TranceAddict Forums (www.tranceaddict.com/forums)
- USA - West Coast / Las Vegas
-- need some advice: which mixer to buy?
Pages (2): [1] 2 »

need some advice: which mixer to buy?

this is a question for the audiophiles/dj's out there. i'm in the market for a new mixer but i'm having trouble deciding which one i want to get. i want something that is good quality and will last me a long time, maybe with some nice features such as effects.
this is what i'm currently considering at the moment:
1.pioneer djm-700 (not sure if i can use the extra channels with my digital vinyl software yet, or if its even useful having a 4 channel mixer since i only have 2 decks, but it would definitely allow room for expansion)

2.allen and heath-xone 32

3. pioneer djm-400 (a small step up from the 300 i currently use)

can't decide between these. anyone have any advice or suggestions?

A&H all the way...

A&H all the way +1

When the old mixer at Grooveriders was replaced, last year. There was an old battle mixer .. Clovis brought his A&H 32, hooked it up.. and... man oh man.. the sound quality was stunningly better!

Those were fun times on the sidewalk.

Get the Xone. Not even a question

better cueing with pioneer, i would try and find a deal on a used 800.. the filters and sound quality are better on the xones, but the only xone i would want is a 92 (2 high pass filters & cue/mix nob)
out of your list i would get the new 700

also.. the 32 is not worth the money, studio faders & gain nobs in the back wtf

and the djm 400's fader nobs are annoyingly loose

Xone, don't even think twice.

quote:

Originally posted by progressiveMOJO Xone, don't even think twice.

+1

or a Rane Rotary mixer

quote:

Originally posted by starboy better cueing with pioneer, i would try and find a deal on a used 800.. the filters and sound quality are better on the xones, but the only xone i would want is a 92 (2 high pass filters & cue/mix nob) out of your list i would get the new 700 also.. the 32 is not worth the money, studio faders & gain nobs in the back wtf and the djm 400's fader nobs are annoyingly loose

the only thing i can think of thats wrong with the xone is that the gain knobs are in the back of the mixer. there's nothing wrong with studio faders, it lets you mix with one hand.

...but for those that have used the xone how did you get used to the gains being in the back? because most mixers have the gains on the top, and for some tracks you really have to use them to even out the sound level.

get a xone:62 instead then, the gains are on the top.

quote:

Originally posted by progressiveMOJO get a xone:62 instead then, the gains are on the top.

yeah the only problem is the xone 62 is overkill, plus i don't think i have the space for it. the most i may have space for is a 12" mixer.

anyone know when the xone 42 comes out? might save up a little more and wait for that. its basically the same price as the djm-700.

how is a xone:62 overkill? 2 turntables (since of course vinyl is still best), and 2 CDJ's (for new stuff that isn't on vinyl yet). Sure you're left with 2 free mic channels but I defy you to find a better 4-channel mixer for the same price or cheaper anyway.

the only valid options other than Allen & Heath of some sort are Rane and Urei rotary mixers. so really, the correct question is, which Allen & Heath mixer fits your price point and needs best.

quote:

Originally posted by progressiveMOJO how is a xone:62 overkill? 2 turntables (since of course vinyl is still best), and 2 CDJ's (for new stuff that isn't on vinyl yet). Sure you're left with 2 free mic channels but I defy you to find a better 4-channel mixer for the same price or cheaper anyway. the only valid options other than Allen & Heath of some sort are Rane and Urei rotary mixers. so really, the correct question is, which Allen & Heath mixer fits your price point and needs best.

yup i've looked into the xone 62, and i think it may be the best choice. at first i was thinking 6 channel mixer, wtf? who needs that many channels? but then i realized only 4 channels were for music then the other 2 were mic inputs (which i'll probably never use).
after doing some thinking the xone 62 is probably the best choice. better cueing than the xone 32, gains are on the top, and i can get it for a decent price. so i'm probably gonna look for one in the next couple of days.....

xone is so bad lol. everytime i use at xone at a club, meters are way off... levels are way off... always a bad experience with xones. and the knobs are too small, i feel like i'm giving a tiny mouse a heart bypass surgery... kinda strange for mixing eq... i hate xones with a passion.

despite what everyone else says, i would not spend a dime on a xone... i would rather drop $750 for a brand new Tascam x9... that thing is the king of mixers for it's price tag... meters are so precise and they show levels at 1 db... not 2 or 3 db like xones lol... it's like trying to beatmatch with cdj's set at -+%10.. lol the 1 db meter allows you to precisely set levels...and the tascam knobs are nice. the faders are so smooth they actually GLIDE... not like xones....
the tascam even has to boot up... it's a flippin computer!!! so much better than a xone...

i could go on for days...

i feel the flames coming for that comment jr.

i do agree somewhat about the xones. the cueing system kinda sucks and the curves on the eqs and faders are very sharp. it just takes some getting used to.

the rane rotary beats them all. the eqs and faders are perfection!

hey you know personally as a DJ I use these things I call "ears." They're a much better indicator of whether or not something sounds good than a level meter anyway.

edit: I don't know how you can claim that a computer is better than analog. Xone's just have their own EQ curve to get used to (oh and did I mention that being used to using a Xone will make you used to using the mixer more frequently installed in clubs than any other?) and once you figure it out you love it more than anything you've used before. Everyone I know who doesn't like A&H mixers has only used them a few times and never had one as their regular mixer.

