iRig Mix/DJRig TECH words: ALEX BLANCO
VERDICT BUILD QUALITY
EASE OF USE FEATURES
7.0 10
VALUE FOR MONEY 8.0 SOUND QUALITY
8.0 7.0
HYPE Great for basic mixing in pubs
and bars.
GRIPE The sound quality from the 1/8”
analogue mini-jack isn’t really going to cut it on a proper club system.
If you want iOS mixing with some hardware integration then consider the iRig Mix. It isn’t going to replace your Traktor S4 anytime soon, but for parties, pubs and similar gigs it is a lot more convenient than lugging decks, controllers, mixers and laptops around as it can all be done from one device.
8.0/10
SIR iMIX-A-LOT
IK Multimedia iRig Mix/DJRig is a radical fusion of hi-tech iPad meets old school DJ technology. With no shortage of DJ apps for the iPad or iPhone, can IK Multimedia’s offering do things a little differently?
I
t seems like iPhone and iPod DJing apps are pretty much standard these days. Just as virtual DJing on computers revolutionised the affordability and availability of DJing, the idea of being able to skip
the laptop altogether and do things on a tablet — or even a phone — is too good to resist. But sometimes you just want to get those hands dirty. And of course, it is hard to mix without cueing the incoming track. Enter iRig Mix.
This unit combines a pretty standard DJing app with some custom hardware to allow mixing, cueing and EQ with real life faders and knobs instead of virtual ones. The hardware is a nifty two-channel analogue mixer with long faders, firm gain pots offering high and low- EQ, plus a wide crossfader and master level pot. It feels pretty sturdy, but not exactly tough. It’s a combination of software with an analogue mixer, so those expecting a digital link, think again. The audio connections all run through a single 1/8” custom mini- jack cable with four different breakout contacts at each end. At first glance this might seem a little old school, but there are advantages. Firstly, the iOS device can be connected to a power source as well as running it into iRig Mix, so DJs needn’t run out of juice, as they are not using the standard iPad/iPhone connector to send the sound to the mixer. The mixer itself is powered either by the included power supply unit or via
USB. The design of the mixer also means that users can plug in any standard microphone or any other 1/4” jack instrument. In fact, for the guitar players and singers out there, the whole thing serves as an audio interface for IKMultimedia’s Amplitube, Vocalive and Groovemaker apps too (all of which are included free with the hardware). Of course, there’s a downside: with such a small jack output running from a headphone socket, the sound quality suffers a little. It still sounds very good when turned up loud, and the gain pots and EQs have bags of boost to further tweak the sound, and are crackle-free.
MODES Moving on, we find two main operating modes. One uses a single cable to provide two stereo analogue channels. The advantage to this is that there is less to carry around and it only requires one device (not everybody has or wants two iPads or iPhones). The downside is that by using one device, it means each virtual deck is only half the size on the display. DJs can get around this by rotating the device sideways, and the software will go into single-deck display mode, but it means having to toggle between the decks — a tricky operation when in the height of the mix. Alternatively, for those with two iPads/iPhones, simply leave them permanently rotated so that the view represents one deck per device, and
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priCE $99.99
CONTACT
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get more control. This looks more in-keeping with a traditional DJing set-up. DJs familiar with digital DJing software may now be asking how to sync the two devices if there is no digital connection? IKMultimedia have plumped for good old fashioned beat-detection from the audio signal. A sync switch on the hardware routes the audio from one device to the other, via the mixer. It’s not ideal, but it works pretty well and, interestingly, opens up more useful possibilities of syncing up the DJing software to another iOS app — say Rebirth or iElectribe — or any other audio source. It is a really clever and innovative system, and as far as we know it’s the only iOS DJ app with analogue beat detection and syncing.
SOFTWARE So far, we haven’t really said much about the software, and apart from the beat-detection there isn’t much to report that we haven’t seen before in every other DJ app. DJs can use internal BPM syncing, pitch controls, scratching, effects, EQ, iTunes library import, cue- points, looping and mix recording. There are also some effects banks to help DJs get a little bit Dave Rodigan in the FX sound department. It all does exactly what would be expected, and works well. Our only criticisms are that there is only one fixed compressed record format for mixes (no full quality), and the GUI resolution is a bit rubbish on the iPad, as there’s no proper full-screen mode. iRig Mix is a really interesting mix of innovative old-school hardware and run-of-the-mill new-school software. DJs who regularly perform small gigs where trick-mixing and scratching aren’t vital should prepare to be as excited as someone who’s just discovered bread that you don’t need to slice.
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