Get an S4. Everyone loves it. If you find the need to use CDJs or timecode, you can simply add it to your setup. 
Dude the s4 is awesome but clearly not what he’s after.
I have been using VDJ for about three months now but will definitely try the scratch out. I want software as I’m not good with organizing. Right now what I’m thinking is the traktor audio 6 interface, traktor scratch 2 on my mac, and a Numark X5 mixer (I’ve heard good things about them)
And is it possible to loop and sample with the time coded setup (other than manually)
The dangers of having ‘a big budget’ when you’re starting out is that you have the capability to spend all this money on DJing only to find yourself overwhelmed by the complexity of everything that you buy.
Now it’s all well and good to have a sudden urge to begin DJing and jump straight into it but if you’re going to invest that much money into it to begin with they of course it’s ‘high risk’ in the sense that if you find out that DJing is not for you, then you’re gonna be stuck with all this expensive equipment that you’re not gonna use. Having fancy equipment is all well and good but if you don’t have the drive to learn and practice then all of what you spent is going to be for nothing.
I recommend that you start off small with a beginner midi controller like I have. They’re really fun and effective and great for getting the hang of things with. You’ll learn pretty quickly what everything is, how it all works and ties in and you’ll discover your own style as you learn. If you have too much to play with then it’s gonna overwhelm you, confuse you and demotivate you.
Start off simple. The risks are smaller, and really, the benefits will be greater.
I’ve got:
-DJ-Tech I-Mix Club edition Midi controller. http://djtechpro.com/product_detail.asp?product_id=500&cate_id=73&subcate_id=125
-NI Audio 2 DJ sound card
-Sennheiser HD205 headphones
-Some basic speakers.
-Traktor
As far as controllers go, stuff like these would be good for you:
http://djtechpro.com/product_detail.asp?cate_id=63&subcate_id=105&product_id=242 (basically the same as mine)
A Traktor kontrol s1 http://www.native-instruments.com/#/en/products/dj/traktor-kontrol-x1/
Or any of the i-mix’s by Dj Tech would be great.
You have no idea how much time I waste just sitting in my chair playing with it and experimenting with different effects and techniques. As I learn I do begin to understand the limitations of the equipment I have and how other controllers of hardware could benefit a DJ, but at the beginner level you simply don’t need it and won’t need it for a good while. Having a simpler midi controller like mine won’t hold you back until you start to get really good.
Fuck that shit man. If you want decks get decks. No point buying a controller just to chuck it out later to get the decks you could have got in the first place.
edit: whoa that sounded offensive. sorry, im gunna go try sleep again.
btw, just so you know if you buy traktor scratch duo you get the program, vinyl, cables and the audio 6. (you listed the software and the soundcard separately and I just wanna make sure you don’t buy the same thing twice by mistake).
Yes, traktor scratch duo gives you control over 2 decks and 2 sample players so you can mix two tracks and then have 8 additional loops/samples playing in sync with them.
So you want CDJs, midi controller and turntables? Not being rude, but do you actually know and have an understanding of what you want to achieve and where you are heading?
I’d choose to go with one route. Everyone is different, and prefers to use a different format for mixing. Personally I use laptop and controllers, then CDJs if I have to, and even though I started on vinyl 13/14 years ago, I haven’t used vinyl for ages now, mostly because technology has moved on so there is no need unless it’s the individuals preference.
It’s supply and demand. They are hands down the best CDJs, whatever anyone’s personal opinions may be/resistance against Pioneer. They are the best CDJs all round, and that is why people are willing to pay for them, hence why Pioneer can push their prices up abov everyone else and still get the money for them.
For your money, you could go down the MIDI and CDJ route easily. You could probably get something like a DDM4000 mixer (which can be used as a standard mixer or MIDI mapped to control Traktor), a pair of Pioneer CDJ400s (which again can be used as standard CDJs or MIDI mapped for use in Traktor, Traktor Pro 2 and a Audio2DJ.
That’d be a pretty decent setup for a beginner, with decent quality products and give you the chance to use controllerism or CDJs.
Also, a better quality sound card will give you lower latency, which would be essential if you wanted to scratch!
You can still waste money even if you’ve got lots so my advice is to go for a budget controller (with jogs which will help you when it comes to CDJs) + software combo that you can replace when you outgrow it. IF you outgrow it.
I’m sorry to say that if you want to be a DJ, you’re gonna have to leard to be good at organising. Even haphazard DJs have an organised method in they madness!
Whether it’s organising your tracks, planning and organising sets, cue points, effect banks etc etc. No getting away from it I’m afraid if you want to be a DJ!
EH I wouldn’t go for the 400s or the 4 channel. There’s better CDJs for the money I feel and most people won’t ever touch more than 2 channels, 3 channels at a push. But that’s just my opinion, so yeah..
Right now after doing a bit more research I think I will try doing CDJs, the added features and ease of use sounds good to start to start off with, and I think it is better to learn without the display.[quote=“MrPopinjay, post:32, topic:24551, username:MrPopinjay”]
EH I wouldn’t go for the 400s or the 4 channel. There’s better CDJs for the money I feel and most people won’t ever touch more than 2 channels, 3 channels at a push. But that’s just my opinion, so yeah..
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What would you recommend for CDJs and mixers then?
I’m not really into CDJs to be honest. The pioneers are nice and a safe bet so you certainly could get them. Personally I think the reloop RMPs look good, I think I’d most likely get them. But like I said, i’ve not really done my research so I dunno.
Are you going to get traktor to go with your CD players? If you are there’s no point getting a mixer with effects since the ones in traktor will be better. I’d also go for 2 channels rather than 4 unless you really wanna have those extra channels to mix with.
I’d just get any old shitty cheap mixer tbh and then save up for something really sweet.
I think to start out I would get just the cdj’s and go manually and then get traktor later if I want it. And yeah I don’t want 4 channels, maybe three but prob just 2. for headphones, I have a pair of pioneer HDJ 2000, would they be good for mixing?
Dude hell yes, they are quality headphones!
The Ecler Nuo 3.0 is probably the best 3 channel mixer I can think of. Doesn’t have any effects though. I dunno, just check out lots of reviews and see what takes your fancy.
I also like the NOX404 or VMX303. I’m working on a music collection but still having problems. I think the thing is for me I listen to a little of each so I don’t have one definitive style that I know everything of. What styles are the best to play in clubs?
Play whatever you want to play and then try and get involved with nights that play those genres. It’s more important that you like what you’re doing first. For general club music rather than general music nights I guess lots of house + electro + top 40 remixes are good…? I dunno I never go to clubs unless someone I wanna see is playing.
Make sure your mp3s are either 320kbps mp3 files or .flac or .wav files to ensure quality.
Yeah the NOX looks cool. What’s the VMX? I googled it and got nothing.
http://www.behringer.com/EN/Products/VMX300.aspx and I really like club music. Something about the energy involved gets to me, and I’ve never been in a club before due to age restrictions (I’m 17) I think it is mostly house + hard dance plus top songs
That sounds like an ideal selection of music for clubs to me. Behringer has a fairly poor reputation and bpm detector things are lame ( 
) so I’d probably go for the numark m4 if you were after an entry level 3 channel mixer. Why do you want a 3 channel mixer anyway? You’re not going to be able to beat match 3 decks when you start and most people tend not to use more than 2 decks. I could be wrong but I don’t think most clubs have 3 CDJs in one booth either.
I’m just playing devils advocate, do whatever you want bro.