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So after months of rumour milling and ‘that’ youtube video of Dubfire testing out something new from Native Instruments, finally it arrives: The Traktor Kontrol S4.

Well so what is it then? Effectively it is a dedicated controller for NI’s Traktor, but at the same time much, much more than that. Cynically you could say this is NI’s answer to Serato’s ITCH, but as the battle between the two DJ software giants continues, so does the feature set.

The Kontrol S4 is a control surface with two ‘deck’ controls and a (4 channel) mixer section. However unlike regular controllers this is built with dedicated software, making the integration water tight, and more in line with something like a CDJ. The S4 has a built in sound card too (based on their excellent Audio 4DJ) further separating it from its midi only brethren.

The big deal here really is the dedicated version of Traktor that comes with it, and the easy access to its new features, in particular the new sample and loop decks. Although a feature found in other DJ software, Native Instruments have made it 1000% more useful with the S4. Don’t believe me? Simply watch the video below of DJ Shiftee and you’ll see what I mean.

Yeah, so now you are excited right!

What I like most about this is the ability to record live audio into it. Yes again, this is not a new feature, but unlike a DVS where you might have control vinyl and your laptop, with the S4 it’s all there laid out right in front of you. This native control of all of the software’s features really does take the lid off what can be done in a live performance, and this is a strand of DJing that is very exciting.

As the line between performance and DJing blurs ever further, tools like this are becoming more and more essential. When Serato and Ableton launched ‘The Bridge’ I knew that was the shape of things to come, and the S4 follows in this vein, and brings something new to the foray. In the next year or so I expect this style of performance DJing to really kick off, and the Kontrol S4 is going to facilitate this heavily.

The only negatives I feel are – and this may just be personal – that for a pro/working DJ it’s a step backwards in terms of amount of kit you have to carry around. If you go from a DVS to this, you are basically trading in two Vinyls for a sizeable and no doubt DJ booth unfriendly hardware surface. Also the unit rocks in at $999 / 899 EUR making it more expensive than its sister product too.

In short, this is potentially a game changing device, and will open up a new world of DJing more akin to the turntablism days of old, but for the digital age. However with a fairly high price point, and a club unfriendly footprint, it might limit itself to the dedicated touring DJ or the hardware junkies at home.

For more information: Traktor S4 official Mini Site

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