VCX DJ Controller
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Combining old-school vinyl DJs and new-age digital DJs
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VCX DJ Controller bridges the gap between old-school scratch DJs and the new-age digital DJs. It may not revolutionize the way we DJ, but it’s everything that a DJ asks for. As an amateur DJ myself, it’s a design by enthusiasts, for enthusiasts.
Research and Concept Development
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Modern day DJs switched to digital controller systems for ease of use and better portability. Controllers have jog wheels that simulate a vinyl record’s actions. Most DJs prefer bigger jog wheels for better control but come at a cost of bigger overall machine size. This results in the loss of portability. The solution is to relief some controls to the middle of the jog wheels where DJs don’t engage. This provide a simple solution and does not affect how a usual DJ engage these machines.
Research and Concept Development
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Most DJ controllers on the market suffered from having small jog wheels due to size limitation. The idea is to create a design concept that give better jog wheel control without increasing the overall size or compromising other function buttons.
Increased control surface will contribute to better control.
Less-used buttons are moved to the inside section of the jog wheels to save space.
Cutout at the base on both sides for hand placement and ease of carry.
Panel in the middle indicates the dB Meter Level, or the sound volume level for the entire machine and each individual track. Most small DJ controllers have removed this useful feature in order to save space.
Jog wheel with rubberized material for better grip texture and handling.
The right portion controls which music track the DJ is monitoring with his headset and the volume. These do not affect the DJ performance.
The left portion controls the song browsing and selecting functions. Both can be, and preferred to be, controlled from the connected computer, so it doesn’t affect the DJ’s real-time control.
Manipulator of Sound: A brief introduction to the art of DJing
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A DJ’s main purpose is to play music, and a turntable is his weapon. Traditionally, DJs use two vinyl direct-driven turntables and a mixer to play music. They are able to decide what music to play by choosing the vinyl records, and exactly what part of the music they wish to play by moving the needle onto a specific point on the vinyl record.
Even after the move into digital age, machines with such fashion of control are still favored by most DJs today, especially hip-hop DJs who regularly perform the “scratching” moves, or the act of moving the spinning vinyl records back and forth to produce a distinctive chopped sound effect.