Reverb Unit

[Ryanrhinkle]

Hi everyone. I'm kind of a dummy when it comes to audio hardware, so bear (bare?) with me here...

Our church is almost 1 year old. We're portable, and about 200 per weekend attendance. Right now our audio rig is pretty basic. A&H GL2400 into 2 Bose L1 systems. We run an Aviom system also, but that doesnt really apply to this question.

Our tech budget is pretty small, which I'm fine with. My next purchase I'd like to make is a reverb unit to help out our vocalists a little bit. When I look at Guitar Center, there are a bunch that are around $300, then a bunch that are like $2-3000.

As I mentioned earlier, i'm kind of a dummy in this area. My question is this... What's the practical difference between the cheap and super expensive? Try to give me one step up from, "they sound better."

Sorry that took so long, but I wanted to paint an accurate picture.

[FlamHappy]

The Behringer, yes I said Behringer V-Verb is turning heads and ears of even snobs.
http://www.pro-audio-warehouse.com/beh-verbpro.html

If you don't want to explain yourself the venerable Lexicon Reflex has some real nice patches too and isn't a Behringer.
The Gold Plate algorithm is pretty much set n' forget.

[pdc]

Behringer is likely turning heads away. LOL

Look for a used pro verb.

Realistic, natural verbs require great math and processors. Behringer may have the same chips that other people use no on entry level products, but that is it. They do not employ people with the algorthym experience. Other great requirements for you should include a tap function, either on the front panel or with a foot switch. Your reverbs and delays should be in time with the music.

Used TC Electronics M-Ones are good. They sell new for $495. You should be able to find them used for half. Old Yamaha REV7s are a good find. If you find one dead, it likely needs a battery replaced on the motherboard and it will come back to life. There are some older Sony's that were great. Used Lexicon PCM90s are great for vocals.

Stay away from Alesis, ART, cheap Lexicon, Digitech, etc, etc. It is cheap junk and sounds like it. Buy something older from the pro market and you will have something that sounds great.

To answer your question about the sound differences, it is this:
1. The quality of the conversion from Analog to Digital
2. The clocking
3. The power supply and shielding (most cheap units have a crummy power supply and hardly any shielding).
4. The processing chips. The more intense (realistic) the math, the better and/or more chips required. There are units costing $6k that are very good. There is little fluff in the price. Verbs require great math by people that know what they are doing. There are only a handful of people doing this kind of tedious work.
5. The quality of the Digital to Analog conversion
6. Interfacing (not really sound related, but a big factor in cost, especially if the unit uses USB or Firewire, has computer control options, etc).

[waynehoskins]

We've got a pair of Lexicon MPX-110s -- cheap Lexicons, I know -- and they're not terrible. That said, I've wanted to upgrade to better effects for a while. The M-One is what I'd been thinking; they're pretty nice, an audible improvement. I remember using some Yamaha verbs years ago -- SPX900 or 990, from memory, that I remember being pretty good.

Buy an M-One; you should be happy with it. If somebody has a spare PCM90 effects rack, I'll take it.

[Tim Padrick]

My favorite 'reasonable money' reverb is the Kurzweil Rumour, but it's hard to find used (= cheaper). It also has only one reverb engine. It is super easy to use.

Similarly easy to use is the Yamaha REV500, which sounds pretty good. Its audition feature is nice.

The TC 300 series are nice, and have an effects engine in addition to a reverb engine.

The TC M-One sounds good, and has dual engines. But you cannot load a preset in just one of the engines - you have to load them as a pair.

The Lexicon 200 and 400 are said to sound good as inserts, but it is said that they have a problem in a loop, as they don't go 100% wet (which causes a funky sound owing to comb filtering).

[cmchamp]

In my opinion, 90% of the time the reason why any reverb unit sounds bad is improper EQ or no EQ on it's return to the main mix.
I have used a medium plate on a Lexicon MPX-100 for 10 years now, tap-tempo and adjust it's length, and that has been turning heads when used to add life, some "air" and "size" to a cappella selections.
I'm with Tim. TC Electronic, Lexicon for the budget, though I am picking up a Behringer unit to see what the hubub is all about, and I just became a "B" dealer to fill my budget conscience client needs.