At Trommel Music we champion vinyl and the culture that informs every facet of our community but we also recognise that technological advancements are also required to push performances into new and exciting realms. So, when Pioneer DJ teased us with a new piece of kit we knew that changes were coming with the next digital deck.
Having been 4 years in the making since the CDJ-2000NXS2 it is clear that a huge amount of research has gone into the design and enhancements that CDJ3000 contains. While some features may not lend itself to the no frills mixing style that perhaps minimal and underground music enjoys there is undoubtedly some very next level developments.
Hailed as ‘A New Dimension’ the CDJ-3000 certainly looks to have taken cues from previous equipment and upgraded them for the pro DJ market. One noticeable omission on the latest deck and again taking cues from the XDJ-1000 is that it does not have a CD slot. This will have an impact on some minimal DJ’s who still use the format as it possibly the nearest physical format to vinyl, but we are sure that not having to burn discs will be very welcome.
The new 9-inch touch screen has been vastly improved and looks to transfer the usability of Rekordbox to the hardware version contained in the new CDJ and even allows for auditioning of tracks without loading the track and skipping through the track that is actually playing. For the more performance orientated DJ’s out there the previously vertical hot cue buttons now run horizontally directly below the touch screen and have been increased to 8.
As well as the usual bells and whistles that come along with a new piece of Pioneer DJ kit, of which there are many, the enhancements underneath the hood are significant. The introduction of 2 processors mean that the CDJ-3000 will offer more accuracy when mixing and help to drive the raft of new visual and technical advancements. As impressive as all these improvements are the main issue with the deck is the price tag and at just shy of $3,000 it might be a bit too much of a deck for some people but there is no denying that this is a massive step forward in the evolution of digital Djing.
