This the 500 rack i have!! Great unit especially for the price!!! Durable! Perfect amount of power! Easy to use and the switches on the back to link them up or have them go in a row is amazing! Saves on cables!
Perfect timing Barry! I'm getting ready to buy my first 500 rack and I think I just decided which one to start with!! Thank you. Looking forward to coming videos of 500 series gear!
I have this exact one in my Sweetwater cart and was online researching it before pulling the trigger. It is funny, but oh so typical, how I came this. I was redoing my studio with a new 19" rack - old gear and some fun new stuff. I got a 12U roller and figured that would be enough. Oops, I have a 13th U to fill. Got a Phoenix Audio N-8 to patch keyboards, guitars, ... in to bring them to line level for the signal chain. I figured, well, I might be able to mount it on the backside of the rack, figuring though that the room probably wasn't all there. Now, I could span 2U with a few inches of wood offsets and center the unit with long screws through holes into the rack. But I decided to maybe just get a 6U or 8U 19" road rack to set on top. A 1U power, another Samson S Patch and the DI strip could then connect in the chain using my 3 patch bays. Ah, but then I could "justify" throwing in a 3U 500 series and doubling it up as a mobile recording rack. Main concern was line noise induced from the power supply and that there was enough power for the modules. Seems not a common problem with these. The Pro model costs barely more than the base, and those meters must be useful for gain staging. Only remaining questing is whether I might want a 500 series interface for mobile use. I got the Focusrite Scarlet 18i20 4th Gen as soon as they opened for preorder. It was painful to not go with RME, but I am extremely retired and the 4th Gen preamps and converters are really good. So, to get a 500 series interface or mobile with the old TASCAM 4x4? I might have patience on that one or get tempted with a post-xmas bargain.
I love the Cranborne Audio 500 series, definitely not cheap but super versatile and awesome so far for a year. I highly recommend. Thanks for the video
I own that Bento, the VU meters and monitoring selection are extremely useful for setting gain staging between the slots. I have it set with some bus compressor and mastering modules, so having the VU just before the limiter is a joy to mix. Only complaint is the power on the back is hard to reach, but for 8 slots it is a great deal.
Like you said, the powersuply is the most important device in a 500 series rack, who needs meters? Rather have more rackspace(s) and do the metering in the daw/analog domain. Love your videos, Barry.
I have 2 of the pro and 1 standard bento 8 for the past year. No issues experienced thus far. I agree on the cabling it would have been nice to use 1/4 to 1/4 out of my patch bays. Honestly I rarely use the vu meters or the headphone out but the meters do make it look nicer in the rack :)
Hey Barry, I noticed in some recent videos the audio quality might have gone down, not sure if you were aware! Anyways, love your videos, I have the exact same 500 chassis in my project studio, and it has worked great for me for more than a year now. Somehow you have been onpoint with making videos specifically for the units that I am interested in, cheers!
Just wanted to mention as I was just looking into ADAT expansion units - Ferrofish just released a pulse 8!!! Half the size and half the price of the pulse 16; probably good to get your hands on one :)
Looking forward to your videos on connectivity! I am considering the WesAudio 500-Series before the rest. All of them and the chassis are a complete system without need to worry. Can you explain the USB connection option
Berry, I know Sweetwater doesn’t see Gefell microphones(I wished they did and I talked to Chuck about it several times, but nothing) I liked to have your opinion on them
Other than having sufficient power, I have one main concern with 500 racks containing internal power supplies. 60Hz hum. I have never used a Fredenstein unit but I did have a 6 space API Lunchbox. Any device I placed in the last rack space next to its internal power supply had an induced 60Hz hum in it. I tried putting a Purple Audio Biz mic pre, a Great River MP-500NV mic pre and a Daking Comp 500 VCA compressor into that far-right slot and all of them had a hum that was probably 60dB or 70dB down. They didn't hum in any of the other slot locations. It's not a lot but it's there. I contacted API and they told me that was normal. HUH??? That's unacceptable to me. Especially for the price of the API rack. I needed a larger rack anyway so I sold the API and bought and built a Capi 11 space rack with an external power supply and it is dead silent. I will not tolerate induced noise if it is in any way avoidable. I have heard stories of other brands of 500 series racks with similar issues. Is there any hum-noise with the slot next to the internal power supply with the Fredensiein rack? You need to really crank the gain up to see if it is present.
I did not not experience any hum and it was a concern of mine too. I have been using two BAE 500 racks for many years of flawless use. That said, they were more than double the price of these. Capi is excellent!
Cranbourne 500RB over here… my favorite. It can be used as a standard 500 unit, a great DAW interface, or stand alone “mini mixer” for 8 channels (if you have 8 preamps). A lot more money of course!
@@BarryJohns No, it was the greedy UA-cam AI! They expected me to watch a 20 minute political add, to see the second half of this video! I refuse to watch an add longer than the video! They now use adds that you can't quit! I do let reasonable adds run, but some days they get greedy! They break into the middle of a sentence, with unrelated adds! It was a bad day, sorry Barry, it wasn't you!😃
This the 500 rack i have!! Great unit especially for the price!!! Durable! Perfect amount of power! Easy to use and the switches on the back to link them up or have them go in a row is amazing! Saves on cables!
Perfect timing Barry! I'm getting ready to buy my first 500 rack and I think I just decided which one to start with!! Thank you.
Looking forward to coming videos of 500 series gear!
I have this exact one in my Sweetwater cart and was online researching it before pulling the trigger.
