DJ Equipment
All the Best Gadgets to Give a DJ for the Holidays
‘Tis the season and—love it or hate it—that time of year distinguished by the celebratory buying and exchanging of gifts is closing in fast. For many, shopping for a gift is relatively straightforward. But for others, it never gets easier. Take the DJ of the family, for instance. Most of us don’t have Santa’s eerily on-target ESP so what’s a loved one to get them? Apart from a deep dive into the weird world that makes them the wonderful person they are, it can be almost impossible. Fortunately, EDM.com has your back. Over the course of the last month, we spent more than 40 hours turning knobs and pushing buttons on all the best gadgets we could get our hands on. We went to stores, factories and corporate offices hundreds of miles apart to test out the newest headphones, speakers and ...
This Is the Vintage DJ Equipment You Saw In the Finale of “Stranger Things 4”
Spoiler alert: Do not read if you have not watched “Chapter Nine: The Piggyback” of Stranger Things 4, now streaming on Netflix. While we process the pandemonium of the heart-pounding Stranger Things 4 finale, let’s revisit that chilling “Snow Ball” scene and its badass vintage turntables. When this season’s villain—a dark wizard named Vecna who feeds on the trauma of kids—closes in on his telepathic kill of Max, Eleven infiltrates her memories in an attempt to save her. Wandering the depths of her psyche, Eleven finds a young Max skateboarding in a park. Searching for signs of Vecna, Eleven instead spots something from an entirely different memory of Max’s. In the “memory within a memory,” she en...
All the DJ Gear We Wanted to Take Home at NAMM 2022
Road-weathered faces rubbed elbows and tilted hats scratched records in what may be the largest such expo on the continent. Even those in the music industry can tally up the music festivals and the international artist tours, and still there will be few learning experiences as prized as the NAMM Show. It’s here where roadies, live performance artists, back-of-house technicians, production experts and more exchange knowledge with representatives from prestigious tech providers like Pioneer DJ, Harman/JBL, Cerwin Vega, Technics, Guitar Center and AudioTechnica, among many others. Organized by the National Association of Music Merchants, the NAMM Show is the first opportunity for many to see and experiment with all the newest gizmos for live performance and studio recording. From microp...
IKEA Reveals First Products From Swedish House Mafia’s Collection for Music Creators
Sweden is home to some of the most iconic pop culture phenomenons including Spotify, Candy Crush, Skype, Swedish Fish, and ABBA. Now, two of the Nordic country’s most famous brands, IKEA and Swedish House Mafia, are collaborating to remix the signature IKEA FRAKTA bag. Launching this fall, the collection will not only feature three new takes on the FRAKTA bag, but will also provide more than 20 furniture pieces, interior solutions, and accessories for up-and-coming music artists with limited means but unlimited creativity. IKEA’s remixed FRAKTA bag from Swedish House Mafia collection. c/o Press Fashioned in Swedish House Mafia’s signature all-black style, the collection is built for the functional needs that music creators have while on the go. It includes a bag for cables, cord...
Anytime, Anywhere: Mix On the Go With This New Portable DJ Set
Renegade performances are about to get a whole lot spicier, thanks to a new portable DJ set developed by Japanese tech company Stokyo. Weighing in at a manageable nine pounds, the set comes complete with two turntables and a two-channel mixer, as well as six line inputs/outputs on the latter for speakers, headphones and a monitor. According the Stokyo, the set is modeled after the iconic GP3 Portable Turntable, which was produced by Columbia Japan through the late 1990s. Upgraded features include pitch adjustment for 12-inch or 7-inch records and a crossfader on the mixer. Each of the three units are battery or AC powered. The portable DJ set is now available for pre-order on Turntable Lab for $629.95. You can check it out here or purchase the portable turntable or mixe...
DJ Equipment Prices See Steady Increase as Manufacturing Woes Continue
Those on the market for DJ or music production gear may have noticed an unpropitious trend: prices are higher than normal and supply is incredibly low. And according to a new study, this trend won’t be subsiding anytime soon. According to DJ Tech Tools, there are a number of factors that have contributed to the rise in price and shortages. Labor costs and lack of demand from companies and promoters are among them, though they only scratch the surface of the growing issue. Importing has apparently become a nightmare. Ocean freights are overbooked, causing delays in all industries and sharp price increases. These delays can cause goods to arrive months late. Tariffs have also remained an issue in the United States despite an administration change. Many manufacturers rely on their Chine...
Richie Hawtin’s PLAYdifferently Manufacturer Releases MODEL 1.4 DJ Mixer
Four years ago, Richie Hawtin‘s instrument manufacturer, PLAYdifferently, released the MODEL 1 DJ mixer, seeking to change the way a standard mixer functions. “With MODEL 1, we set out to build a new breed of DJ mixer, more akin to an instrument, with levels of control and quality that inspired creativity,” Hawtin said. Now, the MODEL 1.4 has arrived, to better suit those looking to mix at home or on tour. The compact MODEL 1.4 is a smaller incarnation of the MODEL 1, offering more convenience without compromising the quality or function of the mixer. The four-channel MODEL 1.4 mixer is built to suit modern times, where streaming DJ performances from home is a more feasible way of sharing music amid quarantine measures in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic.&nbs...
