tomleblanc
New member
I've been looking to buy a compressor, and had narrowed it down to either the FMR RNC, or one of the Behringer Compressors (because of their great features, and dual mono compression capability). Unfortunately I wasn't able to find much information about the new "Pro XL" models Behringer put out recently, especially in terms of comparison to each other and to the older "Pro" models. It looks like the XL series is substantially different from the Pro series compressors, but that the line between Autocom and Composer has become a bit more blurred. I was pretty confused, so I did some research.
I posted this info in the newbie area because I had some general compressor questions, but I figure it might be useful for people here who're looking at Behringer compressors (and better for search purposes to have the subject in the thread title) Here's what I found:
Apparently the "XL" models are Behringer's "new and improved" compressors. Interestingly, it seems that the difference between the Autocom Pro XL and the Composer Pro XL is pretty minor. According to the manual the specs are completely identical aside from a few minor things.
1. The Composer Pro XL has Behringer's tube-emulating function, whereas the Autocom Pro XL does not.
2. The Composer has a better de-esser that's manually adjustable, with a button to select "male" or "female." All this does is change the filter frequency to either 8.6kHz for "female," and 7.5kHz for the "male" setting. But the amount of reduction and everything else seems the same, according to the specs. The Autocom Pro XL's de-esser has a filter frequency of 5-8kHz and seems to be automated (at least there's no easily-accessible knob to tweak on the unit, like there is on the Composer version).
3. The Autocom Pro XL has a better enhancer, which is adjustable. It can boost up to 40dB at 7.5kHz, whereas the Composer Pro XL can boost up to 28 (and doesn't seem to be adjustable). Of course, it's debatable as to whether or not this enhancer does very much sonic "enhancing," but that's another debate altogether.
4. The Composer Pro XL has a relay-controlled hard-bypass with auto-bypass during power failure, whereas the Autocom Pro XL does not (according to the Behringer comparison chart I found on their site, the Autocom has a switchable hard-bypass...that doesn't make sense to me though).
Does anyone have the Composer with the tube-emulation function? I can't imagine it being all that great, but maybe it's a cool effect I'd want to have available. On the other hand, I've heard that the Autocom's enhancer is pretty useful sometimes. Ahhhh, I can't decide!
The Autocom Pro XL runs about $89, and the Composer Pro XL is around $109. If these are the big differences I don't understand the significant price difference. Seems to me that they just have a few minor differences in features, but are essentially the same compressor when push comes to shove. So maybe it just comes down to the differences...better enhancer vs. better de-esser + tube emulation + relay-controlled hard-bypass...hmmm...
I posted this info in the newbie area because I had some general compressor questions, but I figure it might be useful for people here who're looking at Behringer compressors (and better for search purposes to have the subject in the thread title) Here's what I found:
Apparently the "XL" models are Behringer's "new and improved" compressors. Interestingly, it seems that the difference between the Autocom Pro XL and the Composer Pro XL is pretty minor. According to the manual the specs are completely identical aside from a few minor things.
1. The Composer Pro XL has Behringer's tube-emulating function, whereas the Autocom Pro XL does not.
2. The Composer has a better de-esser that's manually adjustable, with a button to select "male" or "female." All this does is change the filter frequency to either 8.6kHz for "female," and 7.5kHz for the "male" setting. But the amount of reduction and everything else seems the same, according to the specs. The Autocom Pro XL's de-esser has a filter frequency of 5-8kHz and seems to be automated (at least there's no easily-accessible knob to tweak on the unit, like there is on the Composer version).
3. The Autocom Pro XL has a better enhancer, which is adjustable. It can boost up to 40dB at 7.5kHz, whereas the Composer Pro XL can boost up to 28 (and doesn't seem to be adjustable). Of course, it's debatable as to whether or not this enhancer does very much sonic "enhancing," but that's another debate altogether.
4. The Composer Pro XL has a relay-controlled hard-bypass with auto-bypass during power failure, whereas the Autocom Pro XL does not (according to the Behringer comparison chart I found on their site, the Autocom has a switchable hard-bypass...that doesn't make sense to me though).
Does anyone have the Composer with the tube-emulation function? I can't imagine it being all that great, but maybe it's a cool effect I'd want to have available. On the other hand, I've heard that the Autocom's enhancer is pretty useful sometimes. Ahhhh, I can't decide!
The Autocom Pro XL runs about $89, and the Composer Pro XL is around $109. If these are the big differences I don't understand the significant price difference. Seems to me that they just have a few minor differences in features, but are essentially the same compressor when push comes to shove. So maybe it just comes down to the differences...better enhancer vs. better de-esser + tube emulation + relay-controlled hard-bypass...hmmm...
