American Audio SDJ2

With a compact DJ setup, two players and a mixer are often positioned side by side. The American Audio SDJ2, a dual SD/USB player with an integrated mixer, combines these functions in one device and plays MP3 files from two SD card slots or a USB port. Both player sections can access the same SD card or connected USB drive simultaneously.

You can select the desired source for each player section: SD card slot A, SD card slot B or USB. SDHC cards up to 16 GB are supported; MP3 files are supported on SD cards and USB storage devices. Folder browsing and the MP3 track display help you find tracks. The display also shows ID3 tag information, time information and playback status. According to the product specifications, a 1 GB SD card can store up to 1,000 MP3 files at 128 kbit/s.

Track controls include frame-accurate searching, three cue points per folder and seamless loops. You can play tracks individually or continuously and adjust the tempo using the pitch control in ranges of ±4%, ±8% or ±16%. Pitch Bend supports manual adjustment; Auto BPM and BPM Tap help you determine the tempo. Tempo Lock keeps the pitch constant when the tempo changes.

The integrated mixer controls the master volume and provides high- and low-frequency adjustment. You can crossfade between the two player sections using the crossfader. Fader Start and Q-Start start playback via the crossfader; the Fader Start function can also be used with compatible external American Audio mixers.

For connection to your system, there are balanced jack outputs and an additional master RCA output with a mixed signal. Separate RCA outputs send the signals from both players to an external mixer; an S/PDIF output is available for a digital connection. A rear-panel jack input accepts a microphone, whose volume you can adjust separately. The headphone output, cue volume and cue pan controls are for monitoring.

With its 19-inch format and three rack units, the SDJ2 is suitable for DJ racks and compact systems where SD and USB playback combined with a basic mixer are required in one device. The combination of separate player outputs, a mixed master signal and a microphone input allows for different connection options; the appropriate cabling depends on whether you use the internal or an external mixer.