Introducing the Rane One

Rane‘s first ever motorized DJ controller, the RANE ONE, caused a lot of noise upon release. We were lucky enough to get a hold of one to bring you this hands-on review.

For a deep dive into the Rane One’s individual features, as if you were in the showroom trying it yourself, a performance by Fatty Lumpkin, and David’s overall thoughts, check out the video above.

For a synthesis of what we think is significant about the Rane One, who’ll want to add it to their setup and why, read on below. In a sentence –

We don’t throw around the term “game-changer” lightly, but with its unparalleled value and the new avenues that it opens, the Rane One is.

First & Foremost: Value

Before we talk platters, faders, and other cool features, when it comes to the Rane One, there’s no feature as noteworthy as its raw value.

You are effectively getting 1x Rane Seventy and 2x Rane Twelve MKII, which have a combined base price of $3,297, for $1,499.

That’s 54.5% savings.

That’s $1,798 saved.

I’ve seen DJs offer to trade in their first born to save $50 on a mixer.

This price point puts a league of DJs that were previously priced out of a Rane setup back in the game. It’s exciting to see what new and old blood will be able to do with these newly accessible tools.

That said, the comment section has already voiced minor gripes like 7″ platters aren’t 12″ platters, but for the DJ industry as a whole, it simply doesn’t matter. When the XDJ-XZ came out (read our review here), the comment section berated it for missing technology already available on the Prime 4.

They weren’t wrong.
But they missed the point.

The XDJ-XZ brought $6,597 of CDJ-2000/DJM-900 NXS2 value to DJs for $2,299.

That made it one of the most popular pieces of DJ gear in 2020.

The Rane One is doing that for a different set of DJs. That’s how we know it’s going to be one of the most demanded controllers for a long time to come.

The Star: Motorized Platters

As time ticks, we move further away the “2 turntable and a microphone” standard. But make no mistake, turntablism is live and well, and the introduction of digital features has brought us some of the most inspiring and DJing we’ve ever seen.

In that spirit, InMusic (parent company of Numark, Denon DJ & Rane) has clearly made it their mission to carry vinyl-emulation technology into the digital era.

You’ll still hear nostalgic whispers of the original Numark V7 spoken on forums and facebook groups. When the NS7 series was retired with the discontinuation of the Numark NS7iii, certain corners of the DJ world held a vigil.

Today, we have the beloved Rane Twelve MKII and Denon SC6000m setting the standard for turntable-emulating controllers and media players, respectively.

Suffice to say, the Rane One does its parents proud. These 7″ platters are rock solid, not a plastic part in sight. The acrylic disk spins independently of the platter. And as you can see from Fatty Lumpkin’s performance (2:45 in video above), their response is flawless, as far as we can tell.

Beyond merely spinning, you get to set your preferred torque, allowing you to choose from a smooth, middle-of-the-road Technics 1200/PLX-1000 feel to a more aggressive Vestax PDX2000/Reloop RP-8000 MK2 one that many prefer.

Of course, the platters are 7″ (7.2″ actually, but who’s counting), which has evoked complaints from some 12″ sticklers. That said, the 7″ standard has been long-embraced by the portablist crowd, so we know it’s absolutely adequate for turntablism. In the words of Chicago Bulls’ DJ Metro, “it’s nothing that you can’t get used to, this is a normal sized ‘disco record'” (source). Also, consider that a comparable controller with 12″ platters would be insanely heavy with this one already weighing in at 23.55 lbs, without a case (for perspective, the absolutely gargantuan NS7iii was 31.57 lbs).

All in all, David, Fatty Lumpkin and myself all came away feeling that the platters absolutely live up to the hype.

“I regret ever calling anything else built like a tank“

These are the words David said to me when he first unboxed the Rane One. Rane has always been known for their outstanding build-quality, but the Rane One seems to outdo itself in this area.

Like a nice watch, or a premium phone, a certain heft tells you this thing was built to last. Thick, full-metal constructions, ultra-smooth, sturdy knobs and best-in-class buttons outfit this controller in head-to-toe quality.

As the Technics 1200s taught us decades ago, even in the absence of bells and whistles, gear that lasts holds its value is a better investment than units that needs to be replaced every couple of years.

The Rane One’s build quality may be what we’ve come to expect from Rane, but compared to other DJ controllers to-date, it really stands out.

Underrated: These Pads, Tho

We’ve come to take pads on top-end DJ controllers for granted, but from the perspective of the Rane One vs a turntable+mixer setup, the pads are a dimension in which the Rane One is actually better.

The Rane Twelve has no proper pad section (it has cue points built into a strip, which is different), and while the Rane Seventy does have pads, they’re small and require you to lift your hand off the platter to use them. For the purpose of technical performance, this sizing and spacing matters.

Besides the NS7iii, which lacked most of Rane One’s virtues, this is the first time we’ve seen full MPC-style pads positioned below a motorized platter with freely rotating vinyl on top*. This means that cue points can be triggered with a thumb without ever taking your hand off the record. Finger-drumming can be interspersed seamlessly with scratching.

This opportunity alone means we may actually see world-class DJs bringing a Rane One to battle at Redbull Thre3style over other setups.

Special mention goes out to the dedicated Instant Doubles button on each deck, particularly relevant on a performance oriented controller like this one.

* The Reloop RP-8000 MK2/SC6000M both arguably have this platter+pad layout, but we’re operating on the assumption that full controller-sized pads are preferable to the mini-pads found on either of these models. They’re also in a completely different price range from the Rane One.

The Mixer Section: Only 1 Drawback

If you’re reading this thinking, “this sounds too good to be true, there has to be a catch,” if there’s any drawback to the Rane One, it’s that, unlike the Rane Seventy, it can only control Serato’s effects and has none of its own. That said, the software effects can be stacked (e.g. you can activate more than one at a time), it has depth control (aka Wetness/Dryness) and you still enjoy the workflow of activating effects via paddle control, just like the Rane Seventy.

Otherwise, the 3x custom-fitted, tension-adjustable Mag Four faders are still the best magnetic faders in the business (with competition only from Pioneer’s Magvel Pro).

The EQs, audio components and resulting sound quality all deliver on the Rane name.

The input/output leaves little to be desired as well. The Rane One allows 2 USB laptop connections + 5 simultaneous audio inputs in the form of 1 pair of phono/line inputs, 2 microphone inputs and 1 aux-in. For outputs, it has balanced main and booth XLR outs, and additional RCA main out + 3.5mm and 1/4″ headphones outputs.

Again, if we really need to try to find find a fault, we can say that we’d like to see a pair of dedicated line-ins and a pair of phono-ins, but realistically, who is running the Frankenstein setup with featuring a dual-platter controller + 2 turntables + 2 media players all controlled by a 2-channel mixer?

In short, besides the 1 drawback with effects, we’re very satisfied and effectively left wanting nothing from this Rane-quality mixer section.

The Wedding Turntablist? A New Era of No-Compromise Gear.

Historically, we’ve seen the world of DJ gear fragment between 2 main camps.

On one side, there’s the value/utility camp, primarily defined by mobile DJs. These are often clean cut business guys who are primarily looking to get a great bang for their buck, flexibility to fit any situation, portability and a little bit of fun/expressiveness to round it all out.

On the other side, you have the expressiveness camp, primarily defined by turntablists and performance oriented DJs. These are the flat-brimmed, tatooed guys (and increasingly girls) with a technique-oriented attitude towards DJing. They don’t compromise on details like platter feel, fader smoothness or any performance oriented features.

Fun Fact: Many, if not most, in the latter group have been known to secretly throw on a collared shirt, hide their tattoos, tame their mohawks and put on a cheesy smile at a Bar Mitzvah in the name of paying the bills, like the former group. But you didn’t hear that here.

Ask yourself, which one of these groups was the Rane One built for?

This is arguably the first time we’re forced to conclude “both.”

While on the surface this is a “controller for turntablists,” the Rane One is missing virtually nothing that the mobile pro requires & at a price-point that that still makes business sense.

• Top notch sound? Check.
• Multiple mics? Check.
• Variety of inputs to deal with crazy crowd requests? Check.
• Censor button so you can play WAP and not get thrown out of the party? Check.

For the first time, the tuxedo and tall-T wearing amongst us may find common ground, in a controller that doesn’t force us to pick a side.

We think that’s pretty cool, if for no other reason than it taking a lot of the anxiety out of making a substantial investment in new gear. You no longer have to worry if you’re giving up more than you’d like to stay within your budget or if the setup you’re eyeing is outside your means.

The Rane One lets you have your cake and eat it too. And if Rane continues to be the trendsetter that is has been over the past few years, we’re excited for a new era of gear that serves both ends of the DJ industry without compromise.

Who It’s For (And Who It’s Not For)

In the section above, I made a thorough case that many DJs will be (and already are) thrilled with the Rane One. So let’s talk about who this is not for –

• The DJ that absolutely doesn’t care about motorized platters. Save your money and get a non-motorized controller.
• The turntable purist that requires 12″ platters or nothing at all. Turntables are still the move for you, though digital options like the Twelves & RP-8000 MK2 now give you access to digital functionality.
• You need 4 channels or bust. There’s no perfect solution for you since most turntablist-inspired setups are 2-channels. If you want to stay in a similar price range, but let go of the motorized-platter dream, the DDJ-1000 is a great option (read/watch our review). If moving platters are a must, a Rane Twelve MKii or traditional turntable-based setup with DJM-900 NXS2 or comparable mixer will serve you well.

Key Takeaways

TL;DR

• Rane One is a game changer that condenses ~$3,300 of value into a <$1,500 package, making previously inaccessible flagship setups a possibility for countless more DJs.
• The platters are everything they’re cracked up to be
• The build quality is second to none
• The pads give it an edge over turntable+mixer setups for performance
• The mixer sections delivers in every way that a 2020 battle mixer from Rane should.
• The Rane One doesn’t make DJs choose between a mobile/practical/value-driven setup and costly/passion-driven/expressive one. It lets us have both.

For a detailed, showroom-style review of all the features discussed above + a demo from Dave Chapelle’s resident DJ, Fatty Lumpkin, make sure to watch the video at the top of this post.

Your Turn.

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