The two channel mixer market is absolutely overflowing – and that’s just the crop currently sitting on shop shelves. Delve further back through manufacturers’ portfolios and there’s a near endless line of discontinued yet still perfectly viable mixers going strong in-between innumerable decks. Even though many DJs are moving towards all in one digital setups, it still pays to have a solid DJ mixer around for many purposes. How do you decide what’s right for you?
Why do I need a mixer, you might ask? Well for starters, anyone using DVS technology like Serato or Traktor Scratch needs a mixer for audio control. Then, for the controller only crowd, a mixer can actually offer a great value and a very tactile, high quality control surface. For less than $600 you can get 2 midi-fighters, and a decent 2 channel mixer, and as Ean Golden showed us in the video bellow- there is a lot that can be done with the combo. This set up travels really well too, as the critical software functions go in your bag but the spacious mixer functions are always available in a club.
To many a beginner, a mixer is a mixer (is a mixer). To a certain extent that’s true; bargain basement mixers tend to be much of a muchness, and that muchness typically isn’t particularly high fidelity. There are plenty of sub £100/$150 mixers on the market, but quite often it’s a better value proposition to scout the second hand market for an older, perhaps discontinued mixer with a good reputation.
Things start getting interesting when you hover around the £120/$180 mark. It’s at that price point where products begin to exhibit signs of quality and useful features. But what features do you need? These features, whilst not necessarily exclusive to two channel mixers, suit different styles – figure out what you want to do with your sets and buy based on what they can offer you:
FEATURES
Mic/Aux: some mixers have an entirely separate discrete channel for audio on top of the mixer’s standard inputs. It’s often got slightly cut back EQ capabilities, and volume will be a dial rather than a fader. If you want to drop samples while mixing or throw shout outs to your adoring crowd, though, it’s more than sufficient.
Faders: Unfortunately the days of the two-week fader aren’t completely behind us, and seriously low budget mixers tend to come with faders that don’t stand up very well to the rigours a scratch DJ might like to place upon them. There’s usually at least a half decent crossfader in midrange mixers, though, with channel faders’ presumed less vigorous usage affording them slightly lower faders. ‘Non contact’ faders should in theory last vastly longer than traditional faders, as instead of the fader relying on constantly wearing carbon tracks to tell its position, clever magnetic or optical technology does the same thing with nothing to wear down. A scratch DJ typically puts the crossfader (or its third party compatibility) at the centre of their purchase decision.
EQ: Not all EQ is created equal. A lot of EQ is similar, but some mixers stand out from the pack, for better or worse. ‘Full kill’, ie total frequency isolation, isn’t standard on all mixers and so the effectiveness varies amongst them. Some mixers, typically budget ones, only have a two band EQ. Some (like the Technics on show below) have a certain pleasant quality to the way they EQ the sound. EQ’s importance varies depending on your style – a sacrifice here could mean a bonus on one of the other functions.
Effects: You don’t need a four channel mixer to enjoy effects! That said, effects laden mixers do tend to come at a premium. If you’re a beginner it might be a good idea to concentrate on the basics when starting out. In addition, you might not see a mixer with the exact kind of effects you’re after; in both of these situations, a send/return could be the answer…
Send/Return: Does what it says on the tin – audio goes out through the send, at which point it’s connected to whatever you like – let’s say a reverb. The output from the reverb then goes into the return, and the signal is mixed with the original one. A mixer with a good send/return (sometimes called an effects loop) allows you to expand your setup with whatever effects you like.
Fader Start: Depending on your style and other equipment, fader start could be either be totally useless or, well, a bit useful. If your CD/media player also has a fader start function, moving the crossfader towards the channel it’s plugged in to can also start the media playing.
I’ve defined five price points for this guide; introductory, mid range, hybrid, prestige, and wait-a-second-how-much? Rather than exhaustively tackling every mixer on the market, I’ve picked some of the ones that stand out in each class. Let’s start at the bottom and work our way up…
INTRODUCTORY ( UNDER £120/$150)
The American Audio Q D5 MkII boasts EQs with full kill, an optical crossfader, mic and aux in, and balanced output. For the price, the Q D5 MkII is tough to beat. It’s slightly harsh sounding, but the crossfader’s optical design lasts a lot longer and feels a lot smoother than low quality contact faders, the mic input is good, and it’s got a sturdy, if slightly light feel.
