What should I buy? Twitch or Kontrol S2?

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What should I buy? Twitch or Kontrol S2?
Posted on: 07.10.2011 by Rosina Gholami
So I'm about to upgrade from my Mixtrack/SC2000 setup and I wanna know what you guys recommend? I love the idea of the Twitch but have heard reports of low sound output and bugs regarding certain parts of the Itch software (Saved Loops Not Working, Automatic Cueing..ect). I currently run Traktor2 and I love that setup but Itch looks like some serious fun and I would like to learn it. So whats your guys take on this? Is the Output on the Twitch really that bad?? Should I go with the Kontrol S2 or take a risk on the Twitch???
Julio Tewell
09.10.2011
Originally Posted by kevz718
I dunno tho.. Something about the look of the dx would deter me from buying it.. Theres gotta be a reason that the price just took a 50 percent plummet in the last month or two.. I realize theres new controllers coming out so i could see a 25 percent reduction at most especially on a&h gear but 50 percent seems like something is wrong. Check out the reviews and try to handle one before buying. It just strikes me as cheaply made even if it bears the a&h name. I see a ton of various complaints about the thing just by briefly looking. Theres a pic out there that really throws this controller under the bus with the way it looks (like a sticker that has screws PRINTED on them lol).

I could be completely wrong here so dx owners please correct me if ud vouch for this controller.

Note, i have never touched, played with or even seen a dx in person so this is just my opinion based on web reviews, pics that ilooked at this morning. And the price drop thing concerns me (tho i may be reading too much into the reasons for the drop).

If u know u can go thru a mixer, twitch will b fine im sure.

If ur still concerned, i really dont believe u can go wrong witht the s2. i played with s4 for a month or so and thought it was incredible and the best traktor controller i ever had the opportunity to get my hands on - i can say in my opinion, it was better than pioneers 2 controllers, xponent, an older american audio controller all of which ive played with. The native connections between kontrol and traktor are spot on. Ud be hard pressed to find an s4 owner who doesnt love it. So im imagining the same for s2.

But the traktor vs itch thing may need to be the thing that makes up ur mind and may want to be ur first decision.. Sounds like ur leaning towards itch, ya? If so, why?
I read the djtt review, and apparently the sound card is really good, but the jogs suck. But I don't care about jogs, I'd only use them to pitch bend.
It seems to me like the dx has more controls for the money, plus 4 decks, but the twitch has splicing, which seems really sick, plus really portable. But I don't want to always be dependent on having an external mixer at my gigs, and stuff, while the dx is good to go. ehhhh i really don't know now but im leaning towards itch because both are already mapped, and the twitch has splicing, which traktor users haven't been able to replicate yet. Plus both come with itch, so I don't have to buy any software.
Julio Tewell
08.10.2011
Originally Posted by kevz718
Isnt the dx approx 550 usd? If its attractive to u, u may just want to waot and save up the extra 50. The dx is kind of big for my tastes for a controller. Twitch is such an awesome size. Would u even like the dx? Its huge compared to the s2 and twitch i believe.

I ran twitch thru a djm900 onto a powered set of monitors and i can get it up to a level that is comparable to a cdj.

This was not in a club environment. I have heard from others that twitch can work in a club by running thru a djm channel. However, i believe i saw ONE guy post on novations board that he couldnt do this.. So i cant say with certainty but my guess woukd be that you could get enough juice out of it that if ur running thru a house mixer, ull b fine. Check out novations community tho.

Its a a shame they didnt nail the direct output sound level on twitch cuz itd basically be perfect in my opinion if they did (minus the filter knob thing - which they also did on the s2 for whatever reason but at least u can adjust that via traktor software settings unlike itch). Sound output is the absolute biggest compaint from the twitch user community.
i mean, the twitch seems awesome, but so does the DX. I don't really care about size, but either way, i feel like the DX and twitch are now in direct competition for my ownership lol
Plus A&H is known for good sound quality so now its a toss up, but I would be sending my outputs on the twitch to a club mixer, so now i really am unsure..........
edit: @ Otter: google xone dx and look under prices. it ranges from 500 to 1000. Just depends where you shop..
Cliff Lohman
07.10.2011
Originally Posted by fullenglishpint
The twitch's sound card is quiet, there's no two ways about it. But it's still high quality and the output level can be raised by a gain stage further down the chain, and as a controller it's frickin' awesome.

ITCH 2.0 is brilliant.
In looking for small footprint controllers, i was able to borrow the twitch from a buddy for a few days while on vaca.. Its pretty dam nice and the size is absolutely perfect. The compromise is jogwheels but twitchs touchstrip gets the job done. The adjustment to itch takes some patience to relearn certain things but its easy enough.

