After a while of messing about with computer dj programs and saving my hard earned, It's time I got myself some decent hardware. I'm not half as clued up as just about everyone else on here, although I have no aspirations of being the next big thing, it's just something for me and my mates to play around with.

Anyway... stuck between two cdj 350 and a djm 350 or Traktor s4 kontrol.

Would just like some opinions on which you would advise me to go for.

I would go for single decks. It gives you the best feeling and control. I got the Allen & Heath DX and i can't stand the program it uses, in this case the Serato Itch crapware and i will only work with it and i can't park it in between my Technics recordplayers.

If you get a let's say two cdj 350 you can use the usb-stick instead and have a go.

If it's something your mates want to play with and have loads of fun, then the Traktor S4 is by FAR the better option.

I find traktor to be waaaayy more fun than my CDJs.


Although sometimes the nicest thing to mix with is just the good old vinyl.

I really don't see the benefit of CDJs over a Traktor S4. There is really very little difference in feel, and you can do much more with Traktor than with CDJs and a mixer.

The vinyl comment was just me thinking of vinyl at exactly that point in my typing.

Fuck I love vinyl.

Cheers lads for your responses even though I'm still no closer to making a decision!

5 reasons to learn on vinyl:

1. It's really good fun
   
2. It subconsciously teaches you a lot about sound: pitch, frequencies, rhythms; more so than any other format
   
3. It's how DJing started so understanding the original technology is akin to understanding the history of house music, the rave scene, etc
   
4. Having fewer features will actually help you in the long run - learning on ghetto gear makes you better equipped to cope when things go wrong
   
5. A vinyl collection is a great thing to have and evokes/maintains a whole amount more nostalgia than a hard drive full of MP3s
   
6. It's REALLY good fun
   

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Stu Cox |

quote:

Originally posted by Stu Cox 5 reasons to learn on vinyl: It's really good fun It subconsciously teaches you a lot about sound: pitch, frequencies, rhythms; more so than any other format It's how DJing started so understanding the original technology is akin to understanding the history of house music, the rave scene, etc Having fewer features will actually help you in the long run - learning on ghetto gear makes you better equipped to cope when things go wrong A vinyl collection is a great thing to have and evokes/maintains a whole amount more nostalgia than a hard drive full of MP3s It's REALLY good fun But if you feel you're past the 'beginner' stage, then listen to someone else - vinyl is essentially a dying format and might struggle to find a lot of the music you want on vinyl these days. Or better still, get a pair of vinyl decks so you can get some great experience using hardware, but get a cheap MIDI controller so you can still play new stuff off your PC. Then you've got the option of shifting to a DVS system when the time is right.

Fantastic post.

I'll never let go of my technics, even though I love my CDJ's as well.

Technics + DVS is hands down the nicest way to use digital music, with CDJ's coming in second, and last place is controllers which just have no feeling at all for me.

If you can, go for Techs and a DVS - best of both worlds.

quote:

Originally posted by Stu Cox 5 reasons to learn on vinyl: It's really good fun It subconsciously teaches you a lot about sound: pitch, frequencies, rhythms; more so than any other format It's how DJing started so understanding the original technology is akin to understanding the history of house music, the rave scene, etc Having fewer features will actually help you in the long run - learning on ghetto gear makes you better equipped to cope when things go wrong A vinyl collection is a great thing to have and evokes/maintains a whole amount more nostalgia than a hard drive full of MP3s It's REALLY good fun But if you feel you're past the 'beginner' stage, then listen to someone else - vinyl is essentially a dying format and might struggle to find a lot of the music you want on vinyl these days. Or better still, get a pair of vinyl decks so you can get some great experience using hardware, but get a cheap MIDI controller so you can still play new stuff off your PC. Then you've got the option of shifting to a DVS system when the time is right.

Great post!

I bought traktor scratch a couple of years back to use with my cdjs. I took it to a friends house recently who only had technics and I couldn't believe how much better it was to be using vinyl again! I even considered selling my cdjs and dusting off my 1200s which have been under my bed for the last three years. There's something special about mixing with vinyl, the reason I switched the cdjs was due to the expense of buying records but now traktor scrath solves that problem!

quote:

Originally posted by Stu Cox 5 reasons to learn on vinyl: It's really good fun It subconsciously teaches you a lot about sound: pitch, frequencies, rhythms; more so than any other format It's how DJing started so understanding the original technology is akin to understanding the history of house music, the rave scene, etc Having fewer features will actually help you in the long run - learning on ghetto gear makes you better equipped to cope when things go wrong A vinyl collection is a great thing to have and evokes/maintains a whole amount more nostalgia than a hard drive full of MP3s It's REALLY good fun But if you feel you're past the 'beginner' stage, then listen to someone else - vinyl is essentially a dying format and might struggle to find a lot of the music you want on vinyl these days. Or better still, get a pair of vinyl decks so you can get some great experience using hardware, but get a cheap MIDI controller so you can still play new stuff off your PC. Then you've got the option of shifting to a DVS system when the time is right.

it depends on the genre. I would say that there is more good music available on decks.de than at beatport. The exclusive to vinyl releases are getting more and more common in certain genres, and the popularity of the medium has climbed more in the last year than in as long as i can remember.

You forgot "chicks dig records" in your list. They really do.

CD will be dead before vinyl. Quote it for later purposes so i can brag about being right

quote:

Originally posted by zyklon-jay You forgot "chicks dig records" in your list.

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Now with extra singles!
my old stuff, not quite up to snuff - but I still dig it - UPDATED 9/23/2012

I'd go with a Midi controller with decent platters. If you ever want to play in a club, you'll need to know how to use CDJs, but a midi controller can teach you well-enough.

And the other guys are right, nothing beats the feeling of playing vinyl. That said, you need to REALLY know you like DJing before you invest in vinyl, because it gets expensive.

Right now, I have a Hercules RMX (with Virtual DJ) that I use at home and a couple of broken Numark turntables that I'm too lazy to fix. Hell, they're probably not even worth fixing at this point.

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www.soundcloud.com/jpamusic

quote:

Originally posted by Sushipunk At least last time you Brits got pissed off, we got punk music out of it. This time, it'll probably just end up being embers breaks

Go external control (CSK or vinyl) with a DVS. Best of both worlds.

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Click the link below to stream all of my mixes past and present. New mixes go up about once a month. Enjoy!

www.mixcloud.com/jluger