Numark NS7 FX product breakdown
Specifications:
- USB audio connection
- One 1/4″ microphone input
- One set of stereo RCA inputs
- One selectable turntable input
- Two XLR inputs
- Standard midi protocal for use with most digital DJ platforms
Key Features
- Push button on for power
- Two 7 inch vinyl platters
- Dedicated FX panel attachment on the top rear of the unit with knob FX selectors
- Strip search with your finger to desired point of your song
- Works well with several digital DJ platforms (except Traktor) once properly configured
Preferred Usage
- DJing live events and parties of all sizes
- Amateurs and pro’s
Pros:
- Tons of features
- Metal chassis
- Cool design
- Realistic turntables
- Realistic scratching
- Extremely fun
- Easy to use
- Quick learning curve
Cons:
- Super heavy weighing in at about 40 pounds
- Can be difficult to configure to an adequate setting
- Somewhat unreliable and can crash if not optimized properly
- Does not work properly with Traktor software
- Cheap plastic channel and volume faders
The Numark NS7 FX Works With Serato
Full review: Numark NS7 FX DJ controller unit
The Numark NS7FX is a solidly built DJ controller weighing in at nearly 40 pounds without the case or your laptop! If you intend on using this awesome DJ controller, I hope you’ve been doing your arm exercises lately, because you’ll need it when toting this big hunk of gear around!
The worst feature of the Numark NS7FX is the weight. The second worst feature is that it can be a major pain to configure properly to a 100% reliable unit without popping noises, skips, glitches, and even rare crashes. It took me several days to get used to it and make it 100% reliable, and I was able to successfully DJ at several events with this unit before I got rid of it.
The 40 Pound NS7FX Unit Plus The Coffin Style Case Makes Portability More Difficult
Nearly every DJ I’ve ever met has had a unit failure once or twice in their careers, and this unit just might ruin your night if your laptop and audio interface are not properly configured and well equipped with high speed processing power. On the upside, there is an entire forum on the Numark website dedicated to getting the Numark DJ controllers configured properly, so if you are interested and like this unit, you shouldn’t alienate it just yet!
I bought my Numark NS7FX for about $1,000 and everything worked fine… for a few practice sessions.
The only piece of hardware I ever had a problem with on the Numark NS7FX was an FX knob on the FX unit which attaches to the rear top of the chassis. The FX knob just happened to be loose and fell out after a few practice sessions. I rigged a way to hold it in with some glue. I always had a tedious hassle to deal with whenever the FX knob got loose again. Keep in mind that you do not have to use the detachable FX unit, but it is just so awesome and fun to play with that it’s basically a must have in my opinion.
The NS7 FX controller is one of the coolest features about this DJ unit.
Now, on to the good things about the Numark NS7FX. The motorized realistic 7″ dual vinyl platters are practically the whole reason I bought this unit. When you’re scratching around on the NS7, it really feels like you’re on a real direct drive turntable and can provide you with endless hours of fun without replacing needles! Everyone loves this unit and wants to play around on it, so be sure to watch your gear as you DJ events and take a break. I had drunk clowns come up and try to bust out some scratches on my unit when I stepped away for a smoke break on multiple occasions. Chicks also loved this unit and wanted to scratch on it. I’m telling you, everyone loves scratching on the NS7, so if that’s what you’re into, I’d definitely recommend this unit.
The NS7 has a really cool strip search on the top corners of the unit for each channel.
You can slide your finger across the rectangular strip search feature and navigate to any part of the song you like instantly. I liked this strip search feature a lot and it was very useful for setting up cue points, however, it isn’t always 100% consistent with the finger touch mapping and could have been executed better.
Numark NS7 Top View
The mixer channel fader and volume sliders are made out of plastic and I would have liked them to be a sturdier metal and durable rubber feel like high quality mixers, but it appears Numark skimped out on this and opted for a cheap plastic feel. It’s not the end of the world, but the cheap plastic feel on faders which you touch 50% of the time during a DJ set is a slight con in my opinion.
Everything else on the NumarkNS7FX resembles a standard two channel DJ controller and works best with the Serato software package it comes with as long as you spend a few hours properly configuring your system to best control the unit. I ended up selling this unit after having it for about a year and I only lost a couple hundred bucks compared to the price I bought it for, so it maintained a decent resale value. In my conclusion, I would recommend this to novice and experienced DJ’s who have intentions to utilize scratching and FX manipulation in their DJ sets. The unit can be utilized to it’s fullest by most DJ’s. Also, be prepared to throw away a couple extra hundred dollars if you intend to buy a case for this heavy unit, and you might want a rolling dolly to tote it around as well.
Would I buy this unit again? Probably not. Would I recommend it to other DJ’s who enjoy realistic digital scratching and durable controllers? Perhaps, but do some shopping and comparisons based on what suits your needs first. Also, insure that there is a return policy before purchasing this unit just in case it ships out with a broken piece somewhere!