Pioneer DJ CDJ-3000 Test

After Pioneer DJ gave its long-running CDJ-2000 Nexus version two general overhauls, the Japanese DJ equipment manufacturer has introduced a "new dimension" with the CDJ-3000. Cosmetically, functionally and technically, the company has made a big splash instead of just spilling the beans, without being unfaithful to its typical CDJ premium attitude. In fact, the CDJ-3000 is no longer a CDJ, because playing CDs is a thing of the past, so it doesn’t come with a CD player anymore.

Instead, the multimedia DJ player concentrates exclusively on docked USB sticks, SD cards, hard drives or even laptops or iPhones as media playback and corresponds as a controller with Rekordbox, and also with Serato DJ Pro since October 2021. In order to convert advocates of the predecessor models to the new CDJ-3000, Pioneer DJ has to provide appropriate arguments.

New features - familiar interface

"Never change a running System!" - Accordingly, Pioneer DJ sticks to the established design. That's good, because anything else would unsettle DJs in their rehearsed workflow when switching to the flagship.

In a direct comparison, however, several differences are noticeable. The new CDJ-3000 is three centimetres longer, but somewhat flatter - presumably due to the omission of the CD slot. The former bar, which was limited to four hot cues and is no longer up to date, has also been doubled in size and placed more conspicuously horizontally under the new 9-inch touch display.

CDJ-3000 TouchscreenThe redesigned screen is one of the main selling points, especially from a functional point of view. Touch Preview allows you to search for any point in the track by touching it in the waveform overview.

If several players are linked via Pro DJ Link, you can preview tracks from another player. Pioneer DJ has also improved the waveform view. In addition, the CDJ-3000 displays the waveform of the tracks analysed with Rekordbox as a 3-band, in order to be able to recognise the structure on the basis of the visualised bass and treble.

Functionally, Pioneer DJ also treats the CDJ-3000 to a dedicated Key Shift and Key Sync function for manually or automatically adjusting the key between decks for harmonious transitions.

In addition, the Auto Beat Loop section has been extended by an 8-beat loop button and odd beat structures can be looped even from the number of beats or bars. Beat jump has also been introduced, with which you can jump forwards or backwards in the track by 16 to 64 quantised beats.

Jog wheels and internal values

CDJ-3000 JogwheelFor a more direct vinyl feeling, Pioneer DJ reduced the jog wheel's latency by half. Of course, the resistance can be adjusted to your own needs. In the centre, the colour LC display shows the playback position and the cover of the loaded track. The Japanese manufacturer advertises the CPU built into a CDJ for the first time, consisting of a Quad Core Cortex Arm with 1.2 gigahertz and one Dual Core Cortex Arm with 1.5 gigahertz, which benefits from more stable performance and a smoother workflow.

Soundwise, the CDJ-3000 now features a 96 kHz/32-bit interface for a richer, more natural and detailed sound, with a frequency range of 4 to 40,000 hertz. The improved digital-to-analogue converter also reduces digital noise.

The Gigabit LAN not only networks up to six players, but also sends phrase analysis information to the Rekordbox DJ software via the supported Pro DJ Link to control lighting effects that match the beats being played via the optionally available RB-DMX1 interface.

On the rear, the CDJ-3000 has a mains socket for the lockable power cable, an analogue RCA and digital coaxial output, a USB-A or USB-B port and a LAN socket.

Performance in everyday use

As soon as you unpack and boot up, you feel like you've been beamed into a new dimension, especially thanks to the outstanding touch display.

In addition to the updates already mentioned, the even faster responding, high-resolution screen convinces with the improved search function including keyboard to find tracks more specifically and not only by scrolling.

In addition, some features can be triggered from the screen without delay. Pioneer DJ also delivers on the promise of latency with the jog wheel, which makes scratching even better, although the true vinyl feeling is still missing due to the lack of motorisation.

CDJ-3000 rekrodboxAfter feeding the CDJ-3000 with data managed via Rekordbox, the player fetches all relevant data in no time.

In addition, all waveforms are displayed immediately. However, editing tracks in advance in Rekordbox remains unavoidable, because the CDJ-3000 does not support on-board analysis.

Those who prefer to use the player as a controller for the performance mode of Rekordbox with a laptop plugged in can easily do so, because the CDJ-3000 unlocks the software for free.

Even Rekordbox iOS on the iPhone follows the commands of the CDJ-3000, provided the device is docked via USB cable. A wireless WIFI connection to play streamed tracks from the player has been omitted, as it is not (yet) widespread enough in the professional club and festival sector.

Our conclusion

The Pioneer DJ CDJ-3000 will probably once again become the standard for club and festival DJs. This is mainly due to its improved workflow with the enlarged, much brighter display and new waveform display and functions.

Its smoother performance, the almost latency-free jog wheel and its high-resolution, rich sound speak for themselves. You will definitely love the eight hot cues, the extended beat loop and beat jump section and key shift or key sync, and most people will certainly not miss the CD Drive. This is not a drop of bitterness if you are prepared for the next dimension with this player.

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Pioneer DJ CDJ-3000
Pioneer DJ CDJ-3000
From €2,549.00 €2,599.00
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