Behringer ProVS Mini V2: get one voice free

Free firmware upgrade boosts the ProVS Mini’s voice count – and improves features

Buy the ProVS Mini from Thomann for £77 – or check out Andertons’ offers
ProVS Mini for USA? Buy from Amazon.com for $99

• Firmware V2.0.0 is available now for the Behringer ProVS Mini
• Download via SynthTribe app, don’t use a low-power USB port
• Improvements are immediately obvious

It’s already one of the cheapest polyphonic synthesizers with an analogue filter, and it just happens to be a classic voice architecture that’s been recreated very well in such a small form factor. The Behringer ProVS Mini costs less than E80 and really, has very few drawbacks as an addition to a mature, professional studio, let alone as a cheap home synth.

The capacitive keyboard is a downside, but you can use any old MIDI keyboard since it has a full-size MIDI In port, and as long as you use the right mono jack cable (not stereo) the output levels are good despite the shared headphone/line port.

So hot on the heels of the Behringer Wave synthesizer becoming available (it was teased, and announced, a couple of years ago – it’s now available to order), the ProVS Mini has been given an unexpected firmware update.

As firmware updates go, it’s pretty impressive.

ProVS Mini goes from four-voices, to five

Technically, this week Behringer has added two synthesizer voices to the range. The first release is the JT Mini, a 3-oscillator analogue that is essentially a single voice of the Jupiter-clone JT-16 that’s been in development for some time. You can buy one soon, it’s the same price as the ProVS Mini.

The second, released on 14th December, is firmware 2.0 for the ProVS Mini. This one, you don’t need to buy, and it’s a voice they already offer, but you get an extra one free. The firmware update adds four more oscillators to the ProVS Mini architecture, giving it 20 oscillators in total, five ProVS voices, and an improved DCA for cleaner, more controlled and subtle sound.

ProVS Mini firmware V2 also addresses the common customer complaints that there’s no ‘hold’ mode for the arpeggiator, and no glide/portamento (and introduces chord modes as well). The extra voice isn’t the only additional feature. Behringer has added Reverb and Ensemble effects alongside the original Chorus.

But wait, there’s more! The new factory preset bank – developed by Ultimate Patches – sounds fantastic, really bringing the character of the ProVS as a mature instrument back to life, rather than the ‘factory sounds’ line up of strings, saws, noises and basses that, like any ’80s synth, were more like placeholders for demos.

Here”s the announcement:

I’ve already upgraded my ProVS Mini and therefore, have taken ages to write this news page because I keep playing with the new sounds. One thing that’s obvious, the Vintage oscillator model is rather better behaved, particularly at low velocity, to my ears anyway.

How do you upgrade the Behringer ProVS Mini firmware?

You’ll need the SynthTribe app, with is available for Mac OS and Windows as well as the mobile version for iOS and Android. The mobile versions should update automatically if you have auto updates enabled for your app store, the desktop version will need downloading. You can find it on the Behringer ProVS Mini product page, under ‘Software’, but it’s the same download for any Behringer synth. You’ll also find the factory patches download, which I think is still the original set.

1. Connect the USB cable directly to the computer

Make sure your ProVS Mini is connected to a USB port or hub (direct to the computer is best, of course) that provides a lot of power and you’re not using a USB audio isolator. I use these isolators sometimes to cut noise on USB-powered synths, and many cheap ones don’t pass through more than the minimum power required by USB specs.

In the case of my ProVS Mini, this meant the new firmware uploaded and was written without problems, but the synth couldn’t restart. I’ve had the same issue with the Modal Skulpt SE and these isolators – they just don’t provide enough current for some devices.

Interrupting a firmware update is a risky business, but Behringer appear to have made it robust – removing the USB isolator allowed the synth to completely restart with the new firmware.

2: Backup your patches

Make sure you have backed up your patches first. This is under the General (cogwheel tab), Receive section in SynthTribe; just tap All Presets and save the file where you want it when the dialogue box pops up. Do the same for your patterns, if you’ve created some.

3. Update the firmware

Then click the Update tab in SynthTribe. The ProVS Mini will display ‘BOOTLOADER’, then switch off. Power it on and you should see VERSION 2.0.0 on the display before it shows the usual preset voice.

4. Enable the new factory presets for V2 (optional, but a good idea)

To access the new bank after updating you need to hit the top-right button for the FUNCtion menu, press key 1 on the keyboard, and skip to the last entry (after SYSEX RECEIVE). Then press data entry and it’ll say ‘Done!, and you’ll find the new patches.

Is the Behringer ProVS V2 upgrade worth doing?

Absolutely! It’s free. Why would you ask that. There’s no risk to the hardware, it seems Behringer’s firmware update procedure is robust even when an idiot like me ignores the basic rules and leaves USB bits between the synth and the computer when doing such things (don’t ignore the rules), and the improvements are across the board and don’t lose any of the character of the ProVS Mini. If anything, they improve the sound even without the benefits of the new note controls and effects.

As a ProVS Mini owner/player, big thanks to Behringer for this update!

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