What do you think about Gemini MDJ-1000? - Page 3
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  1. #21
    NiltonOffBeat
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mrbigtoe View Post
    i thought about buying some for home and house parties, ended up going with the reloop rmp-4. they where only $100 aus more than the gemini and they felt much better. only con is the jog is a little loose for my liking but im getting use to it
    So you preferred to buy a Reloop one only because of the price? Or you're afraid about Gemini product's quality?

  2. #22
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    Yeah a bit of both, plus the reloops are really basic nothing fancy, and I use traktor so all my info that I need is just on the laptop

  3. #23
    Tech Guru deevey's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by NiltonOffBeat View Post
    Thank you very much for your complete answer!
    Yeah I was also thinking about buying a XDJ-RX WITH the idea of buying another CDJ later.. It's not a bad idea because I really need to mix with USBs but I can handle to work without Rekordbox, I'll use USB flashdrives to "transport" all my music library I guess.
    And you're also right about the choice difficulty, I haven't got much budget and that's the real problem, I think I have to stay in the "lowcost" market for a while and learn to work with sh...y equipment It's like wanting to buy a Porsche when you can't even buy a BMW.
    Firstly, on RX, you'll still only be able to control 2 channels at a time - which kinda defeats the purpose of 3 decks.

    Secondly, I gotta ask because alot of the wording on your posts sound like you are a total beginner (or close to it). But what are you going to exactly do on 3 decks that you cannot manage to do on two ?

    If you have been at it a while and you are at the level of needing a third deck, apologies.

    If you are just starting out I'd spend a little more, get accustomed to the 2 decks. Spend that extra budget on a second hand XDJ-RX (Amazon have one for $1100 currently with full prime warranty) - You won't need to spend on a mixer either.

    When you have mastered two decks then consider selling your old rig and upgrading to something else (you will want pioneer gear having used it before though)

    Pro's: Club Standard layout, Club Standard Software, Built in mixer, Built to last.
    Cons: Less expandability, will want your next deck upgrade to be pioneer as well which will cost you muchos $.

  4. #24
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    Yes, the CDJ-1000mk3 is obsolete gear. All it can do is play CDs.

    I love the Hanpins; I just think Reloop had a mental malfunction when they swapped the SPDIF for a damn sync thing on the RMP-4. The RMP-3 and 4 are the only versions of the Hanpin media players with AIFF support, though. I'm so used to just utilizing the filenames that it's probably not that big a deal even if I had it, but it's nice they finally worked my suggestions into the design I've been bugging them about. The Reloops and the American Audio units have the highest pitch resolution of any standalone players on the market.

    I like the Denon stuff, but InMusic doesn't seem to be supporting the 2900/3900 post-acquisition. I think the 3900 is actually listed as discontinued. Pioneer has been playing catch up to Denon's sound quality for a long time, only recently starting to catch up. The whole move to higher-end DACs was motivated by Denon's long-standing use of Burr Browns and custom-designed analog output stages. Their big digital mixer was like next level stuff compared to the DJM-800 and 900.

    I hate all that visual shit on laptops and Pioneer CDJ2000/XDJs. The only time I use a laptop is when it's like requests or something. I think Denon got it about right on their 2900/3900, except that it's not enough lines of folder searching text. The whole waveform is fine and not having the nuanced moving waveform is fine, IMO. I found it stupefying they did that originally, but it doesn't bother me now.

    As for the build quality of the MDJ-1000, it's not wildly poorer in physical construction than a Pioneer. Both have a lot of plastic.

    The issues with just skipping/glitching during continuous playback appeared to be improving in the last beta firmwares they sent me. That was an issue totally independent of the ethernet connection.

    I have no idea why their instant start and hot cues are so laggy and glitchy, but I suspect at least some of that got more broken in one of the beta firmwares.

