Technics SL-DZ1200 Digital TurnTable
See it at Amazon.com for $650.00Average Customer Rating
(3.5 out of 5)
Amazon Customer Reviews
Most Helpful First | Newest First
(5 out of 5)Oh.......My.......God
Okay, before I start my review of this product, let's be clear on a few things: You're about to read a review written by someone that considers himself one VERY stubborn skeptic. I consider myself a hip hop purist. I've been a DJ since 1994 and I hold vinyl in the highest of regards. I don't think anything will EVER be able to fully replace it. When I first heard about CD turntables being released to the public, I thought it was nothing short of blasphemous. I literally refused to lay my hands on one simply because I thought they were for lazy DJs and people with so little skill that they needed computerized turntables to take all the guess work out for them. That was until one day when I stopped by one of my favorite spots to cop some vinyl and another turntable. One of the salesman who I'd come to know on a first name basis and trusted a great deal introduced me to the marvel that is the Technics SL-DZ1200. I was still skeptical while he was showing me its capabilities. I had no intention of buying it at all......until I laid hands on it. Seriously, there is NOTHING that you can do with vinyl that you can't do with the SL-DZ1200s. What the previous reviewer said is true, you have to have a hands on encounter before you can make a fair assessment of this piece. I stood there scratching and mixing CDs for about an hour. After all was said and done, I left the store as an owner of one....and I'm not even a Technique kind of guy, I prefer Stanton turntables. The platter itself feels like vinyl and you can literally scratch the CDs like they were vinyl. You'll love it, no question. The previous review is very accurate. If you have a huge vinyl collection like I do (over 3000), then I can understand your hesitation. But I also have a growing CD collection (over 1500) and I would love to incorporate some of that material into my rotation. The switch for me was totally logical and I think that many other DJs will end up doing the same if they give this baby a spin.
If I had to find a beef, naturally, it would be the hefty price tag. CD turntables, depending on what brand and what features they have, can run you $700 - $3000 easy. And you have to wonder if the ability to play MP3s and CDR/RWs could lead to bigger issues. You'd never have to buy anything other than blank CDs and internet access. While I think that doing so is better suited for the morally bankrupt, the realist in me acknowledges that bootlegging isn't going anywhere anytime soon.
This turntable still gets my highest reccomendation and I urge any DJ looking into this to go ahead and get one. Pitch control, record manipulation, scratching....it's all there. Once you start scratching, you'll totally forget that it's not vinyl that you're scratching with.
(5 out of 5)Too good to be true.
At first glance, i was a bit skeptical of all the hype surrounding this DJ's wet dream; but after a hands on encounter, my doubts quickly faded. To the touch, you can't tell the difference between it and real vinyl. I'm talkin about no holds barred scratchin' and track manipulation. You can even freewheel. And when I say you can scratch, I mean you can SCRATCH! On top of having all the versitility of the analogue 1200s, it adds some tremendous features such as on board effects, reverse switch, sample banks, live cueing, SD card and MP3 compatability, and a hell of alot more that I probably haven't discovered yet. Although I consider myself somewhat of a vinyl purist, this bad boy will allow me to drop some choice cuts from the hundreds of CD's that I have accumulated over the years into my sets; and I'll be able to do it with style. That is, once I get enough loot to buy one....
(2 out of 5)BEWARE - 30 second cd load time.
If you plan on using your unit for real gigs, BEWARE. It takes at least 30 seconds from the moment the deck accepts your cd to the moment you can actually start cueing it up. NOT GOOD.
I have 2 of these but they've been relegated to weddings because they look amazing and attract a lot of attention. But that's it.
If you run into problems, good luck on getting technical support. I've had to learn to deal with one of my units randomly skipping across cd's because the certified technicians were never able to duplicate or find root cause.
Oh, and check out what your local bars and clubs are using because I guarantee you it's not the sl-dz1200.
(5 out of 5)What can I say.
When I first bought the Technics SL-DZ1200, I bought it more for the looks then anything. Actually I would rarely get on it for the first few months, maybe once every 2-3 weeks. When I actually started to learn its features, and mix it with my crossfader mixer's FX, then I think I fell in love. Mind you, if you want really mind blowing FX, you'll probably have to connect it to some other unit, but apart from that, The scratching is pretty good, some times, when I practice, the scratch actually sounds like a Vinyl (Not Always), but the more I practice with it, the more closer it sounds to it. Like the first review said, it does take some time for the CD to load, but hey, isnt everything in life like that? Buy some other CD Turntable, and it will probably beat Technics in some areas, but then Technics will do the same in the other areas. You win and lose, regardless.
So just look better then the other people. ;-)
(1 out of 5)Good feel, bad sound
Feels nice under your hand. However, as previously mentioned, the lag on load time is horrendous. 30 seconds is a *very* long time to a dj. Concerning the FX, one of which is to emulate the actual sound of vinyl on a 1200 being pitched up and down just sounds harsh and digital -like a poor timestretch algorithm. I like and use Technics 1200s but this product is a failure. Stick with CD-Js from Pioneer, if you need CD -or move to Traktor/Final Scratch/Serato Scratch Live, if you want the vinyl feel. [This review is based on actual club use, by a professional dj].