Reloop's Terminal Mix 2 is a two-channel controller for Serato, which also has Virtual DJ LE in the box.
To complement its recently launched Terminal Mix 4, Reloop has also release the Terminal Mix 2 Serato DJ controller, which has just gone on sale and which we review here today.
Designed to work with the supplied Serato DJ Intro software (although it is also boxed with an alternative, Virtual DJ LE), the controller is a more basic version of the Terminal Mix 4, the biggest difference being that it has a two-channel mixer rather than a four-channel mixer. Coming in at a lower price, it is also more likely to appeal to beginners.
First impressions and setting up
Build quality
It’s a quite large, metal, pro-built device. It is similar in build quality to the recently reviewed Stanton DJC.4 Virtual DJ controller, but everything about this is one step bigger – the faders have more travel, the knobs are larger. The jogs in particular are streets ahead, being big, smooth (although my review sample did have a bit of mechanical noise when you span one of them), and overall some of the best in the business.
Despite some early issues with the buttons on its Digital Jockey 2 series, in general Reloop’s controllers are well made, and this one is no exception – from the pleasing, round rubberised transport controls to the loose crossfader to the faceplate-bolted knobs, it feels built to last.
Layout
Unlike some other two-channel controllers such as the Traktor Kontrol S2 or the Vestax VCI-380, the Reloop Terminal Mix 2 does not innovate by adding prominent performance buttons or rearranging a typical controller layout to suggest new ways of working with it; it is laid out exactly as you’d expect a DJ controller to be laid out.
For straight DJing, this kind of layout makes good sense, but it does mean the Terminal Mix 2 has an almost over-familiar feel to it.
That means big jogs front left and right, FX top left and top right, and controls for cues, loops and samples somewhere between the two, finished off with the mixer, library and monitoring controls right up the middle. For straight DJing, this kind of layout makes good sense (most controllers are this way for a reason), but it does mean the Terminal Mix 2 has an almost over-familiar feel to it.
That’s not to say it isn’t modern: the spec is good, with hi-res jogs and pitch faders (meaning finer control); filter knobs separate from the effects right where you need them most (under the EQs); separate booth and master (RCA unbalanced and TRS balanced) outputs; and a tone control on the headphones, to name just some of the things that stand it apart from entry-level controllers.
Front and back
The front panel has a mic input with level and tone, a level control for the one external input (it can be a line or a phono, but is routed straight to the output, ie not through the mixer section), a crossfader curve, and 1/8″ and 1/4″ headphones sockets.
The Terminal Mix 2 rear: Note the booth output and the balanced/unbalanced master options.
Apart from the features we’ve already mentioned, round the back you get a big on/off button and a little button to affect the way the shift key works, making it toggle or momentary. There’s also a DC-in socket (no adaptor in the box, though; it’s not necessary as the unit should run fine off USB power, although that does mean you can’t rely on the external input as an emergency through, as if your laptop crashes and needs rebooting, the unit goes off).
Top panel
The mixer section has a gain for each channel plus three-band EQ and filter, and down the middle of the two channels are controls for master, booth, headphones volume and headphones mix, plus an overall sampler volume control knob.
A really nice weighted metal encoder takes care of library browsing, with lots of buttons for browse and view functions, plus the usual headphones cue select and load left/right buttons.
The channel faders are, as is convention, stiffer than the crossfader, which is nice and loose.
The channel faders are, as is convention, stiffer than the crossfader, which is nice and loose, the former having a bit of a scratchy feel, as do the long-throw pitch controls far left and right of the unit. Overall they’re all good.
Above the aforementioned super-large jogs are two sets of small, hard backlit buttons, one for sample triggering and one for hot cues. Above that are two knobs and two buttons for looping, and above that four knobs to control three effects and a beat sync tie-in, whereby the effects can be timed to oscillate to a fraction or multiple of the current BPM.
A few other buttons to control pitch range, keylock, jog behaviour (scratch/nudge), Midi layer (ie shift) and deck layer (for four-deck software) complete the spec.
In use
Although it also has Virtual DJ LE in the box and can be mapped for Traktor (mappings on the Reloop site), this is sold as a Serato controller, and we’ll review it as such; if you want some insight as to how to works with other software, go and read our Terminal Mix 4 review, where we covered these areas for that controller; most of what we wrote stands for this one too.
The software
Overall, with Serato DJ Intro it works well, and that’s due in no small part to the software itself. If you want a DJ controller to get in front of other people and just start playing music with no fuss, the combination of Serato DJ Intro (simple, easy to use, plug and play software) and the Reloop Terminal Mix 2 (reliable, well made, high performance controller) will give you what you need.
