So I've decided to switch to SSL.

I've been rocking my VCI-300 and VFX for almost 2 years now. A long time IMO, certainly a lot longer than the 6 months with my iDJ2. My VCI still works like a charm and the software is fantastic. I really do love itch.

Primary reason for the switch? the crummy output levels of the VCI-300. I was stoked how good the VCI sounded when I upgraded from the iDJ2 (anything would sound better I reckon) but after lots of club gigs on bigger systems the fact that I needed ANOTHER upgrade was becoming painfully obvious. I could have upgraded to the DX or the V7, but the cost was prohibitive with the V7s and the DXs other 2 decks would likely go unused in the face of the bridge. I'm considering keeping the VCI for smaller gigs or for recording sets but I definitely want to switch my practice and focus to SL.

The community in these here itch forums are great, and I probably wont be here as much as I am now, but I wanted to say thanks to everyone who helps to build and contribute to itch.

I'll let you know if I ever fully switch back. :D

interesting casket .......
i am leaning the same direction right now. I have a couple big highend gigs and shows and for the siple djing ITCH and the vci-300 works fine but for performance versitility and creativity it just doesn't have all the options i need. I am tossing around in my head getting a ns7 or v7 set up but also looking at it being a more logical decision if i plan on spending that much money to go to SSL

I think I felt extremely confident that I would get a SSL calibre of punch with the V7s I might go that route, but the fact is, I'm not confident. if rane made itch hardware it might be different but as it stands, coming from the iDJ2, I dont really trust the numark stamp. definitely going to keep my eye on what come out of itch 2. I think SSL is a fairly safe investment right now too as it seems to hold its value really well.

@kraal & casket hands

I agree on the volume thing the VCI300 output is not loud enough. I still will stick with it tough, becuase I travel a lot. As soon as the MK2 is available I will be getting one since the output is supposedly much louder.

Going to SSL is cool I have it as well, I am curiuos though what hardware do you want to use with SSL? Or are you just going to always use the provided hardware at the gig? As the hardware is a big factor in the price and in what you can do.

I know it's the same company but both products are worlds apart in terms of quality and build. V7 is the first deck I've come across that is built more solidly then a Pio CDJ1000 and on par with a Tech1200. I think you really need to look into a V7 solution unless you just really need the added features of SSL.

Funny. Now that that the VCI-300 MKII is the loudest of all ITCH interfaces but the NS7.

You will sorely miss your VCI mate.

for me it is not about volume out put :) . i see getting the V7 still as an option but if i am going to get a mixer why not get the rane with the serato box... then once i get that it is a matter of looking at why not just get turntables. i guess i am just talking riight now. every other day i change my mind. as far as setup goes i would use the club set up.o rhave the turntables already set up for my show. so that isnt an issue.

i'm reading itch and hardware not a match for ssl or the likes....?

one of the big reasons I'm having a hard time picking the V7 is the fact that I have laid hands on it and I was unimpressed. it still felt like a toy to me.

SSL works well for me because just about every gig I've had in town here either has turntables or CDJs already set up with a majority of other DJs using SSL. It allows me to either bring a TTM57 and use that as the mixer all night, or just swap boxes when swapping acts. having to set up 2 V7s to emulate vinyl right next to 2 1200s seems redundant to me.

the main reason i love itch over SSL (and i use both) is the fact that ITCH is much more responsive. when you make a pitch adjustment in ITCH - it is immediate. I've noticed that SSL has to "catch up" to your pitch changes - and you can't really see the adjusted pitch with turntables unless the song is playing in SSL.

The V7s don't feel like toys. casket hands must have a different definition of toy than me if he feels that way. if every club i went to had tables or cdjs already setup i'm sure i might be leaning heavier on SSL -- but, they don't. I love my V7s and can't wait for 2.0

thanks ITCH team!

again i am flip floping.... my wife says i SHOULD get the ns7 cause most of the places i gig i eiether bring my own equiptment or have space..... so maybe the rane mixer and the v7's to give me the best of both

well - the v7s can do SSL if you wanted to.
its kinda silly though, but you can run the SSL tone files through ITCH and out to SSL.

right but i just mean both words if i go some place that has turntables already...

word - yah then you're set!

Sorry, I didnt mean to offend anyone owning them. I'm well aware that they are capable, but there is something about the whole emulation of the vinyl fell that's weird to me. I played with them for about an hour and thought I would love them more, but I walked away scratching my head because something felt off. its hard to quantify.

haha im not offended dude. no worries. i would have said so if i were.