I love the slicer and loop perf modes and for what the controller is supposed to do in itch, it does very well.

The cons - itch is closed off as far as customization. I can see somebody coming from traktor being really frustrated by this. Itch and twitch seem to have a roadmap to add more functionality but ur at their mercy as to when that happens (case in point - the sampler in itch). The other thing is lack of a filter knob (tho theres an easter egg trick to turn the lo eq into filter). It was a little stupid to a) not give u an option to say turn ur mic knobs into filters and b) put the easter egg workaround on one of the most important knobs on the controller (lo eq). Itchs effects arent the most stunning but they sound good for the basic ones. Agreed on low sound.. At first i didnt notice but when u really try to crank it, u will def see how low it can be. I believe if ur using it at home exclusively, u wont be disappointed with the sound. But if ur going onto a big pro speaker system, ull notice. If ur not cranking the vol super loud, i believe the sound quality is pretty good.. Crisp sound.

I havent tried it in traktor but i believe its really geared towards itch. So id say if u like itch, go with the twitch. If ur married to traktor such as efx and customizing, u may want to consider the kontrol.

I have it for another 2 or 3 days but i believe i may pick this up as this little thing is tons of fun and the size is absolutely perfect for what i was looking for. I can pick one up for 480 usd flat locally which is about 120 less than i expected to spend for a portable/travel solution.
Rosina Gholami
07.10.2011		So I'm about to upgrade from my Mixtrack/SC2000 setup and I wanna know what you guys recommend? I love the idea of the Twitch but have heard reports of low sound output and bugs regarding certain parts of the Itch software (Saved Loops Not Working, Automatic Cueing..ect). I currently run Traktor2 and I love that setup but Itch looks like some serious fun and I would like to learn it. So whats your guys take on this? Is the Output on the Twitch really that bad?? Should I go with the Kontrol S2 or take a risk on the Twitch???
Cliff Lohman
11.10.2011		just an fyi.. theres a twitch on ebay ending in about 2 days that looks like it could go for $420+16 shipping USD.. they describe it as used only 3x (like new) and i believe a receipt proving thats its very new..

seems like a good deal for someone on a tight budget.. not many twitches on ebay so just search for "twitch" on US ebay site and you'll find it quickly..
Cliff Lohman
10.10.2011		Imo, the twitch by itself vs kontrol s2 by itself - twitch is the better controllerists controller.. Add a midifighter to the s2 and its a tough call. The twitch just begs to have loops sliced and diced..it is a shit load of fun and super unique.

Itchs efx are indeed lacking vs traktor

I believe Both have their unique pros but both are solid choices in that price range and i dont believe anybody would be disappointed with either of them.. Personal preference really..
Hazel Oeschger
10.10.2011		I'll be switching from dx to twitch. Dx is a fairly good quality controller with some flaws on a limited number of units and a&h are being fair about the issues at hand. So if you want a solid, basic controller for itch it's a good choice. Just that its not what I want right now. Twitch and vci-400 for me since I like to make fast switches and drop a sample every now and then. S4 is cheaply built and twitch seems actually more durable that NI's S2 or S4 despite of the price, otherwise I'd be going for those.
Sheldon Dieckmann
11.10.2011		I'm in the same boat - I want to upgrade to a more intermediate controller, and it's these two, to decide between.

I've had a mess around with the Twitch, and I loved the software's performance, the build quality, and uniqueness. However, some features were lacking, such as effects, only 2 decks, I'm so used to Jogwheels, I was kind of longing for them, and that the sample player seemed as if it was thrown in without much thought. Interestingly, I thought the sound card was great, although since I was in a store, I couldn't exactly crank it to discover it's full performance. Also, Serato's whitelabel.net service is fantastic!

I've never played with the S2, but judging from the S4, it's nice, chunky and solid. The best integration possible from a controller and traktor, and probably the better option for doing crazy, controllerist stuff. The kontrol series are also pretty solid at standard mix tools as well, most features you want from traktor are easily accessible, even on the S2, and you always have the option to add an additional controller, perhaps an X1 or midi fighter?

