however is different as it is one of the first products in Behringer's new computer based recording line. Also it is the first time that we see a motorized control surface at such a low price. The build, style and feel Opening the box reveals a fully dark blue controller contrary to the picture of a metallic blue BCF2000 on the cover of the box. Lifting the BCF2000 out of the box reveals its a bit heavier than expected. You will soon notice that is build to last, it is advertised on the box to last. The feel of the faders is good although it could be a bit better - I find that the faders don't feel totally comfortable in my hands (maybe its because I have big hands). The only thing I'm worried about faderwise is when they are set to change to the absolute bottom or absolute top values that they hit the ends and make a sound. Also when little gradual movements are made the faders seem to vibrate a bit. But overall the faders are great quality considering the price. The knobs feel good in my hands, although they still seem to be a bit too long. Also they are a bit too closely placed and the way that I twist knobs I keep touching the fader(s) next to the one that I am controlling. The led lights around the knobs are really good and especially in Reason 3 where you can use them to monitor the output level of each channel is just cool, also they are very useful for panning as you can quickly get feedback as to where your current panning is. Also the knobs can be pressed down, so far I didn't find a use for this, but its good to know that it is there once you run out of buttons. A control surface is nothing without buttons and the BCF2000 sports 30 buttons out of which 4 can be programmed to be control the transport functions. 16 of the buttons are usually reserved for mute/solo buttons for each channel, but can be controlled to trigger drum samples for example. Four buttons are reserved so that you can change encoder groups, this means that you can control up to 32 controls with the 8 knobs. In addition 4 knobs are reserved for the controller's save, learn and edit presets and two buttons are for changing presets. Overall the buttons feel good and especially the fact that all except two of them have led lights means that it is easy to see what is happening, the best example is when you solo a track the mute lights on all the other channels light up. Motor Noise?!? Some of the other reviews I have seen have been complaining about the motor noise. Although I have don't have comparison to many other control surfaces, the motor noise didn't really seem that loud. Unless you are having a few motors going on and recording just next to the control surface it shouldn't be a problem. Actually after reading other reviews I was expecting the unit to be more noisy. It is still true that the motors do give out noise especially when the movement is little and gradual or when the fader goes to the bottom, but in most cases it doesn't matter as you will be recording a few meters away from your computer with a microphone that you can face away or change pickup pattern on. The different hardware modes The BCF can actually be used in 8 different modes. 4 of these work through USB, the other 4 as standalone (and through midi). These modes are well described in the included 20 page manual. The different modes allow you to use your BCF2000 as a midi interface for your midi keyboard. Also you can chain up two B-control controllers with one of the modes, this means you could use the power of 16 faders and 16 rotary controllers or go for a BCR2000 and expand your BCF with 32 more rotary controllers. Considering how well priced the controllers are it is no wonder if you would like to get another one, but I am worried about software implementation when using two controllers. Software modes However a control surface wouldn't be anything without software support. There are 3 modes that the BCF2000 works in: Midi controller mode, Native mode and Emulation mode. Midi controller mode (BC mode): This was tested in Orion Platinum 5.8 and FLstudio 5. It is the mode that normally all midi controllers work in. It is simple; you select link to controller (in FLstudio) and then you twist a knob or move a fader on the control surface that changes the value of that software knob/fader. Here the motors of the faders only work when changing patches and in the programs tested there was no active sensing so a change in the software didn't affect the hardware except when changing patches. The midi controller mode is the most basic programming mode that allows you to make and store presets. Some presets are also available for download from Behringer's website. This mode is mostly used for programming / recalling presets with software that doesn't have ready made presets. Native Mode (In Reason 3 through REMOTE technology): This mode is only very recent and is currently only in Reason 3. The support for the control surface has been written into the program code. This happens in Reason 3 by the use of the brand new REMOTE technology. Native support in Reason 3 means that the control surface works really well with the software as it is already setup by the developers. I found the mappings in Reason 3 to be very good indeed with special things such as being able to use the encoder lights as level meters, something that reminded me of a Digi002 video I saw - very cool indeed. Native mode means no setups and that means faster music making. The out of the box functionality is good, but a few of the mappings are incomplete. Other than that the Native mode works like a charm and it is just awesome. I cannot stress how important the Reason 3 support was in this review, without it I might not have not given the control surface a editor's award. Emulation mode: This was tested in Sonar 4 demo. The emulation mode can emulate three of the most popular control surfaces : Logic Control, Mackie Control and Baby Hui. This mode emulates the control surfaces very well and even a program is available for download that will emulate the display of the devices in software. This mode is also a smart move as virtually all programs that work with those controllers should work with the BCF2000. Sonar 4 was a breeze to use with the BCF2000 although some of the mappings were not as intuitive to use with the BCF2000, but this is just a small problem. Overall the emulation mode worked well and the additional software LCD screen was useful to see what I was controlling. This is a good mode if you own the likes of Logic, Sonar, Cubase SX, Nuendo. Should I buy it? By now you have read all about the BCF2000, but still you are asking yourself : Should I buy it? Do I need it? The answer to these depend on what you are using and what kind of controllers you already have. For example if you are mainly using FLstudio then the BCF2000 is not really worth it as you cannot fully utilize the motorized faders and I would suggest looking into the BCR2000 controller. If you on the other hand use a 'traditional' sequencer such as Cubase SX then the BCF will prove useful through the emulation mode. The best case is however if you are a Reason 3 user, then the controller is something that will make using Reason a better, more hands on experience than ever before. As you might figure from the editor's choice, I will get one and I hope you do too. 9.0 - A great controller at a great price. It is still low on compatibility with most software studios, but Reason 3's native support shows much promise for the future. For anyone who has wanted more hands on control on Reason or any of the supported 'traditional' sequencers should be in for a great experience that comes at an unbelievable price. +Motorized
faders for this price -Motors are a bit noisy
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Reviewed by Aleksi Haapajoki |
