Since being on the look out for some sensible affordable but quality midi or usb controllers to compliment my new DDM4000 mixer I took a look at the  EKS XP5’s from under the counter in my store. I figured I would wait a bit until I could afford some CDJ’s (im looking at the new Stanton C.324’s instead of the Pioneer CDJ’s which offer the same features and more at half the price).

I hooked one up to my Traktor setup on my Macbook, downloaded the latest midi driver and software for it, selected Traktor in the driver software, loaded the correct TKS file and away i went.

The unit is small and you can fix two together into a 19″ rackmount fitting, but it is a great solution to a simple controller problem. Obviously it contains one single stereo output through its built in audio interface via USB. This means you can use 2 units as two stereo outputs straight into 2 channels on your external mixer if need be. It is great for mixing 4 decks within the Traktor software by just using one controller unit if need be. A lot of people commented on the build quality and the colour (white) but I have to say if your just wanting to use it to control a deck – tempo, hands on pitch bending, seeking forward and back with the jog wheel, cue and play buttons plus navigation buttons then this excellent affordable unit is for you. It is heavy enough and solid enough to withstand falls, carrying and knocks and I feel i could use this playing out live. Some people commented on the buttons feeling poor to touch but in all honesty I think they are fine and they do the job much better than you would expect. Yes the grip on top of the jog wheel is terrible and this unit would not be recommended for scratching but for operating a digital deck and for standard mixing it has more than enough features, buttons and comes certified for native use with Traktor and Deckadance with improved midi compatibility. Plus if you have a white macbook it will look awesome alongside it.

You can get a pair for under £240 <here>
OR purchase a single unit <here> at a reduced price of £129.