Is it broken or just a setting? DJ gear "faults" that aren't faults

A lot of DJ gear "faults" are features doing exactly what they were designed to do. The deck that switches itself off. The tempo fader that does nothing. The crossfader that "doesn't work" in your headphones. They feel broken, especially on a unit you've just bought, but a button press or a menu setting fixes them.

Here are the common ones, grouped by what you'll notice, with what's really going on and how to sort it. If you've just bought something second hand, it's worth reading before you ask for a return.

Quick fix

• Switched itself off? Look for one small button glowing steadily red. That's standby. Press it to wake the unit, then turn Power Management or Auto Standby off.
• Tempo fader does nothing? Turn SYNC off, then move the fader all the way up and all the way down once.
• Deck silent or won't play? Check the tempo isn't at minus 100 percent on WIDE, and the channel input selector matches the source.
• Crossfader does nothing in your headphones? It isn't meant to. Channel cue ignores the crossfader. Listen through the master.
• Jog stops the track when you touch it? That's VINYL mode. Press JOG MODE for CDJ mode.
• Track playing backwards? Flip the DIRECTION lever on the left of the deck to FWD.

"It keeps turning itself off"

This is one of the most common non-faults. Newer kit has a power saving setting, called Power Management or Auto Standby, that switches the unit off or into standby when it's idle. On many newer units it's 20 minutes with no music going in. Firmware updates for the EU Ecodesign rules brought this in on several models, and it's on from the factory.

The tell-tale sign is a single button glowing steadily red. That means asleep, not broken. Press it to wake the unit. Long silences, mic only, or background music through the booth can all trigger it. To stop it, set POWER MANAGEMENT or AUTO STANDBY to OFF in the Utility or settings menu, and change it on every unit in the booth, not just one.

The wake button differs by model:

• XDJ-AZ: QUANTIZE. If only QUANTIZE is lit, it's in standby. Turn it off in Utility, Power Management, Never.
• Opus Quad: QUANTIZE on deck 1 or 3.
• XDJ-RX3 and XDJ-RR: MASTER REC (WAKE UP).
• DDJ-FLX10: the left QUANTIZE. To disable, hold BACK, choose POWER MANAGEMENT and set it to OFF.
• DDJ-REV7: SLIP on the left deck. Auto standby kicks in after 4 hours of silence.
• DJM-A9: QUANTIZE/UTILITY (WAKE UP). DJM-V10: MIDI START/STOP (WAKE UP). DJM-900NXS2: QUANTIZE (UTILITY, WAKE UP), after 10 hours idle. DJM-750MK2: UTILITY (WAKE UP). DJM-250MK2: FILTER.
• CDJ-3000: touch any control. Firmware 3.16 and later switch off after 20 minutes idle.
• CDJ-2000NXS2, CDJ-2000NXS, XDJ-1000MK2: standby after about 4 hours unused. Set AUTO STANDBY to OFF in UTILITY.

One more on the FLX10: when it's left idle, it can go into a screensaver display. One new FLX10 owner on Reddit mistook it for an error message. It isn't one.

The real fault looks different. If it switches off mid track with music clearly playing, or the wake button flashes fast and nothing responds, that's not standby.

"The tempo fader doesn't work"

This is one of the most common "faults" we see, and most of the time it's sync. While BEAT SYNC is on, the player follows the master tempo and ignores the slider. When you turn sync off, the slider's physical position no longer matches the tempo that's playing, so the player waits until you move the slider to, or past, the current tempo before it takes control again.

The fix: turn SYNC off, then move the tempo fader all the way up and all the way down once. Press TEMPO RESET if your deck has it and check the readout goes to 0.0. One rekordbox user on Reddit confirmed it: they had to "catch" the synced tempo with the slider before it came back to life.

Also check you're on the right deck. Deck 3 selected instead of deck 1 does the same thing. On the DDJ-FLX10, FLX4 and DDJ-400, if TEMPO RESET is active in rekordbox the slider is ignored.

"One deck is silent" or "the track won't play"

• Tempo at minus 100 percent. With the tempo range on WIDE and the fader pulled right down, the track stops dead. Two separate rekordbox users on Reddit, one with a DDJ-FLX4, thought a deck had died. Both found this.
• Input selector. Each mixer channel listens to one socket: deck, USB/PC, LINE, PHONO or DIGITAL. On the XDJ-RX3 and XDJ-XZ, a channel on LINE or PHONO makes the built-in deck silent even though the waveform moves. On the DDJ-FLX6, deck 4 is silent if the DECK4/SAMPLER switch is on SAMPLER.
• USB A/B switch on the DDJ-FLX10. The switch above each TRIM must match the USB port your laptop is in. One FLX10 owner on Reddit had every channel on A except channel 1, which was on B.
• Filter knob. A filter or Color FX knob turned fully can cut the sound. Put it back to 12 o'clock.
• Crossfader assign. If a channel is assigned to A and the crossfader is fully over at B, that channel is silent.

"The crossfader doesn't work"

The crossfader only changes the master output. It never affects the headphone cue on a channel. So if you're practising on headphones with channel CUE pressed, moving the crossfader changes nothing in your ears. That's by design. A brand new FLX4 owner on Reddit found the crossfader worked through the computer speakers but not the headphones, which is exactly this.