quote:

Originally posted by progressiveMOJO hey you know personally as a DJ I use these things I call "ears." They're a much better indicator of whether or not something sounds good than a level meter anyway. edit: I don't know how you can claim that a computer is better than analog.

i agree. the level input meters are not always good indicators of how loud a track is. and i really wouldn't trust a computer over analog especially on a mixer.

so the question now is: rane empath or xone 62? both are the same price and i've heard equally good things about the empath.

quote:

Originally posted by hooj1 i feel the flames coming for that comment jr. i do agree somewhat about the xones. the cueing system kinda sucks and the curves on the eqs and faders are very sharp. it just takes some getting used to. the rane rotary beats them all. the eqs and faders are perfection!

i know. people are gonna flame.. but it's really my honest opinion. =]

quote:

Originally posted by Junior Chavez xone is so bad lol. everytime i use at xone at a club, meters are way off... levels are way off... always a bad experience with xones. and the knobs are too small, i feel like i'm giving a tiny mouse a heart bypass surgery... kinda strange for mixing eq... i hate xones with a passion. i could go on for days...

i guess a urei would def not be on the plate then because there are no meters to looks at!...just your ears, unless an external type of eq which allows you to see where your levels are at.

i have a xone 62 and have used it for about 5 years now.

anyhow i've played on a rane 2016 and that mixer is the shit! i would use that anyday of the week over my current xone.

quote:

Originally posted by bucke ...but for those that have used the xone how did you get used to the gains being in the back? because most mixers have the gains on the top, and for some tracks you really have to use them to even out the sound level.

You just end up getting used to it

I would say wait for the xone 42, does everything the 92 does but it's smaller. Also, if you're worried about the knobs being too small...you can always order Xone's with rotary style knobs

i ended up getting the pioneer 700 from guitar center since they had a 2 hour 20% off sale today. figured i'd go for it instead of the A&H since i really like on board effects, and pioneer still makes some damn good mixers.

ever think of something like a Rane Mp44?

! I remember when Bas hated the XONE 92 Rotary we used at Element, and the Rane MP2016 we had at Midi.

Either way, good choice.

The new Pioneers aren't bad. I actually like them better than the Xones. Well, the DJM800 that is. But the DJM700 is supposed to be almost the same thing. How much did you get it for? If you bought it for $1300, you should've bargained for a DJM800. They will sell it to you for $1300. That's how much I got mine for.

If I was to get a Xone, I would not get any other mixer unless it was a Xone 92. I tried almost all the other Xone's except the S2, S6 and V6 and I really hate them.

I use Xones 92's all the time, and while they sound really clean, there's several things that bug me. One of them being the fader curves. You really can't hear anything until the fader is half way up. The Cueing system is kinda funky too. Having no effects is a big minus for me. I don't want to spend an extra $800 on an EFX1000 just to get the same effects as the DJM800.

However, the Xone 92 also has many advantages. Besides the obvious kick ass filters, the Xone has a really cool feature that lets you output each channel individually so you can record your mix in pieces. On other words, if you're mixing live at a party, you can record your mix and go back and edit it to make it sound perfect. There's very few DJ mixers that let you do this. Also, the fact that the Xone has complete tonal controls over the two mics is awesome! Most mixers only have it in one.

Either way, the DJM700 is an awesome mixer. You'll like it a lot and won't regret it. Let us know how you like it.

quote:

Originally posted by DjWoody ! I remember when Bas hated the XONE 92 Rotary we used at Element, and the Rane MP2016 we had at Midi. Either way, good choice. The new Pioneers aren't bad. I actually like them better than the Xones. Well, the DJM800 that is. But the DJM700 is supposed to be almost the same thing. How much did you get it for? If you bought it for $1300, you should've bargained for a DJM800. They will sell it to you for $1300. That's how much I got mine for. If I was to get a Xone, I would not get any other mixer unless it was a Xone 92. I tried almost all the other Xone's except the S2, S6 and V6 and I really hate them. I use Xones 92's all the time, and while they sound really clean, there's several things that bug me. One of them being the fader curves. You really can't hear anything until the fader is half way up. The Cueing system is kinda funky too. Having no effects is a big minus for me. I don't want to spend an extra $800 on an EFX1000 just to get the same effects as the DJM800. However, the Xone 92 also has many advantages. Besides the obvious kick ass filters, the Xone has a really cool feature that lets you output each channel individually so you can record your mix in pieces. On other words, if you're mixing live at a party, you can record your mix and go back and edit it to make it sound perfect. There's very few DJ mixers that let you do this. Also, the fact that the Xone has complete tonal controls over the two mics is awesome! Most mixers only have it in one. Either way, the DJM700 is an awesome mixer. You'll like it a lot and won't regret it. Let us know how you like it.

i got it for about a grand, $1100 with tax. so i think it was a decent deal. i tried getting the 800 but they wouldn't price match it (had a website that sold it for $1450 but they said it wasnt an authorized pioneer dealer.) with the price matching and 20% off it would've come out to about $1200 for the djm-800. plus they didn't have it in stock so i would've had to go to the hollywood store to get it.

the 700 is almost the same as the 800 minus some features.

here is a side by side comparison of the two:

Powered by: vBulletin
Copyright © 2000-2021, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.