Serato DJ Pro General Discussion

Talk about Serato DJ Pro, expansion packs and supported hardware

Best Crossfaders of All Time

Mr. Goodkat 9:48 PM - 19 November, 2014
So in your history of using mixers and scratching/mixing, whats been your favorite crossfader original and/or add on xfader?

always thought the 57ttm was a really good cut and short for scratching. Also liked the
Z2 mini innofader for the smoothness. Currently have the DJM 900 SRT, but I don't like only having 3 positions instead of knob for xfader adjustment. Do like the magnetic click sound, but i know some people hate it.
deejdave 3:33 AM - 20 November, 2014
In terms of mixers I prefer my Rane 64 X fader beating my 900SRT.

In terms of controllers I prefer my Akai AMX (SO I guess this means I prefer innofader as MOST people do) beating my NS7II, DDJ-SZ, DDJ-SX ........... that being said I am very much digging the S8's faders feel. I have been using my S8 more & more lately.

The Numark NV was what got my eye on the S8. I wanted something with the dua screens but after getting my hands on the NV I quickly realized I have been spoiled by great gear and the NV simply was not what I am used to nor could it fit into my workflow.......


This is all current. In terms of history believe it or not what sticks out in my head is an American Audio QD5 I believe. This was when it was newer than two years. After that it got tight. When I first got it though it was like butter. I believe it was an optical fader.......
kebzer 3:27 PM - 20 November, 2014
Hands down, the best ever all-around CF has been the Vestax PCV, all versions in their time.

Now, if you go to more niche options, the Rane Magnetic has the best glide feeling, but the cut-in point has never been that great.
DJ Remix Detroit 3:30 PM - 20 November, 2014
Quote:
the Rane Magnetic has the best glide feeling, but the cut-in point has never been that great.


yeah, i'm with you on that.

I just bought the AMX, so this is my first time using an innodader...let me tell you, i love the cut in on the innofader, but it's not as smooth as the rane magnetic fader.

now if there was a crossfader with innofader cut-in and rane smoothness.....BINGO!
kebzer 6:25 PM - 23 November, 2014
Well, there is one, the PCV in the Vestax 05-pro4. But it is only compatible with that mixer and a couple of the VCI controllers.
Niro 7:12 PM - 23 November, 2014
IMO the best feeling contact fader has to be the original fader that came in the Technics DJ1200. It was butter, smooth and no bounce. Only thing that sucked was it would only last about a week. Penny and Giles would be #2, almost as smooth as the Technics. The vestax faders were pretty good and I actually use to like the clanking sound it made, but realized it kind of masked some of the cuts on my scratches.

Overall the best feeling fader is a well maintained Rane Magnetic Fader, with the springs off. Rails cleaned, lubed, then dried and kinda polished with newspaper. Butter.
gfella 8:58 PM - 23 November, 2014
Quote:
Quote:
the Rane Magnetic has the best glide feeling, but the cut-in point has never been that great.


yeah, i'm with you on that.


now if there was a crossfader with innofader cut-in and rane smoothness.....BINGO!


There is a crossfader which has all that, called Rane magnetic fader.
You just have to mod it if you don't like the cut in.
Piece of cake, you can set the cut in to 0,1 mm if you want, just bend the hall sensors or put some rubber washers on the rails untill you like it.

My favorite crossfaders are:
1 Rane magnetic fader, just a bit smoother than a Innofader pro and a bit lighter on the stem.
2 Innofader Pro, great fader, and you can adjust everything you want on this fader.
And 3rd thanks to Niro, I forgot about this one, I had this mixer for a while, is the Technics 1200 mixer crossfader.
Longlivety sucked, but the fader had a good feel.
gfella 9:03 PM - 23 November, 2014
And if I remember correct, the Technics 1200 mixer came with a spare crossfader.
Damned, time flies.
Niro 11:04 PM - 23 November, 2014
Getting that mixer was a blessing and a curse. The spare fader was awesome, but that only meant 2 weeks of scratching. But it introduced me to the Panasonic warehouse, oh man that was awesome. 8 M5Gs at something like $275 a piece.

