Pioneer Pro DJ 3500

This item is perfect – I think there is nothing to envy on technics. you are paying half of the price and getting an amazing turntable. industry is sometimes a business. Thats why a lot of brands are just stuck.

Good – I've always wanted to build a radio station desk at home for fun. I'm an old school DJ who isn't into the hard-core turntablism scratching thing; i just wanted a pair of direct drive DJ turntables with OK performance to fool around with. So when a pair of Pioneer DJ3500's can up for sale on the web at a sensible price, I bought them. If they… Read more ·  2

weren't any good, I would just sell them again. No big deal.

What attracted me to these tables was the fact that they had 78rpm ability and it also features a remote start/stop control. My mixer, a Behringer DX2000USB, has a remote start button for each stereo channel input so it’s a clear bonus to be able to start the vinyl playing on the turntable ‘on-cue’ using the mixer.

A bit of research showed that these turntables are most likely made, or at least designed, by the famous Audio Technica company of Japan. Check out Audio Technica model AT-PL120. The Pioneer DJ3500 is a dead-ringer to the AT-PL120 but does not include the tonearm height adjustment.

The guy I bought them from had probably never used them. They were in perfect condition save a few scratches on the lids. I don't think he used them because the counter-weights were on back-to-front and the tonearm was way out of adjustment. Both stylus guards were still in place. The slipmats were immaculate and brand new.

So I plugged them in and adjusted the tonearm etc. All functions worked OK. I put on a 7 inch 45 rpm record, cued it up and wound the record 1/4 of a turn back from the track start. Pressed the start button and watched the strobe and platter dots. Bang, up to speed on cue, with no over-speed correction on the servo. I was truly amazed at the torque of the motor and the accuracy of the servo. Then I tapped the turntable body during a quiet passage of music with my index finger and as expected, heard the low-frequency resonance through the headphones. Then I tapped the bench the turntable was sitting on; i was pleased to find that I could hardly hear any noise.

Next, I listened to the sonic qualities of the rig by listening to an old Decca UK classical LP under my good Grado headphones. The stock Audio Technica cartridges were as you would expect, quite 'honky' and didn't provide the musical detail the recording offered. But I had to remind myself that sonic detail was not the design criteria for heavy tracking (manual says 3.0 to 7.0 grams) cantilevered cartridges for club DJ work. The main bearing rumble was almost inaudible via those cartridges. The disappointment was the tonearm bearing play and resulting noises. But again, the dance club would most likely never, ever hear those little bearings clattering away. The other annoying noise was the mains AC hum. It was just audible over the ‘breathing’ of the vinyl during zero audio segments. I confirmed the hum was internally generated by simply switching off the motor during play. All gone. I did think it was odd that that no ground connection is provided on the rig. I think I can probably solve the hum problem by adding a ground to the mixer. So after carrying out all these tests on the second turntable, I decided that the both rigs were performing as their maker had intended.

I couldn't help myself. I had to tighten those bearings. The job was easy enough because the bearings could be accessed and adjusted without disassembly. After adjustment, the chattering noise was reduced substantially, but not completely.

In summary, so far I’m very impressed with the turntable considering the cost. I’m sure the DJ3500 is not as durable as a Technics 1200, nor would the audio quality be up to the standard of the 1200, but if you can buy one of these babys for less than AU$200 in good condition, you won’t be disappointed. Great features and true value for money. Audible mains hum, tone arm bearings needed adjusting.

Bad – If you are looking for turntables then don't bother with anything that isn't Technics. If it is a mixer or CDJ set you are after then Pioneer is a great place to start! If you are just starting out and learning how to become a DJ then you MUST make the right decision from the beginning otherwise you will end up having to buy twice once it… Read more

all makes sens. Its a turntable It is a second rate turntable, no one serious about learning how to become a quality DJ should invest in this. Firstly turntables are becoming more and obsolete and out dated by the day and secondly if its a set of turntables that you want then then there is only one brand to buy - the orignal and industry standard technics.