Vestax’s VMC002XL is a beginner oriented mixer, with good looks and ‘new Vestax’ sound quality. Its barebones feature set doesn’t exactly have the wow factor, but it’s built to a higher standard than most budget mixers.
MID RANGE (UNDER £300/$400)
HYBRID (UNDER £400/$400)
PRESTIGE (£400/$400+)
Ecler’s HAK 360 and HAK 380 are similar mixers with different design choices. The 360 uses a horizontal layout for its EQ section, whereas the 380 opts for a more standard vertical layout, and slightly chunkier knobs. Both use the propietary Eternal magnetic crossfader, probably the lightest and most precise fader on the market, and unfortunately both also implement an FX loop in slightly clumsy ways. The 360 allows the effect to be simply on or off, with no wet/dry adjustment, whilst the 380 implements its FX loop globally, rather than per channel. Other than that, the HAK 360 and 380 have a mic/aux channel, full kill EQ and impeccable sound quality.
WAIT-HOW-MUCH-DID-YOU-SAY?! (£$!!!)
NEARLY NEW
Blame, or depending on how you look at it, praise our fickle nature. Manufacturers are forever tweaking and tuning their product lineup, and over the past decade there have been a glut of mixers that manufacturers threw into the market to see what stuck. Most of them have been retired, but their ghosts live on in the second hand market, and if you’re on a budget then you could net yourself a huge bargain by going previous-season. As always, you need to be careful whenever buying second hand, and if possible get your hands on gear first before shelling out – but if you do decide to go down the preowned route, here are a few hot tips.
SUMMING UP
You’d be right to remark that there’s a void between the £120/$180 and £300/$400 classes of mixers. Whilst it’s not immediately clear why, the general industry move towards the forked path of four channel mixers/in the box mixing perhaps has something to do with it, but it also has a lot to do with the fact that real pro quality doesn’t come cheap, and manufacturers are a lot more cautious with their pricing and product lineup nowadays than they were in the mid 2000s.
It might not be a cut and dry decision, but if you make sure you don’t get swayed by flashing lights and too-good-to-be-true prices of budget models nor the best-in-class boasts of the prestige models, you can avoid buyers remorse and grab a mixer that’s just right for you.
About the author: Chris is a writer, artist and DJ who runs ohdratdigital.com, an online magazine for music and the arts.
if i plug the ecler hak 380 to the stanton sk-6f beacouse the fx channels i’ll still have good sound quality or i loose a little?
Does anyone know a Dj mixer with 4 faders (2 Phono+4 Line Inputs)+ 1 Mic Input that have send/return for each Channel?
Something Like The “behringer NOX606” But not behringer….
Xone 42
Great information here. Looking to upgrade from a second cheap mixer <100 euro. Mailny for scratching and sampling. I was thinking about picking up an Vestax MPC5 3, not anymore!
Great list of mixers, it was back in the 90’s when there were a very few select mixers to choose from and now that technology is so much cheaper, users have much more selection
It’s funny, but I’ve owned 2 of the 3 “How Much Did You Say?!?” mixers (the Pioneer 909 previously and using the TTM57 SL for the past several years; both are incredibly nice mixers) and am now looking very seriously at getting my hands on a Rodec Scratchbox (although I may end up needing more channels).
One thing that isn’t mentioned about the Rodec is that it almost acts as a 3 channel mixer (plus an additional Aux In) and the 3rd input can be used pretty creatively. I’d really love to try one out for a few weeks to see if it is a good fit for me; I’ve heard nothing but good things about this mixer.
my best 2 channel mixer ….VESTAX PMC 250 … bulit for house but perfect for Drum N Bass
I just purchased a Nuo 2.0… It’s a great mixer! Accurate PFL metering, tracks don’t sound “opaque” when removing lows or highs (unlike pioneer bs), nice controls on faders, and great sound quality! It has a few downsides like missing pan control and extra use for the phono inputs, but for the price is a great upgrade.
the Urei 1601 should be included in the “nearly new” section
does anybody have thoughts on the numark usb dxm-01 mixer? http://www.amazon.com/Numark-DXM-01-USB-Mixer-Input/dp/B00069CH9W
its only $130 at amazon. i like the usb connectivity for recording sets. thoughts?
