Everyone, in some way, has a predisposition to what I call “brand snobbery.” That is, the phenomenon where people won’t even consider certain brands as they are viewed as inferior. We favor certain brands of a product over others, but usually without having tried the “lesser” brand. It’s based more on what other people say and less on what we actually know about the brand.
This is especially true with the audio gear industry. There are certain “elite” brands and there are certain “accepted” brands. And of course there are certain “garbage” brands that you’d be a fool to purchase any of their products. But who determined that to be true? Have you or I tried out each product of each brand to know this to be fact? I think not.
Via Joanna Poe Flickr
Do You Behringer Bash?
Let me give you an example. One brand that seems to always be in the “dog house” of audio internet forums is Behringer. According to “people” they are a cheap company that makes even cheaper gear. If you own or use any of the gear you’re not a serious player. And if you DO happen to own some Behringer gear, then you wouldn’t ever consider using it on a “real” project. Would you? I would…and I do. Over and over again. Why? Because it sounds great. I could care less what brand is on the faceplate of a preamp or on a microphone. If it works and sounds good, then bring it on!
There Are Two Problems Here
The problem you see is laziness. People are too lazy to actually try a product out for themselves. So instead, we just buy something based off of reviews and hear-say, and then defend that purchase to the death. Is that logical? Heck no. Instead we ought to assess our needs and our budget, do some research, try out some products if we can, and then make a decision. Then use that product like crazy and don’t look back.
The other problem is simply that it “feels” right to us that expensive always equals quality and affordable always equals lesser quality (or just plain garbage). “You get what you pay for” people will tell you. Well strictly speaking, that may be the case. You do get beautiful, premium made components, and a heritage of excellence when you buy a Neumann mic let’s say. But you could also just spend $100 on an MXL mic and get just as good of a result in your studio. Can we still justify the more expensive purchase? That is up for you to decide. I’m just trying to make a point.
The Point
The point is, don’t knock something till you try it.Don’t assume that a low price tag means low quality and bad results. It would be wise to spend as little as possible on gear that gets you the results you want, that way you can still have money take your girl out to dinner!
Bottom line, use the tools for what they are and don’t align your self worth with your purchases, good or bad. OK? Cool.
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My name is Graham Cochrane and I'm the founder of The Recording Revolution, one of the world's most loved audio recording and mixing blogs with over 200,000 readers each month. 
“You do get beautiful, premium made components, and a heritage of excellence when you buy a Neumann mic let’s say. But you could also just spend $100 on an MXL mic and get just as good of a result in your studio.”
I get the spirit of what you’re saying, but you have to be careful here. In a decent recording environment, with decent preamps and acoustic treatment, a Nuemann will likely outperform a $100 mic. It is in fact a better microphone.
That’s not to say that the $100 mic might be the right choice for a particular song. Plenty of people have used SM57’s on a lead vocal in a major production because it simply sounded right.
I have nothing against $100 mics at all. I just know that when I use really nice high-end mics, I hear a difference. Do I NEED those high-end mics to make great-sounding recordings at home? Not necessarily. However, I think it’s a stretch to say that you can get “just as good of a result” with a $100 mic as a $1100-$5,000 mic.
Very few who make phenomenal sounding records own expensive microphones. Think about that.
I understand and appreciate your point Joe. I have nothing against nice high end gear.
The issue is simply that most home studio owners have absolutely no reason to spend that kind of money (if they even have it) on a $1000+ mic. It will in no way bring about an audible increase in quality equal to the premium they paid over just going with a great $100 mic. It’s just not happening. Instead, people’s focus should be on writing and recording great songs. Focus on the craft. Learn how to listen to audio and place a mic properly.
I definitely agree that the quality of gear should only grow with the skills of the engineer. If you can’t make a $100 mic sound decent, you’ve got no hope with a $1,000 mic.
However, I’ve used $1,000+ microphones in an apartment studio with basic acoustic treatment before and gotten phenomenal results, including the Royer R122, Mojave MA200.