Casket I'm very confused with your comments towards the V7 "feel like a toy" and "there is something about the whole emulation of the vinyl fell that's weird to me" yet you owned and apparently liked the VCI-300 for 2 years. I try and respect everyone's opinion but when comments strike me as odd I gotta get more info. Did you feel the same way about the VCI-300? Those comments seems more like it would be put on the VCI more so then the V7.

as an owner of the vci-300 i will say .. controller platters do feel different than the many vinyl emulators so it is a different feel.

I've used the VCI then eventually moved over to NS7/V7. The vinyl emulation felt more weird on the VCI (if we're comparing the 2). Going from a t/t's moving platter to a static vinyl emulating platter always felt weird to me even on CDJs. But hey we're all different and I can understand that. Just sound like Casket's comments were more biased because of his dislike of Numarks products.

yeah kraal nailed it. I'm not in love with vinyl at all so the whole vinyl feel thing is largely lost on me but here's what I didn't like: since the 7" record isnt actually doing anything besides acting as a control surface there is a disconnect between where the phantom needle is positioned on the record. I understand that its all about feel, but its a weird thing to emulate imo, and in the end, it didnt feel all that great.

I personally really like midi controllers, and I would happily use my VCI if it just took that full step all the way to "pro". I dont know if its the ITB mixing or the low levels that are sticking in my craw, but I feel like two songs together sounds so squished and flat (not talking about limiting). maybe I just need something louder. I'd really like the option to use another external card with the VCI and/or have a beefy card and proper power lead. if someone makes a controller and it says "featuring a top-of=the-line soundcard by apogee" on the box, I'm in!

and for the record, I wouldnt say I am biased against numark's stuff (although I sorta said I was above, haha.) I was fully prepared to want the V7s, and then I tried them .

Thanks for explaining that bro. Makes sense to me now. Yeah if you're feeling that way then SSL (or another DVS) is probably the route to go.

If you are truly after hotter outputs, a cheaper solution may be one of those mini-mixers, like this:

www.mackie.com

But if you aren't happy with the sound quality, only another product will do.

Casket, good luck to you either way. Since you won't likely be getting rid of the VCI-300, you might still come around - I hope anyways. If we have to lose you, I'd rather it be to SSL - it sends the right message to everyone: SSL is still superior to ITCH until ITCH gets the SP6, the bridge, and optional video.

Again, good luck, bro.

-KLH

cheers KLH.

Hey Casket.

Personally, I have to add something you need to know about my SSL experience. I use both SSL and Itch. In SSL, I use the SL-1 outbox, and the sound quality is hearable less dynamic (call it a kind of "thin") compared with the Ns7/V7 output. You can hear this especially on higher output systems.
(I can't judge about SL3 outbox or the rane-57 mixer, so I don't speak for these hardware products.)

Secondly, It crossed my mind to switch to a CDJ2000 - DJM800 with SL3 set-up, but I my test with CDJ2000 felt like they were toys compared with the V7's.
My experience with V7's are very good because of the clear 1 to 1 mapping, and no use of keyboard, compared with the SSL set-up.

Now, I don't want to change your mind, and I respect you as a "great Itch colleague" on these forums, but I wanted to share my personal experience with you. It might help you to judge correctly for your needs.

I'll miss you on this forum... Hope to see you around.

Well until I can access the Browse function from my V7s, I will still have to use the keyboard. Just the way I work. I like to use Browse when I'm mixing my sets. Maybe Shift + Load Prepare...?

My only thing is it is nice to be able to carry your laptop and SL box with you and set up on any preset equipment. Dragging everything ( NS7 and Laptop ) around can be a hassle.. I love my NS7 and will not get rid of it.. I just thinking of picking up a SL box to be able to work with others's setups better.

V7's might be an option...

i am thinking i will go for the v7's also

Even with V7's you are draggin around equipment. and if they have everything preset at a show ( say for 10 dj's ) making them move everything just to set up my stuff isn't realy a option. Don't get me wrong, I love the V7's and wish I had them instead of my NS7 right now due to many reason's and would prefer to take a set of V7's with and hook into there mixer ( since most of the time it's the 800's setup).