This is a really tough choice, the S2 has more features and uses, but the features of Twitch are so unique, and totally sweet.

hmmm.
Barton Rigazio
09.10.2011		Edit: sorry I got slicer and loop roll mixed up! DX does NOT have the slicer lol

DX for $599: http://www.uniquesquared.com/catalog...ult/?q=xone+dx

Gluck deciding man!
Rosina Gholami
10.10.2011		Cheapest DX ive seen online is 799.00, so thats not gonna be an option for me. Leaning towards the S2 since I know its just gonna work with minimal fiddling.
Julio Tewell
09.10.2011
Originally Posted by kevz718
I dunno tho.. Something about the look of the dx would deter me from buying it.. Theres gotta be a reason that the price just took a 50 percent plummet in the last month or two.. I realize theres new controllers coming out so i could see a 25 percent reduction at most especially on a&h gear but 50 percent seems like something is wrong. Check out the reviews and try to handle one before buying. It just strikes me as cheaply made even if it bears the a&h name. I see a ton of various complaints about the thing just by briefly looking. Theres a pic out there that really throws this controller under the bus with the way it looks (like a sticker that has screws PRINTED on them lol).

I could be completely wrong here so dx owners please correct me if ud vouch for this controller.

Note, i have never touched, played with or even seen a dx in person so this is just my opinion based on web reviews, pics that ilooked at this morning. And the price drop thing concerns me (tho i may be reading too much into the reasons for the drop).

If u know u can go thru a mixer, twitch will b fine im sure.

If ur still concerned, i really dont believe u can go wrong witht the s2. i played with s4 for a month or so and thought it was incredible and the best traktor controller i ever had the opportunity to get my hands on - i can say in my opinion, it was better than pioneers 2 controllers, xponent, an older american audio controller all of which ive played with. The native connections between kontrol and traktor are spot on. Ud be hard pressed to find an s4 owner who doesnt love it. So im imagining the same for s2.

But the traktor vs itch thing may need to be the thing that makes up ur mind and may want to be ur first decision.. Sounds like ur leaning towards itch, ya? If so, why?
I read the djtt review, and apparently the sound card is really good, but the jogs suck. But I don't care about jogs, I'd only use them to pitch bend.
It seems to me like the dx has more controls for the money, plus 4 decks, but the twitch has splicing, which seems really sick, plus really portable. But I don't want to always be dependent on having an external mixer at my gigs, and stuff, while the dx is good to go. ehhhh i really don't know now but im leaning towards itch because both are already mapped, and the twitch has splicing, which traktor users haven't been able to replicate yet. Plus both come with itch, so I don't have to buy any software.
Cliff Lohman
09.10.2011		I dunno tho.. Something about the look of the dx would deter me from buying it.. Theres gotta be a reason that the price just took a 50 percent plummet in the last month or two.. I realize theres new controllers coming out so i could see a 25 percent reduction at most especially on a&h gear but 50 percent seems like something is wrong. Check out the reviews and try to handle one before buying. It just strikes me as cheaply made even if it bears the a&h name. I see a ton of various complaints about the thing just by briefly looking. Theres a pic out there that really throws this controller under the bus with the way it looks (like a sticker that has screws PRINTED on them lol).

I could be completely wrong here so dx owners please correct me if ud vouch for this controller.

Note, i have never touched, played with or even seen a dx in person so this is just my opinion based on web reviews, pics that ilooked at this morning. And the price drop thing concerns me (tho i may be reading too much into the reasons for the drop).

If u know u can go thru a mixer, twitch will b fine im sure.

If ur still concerned, i really dont believe u can go wrong witht the s2. i played with s4 for a month or so and thought it was incredible and the best traktor controller i ever had the opportunity to get my hands on - i can say in my opinion, it was better than pioneers 2 controllers, xponent, an older american audio controller all of which ive played with. The native connections between kontrol and traktor are spot on. Ud be hard pressed to find an s4 owner who doesnt love it. So im imagining the same for s2.

But the traktor vs itch thing may need to be the thing that makes up ur mind and may want to be ur first decision.. Sounds like ur leaning towards itch, ya? If so, why?
Julio Tewell
08.10.2011
Originally Posted by kevz718
Isnt the dx approx 550 usd? If its attractive to u, u may just want to waot and save up the extra 50. The dx is kind of big for my tastes for a controller. Twitch is such an awesome size. Would u even like the dx? Its huge compared to the s2 and twitch i believe.

I ran twitch thru a djm900 onto a powered set of monitors and i can get it up to a level that is comparable to a cdj.

This was not in a club environment. I have heard from others that twitch can work in a club by running thru a djm channel. However, i believe i saw ONE guy post on novations board that he couldnt do this.. So i cant say with certainty but my guess woukd be that you could get enough juice out of it that if ur running thru a house mixer, ull b fine. Check out novations community tho.

