slimline dj controllers | Digital DJ Tips

July 18th, 2012 Reviews

Review: ION iDJ2Go USB Controller For iOS

by DJ Hombre

Slimline, portable and affordable, the new iON iDJ2Go offers users of iPad, iPod Touch and iPhone DJ software a physical surface to mix from.

In 5 Reasons Why iOS Is Great News For DJing, we discussed how DJ apps on Apple devices let potential digital DJs who own an iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad dip their toes into the world of DJing at next to no cost.

But after the inital buzz of mixing tracks on your mobile device fades, you soon realise that a flat touchscreen perhaps isn’t best suited to those functions DJs do most, such as use of jogwheels, rotary controllers and buttons. This is where ION’s new iDJ2Go, which we review today, comes in.

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March 14th, 2012 Reviews

Review & Video: Allen & Heath Xone:K2 DJ Midi Controller

by Phil Morse

The Allen & Heath Xone:K2. Our review finds out if it's the ultimate 'slimline' DJ controller.

In the sea of me-too twin jogwheeled DJ controllers, just occasionally someone does something different. When Allen & Heath showed the prototype Xone:K2 back at October 2011′s BPM show, the company did just that.

With many DJs seeing the benefits of slimline DJ controllers that fit easily in DJ booths (proven by the runaway success of the Traktor Kontrol X1 and the recent launch of the Traktor Kontrol F1), and Allen & Heath already established in this field with its bigger, heavier but essentially similar Xone:1D and Xone:2D controllers, the Xone:K2 seemed a logical updating of the concept. As we’ll see, though, it throws in a few innovative features of its own. Let’s take a closer look…

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February 17th, 2012 Reviews

Review & Video: Faderfox Micromodul DS3 Traktor Controller

by Phil Morse

The Faderfox DS3: This one's all about sample, hot cue, loops and FX control. Pic: Amazona.de

Faderfox is a boutique German company that has for many years now produced a range of controllers that (with the obvious exception of the 4midiloop) are all truly tiny.

Their third generation of controllers now has a new model joining the pack: The Micromodul DS3, designed specifically to unlock the new features of Traktor Pro 2, namely loop recorder and sample decks alongside hot cue and loop controls (although as it’s a Midi controller, it can of course control the software of your choice).

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November 8th, 2011 Reviews

Review & Video: Zomo MC-1000 DJ Midi Controller

by Phil Morse

The Zomo MC-1000 is designed to be tightly integrated with a 12" club mixer such as Pioneer's DJM-800.

Zomo’s MC-1000 is a DJ controller that dares to be different. It offers effects, loop and cue controls for four digital decks plus an eight-out audio interface, in a horizontally laid-out pro metal case. It is designed to sit or be fitted above or below a standard 12″ club mixer such as the Pioneer DJM-800.

It is similar in some ways to the Kontrol X1 for Traktor and Denon’s DN-HC1000S for Serato Scratch, and to old-fashioned rack-mounted CD controllers. But both in what it includes and in what it leaves out, it is intriguingly different to these, and to other slimline DJ controllers. Time to take a closer look…

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