The DPD delivery driver turned up about 90 minutes ago, & I’m now the owner of an SC LIVE 4 …who is now known as CLIVE
I don’t intend using this as my main controller yet. I’ve got a number of large corporates coming up that involve playing in multiple sources for awards etc. …so i’ll probably stay with what I know for them (Serato / Mac / Denon MC7000). But once things have calmed down, I can see me using this for regular nights.
First impressions;
Build quality is actually better than i expected. Lots of plastic, but it doesn’t look cheap. Buttons are very “clicky” though.
Engine works exactly as expected. But there’s no getting away from that small screen. …I think it will be left on a view that only shows 2 decks.
The fx strip will take some getting used to. fx details on the screen are very small (I think there’s a theme developing here!)
Serato seems ok on it, but the real star/surprise is Virtual DJ… I’ve never really bothered with Virtual. I’ve owned a license for years, but always been a bit snobby about it. I’ve got to say though, it seems like a really good fit on the SC LIVE 4.
One other thing. I’ve got an old Odyssey soft case knocking about. Not sure of the model name, but it’s the one they specified for the MC7000. It looks like with a couple of bits of foam added, & maybe a bit cut away for the display, it will be a perfect home for Clive.
Congrats, and more details about that bag will be helpful indeed, if it only needs minior modifications with the padding. I don’t use hard flightcases in general, I like bags.
From what I checked, the MCX8000, DJ-808 and RX3 share similar dimensions, so all of the corresponding bags could work with some modifications. For example, the Magma CTRL CASE DJ-808 also fits for the MC7000.
The mic section is odd.
I couldn’t get the XLR on mic 1 to do anything, so tried a quarter inch jack lead on Mic 2 which worked fine.
So as the XLR socket for Mic1 is a combi XLR/Jack, I popped the jack in there. …& it worked!
So… I’m wondering if the XLR part of Mic 1 is even connected, or did Denon cut corners & just enable the jack part of the socket?
Also… the EQ controls buried in the menu are very corse. You can only adjust in ± 3db steps. So it’s actually more like a tone “switch”
Finally… if you listen to the mic in your headphones, you can hear there’s a slight delay in the audio. It’s not terrible & I can work with it, but it is noticeable. …presumably this is a slight delay caused by the DSP circuitry controlling the mic EQ.
i had bought a case for my first 4! but I have never used it because there were no cables behind it and there is little space! and finally this fits perfectly even the space for cables is huge!
Please remind me - is this the first time where Engine OS is updated just for one specific hardware (dj player)? I cannot remember this being the case before…
The housing is made of plastic and is of great quality and workmanship - it really looks very high quality - I wouldn’t have thought of it.
Pots and faders run with perfect resistance. The pitch fader is in a class of its own.
Screen size is ok for me. Rarely play with 4 decks - but it works.
Sound quality for me really top without defects
Criticisms:
-The pads are too firm for me from the pressure point. You have to hit it - unsuitable for finger drumming.
-The pad mode selection buttons could be a bit bigger
-Crossfader has at least 4mm idle travel- since I don’t scratch I can live with it- could be smoother
-The loudspeakers can be loud if required, sound quality comparable to mid-range Bluetooth boxes.
The whole console vibrates with basses - so for beat matching you don’t need headphones anymore, just put your hand on the console - you can feel every beat - lol - you could have given yourself the speakers…
Wishes for the future:
Better color coding for the decks - optimal in the jog wheel if they would show the color of the decks
Larger font for the beat effect selection - the beats display in particular is really, really small
Conclusion:
Surprising quality at an absolutely reasonable price - I’m super satisfied
I’ve come to the conclusion that inmusic pitch faders are the best in the business outside of 1210s… the Mixtrack Pro ones feel just as nice too, compared to the market leader where even their flagship CDJ is poor.
As a manual mixer they are ultra important to me for micro adjustments when blending and having that resistance and feel is great.
