The best DJ Gear from Pioneer!
Throughout the years, Pioneer has established themselves to be among the best and the most in-demand brands in the DJ industry. Sure, there are a lot of other great and competitive brands out there, but Pioneer is without a doubt, a trailblazer. In fact, according to a recent Global DJ Census, it shows that the brand has about 70% of the total market in this industry.
The company caters to “every step of your journey” when it comes to the DJ market. They have models for complete beginners, super-casual DJs, and even the most expensive pro kit. And for those DJs who want to use a “standalone gear” or just play around with their music on their phones, they can guarantee a gear out of Pioneer.
Pioneer DJ was a bit behind the times when it came to DJ controllers. It released controllers for Traktor (the DDJ-T1) and Serato (the DDJ-S1) first before it had its own Rekordbox DJ software. But it caught up quickly and now has a wide range of products that make it the leader in that market as well.
But first, what is Rekordbox?
Pioneer DJ makes its digital DJ software called Rekordbox. It has two parts: Performance mode and Export mode. For the export mode: it’s possible to get your music ready to be exported to USB and played on Pioneer DJ standalone or all-in-one equipment after exporting it. Meanwhile, the performance mode is the same as those of the Serato, Traktor, and VirtualDJ software.
While the “free” version is great, and most of Pioneer DJ’s controllers work with it, there are also paid “Creative” and “Pro” levels that can be subscribed to by professionals who want extra features, especially to use Pioneer DJ’s fairly new cloud library features.
With that, let’s talk more about the available DJ gear of Pioneer. Check it out below.
DJ Players and Decks
In case you don’t know, Pioneer pioneered the existence of Compact Disc Jockey or CDJs. Now, we’re gifted with a lot of options from the brand alone with its wide range of modular decks and players that can be plugged into its mixers to make a DJ setup. These include turntables, samplers, and FX units that are commonly used in clubs. A few examples of these are the CDJ-3000, XDJ-700, and PLX-500.
PLX-500: Pioneer DJ’s less expensive turntable for people who can’t afford the PLX1000s.
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XDJ-700: The XDJ-700 is a small, light standalone media player that does the basics. It’s a little older, but it still does a great job.
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CDJ-3000: The CDJ-3000 replaces the CDJ-2000, which was the standard for five years. In most club setups, these are often used by DJs.
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All-in-one Systems
Pioneer has always been a leader when it comes to innovation in the DJ world. fast forward to now, it’s not a surprise that it has models of all-in-one DJ systems. All-in-one DJ systems have both a deck and a mixer in one unit. You can DJ on them without a laptop, usually from a USB drive with your music on it, but they all work with DJ software as well (always Rekordbox, sometimes VirtualDJ, sometimes Serato, and others). Examples of these are the Opus Quad, XDJ-XZ, and XDJ-RR.
Opus Quad: It’s quite pricey, but worth it! The brand new Opus Quad has flagship, next-gen standalone tech and is Pioneer DJ’s first real answer to Denon DJ’s Engine DJ-powered systems.
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XDJ-XZ: For professional club DJs who want it all, this unit looks and feels like using both a CDJ and a DJM mixer. It also has full Pro Link, Pioneer DJ’s Ethernet-based system for connecting more gear.
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XDJ-RR: The XDJ-RX3 is Pioneer DJ’s entry-level standalone unit. It does the basics without you having to spend a lot of money.
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DJ Controllers
Controllers are DJ equipment that can be connected to a laptop that has DJ software installed. Pioneer DJ creates controllers that work with both Serato and its software, Rekordbox. The REV controllers (only for Serato) look like standard scratch mixers and turntables, while the FLX controllers (mainly for Rekordbox but also for Serato) are laid out like Pioneer DJ’s professional club gear. Examples of Pioneer’s DJ controllers are DDJ-200, DDJ-FLX10, DDJ-XP2.
DDJ-200: It’s a DJ controller with not a lot of features. It works with Rekordbox on a laptop, but it functions better if it works with Pioneer DJ’s WeDJ app on your device.
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DDJ-XP2: Quite different from the other Pioneer units here because it is an accessory controller meant to be used with Rekordbox or Serato DJ software and a DVS (digital vinyl system).
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DDJ-FLX10: This is among Pioneer DJ’s best controllers. This one unit can be a contender to any competing controllers in the market – with a high probability of its victory.
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Club Mixers
Although Pioneer DJ is best known for its decks and players, the company also makes a great set of mixers. Club-style mixers are the first big group of mixers that the company sells and one of them can be turned into a full DJ system by adding two or more media players. As well as its great sound cards (some even have Midi), these can all be used with Rekordbox and other DJ software. Examples are DJM-250MK2 and DJM-A9.
DJM-250MK2: This is Pioneer DJ’s most basic mixer, but it still has an audio interface and the standard club layout of their more expensive models.
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DJM-A9: Pioneer DJ’s new “club standard” four-channel mixer, the DJM-A9, came out in 2023 and in many ways better than the previous club leader, the DJM-900NXS2. With refined sound quality, it’s a bit wider than the last mixer, and it has controls for two sets of headphones. It has all the features that professional DJs expect, plus some.
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Scratch Mixers
Also a part of DJ mixers (their subset), scratch mixers are analog two-channel mixers with very clean layouts on the bottom third. This way, scratch DJs could use the crossfader to do tricks without accidentally pressing other buttons. Examples of these are DJM-S7 and DJM-S11.
DJM-S11: Considered one of the best scratch mixers in the field, the DJM-S11 fixes all the small problems with the popular DJM-S9 and adds a lot of new features, such as four-deck control.
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DJM-S7: In many ways, the DJM-S7 is the perfect follow-up to the DJM-S9. It has better FX control and better pads and pad functions.
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Takeaway
Pioneer has paved the way to their success and it’s clear why it remains one of the most beloved brands of all time. A lot of DJs know right away they want to buy Pioneer DJ gear because they see their favorite DJs playing on Pioneer gear, so they don’t even have to look around. But we suggest you get to know more about the brand first and compare it to others, and in that way, you can attest to its greatness.
[…] The user-friendly layout of the DDJ-400 is inherited by the DDJ-FLX4. This is why at first glance, you can immediately see the resemblance. Due to the universal acclaim of the DDJ-400’s functionality with a budget-friendly price, this continuity in design is a welcome decision. Furthermore, the controller retained a simple two-channel configuration with a streamlined mixer section. This reminds us of the premium mixers of Pioneer DJ. […]