Over the weekend at the BPM Show in Birmingham, UK, Reloop announced three new products aiming at very divergent markets – a new turntable with MIDI controls right in the unit, an iPad controller built directly for Algoriddim’s Djay 2 software, and a live production keyboard controller with channel strips and drum pads all in one. Read on for details:
RP-8000 Turntable
This release is one of the bolder advances in turntable tech we’ve seen in a number of years. Sure, we’ve seen custom Technics 1200s that have built-in Novation Dicers and the Vestax PDX-3000mkII (which allowed external MIDI control of the pitch), but here Reloop has aimed to put a significant number of controls directly into the turntable, straight out of the box.
The direct drive turntable comes with Serato mappings already available for the controls on the unit, which include a large browsing encoder, eight backlit drum pads, and four mode buttons to switch the style of control (Cue, Loop, Sample, and User) located to the left side of the platter. This does mean that in battle arrangement, the controls will all be right in front of the DJ along the entire platter.
The RP-8000s can also be linked together – daisy chained via USB to prevent rapid overuse of your limited USB ports – and rock a LCD display to show the pitch, deck assignment (for the MIDI controls), and firmware settings. The price will €599 – about $800 US, but a release date has yet to be announced by Reloop – but full technical details are available here.
Beatpad
Reloop might have been a bit overshadowed by Native Instruments’ very iOS-focused releases last week, but the Beatpad deserves attention as well – expanding on their Digital Jockey and Terminal Mix models to bring a new unit that is designed specifically around the iPad (but also compatible with all generations of iOS devices and computer-based DJ software).
The feature set continues to be impressive on this Reloop controller – with attention to detail with an all-metal construciton, the low, flat jogwheels from the Terminal Mix line, long pitchfaders, and balanced XLR outputs. We also like that this controller’s built-in iPad stand doesn’t define the design of the unit unless there’s one docked, unlike some older controllers with built-in docks. It’s slated to be €449, about $600 US, but no word on availability yet – learn more about the Beatpad on Reloop’s product page.
Keypad
Someone at Reloop had the clever idea that maybe live producers don’t want to have to bring three different modular controllers to adjust channel levels, tap out beats, and play notes on a keyboard. The company has taken the traditional three-controller solution that the Korg Nano and Akai LPD MIDI controller lines first pioneered and put them back together in the Keypad.
The Keypad has 16 velocity-sensitive drumpads, 8 channel faders with endless encoders, send/return knobs, funciton buttons, DAW transport controls, a built-in arpeggiator and 25 mini keys on the keyboard with 9 total octaves. The keyboard section also has two unique modes:
- Chord feature: easily play the most common chords in this versatile mode
- Scale mode: choose from four different scales and always hit the right key
It’s coming out sometime soon for €159, about $211 US, learn more about the Keypad here.
Which of these three new Reloop offerings is the most compelling for your setup? Let us know in the comments.
