I’ve been thinking long and hard about a mixer upgrade, and i’ve looked into it partially, but i want some views from people who’ve played on both or owned one?
The options here are a DJM 600(second hand, 300 quid)
or a Denon x1600.
I play progressive house, minimal and deep techno/house, I love me some filters and I plan on getting an X1 at some point, but would like to keep a spare FX open on it so I like the idea of a dedicated filter… which realistically means Xone, and realistically is incredibly out of my price range. I like the idea of the X1600 as it would allow me to use my TT’s and sample decks on a seperate deck each due to the soundcard, but i COULD split my A4DJ into mono and run each channel mono into the DJM… oh the possibilities.
Opinions? Options? Any other suggestions? Very limited budget of around 300 pounds for a 4 Channel i know, and due to living in NI second hand deals are few and far between!
I’d go with the denon, I have a 600 myself, which gets regularly cleaned out and serviced every 6 months, but it still FEELS old, even though its in tip-top condition.
sometimes when you try to use FX the auto BPM counter is away up in the 200’s on a 130bpm song, so your FX are out,
Plus, if you play out, good chance your going to be on an 800, great! you get to play with dedicated filters, now go home and try it, oops, cant
I would say try and save for a xone 42 and an EFX500 that way you get FX and filters.
Yeah when i played on a 600 the other week I didnt touch the FX, used all Traktor controlled with the guys X1, which is probably what i’d do if i had it, I would love dedicated filters though… do you reckon there’ll be a surge in 42 sales when the DB2 starts to really pick up pace for xmas?
Hands down the x1600. You might even try to find a used x1700. But besides my S4, this is a mixer that I use quite often and I enjoy it. Midi mappable & Traktor certified.
Feature for feature and build quality, that Denon DNX1600 will run circles on all Pioneer mixer but one. It also has a built in sound card for Traktor and will work with VDJ. The MIDI capabilities is by far the best and again will run circles around Pioneer mixers.
A used 1600 would probably cost you about $750 US as well but if you find a 92 for at and you don’t already have a sound card you’ll have to figure that cost into it. As far as channel routing I have my sample decks both going through one channel on the mixer. The1600 has a pretty decent sounding filter, but they’re not dedicated per deck. You can do it on multiple decks, but it’s the same across all of them.
I don’t think either of them compare to the xone:92. But out of the two, I’d pick the Denon. The Poineer is old and noisy…and feels like a pioneer…which is to say that it feels almost good enough to bother with.
My actual suggestion is to try and find a place to order a Vestax 004xl (the fx version if you really need effects). They’re well-built and sound good and don’t break the bank…I’d expect around 250 quid if you can find a dealer that has them in the UK. It should easily outlast your quest to save up for a xone:92; I think it’s hands-down a better mixer than the 600; and it’s cheaper than the x1600 by a good bit.
I’d say the Denon, I’ve got the predecessor (the x1500S) and it feels great. Sure, you don’t have the advanced filter controls of the Xone:92 but I like the feel of the knobs and faders a bit more on the Denon compared to the Xone.