Its a a shame they didnt nail the direct output sound level on twitch cuz itd basically be perfect in my opinion if they did (minus the filter knob thing - which they also did on the s2 for whatever reason but at least u can adjust that via traktor software settings unlike itch). Sound output is the absolute biggest compaint from the twitch user community.
i mean, the twitch seems awesome, but so does the DX. I don't really care about size, but either way, i feel like the DX and twitch are now in direct competition for my ownership lol
Plus A&H is known for good sound quality so now its a toss up, but I would be sending my outputs on the twitch to a club mixer, so now i really am unsure..........
edit: @ Otter: google xone dx and look under prices. it ranges from 500 to 1000. Just depends where you shop..
Cliff Lohman
08.10.2011		Isnt the dx approx 550 usd? If its attractive to u, u may just want to waot and save up the extra 50. The dx is kind of big for my tastes for a controller. Twitch is such an awesome size. Would u even like the dx? Its huge compared to the s2 and twitch i believe.

I ran twitch thru a djm900 onto a powered set of monitors and i can get it up to a level that is comparable to a cdj.

This was not in a club environment. I have heard from others that twitch can work in a club by running thru a djm channel. However, i believe i saw ONE guy post on novations board that he couldnt do this.. So i cant say with certainty but my guess woukd be that you could get enough juice out of it that if ur running thru a house mixer, ull b fine. Check out novations community tho.

Its a a shame they didnt nail the direct output sound level on twitch cuz itd basically be perfect in my opinion if they did (minus the filter knob thing - which they also did on the s2 for whatever reason but at least u can adjust that via traktor software settings unlike itch). Sound output is the absolute biggest compaint from the twitch user community.
Rosina Gholami
08.10.2011		the DX is outta my price range. Can anyone tell me if the output on the Twitch run through a standard mixer to add gain will get it loud enough to play on a club system?
Barton Rigazio
08.10.2011		Xone DX ftw! :-)
Julio Tewell
07.10.2011		i have the same question, and am also leaning towards the twitch. Any suggestions for controllers in the 500 usd range?
Rosina Gholami
07.10.2011		Thanks for the replies. I will be using this in a club environment and I need it to be loud enough to beat match with a CDJ setup. Will the gain on the mixer have enough headroom to get the Twitch up to par with the other inputs on say a DJM800? I really like the idea of not having jog wheels, i never use mine as I don't scratch and have no need for it. But if the output sucks and i'm gonna have to buy a portable preamp to get the gain up I believe ill prolly just stick with Traktor and get the S2. Can anyone tell me if the gain on a standard DJ Mixer is efficient to get the Twitch's output up to par with the rest of the inputs on a club system?
Aliza Sorbello
07.10.2011		I use the twitch with traktor, its good. I've remapped the beatgrid thing to control a sample deck. I just dont have a use for the sample deck tho
Cliff Lohman
07.10.2011
Originally Posted by fullenglishpint
The twitch's sound card is quiet, there's no two ways about it. But it's still high quality and the output level can be raised by a gain stage further down the chain, and as a controller it's frickin' awesome.

ITCH 2.0 is brilliant.
In looking for small footprint controllers, i was able to borrow the twitch from a buddy for a few days while on vaca.. Its pretty dam nice and the size is absolutely perfect. The compromise is jogwheels but twitchs touchstrip gets the job done. The adjustment to itch takes some patience to relearn certain things but its easy enough.

I love the slicer and loop perf modes and for what the controller is supposed to do in itch, it does very well.

The cons - itch is closed off as far as customization. I can see somebody coming from traktor being really frustrated by this. Itch and twitch seem to have a roadmap to add more functionality but ur at their mercy as to when that happens (case in point - the sampler in itch). The other thing is lack of a filter knob (tho theres an easter egg trick to turn the lo eq into filter). It was a little stupid to a) not give u an option to say turn ur mic knobs into filters and b) put the easter egg workaround on one of the most important knobs on the controller (lo eq). Itchs effects arent the most stunning but they sound good for the basic ones. Agreed on low sound.. At first i didnt notice but when u really try to crank it, u will def see how low it can be. I believe if ur using it at home exclusively, u wont be disappointed with the sound. But if ur going onto a big pro speaker system, ull notice. If ur not cranking the vol super loud, i believe the sound quality is pretty good.. Crisp sound.

I havent tried it in traktor but i believe its really geared towards itch. So id say if u like itch, go with the twitch. If ur married to traktor such as efx and customizing, u may want to consider the kontrol.

I have it for another 2 or 3 days but i believe i may pick this up as this little thing is tons of fun and the size is absolutely perfect for what i was looking for. I can pick one up for 480 usd flat locally which is about 120 less than i expected to spend for a portable/travel solution.
Tatum Ansaldo
07.10.2011		The twitch's sound card is quiet, there's no two ways about it. But it's still high quality and the output level can be raised by a gain stage further down the chain, and as a controller it's frickin' awesome.

ITCH 2.0 is brilliant.

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