Serato DJ Intro: Simple, easy-to-use, basic DJing software. It is perfectly good enough for playing in front of an audience, but you will eventually begin to wish it could do more.
The software is a stripped-down version of Serato’s more powerful ITCH, but there’s not too much that’s vital missing. For the beginner it’s fine, and even for the experienced DJ, it does the job. You lose some bells and whistles, and some finer adjustments, and the big omission is that you can’t record, but as I say, it does the job.
Some weaknesses of the software? Looping is too limited (you are limited to loops of between 1 beat and 8 beats, when you really need at least 1/4 beat to 32 beats); the sampler has few options; and when you stop a track it slows down, vinyl-like, which sounds good but may not be what you want yet you can’t adjust this.
The hardware
In use, the EQs and filters are excellent, the jogs highly responsive and extremely tight, the transport controls assured, and the effects, while limited, sound great.
The crossfader curve means you can adjust the crossfader to your style of play, booth outputs give you the option of adding a monitor speaker, and both balanced and unbalanced master outs mean you can plug into mixers, PA systems – whatever you find at your gigs.
The top panel of the Terminal Mix 2; everything is exactly whee you'd expect to find it, with no surprises.
Four hot cues per side is fine, there’s an onboard sampler to trigger four samples per side (Traktor sample decks it ain’t, as they’re strictly one-play slots, but for DJ drops and even backup tracks, it works).
The VU meters only monitor master output, which is a shame it is best to be able to set the channel gains using the VUs, and while Serato has a limiter to show you if you’ve pushed it too far, this is not the best level of control. This will worry some DJs more than others, but I’m in the former group.
I’m happy to report that, as with the Terminal Mix 4, the sound quality is excellent. Clear, loud, good bass, and comparable with any other controller in or around the unit’s price bracket.
The hardware and software together
There are some weaknesses the way the unit interacts with the Serato DJ Intro software. Specifically, there is stuff on the controller that is mentioned in the instructions, and labelled on the surface, but that just doesn’t work.
An educated guess is that an option to upgrade to a better version of the software is imminent…
For instance, buttons in the looping and cueing sections don’t do what they should, and there is talk of fader start, jogwheel browsing, “slicing” and effects selection in the manual, none of which currently works. There are others.
To cut a (very) long story short, an wost-kept-secret is that an option to upgrade to a better version of the software is imminent, but delayed, which is why there are these inconsistencies. For now they won’t stop you DJing, but they will have you puzzled and cause you to learn by trial and error, as the manual will tell you one thing whereas using the unit will show you another.
Conclusion
For a beginner who wants something that they can get going with quickly and that will last, this is a good choice. For the experienced DJ who focuses more on tune selection and basic mixing rather than controllerism tricks and four-deck wizardry, again this would be a smart controller to go for.
Of course, you’re buying a controller for software, so you need to be happy going down the Serato route, or alternatively committing to using Virtual DJ (there’s an upgrade cost from LE, but at least you get the option) or buying Traktor and setting it all up yourself.
The Terminal Mix 2: Good out of the box, and a wise choice if you're a beginner who nevertheless wants something that'll last.
If you stick with Serato, which is the obvious choice (after all, the controller has “Serato” written all over it), you’re taking a leap of faith; while the limitations of Serato DJ Intro are less blatant here than with the Terminal Mix 4, you still have features here you can’t yet use. While I’d put money on an upgrade option appearing soon enough, it hasn’t happened yet, and nobody knows what it’ll cost…
But even as it stands, the Terminal Mix 2 does a lot of things right. Worried about getting set up? Don’t be – honestly there is no easier DJ software that Serato to get going with a new controller. Want clear, easy to understand workflow? Again, it’s clean, simple and you’ll pick everything up fast. Concerned about having a plastic box that doesn’t have a decent level of control, and looks cheap and toy-like? Don’t be – the Reloop has pro-level controls, and looks the part.
Looking back just a couple of years, it’s amazing how controllers have come on. For a reasonable amount of money, here you get a huge level of control over your music. Despite the software issues at present, it’s a good controller, and hopefully soon will be even better.
Video
Summary
We like:
- Decent build quality and specification
- Best jogwheels in the business
- Really simple to get up and running
We don’t like:
- Doesn’t innovate
- Current software is limited
Star ratings:
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Features: |
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Build quality: |
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Ease of use: |
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Sound quality: |
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Value: |
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OVERALL*: |
* We’ll reconsider these ratings when we know the details of the expected Serato upgrade route.
