Pioneer XDJ Aero!

[Luconia]

i just completed my traditional setup 2 CDJ, 2 TT plus a mixer, and hoping to build back my vinyl collection when this thing showed up.
i cant help it but thinking all of the possibilities...it would be nice but i'll wait till the product matures..

[deevey]

For anyone in doubt about the solidness about the wireless feature ...from djworx.com

"To cater for the almost certain issues of wireless drops, the AERO buffers and streams the track and will make a long loop of the current track until connection is achieved again. It’s clever of Pioneer to do this, because without it I wouldn’t even touch the AERO from a wifi perspective. Obviously, much of this depends on the quality of the streaming devices and how far away they are."

The quality is excellent. The AERO is heavy but luggable, everything is solid and the faders feel smooth and rattle-free. Too many people are making “toy like” and “cheap” comments without seeing or touching the unit.

"The computer industry changed when Apple ditched the floppy drive, and I see this as Pioneer’s floppy drive moment. As an industry leader, it takes a real player to make the moves and shakes necessary to push things on. "

It’s clear that the XDJ-AERO is a multi-talented machine. It’s a MIDI and HID controller, independent player, mixer, wireless network player… but it can’t do CDs. Bravo – it’s about time we stopped thinking about legacy mediums and moved things forward. That might sound harsh for the mobile guys, but CD simply adds to the cost of units. It’s not just the unit price of the actual CD mechanism, but also the extra raw materials to make a deeper unit, and the additional weight for shipping and packaging that being 30mm deeper brings.

Airing many of my feelings as well

And they got a basic hands on http://djworx.com/world-exclusive-pi...-aero-preview/

This looks even more interesting all of a sudden,

[Nicadraus]

This is a very cool gear and I believe it will be sold like a hotcake. The price is very reasonable and the features as stand alone, USB, Phono/line input, MIDI capable, etc sure does make it a perect 2 channel controller/media player/mixer. Plus the additional onboard effects are a plus.

It will sure make those people who bought the DDJ-T1/S1 and Traktor Kontrol S2/S4 regret if they see this.

Good job by the Pioneer guys.

[squidot]

OMG PEOPLE! TURN YOUR PHONES OFF NOW!!!! IT HAS WIFI AND HACKERS ARE OUT TO GET YOU RIGHT NOW!!!
I HIGHLY doubt they would be after your dj gear, they want your cellphone with personal info.

well, it's not even fully about that really. if this runs on the 2.4ghz band (which i'm assuming it does otherwise iphones wouldn't be able to connect to it) then there are a whole host of things that can interfere with your signal. other wifi access points/routers, microwaves, cordless phones, etc. there is a lot of interference out there on that band so i wouldn't trust using it in a live gig environment at all. i would much rather use the usb stick option.

[brichi]

and dont forget newer WiFi mic systems like Line 6's xdv70 which completely kills my laptops wifi when it comes anywhere near it

[Nicadraus]

it looks very toy like

...and which controller doesn't look like a toy? The XDJ Aero just made the S4 look like a LEGO.

I like how you can judge a piece of gear's quality, reliability, and feel, based entirely off of a picture. Do you have some kind of super 3D monitor that let's you touch it?

The Ergo is one of the most solid controllers on the market, just because it has rounded edges, doesn't mean it's a "toy."

^^^This.

While looking similar to the DDJ Ergo V in most points (a bit toyish in my opinion) the XDJ Aero is tagged with a US$1399/£869/€999 price tag. In my opinion it's hard to justify that price due to the fact that it's only a two-channel mixer and due to its rather unprofessional look. The feature list makes me feeling it's targeted at the group of bedroom DJs but will these people really spend this amount of money for a XDJ Aero?
I think people will rather keep buying S4, VCI 400, DDJ-1 and so on but what's your opinion?
Is this piece of gear exactly what the whole world has been looking for for so long?

At $1,399, this is cheap as compared to buying a pair of CDJ-350 and a DJM250.

i think manny people will still prefer the S4/Vci-400. And i think Pioneer realizes that the people who really know what they are buying won't spend there money on this, you can see this if you look at the style of the vid. Someone who's looking a serious controller is not interested in skateboarding and that kind of shit, but people who want to be a dj and have no idea what they are buying won't realize it's a trap.

A trap? I don't think so.

People who are really serious in DJing would rather buy this because I believe that the XDJ Aero will even last longer than the current popular controllers out there. It's been 2 years since the S4 was released and I'll give it another year then I'm pretty sure it will be replaced and outdated. The XDJ being a controller that can be used as a stand alone mixer/media player, I say it can hold for at least 4-5 years without before it gets a new replacement.

The VCI-400...

...wait a year or two, there will be a VCI-500.

[synthet1c]

The VCI-400...

...wait a year or two, there will be a VCI-500.

I'd get wet for a VCI-480

[Nicky H]

The wifi should be fine - it creates its own access point - so if your tablet is next to it the enviroment is pretty irrelevant.
It is only streaming a metre or something.

It is not aimed at dj's though - read the big white header at Pioneer:

New wireless DJ system "XDJ-AERO" for home DJ Djing with tracks in smartphones and tablets via Wi-fi

And what's the fuss about a usb stick - hasn't this been available for years?

[mart21har]

Tacky ergo with some displays. Very low end for Pioneer. I'm getting worried.

[squidot]

The wifi should be fine - it creates its own access point - so if your tablet is next to it the enviroment is pretty irrelevant.
It is only streaming a metre or something.

wifi interference doesn't work that way and it won't matter how far your tablet is to the unit it can still drop connection. the chances of this happening are dependent on the environment and what kind of devices broadcast into the 2.4ghz range. also, if most devices in the area happen to be running on the same channel (since there are only 3 legally usable channels in that range), the chances of interference are greater.

although it's not aimed for use in public gigs, i'm sure there are people who will still use it that way.