Reddit reviews Pioneer DJ DDJ-RB Portable 2-channel Controller for rekordbox dj
We found 5 Reddit comments about Pioneer DJ DDJ-RB Portable 2-channel Controller for rekordbox dj. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Bundled with the rekordbox dj license key, simply activate your license key for our DJ software, connect the controller and start DJing.Mix instinctively with the jog wheels, play/cue buttons, mixer knobs and faders, gain pots, VU meter and dedicated loop buttons built to mirror the rekordbox dj layoutCreate simple sequences then select and play them directly on the hardware using the Sequence Call button. Plus, trigger Hot Cues, Pad FX, Beat Jump and Slicer with 16 Performance PadsFor flexibility, you can choose to hear your mix through your computer's internal speakers, connected desktop speakers, or play through a wireless speaker. At the same time, you can use your headphones to cue independently of the master out
Check out Ellaskins YouTube channel for excellent beginner DJ videos.
Pioneer makes some great entry level controllers for their software RekordboxDJ, and for the slightly older stuff of theirs, for Serato (and Traktor sometimes).
Best subreddit for beginners.. you're here already :)
Controllers for beginners:
Pioneer DDJ-SB3 $249
Pioneer DDJ-RB $199
Places to get music:
Beatport.com
Traxsource.com
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Mixer: https://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-DDJ-SB2-Portable-2-channel-controller/dp/B0149XD9CY/ref=sr_1_2?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1503497846&sr=1-2&keywords=pioneer+ddj+sb2
or
https://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-DDJ-RB-DJ-Controller/dp/B01F73LVL6/ref=sr_1_1?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1503497862&sr=1-1&keywords=pioneer+ddj+rb
(I'd reccomend the RB)
Speakers: https://www.amazon.com/Package-Rockville-Speakers-RVSS2-XLR-Adjustable/dp/B00ETP9FFI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1503497813&sr=8-1&keywords=rockville+rpg+15
Just throwing it out there, but I think any "adult" beginner-level mixer will do.
Kids are smart and learn quickly. Kids today are also tech-savvy. If he can handle a computer and a tablet, beginner mixers should not be a problem. Specific advice: Pioneer RB
https://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-DJ-DDJ-RB-2-channel-Controller/dp/B01F73LVL6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1509983874&sr=8-2&keywords=pioneer+rb+dj+controller&dpID=51qrc550hWL&preST=_SX300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch
Looking at other replies, treat it as a one tier above the Numark one.
For newbies I would honestly recommend the Pioneer DDJ SB2 for Serato and the DDJ RB for Rekordbox (although the SB2 now works with Rekordbox, too). Those are both $250. The SB2 was my first controller and I loved it. The build quality is great. The pads are very responsive and the knobs are good.
DDJ SB2
https://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-DJ-DDJ-SB2-2-channel-controller/dp/B0149XD9CY/
DDJ RB
https://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-DJ-DDJ-RB-2-channel-Controller/dp/B01F73LVL6/
I upgraded to the XDJ-RX2 and it has amazed me how great the SB2 was now that I'm using a top of the line controller. The core features and necessities are very similar and I can't say enough about the build quality. I think you would be very happy with that choice.
It depends on how invested you think you're going to be right off the bat. If you want to drop a few hundred bucks then there's a few options but if you're not sure I'll go over that too.
Firstly, figure out if this is something you kinda sorta want to do but you're not sure or if you're like "Hell yeah let's git it!". If you're not sure then download Virtual DJ or the free version of Traktor Pro 2 (these are my preferences you can also do mixxx or serato or whatever) and play around with it. There's a way that you can map your computer keyboard to these and just play around with music and see if this is something you'd like to do. Side note: I love Traktor so much more than Virtual DJ and the only limiting factor is the amount of time you can use it during the demo then you just close and re-open it to reset it every 30 minutes or hour I don't remember exactly which is way less annoying for practicing.
Once you figure it out for yourself and you know whether you want to do it or not then you need to buy a controller. To do this you can obviously come back here for advice but I'll lay out the basic advice everybody gives here anyways: Most budget controllers come with demo versions of the software so it doesn't do jack for you tbh. But you need to figure out how much you want to spend so I'll put some advice here.
Craigslist is your friend: Like I said above most controllers don't come with full software versions so if you can find the same controller you want used for cheaper go for that one (duh). If you want to buy new or you live somewhere there's not much on Craigslist here's some great options for a budding DJ.
Numark Mixtrack 3 $149 - This is a great controller, it's actually the one I started on and still have and use for when I'm going to a friend's house or something because it's lightweight but pretty sturdy. It works with Traktor and VDJ (when looking for controllers Virtual DJ LE is the demo version just so you know) and I have a few different .tsi files for it that I've personally made for that controller specifically (.tsi is the file extension for the controller mapping i.e. what tells the software what the controller is doing right now). The biggest drawback of this controller is that it doesn't have any audio outputs so you'll have to use the one from your laptop (the 3.5mm jack or if you have a USB interface for like a headset or something that works too). That's why it's so cheap but you'll need a 3.5 mm splitter and possibly an RCA to 3.5 mm jack in order to make it work with headphones and speakers (you need the headphones to listen to the song that you'll be mixing into). You'll need one of these if you have RCA input speakers and one of these so you can have headphones and speakers playing at the same time.
If you want to avoid that hassle you can buy the Numark Mixtrack PRO 3 but it's about $100 more for very nearly the exact same thing. You basically get gain knobs and audio outputs.
Another commonly suggested controller is the:
Pioneer DDJ SB2 & DDJ RB ($247)
This is a dope controller. I don't personally have one but I do have another Pioneer Controller and I've used the SB2 before (a friend of mine has it). These are very similar controllers the main difference being that the SB2 works with Serato and the RB works with Rekordbox DJ. With the SB2 you get Serato Intro and the RB you get a full rekordbox license. Serato Intro, to my knowledge, is just a toned down version of Serato but it's fully functional (not like the demos of Virtual DJ and Traktor which cut you off after a time). The whole argument of which one you should use is really up to personal preference and you should watch people use them on YouTube and stuff to get an understanding if you don't fall in love with one instantly.
This last one I'm only putting here because it's a nice controller and it comes with Traktor which is one of my favorite all time softwares (plus my friend worked at NI recently so there's a bit of nepotism here).
Traktor Kontrol S2 $399
Nice controller, lots of effects (IMO Traktor's effects are unparalleled) super solid build quality and it's got all the audio outs and everything. Not quite as budget as some of the other ones here but it's still really quite good and has a bit more in way of audio interface and can have other stuff lined into it which opens up some other creative doors.
I hope I helped to shed some light on this for you and if you have any questions, please, feel free to ask. :) Happy Spinning!