Product details:
Size & weight: 17.3 x 13.2 x 2.4″ (440 x 337 x 62mm), 9lb (4.1kg)
Price: £345 / €428
Buy from: Juno (UK), Juno (rest of Europe & world)
What do you think?
Perfect mix of beginner ease-of-use and pro features? Good value for the price? Would you buy this to use with software other than Serato? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
Now go to:
Review & Video: Reloop Terminal Mix 4 Serato Controller
Review & Video: Reloop Mixage DJ Controller
Review & Video: Stanton DJC.4 Virtual DJ Controller
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Tags: reloop, serato, serato controllers, serato dj intro, terminal mix 2 review
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
with that kind of layout, i think it is more well-built for Traktor control than Serato or VDJ, since it mirrors Traktor’s interface
[ link ]To be fair, it’s a pretty standard layout that is suited to most DJ software.
[ link ]Awesome review and video too!
Software choice aside, since you mention the missing emergency through on the terminal mix: Which alternatives are in the same range when it comes to price and build quality, that DO offer an emergency through?
[ link ]Because AFAIR the Kontrol S2 hasn’t got one either, but it seems like a pretty much vital feature (just getting into DJing ATM, so I have no idea how often emergencies like that occur).
To be honest, take an iPod and plug it into a spare channel on the club’s mixer, or just have a CD with you you can have cued up in one of their player, or an adaptor lead to quickly whip the plugs out of the back of your controller and into your iPod… it’s nice to have, but there are ways around it. Also, maybe this one does work as an emergency through with power, but I’ve not been able to check that…
[ link ]Hiya Phil, great review, I was thinking of making my own but once again you’ve pulled a great one out the bag!! Haha. I just wanted to ask, do you find a slight movement of the jog wheels as you spin them, they don’t wobble but they are fixed slightly off centre so as they spin you can see them going off centre a bit, just wondering. And also do the crates, view and prep buttons work in SERATO DJ Intro for you? One more thing the manual DOES mention the little button with the scissors on is ‘reserved for future updates’
[ link ]The library only partially works for me, I am convinced these functions will work when they get some “full strength” Serato software. The jogs spin fine for me on the model I have with a bit of noise on one as I mention in the review, but they work perfectly nonetheless.
[ link ]Yeah mine work fine but they seem a bit off centre, if you spin them and look closely you may see some movement.
[ link ]Also I can’t find VDJ LE on the disc that came with my Terminal Mix 2 or on the reloop website? Is that right? I just wanted to have a look as I haven’t used Virtual DJ before, is this normal? Or should I use the mapping an software on the TM4′s page?
[ link ]i really think reloop is getting better and better but serato has to get an update. with traktor winning the pro fans and vdj with their more casual djs and with the version 8 of vdj round the corner there is going to be a problem i use vdj on my tm4 and the pro version lets me adjust the scratch so i can match the quality of serato intro.that means it is a more complete software and it matches my needs
[ link ]I’m not entirely convinced about the emergency input criticism. If software crashes, you do need to restart it, and if the USB drivers crash, you may need to reboot the computer. However, I don’t see any normal error scenario where you’d need to lose power to the USB bus, so the hardware emergency through should still work while you restart software/reboot computer.
[ link ]Good point! I wouldn’t like to try this live though…
[ link ]Out of interest, isn’t this the first ever Serato controller with dedicated “super” filters? They work in Intro,right? Great to see Serato finally adopt this functionality outside of the old easter egg!
[ link ]Yes, they definitely work in Intro
[ link ]thanks for the review, Phil. I’m seriously considering this controller, but can you pls clarify your comments re VU and gain settings? As an older-school vinyl then CDJ DJ, I’m pretty obsessive about matching the gain on both channels before I even think about creating the mix. Are you really saying that this controller doesn’t have the typical strip of green and red lights for each channel, so you can perfectly match the gain of the track you’re cueing? Why have 2 VU strips if they simply reflect the master? sorry if I missed something here…
[ link ]No, you got it right. As I say, some care, some don’t. Like you, I do.
[ link ]thanks Phil. I can’t find any high-end controllers that have adequate level VUs as you would find on a high-end / club mixer. Is there one that does? I’m not too bothered re Traktor or Serato. Failing this what would you suggest? Are the gain meters on Traktor / Serato sufficient? Or maybe run Platinum Notes to have all gain levels pre-set in my music collection?
