Denon sc2900 or pioneer cdj 900?

The S2 plus Traktor beats both models…

I agree that out of the 2 the Denon is by far the better choice. However if you compare the workflow of the S2 (sans the smaller jogs) with the workflow of the Denon (without laptop) and try to do the same things. The S2 with Traktor wins in how easy it is to achieve things.

Now of course if you get the matching Denon mixer (at least the X1600) network the 2900s with the mixer and use the whole setup with Traktor (the X1600 is Traktor Scratch certified) then this is a totally different matter and the setup owns.
However that setup would be extremely more expensive than for example a 4Trak or DDJ-SX and apart from being able to use CDs, I fail to see the main advantage that would make me want to spend double the price over the highend controllers.

Of course if you are willing to shelf out that kind of money and this floats your boat better, then the 2900+X1600 combo is hard to beat and I would largely prefer that setup to a Pioneer setup.

The only thing that could slightly sway me are the 3900s honestly, but then the NS7 II is in the pipeline and again I will be saving a lot of money for a sailing holiday getting the NS7 II instead of the 3900s plus mixer.

Chuck van Eekelen, post: 41787, member: 2756 wrote: Without having to use a laptop, I think the Denon kit has an ABSOLUTE advantage over the S2, namely thatbit can still play music without a laptop lol.

I do not count yet. My old Macbook from 2008 is beat up, has scratches all over, stickers all over, the keyboard is hardly readable and it has yet to disappoint or crash in a gig… Of course I have an iPod hooked up always as a fallback, but I have never used it (except for that Abba Megamix bathroom break at weedings when I do not want to set Autoplay in Serato…)

Terry_42, post: 41788, member: 1843 wrote: I do not count yet. My old Macbook from 2008 is beat up, has scratches all over, stickers all over, the keyboard is hardly readable and it has yet to disappoint or crash in a gig… Of course I have an iPod hooked up always as a fallback, but I have never used it (except for that Abba Megamix bathroom break at weedings when I do not want to set Autoplay in Serato…)

LOL, I have had several breakdowns over the years, including a laptop cooler that stopped working in the middle of a set. Took all of 5 mins for the laptop to overheat, shut down and refuse service until it cooled down enough, upon restart it would crash in 5 mins again. I was soooo happy with my old trusty cd players and box of cds.

Just that it hasn’t happened, doesn’t mean that it can’t or won’t. It is like driving a car. If you drive 5.000 kilometers a year on the highway, you may never experience a flat tire or one of those nice red lights that tells you to park it on the side of the road. The newer your car, the smaller the chance too.

But if you drive 40.000 kilometers a year on all kinds of roads and conditions and not always in the newest cars, you WILL almost certainly, experience more than one flat and a few breakdowns.

Even with the chances being a lot smaller with newer and well maintained cars, no guarantee you won’t drive away from the garage and hit a flat. So, every car still comes with a spare tire (my preferred option, like having two cd players for backup), a bring-me-home 80km an hour spare (the equivalent of a stand-by iPad with DJ software) or a foam repair spray (like having an iPod with one mix on it for backup).

I cannot imagine playing a wedding and having to tell the bride and groom that hey, I’ll be playing a pre-recorded mix, because my gear is shot.

Call me paranoid, but backup rules, 😀

Greetinx,
C.

Adding my opinion, as is my way…….

I would go for the Denons, they work as controllers for Traktor in midi hybrid mode and do the job for a hell of a lot less money than the Pioneers. A DJ friend of mine convinced his employers to get the 2900’s where he has his residency and he loves them.

If you read all the online reviews on the 2900s (including Phil’s) you’ll see that one of the things they all comment on is how “workflow-compatible” they are with a CDJ900/2000 setup. If you can use the 2900s, then you can use the CDJs no problem.

I’d say a 5- to 10-minute learning curve first time your are on the CDJs, tops.

And for the mixer, only the FX channel requires a bit of a change obviously. Other than that it is primarily a 4-channel mixer. Gain, filters, crossfaders, EQ, mic, headphone cue, the usual.

Greetinx,
C.

The only thing that is different on pioneers is the layout and that you can prepare songs in recordbox.
If the club already has a Nexus setup you can simply use Traktor (in HID mode) and go on.
For the layout simply go to the Pioneer website and look at their high-res images and in 5min you’ll know what to look for compared to the denons.
I have not owned CDJs in like 3 years (sold em all) and have no problem playing on the new nexus in clubs. With a little experience on the denons (or any good controller) you will never have a problem playing on CDJs, especially Nexus which have quite OKish waveform displays and even a sync button…