Pioneer Vs Numark
by Ria on Jul.23, 2009, under DJ Reviews
Pioneer Vs Numark Part 1
Which brand is better?
As a working DJ, quality and affordability are among the most important aspects when shopping for the best DJ equipment. As a DJ, you ask yourself; "How good is this and how well will it cater to my needs?" Then you ask yourself, "How much is it and can I afford it on my budget?" In the DJ community, working DJs can count on a number of brands to get them what they need. Ecler for mixers, Stanton for turntables, Gemini for affordability. Somewhere in between the sea of desirability and necessity, there’s Pioneer and Numark. Where exactly do these two brands meet on your ladder of expectations?
I’ve found that, in the DJ community (DJ web sites and DJ forums), people are always comparing the two brands. While some say "You can’t compare Pioneer with Numark. Pioneer has better quality!", others will argue, "Numark has style, they’re always keeping up with trends, and they offer affordable prices! In these tough times, Numark wins hands down."
Again, we’re back to the two most important things: Quality and Affordability.
Pioneer’s CDJ-200
If I can name just one thing Pioneer has above Numark (off the top of my head), the first thing that will, hands down, come to mind is how reliable their construction is. Pioneer may be going bankrupt when it comes to their TVs, but their DJ equipment is definitely on top of it. Above par and beyond, if you ask me. When they make their equipment, such as the CDJ-200, you know it’s going to be durable enough to withstand almost every DJs abuse. If you have to carry your stuff from one venue to the next, isn’t the quality in build important? Hell yes! So if you look at it solely on a durability/quality basis, taking Pioneer’s CDJ-200 over Numark’s ARC 3 will be a no brainer. Just go with Pioneer.
Let’s continue to use these two products as an example. At a glance, the Arc 3 has:
- Less durability
- Sure, but at least it rocks with esthetic appeal
- More affordability
- Less features
It’s a tie when it comes to esthetics. The ARC 3 rocks, but so does the CDJ-200, which can crush the Arc 3 in terms of durability any given day. But check out the price difference. Not a huge difference MSRP, but if you want to get them at a street price, working DJs will get the Arc 3 for less than $300, while you’ll have to drop $400 even on the CDJ-200. Ouch.
In the DJ community, I think Numark has gotten some serious flack for producing equipment they built in haste. Meaning they didn’t exactly take all the necessary time on the blue prints before turning their idea into a piece of workable DJ equipment. But you can’t complain, can you working DJs, when you’re getting all the basic features (and then some) for a price you can really fall in love with?
Numark’s equipment doesn’t offer much less than Pioneer’s equipment. However, it offers less where it matters most: the wallet. Nonetheless, you cant put a price on perfection, and Pioneer has been producing damn near close to perfection for several years. This leads me back to my initial question: which is better? Pioneer or Numark? I don’t know yet. Maybe I’ll come to a decision in part two.
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July 28th, 2009 on 1:25 pm
As a long time user of many of the brands mentioned here, I’d like to shed a little more light in some areas if I may.
In the world of us “Working DJ’s”, Gemini is most notorious for living at the end of the spectrum known as “you get what you pay for”, whereas Pioneer (and Denon) reside at the higher end where you pay a premium for the “latest & greatest”. In the middle you will find Numark who is most known for maintaining the balance at “affordability and price”. All have their pros and cons in each respect.
Both Gemini and Numark maintain a solid foothold in regards to mixers and have done so for years. I still have an early Gemini PMX-2200 as well as a Numark PPD DM-1775A that still performs with every day use in my home DJ studio. Today’s models however lack the identity that was signficant from the earlier models. Look through a catalog of DJ mixers and you will discover that present Numark and Gemini models look more of the same. A DJ who purchases a Numark won’t find anything of significance that differs from a present Gemini model; and vice versa. Mixers by Pioneer have been steadily improving, but at a premium price. Seriously, if I had $2500 to blow on a mixer, it most definitely wouldn’t be Pioneer’s flagship DJM-1000. Sorry, but that’s money better spent on a rotary such as a Bozak; a true DJ mixer.
CD players at the higher end of the spectrum continue their ongoing battle of supremacy between Pioneer and Denon. With the recent release of their DN-S3700 with 9″ platter and media capability, Denon is poised to land a left hook to the reigning champ CDJ-1000MK3. However Pioneer is always known to have something up their sleeve when the time is right, so those among the Pioneer faithful have more than enough reason to stay tuned. Although Numark is all over the place in building a base with their NS-7 dual player ($1299.99 avg retail), Gemini seems to be trying for a piece of the action by offering obvious Pioneer knockoffs with their CDJ-202, CDJ-203, and CDJ-600 models. With all priced under $300, one may question durability as well as functionality with one of these units. If you’re looking for USB on either one of these models, look no further because you will not find it. At the time of writing this, there is no CDJ-600 documentation available on the Gemini website. If someone has one, please feel free to provide an update as well as a review.