Looking to buy my first ever midi controller and I have narrowed it down to being between these options.
I like the look of the spin and already have traktor on my computer but I cant find anywhere that tells me wether the spin will work fine with this.
Otherwise for that option I would just have to spend the extra £35 for the typhoon.
The other option I was looking at was the Numark total package which comes with a soundcard and a couple of other bits which looks not bad.
i started with the total control. i didn’t really like it. i will say though that dj stormeagle has done a great job with his mapping making it a more useful controller. i used the numark with traktor pro and sold it to get the vci 100. it was definitely an upgrade and well worth it. the numark is a good way to start cause it’s very cheap and if you end up not liking it or sticking with it you aren’t out that much money. i’d say try to get to a guitar center or find friends that might have some gear for you to tinker with first to make the best choice.
I still think I like the Spin/Typhoon better. There’s talk of the Typhoon not working with AMD processors though so beware of that. Could just be hype though. If I were in the same situation i think I would try and get a hercules RMX. I’ve never used one, but most of the stuff I’ve read seem to say it’s a pretty good controller.
starting Dj here (as in trying to start and playing around with traktor/vdj/live demos a bit currently)
thinking about getting the typhoon as a starter controller to help with doing mixes and even be able to play live, would it be a good starting point? as far as i can tell from the pictures it doesnt have a huge effects section but that could easily be solved by getting lets say an X1 Kontrol for it, when i get good enough to actually use it
and a more general question: i dont really get how ppl can create mixes or dj a bit without some sort of controller? it seems so hard to try and do anything related to knobs or faders with just the mouse…or have i just missed a mode to kind of go ever your track multiple times and adding effect after effect to it?
I’ve seen that in Mixmeister Studio you can do stuff like that, so I’m unsure what to do to get started with creating mixes get Mixmeister (or sth similar) and then after getting somewhat good get a MIDI controller + traktor Pro…
has become a bit long but i’d be really glad if you guys could help me out
You’re dead right, you need a solid, dependable and friendly control surface to really enjoy digital DJing. I actually DJed in clubs etc with JUST a laptop for a number of years (because the controllers available were rubbish back then), but as soon as good controllers came on the market, I got one and have never looked back. Personally, I think the Vestax controllers are all good because of the touch sensitive high-quality jog wheels. Typhoon/Spin or VCI-100 if you have a bit more $$$, and you’ll really enjoy it… which is what it’s all about.
I used to use Oldfashioned’s maps, but then I just decided to tinker around with the maps on my own, (I was just too lazy to learn how to before). What I found was that you can use the Vestax Spin with the Vestax Typhoon’s map for traktor, so I just loaded the typhoon map, and made changes from there, now my vestax spin is solid stable, never had it crash once since I did this (knock on wood), not like it crashed very often before mind you, just pressing the play button or other LED buttons repetitively in a short period of time would freeze it up.
^ this EXACTLY! I have a vextas Spin, and have mapped it to my liking, but I’m now saving up for a Kontrol X1 to just use for effects and more mapping options. I honestly firmly believe that a Spin/ Typhoon controller coupled with a Kontrol X1 can rival most anything.
I have both the DJ IO and the Numark TC which both work awesome. The only problem I have with the DJ IO is that it is not as good as say a Audio 4 or 8 I would have liked the option of buying a 3 deck controller such as a CDJ or something like that but now I’ll have to upgrade the sound card first. Also the Numark TC does not have touch sensitive jog wheels which limits you only slightly. Really only thing I would use it for would have been to steal the VCI mapping and use it for effects with the touch on for effects.
I can’t comment on the other 2 as I have not used either of them
think i’ll get the Numark package with the TC, I/O soundcard, traktor LE and some headphones…400 CHF in switzerland which is pretty much the cheapest i can get and still have a decent starter setup, i’ll use stormeagles mapping for the TC.
later on i can still upgrade if i need/want something else and in the worst case i replace the TC with a VCI-100 SE and have lost like 240 CHF…
I really like the VCI-100 from what I have seen for it but for the main reason of this site and such an active development of the Mapping and the updates to the controller. I mean if it wasn’t for Stormeagle providing a starting point for my TC I could still be trying to map it to this day. I love his mapping I have changed quite a few things by this point and plan to change a whole lot more but that’s just because my needs are different. But I hope it works out great for you I can honestly say I think your going the right route here. Cheers.
hey, I got the Total Control Package about a year and a half ago and have loved it. Heres some pros and cons:
Cons:
No touch sensitive jog wheels (not a massive issue but can be annoying)
Comes with fairly dodgy headphones, so you may want to look into another pair
After about a year and a half of fairly frequent bedroom DJ use (ie three or so hours a week), two of the buttons have started to give me shifty performance and sometimes don’t work when pressed, but this could be a USB cable issue…)
Pros:
Despite the plastic build of the unit, the endless effects knobs actually feel really nice. Generally the knobs and sliders are pretty nice too (better than some CDJ’s ive felt before)
Comes with a soundcard which is really useful. The sound card gives you the capability to do up to four deck internal mixing and up to two decks external mixing. Also has a microphone through input with volume control.
Cheap for what you get!
Comes with Traktor LE which means you get a cheap upgrade to Traktor Pro when you’re ready.
Nice and small and portable.
It’s actually a pretty good unit for what you pay for. By the time it starts breaking down beyond use, I think you’d be ready to get another unit anyway. I’m currently working on a mapping for the TC which will include all the usual features plus hotcues, beatmashing buttons, effects presets, filter control etc.
Given just these 2 options, I would recommend the Typhoon over the Total Control, however… if you just save a little more money, you could just get a VCI-100SE. The extra functionality, plus the DJTT mapping will make it totally worth it.
get Mixmeister (or sth similar) and then after getting somewhat good get a MIDI controller + traktor Pro…