I have got the Zone :02 and love it! Those “figetey eq faders” are actually alot of fun for mixing once you get used to them. Also the up faders are super clean for scratching. Having the ability to mount your transform switches in whatever direction you want worked well for me. I have to admit that the cross fader cut knob is a little sensitive but this baby is it!
Hercules DJ Control MP3 e2, offers a vigorous set of features yet remains easy-to-use and reasonable for a wide audience of music fans.
dude… hercules consoles are to controllers as pintos are to automobiles. A god damned embarassment to the rest of us
If your ever in doubt about what mixer to get (or CDJs) you can’t go past Pioneer – they are the industry standard for a reason!
Pioneer for sound, power, calibration of its functions and basically as an all round durable mixer…
you forgot the UREI SOUNDCRAFT 1601 thats an outstanding mixer…my votes for Ecler for the sound..Rene for the power but maybe the most complete one is the Pioneer909..
TTm56 FTW, everything else is Garbage!
I just want to add to my first comment.
I’m a frequent visitor to this site because it’s good reading for me. This is a good article and I only mentioned the x600 because it’s a mixer I’m interested in buying and want to read all I can about it.
Maybe Denon should be sending some gear over to DJTechtools for proper reviewing.
Best mixer I had during the last 20 years is the Vestax PMC-05 Pro 4. Using this beast about a month now and also took it with me to the clubs. All the other DJs liked it too.
So many good things compared to old Vestax mixers, Midi, new Faders, build in Switchbox and 7 Stereo inputs, super improoved soundquality, and more.
Btw it’s not only 6 Midibuttons for each side, the two potis next to the smaller Midibuttons act like potis and even as buttons.
And if you like the typical crossfader click noise, then there is an extra crossfader panel to bring back the clicking. It’s in the blue envelope with the ownermanual and also shortens the Cut-In a bit more.
Hi all,
thanks for the kind words. Some great recommendations in the comments, too! The lack of Denon wasn’t an intentional thing! Hopefully there’ll be more words on the Denon series soon…
I agree. Denon has been left out for some strange reason. Just picked up an x600. It has got to be one of the most feature packed mixers for under 700. Has midi, xlr outs and 909 style fx. Throw in an innofader in one of these bad boys and you’ve basically got the perfect mixer.
[quote comment=”41229″]I think the Denon DN-X600 was a good candidate for the review and should have been included. Maybe it’s just too new.
I think it is best value for the money.[/quote]
[quote post=”9178″]why would you be adding controllers to the same USB as your soundcard (sl1)[/quote]
I wouldn’t be, my soundcards USB is isolated from my hub for controllers. Thats why I asked the question, even though the hub and soundcard use separate port on my laptop, do they compete internally?
No doubt Rane make a quality mixer. However I would imagine the latest SL37’s would have the lastest USB/SL3 as a part of them. Seems strange to me they would not, and seems strange to defend it in such a way.
Sure a lot has happened in the last 5 years. And as a result I will just be putting off buying an SL37 in hopes they release something new at NAMM 2011. I want to buy a mixer that will last into the future, not one that is about to be outdated. It’s either wait or choose something else.
[quote comment=”41357″]I definitely considered that I never heard a complaint from all the DJ’s I know using Serato/Rane SL37’s.
Granted the mixer is 5 years old yet still has a $1400 dollar price tag.
USB 1.1 might be sufficient, but does it remain sufficient with additional controllers? Why not have USB 2.0?[/quote]
why would you be adding controllers to the same USB as your soundcard (sl1). Also, think about what has happened in the dj tech world in the last 5 years… Its moved at a crazy pace. To be honest I think it really should be hats off to rane for creating such a good product that is still bought at a high price 5 years later.
