Denon MC-2000 review

The MC-2000 is Denon’s entry-level DJ controller and it comes with Serato DJ Intro software and all the controls you need to mix, scratch and mash-up your tracks.

Like many entry-level DJ controllers, it’s a two-channel controller with two jog wheels, an effects section and hot-cue and loop controls. It also has a stereo RCA auxiliary input and 6.3mm microphone input on the back to let you play your iPod or other source through the MC-2000 and talk to your audience with your MIC.

Physically, the MC-2000 is a very compact unit, making it great for use in a small home studio. The MC-2000 is constructed from tough plastic metal, which gives the MC-2000 a durable, high-quality feel. It may be designed for the home studio, but the MC-2000 feels as if it’ll endure some time on the road, too.

Serato DJ Intro is high-quality entry-level DJing software

The Denon MC-2000 comes with Serato DJ Intro software, but you can also use it with Native Instruments’ Traktor Pro 2 and any other software that supports MIDI mapping. Denon DJ has already created a Traktor settings file that you can import, which means you won’t have to map controls yourself. Serato DJ Intro doesn’t support MIDI mapping because it’s controller specific, but that doesn’t matter. To use the MC-2000, just install its ASIO driver and hook it up to one of your computer’s spare USB ports. Serato DJ Intro will recognise the MC-2000 as a compatible device and work straight away, with all the controls already mapped and ready for use.

MIXER SECTION

The MC-2000’s mixer section consists of two channel faders, a crossfader, two Cue buttons and two EQ strips (one for each channel). The EQ strips are separated by global controls that we’ll cover later.

The channel faders are worryingly close to the jog wheels, but we didn’t hit the jogs accidentally during our time with the MC-2000. In terms of feel, the channel faders are similar to other entry-level controllers. We found the faders had far greater resistance than the Numark Mixtrack Pro’s channel faders, but they were also a lot smoother. The channel faders are better suited to smooth mixing than fast and frantic turntablism.

Similarly, the crossfader is too close to the Pitch Bend and Vinyl Mode buttons, making the crossfader area feel cramped and uncomfortable when scratching. There’s no real impediment to scratching or general crossfader use, but you’re always conscious of accidentally hitting something. The crossfader feels very loose and must travel 3mm from closed before you hear sound, making it decent enough for beatjuggling and basic scratching.

DECKS

The MC-2000’s deck sections have 4in jog wheels, transport controls, a pitch fader and a Sync button. As it’s a Denon controller, each deck also gets a set of Pitch Bend buttons that let you get your tracks in phase without using the jog wheel.

The jog wheels are small, much smaller than the Mixtrack Pro’s excellent 6in jogs, and you can feel it when scratching and beatjuggling. We found the latency was too high unless we had the sample buffer set to its lowest setting. Although scratching and beatjuggling is possible with the MC-2000, we prefer the response and feel of the Traktor Kontrol S4’s jog wheels, although it’s worth remembering that you’re locked in to Traktor with the Kontrol S4.

The pitch fader’s travel is very smooth and it works well in both Serato DJ Intro and Traktor Pro 2. It has a centre detent, which might annoy turntablists, but it didn’t bother us. Should you not want to match track tempos automatically, you can use the Sync button.

Each deck also has a Key Lock button, which keeps a track’s pitch the same, no matter how much you speed it up or slow it down. This stops a singer sounding like Alvin the chipmunk when you speed up a track, for example.

HOT-CUES, LOOPS AND EFFECTS

The MC-2000’s hot-cue, loop and effects sections are very well implemented, and conform to our preferred flow. You have hot-cues right next to the jog, exactly where you need them, with the loop controls above them, followed by the effects controls.

These sections use plastic buttons that are a good size and have enough travel to let you know you’ve pressed them. The effects pots are high, apart from the pot marked “Beats”, which is half the height of the others. Three of the effects pots have a button underneath them, except the Beats pot, which you can push.

In Serato DJ Intro, each effects pot controls the amount of the effect applied to a track, and the button underneath it activates the effect. All that is, except the Beats button, which controls the timing of the effects in beat fractions from 1/8th of a beat to eight beats. The MC-2000 lets you control up to three effects simultaneously on each deck in Serato DJ Intro.

We’ve seen better implemented effects sections for Traktor Pro 2, but the MC-2000’s effects section complements Serato DJ Intro’s onscreen effects section brilliantly.

Traktor LE 2 looks similar to the full version of Traktor Pro 2 shown here, but doesn’t have Traktor Pro 2’s advanced features

The loop controls consist of In and Out buttons for manual loop creation and plus and minus buttons for setting auto loops of a specific size. The controls are well spaced and work as expected in both Serato DJ Intro and Traktor, although it’s worth noting that DJ Intro only lets you create loops between one beat and eight beats in size.

In Traktor Pro 2, the effects controls work well in Chained or Single effects modes. You can even select effects (using the Shift button). Sadly, there are no buttons for assigning FX units to specific channels, which means you have to use your mouse to do this.

You get four hot-cues, which is plenty for rearranging a track’s flow on the fly, and you can easily delete the hot-cues you’ve created by pressing the Shift button and the hot-cue you want to delete simultaneously.

GLOBAL CONTROLS

The MC-2000’s global controls are limited to browser navigation and track loading buttons. These consist of two buttons for loading tracks in to the two virtual decks, forward and back buttons for navigating the different browser levels and a rotary controller for scrolling through the browser menus and playlists. Surprisingly, given the small size of the MC-2000, there’s plenty of space in between the global controls, so you’re unlikely to hit the wrong button when loading or selecting a track under pressure.

CONCLUSION

We really like the MC-2000. We think the Traktor Kontrol S2 is a better controller if you only want to use Traktor Pro 2 and can afford the extra capital needed to buy it, but otherwise the MC-2000 is a fantastic entry-level controller from a company with sound DJing pedigree. The hot-cue, loop and effects controls are well implemented, the faders are decent, and it sounds good, too.

If you’re new to DJing or just want a high quality controller for home use, you should try the Denon MC-2000.