the empath is a realllly solid mixer. one of the things Microwave has taken from me is the ability to rock 3 turntables. i still do all my blends (nawt mashupz) live and having 3 turntables is so key for doing all the mixtape type multitrack stuff live.b, 21b, 21but unless you serially need a 3rd channel ( a real 3rd channel, the un-cueable non fader assignable aux in on a 56 doesnt really count) ... 56s kinda can't be messed with. b, 21b, 21the importance of a 57 is a bit lost on me. sure they are finding their way around at spots... but a lot of djs i know just turn off that hardware screen. the onboard functions aren't easy to just "pickup" if you dont have a solid amt of time to dick around with it. and paying that much money kinda eludes me since having a ser.at.0 box i can transport is way more valuable than having a mixer at home who's functions aren't guaranteed to me at a gig... unless i bring my mixer.. but unless it were a mobile sit. id never bring a mixer to a club gig. well... for now. b, 21b, 21b, 2156 + Microwave- pretty perfectb, 21b, 2157- pretty cool but not if you are ballin on a budget.b, 21b, 21b, 21needles.. to me really are about mixing style. there are craploads of djs who rock ortofon nightclubs. some swear by stanton 500s. some djs just hate they cant see the stylus on a 447 very well. b, 21b, 21but to me, the 447s can't be outperformed when you take into consideration the difference in price from a 447 to almost any ortofon concord type stylus. b, 21b, 21...b, 21b, 21b, 21ive lost the point i was trying to make.
object width="425" height="344"1param name="movie" value=""1/param1param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"1/param1param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"1/param1embed src="" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"1/embed1/object1b, 21b, 21I've had A pioneer djm600 for over 6 years and it has been a solid piece of gear the 800 and 1000 look doper but price wise the 600 is a good buy
Outputs on the 600 are the worst. As cool as the Pioneers were with features and action when then came out in 1997, they all got the major suck when it came to sound quality and output. That changed with the 1000 and 909 and further models like the 800 and 707. Vastly superior sound quality - it's like night and day.
b, 2157- pretty cool but not if you are ballin on a budget.
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font class="post"1b, 21b, 21Yeah, that's pretty much it. The 56 is pretty much perfect. The 57 is nice, no doubt, and it's kinda cool to play at a club that has one, but I wouldn't buy one unless I suddenly came into a lot of money.b, 21b, 21I don't even know what that hardware screen is all about, anyway. I close it without a second thought...as far as the 57's Microwave features go, I just use the cue point buttons and the little scroll knobs.
b, 21can anyone help me with adjusting the cut in points on the rane I just got? Or do most dj's in general use the fader as is and not adjust it? It seems to me that the fader needs a little getting use to as far as scratching goes..
Also, having had a Korg KP-mini, Pio EFX-500, and now a Korg KP3 Kaoss Pad, the KP3 destroys anything else I've touched for live effects, and has a MUCH better signal/noise ratio than the others (KP-mini has a hum, Pioneer has surprisingly high white noise)
b, 21Ecler Haks are good for cutting etc. and had a nice sounding EQ from what I can remember but they are very bad quality mixers that simply do not last. The outputs blew on mine twice and did the same on a mates. Don't be swayed by the size of these mixers as I was a bit surprised at how empty the inside was when I opened it up
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font class="post"1b, 21b, 21 img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cos3ve.gif" alt="" 21b, 21b, 21My HAK was impressive for about a year and a half. These days there are many broken features on it. In all fairness, I did buy one when the Ecler mixers first came out, so they may have sorted some stuff out since then. I was happy with the one I bought because it had nice features at the time, but if I were to get another, I'd buy a different brand. Mostly due to build quality.
I've been using a Vestax 07 Pro I got when they came out. Never had a problem in the nine years (? or so) I owned it, and just saw this quote when I typed a google search that made me chuckleb, 21b, 21/font1
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b, 21The Rolls-Royce of turntablist mixers is the Vestax 07 Pro, codesigned by the Invisibl Skratch Piklz and available for about $1,000 (street).
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font class="post"1b, 21b, 21Street? Are Vestax mixers used as an alternate currency for tax purposes?b, 21b, 21Anyway, would heartily recommend one, bearing in mind it has to include 3 very important words: MADE IN JAPAN img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/headz.gif" alt="" 21b, 21Once Vestax moved production to China... img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ehhzu7.gif" alt="" 21b, 21b, 21I don't scratch much these days, so if I was going to change mixers, would definitely get a Pioneer if only for being able to accurately bpm an echo-drop transition.b, 21b, 21img src="http://www.dmcworld.co.nz/images/standard/PIONEER-DJM-800.jpg"1
b, 21I can believe it - only used the previous model that has decent FX, and the main thing I enjoyed was being able to see a fairly accurate BPM reading on the channel playing, and then adjusting & synching echo BPMs. Good for echo-dropping a tune out of the mix, or for scratching a new tune into the mix with echos on-beat. I had a quick read-up of the 800, and it looks like they've made some good improvements - the harmonic mixing thing that allows you to adjust the pitch sounds basically like they've got Ableton running inside the mixer.b, 21b, 21I hadn't noticed too much of the 'white noise' on the earlier Pioneer's that Spelunk is talking about - or is he saying the 800 doesn't sound right?