Great article Chris. turntablism combined with midi has been somewhat neglected at this site. The PMC05IV seems really worth taking a closer look at.
Keep these kind of articles flowing mate! love em.
I definitely considered that I never heard a complaint from all the DJ’s I know using Serato/Rane SL37’s.
Granted the mixer is 5 years old yet still has a $1400 dollar price tag.
USB 1.1 might be sufficient, but does it remain sufficient with additional controllers? Why not have USB 2.0?
[quote comment=”41274″]OK I am starting to feel like there is something funky with this site and Denon…
Seriously no mention of the DN-X120? I have two of these bad boys and I know first hand they sound just as clean as the low end American Audio and Vestax for a comparable price. What’s up DJTT? No Denon Love?[/quote]
You’re right with that. I have one of this and it is great to use. Crisp, clear sound and more affordable ($179.99) now compare to vestax and american audio. Not to mention the 3 band equalizer and fader start. It should have mentioned in the list. Do you agree DJTT?
serato and usb 1.1 hasnt been a problem for thousands of SL1 users, i agree, total sales talk
There is nothing wrong about USB1.1. For audio and MIDI function on two channel mixer, the bandwidth of USB1.1 is pretty sufficient. For USB2.0…. this is only a sales talking and wasting cost.
edit^^^
Sorry USB 1.1.
RANE should be ashamed of themselves.
Great Article. I’m currently looking for a new 2 Channel Mixer and speculating switching to Serato/Bridge. This article was a great tip off about the TTM 57SL. I didn’t realize it was housing an SL1 and not and SL3. I did some research and discovered and even stranger side to the TTM 57SL, it only USB 1.0???
Thats totally ridiculous!
For the amount of money you pay for such a mixer USB 1.0 is completely unacceptable and behind the times in a big way.
Great article! The only thing I would challenge is about the Stanton SA-5. =I owned one, and while it was a really really good mixer for the price, it’s not built to last, I broke the crossfader within 6 months
Should mention watch out with the stanton sa5 mixer its headphone levels go dangerously loud !!!!!!!
Can’t forget to mention that the DJM350 has a super handy record function… pretty decent bang for the buck mixer.
I also own an Ecler nuo. Great mixer, feels great to mix with those big nobs, good sound quality and perfect for a small apartment space. Also looks good. Ive had stanton and vestax mixers in the past. Cant say anything wrong about vestax, but stanton’s sound was off. In any case, I would always recommend to go for quality, spend a little more and focus on sound quality. Your mixes will thank you.
Good that the Nuo 2.0 made the cut, but don’t be afraid to cop the Ecler Nuo 2 second-hand. I’ve purchased it on a recommendation from a friend of mine, and it’s been very good to me. The sound quality is great, the knobs are big and have a good grip, the kills kill (both on the knobs and the “isolator” buttons), and the crossfaders are resilient (though I’m more of a blend DJ than a scratch one). Construction is also very sturdy. I bought it originally for $350, so you should get a good deal if you find it used.
[quote comment=”41287″][quote comment=”41274″]OK I am starting to feel like there is something funky with this site and Denon…
Seriously no mention of the DN-X120? I have two of these bad boys and I know first hand they sound just as clean as the low end American Audio and Vestax for a comparable price. What’s up DJTT? No Denon Love?[/quote]
I don’t know what’s up with Denon but they just cannot make a good product recently. Respect to old Denon.[/quote]
have you seen the sc2000 and mc6000? both are great products
[quote comment=”41274″]OK I am starting to feel like there is something funky with this site and Denon…
Seriously no mention of the DN-X120? I have two of these bad boys and I know first hand they sound just as clean as the low end American Audio and Vestax for a comparable price. What’s up DJTT? No Denon Love?[/quote]
I don’t know what’s up with Denon but they just cannot make a good product recently. Respect to old Denon.
I was using the Technics SH-EX1200 for half a year. it really was a cool piece of technic for that days. it was almost perfect in its simplicity.
OK I am starting to feel like there is something funky with this site and Denon… Seriously no mention of the DN-X120? I have two of these bad boys and I know first hand they sound just as clean as the low end American Audio and Vestax for a comparable price. What’s up DJTT? No Denon Love?
