Kinda my first official post/thread. I’ve been following DJTT for some time now and have found some amazing articles and generally good people here.
I would love your inputs and ideas on my venture to create a light, easy to carry, Traktor compatible setup.
A little backstory about me – I started Djing in NYC in 2008 and my first controller was the Hercules RMX which at the time, for the price, was a monster. I’ve played all over NYC at various events, clubs and even took it to Europe.
I upgraded to the A&H XoneX which turned out a very poor piece of business, as the controller was later discontiued, I would assume because of its many faults. It currently sitting at home, collecting dust, while I figure out how to repair the constant power-spiking issues.
In the mean time, I reverted back to the Hercules which is near the end of it’s life, having served me well and I do rout the sound through my Audio 2 soundcard to take some burden off the RMX.
I have recently undertaken a change in my musical policy and going back to the spark that ignited the fire back in the day – deep/groovy house. Unfortunately, I often stumble upon venues that don’t offer much in terms of equipment (still not at the point where I get booked strictly at clubs and ready venues) and the rmx+audio2 work well for being able to hookup to speakers directly.
My venture is now to find a decent, light and traktor-friendly setup.
Right off the bat I have in mind:
(my existing) Macbook
(my existing) Audio 2 soundcard – open to an upgrade.
Midi Fighter Twister – to be used and mapped as a mixer to control deck sliders within Traktor as well as EQ faders and possibly effects
Kontrol X1 – to control all other aspects of Traktor: transport, play, browse, etc.
USB Hub to connect everything together, including an external HHD – something I will try to move away from soon. Thinking about a cloud solution where I can source music on the spot and download based on the event.
Please share your opinions and ideas. My biggest challenge is being able to stay in a comfortable price range but to also get all the functionality possible, and of course mapping everything properly without overlapping or mapping issues, as I am not too familiar with mapping.
I have a MF Twister and use it in the step sequencer mode. I have briefly experimented with the various mixer mappings, and been generally unsatisfied.
I have two X1’s, one Mk1 and one Mk2. Both are nice. But I do notice the lack of channel sliders and EQ.
A A&H Xone K2 would provide 4 channel faders, and EQ (or other) controls, as well as a soundcard. That might be a good addition to the setup - and I would prefer this even to a Twister for a compact setup.
My idea was to get a mapping tool and spend some time mapping out the twister myself to server as a rotary mixer, not too sure if it’s a suicidal task lol. The rotary function on the twister can control volume on each deck, as opposed to sliders, but I guess that depends on each individual person’s preference.
The X1 I feel is essentially the same as the Xone K2, sans sliders.. it seems like in their efforts to compete, companies sacrifice functionality.
Truthfully, me too. However as I mentioned previously, I can’t always take advantage of venues that provide you with a pair of CDJs and a solid mixer so you can just go in and stick your music and go straight analog.. as much as I would love that.
X which turned out a very poor piece of business, as the controller was later discontiued, I would assume because of its many faults. It currently sitting at home, collecting dust, while I figure out how to repair the constant power-spiking issues.