Hercules DJ Console MK4 - Review - World premiere
8 years after having created a new standard for compact digital consoles, the first product of this type being HDJC which was released in 2002 and was followed by an enormous sales success of MK2, Hercules updates its production range again with DJ Console MK4, which promises to secure and strengthen its share in the market segment which was created by the company itself.
Brief historyFirst impressions
On opening the box we see a console which is well protected by polystyrene packing, there are also USB cable to connect it, shoulder strap in case you need to carry it over the shoulder, 6.5/3.5 jack adapter for headphones, multilingual manuals (including an Italian one) and CD with drivers and software Virtual DJ LE 6 for PC and Mac.
Just as all previous Hercules consoles and its junior sibling Hercules MP3 e2 too, console MK4 is made in a slightly transparent plastic cover that protects faders, knobs and buttons on its top. In addition, Hercules has also included a coloured skin which can be placed under the transparent plate on top of the controller, allowing users to customize their console.
The MK4 is 26.5 cm wide, 18.7 cm long and 6.4 cm high, it weighs 1.15 kg and has a very solid plastic body. The console is placed on the testing bench of DigitalJockey lab, and we are ready to analyze it in detail.
Technical and design characteristics
Examining the console attentively, you see a product assembled carefully even in small details, though commands are located a bit too close due to the reduced size of the console.
The body of MK4, even though made entirely of plastic, makes it particularly solid, and the silvery colour gives it a very “cool” look. There are 36 buttons, 3 sliders, 8 rotary knobs and two jog wheels on the top panel.
The buttons made of rigid plastic are much more precise than those of the old MK2, and Cue and Play/Pause buttons in particular are better than others. They click when they are pressed, and it’s worth mentioning that they are all beautifully backlit by blue LEDs. The volume sliders move with a well-balanced stiffness, while the movement of the cross fader is typically soft and intended specifically for those who love to scratch. The key knobs block slightly at the central position, while the pitch ones are rotating endlessly.
Among connections on the front you can find 6.5 jack sockets for headphones and microphone (with talk-over function) with their own knobs each for hardware volume control. Besides, at the center there is a knob which mixes the sound that you get in the preview, changing it gradually from Cue (listening to one deck at a time) to Mix (listening to the mixset as you get it on the master output).
One of the distinctive features of MK4 is that you can use a microphone without problems with most popular types of software, despite the fact that Atomix (Virtual DJ) and Native Instruments (Traktor) teams have not yet integrated microphone management to their software, and in order to deal with this shortcoming Hercules has also created a comprehensive driver for this feature.
At the rear there are a stereo output (channels 1-2: 2 RCA), which allows DJs to play their mixes to the audience, for connection to hi-fi systems or mixers and another stereo output in parallel (channels 1-2: 3.5 mm mini-jack) for multimedia speakers. To allow a connection to an external mixer with separate channels via outputs 1-2 as well, a supplementary stereo output is added (channels 3-4: 2 RCA).
As for the inputs, there are two stereo ones (channels 1-2/3-4: 2 x 2 RCA) which allow to connect external analogue audio sources such as turntables or CD or MP3 players for timecode and non-timecode systems. These two inputs are equipped with several LEDs that indicate 4 input levels adjustable from the driver control panel: Phono (for turntables), consumer line level (-10dBV typical for MP3 players), pro line level (+4 dBu, for studio equipment), and boosted pro line level (+8 dBu, for more powerful CDJ players). Finally there is a USB connector needed to attach the console to the computer.
The soundcard uses an integrated digital/analogue converter (DAC) Wolfson 8770, already present in Trim 4&6 and RMX, which provides the audio outputs with an excellent quality of sound equal to 106dB SNR - 'A' weighted @ 48kHz.
The Audio inputs side of the MK4 using a stereo input available on the same Wolfson DAC 8770 described above, the other input uses the new digitizer (ADC) Wolfson 8775, both inputs can boast a level of quality equal to 102dB SNR - 'A' weighted @ 48kHz.
As a last remark on the soundcard we’d like to point out that, as compared to MK2, the power and the sound quality of headphone output have improved considerably, which could be noticed immediately on connecting professional DJ headphones such as Pioneer HDJ-1000 and Stanton DJ PRO 3000.
Drivers and Hercules control panel
ASIO drivers, which ensure low latency, and traditional multi-channel WDM drivers are provided for Windows operating systems, while to MAC OS Core Audio aggregate is set automatically after the driver itself is installed.
Among options available in a very comprehensive driver panel we’d like to point out that there are options allowing to do the following:
- Adjust volume and balance of output channels
- Select the type of inputs and volume level of each of them
- Activate and adjust the volume of intervention of talk-over button
- Adjust sensitivity and possible switching off of jog wheels
- Adjust frequency, sampling and number of samples (latency) of ASIO buffer (for PCs only)
- Select the number of MIDI channels of the console (which is useful if you use multiple MIDI devices on one and the same computer)
- Set crossfader hardware control curve
- Select channel 1-2 or 3-4 of the headphones front output
The operation is quick, and you just need to install drivers and bundle software ''Virtual DJ LE 6'', connect speakers, headphones and console to a PC or a Mac via the USB cable included in the package, and you are ready to mix. The LE version of Virtual DJ also has functions for synchronizing of tracks as well as for application of automatic loops (based on 1, 2, 4 or 8 beats) and various effects which allow to DJs to add their own personal touch to their musical creations or record their mixes as audio files.
As well as with version 6.0.7 LE of Virtual DJ which goes in bundle and which can probably be updated after registration on Virtual DJ website, with last version 6.0.8 PRO the console gets recognized natively and works perfectly well.
On last Traktor Pro 1.2.6 you need to download a special mapper from Hercules website in order to ensure operation of all various buttons and LEDs.
Video - Traktor Pro testing (in Italian language)
Conclusions
Undoubtedly, Hercules MK4 can be considered the best all-in-one console currently on the market which opens the world of digital DJing to you, the overall design quality and soundcard performance allow it not to be afraid of even most famous CDJ players and mixers on the market.
ADVANTAGES
- Design and buttons have been improved much as compared with the previous MK2
- Good quality and power supply of headphones output
- Input level for PRO CDJ players up to 8dBu
DEFECTS
- Commands are located a bit too close
Hercules MK4 is distributed in Italy by Midiware and is available in best musical instruments stores at a price of about 199.00 Euro (VAT included).
Minimum system configurations
PC minimum requirements
Windows® XP/Vista/7 32-bit/64-bit
1.5GHz CPU or higher
1GB RAM or more
USB port (USB bus-powered)
Stereo speakers and/or headphones
Mac minimum requirements
Mac OS® 10.4/10.5/10.6
1.5GHz CPU or higher
1GB RAM or more
USB port (USB bus-powered)
Stereo speakers and/or headphones
Virtual DJ LE version
The abbreviation LE (Limited Edition or Light) means that you will find a light version of the software in bundle with the hardware product which however will allow you to use all the basic functions of the console. As in case with almost all LE versions, you can buy the full version of the bundle software with a discount.
Thanks to:
Hercules - www.hercules.com
Luigi Bressan aka DiJ Luz (Ferrara Digital Jockey Laboratory)
By Cioce DiJ
(Translated and edited by DigitalJockey and Taissia Zubova)
