Can't decide between XDJ-RX and DDJ-RX

DJ Life & Community General Discussion
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Can’t decide between XDJ-RX and DDJ-RX

Hi guys,

I currently own a cheaper controller that is linked to Serato on my laptop. My intentions are now to go higher-end and invest in something that will be better in the long run. Based on my budget and after long hours of reading/YouTubing, I narrowed it down to 2: the XDJ-RX and the DDJ-RX. I find it really hard to make a decision and I am hoping you guys can help.

I understand that going with either option will oblige me to switch to Rekordbox, but I am actually looking forward to it. From what I’ve heard, RB is pretty mature right now and really stable.

Basically, my goal is to have a setup that mimics a club environment as much as possible, without having to pay the high price of CDJs + DJM. I am looking for something portable as I sometimes bring my setup in the train with me to mix at friends’ parties.

I realise that the DDJ has 4 decks EQ control, but I am actually very happy with using just 2. Having the option in case is obviously still nice and it does feel more “pro”… The screen on the XDJ makes me envious and I believe would make me almost feel like having CDJs. For the laptop part, I do not mind having to use mine with the DDJ, but not having to unplug my computer and move it across my apartment to mix would be a plus. There are a few things that annoy me here and there on each model, but nothing of great importance.

Which one would you buy or recommend?

2

Unfortunately I do not have experience with either, but it seems like you have kind of answered your question several times over. The XDJ-RX very closely resembles the look and feel to CDJs, and you don’t mind two decks.

I use a laptop also and I prefer not to take it out. I understand what you mean by wanting to protect it when traveling, and the XDJ would remedy that too. I have also had my macbook crash on a live set, and its so jarring trying to recover. A nice flight case and some flash drives and you should be set. It’s just over 17 pounds, so not too heavy, but significantly pricier than the DDJ-RX.

I’m sure you knew all of this, but from what I gathered from the post, you may be leaning one way and need an extra nudge. I envy your dilemma, because they’re both great pieces of hardware. Good luck on the search!

3

A month ago I bought a DDJ-RX.
Quite satisfied with the controller itself, upgraded from a Denon MC3000, so quite an improvement.

You should ask yourself, Do you want to play without your laptop?
Then go for the XDJ-RX.

What I do want to warn you about, currently Rekordbox ain’t that stable.
You should take a look at the Pioneer forums, there are quit a few people complaining.

My biggest issue right now is that the BPM on the decks isn’t accurate enough.
The BPM on the decks is showed with 1 decimal. When you manually beatmatch you can’t find out if a track is at 128.10 or 128.19.
Tracks tend to drift because of this, and you’ll find yourself constantly compensating.

I know this can be fixed though, it’s software, but I thought you wanted to know.
The controller itself (DDJ-RX) im pretty pleased about.

4

I always choose 4 channels over 2 channels.

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I think it might be best considering the DDJ-SX2 as a comparison point rather than the DDJ-RX for the stability issues Rekordbox is facing (you can’t expect software that is only a few months old to have most of the quirks ironed out compared to the big cats). The SX2 can still work with RekordboxDJ if you wanted to but you do have the backup plan of being able to revert to Serato and having mappings for Traktor/VirtualDJ as well.

I don’t doubt the DDJ-RX is a wonderful device but being an early adopter bite back and it’s not the most fun plan after a $1k investment.

If you prefer being laptop free at the expense of some extra features that you might or might not use then the XDJ will make more sense and you’ll already have your USB sticks ready to use on any modern CDJ.

6

Best solution: Whichever meets your needs and has more channels, go with it.

7

I would go laptop free, good to get used to using usb. Plus xdj rx is quite portable and nice to not have to bring the laptop

8

Problem with RX is you can’t easily ‘search’ from a large collection on a hard drive connected to it.

9

yes you can. You simply connect the RX to the computer and use Rekordbox as a search engine.

10

Why would anyone choose DDJ-RX over the DDJ-SX(2) when RX works only with RekordboxDJ and SX works with Serato+RekordboxDJ? Is the price different? Blue LED’s are more cool?

11

I bought the DDJ-RX back in december and it’s genuinely brilliant. The 4 channels is what swayed me towards it over the XDJ-RX. The 1 decimal point problem on Rekordbox that was mentioned doesn’t really bother me to much. It’s a bit like when using a DVS, you just have to keep on top of the beats edging away from each other gradually.