Behringer V-Tone Bass BDI21

I wasn't sure about this pedal when I first plugged it in, but over the next few days it started to dawn on me what a little gem this thing is.

I bought it originally as just an overdrive pedal and sure it does that perfectly as long as you don't go past 2 o'clock on the drive dial. You can achieve a good driven sound with plenty of guts but if you go too far it just sounds like a broken amp with ripped speakers!

The tone controls work like a dream and if you are having trouble getting your bass to come through amongst other instruments, trust me you will find a tone in there that will bring you through easily. The presence control just brings the whole thing alive and has the ability to change the the overall punch or smoothness and works with the tone controls to enhance them further, it also adds a little warmth to the signal which I love. The blend so far I tend to leave around mid-way as I don't want to eliminate the original sound of my bass's completely but rest assured it works as it should and might be a nice option for someone else. The level control can be used as a signal boost or just to engage the effect at the same level and works perfectly. and on top of all this, although not tested yet, it has a DI output!

True, it won't make your bass sound like it's being played through a valve amp but it gets the sound most of the way there and I think it sounds fantastic. This pedal will bring a bass alive for most genres of music from funk right through to vintage rock. If you are looking to smoothen your sound or give it a bit more punch or sparkle, this will absolutely do it and then some!

Although plastic, it doesn't look cheap and it feels weighty, it actually feels really solid. The footswitch, controls and jack sockets all work perfectly well so I have no concerns whatsoever of it breaking in the near (or far) future.

Like I said earlier, I bought it just an overdrive pedal and after the first use I wasn't sure, but now after a few days of farting about with it, I am having trouble turning the thing off, it just brings so much to the party. I would be happy with this pedal..... even if I never used the drive section I bought it for!

Unbelievably cost under 23 euros.....110% recommended!!! :)

For a good while now I've been hearing about D.I boxes.
Mostly about a certain American one but slowly and surely the BDI21 was getting mentioned.
When I saw how cheap it is my first thought was " Can't be that good."
Boy was I wrong.As I say it kept getting mentioned on various bass player sites
so I saved it in a wish list for " sometime "

At the start of the month I was ordering for Thomann and it was added as an afterthought.Very good decision.Not being the main item I ordered it remained in the box until tonight.

Why didn't I try this earlier ? It brings so much to the party ! One simple little box and so simple to use. To start I just copied the examples that were in the instructions. Good decent tones all of them.Some experimenting can only reveal more.

If your bass was a 20w bulb in a dark room using the BDI21 turns it into a 100w bulb.It just lifts your bass tone to a better level.Coupled with the fact if your amp packs in this can save the day DI'd into the PA or save your back from lugging amps upstairs.

Seriously before thinking of changing pickups or basses try one of these first,it could save you a fortune.If you're concerned about reliability well here's the easy answer Buy 2.

For the same price some strings cost it's an amazing bit of kit.

Try one I'm glad I did.

As a gigging bass player I do hate transporting my 4x10 cabinet and 15+ kilo amp for smaller clubs since it only takes space and no one from the audience actually cares about your gear. Especially if you don't have too much space in your car, having a proper DI / bass preamp to substitute the amp is a must. Then I bought the ultimate classic MXR M80 - did the job well and I am actually still happy with the purchase.

However, recently I started thinking of changing the type of sound a bit - into something more overdriven than distorted. The well-known Sansamp DI is too expensive for simple testing, and friends have already told me good things about the Behringer, so I decided to give it a go.

The best piece of gear you can buy for this money, really.

I'd say this one is even more versatile than the MXR, and it can easily evolve from a nice bright sound to quite a serious growl, making the bass sound like a guitar if you play with the Treble knob. And without sacrificing the low end! Tested it both home and on stage.

The only bad thing is the unit is made out of plastic and stomping might result in breaking it. So I am simply not switching back to clean channel while playing. Oh yeah - and if it breaks, I can just buy another one. Or two...

This Behringer pedal sounds brilliant. I have a lot of very expensive pedals from mainstream manufacturers, but this one is a little gem! I've had it for 3 years and it's still going strong.
I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to test this Behringer pedal on a friends rig at a gig before I bought it. It is clearly a direct copy of the Tech21 SansAmp but it is only a fraction of the price. So I was surprised at the sound quality it produced.
I have used the pedal as a DI and also as a tone shaping unit before my Ashdown Mag rig. It performs very well in both situations. I use it to add depth, tone and warmth to my sound.
I have since A/B tested this pedal alongside the Tech21 SansAmp and its remarkable how good the Behringer is for the price (check out YouTube reviews to see for yourself!)

I have been using the BDI21 as a DI box and bass amp replacement, since I have a small PA system but no bass amp.

I was pleasantly surprised by the BDI21. The photos make it look rather flimsy (particularly the footswitch), but in reality the plastic casing feels very solid, and the controls, while not indestructible, seem OK.

Feature-wise, there is nothing else at this price range with these features, most usefully combining amp simulation with an XLR out.

The sound is very good. Compared to a `dry' DI signal, it makes it rounder and smoother. I used to think the dry signal was quite good (well, good enough), but using the BDI21 improves it greatly.

In summary, the BDI21 works perfectly as an always-on bass amp replacement, so I would recommend it.

This is an amazingly low priced unit. I can only agree with what others have said, you can dial in some lovely tones with this little gem, some soft warm tones to the other extreme. Others have said how it's made out of plastic, it is, but it is very solid plastic, quite heavy too, yep, it feels well made. I would even say the on/off pedal is pretty strong and would take some heavy handling. All in all I am very pleased with my purchase. If I had one criticism it would be that the dials are a little fiddly, with no markers, still, its a small criticism of a very good unit. This has taken my sound to a new level and I am pleased I purchased it. For the features it provides it is remarkable value. Thank you Thomann and Behringer!