Pioneer sound isn't anywhere near as good as some of the other brands mentioned but the 800 still has a really good sound for a standard mixer. Don't know about the "white noise" but I'll put an 800 up against a lot of those other crossfader mixers any day in an "overall" contest.b, 21b, 21But like I said, if dudes are that concerned with sound they should F*ck around and get a Urei or Bozak.
b, 21img src="http://www.idjnow.com/ProductImagesSmall/DJX700.jpg"1b, 21b, 21i did a gig last week , and they had this piece of shit ^ above.b, 21b, 21the fx settings on this are the worst...what shithead would design this ?b, 21if your going to rip off a pioneer just go for it.
b, 21I hadn't noticed too much of the 'white noise' on the earlier Pioneer's that Spelunk is talking about - or is he saying the 800 doesn't sound right?
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font class="post"1b, 21b, 21I haven't touched an 800 so I can't comment on it, though it sounds like they did it right and the circuitry must be a step up from the 600, which sounded like crap. It's not a huge flaw, but when I flip on my EFX-500 the background noise jumps up from basically non-existant to pretty noticeable. Irrelevant in a live situation but still bothersome. I just never felt like I could do anything with the 500 other than the hold echo or a real simple delay.
b, 21Pioneer sound isn't anywhere near as good as some of the other brands mentioned but the 800 still has a really good sound for a standard mixer. Don't know about the "white noise" but I'll put an 800 up against a lot of those other crossfader mixers any day in an "overall" contest.
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font class="post"1b, 21b, 21the touchscreen effects of the 909 are useful and although the upfaders aren't that great, i prefer to scratch on the 909 xfader, than the rane 56/57, although the shape of the fader on those is better. b, 21b, 21if the 800 has the same fader as the 600, then you can't really compare it to the 56/57, but if its got the same fader as the 909, than i suppose it might be in a class by itself since it has 4 channels and effects.
b, 21Anybody use a Pioneer DJM400? Is $350 a good price for one?
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b, 21That thing sucks. If you wait a week or two you can probably scoop a Rane 56 for $400.
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b, 21But does the 56 have built-in effects?
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font class="post"1b, 21b, 21No. Has FX send & return thoughb, 21b, 21/font1
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b, 21Ecler Haks are good for cutting etc. and had a nice sounding EQ from what I can remember but they are very bad quality mixers that simply do not last. The outputs blew on mine twice and did the same on a mates. Don't be swayed by the size of these mixers as I was a bit surprised at how empty the inside was when I opened it up
b, 21My HAK was impressive for about a year and a half. These days there are many broken features on it. In all fairness, I did buy one when the Ecler mixers first came out, so they may have sorted some stuff out since then. I was happy with the one I bought because it had nice features at the time, but if I were to get another, I'd buy a different brand. Mostly due to build quality.
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font class="post"1b, 21b, 21I did manage to sell the 360 for something like ??150 BIN with the near mint carry case on ebay back in the summer (and it sold quickly). The "Eternal" fader which is quite nice and is guaranteed for "5 years" was also catching on something inside somehow. It was still in warranty but I'd had enough. This mixer never got abused... the buyer seemed to think it was all a quick fix. Mine too was an early model and got a really good discount off the DJ shop... you live and learnb, 21b, 21Anyone ever used the Rodec Scratchbox? Seems to have some strange postioning of nobs for something that was billed to be the best scratch mixer ever...b, 21b, 21Xone 02 is a good buy too with proper cuts on the faders, which are robust in themselves. We use one for gigging and it's held up well. Pan and cue faders do wear out/bleed though. This came out when vestax et al had just moved on from the 07 Pro to the next gen of mixers so it missed the boat unfortunatley. Now comes with the worst face plate ever:b, 21b, 21img src="http://www.skratchworx.com/images/xone02_2.jpg"1 b, 21b, 21img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ohmyer1.gif" alt="" 21b, 21b, 21I forgot the Empath has PnG faders... would've expected you could at least wack the magnetic fings in there...?
I got a Pioneer 707 in 2006 when the price dropped to $300 for a few months. It has proven to be the equipment purchase I have ever made. The sound is very clean, and no replacement parts needed yet. If I had to buy another mixer now, I'd go for the 56 because the 707 price is back up. I prefer the fader on the 56 for scratching.b, 21b, 21Also, this is the best thread on mixers that I've ever read.b, 21b, 21 img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bbb.gif" alt="" 21
b, 21Yeah the 500 and 600 are shit. I don't use them at all... if I have to I'm pissed.
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font class="post"1b, 21b, 21Just out of interest Cosmo, how do the faders hold up on the pioneers for cutting etc. I know it's not designed as a scratch mixer as such but do those faders last? Are they VCA?
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