S4 Durability

[alex8337]

Actually a good think to check is how the Kontrol X1's are holding up. That would give a better idea of how the S4's will hold up.

If the X1 had faders, jog wheels and those smaller 'loop recorder' buttons found in the middle of the S4... But it doesn't. I had an X1 but sold it to a mate to buy a midifighter, which was an excellent upgrade.
The X1 is a more solid unit for the simple fact that it uses the same two types of nobs across the entire thing and its a much smaller and simpler unit.

There are more than a few buttons on my S4 that stick down and an almost unusable channel fader. There are only 3 parts of the S4 that I use, if a jog wheel started having problems then that would mean that every part of the S4 that I use would have some sort of problem.

The S4 for me was a leap of faith, trusting in Native Instruments to supply me with a product that would not fail me. I was betrayed and instead left with an unreliable and far from perfect, fault riddled product that felt like shiny fresh off the line beta test hardware.

If you currently own Denon and are happy with that brands hardware then I'd recommend seriously considering staying with what you already know and trust.

[groovemixer]

Alex could it be you just got a lemon? Did you try returning the unit for a fix or replacement? Most every product sold in the market will have a ratio of lemons. I'm worried of a design flaw or cheap hardware that will last just past it's warranty. I've gotten burned with a Korg mixer but when I was reading up on it 90% of ppl were complaining about it. Sure enough I regret I spent a dime on it.

[sebastiannz]

I now remember that i've seen your posts about it. That should be a legit reason to request hardware replacement or repair from NI.

yeah it's not too much of a biggie I guess, and can't be bothered with the hassle of sending it all the way back to germany. I doubt they will send me a new one if only I was sasha eh..

[rishi]

No problems at all with mine. It's not a tank but the feel of all the components is way better than the Pioneer T-1 controller.

[Steve Zorilow]

No problems at all with mine. It's not a tank but the feel of all the components is way better than the Pioneer T-1 controller.

All I can say S4 Vs T1: S4 feels WAY better in MY opinion.

[groovemixer]

All I can say S4 Vs T1: S4 feels WAY better in MY opinion.

Yup! i agree, i was using the S4 and Pioneer side by side and man what a difference!

[aviatorman]

I do agree on the build quality of the denon, but the s4 is the best layout I've seen for traktor users.
If you are not gonna use traktor, then don't bother with the s4. NI is really a software based company, and they still need some room to grow in the hardware market.
On the othe hand, you have to be careful how you treat rubber and plastic.
If you want reliability on durable hardware then stick with1200's and a cheap and a cheap analog mixer.

[josh@firestorm]

Yup! i agree, i was using the S4 and Pioneer side by side and man what a difference!

this...!

[tomflynn]

My S4 has been rock solid, couldn't be happier. Nothing is loose, or wobbly or anything. It's just as you expect to be honest from N.I.
I've seen a few people say that they've had a couple of 'loose' knobs or faders, but then i guess like everything, if you mass produce a product like this you're going to get a few with problems.
On the whole it's a pure beast.

[Magikhands]

I've been very happy with the durability of my S4, no problems at all so far. However, I think this poll might be a bit premature, the S4 hasn't even been around for a year yet. Durability is about long term usability, something we can't even measure yet.