I personally like the feel of thinner fader cap for scratching.
kebzer 7:52 PM - 24 November, 2014
In the Rane 56S I own, there is still a huge fade-in, even with the magnets bent. The lag is OK after the mod, but the fade-in is still there. I heard though that they fixed it on the 62, which is good, but still that plastic click is horrible.

I also own a Vestax 08, and that mixer has the definition of sharp cut-in to the smallest possible distance. The curve is literally 90 degrees. I could only hope to have the glide of a Rane.
gfella 9:27 PM - 24 November, 2014
Quote:
In the Rane 56S I own, there is still a huge fade-in, even with the magnets bent. The lag is OK after the mod, but the fade-in is still there. I heard though that they fixed it on the 62, which is good, but still that plastic click is horrible.


I modded a lot 56 first generation mixers, not the S version.
If you are reffering to the 2 step cut in than your are right, but you can set the cut in still very sharp, so when you move the fader, it starts immediatly with low volume and then full sound, the travel of the fader is very very short for full sound when modded right.
The cut in on the 62 is on/off.
Search cut in 56 and you find another thread about this.
kebzer 2:49 PM - 25 November, 2014
I've modded mine to start at bare minimum distance, but still it is not ON/OFF but rather FADE IN, which I don't like.

I've been spoiled by the 08 with the ON/OFF curve and 0,01mm start distance...
gfella 3:53 PM - 25 November, 2014
You mentioned that after the mod there is still a HUGE fade in.
Can you measure the travel before you get full sound?
The 56 I had for over 10 years had a very short fade in, around 0.2mm, then came full fade in, maybe something is wrong with your fader?
So I modded the fader to have a dead space around 1mm.
So 1mm deadspace, 0.2 mm fade in = 1.2 mm travel for full sound
Can you follow?
Offcourse you can set the fader with no deadspace and start with the fade in, so in my case the fader would travel 0.2 mm in total for full sound and as soon when you move the fader it would start
with low volume.
But I prefer deadspace.
kebzer 6:12 PM - 25 November, 2014
Thanks for the tips, but I've already tested it. For me, a 'turntablist' grade cut-in is altogether less than 0.1mm, i.e. practically nothing. This is how I cut with the 08.
Niro 6:36 PM - 25 November, 2014
IMO deadspace is a good thing, it's harder, but creates a better more defined cut. With no deadspace, scratches tend to sound muddy. I remember when everyone was doing the credit card mod on their alps fader to create no dead space and instant cut, crabs, crabs, crabs. It was worse than the stanton double click transform switches...rant over.

But yes, you should be able to achieve an almost instant cut on a Rane fader.
kebzer 6:52 PM - 25 November, 2014
Dead space indeed makes cuts sound cleaner, but zero dead space is necessary for the more advanced stuff, like 3-click orbits. Still, it is all a matter of how much you are accustomed to your fader.

A legend says that when Q-bert visited our places with this red 05, the cut lag was about 1cm and the fader was stiff like an updfader. Still, he performed all kinds of super-advanced cuts on that piece of s***t, lol!
gfella 6:53 PM - 25 November, 2014
Quote:
IMO deadspace is a good thing, it's harder, but creates a better more defined cut. With no deadspace, scratches tend to sound muddy. I remember when everyone was doing the credit card mod on their alps fader to create no dead space and instant cut, crabs, crabs, crabs. It was worse than the stanton double click transform switches...rant over.

But yes, you should be able to achieve an
almost instant cut on a Rane fader.


This
gfella 6:59 PM - 25 November, 2014
Quote:
Dead space indeed makes cuts sound cleaner, but zero dead space is necessary for the more advanced stuff, like 3-click orbits. Still, it is all a matter of how much you are accustomed to your fader.

!


