After 25 years of vinyl, I packed up my decks for Pioneer's XDJ-AZ instead

It's been quite a journey. I remember buying my first turntables, I think aged 16. They were nothing to write home about – and the Numark mixer most certainly wasn't either – but did the job of getting me more deeply immersed in the music I loved.

Fast-forward 25 years and I've finally bitten the bullet for a fully digital setup, in the AlphaTheta XDJ-AZ, as pictured. It's a truly impressive piece of kit, catering for all the modern standards, and I'm already hooked thanks to the vast creative controls available.

It's not as though I've jumped off a cliff in this process, though, as over the years I've progressed from crap decks to decent ones, accumulating three Technics 1210 (each a different generation), before progressing onto Serato (Scratch Live – yes, retro), dabbling in FX (via an Allen & Heath Xone 1D), and using CDJs in various external setups.

Is the XDJ-AZ like CDJ-3000s?

I'm going to find it hard not to refer to the AlphaTheta XDJ-AZ as a Pioneer product, as in my heart of hearts that's what it reflects. It's approximately the digital equivalent of a pair of Pioneer DJ CDJ-3000 with a DJM-A9 mixer.

Although with the XDJ-AZ you can actually run four channels simultaneously, as each control side is 'dual layered' – you just need to toggle between (3 and 1 are left; 2 and 4 right). You can also plug in external devices, of course, as channels 3 and 4 have line/phone inputs (and there's a signal grounding post).

For a long, long time I've been dreaming about buying a Pioneer mixer. The DJM-900NXS2 came out, what, almost a decade ago, before being replaced by the A9 in 2023. However, the latter mixer alone costs almost the same as the full XDJ-AZ setup – so that just seemed like the no-brainer choice for me.

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The mixer is a huge part of the reason for my buying this product. Each channel has a 'Color' control, to adjust the selected FX, which I find very handy for low/high-pass filtration.

But it's the separate Beat FX that are a major game-changer for transitions – as these are channel assigned, but effectively send to master output as an addition, meaning you can have huge reverb, delay or other tails continue even when a channel is faded out of a mix.

I know many of you reading will be all too aware of this, as it's been a Pioneer DJ staple for some years – and you'll hear it all the time from DJs' live shows and streams. But compared to a simplistic system, which is where I've come from, the upgrade is giant.

Is it the end of vinyl?

Not that all these bells and whistles FX mean the death of vinyl for me. I've already written about how I purchased a vinyl-only LP – loving the music as much as the message – which is not only exclusive (as a limited one-time press), it's now mine to own and enjoy forever.

I may have packed up the Technic 1210 turntables, but they've actually just been relocated to another room. I'm lucky that I can house the whole lot and jostle between the two setups – much as I'd plug the pair into the XDJ-AZ's Phono inputs, I don't have a table large enough at the moment!

I was already verse in Serato, too, so the XDJ-AZ's support of that is interesting – although, if you want to plug a laptop into the system via USB-C, you'll need a licence for the brand's subscription model. Same with Rekordbox's Performance element. For me, however, it's been an excuse to move away from the laptop screen, which is something I've wanted to do for a while.

Thankfully, the XDJ-AZ features a 10.9-inch touchscreen, slightly angled for a better view, from which you can control your source inputs. I've gone down the USB route, as is the current norm, with Rekordbox's Export functionality allowing for Playlists, with saved cue points, loops and more. It's starting from scratch, but that's only getting me more immersed in my collection again.

Much of that collection is built from personal recordings from 12-inch records that I've digitised – imperfections and all. The Sync control is of no interest to me, much as the AZ offers it, as such recordings are never perfect like digital track purchases, so beat grids necessarily don't fit to them. Part of the peril, yet part of the joy!

Should I buy an XDJ-AZ?

If you've been eyeing up buying a pair of CDJ-3000 and a DJM-A9 mixer then, well, I suspect the asking price will have already stopped you in your tracks. The compromise in buying the AlphaTheta XDJ-AZ instead? As I see it, zero for a home setup.

What actually is the difference? Well, you can't insert CDs, but I doubt any DJ has done that since about 2005! There's no SD card slot on the XDJ-AZ, but two USB-A ports will cater for most. That does highlight that there's only one USB-C port, so changeover between laptops won't be seamless like it is using a DJM-A9.

As someone who's spent a long time researching, trying out different gear, and eventually taking the plunge, the XDJ-AZ is has been a dream purchase. It's expensive, but it's a pro-grade piece of kit for a home setup – negating the need to spend thousands more on a club-ready Pioneer DJ setup, ultimately.