[ link ]I use the Vestax VCI-380 and that has it, as does its predecessor the VCI-300. Just to name two.
[ link ]Thanks for the review. So without having VU meters on the unit, how do you go about making sure the gain level on your next track is ok before mixing it in?
I think I heard that there are channel meters within the software on Serato DJ, but that the gain control on the Reloop doesn’t affect them?
This seems like a fatal flaw unless there is a workaround.
[ link ]We haven’t had a chance to test TM2 or TM4 with Serato DJ yet, so can’t say how this works at this time.
[ link ]Good review. Don’t understand why it only gets an overall of 3*, surely the mean average would be 4*?
[ link ]After switching to CDJs, preferring the tune selection/basic mixing route, I’m definitely interested in controllers like this for a portable solution.
The asterisk by the “3″ explains why it lost a star – for now, at least.
[ link ]why why why is the crossfader not changeable. It comes with wicked jogwheels but then your crossfader gonna bleed after scratching for a month ?. Do you know if an innofader will fit into one of these.
[ link ]Not heard that one can be
[ link ]I have just bought this controller and was really dissapointed that it did not come with a copy of vdj le. I got it so i could record my sets and with serato you cant like you said. and yes the looping is very limited with serato
Not impressed at all. the controller is so good aswell. I tried the mappings for traktor but could not get the thing to work right had no controll over 80% of the buttons. also no sound from the headphones. has any body mapped this controller for virtual dj???? please help!!!!
[ link ]I’ve had the controller for 2 weeks and it works great on Serato DJ Intro, but Paul Simister is right and I am having similar problems as he is.
Any insight on when we’re going to get what we were promised?
[ link ]Hi Phil i’m just wondering, wich one, between terminal mix 2 or The Ergo from pioneer, would be the best one for mixing minimal techno from deck “A to B” with no need of tons of effect, just the basic filters, some echo or kind of. Anyway, just real basic and cool mixing.
And about the Terminal Mix 2, if using Serato Software, what is the easiest way for recording ? Is audacity’s ok ?
Thanks in advance, and thanks a lot to your amazing website, you made a real damned good job !*
Hoowie
[ link ]Either would do it fine.
TM2 if you upgrade to Serato DJ software (when it comes out) there’s a record button. If not, and you’re using Serato DJ Intro, recording would be tricky (not impossible but tricky).
[ link ]Hi Phil,
[ link ]Just got the TM about three weeks ago. Came with Intro and no Virtual DJ soft. After digging around on the net I found a downloadable version of Serato dj WITH an option to upgrade to pro, albeit an expensive option. Though I have Traktor studio 3, was unable to find mappings for the TM2. PLEASE somebody help. Don’t hesitate to e-mail at velobor@gmail.com
I must agree with your review, great controller, well built, easy to use, but lacks full functionality.
One thing to add: you can upgrade firmware, though do NOT rush to do so. Mine came with version 0.16 and current is 0.17 (don’t quote me on this one guys). Apparently you may have problems if the upgrade didn’t go properly. This is “hearsay” from another forum, so I haven’t experienced it myself. Until I find mappings (or give up and map the thing myself) for Traktor and figure out whether all controls (ie the little “scissor” button) function or not, I will refrain from diddling with the firmware.
Thanks all!
PLUR
Hi Phil,
[ link ]Just got the TM about three weeks ago. Came with Intro and no Virtual DJ soft. After digging around on the net I found a downloadable version of Serato dj WITH an option to upgrade to pro, albeit an expensive option. Though I have Traktor studio 3, was unable to find mappings for the TM2. PLEASE somebody help. Don’t hesitate to e-mail at velobor@gmail.com
I must agree with your review, great controller, well built, easy to use, but lacks full functionality.
One thing to add: you can upgrade firmware, though do NOT rush to do so. Mine came with version 0.16 and current is 0.17 (don’t quote me on this one guys). Apparently you may have problems if the upgrade didn’t go properly. This is “hearsay” from another forum, so I haven’t experienced it myself. Until I find mappings (or give up and map the thing myself) for Traktor and figure out whether all controls (ie the little “scissor” button) function or not, I will refrain from fiddling with the firmware.
Thanks all!
PLUR
Hi Phil,
Great review! I am currently using a TM2 right now, and I was wondering what other equipments should I have if I want to use it in a club? Should I get an additional mixer or can I simply connect my controller to the PA system?
Thanks!
[ link ]You’ll connect to the club’s mixer.
[ link ]