    The high-frequency ticks appear to be related to the SPDIFs turning off completely when nothing is being played. Bad move. The firmware needs like some very low-level place-holder or minimum bit or something being sent even if nothing is being played. I've only ever experienced this before on other units with the Stanton CMP-800, and that was more subtle and only with the very beginning and end of tracks. Pausing and playing or jumping to a hot cue did not cause it, and certainly not at the magnitude the Gemini is exhibiting.

    I have seen no improvement to the speed in folder scrolling over link in the various firmwares. I think that might be a limitation of its design. Certainly the timing out issue could be dealt with in the firmware. Annoying waiting for it to load a folder when you scroll to it and the thing times out and goes back to the waveform.

    I have no clue what they were thinking when they designed the MDJ to only have one USB drive connected to a single unit when link is in use. That defies understanding. A switch broadcasts data to all connections. Let a unit choose which unit it is drawing from! Apparently they didn't design in that capability and if more than one USB flash drive is plugged in the link system goes haywire. The release 6.1 firmware gives an erroneous impression there's some kind of random switching between decks that it can do. But basically that's just a problem with the firmware. On the later betas, it just won't allow it at all, which I suppose is better if it's eventually going to malfunction anyway. So you'd have to reach back and disconnect the ethernet cable if you want to remove a unit from the network.

    I suspect there is some kind of electrical design problem in the MDJ ethernet port responsible for the other drop outs over Link even when you're using it correctly (i.e. only one USB drive when network is in use). It appears related to the integrity of the grounds on the SPDIF and RCAs. If the total grounding connection between the mixer and the Gemini is lost and reconnected, or if there is any ground loop conflict anywhere in the system, the Gemini ethernet link connection appeared to seize up. I would be surprised if they can fix that in the firmware, though I wouldn't rule it out completely. It's probably some kind of grounding issue that would (I can't believe I'm even saying this) be mitigated with something like a dedicated grounding wire as on a vinyl turntable if they couldn't come up with a firmware solution. Having both the SPDIF and the RCAs connected does create a kind of grounding redundancy. I'm not sure if they'd do a recall for an electrical design flaw a year after product release, but if disconnecting all the audio cables on a unit and plugging them back in causes the Link to fail and the unit to require restart, then I'm not sure people would tolerate Gemini just telling them to make sure their audio connections are perfect and don't touch anything.

    Oh, and finally... V-case is really bad. Like unbelievable right now. You can read more about it on my Amazon review:

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/review/RBR..._=glimp_1rv_cl
    Last edited by Reticuli; 11-05-2016 at 03:52 AM.

  5. #25
    NiltonOffBeat
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    Quote Originally Posted by deevey View Post
    Firstly, on RX, you'll still only be able to control 2 channels at a time - which kinda defeats the purpose of 3 decks.
    Secondly, I gotta ask because alot of the wording on your posts sound like you are a total beginner (or close to it). But what are you going to exactly do on 3 decks that you cannot manage to do on two ?
    Well, I'm in DJing since only 1 year, so I'm an amateur but what I'm sure about is that I love using loops and samples to enhance my DJ sets. Let me explain:

    For exemple, in a lot of my sets, I like to first set a loop of the intro of a track on deck A, at the same time I play an entire track on deck B, and at the same time I launch an acapella on deck C, plays a little with it (w/ cue points) and then when deck B's track comes to a lead, I mute all other decks, and then at the drop of the deck B I put the acapella, and then the deck A's loop, then I load a new track on deck C while deck A's loop and deck B's outro are playing. Then deck C is playing bla bla bla and then I come to the moment when I release the deck A's loop, and when this track is playing normally again it sounds really great as you've heard the loop of that track for about 6 minutes, and then another acapella or something on other decks and etc. etc.

    You see what I mean or my english is too bad?

    So when I can do this in DJ sets, I'm really enjoying those moments, I don't feel the same thing when I just make a simple A/B mix with only 2 decks, for me it feels like I'm a jukebox playing with CDs. Of couse you can do amazing stuff with only two decks, but I fell like you can "improvise" good stuff in live when you have more than two decks, but when you have only two, you have to prepare more your sets if you want to do great stuff in live.
    Last edited by NiltonOffBeat; 12-03-2016 at 08:10 PM.

