Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX6 4-deck Rekordbox and Serato DJ Controller

Product Information

Pitch bending and scratching feel natural on the DDJ-FLX6 thanks to the large jog wheels, which are the same size as those on the flagship CDJ-3000 multi player. Each one features an On Jog Display too, so you can keep an eye on the playhead position. A bit of history is worthwhile here. You see, as of the Pioneer DJ DDJ-1000, Pioneer DJ abandoned the “controller” paradigm when it came to effects.

The DDJ FLX6 bypasses things like advanced connectivity options and a metal-reinforced chassis to bring you a different set of bonuses, including full-sized jog wheels and four channels. As for the professional market, I believe a Mk2 version is needed with balanced outputs before the FLX can be viable for them. Nonetheless, the FLX6 has found a seemingly untouched niche in the DJ market, and will likely sell very well to lower-budget hobbyist DJs.If Pioneer DJ hadn’t tried to make this a Serato controller too, and had redirected some of the budgets towards adding some of the much-needed omissions, it would have been a better device. Some DJs will probably find it easier to use the jog cutter feature than to learn how to scratch in the first place. It seems pointless to focus your attention on learning this new functionality when you could just practice scratching – and use your skills on other devices too. Beat FX

Later, with the Rekordbox DDJ-400, Pioneer DJ maintained the “club-style” effects control, only this time, you were controlling the software effects, as it had no hardware effects of its own. It was limited, but they managed to make it work. If rekordbox is used to manage the music software, there are eight Merge FX pattern presets. If Serato DJ Pro is used, there are only four, and everything can be changed. One Merge FX comprises of four groups: Build FX, Release FX, Build Sample, and Drop Sample. Each of these groups has 41 different effects that can be combined to make more than 9,000 different patterns. Also, the user can save up to eight of their own patterns, which they can access with the FX Select button when needed. New Jog Cutter Feature The layout of the controls on the DDJ-FLX6-GT is the same as its predecessor, echoing club-standard CDJ + DJM setup, so you can perform intuitively. However, a new matt grey body and the graphite color of the jog brings a sophisticated look. Overall, the Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX6 is a decent consumer-focused controller intended for the mid-level market. This device focuses primarily on performance features rather than build, with four channels, and a host of new features – though some are more appealing than others.The FX select simply cycles through the effects you’ve chosen for the two engines, with up to 6 options available. But if that was the brief, they could have done it so much better by ditching any pretence of it being a “pro” device, and making a better job of the usability and balance of features for that market. As it is, I fear it will confuse beginners (especially Serato users). A controller of mismatches? I’m intrigued as to why Pioneer DJ didn’t made a “DDJ-600” controller, a well-considered step up from the DDJ-400, but below the professional brace of the DDJ-800 and DDJ-1000 – something we could recommend to our Rekordbox users who are still hobbyists but want four channels, and who one day want to play in pro DJ booths. It is strictly one effect at a time, and so what you basically have is a choice of six effects, to be triggered individually. The layout suddenly seems convoluted once you realise this. There’s an obvious software/hardware mismatch, but nevertheless it’s passable. The Beat FX section is underpowered, and while it’s at least easy enough to understand in Rekordbox, in Serato it is confusingly implemented.

Most controllers do follow an exhausting trend of only using an exclusive single-software support option. It’s nice to see more than one option on one device. Since this is first-and-foremost a software DJ controller, you won’t have to get used to any other inputs for your DJ gear. However, it feels as though we should at least have an Aux input here. One exception to that statement is that the DDJ-FLX6 has a booth output, but no DJ is going to want to play with this controller in any venue big enough to have booth speakers – plus, when you have “booth” and master, having them both as unbalanced outputs doesn’t make sense. The Jog Cutter and Merge FX are clever ideas, and innovation is to be applauded, but if you don’t understand what these things are doing, it is not going to help you to grow as a DJ – and if they are not easy to use, they won’t help you sound good, either.There are eight Merge FX pattern presets to choose from (four if you use Serato DJ Pro) and you can use your own samples. If you’re DJing with rekordbox, you’ll find everything is customizable. Choose from 41 types of effects within the four categories that make up one Merge FX (Build FX, Build Sample, Release FX, and Drop Sample) and combine them to create more than 9,000 different patterns. You can save eight of your own patterns and use the FX Select button on the unit to call them up whenever you want to perform a unique mix.