I think we’re on the same page though. I borrowed those mics and most likely will never buy them. There are plenty of great inexpensive mics out there, but I just don’t agree that “It will in no way bring about an audible increase in quality equal to the premium they paid over just going with a great $100 mic.”
I just don’t want people to walk away from this blog post thinking that the answer to their problems is ALWAYS knowledge. Knowledge is great. Skill is insanely important, but the gear is also important. At some point, they may outgrow that $100 mic, and it’s good to know that there ARE reasons to buy high-end gear…at some point, but certainly not if you’re just starting out.
I think we’re both saying the same thing. 🙂
It deoends on the recording enviroment, mostly the accoustic treatment of a room, if the 100$ mic beats the 1000+$ mic let’s say Neumann. These mics gratitudes, good room treatment, though cheaper ones forgives the bad room sound as they are less sensitive for reverberation. But vocal quility specially the high-end range sounds bad, harsh on cheaper ones, and it determines the ability to sit nicely in the mix, and blend together with other elements of the instrumentation. According to preamps, it is another important element of the recording chain, the second important, and I dont even confide the result of my or other band’s recording to those noise cheap Behringer and Art stuff, especially valves one, sitting in the house and lighting nicely. Call me brand snob, but my work, and recordings deserves calculable quality. I agreed that there are steps in the progression of engineering, and as soon as you hear the difference you need that tool that provides.
LtLRec – Thanks for the comment. Some good points all around. Again, the beauty of recording is that there many ways to get a good one. My point is simply that whether you use Behringer and Art stuff (which I use often) or high end gear, it really isn’t the deciding factor on the quality of your recording. But people don’t want to believe that for some reason.
I happen to own a Behringer MX-800 powered mixer and 2 12″ speakers, use it for live PA purposes for my jazz group (usually a quartet, sometimes a trio). I bought this gear for about $800, including the SpeakOn cables, mike stands, and case about 2004, and it has held up quite well, although I have had a couple things happen: 1) one of the speaker handles broke and 2) one of the speaker cables came undone, but was easily rectified.
i just got a behringer oct. pedal with overdrive . its my first behringer product and man it as given me one crazy bass sound not quite bass not quite electric guitar very awesome sound heavy sustain.so i saved some money on behringer and im pleased with results…thats the most important thing.
Armen, Joe – Great to hear you’re getting some good use out of your Behringer gear! Again, there are some amazing tools out there that are affordable. If they deliver results, then use em! Thanks for reading!
Thanks for the great blog, Graham.
I couldn’t agree more. If it works, use it! Who cares what it says on the outside.
Speaking of Behringer, I’ve got 15 or 16 Behringer pieces in my studio and have probably a 50% success rate. For example, I have a GREAT stereo compressor (AUTOCOM 1400) and a subpar stereo compressor (AUTOCOM 1600XL).
One of my favorite Behringer pieces is the BCF2000 (I have three of them). It’s touted as a MIDI controller, but for me, it’s a way to have 24 (8×3) motorized faders and rotary encoders to run ProTools. And at under $200 each, it’s WAY cheaper than any other controller out there.
Thanks for being a reader Ben. And good call on the BCF2000. Super affordable option.
Nice read. And I agree with it a 100%. Also agree with a bunch of comments suggesting that there is definitely a place for absolutely high-end (i.e. super-expensive) gear in the market; but yes, a beginner’s studio is just the wrong place for it!
What really annoys me personally is that about 90% of the people that bash Behringer are the kind that don’t even know enough to get the best out of this gear. And like in many cases, they buy real high-end gear without sufficient knowledge of techniques and fundamentals, which negatively impacts their recordings (simply because basic technical flaws such as the lack of room treatment, among others, get captured and maybe even magnified when using absolutely high-end mics).
Well said Ankur. The point is that there really is no point to the super high-end stuff unless you are a complete pro and are tracking/mixing in a “great sounding” room. Thanks for the comment.
I often wonder how many people would be able the hear if a song was recorded using a certain type of gear. I don’t care how good you think your ears are, would you be able to hear, on a mastered mix, the difference between two mic compressors, one cheap, the other ultra expensive? ESPECIALLY if the recording you’re listening to is unique.
