Behringer System 55 Modular Synth Monster

So you want to dip your toes into the world of modular synths but don’t know where to start? The Behringer System 55 modular synthesizer is an amazing system that offers so much electronic sonic breadth, its kind of ridiculous! All this comes from emulating the iconic Moog System 55 from the 1970s— without the physical size or price tag. The System 55 was a seminal electronic instrument designed by the late Dr. Robert Moog and Herb Deutsch. The 1970s design and behemoth of a synth was used famously by the likes of Stevie Wonder, Tangerine Dream and Keith Emerson. Today Behringer have managed to shrink Moog’s design for the eurorack format. Behringer’s version of the System 55 is historically accurate, down to connection protocols and labels for various knobs and switches. The 55 is a massive palette of endless electronic sounds that don’t let up. If you’re into Techno and other eclectic electronic music genres, the System 55 is a monster.

In this video I get jamming and explore the wonderful filters, oscillators along with the 960 sequencer the heart of the System 55. All sounds in this video are from the System 55 with assistance from the Behringer RD-9 Rhythm Designer providing the pulse and drum machine sounds. There is no additional processing, just pure Techno, all recorded as a single take!

The System 55 comes with no less than 38 modules pre-assembled into 2 eurorack cases you put together with a couple of screws. Behringer also brings the System 55 into the modern era by adding the CM1A a MIDI-to-CV converter for those wanting to control their system with a MIDI keyboard and/or DAW. There’s also plenty of additional blank space (144hp) to add other modules and grow your monster your own way! Should you find the System 55 a little too much, Behringer also has the smaller System 15 or 35 configurations, and all the modules are available individually too. There’s too much to explore here, so if you don’t mind, I got more techno to make!

And if you’re wondering about the legacy of Moog’s modular synth, the System 55 paved the way for the iconic MiniMoog!

System 55 features:

• Pre-assembled ”SYSTEM 55“ modular synthesizer with 38 vintage-sounding modules from the ’70s
• 1x 914 FIXED FILTER BANK with 12 active bandpass filters ranging from 125 Hz – 5.6 kHz and LP/HP filters
• 1x 923 FILTERS modules with 6 dB low and high pass filters and white/pink noise sources
• 1x 904B VOLTAGE CONTROLLED HIGH PASS FILTER and 1x 904A VOLTAGE CONTROLLED LOW PASS FILTER
• 1x 992 CONTROL VOLTAGES module allows CV mixing and switching with 1 inverting attenuator
• 5x 902 VOLTAGE CONTROLLED AMPLIFIER with 3 summed CV inputs and dual audio inputs and outputs
• 4x 911 ENVELOPE GENERATORS with S-trig inputs and CV outputs
• 1x 911A DUAL TRIGGER DELAY module with S-trig input and output
• 2x 921A OSCILLATOR DRIVER with 6x 921B VCOs and 1x 921 VCO gives you 7 fully featured voices
• 1x 960 SEQUENTIAL CONTROLLER module provides up to 24-step sequences in 8 steps with 3 rows
• 1x CM1A MIDI to CV converter enables control by MIDI keyboards or DAW, V-trig or S-trig outputs
• 3x CP3A-O module allows CV mixing and switching for the VCOs with 1 attenuator
• 3x CP3A-M 4 input mixer with master level, 4 outputs and 2 sets of 4 multiples
• 2x 995 ATTENUATORS modules with 3 linked passive attenuators
• 1x 903A RANDOM SIGNAL GENERATOR module provides dual white and pink noise sources
• 1x CP35 ATTENUATORS module with 4 linked attenuators, 2 sets of 4 multiples and reference voltages
• 1x 961 INTERFACE module converts multiple V-trig to S-trig for compatibility with other Eurorack modules
• 1x 962 SEQUENTIAL SWITCH module expands the 960 module into a 24 step sequencer
• 1x BP28, 2x BP56 and 2x BP2 blanks panels for a total of 144HP expansion space
• 1x CM1A MIDI-to-CV converter enables control via MIDI keyboards or DAW, V-trig or S-trig outputs
• 2x EURORACK GO cases including PSUs
• 2x EURORACK GO BRACKETS to link the 2 EURORACK GO cases together for easy patching

More information here: https://www.behringer.com/product.html?modelCode=P0ESS

Smaller System 15 and 35 configurations: