The Basics

The RANE Four is a four-channel controller, meant to bring stem separation into the mainstream. But does it hold up to the hype? That’s what I hope to find out today. There are a few things I expect from RANE gear:

● Sturdiness
● Scratch-friendliness
● Tight integration with Serato
● A forward-thinking (but uncomplicated) design.

My hope was that the FOUR would meet all these expectations, while offering an experience that onvinced me of the usefulness of stems (the breaking down of a song into individual parts). Outside of stems, the FOUR is a standard all-in-one DJ controller for Serato, with paddles that give access to 22 MAIN FX, 4 knob-controlled CHANNEL FX, and Serato DJ software FX. It has 16 performance pads, topped by 8 beautiful OLED screens which give pad-related feedback. You’ll also find 8.5” high- resolution capacitive static platters with full-color center display, and support for external connections (such as turntables).

Stems

Acapella/Instrumental Buttons

The first stems method we’ll talk about is using the Acapella and Instrumental buttons. This is the simplest and most obvious way to access stems. Simply push either button and you’ll hear only the vocals, or only the instrumental, of the track.

If you hold the shift button while you do this, it will do a little echo-out effect on whatever is being removed. This can be a really neat way to get yourself into a little loop, etc. without making it too obvious that you just cut the vocals. A common use for stems is simply removing or isolating vocals for a track, so it’s a smart design choice to have these two buttons at your fingertips.

This is an X/Y grid, with on-screen boxes representing time divisions. As you go from left to right, it changes the beat division. Going down to up, you’ll change another parameter (such as a filter). The idea is that you can sweep back and forth with your finger to modify the effect, or to use it as a transition tool between tracks.

There’s also a slider at the bottom of the screen that can be used to adjust a custom parameter. For example, the resonance of the filter

Performance Pad Mode

What if you want to piece your song out a little further? For this, RANE included a Stems mode for the Performance Pads. Just push the stems button above the pads, and the top four buttons will light up blue. Then, simply use the buttons to add or remove the stem that’s indicated on the screen. (See demo in the video above!)

The four lower pads are used to access Stem effects. Whichever effect you have selected will be shown on the screen. These effects will do something snazzy while removing certain stems from the mix (like echoing them out).

Stem Split

Finally, there’s Stem Split. Similar to how Serato lets you double-tap the Browse knob to engage Instant Doubles, which duplicates the track in another deck, Stem Split separates the vocals and instrumental into their own decks. This allows you to do cool stuff, like scratch and apply FX to only the vocals of a song. When you hit the button, the two decks are locked together in perfect sync. So you can scratch, use hot cues, and generally speaking, mix normally. However, if you want to manipulate one of those stems independently, just hit the deck button.

Key Features (As provided by Rane)

● The world’s most advanced Serato Stems DJ controller with dedicated Stems pad mode, independent Acapella/Instrumental buttons, and exclusive STEM-SPLIT feature
● Dynamic internal FX engine with 22 MAIN FX, 4 knob-controlled CHANNEL FX, and access to Serato DJ software FX
● 16 Performance Pads with dedicated OLED Pad Mode displays for visual feedback
● Full size, 8.5” high-resolution capacitive static platters with full-color center display
● 4-channel mixer section and deck selection buttons for mixing with up to 4 software decks
● 2 Line/Phono inputs for turntables or external decks
● Tension-adjustable MAG FOUR crossfader
● Dual-USB for seamless DJ transitions
● XLR & RCA Main out, 1/4” Booth/Zone out,
● (2) stereo RCA line/phono inputs, and (2)
● XLR 1/4” combo jack microphone inputs
● Trusted RANE build and no-compromise sound quality

In my own time with the RANE Four, I found it to be well-built and pleasing to use. The large jog wheels are weighty, albeit not motorized as one might expect. The stems integration took very little time to learn, and all the other features worked as expected.

RANE Four vs. DDJ-FLX10

Both controllers offer quick, one-button access to stems. While you have Acapella and Instrumental buttons on the RANE Four, you get quick access to THREE different parts on the FLX10: Drums, Vocals, and Instruments. That being said, the RANE Four lets you break it down even further using the pads. The FLX10 lets you easily apply FX to only certain stems, but the RANE Four gives you FX which help you transition out of stems (such as that Vocal Echo effect).
The point is, both controllers make different things easily accessible. The FLX10 is a little fussier in design, when you look at the two of them at the same time, but it also offers additional features not found on the RANE Four (such as tension adjustment for the jog wheels). The FLX10 also has a DMX lighting output built directly onto the board, which means it’s ready to control a light show using Rekordbox lighting. That’s something you won’t ever be able to do on the RANE Four (but also something that only a few of us will honestly use). All in all, both are solid choices. If you’re unsure, I’d default to the RANE Four if your preference is Serato, or to the FLX10 if your preference is Rekordbox. See my review of the DDJ-FLX10 here.

Meeting Expectations

So, does the RANE Four meet my expectations from earlier in the post?

● Is it sturdy? Yes! The RANE Four is built to last, as demonstrated by its full metal enclosure. The top plate is removable so you can service the faders, which is a great feature that I wish more controllers had! While I would’ve preferred die-cast aluminum paddles (like you’d find in the RANE mixers), they are still nicer than those found on other controllers.
● Is it scratch-friendly? Yes! With a caveat. Unlike other RANE gear, it doesn’t have motorized platters. But its layout, the inclusion of paddle FX, and the way you can combine Slip Mode with Stem Split. it’s all built in a way that scratch DJs will feel right at home. The scratch-friendly setup will always be a real set of high-torque turntables and a battle mixer. If you want the scratch-friendly all-in-one DIGITAL DJ setup, I’d eyeball the RANE One instead.
● Is it tightly integrated with Serato? Yes! As it should be, since this is a Serato-focused device. But the controller does a great job of showing you how to use Serato’s Stem features and puts their controls at your fingertips.

Which leads us to our last expectation:
● Is it forward-thinking without being complicated? Yes! The Stem features are smartly integrated and make perfect sense. At least, I hope they do now that you’ve watched this video. Everything else on the controller is standard RANE, with all the controls you need and little else that you don’t.

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