To hear the crossfader in your headphones, press the master CUE button (on the DDJ-FLX10 it's under the master section) and turn the headphone MIX knob towards master.

Other settings that make a crossfader do nothing:

• Each channel's CROSSFADER ASSIGN switch on THRU. Set it to A or B.
• A crossfader curve switch with a THRU position, on the XDJ-RR, XDJ-RX, XDJ-RX2, DJM-250MK2, DJM-450 and DJM-S3.
• On the DDJ-FLX4 in Serato DJ Lite, the crossfader can be set to Disable in the software.

"No sound in my headphones" or "only one ear"

• Headphones only play what you've cued. Press the CUE button on the channel you want to hear.
• Put the headphone MIX knob in the middle. Fully to CUE you only hear cued channels, fully to MASTER you only hear the master.
• Check TRIM isn't right down. With TRIM fully down there's nothing to cue. One new FLX4 owner on Reddit with silent headphones had both trims turned fully down, and turning them up fixed it.
• Cue in one ear and master in the other? On the DJM-900NXS2, XDJ-RX3 and DDJ-FLX10, that's MONO SPLIT. Set it to STEREO.
• On the DDJ-FLX4 over Bluetooth, the headphone and master outputs stay silent by design. Use the USB cable.

"The jog wheel is broken"

On the CDJ-2000 family, CDJ-3000 and XDJ-1000MK2, the top of the jog only stops and scratches the track in VINYL mode. In CDJ mode it only bends pitch. So "the jog won't scratch" and "the track stops when I touch the jog" are usually just the jog mode. Press JOG MODE to switch.

On the CDJ-3000, a VINYL SPEED ADJ knob turned right down makes stopping and starting so slow it looks broken. On the DDJ-FLX6, Jog Cutter only works with vinyl mode on.

We once had a jog reported as faulty where the deck was fine and it came down to what the outer ring is meant to do. We arranged a call to explain it.

Reverse, quantize and cue surprises

• Track plays backwards. The DIRECTION lever on the left of the deck has been knocked to REV. Flip it up to FWD.
• SLIP REV springs back. It's meant to. Only REV stays put. A new CDJ-3000 owner on Reddit thought this was a fault, and the top replies pointed out it's working as designed.
• Hot cues feel late. With QUANTIZE on, actions snap to the nearest beat, so they wait slightly. Turn QUANTIZE off for instant response.
• CUE does nothing, or an old cue loads. Check AUTO CUE is on, pause the track and press CUE once to set a point.
• CUE/LOOP POINT FULL. The track already has 10 saved points on that USB or SD. Delete some and save again.

"It's really quiet"

The DJM-A9, DJM-V10, XDJ-RX3 and DDJ-FLX10 have a master attenuator in the Utility settings. A previous owner or venue may have set it to minus 6 or minus 12 dB. Set it back to 0 dB, which is the factory setting. Also check a turntable is on a PHONO input, not LINE.

Bought it second hand? Reset it

A lot of these come from a previous owner's settings. Do your model's factory reset and check the Utility menu before deciding anything is wrong. On the DDJ-REV7 and DDJ-FLX10, close the DJ software, hold BACK, and use the reset item in the settings list. On the DDJ-1000 and DDJ-800, jog ring lights that only spin while you scratch mean it's been left in general MIDI mode: power off, hold SHIFT and PLAY/PAUSE on the left deck, power on, make sure SLIP REVERSE on the left deck isn't lit, then power off to save.

When it really is a fault

These are worth a video:

• It switches off mid track with music playing, or won't wake even after unplugging for a minute.
• The tempo fader does nothing with SYNC off after a full up and down sweep, in two apps or standalone.
• The crossfader still lets the closed side through on the master with everything set correctly, or crackles as you move it.
• The deck plays backwards with the lever on FWD, or the DIRECTION lever won't spring back from SLIP REV.
• CUE shows in the software but both headphone sockets stay silent with two different pairs of headphones.

If you're not sure, our health check is £30 and our diagnostic is £30, deducted if you go ahead with a repair. Any repair is subject to diagnosis and parts availability, and we'll quote once we've looked at it. You can book a repair or health check here.

What to send us

A short video showing the controls and the screen as it happens. For standby, a photo of the unit while it's "off", showing which lights are still on, and how long it had been idle. For audio issues, a photo of the back panel and the input selectors.

FAQ

Why does my CDJ turn itself off?

Power Management or Auto Standby. On the CDJ-3000 with firmware 3.16 or later it's 20 minutes idle; on the CDJ-2000NXS2 it's about 4 hours. Turn it off in UTILITY.

Why won't my tempo fader work after using sync?

Turn sync off, then move the fader to or past the current tempo, or sweep it fully up and down once. It takes control again from there.

Why doesn't my crossfader work in my headphones?

Channel cue ignores the crossfader by design. Press the master CUE to hear the crossfader in your headphones.

Why is my track playing backwards on my CDJ?

The DIRECTION lever on the left side is on REV. Flip it up to FWD.

My controller says it's asleep. Is it broken?

No. A steady red light on one button means standby. Press that button to wake it, and turn Power Management off if you don't want it.

Buying used?

Knowing these settings saves a lot of stress when you're testing a deck before you buy. Our buyer's guide to second-hand DJ equipment covers what to check, and everything we sell comes with our warranty. If something still doesn't seem right, send us a video and we'll tell you honestly whether it's a setting or a fault.