Behringer has renamed its Grampian spring reverb clone for Eurorack from Spring Reverberation 636 to Spring Reverberation 646.
At the beginning of the year, Behringer announced a replica of the Grampian spring reverb 636 in Eurorack. In February, the name changed to 646, probably because of registered naming rights.
The first batch has now been delivered according to the first customer demos. In the US and Europe. Interestingly, the units have the name 636 on them. So, a situation like we already had with the Mu-Tron Bi-Phase clone, which was first called delivered as Bi-Phase and then as Dual Phase
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Update From February 16, 2024
This morning, Behringer surprisingly introduced its Grampian spring reverb clone/replica again on Facebook—a second time after doing this on January 30th, 2024.
But if you look closer at the faceplate, there is a change. Behringer has changed the name of the Spring Reveberation 636 to Spring Reveberation 646.
It is just a simple number for most, but a change indicating that there were legal problems with Spring Reveberation 636. The rights may be held by the original developers/company or a company that makes remakes it. In order to avoid problems, the faceplate has now been changed. The video is also offline.
I’m curious whether the first batch that will be delivered soon still has the 636 label on it or not. They had the same issue with the first Dual Phase pedal (Mu-Tron Bi-Phase) batch, which was initially called Bi-Phase. After legal problems, it got a new name and is now sold as Dual Phase.
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Article From January 30, 2024
Spring reverbs have a long tradition in music production. As the name suggests, a special feature is the real spring that creates the effect. This form was popular in the 1960s when it was also found in Hammond’s organs for the first time. Later in the 60s came devices such as the classic Grampian 636.
No one is spared. Today, there are also hardware and software clones/replicas of this classic. For example, British gear-restoration company Soundgas replicated it in 2023 with vintage components, or Arturia created an emulation with the Rev-SPRING-636. And now, there is a clone/replica for your Eurorack system from Behringer.
Behringer Spring Reverberation 636
Yes, “Banaheim” is still not over. After the announcement of the UB-Xa mini, Behringer today released also the Spring Reverbation 636 effects unit for Eurorack. It ships in a case, allowing you to use the unit standalone or as a Eurorack module.
The new Spring Reverberation 636 is an authentic clone/replica of the original Grampian Type 636 analog circuitry from the 1960s. It consists of two mechanical springs that provide signal reflections for rich and dynamic room emulations, promises Behringer.
The user interface is super simple and is inspired by the original unit. It starts with a power on/off switch with a light indicator. Then, you have a reverberate knob, adjusting the amount of reverb infused in your signal. So a dry/wet mix control. You can get a total reverb decay time of approx. 2 seconds.
Like the original, it comes with an overload circuit for warm analog overdrive of the signal before entering the spring reverb core. It also has a light indication. Besides this, you get dedicated amount knobs for the AUX and mic channel.
Behringer’s take on the Grampian 636 spring reverb has Eurorack-compatible 3.5mm inputs/outputs on the front panel and 6.3mm ins/outs on the back. It has mic and line inputs with high/low line inputs for flexible routing. There is also an additional foot switch pedal input on the back.
Even though you have four different inputs, I think the effect is mono and not stereo.
First Impression
Interesting release. With the Behringer version, there will soon be a Grampian 636-style spring reverb for a small budget. I would have liked the design to be a little smaller but it probably wasn’t technically possible. I think many friends of vintage sounds will be happy about this release.
Behringer Spring Reverberation 636 is available now for $199. Available from the factory, but it will be available at retailers in 4-5 weeks.
More information here: Behringer
Available for pre-order at my partner