In other words, if one had to record the same song twice, with the same band and the same instruments, same environment but using different mics, compressors and mixers for each recording, and then to a double-blind test, would ANYBODY be able to tell the difference?
I agree Andre. There are major label recordings out on the radio right now that vary in the brand and expense of gear used to make them. Some were made with the most high end of equipment and some were made with an affordable USB interface. We the listeners can’t tell (or care).
So the point isn’t that cheaper stuff is better, or that expensive stuff is useless. It’s just that the gear doesn’t matter NEARLY as much as the song, performance, and skill used in actually recording the darn thing.
Hi Graham!Good to see an article on my choice for many adaps in my studio.I guess I just have a thing sometimes for underdog equiptment.I use Behringer live and in the studio.Boards, pres,power amps etc.To this day I am still wondering why most people who are in our field tend to look down on the name.I love the before comments of that sounds great what are you using.Always get nothing but positive comments from our audiences and fans.
I also have not yet made the transition to pc recording,even though we will be in the future.Using two Tascam standalones,one 8trk,one24trk both with master and burn capabilities.No complaints there either.After starting to record at home some 4 yrs ago I have learned that this issue seems to be more of a mine is bigger than yours contest if anything.I’m sure that the higher end is well worth it when you’ve got it like that.This very issue is what gave me GAS.The main issue is how are your recordings sounding.I will admit that as you learn the art of recording you will want to get some higher end gear especially mikes and pres but if you are unable to afford the high end there are plenty of choices in other price ranges that will give stellar recordings.Thanks for the time and for being down to earth about our craft.
Hey George…thanks for the comment. Glad to have you on the site!
Well, I too have experienced a great deal of audio brand snobbery… I used to sell some decent mid grade PA gear in the 80’s. I love JBL and Crown and Shure etc. We always “hated” on the Peavey product. The main reason we did that was because the product was not available in our store. 5 years later Peavey opened our store up for sales of their products. Suddenly, the Peavey product was a viable option. In fact, it was a preference because of it’s ‘bang for the buck’ and ‘A Mark-up’ factor. Buyer, seller, and manufacturer all won with Peavey.
Later in life, I found Behringer products to have all the features and benefits that I wanted plus a style and price that made enormous sense. I have 2 consoles, keyboard amp, EQ’s, effects, compression, DI’s. Probably 20 items total. I’ve never had a lick of trouble from any of them and look forward to using their stuff in the future.
My only problem is the trade deficit… That’s not snobbery, that’s patriotism.
Well, I know for me personally, even though I have a Behringer mixer, I had started avoiding them after that because I heard they were stealing designs from others, and did not want to support that. Perhaps I will do some research on that. Regardless, love your whole attitude toward recording, Graham…looking forward to learning more!
Graham,
I do appreciate what you are saying here. Honestly. And as I’m writing, I’m also working hard towards applying your golden rule of simplicity (which, incidentally, I fully underwrite) to my own, currently sordid home recording situation. However, the small matter that all recording software, hardware and peripherals for sale on the face of this earth have been greedily monopolised by Messires MS Windows, Mac OS and Apple puts Open source musicians like myself in a somewhat different position.
For software, Linux has its own vast repositories, as you may know. But hardware compatibility is still a different story, at times, in the Linux universe. In the present state of affairs, most as deriving from Messires Windows, Mac and Apple aforementioned will work straight out of the box, most of the time. But there are still loads that don’t – and WON’T! Ever! So before investing loads of money in a particular piece of machinery, checking beforehand as to whether it’ll be operative for real is always a wise move.
Your advice on recording and mixing techniques are invaluable, in one word. No kidding! But your recommendations on hardware, from the perspective of OS aficionados, may be a little less so, with respect to the point brought forward in the previous paragraph. So as long as the Big Three only very rarely extend the courtesy of informing their customers of Linux-compatibility, maybe an idea, perhaps to involve us OS musicians a little more, in this respect? Please…? If you can…?