Stanton until a few years ago basically only made needles for the club and house dj's with the Track masters and Groove masters (See the bottom for Stanton Needles) . .With the new SK series mixer that have the turntablist in mind you get all the features of the Vestax Pro Series with the same high quality faders apparently the faders are the same.

The SK-2F is a SK-2 modified with the new revolutionary Focus Fader. It is a true optical fader. Simply put, this means the fader glides without any contacts to slow it down or cause wear from friction. This fader provides 3 major improvements for skratchers:

  • The focus fader is the fastest available, it glides with little friction which is horrible for beat juggling because the fader bounces back and fourth way to easy. For scratching though it's really good. Focus Fader last a long time and are the most economical compared to digital or magnetic faders which you'll find in the Rane ttm-56 or the Vestax samurai series mixers.

  • The fader curve (on/off) is super sharp. On/off happens faster allowing for cleaner sounding scratches.

  •  There are no parts rubbing up against each other, wear is minimal meaning this fader should last much longer than any other faders available. Also no bleeding or static.  However with the focus fader there is no adjustment for the cuts. The Focus fader is set for 1 setting which is either on or off.  

My Experiences with these mixers..

    I have used the SK6 (No Focus fader)  mixer over 1 weekend while I was in Chicago with 3 other turntablists abusing the hell out of it for hours a day and the fader was sharp and clean the whole time, I was really surprised. Usually the problem with all mixers is that the fader runs out so damn fast.  However this mixer is good for its price and even the lower end Stanton SK series are dope for scratch dj's.  If you don't have too much loot and want a dope mixer that will last you a while until you get dope or get sick of it buy a SK series mixer.  You may want to look into buying a focus fader for the mixer but the regular faders that come with it are awesome for the price.

 
Mixers

"It's only the 3x champion, DJ Craze signature mixer!" This battle mixer (designed for the champ) has all the flexibility and quality of a club mixer but has all the requirements of today's Turntablist. The SA-12 incorporates a "user-friendly" removable effect module that any DJ can install [one of three sound modules available]. These mod-ules can then be assigned to either channel (1/2), the microphone, and even the main mix.
From the mind of focus" comes the SA-8, the ultimate performance mixer. Never before has so much scrutiny been put into the layout of a scratch mixer, each feature was carefully arranged and placed according to a DJs natural hand movement (notice where the gain is). The SA-8 offers features for every type of DJ, either strictly scratch, live performance, production, or mix. This "studio-style" scratch mixer (designed by Focus) gives you the technology of a professional console mixer compacted and ergonomically arranged in a format that is preferred by top DJs. Additional Features listed below;
    • Individual direct outputs for multi-track recording (each turntable signal can be sent separately though 2 stereo direct outputs)
    • Custom designed P&G (Penny & Giles) cross fader (additional CFF2crossfader included) and custom designed P&G line faders
    • * All new "one of-a-kind" knobs & faders (a molded design to fit the DJ fingers)
    • An ergonomic layout so there is no bumping or cluttering of knobs during use
    • * Post Fader Cue so a DJ can listen to his scratches in the headphone while using the cross fader as normal
    • * Autocue eliminates the need for touching the cue pan (switching from Ch.1 to Ch. 2)
    • * Adjustable Rumble Filter allows the DJ to eliminate low end frequencies
    • Booth Output
    • 3-way adjustable curve control on line faders
    • * OSII Optical Switch (for "noise-free" transforms)
    • Mono/Stereo Switch per channel
    • New screw less faceplate
    • Phono / Line / FX Toggle Switch
    • Multiple Outputs: 2-RCA (Unbalanced), 2-1/4" Direct Out ( Balanced), 1-1/4" Master (Balanced), Plus FX Send (1/4")
    • Multiple Inputs: 2-RCA (Phono), 2-RCA (Line), 1-RCA (Aux), Plus FX Return (1/4")
    • Program Reverse
    • 2-Dual headphone outputs (2-1/4" and 2-1/8" minijack) w/ Headphone mute
Needles
The new Discmaster II from Stanton, the world's leader in DJ cartridges, is the only plug-in DJ cartridge in the world designed exclusively for the needs of the competition scene.
  • This model is marked SK as it carries a spherical super high polished diamond. This model will satisfy the needs of a scratch / hip-hop DJ.
  • The Trackmaster II SK is also available in matched pairs for dual turntable applications

 

The Bad

1. Its a Stanton and still only a few years into the mixer game.

2. The sound quality doesn't compare to the other high end mixers.

3. The power switch and power supply is prone to malfunctioning, with newer models such as the SA-8 this isn't a problem

The Good

1. The fader lasts a REALLY long time.

2. These mixers got style for the price, they look decent next to a pair of 12's.

3. The phono switches click 3 times by moving them once so you can cheat and trick that girl your trying to hook up with that you know how to scratch.

4. Its cheaper then a lot of the rip off brands where your just paying for the name.