I understand Subdriven, but when I use someone else their system, they have to move their CDJ's for my V7's. Its pretty much the same as installing an SL box, so no much difference there... A bit bigger, I agree, but do-able.
In fact it's even easier to install V7's as I always use the cinches originally connected to the CDJ's. Compare that with the wiring you need to do with the SL box and you'll agree.

true. just move it over and put yours there..

why switch, have both ? best of both worlds.

I am a gear hog and own just about everything, 1200's, CDJ's, VCI-300, Urei 1620, Serato, NS7. My favorite piece of gear is the NS7. The NS7,V7 do everything just right. Every time I use one of my other setups, it feels like I am going backwards in technology. The only thing that comes close is the TT setup with Serato and my DN-HC1000S Serato controller. But then you have to keep restarting the vinyl and you have to put up with the constant humming noise coming off the time coded vinyl. The humming noise is not a problem in a club, but in my bedroom it drives me crazy when there is no music playing. The NS7/V7 have no time code that will run out, there is no humming noise, and all the buttons actually do something. The only time I use the keyboard is if I want to type the name of the song in the search box. Oh yeah, and the NS7/V7 is built like a tank.

With a Macbook Pro, the system is completely trouble free. Just reboot your mac before your gig. Turn off wifi, bluetooth, and any screen savers and your good to go. Using Serato with CDJ's is a huge waste of money, unless you are using the clubs CDJ's.

Just some anecdotal evidence to share here very early on: there's this dj in town, immensely respected, somewhat feared, and we have always moved in similar circles but she has never given me the time if day. I mentioned to her last weekend that I was planning on picking up an ssl rig. Now friends are telling me that that she is impressed by me and we already hav a gig booked together next week.

I know some of you don't like the whole gear snob argument, but in my opinion, getting treated differently for using a midi controller is anvery real issue.

casket i agree there are three major clubs that i cannot get into right now due to not having turntables...... but honestly i dont care ... imma do me. these guys have thuer residencies on lock while i am planning a touring gig as we speak

seriously missing the BPM accuracy and autoloop controls of itch after my first day of practicing :)

I say do what you have to do. If you need to rock on SSL+turntables or CDJs @ the club do it. If you have the choice and want to bring in your controller go for it. Dont limit your options and be versatile with both. I personally find SSL a bit laggy and cumbersome in the fact that you are playing a control vinyl or CD that goes through an audio interface and back into a mixer. Seems like your making 3 right turns to make a left. ITCH is a simple left but the world is still turning right unfortunately..

itch without sampler is like a kid (me) without his ice cream. lol

performance wise; no doubt why I chose Itch over SL

here we go again ..... hint you can start up a fresh sampler thread i am sure many will chime in but tacking it onto other threads it get buried fast

i dont get why everyone wants a sampler in their dj apps...
jack of all trades, master of none.

just get an mpc.

because i am talking about a different kind of sampler... not just to trigger clips but to loop as you are playing and play back with the tempo functions of the software

The KP3 does that. Well, you can´t control the tempo using the software, but you can do it manually. You can record a loop at 130.20 BPM and mix it into the next track at 126.60 BPM without problems. It´s not an integrated system but it works.

yeah i plan on sending you a message soon with some questions as i start shopping for my next set up

OK. I'm ready for questions. :) For now I can only tell you that it is a fantastic machine.

I didn't like the KP3. tested it at home for 2 weeks. Good machine but not my cup of tea. (especially performance wise, as I didn't get the logic behind it).
Now there are others that just love the KP3.
For me the FX on the DJM800 are simple, reliable, integrated in the mixer and with the roll function you have a kind of loop-sampler as well.
It's a matter of feeling i guess.

Of course everyone has their preferences. I consider the KP3 a very versatile machine. Sampler, looper, effects and synthesizer in a box. You could even do a session with only one turntable/deck and a KP3. I love it.

I loved the KP2 when I was playing straight vinyl.. Almost got it to work a little on the NS7. but it was so restricted.. Would love to try the KP3 one day with the NS7.

Which autoloop controls are you referring to?

the dedicated autoloop button and double/half buttons. at the moment I have a loop button mapped to an LPD 8 and the loop size to a knob but its just not the same.

Except for the double/half... I am using the Novation Dicer controller and it's an awesome piece!

I considered the dicer but the $50 pricetag and the knobs on the LPD8 lured me in. maybe in the future. I guess I should start a feature request for some double half buttons :)