I have a xone 202, great mixer. No complaints. Faders are dope, and sound output is awesome. It also looks really cool in person.
+1 for the DJM 707 as a second had mixer. The crossfader is optical and has a tension adjustment.
Considering the 2 Midi Fighter + Mixer set-up after reading this. Great article!
Everyone check out the Denon X600, full midi, full kill, 2 channel mixer….
Great write up. I have a 56s and absolutely love it. Price was great and the features and sound quality are amazing. One other thing to add to that mixer is that it not only has 4inputs it also supports a 5th line input in a separate auxiliary channel located under the mic channel.
loved the amount of pics mate.great article
[quote comment=”41211″]Awesome article! too bad it wasnt posted a few weeks ago when i was lookin for a 2 channel mixer………. but its ok cause i ended up buying a Numark Pro SM-3 (only $75!) 🙂 which is the three channel version of the Pro SM-1/2, which is on the list! and im happy with the mixer :)[/quote]
I have the Pro SM-3 and think it’s real value for money. Great article. 🙂
[quote comment=”41232″]i got my djm909 slightly used for $500. i absolutely love it.[/quote]
Wow! thats a barging for such a high spec mixer
Awesome mixing in that video Ean!
i got my djm909 slightly used for $500. i absolutely love it.
I recommend the Reloop IQ2 MIDI. A nice German well built 2ch USB full MIDI mixer with a with 24 bit / 96 kHz Traktor certified soundcard. A lot of great features for the price.
I think the Denon DN-X600 was a good candidate for the review and should have been included. Maybe it’s just too new.
I think it is best value for the money.
Being a scratch jock I’ve had my fair share 2 channel battle mixers. Having a clear clutter free surface with solid controls is what allows a mixer to become an instrument, I’d love to see an fx controller made in same way of thinking, so much more is pos with a fader.
++++
The Pioneer 707 is worth a mention to, discontinued years ago but a real solid pro scratch mixer. I’ve got 2 in the studio, 1 of them is 6 years old, been heavily gigged and dragged all over the country but is still in perfect working order. The other was a second hand purchase bought 3 years ago for £120!! The bonus about buying one these second hand is the fact that being Pioneer 90% of the time the previous owner is a mixing dj who hasn’t cained the controls as much as a scratch jock would.
+++
Considering the state of my old pmc 05 and 06, plus my general experience with second hand Vestex gear (tin and plastic turntable’s, epic scratch tools but horrible quality), I’d be very careful buying used Vestex unless you can prove that the previous owner isn’t a scratch jock. Maybe I’ve been unlucky, but unlike The more modern solid 07 or 08 a lot Vestex gear doesn’t stand the test of time without some servicing or maintenance.
the audio innovate aem 100i should be on the nearly new list. it has an innofader and has sick effects and sounds great
the Vestax PMC05 Pro4 looks like a nice piece, those 12 midi buttons would be super useful. which brings me to my question, whys there not a single fully midi capable mixer on the list? that sounds like it would be perfect for the DJs that dont need the jogwheels… ive been pondering a set up like that for a while, laptop + mixer. anyone tried it? thoughts?
I had one Vestax PMC05 Pro4 (BLACK) version. The sound quality is incredible compare to my previous PMC05PRO3. The price is high but feel worth, especially the MIDI function is very useful.
One more remarkable is the cross fader, but sometimes feel it is too smooth. I am trying to getting use of this kind of feeling. Good job Vestax this time…
Love the ttm57 .. Price was heavy but still worth it to me
Sometimes I wonder how I keep from going under.
Awesome article! too bad it wasnt posted a few weeks ago when i was lookin for a 2 channel mixer………. but its ok cause i ended up buying a Numark Pro SM-3 (only $75!) 🙂 which is the three channel version of the Pro SM-1/2, which is on the list! and im happy with the mixer 🙂
The Tascam XS-8 is another good candidate for the “nearly new” category, it was actually a rebadged Ecler Hak mixer (I think it was the 320) and in 2004 Guitar Center bought all of Tascam’s stock and liquidated them for $150 or less. It has the magnetic Eternal crossfader.