One year ago, the acquisition of Rane by inMusic was announced on DJWORX. And in that time we’ve all been patiently waiting to see what was to become of the brand adored by mixer nerds around the world. inMusic even tried to set our mind at rest by allowing us to interview Rane’s Rick Jeffs to assure people that the Rane spirit of Seattle is alive and well, just being manufactured in the far east. Well it seems that we’re all about to find out what has become of Rane, as two new products are about to be unveiled at DJ Expo in a couple of weeks.
There is an announcement about the announcement:
RANE DJ IS BATTLE-READY FOR DJ EXPO!
Highly regarded for its engineering excellence and unparalleled customer service, Rane chooses DJ Expo as launching point for impressive new models.
MUKILTEO, WA USA (August 1, 2017)—Rane DJ (Rane), an established innovator in the DJ industry, noted for their leading-edge solutions coupled with unequalled reliability and customer service, today announced that they will introduce two important and exciting new products to the professional DJ market at this year’s DJ Expo in Atlantic City. The new models mark a dramatic and impressive move for Rane DJ to the forefront of the DJ stage.
Over the past 12 months Rane’s Seattle Washington based engineering team has been hard at work bringing this amazing new gear to life. The same engineering team that set the standards for Rane’s rock-solid performance-based mixers has been collaborating with world-class DJs and their crews to develop new DJ performance tools, the likes of which the industry has never been seen before. Rane calls these unprecedented new products Battle Ready. These new introductions will definitely set a new benchmark of excellence for the industry. More detail on these latest products will be forthcoming as DJ Expo draws closer.
To go along with their ground-breaking new products, Rane is also announcing the addition of Brand Manager JP Mathurin (DJ FATFINGAZ) to their team. Mathurin is a seasoned, enthusiastic DJ veteran whose experience and skills are a perfect complement to Rane’s upcoming product lineup.
“With these new products, Rane is sending a powerful message to professional DJs all over the world and our loyal, demanding customers that we’re present in a big, big way,” said JP Mathurin, Brand Manager for Rane DJ. He added, “This will be a breakthrough year for Rane as we push the boundaries of performance, quality and innovation to new heights of excitement. All we can say is you’ve been warned.” #staytuned
Please visit Rane at DJ Expo, booth #115.
NEW PRODUCTS
Over the last few weeks, Rane’s social media accounts have been reawakened, largely with posts about the Sixty Two mixer — you know, the one that was in every scratch video going before Pioneer DJ carpet-bombed turntablism with DJM-S9s. So based on the fact that “new” was used a full 10 times in the context of gear, my guess is that we’re going to see a reworked Sixty Two , rather than just remade in a new factory.
As for the second product… well I have no idea. Possibly an SL3/4, but I wouldn’t rule out a turntable in the shape of a straight arm VL12. It could also be a far eastern version of the MP2015, if only to show that manufacturing standards haven’t changed.
The one thing I’m ruling out (well 90% anyway) is a controller. Rane has an established market, and controllers don’t really lend themselves well to the brand’s style. They’ve never done one before — it was considered but they didn’t know what they could bring to that makes that was valid. Perhaps some fresh guidance from the Numark and Denon DJ people would allow Rane to put their stamp on a controller. If they did, I’d want NS7 style, focussed on heft and not bells and whistles. I’d want it to be a controller for life.
IT HAD BETTER BE RIGHT
At the time of the takeover, there was an overwhelming expression of concern that Rane’s utterly over and above service levels would be destroyed by being brought into the inMusic fold. And it’s a sentiment I’ve hammered home endlessly to the higher-ups in Rhode Island. For Rane is not just a logo, it’s a symbol of home-grown quality, and garners much love and support at a grass roots level.
So while the design and engineering is US based, it remains to be seen what the manufacturing will be like, and especially if the stellar support will continue. Hopefully these new things will be so bloody good that support isn’t needed. That’s the aim right?
Rest assured that because my love for Rane runs deep, I’ll be the first to be vocal if things aren’t right, and equally if they are.
WHAT’S NEXT?
We media types get to see it next week via Skype, but you’ll still have to wait until the start of DJ Expo to see what’s been brewing in Seattle. Oh and hi JP aka Fatfingaz — welcome to the inner workings of the DJ industry. Enjoy the ride.