It is funny, but oh so typical, how I came this. I was redoing my studio with a new 19" rack - old gear and some fun new stuff. I got a 12U roller and figured that would be enough. Oops, I have a 13th U to fill. Got a Phoenix Audio N-8 to patch keyboards, guitars, ... in to bring them to line level for the signal chain. I figured, well, I might be able to mount it on the backside of the rack, figuring though that the room probably wasn't all there. Now, I could span 2U with a few inches of wood offsets and center the unit with long screws through holes into the rack.
But I decided to maybe just get a 6U or 8U 19" road rack to set on top. A 1U power, another Samson S Patch and the DI strip could then connect in the chain using my 3 patch bays. Ah, but then I could "justify" throwing in a 3U 500 series and doubling it up as a mobile recording rack.
Main concern was line noise induced from the power supply and that there was enough power for the modules. Seems not a common problem with these. The Pro model costs barely more than the base, and those meters must be useful for gain staging. Only remaining questing is whether I might want a 500 series interface for mobile use. I got the Focusrite Scarlet 18i20 4th Gen as soon as they opened for preorder. It was painful to not go with RME, but I am extremely retired and the 4th Gen preamps and converters are really good. So, to get a 500 series interface or mobile with the old TASCAM 4x4? I might have patience on that one or get tempted with a post-xmas bargain.
I love the Cranborne Audio 500 series, definitely not cheap but super versatile and awesome so far for a year. I highly recommend. Thanks for the video
I own that Bento, the VU meters and monitoring selection are extremely useful for setting gain staging between the slots. I have it set with some bus compressor and mastering modules, so having the VU just before the limiter is a joy to mix. Only complaint is the power on the back is hard to reach, but for 8 slots it is a great deal.
Like you said, the powersuply is the most important device in a 500 series rack, who needs meters? Rather have more rackspace(s) and do the metering in the daw/analog domain. Love your videos, Barry.
The timing again! Just unboxed my Bento 8 Pro. Hoping you’ve got some encouraging words! ;)
I have 2 of the pro and 1 standard bento 8 for the past year. No issues experienced thus far. I agree on the cabling it would have been nice to use 1/4 to 1/4 out of my patch bays. Honestly I rarely use the vu meters or the headphone out but the meters do make it look nicer in the rack :)
Love the reviews and enjoy the info provided. 👍
Glad you like them!
Hey Barry, I noticed in some recent videos the audio quality might have gone down, not sure if you were aware! Anyways, love your videos, I have the exact same 500 chassis in my project studio, and it has worked great for me for more than a year now. Somehow you have been onpoint with making videos specifically for the units that I am interested in, cheers!
@@aleksamrkela831 no, i'm not talking about that
Just wanted to mention as I was just looking into ADAT expansion units - Ferrofish just released a pulse 8!!! Half the size and half the price of the pulse 16; probably good to get your hands on one :)
I emailed them but no response.
Looking forward to your videos on connectivity! I am considering the WesAudio 500-Series before the rest. All of them and the chassis are a complete system without need to worry. Can you explain the USB connection option
I wonder how to get my Realphones software on that headphone output, otherwise it makes no sense...
Thanks Barry
HMMM...maybe next version may have a module in the rear for various connectivity. ADAT too?
Berry, I know Sweetwater doesn’t see Gefell microphones(I wished they did and I talked to Chuck about it several times, but nothing) I liked to have your opinion on them
Any videos coming down the pipeline about the SSL big six I keep seeing in the background?!
Yes as soon as I finish the 500 series
Other than having sufficient power, I have one main concern with 500 racks containing internal power supplies. 60Hz hum. I have never used a Fredenstein unit but I did have a 6 space API Lunchbox. Any device I placed in the last rack space next to its internal power supply had an induced 60Hz hum in it. I tried putting a Purple Audio Biz mic pre, a Great River MP-500NV mic pre and a Daking Comp 500 VCA compressor into that far-right slot and all of them had a hum that was probably 60dB or 70dB down. They didn't hum in any of the other slot locations. It's not a lot but it's there. I contacted API and they told me that was normal. HUH??? That's unacceptable to me. Especially for the price of the API rack. I needed a larger rack anyway so I sold the API and bought and built a Capi 11 space rack with an external power supply and it is dead silent. I will not tolerate induced noise if it is in any way avoidable. I have heard stories of other brands of 500 series racks with similar issues.
Is there any hum-noise with the slot next to the internal power supply with the Fredensiein rack? You need to really crank the gain up to see if it is present.
I did not not experience any hum and it was a concern of mine too. I have been using two BAE 500 racks for many years of flawless use. That said, they were more than double the price of these. Capi is excellent!
summing option .. ;)
How does it compare to Cranborne?
Cranbone is on a different level.
@@BarryJohnsis that due to the extra I/O options like Adat? Does it seem worth 2x the price?
@@Auspexgetchell it is more streamlined, leaving room for other gear on the same rack.
Their units do more than that, I’ll ask Sweetwater to send me one to cover.
Cranbourne 500RB over here… my favorite. It can be used as a standard 500 unit, a great DAW interface, or stand alone “mini mixer” for 8 channels (if you have 8 preamps). A lot more money of course!
flip it around
Next video shows me connecting it up to the new Artura Audio X8 units.
UA-cam is FUCKED UP TODAY! It keeps stopping for GREED!
I know you are not talking about me or my channel!
@@BarryJohns No, it was the greedy UA-cam AI! They expected me to watch a 20 minute political add, to see the second half of this video! I refuse to watch an add longer than the video! They now use adds that you can't quit! I do let reasonable adds run, but some days they get greedy! They break into the middle of a sentence, with unrelated adds! It was a bad day, sorry Barry, it wasn't you!😃
It’s a waste of 4 slots though.