DJ Equipment Reviews

Cortex Dmix 600

Have you updated "dmix" with Cortex’s Dmix 600?

If you have to go digital, the world of classic vinyl will understand why. What that very same world won’t understand is if you go from 0 to 60 in the blink of an eye and turn everything you own into "digital applications". Nothing can replace vinyl. But for the convenience, the digital bandwagon is one you should jump on. However, there are a few products that working DJs should avoid, while others, they might as well marry. The Cortex Dmix 600 falls into the latter. Forget the DJ crates, the hassle and the hernias: this is one digital package that’s sure to be your personal lifesaver for the rest of your days.

The Dmix 600 is much like the Dmix 300, only with more features and better features. Most of you guys can remember the solid beauty your Dmix 300 offered, and you wouldn’t want to give it away for anything. (You can check out the workingDJ post for the Dmix 300 here.) After all, it felt as strong and dependable as the material used for an aircraft fit for the President with. Fortunately, you won’t be missing that solid design when you get the Dmix 600. The feel is metallic and strong, as are all the knobs, buttons, and surprisingly, even the jog wheels.

But what exactly is so great about the Cortex Dmix 600? First and foremost, the simplicity of it. After reviewing this product, I can confidentally say that’s basically its claim to fame. (And the design, of course, because it’s gorgeous). Working DJs can search, cue, play, pitch, mix AND scratch MP3 or WAV files right from their iPod or some other USB storage device. Notice any difference? No crates full of vinyl. Your crates is your ipod, and your vinyl are all the unlimited songs you downloaded.

The Dmix 600 is an "all in one mixing device" designed specifically for USB sotrage devices and of course your iPod. After reviewing the product a little further, I noticed a few traditional similarities every working DJ will love. Just by looking at the face, you can compare it to the old mixer and turntables you’ve used in the past. Even though you have that brand new digital convenience, don’t expect anything else to be different, because Cortex has made sure to make everything the same…only better. This means working DJs still have the basic features they can on their own mixer:

• 3 band eq per channel with gain control (two channels)
• Auxiliary inputs for phono or line devices. This way, DJs can connect external CD players and turntables if they want
• Balanced XLR outputs for connecting to larger professional sound systems
• RCA outputs for master, booth and record 

Do these features sound familiar? They should. It’s your traditional "vinyl workshop", minus the pain in the ass of carrying DJ cases and the difficulty in transporting it from your home, to a gig, and then to another gig, and pretty much wherever you need to be. Should this be your number one unit? It can easily be every working DJs numero uno, but personally, I say keep the vinyl in the foreground–where it belongs. Make everything else its backup.

When you tamper with the Cortex Dmix 600, you’ll find yourself pretty impressed, to say the absolute least. But there are some areas where Cortex threw minor mistakes across unit. For example, editing your loops, you’ll soon find, takes some getting used to. Near the beginning, it’ll be nothing short of a pain in the butt. You’ll have to get more acquainted with this hindrance, but when you do, it’ll be insignificant in comparison to the "Big Picture".

My other beef with Cortex (I guess more Pro Sound than anything else) is something they have already worked on, and that’s the fact that the Dmix 600 isn’t compatible with MAC formatted iPods, which makes me wonder: "What the hell’s taking them so long to make it compatible?" After all, that’s what almost everybody uses. Luckily, their solution was swift. They’re already formulating the software to ensure Mac ipod compatibility. But unless you get their software for Mac ipods, the dock is pretty much useless. The good news is that the software is free so DJs can get it the moment it’s released. At first, you’ll probably think it’s kind of dodgy this fact wasn’t written in bold on every web site promoting this unit…but then you forgive. After all, look at this 12 pound gift Cortex gave you!!!! (A gift that isn’t free and in fact costs $1,000).

 

Press Ctrl+D to Bookmark Your Favorite Posts - Pro Sound, iPod, working DJs

Related Posts

• Cortex DMix 300 DJ Product Review (0)
• Numark NS7-Part 1 DJ Product Review (0)