No, it's not a matter of how much your accustomed to your fader, it's a matter of technique.
It's harder to master, but sound way better.
Fully agree with Niro here.
kebzer 7:45 PM - 25 November, 2014
Technique? What possible technique would there be to perform a 3-click orbit on a 90 bpm beat with a dead space in your fader? None. It is humanly impossible for an average person to become that fast. That is why we would see only a handful of turntablists do that stuff back in the 90s with those crap faders, and then on the 00s everywhere you look someone is doing them like normal. Those new faders helped everyone do the most advanced stuff.
gfella 8:06 PM - 25 November, 2014
I think you misunderstand me.
Please read the entire post again.
And Niro's post.
kebzer 9:40 PM - 25 November, 2014
I read both posts. Still, technique is enough, you need the proper tools to perform.
kebzer 9:41 PM - 25 November, 2014
Sorry, technique is *not* enough
Niro 11:59 PM - 25 November, 2014
Learning to scratch with dead space is and should be important. It might not be as prevalent if you're doing it hamster style, because of the way your finger and thumb moves, but having more sound separation is crucial. It is better to have a 50-50 to 75-25% off to on ratio then having more sound than dead space. It takes time and continual practice.
gfella 10:28 AM - 26 November, 2014
Quote:
For me, a 'turntablist' grade cut-in is altogether less than 0.1mm, i.e. practically nothing. This is how I cut with the 08.


Quote:
Sorry, technique is *not* enough


Let's agree to disagree.
Offcourse you need good faders, but technique is key.
If you need and prefer 0.1mm cut-in I'm cool with that, each to his own.
kebzer 2:57 PM - 26 November, 2014
Def we can always agree to disagree. No pun intended in any of my posts.
&Midge 2:34 PM - 15 December, 2014
What do you guys make of the Eclers Eternal Crossfader?
I'm thinking of adding one to my Nuo4.
Cham 3:24 PM - 15 December, 2014
It's awesom. Been using mine since 2005-2006 and it's still light and sharp.
&Midge 6:41 PM - 15 December, 2014
Sweet! Cheers dude.

Been trying to work out if I should go for the InnoFader or the Eternal, but defo leaning towards the Eternal at the moment.
kebzer 12:49 PM - 17 December, 2014
The Eternal is a very smooth and sharp crossfader, but with a very weird gliding behavior. It actually bounces back in a very different way than any other CF.

The Inno is pretty standard on the gliding part, but not as smooth as the Eternal.

Better try and find a HAK mixer and play with it first, before purchase. I was personally very surprised when I tried one for the first time (I am a Vestax guy).
&Midge 1:56 PM - 17 December, 2014
Hey Kebzer,

Thanks for the feedback, great advice! =D I never really got one with the Vestax bounce back so maybe the Eternal is the for me. Testing one seems like a plan ;)
&Midge 1:59 PM - 17 December, 2014
is NOT the one for me*
BBN 7:25 PM - 17 December, 2014
The one in the Vestax PMC-05 Pro 4 was the best fader ever to me.
I'm fine with the Rane 62 faders, but the plastic sliders on top of the rails get broken easily every three months :( At the moment I modefied the sliders with glue and some tape wrapped around the ends where thse white plastic is inserted.
Dj Wiz Detroit 6:34 PM - 24 January, 2017
Anyone have experience with this yet?
infinityfaders.com
They say guaranteed for life not to break, and designed for the Rane fader rails, I know Karns can perform on almost anything, but I wonder if this could be the holy grail mod for the Rane fader?
DJ Shameless 4:29 PM - 26 January, 2017
Vestax 05 pro III for me as number 1… with those rubber cut lag spacers. (haven't used the pro 4, but i'm sure those were solid for cutting too)
The 56/57 fader is great too, but i gotta try that extra spacer trick, cos the lag is a bit much, but overall solid feeling fader. i have my tension spring off for easy movement.
The s9 has the best customization for a fader, and all done outside of the housing, either in the software or on the front panel of the mixer. I've seen some stems broken so this is always in the back of my mind and i tend not to go too hard on the fader which is not cool.

so Vestax for the win for me.
kebzer 1:01 PM - 5 February, 2017
@wiz Detroit Get an infinity upgrade, they feel a bit heavier but they won't break for anything.

