Anyone here know anything about turntables and scratching/mixing?

what the hell are you guys talking about, he asked for turntables to learn to scratch and beat juggle. you can't learn the essence of beat juggling with a f*cking laptop! if you search around you can probably find 1200's for around 250 each, there are other credible brands like vestax but they tend to cost more. if you only have around 130 per deck to spend, then save your money till you can afford it, anything at that price won't be worth it in the long run.

http://www.youtube.com/thudrumble

Have you considered the Pacemaker?

Click to Enlarge

Maybe VB can provide a review.

One of the most annoying people I know has one, which has put me off for life... He was DJ-ing from a deckchair in my garden and polluting a tranquil summers day with hard house... Or something, I can't tell the difference between dance 'music'... Quite a fun looking gadget tho'...

Vestax make turntables that are better in terms of spec lists i.e.

• more powerful + responsive motor
  
• Straight tone arm (better for tracking/scratching) removing the need for anti skate
  
• non hard wired i.e. removable phono leads/ground cable
  
• greater range for counter weight adjustment
  
• plug in light
  
• +/-10% standard pitch control plus +/-50% ultra torque adjustment
  
• Hidden on off switch
  
  

However technics have been there for over 25 years- I guess its like a comparison between a Ferrari and a Honda NSX. One handles and is engineered better while the other has the emotive vote.

technics 1200 is now 36 years old, the more popular mk2 is 30

To the OP - Jesus Christ

Vestax decks are wank

while we're at it- i need to repair my turntable. i know of that shop on tottenham court road, but can anyone recommend a better bet? think it's just the rca cables that need repairing/replacing. not a difficult job. but i have hammers for thumbs.

Basically I want to buy some decks mainly for scratching and beatjuggling etc.
Dont want to spend a huge amount on them, maybe about 130 max per deck.
Does anyone have any knowledge on this? bear in mind im a total beginner.
I also need an amp, mixer and speakers so could anyone point me in the right direction with these?

any advice appreciated!
cheers.

the stanton t62 is the cheapest direct drive I can find. Good starting point for a beginner.

Everyone I know who has bought non technics decks has regretted it and later on bought technics. Save your money for them, they get a good resale value where other decks don't

+1
Technics every time, no reaon to get anything different

My first decks were Soundlab beltdrive back in '91, bought some Technics a year later, still going strong to this day

To the OP - Jesus Christ

Vestax decks are wank

this statement is based on what?

When Vestax brough them out a few clubs tried them but soon went back to Technics

When Fabric opened in Oct '99 I DJed there in December. They kitted all the rooms out with Vestax decks. After a few hours of using them in the main room a few people complained and they brought some Technics from out the back and replaced them. They still use Technics in every room to this day
They're too sensitive to use and the pitch control is all over the shop. With Technics you can get a beat match within 3 secs and sometimes don't even need to use headphones, Vestax are too complicated, keep to the basics imo

Have you actually used them?

Yes as mentioned in the above post. And atleast 20 times on other occasions

I don't play out as much nowadays but the last time I used them was about 9/10 years ago, never used them since as 99% of places use Technics

Thanks for all the advice, maybe it would be better going for 1200s
Ill have a poke around on ebay and see what sorta price i could get some for.
but id still like to hear from people who know about cheaper decks!
the more info the better.

thanks peeps.

VHS out stripped Betamax. doesn't mean it was the better format of the two. I get a little tired of people chatting with little or no substance (esp re turntables). As has been said, technics are ubiquitous. So as a Dj playing out I use them a lot but I've always owned vestax and DO NOT regret getting them. For me there is no question which is techincally better. I've heard people suggest they (vestax) are more sensitive, AKA MORE RESPONSIVE. I would like to hear someone tell what technics do better than vestax.

Just go down to a local store and demo them for yourself.

Thanks for all the advice, maybe it would be better going for 1200s
Ill have a poke around on ebay and see what sorta price i could get some for.
but id still like to hear from people who know about cheaper decks!
the more info the better.

thanks peeps.

Could be your lucky day, unless Multi's snaked ya
http://www.londonfgss.com/thread12653.html

VHS out stripped Betamax. doesn't mean it was the better format of the two. I get a little tired of people chatting with little or no substance (esp re turntables). As has been said, technics are ubiquitous. So as a Dj playing out I use them a lot but I've always owned vestax and DO NOT regret getting them. For me there is no question which is techincally better. I've heard people suggest they (vestax) are more sensitive, AKA MORE RESPONSIVE. I would like to hear someone tell what technics do better than vestax.

Just go down to a local store and demo them for yourself.

Proof's in the pudding. A load of bars and clubs tried Vetsax when they first came out and soon all reverted back to Technics.
Name me one decent club anywhere in England or the world in fact that uses Vestax decks?

Can't remember the model but it was the first one, the one that everyone tried.
Had a little joystick on to 'nudge' the pitch, why? No Need
Had a dial/needle on the baseplate to show you the beatmatch, why? No need
Had a reverse play option button to play the record backwards, why? No need
Plus the buttons were well clunky and overall, the thing just felt and looked clumsy and heavy.

To be fair though my all time favourite DJ - Paul 'Trouble' Anderson used to use them at HQs so can't be all bad! ;-)

Check out http://www.skratchworx.com/ for reviews...

Don't a lot of the DMC Dj competitors use vestax? Maybe they are the sponsor though. Not sure.

Also, keep away from Pioneer 500 & 600 mixers, awful. Had one for a week and got rid

I had a 500. You can get better for sure but you can do a lot worse.

For the price you can't get worse

The sound was like pouring gravy through the channels. Great effects but the sound quality was shocking