Behringer Live Stream - Uli Leaks Products, Strategies, Synths

Behringer have begun to livestream from their HQ in Willich Germany , where Uli started making products in the garage, more than 30 years ago. Its now part of the pro-audio products division. In this live stream from yesterday (Oct 6th).  Uli makes an appearance and drops a few surprise announcements. Its an interesting new approach, and while occaisionally chaotic, its got a certain amount of real-ness to it.

The whole stream is about 1hr 20, so we asked YouTube's Gemini AI to summarize the interesting moments.

First up Uli talks about a plan for a Co-Creator program to encourage people with ideas to collaborate with Behruinger for a share of the profits:

The Co-creator program (13:31 - 14:14) is an initiative aimed at making product development a two-way conversation rather than a one-dimensional process.

Key aspects of this program include:

• Community-Driven Ideas: Instead of the company developing all products internally, they want to build a platform where customers can share their own product ideas, believing that their community is often "smarter" than the internal team (13:43 - 13:50).
• Co-creation and Rewards: If a community member's idea is built into a final product, the company plans to implement profit sharing and potentially co-branding opportunities for the contributor (14:06 - 14:11).
• Early Stage: Uli Behringer noted that this is currently in a very early stage of planning, and they are seeking feedback on whether the audience believes this is a good approach (14:12 - 14:22).

Next the Nebula pedal  - an IR player with storage for 32 IR models for $15?!?

The Nebula is a newly revealed IR (Impulse Response) loader pedal from Behringer discussed during the stream (38:32 - 39:07). Below are the details shared by Uli Behringer:

• Functionality: It is an IR loader that allows users to select from 32 built-in models and supports downloading up to 500 different IR models (38:39 - 38:51). It also includes features like high-cut and low-cut filters, as well as level control (42:56 - 43:10).
• Connectivity: The pedal features an audio input and a USB connector, and it is designed to work in conjunction with an accompanying app (43:15 - 43:20).
• Pricing: The company aims for a very aggressive retail price point of approximately $15 (38:56 - 39:00).
• Release Date: While showcased as an upcoming product, a specific release date was not provided; the team mentioned it will be shown "very soon" (38:32 - 38:36).

In the latter part of the stream, Uli and his team discussed a potential shift toward open-source hardware (59:13 - 59:51, 1:08:12 - 109:00). Here is a summary of the concept:

• The Concept: The company is seriously considering releasing "non-products"--open-source hardware devices that come with full documentation. This would allow users to develop their own firmware and customize the devices to their liking (59:21 - 59:45, 1:08:22 - 1:08:32).
• Leveraging AI: Uli highlighted that with the rise of AI-driven development, users can now create firmware in record time. He suggested that this approach could be particularly applied to guitar pedals (1:08:35 - 1:08:58).
• Community Engagement: The team expressed genuine interest in hearing community feedback on whether this is a welcomed idea. They emphasized that this initiative would empower musicians and developers to collaborate and create unique, personalized gear (59:28 - 59:51, 1:08:32 - 1:08:37).
• Purpose: This effort aligns with their stated philosophy of empowering musicians and making technology more accessible, moving away from being a traditional corporate entity (1:07:22 - 1:07:55, 1:11:10 - 1:11:19).

There were several viewer questions about forthcoming synth releases, ones that are expected to be coming and general concepts and ideas:
 

• Pro-16: Uli confirmed that the Pro-16 (a highly anticipated polyphonic synthesizer) is coming very soon (23:37 - 23:40, 43:36 - 43:39).
• General Pipeline: There are approximately 300 products currently in the making, including various synthesizers (43:47 - 43:51). The team emphasized that they are constantly working on original synthesizer designs in addition to their classic recreations (1:09:17 - 1:09:20).
• Other Mentions: While discussing the DeepMind, Uli mentioned that they are open to creating more synthesizers in that style if the community provides specific feature requests (15:42 - 15:52). There was also a brief mention of the Jupiter-4 being a synthesizer that "sounds good" (1:06:13 - 1:06:18).

Certainly an interesting way to get information out, and as ever Behringer do it in their own unique way. Uli mentioned that he will be back in Willich again and there will be more of these impromptu streams. Definitely one to watch.

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