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DDJ-FLX4 or XDJ-RX3: do you need a PC?

4 min readL'équipe Fox Rider
On the left, the Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX4 controller seen from above: a jog, its pads, its faders and its USB cable placed next to it; on the right, the Pioneer DJ XDJ-RX3 screen displaying two waveforms read from a USB key, without a computer.
Photo: Solomon203 — Wikimedia Commons — CC BY-SA 4.0

You have a small controller that works very well with your laptop, and we advise you to switch to a standalone console to host a real evening. Is this a salesman's speech, or a difference that really matters on the big day?

Know before you plan: DJ equipment cannot be shipped. He withdraws and goes in person to Lyon 3 (2 Impasse du Lutin, 69003 Lyon), by appointment. The excess of €200 is paid on site at the drop-off and returned to you on return.

Let's honestly compare the DDJ-FLX4, a popular entry-level controller, and the XDJ-RX3, a standalone all-in-one console. They both have two channels, two jogs and a crossfader. Everything else separates them.

The difference is in one sentence

The DDJ-FLX4 does not produce any sound on its own. It controls software that runs on an external device: rekordbox or Serato DJ Lite on PC and Mac, djay on iPhone, iPad or Android tablet. Remove this device and all that's left is an inert control surface.

The XDJ-RX3 reads files directly from a USB key plugged into one of its two front ports. No computer, no phone, no apps. It displays waveforms, cue points and library on its 10.1-inch touchscreen in 1280 × 800.

This dependence is neutral in your home, where you control everything. It becomes a risk at 11 p.m. in a rented room, when an update triggers, an audio driver stalls, or a guest gets tripped in the USB cable. On a standalone console, there is nothing to crash.

Pioneer DJ DDJ-FLX4 controller seen from above: two jogs, channel faders and performance pads

What the DDJ-FLX4 does very well

Let's not underestimate him. It weighs approximately 2.1 kg and is 48 cm wide, it is powered by USB-C – 5 V, 500 mA power bus, or 9 V power supply if you want more headroom – and it gives free access to rekordbox, Serato DJ Lite and djay. For learning, rehearsing at home or hosting an aperitif with friends, it's an excellent tool, and it costs a fraction of the price of a standalone console.

It also includes aids designed for beginners, such as the Smart Fader and Smart CFX, which compensate for an approximate transition. There's nothing shameful about using it.

Rear panel of Pioneer XDJ-RX3: red and white RCA jacks, balanced outputs and power socket

Connections, this detail that decides the evening

This is where the gap becomes concrete, much more so than in the mix functions.

DDJ-FLX4XDJ-RX3
Works without a computerNoYes
Mic Inputs1 (6.35 TS jack)2 (XLR or 6.35 TRS jack)
Master outputCARBalanced XLR and RCA
Return output (booth)NoneJack 6.35 TRS
Turntable inputsNone2 entries LINE/PHONO

Let's translate. Only one microphone on the FLX4: if the bride and groom, the witness and the host want to speak, they will have to pass the same microphone, or add an external table. An RCA master output only: on fifteen meters of cable to the sound system at the back of the room, an asymmetrical connection catches the parasites, where the balanced XLR output of the RX3 rejects them. No return output: impossible to power a return speaker independently of the room volume.

Finally, the FLX4 does not receive vinyl turntables. The RX3 has two switchable LINE/PHONO RCA inputs, which allows it to also serve as a mixer for a pair of turntables.

Front panel of a Pioneer XDJ-RX3: touch screen displaying two orange waveforms, gain dials just below

So, what do you need for your evening?

If you are hosting at home, with friends, with a speaker three meters away and no one to give a speech, the controller you already have is enough. Don't change anything.

If you are responsible for the music for a wedding, an important birthday or a corporate party, three questions decide: will there be speeches on the microphone? Is the sound system far from the DJ table? What happens if your computer shuts down? As soon as you are worried about just one answer, the standalone console is no longer a luxury.

Our Pioneer DJ XDJ-RX3 plays your tracks in MP3, AAC, WAV, AIFF and FLAC from a simple USB key, offers two microphone inputs with dedicated gain and a balanced XLR output. And if you want to slip some vinyl into the party, its PHONO inputs directly accept a pair of turntables Technics SL-1210 MK2 .

One last piece of advice, independent of hardware: prepare your music before. A standalone console doesn't save you from an unanalyzed library, and a controller doesn't save you from a laptop that's running out of battery.

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