
You’ll find many different kinds of DJ controllers varying from a little more than $140 to almost $3,000, but they all typically include many of the same elements to help you deliver an amazing show. They do everything from connecting two to four audio decks into the controller’s channels, giving any DJ easy access to different tracks for seamless mixing (with smooth transitions and matching beats between different audio channels) and customization (with the help of high quality equalizers, sound effects, and compatible DJ softwares) while enhancing the audio quality of your music for dance floor speaker systems.

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Integrated, all-in-one DJ controllers make it a lot easier for beginners and professionals to pull off a professional DJ set. Over time, users found it to be more convenient to have a single device that already does all the playing, mixing, and sound controlling-and that’s where modern DJ controllers come in.

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What does a DJ controller do?Ī full manual DJ setup is usually composed of the following separate components: a basic DJ controller (or another device that plays the audio), an audio interface that exports the audio to an external hardware and software, and a DJ software that provides sound effects and supports the controller with the mixing, aside from the DJ headphones and a good speaker system. generation DJ controllers now have the combined functions of a player, mixer, and a software control mechanism, as well as many available connections for digital audio, to allow DJs to conveniently create their own high-quality beats and music. To check out more tech reviews, click here.ĭJ Times Magazine is copyright © 2020 by DJ Publishing, Inc. You still get one stereo line input should you wish to incorporate external sources into your set. Again, if you’re a laptop-centric DJ with your music collection on the computer, those standalone mixing abilities just aren’t going to be something you use. took the standalone mixer capability of the S4 off the table for the S3, and this is probably the single most relevant factor in allowing the reduced price point. The S3 still offers access to Traktor’s mixer effects, which are interesting, but not as sophisticated.įinally, N.I. The utility of the deck effects depends entirely on your DJ style.

also chose to strip out the deck-effects controls for the S3. But are they strictly necessary? Not really. Again, these are nice to have they look nice, and they do enhance the experience of using the S4. Also missing are the onboard color displays. I actually really liked these controls on the S4, but I think they actually were a smart candidate to remove in the name of a more affordable controller. change to get the price point down? For a start, the company removed the “Haptic Drive” motorized jog wheels. The 4-channel support immediately, in my view, makes it a much more serious controller than the S2 (which has only two channels surfaced directly in the hardware). Obviously with two deck sections, transport controls are shared, with clear selector buttons to the lower left of the platters to swap out the decks when needed. What’s Different? Like the S4, the Traktor Kontrol S3 is a proper 4-channel controller, with faders and controls for all four provided in hardware (with no shifting of shared controls). And, at a suggested $649, it’s almost exactly halfway (pricewise) between the S2 and S4. The gap filler? The Traktor Kontrol S3, the subject of this review. decided to expand that family to fill a perceived gap between the very capable 4-channel S4 (at a suggested $999), and the much more strip-downed, entry-level-focused S2 (at a suggested $339).

has had three primary Traktor controllers on the market for some time now: The Traktor Kontrol S2, S4 and the cooly received (and unusual) S8. has put out over the years to support it. Let’s just say I have a soft spot for this software - and the terrific hardware that N.I. But clear back in 2006 when I first started DJing, I went down the digital path, and the software I chose when I first started was Traktor from Germany’s Native Instruments.Īnd when the gig calls for me to use a laptop and take advantage of my full digital collection and years of accumulated songs and their metadata (song tags, ratings, styles, BPMs, keys, cue points, etc.), I still primarily use Traktor. And these days, the choices are wider and better than they ever have been. Over the 11-plus years that I’ve been writing for DJ Times, I’ve seen a lot of hardware and a lot of software for performing DJ sets.
