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MGR/DJ Catnap, MECHA Studios, Columbus USA « Roland DJ-1000 »
Published on 12/05/02 at 15:00Purchased it used from a friend 2 years ago, because I wanted to move from using a 19" multi-channel DJ mixer to a hiphop battle-style 2 channel mixer. Paid $450 for it in like new condition with a spare crossfader.
The Roland DJ-1000 has the same sound quality and fader "feel" of the famous Pioneer series of mixers. Extremely smooth faders, powerful EQ knobs, and a simple headphone cueing system make this an easy-to-use as well as dynamic mixer. It also comes with a DSP effects processor that is modelled after an analog synth, with 2 separate modulator blocks. It is also the only mixer ever made (other than the Roland DJ-2000) with a MIDI ouput.
The DSP processor sounds like nothing you've ever heard before in a DJ mixer! Totally unique and very wild, rivalled in my opinion only by the Electrix series of effects units. However, it takes a gentle hand and a lot of practice to use the DSP effectively - it's easy to go too far and mangle the sound.
Like a Pioneer mixer, the faders on the Roland are relatively fragile. Techno, House, and Trance DJ's will probably never have any issues, but turntablists will find that the faders fall apart after only 6 months or so of rigorous use/abuse. Once, one of the volume faders literally ripped out in my hand during a show! Of course, I was definately beating the heck out of them, but this would never happen with a Rane or Vestax battle mixer.
Also, the crossfader has no curve adjust. Instead, you have to buy an all new crossfader if you want to use a short-throw hiphop style scratch fader. To add insult to injury, the scratch fader began popping and crackling after only a week!
Other than the fader issues mentioned above, this unit is built extremely well. Its single MIC input is 1/4", has a large ground jack on the back, and has an internal power convertor so there's no wall-wart to lose. Its flouro-orange and black color scheme is easy to read, and after 2 years of use showed almost no dings or scratches. The mixer itself is sealed beneath the faceplate, so it survived having beer, soda, and sweat dripped on it many times.
The sound quality of this mixer is really impressive. Roland's technical expertise shows here, blowing away mainstays like Numark, Gemini, or even Vestax! This alone makes it worth its current price tag.
When this mixer debuted 3 years ago, its $800 price tag and untested design made it a risky investment, despite carrying the Roland name. Now these mixers are still available new for $350 online, and at that price they are definately worth it.
It is a great choice for DJ's who are relatively gentle with their mixing, and who crave Pioneer sound & feel without the Pioneer pricetag. The DSP unit is decent as far as FX go, but I think it would really shine as a MIDI controller for Grooveboxes or Synths... something NO OTHER mixer can do.
One word of caution would be that even though it looks like a hiphop battle mixer, IT IS NOT. The Roland DJ-1000 cannot stand up to the abuse of turntablism / scratch mixing and is not a good choice for those applications.
This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com
The Roland DJ-1000 has the same sound quality and fader "feel" of the famous Pioneer series of mixers. Extremely smooth faders, powerful EQ knobs, and a simple headphone cueing system make this an easy-to-use as well as dynamic mixer. It also comes with a DSP effects processor that is modelled after an analog synth, with 2 separate modulator blocks. It is also the only mixer ever made (other than the Roland DJ-2000) with a MIDI ouput.
The DSP processor sounds like nothing you've ever heard before in a DJ mixer! Totally unique and very wild, rivalled in my opinion only by the Electrix series of effects units. However, it takes a gentle hand and a lot of practice to use the DSP effectively - it's easy to go too far and mangle the sound.
Like a Pioneer mixer, the faders on the Roland are relatively fragile. Techno, House, and Trance DJ's will probably never have any issues, but turntablists will find that the faders fall apart after only 6 months or so of rigorous use/abuse. Once, one of the volume faders literally ripped out in my hand during a show! Of course, I was definately beating the heck out of them, but this would never happen with a Rane or Vestax battle mixer.
Also, the crossfader has no curve adjust. Instead, you have to buy an all new crossfader if you want to use a short-throw hiphop style scratch fader. To add insult to injury, the scratch fader began popping and crackling after only a week!
Other than the fader issues mentioned above, this unit is built extremely well. Its single MIC input is 1/4", has a large ground jack on the back, and has an internal power convertor so there's no wall-wart to lose. Its flouro-orange and black color scheme is easy to read, and after 2 years of use showed almost no dings or scratches. The mixer itself is sealed beneath the faceplate, so it survived having beer, soda, and sweat dripped on it many times.
The sound quality of this mixer is really impressive. Roland's technical expertise shows here, blowing away mainstays like Numark, Gemini, or even Vestax! This alone makes it worth its current price tag.
When this mixer debuted 3 years ago, its $800 price tag and untested design made it a risky investment, despite carrying the Roland name. Now these mixers are still available new for $350 online, and at that price they are definately worth it.
It is a great choice for DJ's who are relatively gentle with their mixing, and who crave Pioneer sound & feel without the Pioneer pricetag. The DSP unit is decent as far as FX go, but I think it would really shine as a MIDI controller for Grooveboxes or Synths... something NO OTHER mixer can do.
One word of caution would be that even though it looks like a hiphop battle mixer, IT IS NOT. The Roland DJ-1000 cannot stand up to the abuse of turntablism / scratch mixing and is not a good choice for those applications.
This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com