Change is inevitable. For DJ's, the transition from analog (think: heavy…very heavy vinyl) to digital mixing has been a godsend to everyone in their orbit—except their chiropractors.
However, top DJ gear has always been known to last for years, which presents a problem when you have a favorite mixer you're not trying to give up. (My The Technics mixer was top of the line, devil). Enter it Reloop Flux which essentially allows any OG mixer the ability to use Serato to their heart's content. In technology, it's the “next-generation USB-C interface for using Serato DJ Pro with turntables, CDJs or other media players.”
For background, this quest started when I was assigned to DJ my college weekend (shout out to UVA's Black Alumni Weekend, Wahoowa!) and I thought I should really familiarize myself with Serato beforehand. Ever since I retired from DJ'ing (more years than I'll admit) years ago, I've always been curious about the little device you'd see attached to the back of mixers that plugged into a laptop and pretty much eliminated the need to lug around from crates full of discs. Any skepticism about this new DJ paradigm was finally and effectively dismissed when the great DJ Jazzy Jeff embraced the technology that made it impossible to tell the difference between a DJ throwing a party with vinyl records and digital music.
But doing my Googling to see what was available to get back in the DJ saddle quickly turned into a lot of information. There are what seems like hundreds of products on the market that include mixers, turntables, CDJs, and all kinds of hardware that make the old “two turntables and a mic” (and a mixer) look like a history museum installation.
So, with no desire to drop hundreds of dollars on one of those expensive, Serato-ready mixers—for now—I thought this mixer thing-a-ma-jig (called an interface) that connects to a laptop would be easy , correctly; Not really. It turns out that all the previous models (RANE SL series, Denon DS1, etc.) have gone the way of the Dodo bird and been discontinued. However, one that is still on the market – and it's actually relatively new since it only came out in 2023 – is the Reloop Flux, and it's a clutch hub for a digital vinyl system (DVS) interface.
The good folks at Reloop were kind enough to give a review model to Hip-Hop Wired, and Flux checks all the boxes needed to bring an old DJ back into the mix. Installation was relatively simple, and if you know your way around phono, line jacks and RCA chords, hooking up is a breeze. And even if you don't, the instructions are right there on YouTube.
Once Serato DJ Pro is set up and running, the intuitive operation of the hardware and software combination is evident. The hardware is bus-powered, so as soon as you plug it into your laptop, it lights up—there are signal flow LEDs for all inputs and outputs, as well as a status indicator. It also has an AUX socket that lets you record your mixes, and there are three stereo inputs and outputs, which let you run a third turntable or media player if you're fancy. And if you want to get extra technical, it features 24-bit/96kHz, high-quality D/A converters and ultra-low latency, delivering high-quality sound.
The real beauty of the product is that once it's plugged in, you can forget about it as it does what it needs to do. If your music collection is legit, you now have access to all your tunes through Serato DJ Pro without having to dig through your boxes to get to that piece of wax. a simple search is enough. And even if you don't have that deep MP3 cut, you can click a pass-through button in Flux that will let you play your conventional vinyl too. Or, if you have a Tidal account, Serato lets you access the app's entire music library—that's just cheating.
With that in mind, the Reloop Flux is a very smooth gateway for anyone trying to dive back into the DJ waters without breaking the bank. Retailing for $449, it's a worthwhile investment that bridges the gap between the past and the future to keep you busy right now.