Pioneer sucks?

[Handinon]

I had the original DDJ-SB for a while, and I thought it was fine.

My issue with the new high end controllers is their physical size. Finally, controllers are gaining enough respect that, IMHO, a lot of the two CDJ's/Mixer combinations are being replaced by them, but with the same footprint?? Maybe anything with motorized platters can only be made so small, and still be functional, but 99% of us will never need more than what a Vestax VCI-400/Denon 6000 mk2 does.

 

[Albatross]

My issue with the new high end controllers is their physical size.

I don't like having to move it around, but I MUCH prefer playing on full sized gear. Tiny little jog wheels are for the birds...

 

[Handinon]

I don't like having to move it around, but I MUCH prefer playing on full sized gear. Tiny little jog wheels are for the birds...

I suppose, but there's a reason they call the box it goes in a "coffin"!

 

[steve149]

I don't like having to move it around, but I MUCH prefer playing on full sized gear. Tiny little jog wheels are for the birds...

Count me among the peckers ...

 

[tunes4046]

I prefer compact, I’m not interested in a controller if it doesn’t fit in a standard 19 in rack

 

[djtaso]

Kleen, as you see a lot of the advice is about buying right the first time...it is expensive, but saves money in the long run. I would really only consider this route if you're ready to make a full blown dedication to djing as a legitimate source of income. If not, save your money for more important things in life.

To all the others with opinions on controllers and size and features... a lot of it has to do with mixing style. Ross and myself were both very exposed to the club industry, where the standard was large mixers, platters, and decks. Our style of mixing relies on familiarity and everything being in the place that we expect it to be. The cdj-1000's were the club industry standard all the way from the early 2000's and the cdj-2000's are the current standard... nothing changed in terms of size, and the same for its mixers... the ddj-sz/sz2 maintained the same size aspects, feel, responsiveness, and general layout and that is more important than saving 10lbs in weight over a smaller less capable device.

 

[ittigger]

Here's a question. In setup. USB buffer size. Latency. Mine is defaulted to 512. Should I got to 1024?

If you are not experiencing issues, I would leave it where it is. If you are experiencing issues, you will probably want to increase the latency - which means less system resources are used and there is a decrease in the processor load.

Decreasing the buffer size will require faster processing and more system resources. If it is too low, it may result in audio distortion and other odd behavior (system and/or software). You will have to test this over a period of time (such as 1 hour).

 

[steve149]

Kleen, as you see a lot of the advice is about buying right the first time...it is expensive, but saves money in the long run. I would really only consider this route if you're ready to make a full blown dedication to djing as a legitimate source of income. If not, save your money for more important things in life.

To all the others with opinions on controllers and size and features... a lot of it has to do with mixing style. Ross and myself were both very exposed to the club industry, where the standard was large mixers, platters, and decks. Our style of mixing relies on familiarity and everything being in the place that we expect it to be. The cdj-1000's were the club industry standard all the way from the early 2000's and the cdj-2000's are the current standard... nothing changed in terms of size, and the same for its mixers... the ddj-sz/sz2 maintained the same size aspects, feel, responsiveness, and general layout and that is more important than saving 10lbs in weight over a smaller less capable device.

I agree they are the closest thing to the old club standards .. just overkill for some of us that really only use the platters for cueing up.

 

[DJKLEEN]

I agree they are the closest thing to the old club standards .. just overkill for some of us that really only use the platters for cueing up.

That's what I'm saying! I really and truly do not want to do anything except fade one song to another as seamless as possible, and sound good! With a visual aid of the starts and stops including bpm.

 

[djtaso]

That's what I'm saying! I really and truly do not want to do anything except fade one song to another as seamless as possible, and sound good! With a visual aid of the starts and stops including bpm.

Sure... for now... but once you desire more creativity in your performance as well as have more control and manipulation of the music and how it sounds... your needs will change. What you want now, and where you end up are two different things. I started off djing as a joke with a friend cause we thought we were cool.. had no idea how to mix or what cue even meant... now its a full blown business bringing in six figures a year. DOn't ever set limitations in your mind.

 

[Handinon]

I think Ross and Taso might have left a few people standing at the train station with this, so here goes. It's not just the size of the controls, it's their location. Identical models of CDJ's have all the transport controls in exactly the same place. They are NOT mirror imaged devices. Once you learn one, you can work very quickly with multiples - like that one armed DJ could. Very few controllers are designed this way - on most "Deck B" is a mirror image of "Deck A", which actually slows you down, because all the controls are not in the same place.

Look at the deck layouts of that Pioneer DDJ-SZ2, and you'll see a correct design that is not mirror imaged. Even the tempo/pitch slider is in the same place deck-to-deck.

 

[ittigger]

You're both right. If he decides he wants more, then he will have to repurchase a controller with more features. On the other hand, if he truly doesn't need anything more than the controller offers, then buying a big fancy controller that can make coffee is a waste of money.

 

[djtaso]

You're both right. If he decides he wants more, then he will have to repurchase a controller with more features. On the other hand, if he truly doesn't need anything more than the controller offers, then buying a big fancy controller that can make coffee is a waste of money.

Agreed... and that decision shouldn't be made yet, until business is coming in and willingness to dedicate time and money to do things to the level that is desired.

 

[steve149]

Agreed... and that decision shouldn't be made yet, until business is coming in and willingness to dedicate time and money to do things to the level that is desired.

Unfortunately, in most cases, SOME decision needs to be made or no business happens in the meantime. We go with what we think will be sufficient for the next few years .. in business, it doesn't make sense to think much further out (unless it's a huge capital investment like a building).