  6. #26
    NiltonOffBeat
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mrbigtoe View Post
    Yeah a bit of both, plus the reloops are really basic nothing fancy, and I use traktor so all my info that I need is just on the laptop
    And did you have any issues with them?

  7. #27
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    Quote Originally Posted by NiltonOffBeat View Post
    And did you have any issues with them?
    You're not asking me this, but I think I could contribute. All the Hanpins are rock solid. I have 11 of them. They don't have the most durable micro tact switches on the buttons and there is some variation in how their various firmwares handle complicated folder structures. MIDI support is obviously more hassle than HID and is mostly one-way, but allows more flexibility at least in that one-way. Also, none of them have built-in sound cards. Since Reloop's the only one still branding them (and maybe Omnitronic & Akiyama?) and have the newest firmware that they continually update, I assume these issues would be resolved on the RMP-3 and RMP-4.
    Last edited by Reticuli; 11-03-2016 at 12:39 PM.

  8. #28
    NiltonOffBeat
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    Quote Originally Posted by Reticuli View Post
    You're not asking me this, but I think I could contribute. All the Hanpins are rock solid. I have 11 of them. They don't have the most durable micro tact switches on the buttons and there is some variation in how their various firmwares handle complicated folder structures. MIDI support is obviously more hassle than HID and is only one-way, but allows more flexibility at least in that one-way. Also, none of them have built-in sound cards. Since Reloop's the only one still branding them (and maybe Omnitronic & Akiyama?) and have the newest firmware that they continually update, I assume these issues would be resolved on the RMP-3 and RMP-4.
    Well, I see, they are lot more solid and stable than the MDJ's with their own nice functions.

    To be honest, I'm kinda lost... Recently I've been talking with a guy that did DJ competitions featured by Gemini, he explained me how that didn't go well for him and the brand, what the company proposed to him to try to sell more etc., it's not a very nice side of Gemini though.

    I think for the moment what I want to obtain is simply impossible: a stable and working CDJ like independent decks, for the price of a MDJ. I think I'll just sit with the XDJ-RX...

    I don't think Gemini will improve the quality of their products, they had their "glory" time just as Pioneer now, but now Gemini has lost the market.

  9. #29
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    Quote Originally Posted by NiltonOffBeat View Post
    Well, I see, they are lot more solid and stable than the MDJ's with their own nice functions.

    To be honest, I'm kinda lost... Recently I've been talking with a guy that did DJ competitions featured by Gemini, he explained me how that didn't go well for him and the brand, what the company proposed to him to try to sell more etc., it's not a very nice side of Gemini though.

    I think for the moment what I want to obtain is simply impossible: a stable and working CDJ like independent decks, for the price of a MDJ. I think I'll just sit with the XDJ-RX...

    I don't think Gemini will improve the quality of their products, they had their "glory" time just as Pioneer now, but now Gemini has lost the market.
    Denons are an option, even if InMusic isn't supporting them as much. Reloop RMP-3 you could find at a discount compared to the RMP-4. There's also all the other brandings of the Hanpins: Stanton, American Audio, Akiyama, etc. The linking with a USB cable is far more full-proof and predictable than this ethernet stuff. Then you just need a mixer with a 3 or more stereo channel sound card inside. Or you could just wait and see if the Gemini firmware gets stable and functional enough.

  10. #30
    NiltonOffBeat
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    Quote Originally Posted by Reticuli View Post
    Denons are an option
    Yeah for the same price as a XDJ-RX I can get a 4 channel Denon, or a 4 channel Numark S7III with motorized jogs... Maybe I should watch at this.

    Quote Originally Posted by Reticuli View Post
    Or you could just wait and see if the Gemini firmware gets stable and functional enough.
    What do you think of how the Gemini's team is actually managing the different issues you've been pointing out? Do you send them crashlogs? How do you communicate with them?

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