Behringer Ultra-Di Di20 Professional Active 2-Channel Di-Box/Splitter

That's what it was: a hunch. I read the specs on this thing and thought, "That might be a handy gizmo to have around." I was thinking of the signal splitting function and the unbalanced to balanced function.As it turned out, my first use for it was to get rid of unwanted hum in my cobbled-together low-budget PA system. For some reason, when I connected a compact PA system to my Peavey board (which was also feeding a guitar amp) there was an unacceptable level of hum that I couldn't get rid of.Then I remembered that I had the Ultra-DI and decided to try it, between the mixer and the PA input. Put in a battery, hit the ground lift switch, and - like magic - the hum was gone. Not diminished, gone!I have used it a couple of times, in Link mode, to connect a guitar to two different amps, one of which had a multi-effects box on the front end. Worked great for that.I haven't had an occasion to use the attenuation function, yet, but have no reason to believe that it won't do what it's supposed to do if I ever do need it.I haven't used it enough to comment on the ultimate battery life, but one 9 v. battery got it through one 2 hr. concert, and there seems to be plenty of juice left in it. Unlike some Behringer gizmos (like their effects pedals), this one has a power switch, which should go a long way to prolonging the battery life.I wouldn't have ordered this, on a hunch [especially in view of the dismaying number of negative reviews of this product], if it had a $90+ price tag, but I was willing to gamble $22.00. I'm glad I did. If it never does anything but cancel hum in an otherwise noisy system, I'll feel as if I've gotten my money's worth.While I'm not a fan of the Behringer effects pedals, I have been pleased with several other Behringer products. I have a VT-50 amp that I use every day and love as much as you can love an inanimate object. I have an MIC100 pre-amp that works great, every day, and is worth every penny I paid for it. And I have a GM108 amp, bought much-used, for forty bucks, that works great as well. None has ever given me any trouble. The effects pedals all worked, they just didn't work very well - meaning, they didn't give me what I expected - which may be more my fault than Behringer's, as I got them by mail order without testing them beforehand. That's my two cents on Behringer products.

Does it add noise? Sure it does. A bit of hiss. Think of tape hiss with the Dolby NR turned on, for those of you old enough to know that sound. Does it cost over $100? Not a chance. This thing has no place in a recording studio, that's for sure, but for a small band playing a gig in a park on a Sunday afternoon? No one will notice the hiss. You're getting two DI channels for under $25! We use these for the bass and guitar players in our church band, and they're great. With the room empty, and PA opened up wide, you can hear a bit of hiss. Add a few dozen people to the room and it disappears completely. Great price point, and we will buy more of these if we need them. The nay-sayers are the pro audio guys, and if you're into pro audio, you're not buying $25 DI boxes, or at least you shouldn't be!

Excellent product

Nice, cheaper alternative.It worked quite well would buy again

Great product

Super bien.

buena calidad y entrega rapida

I bought this DI for a couple of reasons. First was the cost. Why something simple as turning an unbalanced signal into a balanced signal has turned into a boutique industry is beyond me. Behringer is good at bringing it down for those who don't have a boutique budget or would rather spend it on more deserving gear. Second was that Behringer, for all of the criticism it gets, can make a decent product for a market that doesn't require gear made to go into battle. On the surface Behringer wins again. That said, the limits of this DI must be noted.1. Folded aluminum case with no real protection from moisture, so humidity is not your friend to say nothing of spilling something on it. I don't expect it to last as long as other Behringer pedals I've purchased in the past, and it can't compete with the basic standards any musician should expect.2. Calling it a two channel box is technically correct, I suppose. In practice it fails with no proper link out jacks for two channel operation. My bad for not seeing what was in front of me. It's essentially a single channel splitter which might have a particular use, but how it's advertised is a bit misleading.I consider it a cheap life lesson, and I'll put it to work as its design will allow. I still need a second box, but it won't be another one of these.