Vestax 08 is clearly better than the 707. 707 is a mid-line scratch mixer, 08 is high end and is up there with any 2 channel mixers. The good things are the cut and curve control on every fader is really good, nearly full control, the only mixer with better options is the 909 which gives you pretty much 100% control over the cut and curve settings. The sound quality is good, on the higher end, the x-fader is solid and smooth… it’s not quite an innofader or Rane fader maybe but it’s barely worse. Upfaders feel nice but they’re analog if I recall so they may need replaced eventually however I used mine a bunch and had no issues. The effects loop is one of the best, mainly because it has 2 independent loops that both have great control. The EQ is sick because it has 2 settings, 1 for isolation, and 1 that gives you more boost, so you can choose either depending on what you’re looking to do. The only draw back is maybe that it has a gimmicky matrix option that is pretty useless… it turns your mixer into a 1 channel mixer, and both channel control 1 side… not that useful, lol.
But yea Pioneer 707 has a good fader cut/curve/durability wise, but it feels really clunky/heavy. The upfaders are kinda wack, and the sound quality on the mixer is mehh and gets worse at higher volumes for some reason. I’d avoid it really.
Pioneer 909 is the 707 with digital upfaders, better control, built in effects, and improved sound quality (no issues at high volume). Probably top 3 two channel mixers that aren’t DVS mixers. Kind of unlikely you’ll find one in your budget but not unheard of.
Rane 56 is pretty much just solid/classic. It doesn’t do anything crazy/different from any other mixers, it just has no real flaws/draw backs. Faders are all non-contact, sound quality is among the best for 2-channel non-DVS mixers, super durable (except for the old power supply, but new ones have no issue). Effects loop is on point. Whereas a lot of 2-channel mixers try to do stuff to be different, Rane just focused on the basics but making everything solid. So yea, the reason it’s hyped up is because it has no “flaws” whereas basically most other companies drop the ball at least a tiny bit. On the used market they’re probably 550 on avg but I’ve seen them for 400, so probably near the top of your price range.
Ecler Hak 360. Super slick fader, EQs are nice (although they’re horizontal which some people don’t like). Build quality and sound quality are both top notch. They dropped the ball super hard on the FX loop for both the 360 and 380 though. I think the problem is different for both, one doesn’t have a proper wet/dry control, and the other you can only put effects on both channels or none. So great mixer aside from the effects loop, which could be annoying if you plan on using it. Also it’s a bit more rare than Vestax/Rane so it might be more expensive or at least pretty hard to find used.
It kinda depends whether this mixer is short-term or long-term. For long-term The Vestax 08 and Rane 56 are both great mixers, and probably the top 2 I’d go for on your budget used. I know you don’t wanna hear it but Rane is gonna be a safer bet used, Vestax are more likely to have some issue, but as long as you get to check it out/test it you should be fine.
If you plan on getting DVS in the near future, I might consider going with that new DJ Tech mixer that is $200 with a mini-innofader, then saving up for a used TTM 57 or a new Traktor Z2 which both aren’t that far out of your budget for a mixer, and even better value when you consider you don’t need to buy an external box once you have them. Personally I think DVS mixers are the bee’s knees and basically any mixer with DVS built in is better than the best non-DVS two channel mixer… except maybe the 909 which has an edge purely because the effects are so good.
. Don’t think I’m going to win this one but I think I improved on my last year’s set so that’s all that really matters.