KAM150 Mixer Kit

As with all pursuits, it’s important to walk before you can run, and with this in mind the KAM150 Mixer Kit is a great starter pack for aspiring jocks that want to get to grips with vinyl mixing.

Ideal for budding DJs, home entertainers, pub gigs and small club installations, this Kam package aims to provide all the benefits and features of a full pro rig without the expense.

The box contains the complete set-up — everything needed to start mixing those beloved 12” records — and includes a Mix150 two-channel mixer, two DDX750 direct drive turntables, two carts, headshells and slipmats, all the leads required for start-up and a pair of headphones. And at just £299 for the lot, it won’t break the bank.

The DDX750 direct drive turntables are surprisingly very sturdy — quality kit considering they fall under the budget banner. Offering decent torque and great performance, it’d be a struggle to beat these as starter decks. They feature the usual start/stop buttons, speed select of 33rpm or 45rpm and pitch control, which offers a pitch variance of either + or –10%. And there’s a handy little searchlight too.

Mixer Inspection
The MIX150 is a five-input mixer offering the basic DJ mixer set-up, with two phono inputs for the turntables, two line inputs for external connections, plus a mic input. The two line inputs means you can make the set-up a little more ambitious by connecting external CD decks or a computer. However, these can only be engaged by switching between the phono/line selectors so you can only have one or the other.

The two-channel gains come with a basic two-band channel EQ — bass and tops for those little style tweaks when busy in the mix — while ‘kill cut’ removes all of the bass or top frequencies for mixing trick effects. The rotary gain control adjusts the input level of the signal, allowing the user to increase the sound level to compensate for quiet recordings (or vice-versa).

A five-point LED level meter allows signal levels to be visually monitored, there’s a mic level control for all those MCing moments, and headphone crossfade cue system with headphone gain control. Split cueing is also an option, useful when there is no external monitoring.

The mixer has master and record outputs for connection straight into your hi-fi/soundsystem or recording device of your choice (you have to be able to record your mixes somehow!). Or it can be connected to a booth style monitoring system, which is particularly useful if it’s being used in a bar/club environment.

And the piece de resistance on a budget mixer like this is its replaceable crossfader, with a free replacement crossfader included in the box.

The cartridges and headshells are standard fare and offer decent enough sound, while any budding DMC mixing types will find they also stand up to cutting and scratching quite well, although they can also be switched for something a little more robust if required.

This starter pack offers a great entry point for vinyl lovers who want to try their hand at DJing and will support them from the bedroom through to small pub and club gigs.