Battle DJs: Beat Your Competition Every Time

Battle DJs can improve their skills dramatically with special Battle DJ equipment. If you have not read the overviews of the different DJ equipment in the DJ Turntables and DJ Mixers section of this web site don't worry.

At one point MusiciansFriend.com sold these two items below but now they have been discontinued.
Stanton STR8-80X High-Torque Direct-Drive Turntable
Vestax PCV-002 Pro Scratch DJ Mixer

I've since updated this page to reflect the changes in the Battle DJ's gear of choice.

There are a few pieces of DJ equipment I would like to list. But here is one tip that came to mind as I was writing this.

TIP: Battle DJs, if you have your techniques down pat then the DJ equipment can take you to the next level. This is probably the most over looked secret of them all. My pop always said "It's easy when you have the right tools!"

Before I forget I just have to say that the fastest way to learn to be a competitive Battle DJ is by imitating the best. Here is a video that might be of interest to you.

DMC The Art Of Turntablism Video

I put together a series of reviews called "The Best of..." and my first one is on the Best of the Battle DJ Equipment. Price was not considered so I was able to pick my choices for the best of the best.

With the DJ equipment below I changed the page to reflect the most commonly used DJ equipment used by battle DJ's also called turntablists. Basically if you want to up your skills you should use what other battle DJ's use along with much practice. But ultimately you should find DJ equipment that flects your style.

Battle DJs Turntables

Numark TTX1 Direct Drive Turntable

This turntable has become a stable products along with the Technics SL1200MK2 coming ini at $399. Technics has increased the price of the 1200 and dropped some other models in 2007. I guess they decided to srreamline their operations.

I've used this turntable on any number of occassions and I've never been dissapointed. It is on par with the technics and may even have surpassed the technics 1200 in price, durability, responsiveness, features and quality. For a battle DJ or a production DJ this is a cool tool. However the Technics 1200 still dominates in most battle DJ contests. So take your pick.

Numark TTX1 Direct-Drive Turntable

Technics SL-1200MK2 Turntable Silver

The Technics SL-1200MK2 Turntable features total quartz-locked, continuous-pitch adjustment up to ±8%, wow and flutter of .01%, and rumble at -78dB. Its high-torque motor provides quick starts, while a precision-molded aluminum die-cast cabinet with heavy rubber base absorbs vibrations. Features a highly sensitive low-mass tone arm with gimbal suspension.

Battle DJ Mixers

All DJs need special mixers. The Rane TTM56 is one of the best and has become standard among battle DJ's.

Rane TTM 56 Performance Mixer

The Rane TTM 56 Performance Mixer is known for no travel noise and no bleed, EVER! Program One and 2 faders and crossfader are all non-contact with dynamic curve assignment.

Smoothly morph between normal or special effect curve types. Reverse switching on all faders and hamster switch. FlexFx effects loop gives DJs total control over effects for both channels or either.

Aux in and out with level controls. Stereo master or dual-mono-cue metering. 3-band Accelerated Slope EQ on each channel. 2 stereo phono, one stereo AUX, and 2 stereo line ins; stereo effects return; balanced mic in; stereo balanced and unbalanced outs; stereo aux out; and stereo effects send.

Pioneer DJM-909 Professional DJ Mixer

The Pioneer DJM-909 Professional Mixer offers DJs innovative features including precise cross fader/fade curve control, user-customizable cross fader glide adjustment, and touch screen control of the built-in effects. Pioneer continually strives to meet the wide-ranging needs of the cutting-edge DJ and this music mixer does just that by combining innovative technology with proven Pioneer quality.

Sensitive yet solid EQ knobs, durable transform switches, and precise and accurate crossfader curve control. Most importantly, Pioneer has developed an original "non-contact" cross fader technology with unprecedented durability and reliability.

The DJM-909 has the most precise and customizable crossfader in the industry. It's highly durable and has double fade control allowing each half of the fader to be adjusted independently! All fader curves can also be seen and adjusted with visual reference on the mixers' fader curve adjust screen.

If that isn't enough, the crossfader feel can also be adjusted to your preference. Each channel fader curve can be adjusted from a smooth volume change to a dynamic volume ON/OFF at the tip of the channel faders (bottom or top). You will be able to crab-scratch the channel faders from either the top end or bottom end of the fader.Connect with Pioneer's CDJ series, including the CDJ-100S, CDJ-800, CDJ-700S, CDJ-1000, and CDJ-1000MK2 to employ the fader start capability.

The user can automatically start or stop playback with the sliding crossfader or channel fader.Mixer LayoutThe DJM-909 includes 50 built-in effects and a touch sensitive display. Clean, open fader area for scratching and beat juggling. Session line-in with volume control, cueable master output, mic input, and selectable phono/line switches.

Tempo tap button, cueable effects switch, and a plug in for footswitch to control effects.Touch Screen and built-in effectsA total of 50 different effects can be independently assigned, utilized, and tweaked through the mixer's user-friendly touch screen control.

Additional knobs also exist for further parameter adjustments. Revolutionary effect presets range from Fader Synths to Transform and from Touch Phaser to Vocoder. A send/return is also built in to connect an external effector.

Fader EffectFader effect can be assigned to a channel fader or cross fader from the touch screen so that the faders are capable of controlling and varying the effect's parameter simply by moving the cross fader or channel fader.Beat EffectThe Beat Effect is capable of synchronizing effects with the BPM for high accuracy effect timing.Auto BPM CounterThe professional sound mixer is equipped with an auto BPM counter so users can quickly view the song tempo.

Numark DM1002X MK2 Scratch Mixer

I need to mention one more mixer for those Battle DJs who could care less about features and need a straight up low cost Battle DJ mixer. Consider the Numark DM1002X MK2 Scratch Mixer because it's worthy of all Battle DJs. You'll come to appreciate the hefty fader for those rigorous fader moves.