Equipment question...CDJ 200's vs. Serato

[rickyricardo]

Sup all --

Me and a friend of mine are going to be launching an internet radio show sometime in the near future, and I had a quick question about which one of these I should add to my setup.

After many years of holding onto my purist tendencies, it's pretty obvious that I'm going to have to go the digital route...especially if I want to start downloading MP3's and playing some of the dubs that are given to me.

Anyway...funds are definitely tight, so I've got maybe about $500-$600 that I'm going to put into this, and my options seem to be picking up 2 CDJ 200's, or Serato. I've pretty much got the pros and cons broken down this way

CDJ 200's
Pros: I'd get good practice w/ playing CD's (never really learned at length before), and I'd be able to take my CD's (almost) anywhere when playing out.
Cons: I gotta keep burning CD's....

Serato:
Pros: "Vinyl" feel...no need to keep burning CD's
Cons: Limited to my desktop for now...I don't have a suitable laptop to run it on...and even if I did, it's kinda bulky to take around to gigs.


So give me some advice, dammit!

[roqqert]

try both out in the shop and think about what would be most logical thing too have... if you wanna take your laptop to a gig or just hundreds burned cd's. do you wanna vinyl or cd feeling while youre turning etc.etc.etc.etc.dillema.etc.etc.etc.

[jolly wailer]

I always felt that one of the cons of Serato was that it kind of locked you into buying this software/dongle (hardware) package that only they sell...

kind of a sneaky marketing strategy - you are conscribed into this large investment just to run the system...


seeing as you are limited to 600$ and dont have a laptop I think you answered your own question... you won't want to be toting a desktop to gigs...


rock 1 cdj with your vinyl tables.. seems reasonable right?

[wascal]

Have you had a look at M-Audio Torq Exponent?

http://www.maudio.co.uk/products/en_gb/ ... -main.html

demo vid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUIi1u5OJF4

I want one

[auan]

Surely mixing mp3s can't be that intensive. All you're doing is playing two audio files at once, maybe with some EQ, FX and such, but we're not talking Reaktor here.

Point is, wouldn't a cheap, few-years-old laptop do you just fine? And then hunt down a copy of Traktor v1 or whatever on ebay? My guess is you'd end up well below your 600 quid budget.

[auan]

Sorry, 600 bucks.

[thinking]

If it was me, Serato I reckon. We use it for our radio show and it's superb. You can always pick up a cheapo lappie at a later date, and it really is such a delight compared to mixing CDs.

[__________]

i'm after m-audio torq. serato seems to be a rip off to me. fuck cd decks too.

[dirty]

I use torq for my show, very reliable and much cheaper than serato. You could get that, use it with your desktop and save your pennies for a lappy at a later date.

I not knocking serato, its the original digital/vinyl solution but times have changed and you pay a premium because its serato!

[i978]

CD Decks are good and all. But Serato (or sim) is just soooo much more fun!