Minus the platters, which are decent, it has no other benefits. I don’t think it fills a gap at all. There are plenty of other better and cheaper options rather than carrying around 1200’s vs. an NS7 just for vinyl control. I think it was a pretty feeble attempt at serving a market with your eyes and ears closed. My $.02
I would go with vci-300 over this for sure. Yea the platters are the only plus.
+1
I agree with DJPhaidon. If it’s there to fill the gap between midi controllers and vinyl i did’t do its job. Effects and other features are missing. It should have more knobs IMO.
Can you imagine trying to carry that beast around at an airport! >_<
There are a lot of good points in this thread but at the same time, on topic of effects… This controller is designed with Serato Itch as the preferred software. Itch does not feature any on command effects, thus the Vestax VCI 300 doesn’t feature effects either so the effects really aren’t too much to be considered. I’ve played around with the NS7 a little and now own a VCI300 and everything considered the 300 is more practical but the NS7 is a great controller (however it is extreeemely expensive.)
it’s the new minimal controller thing..less knobs is cool. 
back to basics again..
have you seen the new Numark non- eq retro mixers?
I believe many of the members here at DJTT are into the more electronic genres of club music. So it’s easy to see why there are a lot of negative opinions on how the NS-7 or VCI-300 doesn’t “fill the gap” between controllerism and DVS solutions…
Has anyone ever considered that the NS-7 and VCI-300 may offer something for turntablists and not controllerists? From what I’ve seen and heard… Theses controller because of their close integration with the software provide much better performace for those who, for example, like to scratch or juggle beats… i.e. Hop-Hop DJ’s…
Many can say that the NS-7 and VCI-300 don’t add anything as far as performance goes because it doesn’t have effects… But we have to remember that there is a difference in opinion as how to define “performace” when it comes to turntablists vs. controllerists…
I like my VCI-100… but I miss the ability to perform more complex scratches and juggling on the jog wheels… Yeah you can use queue points etc etc to juggle but any hip-hop DJ would argue it doesn’t give you the same flexibility as vinyl style juggling…
The VCI-100 did NOT get the basics of a turntable down… it did however open the door for controllerism and digital DJing… I believe the NS-7 and the VCI-300 are steps in catering to DJ who want turntable control but want the portability of digital DJing. (Yes, the NS-7 is big… but have you ever tried to carry 4-5 milk crates up a flight of stairs to the DJ booth? I’ll take the NS any day…)
I used to carry 2 or 3 crates and i DJ Pro bag to my gigs, and it was a pain!
TBH the NS7 is a great piece of gear but it failed in one dept…size! The NS7 would require too much dj booth space, and in most places you have very little or none to play with. I cant hate on what the NS7 brings to the table, and Im in love with the motorize platters.
I think the size issue is a very important factor. Most clubs have a mixer and 2 decks provided and have limited space for extra stuff. So unless the club is going to use this as their generic equipment and provide all the goodies to make it work, its not practical. I prefer something with a smaller footprint and can take advantage of the software that I use.
I have an NS7.
I like it. Can’t wait to see it maped to traktor scratch pro.
currently i route the itch audio from the ns7 booth output into one of my A8dj inputs (5/6) and into deck 3/4 in traktor for effects…
i’m a bedroom dj, so i don’t care about space and carrying it around…
i plan on possibly setting it up like this for future 4 deck support in traktor…
Hey Corp, have you tired mapping it to traktor pro? I would love to get my hands on one and try it on my own.
Dj Quartz has apparently done most of the hard work and has mailed it off to NI for possible inclusion..
info here:
http://www.native-instruments.com/forum/showthread.php?t=79010
wow, just went thru the thread on NI, mr quartz put some work in.
Please search search for a previous thread before posting - merged
Numark’s NS7
Sorry if I’m reposting old news, but I haven’t been able to find much about the NS7 on the boards. Here’s my story:
I DJ parties for fraternitites and sororities around Vanderbilt (student and an ex-frat-social-chair), and have recently been asked to be the stage DJ for a local rap group. I’ve contemplated upgrading my hardware for a while, and I think it’s about time as I’ve pretty much been sliding by with Virtual DJ, a junky sound card, crappy controllers here and there (read: x-session pro) and a mouse (this means doing most of my remixing in the bedroom and waiting to drop it live, not exactly ideal).
So I’m searching for a pretty serious setup, and the NS7 is looking awfully appealing right now. It’s definitely expensive, but I’m going to have to borrow some capital up front anyways so might as well make it worth it. It’s solidly built, decently portable, has a built in sound card (not the best I realize, but I guarantee it will get the job done), and controls with the feel of vinyl but the convenience of digital music. Understand that I’m not looking for reasons why the VCI-100 is better; I generally understand the differences, and I’m in the market for a pretty boss-hog control system with (decent) scratching capabilities that’s really gonna impress people.
I looked for a long time into getting a Serato or similar time-code setup (I like the old school roots, and I certainly don’t have the time or money to build up a crate collection) but I just feel like there’s a lot of things that could go wrong if I took that route, with all the different components I’d need to buy combined with my relative lack of expertise about tables/mixers and no mentor of any kind. I’m willing to spend (at the worst) a couple hundred dollars more for a single controller.
My concerns are this: Serato Itch seems to work very well, but is also very stripped-down function-wise (least that’s what I’ve gathered). Is it possible to use the NS7 with other programs (sounds like the VCI-300 can be mapped with Traktor), or can I pretty much get what I need done in Itch? I’ll still do most my big mixes in Acid/ProTools/etc. but I do want some good live remixing functionality; will I have to buy separate components for effects and samples? Also does the NS7 really work as well as it should? Definitely don’t wanna waste $1200.
Sorry for my life story, but if anyone else has used the NS7 or has any perspective to offer on it, it’d be much appreciated.
Sorry for the short answer, but the ns-7 can be mapped in traktor, though not everything works yet.(if I seem to remember ir right)
From what I can tell, the NS-7 is good for scratching and basic mixing, but not much else. If you’re just going to be playing some basic background music and maybe scratching, then the NS-7 would be good for you, especially if you want something impressive looking while you’re on stage.
If I had the money and didn’t already like using traktor, I would probably get an NS-7. As it is, I’m saving for a xone 3d.
Thanks gentlemen. Sounds like I might want the NS7 for some ballin stage performances, and perhaps a separate setup for serious remixing and producing.
Anyone else know anything bout the NS7?
i like mine.
waiting for traktor support, which should be right around the corner acording to this Skratchworx article: http://www.skratchworx.com/news3/comments.php?id=1318
“Native Instruments is excited to be working on compatibility with the NS7 for Traktor full versions. Numark will be demoing this support at PLASA and expects a public release later this year.”
I like it, it’s great for scratching and having access to one’s cue points right below the platter is fantastic.
lack of knobs/buttons to assign to effects is saddening, but understandable to keep a 1:1 ratio in Itch (and sell effect control units later down the line at an extra cost)…
once Traktor platter control is working, i plan on using both it and my vci-100 for a 4 deck setup with the vci controlling the effects…
if you plan on carrying it out to gigs, it is heavy - not as heavy as 2 techs + mixer, but heavy, i think about 85lbs. Plus factor in the weight of the carrying case (which i recommend , you don’t want to bang up your $1200+ investment…)…