Hercules DJ Console MK4

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List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: $182.56
Today's Bonus:

• 2-deck controller to mix digital audio tracks
• 2 stereo outputs to play the mix for the audience and preview next track
• 2 stereo inputs to inject turntables, MP3 or CD players in a digital mix
• Built for portable Mix: compact, light, with transport cover & shoulder strap
• Intuitive mixing, with a controller that simplifies DJ mixing operations

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This little unit is great for a beginner or someone on the go because it uses software as your music and effects source. I just hook it up to my laptop, pick some songs, and I'm good to go. The keys are map able so you can customize the controller, which is something you may wish to do when choosing effects. It comes with virtual dj LE edition, which is good, but you're probably going to want to upgrade to pro edition, which is about $50. Virtual dj has great functionality and is controllable by the unit. It also comes with a headphone piece so you can just use normal headphones instead of having to by dj ones if you're just going to use this at home. You'll probably want speakers; I just hook it up to my home Hi-Fi system. Great for anyone who wants to be a bedroom dj, do gigs at places like weddings, bars, house parties. However if you're working a club you should probably have more advanced gear. I would say the only drawback is the limited functionality on the effects side of things. No sample buttons, no kill switches, ect. However there are four effects specific buttons and you can map things to them, otherwise you can still control all this via the mouse/keyboard/software. Also the unit is quite light in weight, seems pretty sturdy, and comes with a hard plastic cover, which is great. In the end I think it's a great buy for someone on the go or a beginner, I know I'll probably bring it to parties and have some fun.

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It's a good value and a great product. The only thing I wish it had was dedicated gain knobs. The software does do auto gain on both decks, but I prefer some more manual control. Speaking of the software, it's pretty good but they want a whopping $150 to upgrade to the pro version. The version you get is "last years" 6.x version (update it from virtualdj.com to the latest 6.x) but if you want 7.x Pro you need to pay $150. You can download a trial of 7.x but it only lets you use your controller for 10mins before disabling it. You can use a keyboard and mouse to keep trying it out for an unlimited amount of time.

The main thing that's frustrating is you can't do any options/preferences at all with the version that comes with the controller, not even remapping a button or knob. As much as I want to remap, I can't see paying $150 just for that! The other missing features vs. pro are mainly a playlist and automixing. You wouldn't want to use automixing for an actual event, but it would be nice to have for a house party when you want to go mingle with friends. Also support for videos is only in pro, that's something I couldn't care less about.

I do wish the jog/scratch controllers were a little smaller or there was a little more space between the wheels and volume controls, I've accidentally hit it a few times but I don't scratch I just want them for jog wheels. Scratchers probably prefer the size as it is. I use the volume controls to mix rather than the crossfader for a bit more finite control over the mix.

Be careful about ground hum, if your laptop has a two prong power adapter you are more prone to it. Get yourself a ground loop isolator to fix this problem.

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The first thing I noticed about the MK4 when I took it out of the box is how small it is. This thing really is tiny, and that's the point. You can sling this unit over your shoulder or slide it into your laptop bag and be on your way. Hercules even includes a nice plastic cover to protect the top surface. While it happens to also have shoulder-strap clip points on it, and they make mention of this in the packaging, said strap is oddly omitted from the box.

The MK4 is fairly simple to use, and is designed to pair perfectly with the included VirtualDJ LE software. It can be mated with other packages like Megaseg or Traktor, and one can grab keymapping templates for the latter from the Hercules website. Speaking of the website, whether you be on MacOS or PC, you'll want o be sure that you install the drivers that came with the rig right away -andlet it run through any software and firmware updates.

The DJ Console MK4 has a fantastic sound card in it; better than you might assume given its size, price and mainly plastic construction. It's the audio components that really make this kit a bang-for-the-buck. While you get the expected main and headphone outs, you're also gifted with a second set of RCA outputs that can be routed to booth monitors, etc. Additionally, the MK4 comes with two pair of RCA inputs, which can be set for turntable, consumer or "pro" input levels. And, yes, my vinyl loving mates, those inputs can be used to take in time-code platters for scratching.

While I'm only into the first few days with my MK4, it has turned out to be rather feature-rich for the price. Portability is it's forte', though. If you're turned off by the small jog wheels and the rather annoying rotary pitch control, choose carefully. Still, finding a controller that does all that this does for under $200 is going to be a challenge.

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I bought this as I was curious about DJing. I wasn't focusing on buying an expensive set until I knew this was more than just a hobby for me. The MK4 helped me make that decision. Although it isn't professional grade, it's PERFECT for beginners, I wouldn't recommend this for pros. It does all the basic functions, comes with VDJ LE, but the pro version far exceeds the LE version. I would def make this purchase again if I was starting out, but not anymore, I needed to upgrade after about 6 months of use. It's very well built, and surprisingly has a very good sound card built it. BUY for any aspiring DJ, or beginner.

I read a lot of the reviews on this product before i bought it so i was a little skeptical about what it's performance would be like.

All i can say is it definitely gets the job done and works flawlessly with virtual DJ.

I have it hooked up to a 500 watt active behringer pa system and it totally rocks.

It feels a bit flimsy so i would not recommend doing any scratching on the unit or constantly moving it from location to location. I have had mine for just a few weeks and already the mid equalizer button no longer works but the good news is you can map the buttons so i was able to compensate for that.

Overall, it's a decent product i just don't know that it can stand regular use so if you do, i recommend you get the 3 year protection plan to go with it

In an unrelated topic: DO NOT ORDER from factory depot. I'm going through hell returning my unit for a replacement and as a tip to everyone who is buying on amazon, do a google search of the actual seller to see how well they handle problems and do not rely just on amazon reviews which for the most part is when everything goes smoothly