Just imagine the tears on Christmas morning if your loved one unwraps their Ergo to find they can’t use it properly because they don’t have a 6.3mm adaptor. Everyone has a pair of iPod style earphones, but not everyone has a pair of HD25s. The inclusion of both 3.5mm and 6.3mm jacks is phenomenally important considering the Ergo’s target market. Other than that, the Ergo features a type B USB connector for data I/O and power, a Kensington lock and both 3.5mm and 6.3mm headphone jacks on the front panel. MIC’s attach to the back of the device using a 6.3mm jack, which also features an input volume control. Next to the line input is its volume control and a switch that selects either the microphone or line input. You can use the input to listen to something even if you aren’t running Traktor or VDJ by configuring it as your OS’s default audio interface, which is handy if you’ve only got one computer and the Ergo’s permanently attached to it. You’ll also find a pair of line-level RCA inputs to which you can connect MP3 players, a CDJ, or whatever else you fancy. On the back you’ll find a single pair of RCA connectors and a single pair of balanced 6.3mm jacks, both of which push audio out to your audience. Given that it’s a USB-powered ‘lifestyle’ controller, you’d be forgiven for thinking the Ergo’s only concessions to I/O would be a 3.5mm output for the headphones and a 3.5mm output for some speakers, but that isn’t the case. Of course, features mean nothing if they’re badly implemented, and nothing exposes a controller’s weakness like an in-depth Skratchworx review. Pioneer are heavily marketing it at newcomers and hobbyists, and at first glance it looks as if it’s the perfect first controller. It also has features that threaten the more expensive DDJs and is compatible with VDJ, Traktor and the highly anticipated Serato Intro. The second thing that strikes you is the intense lightshow that blinds you when you plug it in to your PC, but the Ergo is much more than an expensive bauble.įor starters, it’s a four-channel controller despite only having two channel strips. The first thing that strikes you is the lack of a power supply, but that’s because it’s entirely powered by USB.
But in the last year, they’ve released two decent controllers, and the Ergo benefits from that experience. Pioneer was a relative newcomer to the controller market, having made an extremely high profile name for itself making hyper desirable and hyper expensive hardware.