The Lowdown
If you want a small controller to use with Algoriddim’s Djay Pro software on a phone or tablet, and you play club or festival-style house sets that are fully synced, then this is a fantastic unit to buy. It’s well built, it sounds good, and it’s packed with features that belie its small size. Otherwise though, and especially if you’re new to DJing, there are far more conventional and better ways to learn the craft. Specialised, then, but very good for its micro niche.
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Video Review
First Impressions / Setting up
The Mixtour Pro is a tall, thin, handheld, and quite busy-looking little DJ controller. Well-built, with an aluminium faceplate, and high-quality faders, buttons, and knobs, it has sockets on the back for USB power and device connection, overall power, and stereo audio out, while on the front there is a headphone socket and a mono/stereo output button.
The layout is like a slim, two-channel mixer controller with gain, three-band EQ, and filter for each channel, plus paddle effects, four-button transport controls, nice-feeling up faders, and a buttery crossfader. There are eight RGB performance pads that can be switched between the decks or split between the decks depending upon your preference, and a nice aluminium encoder for selecting tracks.
You get easy switching between four decks (two on each channel), and easy switching into Algoriddim’s Neural Mix Pro mode (which is another word for stems) that can be used either from the pads or from the EQs.
To get it working, you just plug in a device running Algoriddim’s Djay Pro (I used a phone, though you could also use a tablet, and it does work with the laptop versions of the software as well), at which point the software recognises the controller and everything works as you would expect it to. I found it more reliable to also use the second USB socket around the back for power, which powers both the Mixtour Pro and the attached mobile device, meaning that it won’t run out of battery.
In a public setting, you would probably plug the Mixtour Pro into whatever DJ equipment is in the booth that you’re playing in, just rearranging it slightly to tuck it among the existing mixer and decks. This is exactly how Laidback Luke (who had a hand in designing this) uses it when he DJs at the biggest club and festival stages.
In Use
It takes some getting used to! This is a non-standard and idiosyncratic way of DJing and is only ever going to be truly suited to people who want to use the sync button to play big room house, techno, and so on (exactly the type of DJs they’ve made this for).
That said, you can easily DJ across four decks, you can easily loop, easily add effects and use stems – and because of some of the mappings that Laidback Luke has added (in conjunction with Algoriddim and Reloop), it’s really quite versatile.
Watch Luke’s video
Check out Laidback Luke’s video on Reloop Mixtour Pro, where he goes into more detail about the unit’s features and shortcuts.
We enjoyed incrementally changing the size of loops, using the spinback feature, playing with stems (all demoed in the video), and easily dialling in effects – and because of how advanced Algoriddim’s software is, we also found that it works well with music a little bit wider than you might expect.
This is due to their advanced beatgridding algorithms that mean it can hold even older music like funk, soul, and disco perfectly on the beat.
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Combine the filters, the stems, and tightly beatgridded disco loops with current music, and suddenly you’re doing some really advanced stuff with an impossibly tiny unit.
Pretty much everything you can imagine is there – key match, key shift, pitch bend, clever auto looping, really very controllable effects (because you not only get wet and dry but control over effects parameters) – even Algoriddim’s rather gimmicky but fun crossfader effects are there.
Amazingly, it’s even possible to manually beatmix with the Mixtour Pro because it has pitch bend built in as well, alongside tempo change. Unashamedly, though, they have designed this for the sync button.
Conclusion
So who’s this for and is it worth it? Well, it’s certainly a specialised piece of equipment. You’ll know if you want to use something like this because you’ve probably already considered modular controllers such as the Traktor X1 or Z1 or the Allen & Heath Xone:K2.
In one way, DJing from a unit like this is supremely convenient because it’s tiny and it can fit into the smallest DJ booth. I set the Mixtour Pro up with my phone on a little clip stand attached to a tabletop camera tripod, and was actually quite surprised at how quickly you take to it. My eyes are pretty weak, and yet having the phone that close to me meant that it was very comfortable to DJ with such a small set-up – and it certainly opens your mind to what’s possible.
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Laidback Luke is adamant that he never wants to use a laptop again in a DJ booth or a USB stick because the phone gives him the best of both worlds, and I can see where he’s coming from.
However, despite its pro build, great sound quality, and cleverness, it’s quite a hard sell for $500 if you’re not sure it’s what you need. Learning all the keyboard keystrokes, shortcuts, and modifier keys for some will be impossibly fiddly. For others, it will feel innovative, clever, and exciting.
Ultimately, no jogwheels is going to be the big turn-off for most. However, at this stage, you’re probably pretty clear if this is a concept that’s right for you. If it is (and you’re also sold on Algoriddim’s Djay software) the Reloop Mixtour Pro is a really neat, well-thought-out and yes, professional solution. We like it.
