Behringer JT-4000M Micro

I originally purchased the JT 4000 as a travel synth. But I was frustrated that despite studying various YouTube videos I entirely failed to be able to control the device from an external keyboard. I liked some of the presets and those I didn't like I modified with my own creations. However, being limited to just the onboard keyboard was a pain for anything outside a hotel room.

So, when the version came out with a MIDI port (not the 5 pin DIN version, but with a handy adapter to connect to a 5 Pin DIN included) I thought it worth purchasing that. Indeed it was. I can now use the device on its own while away or hook it up to a controller when back in my home studio.

I gave the old JT4000 to my daughter so she could learn the basics of ADSL etc and kept the JT4000M for myself.

The JT4000 should have included the MIDI facility from version one, but the "M" version ensures that newer purchasers interested in this compact little beauty need not have to buy another one to use it in a studio set up without resorting to complicated methods to access it externally.

PS It would have been nice if Behringer had offered a discount for those of us who'd bought the JT4000, if we then upgraded to the JT4000M.

Despite the hype, JT sounds more like early JUPITER offspring rather than JP-8000 but has nice retro colour with its 12-bit DAC + analog filter and surprisingly big & clean sound from such a tiny body.

CONS:

-Slow attack of the filter makes notes "wah" (at every 1st note opening the filter) and this limits usage.

-Filter is paraphonic, not per voice.

-Needs 1 voice extra for compensation reasons.

-Modwheel is hardwired to LFO2 controlling only the pitch with no other selectable destination.

It's great for what it is especially via external keyboard / sequencer, FX and third party editor app unfolding it realtime. I got this just for fun but it can actually find usage in productions if Behringer addresses at least the filter attack via firmware update!

Plus:
Fast jackentaschentauglich klein, federleicht, TRS-MIDI-in-Buchse, winziges, aber gestochen scharfes Display, großartiger Klang (besonders Pads), 32 Speicherplätze, Sounds tiefgehend editierbar, Soundaustausch via Rechner vorgesehen, Arpeggiator mit 3 Modi (up, down, up&down) und mehreren Rhythmikvarianten, Akkordfunktion, ausgetüfteltes Bedienkonzept mit nur wenigen Reglern (4 Drehknöpfe, einer davon auch Druckknopf, 6 Bereichsschalter), An-Aus-Knopf, USB-Buchse (mit MIDI via USB), 4-stimmig, 2 Oszillatoren, Kapazitivtastatürchen, Adapter TRS auf DIN MIDI liegt bei.

Minus:
Kein Akku (braucht Netzstrom oder Powerbank), kein Sync in/out, kein Sequenzer, Arpeggiator-Tempo nicht speicherbar, DIN MIDI nur über Adapter, kein so titulierbares Manual, keine Effekte, "Supersaw"-Preset bindet 2. Oszillator, Kapazitivtastatürchen doch sehr begrenzte Spielerei.

Fazit:
Besser als sein Anschein, praktisch für unterwegs, erstaunlich gut editierbar und für den Preis (von nichtmal einem vollen Fuffi) kein Witz, sondern ernstzunehmendes Kleinod im klanglichen Fuhrpark.

Un vrai bijoux. La version M qui intègre le contrôle midi est une très bonne idée compte tenu de l'absence de séquenceur. La polyphonie à 4 voix, c'est génial. Je n'ai rien à dire, il a tout d'un grand synthé analogique mais en tout petit. Je l'adore et j'aime le glisser dans mon sac, quand j'ai envie de faire de la musique en voyage. Il peut prélever le courant du téléphone en USB C, j'y branche un casque et voilà. Bravo! Les gens comme moi qui ont un espace réduit pour faire de la musique apprécieront. Vivement un séquenceur de la même taille pour l'accompagner.