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Behringer 2-XM

Item: SYN0009249-000

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Analogue Synthesizer, Oberheim Two Voice, SEM, Clone, 4x VCO, 2x SVVCF, 4x ADS-EG, 2x LFO, Voice Mixer, Patchpanel, Polychain All product info

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Behringer 2-XM

Semi-modular synthesizer

Analog Synthesizer
Clone of the Oberheim Two Voice (1975)
Desktop case (19" & Eurorack compatible)
dual SEM architecture
2 voices (unison, Split or Dual playable)
2x 2 oscillators with sawtooth & square with PWM waveforms
PWM or pitch modulation per voice
2x hardsync
2x state variable filters
2x signal mixer
2x noise generator
2x VCA with drone mode
2x LFO
2x 2 ADS envelopes
Voice mixer
Portamento per voice
2x 16 CV/Gate/Audio inputs & outputs
MIDI & USB In
Mono / Stereo Main-Out
Polychain with several 2-XM units

The Behringer 2-XM at a glance

The 2-XM from Behringer is a clone of the famous and popular Oberheim Two Voice from 1975. Strictly speaking, the 2-XM is a slimmed-down combination of the original SEM synthesizer from 1974 and the SEM patch panel that appeared 35 years later. What all SEM synthesizers have in common is the structure of the individual voices, regardless of the era and or one or eight voices.
What makes a SEM so special is its extremely warm and soft sound. Even at full resonance, the SEM cannot and does not want to sound harsh or aggressive. Pulsating basses, radiant leads, organic sync sounds and tacking sequences are simply more suited to this synthesizer.
Behringer has stuck closely to the original and incorporated additions to such an extent that even purists can recognize them as real added value. The triple selector switch for the oscillator modulation of each oscillator has been supplemented with E+V (envelope with velocity) and the same feature has been added to the two VCAs. In the oscillator mixer under EXT, the 2-XM has a noise generator instead of the second input for external signals.
Due to the dual voice architecture, everything is available twice. In addition, a voice mixer has been integrated and portamento can be set separately for each voice. The voices can be played together(unison), independently of each other(split) or in two voices(duophone).
By changing the form factor, Behringer was able to accommodate the 2-XM in the proven desktop housing, which means that it can be mounted in a 19" rack with optional rack ears and can even be installed as an 80HP module in the Eurorack modular system.

One SEM Voice

The two voices have an identical structure and correspond to the historical model with the exception of three details. The analog signal path begins with two oscillators that generate either sawtooth or square waveforms with PWM and can be adjusted in frequency over a range of five octaves. The second oscillator can be synchronized to the first. The pitch or pulse width of each oscillator can be modulated via an envelope or LFO. The tone generators are followed by the signal mixer; here the position of the control determines which of the two waveforms per VCO is sent to the filter and at what level. In the 2-XM, the EXT control can feed an external audio signal or a noise generator to the filter. The filter is a true state-variable filter, probably the first of its kind in 1974. When the switch is set to LP-HP, the control continuously changes the filter characteristic from Lowpass to notch to Highpass. If the switch is set to BP, the control has no effect, but a grandiose-sounding Bandpass filter processes the sound sources. A VCA completes the signal path. Two ADS (Attack / Decay / Sustain) envelopes and an LFO with a sine waveform are used to modulate the synth voice. Apart from the VCA, the three modulation sources are pre-wired to filters and the two oscillators; only ENV2 is connected to the VCA.

The patch panel

On the right-hand side of the control panel there are 2x 16 CV, gate and audio inputs and outputs for each voice. If you patch e.g. Gate 1 to LFO Trig, the LFO is restarted with every note played. You can also cross-patch the outputs of the VCOs to the CV input of the other VCO to create cross-FM sounds. If you include the neighboring voice, the two voices can modulate each other! Anyone who is familiar with the ancestor list of SEM synthesizers will have been amazed by the powerful 8-Voice. Thanks to the polychain mode, you can combine several 2-XM units with each other and create your own budget 8-voice with four devices ;-)