Nice but not essential (Technics SL-1210MK2)

Member Name: decks

Product:	Technics SL-1210MK2
Date:	12/05/02 (1868 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Super build quality, rock-steady pitch

Disadvantages: A little pricey, slightly dated

Here's my short history :

1995 : Buy my first pair of 'decks', some direct-drive Soundlab's, which were imitation Technics. Learn how to mix, and do so successfully.

1997 : Come into a bit of money, no real need to change, but decide to go for the Technics SL-1210's...

Well obviously I was over the moon about finally getting my hands on the legendary Technics, which featured in every magazine and pictured with every DJ - who wouldn't.

In fact, they turned out to be as solid as they looked in print. They weighed a ton compared to my 'feather-weight' Soundlab's, the build was quality great - the pitch control stiff as a board, and they oozed class.

I was amazed at the control you could get on the pitch, compared with the rather loose Soundlab, but despite this, I think my mixing suffered a little. There was much compensation needed to adjust from the constant pitch checking needed on the Soundlabs, to the more lazy approach I had with the Technics.

Anyway, my point to this is - although I'm used to the Technics now, I think they could be difficult to use for some people starting out. If you've got a deck which you need to check a lot of the time, to see if the mix is spot on, you can learn a lot more about beat matching.

I recently went to a party where I DJ'ed with 3 other friends for nearly 12 hours on one of my old Soundlab decks. Mixing was great, one of the blokes was scratching perfectly on them, which really amazed me.

So for the price, personally, I would recommend these decks to people who've had a little experience first. There are some good priced DJ start-up kits available.

Also, these Technics, great as they are, are being overtaken by other manufacturers, who are introducing new features. Even the newer MK-III SL-1210 (I've got Mk-2's) doesn't seem to warrant purchasing over some of the other new decks.

>Having said this, if you can afford them (and get hold of them!), they are quality quality machines and you'll always love them because they are legendary.

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