@shameless Infinity is making an s9 version too, that Pio mixer has the best feeling for a fader hands down. The vestax Pro4 was not as good as the Pro3, as it was an entirely different digital fader than the usual PCV.
The Return of Dj Sparky 2:44 PM - 5 February, 2017
unless you're prone to snapping fader stems there is no need for those infinity stems
DJ Shameless 6:43 PM - 6 February, 2017
Quote:

@shameless Infinity is making an s9 version too, that Pio mixer has the best feeling for a fader hands down. The vestax Pro4 was not as good as the Pro3, as it was an entirely different digital fader than the usual PCV.


yeah I've seen that Infinity fader will make an s9 version. will be on the wish list when it drops, then s9 for the W for the best fader!
Munge 11:16 PM - 24 February, 2017
I'm surprised there's not more mention of the eternal fader. You can adjust it be below 0.1mm and its instant on/off, and the fader can be blow the fader from one end to other. And as mentioned above it does have some funky glide, to me it feels like the fader is moving on an air hockey table. I've used an innofader before and to me it can compare to the smoothness.

I also really like the stock Vestax faders, once you have spacers on the rails and it's worn in with a good lube and cleaning...it's nice feeling fader.

Pro x fader is dope as well.
gfella 5:28 PM - 2 May, 2017
Quote:
@wiz Detroit Get an infinity upgrade, they feel a bit heavier but they won't break for anything.


This.
I like the feel of the Infinity fader in my 62.
No more worries about breaking a fader.
Never broke a fader in my old 56.
dj diggedydave 6:46 AM - 2 October, 2018
Hey guys,

good to read about your experiences! Here is mine: First i had a crappy Reloop mixer, then a Vestax PMC 05 Pro III (started with PCV fader, then installed P&G fader).
After that i bougt a Rane TTM 57 SL, and currently I´m using the TTM 57 MK II. I also have a custom built Numark PT 01-USB with an internal Pro X fader in it.

I would put the TTM 57-SL fader above all of them. To me, it was the sharpest and smoothest fader of em all...The Pro X fader is really nice to and i can adjust the cut-in and tension, just they way i like it. I´m not happy at all with the 57 MK II fader, so i ordered a Innofader Pro 2, yesterday for my mixer. I had the chance to try it on my friends mixer and i was really impressed! I think the Innofader Pro 2, will be my favorite fader...if not i´ll write a post again :)

Happy scratching ;)
TurtleFaceBrownNoser 4:59 PM - 4 October, 2018
Quote:
unless you're prone to snapping fader stems there is no need for those infinity stems


Actually the infinity stems have been proven to improve the function of cross faders. I would reconsider your standpoint, have you ever tried one? They are so great.

Thanks The Return of Dj Sparky, BTW your avatar is sooo cool! I love National Lampoons Christmas Vacation. Makes me think of fond memories with my friends and family.
TurtleFaceBrownNoser 5:03 PM - 4 October, 2018
Quote:
So in your history of using mixers and scratching/mixing, whats been your favorite crossfader original and/or add on xfader?

always thought the 57ttm was a really good cut and short for scratching. Also liked the
Z2 mini innofader for the smoothness. Currently have the DJM 900 SRT, but I don't like only having 3 positions instead of knob for xfader adjustment. Do like the magnetic click sound, but i know some people hate it.


You are sooooo right on this goodkat! Those are my exact favorite faders too. Good call.
novakone 12:38 AM - 5 October, 2018
Ecler eternal Xfader on my Hak, feels better than the 72... disappointingly
&Midge 9:46 AM - 5 October, 2018
I keep thinking of putting an Eternal into my Nuo4.....
novakone 12:22 PM - 5 October, 2018
Quote:
I keep thinking of putting an Eternal into my Nuo4.....


I would in a heartbeat if it was me.

Gutted to be selling my Hak..
novakone 12:25 PM - 5 October, 2018
Btw the way I didn’t like the mini Inno in the Z2
Found the cut in far too loose and had to replace a couple due to bleeding -