Behringer DeepMind 6

My first hardware synth

I’m primarily a guitar player, but I like to incorporate synth sounds into my music sometimes. Previously I’ve used vst plugins or synths on my ipad. Vst plugins I found to be unsatisfying and annoying to configure/edit sounds. Too much menu diving and mouse clicking. I got better results from the iPad synths…. But I was left with envy at all those people on YouTube with their hardware midi setups grooving away. So I wondered if investing in a real piece if hardware would be worth it for me.

It took me a long while to settle on the deepmind 6. From my research it seemed to have the right amount of ‘twiddlability’ to be satisfying to use.

I wasn’t wrong I’m happy to say… but also importantly it comes with a ton of ready made patches that you can instantly twiddle and work out how they are done… or simply use them. This is good… because you have all the options that a serious synth player demands, but less of a learning curve to get going. I was making obnoxious noises within seconds of plugging it in!

Construction wise, behringer have done a good job. Most of the chassis is metal with what appear to be fairly classy wooden sides. It’s heavy and reassuring. It does have a fairly noisy fan, but I expected this.

So being no synth expert, I’ll try and explain how I’m using it. So it is an analog sythesiser, but all the settings (so far as I can make out) are saveable as patches. What is also cool, and I didn’t expect, is that when I hook it up to my DAW to sequence the deepmind, it also records all the automation of sliders and other controls on the unit. So you can create a full performance in layers. This is an awesome thing. Endless fun trying the sequenced parts with different sounds and settings.

Syncing it to your DAW is very easy too. I’ve not worked out how to make the DAW the master for tempo yet, so I’m setting that manually for now. Not a problem for my use case in a recording setting.

The sounds are very good in the this machine and work well in a mix. Better for me than trying to get vst patches to sit well. I’m sure that’s due to my own inexperience with it, but this works well instantly. I find it easier to mix everything as audio for some reason.

Ok so one down side is that the audio outputs are a little noisy. This is not a deal breaker for me. This is a real analog piece of kit and for me it’s part of its charm. Practically speaking though it doesn’t affect any productions I’ve done with this so far. It’s not noticeable in the tracks. I’m just aware when I have the deepmind hooked up to my studio mixer I have a little electronic hum that isn’t usually there. So I press the mute switch on that input… job done. I do that anyway. I have everything hooked up to my mixer and mute them when I’m not recording them.

This unit offers the kind of sounds that I grew up listening to from the 70s and 80s, but I think your imagination would be the main limiting factor here. This machine is very powerful. Also it’s clear that the team that designed it really put a lot of thought into how it will be used in different setups. It’s also just incredibly fun and satisfying to move a slider and the sounds instantly changes.

So in conclusion, this is a great way to get into analog synthesis with enough options to let you grow as you become more proficient. I’m very happy with it.

Deep, man, deep...

Here is a review I wrote for a music magazine in CZ.

https://insounder.org/behringers-deepmind-6-convoluted-or-nestled-consciousness

Really good synth, even if a bit of menu diving is required.

Love the sounds you can get out of this thing and I've barely scratched the surface. Keys are good, faders and knobs are sturdy and pitch bend and mod wheels work perfectly. This being said, I had to send my first one back due to the screen not working and as a lesser issue, some of the keys weren't great. So not immune from the classic Behringer monday versions.

Very nice synth

I bought it to play it in the band. It has all the sounds i need + it is relatively easy to make sound you need. Someone says it requires some menu diving and that is true. But it is all logical so when you read manual and work on it for a while it all makes sense. Great bang for buck.

The best bang for the buck :)

I have owned this for a few months now .I wanted to stop using synth vst s

and have analog sounding synths in my productions and it sure worked with this guy , Also after buying pre-made presets online for deepmind 6 i fell even more in love,,wont be needing another synth for a while :)

Great Synth

I have been using it for a couple of months now in music production and sound design scenarios, and I can say it's a very good sounding synthesizer and it has become a very important tool in my workflow. You can get to a variety of sounds very quickly and tweak them easily once you get used to the workflow, and in case you struggle with getting used to it, there are a bunch of tutorials and videos on youtube that can help you. It is a very versatile instrument.

It's well built, fells really solid and I haven't experienced any reliability issues so far.

One thing to bear in mind is that some patches use two or three voices per note, so polyphony might be compromised. If this is an issue for you, consider getting a Deepmind 12. For me it wasn't much of a throwback, so I appreciate the extra space that the DM6 gives me.

In conclusion, I'm very happy with it.

Best Value for Money

It's incredible what this synth can do. Great analog sound, good solid construction. Based on 2 DCO workflow and a 2/4 pole LP filter it provides a very big sound palette. Superb on board effects provided by TC Electronic and Klark Teknik put any patch to the next level.

Deepmind 6

Perfect size and precisely what I was looking for. The sound comparison with my long gone juno 6 is fantastic and the effects makes it even better. The only drawback would be that the engine of 6 voices runs out quickly when playing layered sounds. That would have been easily solved by DM12, but then again that extra octaves would not have fitted the free space in my setup. Anyway, the sound is rich, analog and fat as #*$$ and the synthesizer build as a tank at an unbeatable price!

First synth – love it!

I was looking to get into sound design for a while, but moving around knobs with a mousepad in a VST isn't exactly inspiring, so when the second lockdown came, I decided to invest into an actual synth. After some research, I went for the DeepMind 6 because of the amount of options that you get from the Mod Matrix.

Pros:

- The potential of this thing is amazing. You get sweet retro vibes right of the bat, reminiscent of the Juno-106, but you can get really deep into sound design with the Mod Matrix

- It looks and feels inspiring. The feeling of sitting down and using all the knobs and sliders to get sounds is incredible.

- The knobs and sliders are high quality and feel good to use

Cons:

- You run out of voices easily; when playing 7ths or 9ths chords in Pads while running in Unison-2, you have to get creative with your chord voicings because you can only play 3 notes at the same time.

- The keyboard is a bit small at times

- The controls aren't super intuitive. Without reading the manual, you're going to struggle quite a bit.

Overall I'm really happy with it so far, despite the drawbacks – especially with the amount of voices, it does force you to be creative sometimes. Also if you're looking to emulate retro sounds, this is going to create a more genuine feel.

Fantastic synthesizer

The DeepMind 6 is a really great synth for those on a budget. It has a really versatile sound, and can be used for just about anything from soft pads, to hard-hitting, deep basslines. Really easy to configure, and even easier to integrate with a DAW. I use FL Studio and have had absolutely no trouble in setting it up for recording. Once you have the setup worked out, it takes just a few seconds to prepare it for recording in a session.

It really does a great job in creating an analog sound, and it's no wonder so many people trust in it. Sure, it emulates iconic synths in many different ways, but it has its' own sound, which is what makes it so special.

I have used it on countless major-signed records & will continue to use it on my tracks. It really helps you to shape your OWN sound too, as you can save your own presets & start bringing them into all your records.