Many of you won’t be aware, but German purveyor of DJ gear Reloop has been going for many years. And part of their offering back in the day was a selection of scratch mixers. The original Reloop lineup of Cut, Scratch, and Scratch 2 closely followed the Vestax PMC06, 05, and 07 respectively. And now they’re back with an updated and dedicated battle mixer, this time called the KUT. Hey you Dutch DJs — stop sniggering at the back there.
DIGITAL BATTLE MIXER WITH INNOFADER
Reloop is proud to introduce KUT, a digital 2-channel battle mixer, which impresses with its classic design and modern features. The development of this mixer was focused on the art of turntablism and scratching.
Gerald Barbyer (CEO Reloop)
“KUT is an homage to the golden days of battle mixers enhanced with all advantages of modern technology”, says Gerald Barbyer, CEO of Reloop. “Besides a non-contact InnoFader, we have built in dynamic instant effects as well as a flexible 24-bit audio interface. This is a solid digital mixer with an old school flair.”
InnoFADER – a high-quality and precision fader section
Together with its very smooth battle line-faders, KUT is particularly well-suited for precise cutting thanks to the supplied innoFADER, with its non-contact technology meeting even the highest standards. Crossfader and linefader curves can be customised and adapted to personal preferences. KUT also has a crossfader reverse function (hamster switch).
Dynamic FX – digital performance effects
In the centre of the mixer is the dynamic FX section with 7 effects, including phase/flange, white noise, LPF/HPF filter, gate/crush for creative remixing. The on/off function can toggle the effects, the large easy-grip knob caps offer pleasant resistance and the green status LEDs show immediately if an effect is active.
High-speed 8 in/6 out USB audio interface
With the integrated audio interface, with excellent sound quality in 24-bit/96 kHz, incoming signals from a turntable, CD player or even the combined master output can be recorded via USB. This means that your mix can be directly recorded onto PC & Mac. KUT can also be used as a hardware mixer with DVS systems that allow for freely configurable audio interface support.
Classic construction with a visually separated panel layout
The 2-channel layout with 3-band EQ and switchable modes (classic/isolator) has a very clear design and is generous in its dimensions. An additional AUX/MIC channel with combined XLR/6.3mm jack socket plus 3.5mm mini jack input gives the option of connecting a microphone or another line source. 2 headphone outputs (6.3mm & 3.5mm) are located on the front panel. The high-retention USB 2.0-port has proven to be particularly resistant and ensures a stable cable connection. KUT was designed with an oldschool look out of brushed champagne-gold & black aluminium. The fader section is clearly separated visually on the faceplate.
In cooperation with BPM Supreme
With any purchased KUT the DJ record pool adds a 90 days Premium Membership with a value of 60 $ for their huge audio & video library – contending latest releases directly received from the record labels.
Features
- Digital 2-channel battle mixer with classic design, including a dynamic effect unit
- Developed for turntablists and scratch artists
- innoFader with non-contact technology for precise cutting
- Very smooth and high-quality battle linefaders
- Customisable curves for crossfader and linefaders
- Crossfader reverse function (hamster switch)
- Dynamic FX section with 7 combined effects: Phase/flange, white noise, LPF/HPF filter, gate/crush
- Creative toggling of effects via the on/off function
- Green status LEDs give direct visual feedback of the dynamic FX section
- High-speed 8 in/6 out USB audio interface with excellent sound quality in 24-bit/96 kHz
- Recording of incoming signals (phono/line/master) via USB to PC/Mac
- Selection of USB-recording source via switch on the back
- DVS-enabled for software with freely configurable audio interface support
- 3-band EQ with switchable modes (classic/isolator)
- Additional Aux/Mic channel with combined XLR/jack socket
- Two headphones outputs via 3.5/6.3 mm jack socket
- MIDI-compatible control elements
- High-retention USB 2.0-port, particularly resistant
- Visually separated panel layout, clear separation of fader section
- Brushed black aluminium and metallic gold finish
- Fader-start via 3.5 mm control cable
- Kesington Lock to secure the device
- Incl. three-month BPM Supreme Premium membership with a value of 60 $
Technical Details
- Frequency response: 20 Hz – 20 kHz
- Inputs: 4x phono RCA, 4x line RCA, USB IN
- Outputs: Master XLR (balanced), master RCA (unbalanced), booth RCA (unbalanced), headphones 3.5/6.3 mm jack
- EQ range at 70 Hz, 1 kHz, 13 kHz: -25 dB/+12 dB
- EQ range MIC at 100 Hz, 10 kHz: -12 dB/+12 dB
- Dimensions: 355 x 254 x 104 mm
- Weight: 4 kg
Available now :
Price: 499 € | 499 US $ | £ 400
The Good Old Days
There’s no denying that the DJ market is always up for a for a good 2 channel mixer, especially when dipped in the Vestax retro styling pool. The black and gold is classic and indeed current Vestax to a T, or V as it were, and will immediately draw old romantics like myself to it. For newer scratch DJs, they may feel it’s a shiny mess that needs to be all black like all the other mixers out there. Time will tell.
But when I look at the features, I fond myself asking a simple question…
SCRATCH MIXER?
I stated a long time ago that I’ve stopped recognising the idea of battle/scratch mixers. With the DJ industry being a huge melting pot, I see mixers as being vehicles for techniques and required number of channels rather than being tied to a genre or scene. Indeed, the KUT typifies this perfectly. Having a USB interface, onboard effects, and other non-turntablist features makes this ideal for all manner of DJs. Why limit it to scratch DJs only? How many of you mix more than two channels anyway?
I showed this to diverse members of the DJWORX family, one with a decidedly scratchy background, and another who is definitely not. And we all came up with the same initial response — why put screws in the fader area? To me, the wiser move would have been to have an upper and lower faceplate (especially given the graphics) with a slot for the crossfader, and simply remove 4 screws and 3 fader caps. Aesthetics aside, I see no benefit in having screws right next to the fader. If the fader can be screwed to the chassis, I’m sure that clever third party faceplate providers will provide a more elegant solution, and have options with aesthetics too.
Another thing — if this had been designed with turntablism and scratching in mind, where are the channel reverse switches. It has curves so why not reverses too to complete the scratch DJ setup?
Some will wonder about the inclusion of the USB interface. Given that it won’t work (at this time anyway) with Serato DJ, nor will it work with Traktor Scratch Pro without Chad G’s hack, who is this aimed at? VirtualDJ will doubtlessly have this plugging and playing in an instant, and with rekordbox’s current open but official unsupported architecture, this will almost certainly work with a little tinkering there too.
On this note, I like that there is a switch on the rear to turn the whole mixer into a MIDI controller. Again, not everyone needs a scratch mixer, and just needs a decent hardware controller for the likes of Traktor Pro.
SUMMING UP
Ultimately, the Reloop KUT delivers a 2 channel mixer with effects, USB interface, and an Innofader for a decent price. Despite the obvious scratch focus in the marketing, it will appeal to those who really don’t need 4 channels, and just want a solid performer with features usually reserved for 4 channel mixers. Pricing is $499/€499/£ 400 and is available now.
GALLERY
