Torn between two controllers!

[kyle133]

Hey guys. As you can see, I am brand new to the site and djing. Ive played drums for 12 years and looking for a new hobby. The combination of my love for electro house and hip hop has had djing on my mind for a long time. I have spent over a year researching djing techniques, equipment, bought djing for dummies (great read) and so on. I plan on playing out in the future, but must learn the basics first, and need a good setup to do so on.

I have settled on starting in virtual djing with the Traktor Kontrol S4 or the Numark N4.

The Traktor S4 is the controller I would like but there are a couple things that are holding me back and have me looking at the N4.

I don't like that the S4 does not have a stand alone mixer, The jog wheel placement and size on the S4 looks weird compared to other controllers such as the N4, NS6 and DDJ-S1. I have no experience with any software, but VDJ looks to be more user friendly compared to Traktor.

The N4 also has it's drawbacks. The jog wheels look cheap, and the whole unit is made of plastic. But it does boast a stand alone mixer, two types of software in the box and a lower price point.

My budget is $1500.00 including a laptop into the pricing.

I know there is MANY threads on this site with newbs asking for gear advise and have done much reading, but there isn't much info on this site about the Numark N4.

Would enjoying reading some experienced guys input on these controllers and which is best for me.


Also, it is possible to learn how to dj properly on these units? I have no interest in using anything but my ears to beat match tracks. I know the Pioneer DDJ-S1 looks the best to learn on for a club type setup, but the price and lack of 4 channels has me looking elsewhere.

1200's with timecode vinyl is in my future if the experience with the controller goes well first.

Thanks for your time gents!

[Phantom]

The Traktor S4 is a very nice piece of equipment (I own one)

As you mentioned, Traktor software is a little difficult, it's extremely reliable (has never crashed on me or anything like that), but with the waveforms unable to be put "on top of each other", you can't beatmatch by eye as you can do in many other types of software. It also lacks the ability to have third party plugins to be used with it, probably for the added software stability. It is definetely possible for you to learn how to DJ properly on these, including beatmatching by ear.

[Will MaXimal]

I can vouche for the S4! Very good piece of equipment

[DJNR]

First off, welcome to the forums

When you say you plan on DJing hip hop, do you plan on learning scratching and such? If so, you might want to consider getting some real decks rather than a controller. The reason I say this is because typically a controller isn't well suited for heavy uses such as scratching. Although it might work, you won't have the same feel, effectiveness, latency, and reliability as turntables.

If I had to choose between the S4 and the N4, I would pick the S4. While the jog wheels seem to have a very weird position, they are actually pretty ergonomic when your playing with the controller. Having the jog wheels on top allows for easy access to controls such as loops, cues, and other vital controls to any DJs performance. Granted, you may want to consider getting something with bigger jog wheels if you plan on scratching with a controller, but that will only serve as a patch job until you can actually get turntables. I spin EDM, so the S4 is actually a very good controller for me. You mentioned that the N4 is plastic; the S4 is plastic also.

Something that is cool about the S4 is the fact that you can hook up two turntables to it in order to get time code control to the other two decks in Traktor, which will allow you to control 4 decks simultaneously. While the N4 is a standalone mixer, I think that being able to use your S4 as a method of a digital mixer is plenty. The N4 may be able to do something similar, but I'm not sure.

[DJNR]

you can't beatmatch by eye as you can do in many other types of software. It also lacks the ability to have third party plugins to be used with it, probably for the added software stability.

1. You shouldn't be beat matching by eye, so I agree with the beat matching by ear statement.
2. You can't use plugins, but you can midi sync outside applications such as Ableton.

[DJ Retro Blaze]

Also, it is possible to learn how to dj properly on these units? I have no interest in using anything but my ears to beat match tracks. I know the Pioneer DDJ-S1 looks the best to learn on for a club type setup, but the price and lack of 4 channels has me looking elsewhere.

The Pioneer DDJ-T1 is a four channel Traktor controller, and is also approximately $100 cheaper than the Pioneer DDJ-S1.

The only downfall is that it's shipped with the Pioneer Edition of Traktor, which may or may not suffice for your needs. With that said, NI has an upgrade path to Traktor Pro.

[kyle133]

First off, welcome to the forums

When you say you plan on DJing hip hop, do you plan on learning scratching and such? If so, you might want to consider getting some real decks rather than a controller. The reason I say this is because typically a controller isn't well suited for heavy uses such as scratching. Although it might work, you won't have the same feel, effectiveness, latency, and reliability as turntables.

Thanks for the warm and quick responses guys! Yes scratching is important to me, but as I said 1200's will be in my future if the experience with the controller goes well. I am hoping to buy a controller I can expand a setup on and learn, not just a toy I have to replace a year down the road!

[DJNR]

Thanks for the warm and quick responses guys! Yes scratching is important to me, but as I said 1200's will be in my future if the experience with the controller goes well. I am hoping to buy a controller I can expand a setup on and learn, not just a toy I have to replace a year down the road!

I would recommend the S4 in that case solely for the ability to expand onto it with other decks.

On a side note, you can learn to DJ properly on all of these devices, but at that point it is really a matter of initiative.

[fat8ack]

Check out the NS6....I have one but dont scratch really, but have seen some pretty sweet hip hop DJing dome on one. Also they say they have the best platters as far as controllers go with 3600 ticks per revolution.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brqT79slZWw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VES9H5JDh3k

[Austin GoGreen]

Hell with ns6, it's terrible for what I do. I like the pioneer with itch. I'm a turntable guy so if I'm not using 1200's I use the NS7. If i'm not using cdj's, i'm using the pioneer kit which is really dope. Not as dope as the NS7 but I think it would work better for your style.