The Rane One. A Surprise, But Still Expected

Honestly I was taken aback that this was even real when I first learned about it. I had wondered after inMusic took control over brands like Numark, Denon, and Rane what those lineups would look like and if the moving platter controller concept would live on. The more I thought about it the more I thought that the Rane One was a good alignment for the Rane brand. They have always focused themselves as being a “battle mixer” kind of company. With the inclusion of the TWELVES you saw the writing on the wall that they were not going to be a mixer-only company, but what they were building still worked into the “soul” of the brand ethos.

Since the Numark brand looked to be moved into a pure economy-level type company, and they had a good amount of success with the previous NS7 / NS7ii / NS7iii controllers, Rane could pick up the torch and make a solid first entry into the controller market.

It has, and in a big way with the Rane One.

Cliff’s Notes On The Rane One

I am throwing my thoughts mainly in the videos above. But to get into the Cliff’s Notes version of this all:

• The Rane One is not only the successor of the NS7 series, but blows it out of the water
• It’s smaller and lighter than the NS7iii by almost 10lbs (4.5 kgs)
• It truly encapsulates the build quality we expect from Rane
• The sound quality is great albeit it’s a quiet soundcard
• The buttons are a hybrid of Rane 62 meets Rane 70 and I love it
• The platters feel even better than the NS7iii and are equal that of the TWELVES
• I do wish the pitch control was oriented in a battle-style configuration
• I wish the channel sliders were mag faders or Innofaders
• Post these initial videos VirtualDJ now fully supports the Rane One
• Summary: This is a no-brainer replacement for the NS7 series and worth every penny
• And if you buy make sure to get this from NLFX! https://www.nlfxpro.com/rane-one/

Some Notes After The Fact

I am writing this update in the Summer of 2023. Now I am sure everyone knows the Rane Four is out now and I will be honest I think it was the wrong move brand wise. Without moving platters this really seems something more aligned for Denon. But inMusic has clearly moved Denon into a pure club-scene posture. So in that regard the Rane Four can really only fit as a Rane. I still think it’s not quite the right move, but it’s not like I own inMusic.

All that being said I still think the Rane One absolutely even trumps the Rane Four with the exception of one thing, onboard effects. I know a lot of people want those hardware effects, and I expect a Rane One mk2 to come out with it, probably just slightly wider than the current model so it still comes in not being too heavy.

And after having two Rane Ones for 2.5 years I can say I am extremely satisfied with it. Everything still runs perfectly which some people were concerned with Rane sending manufacturing overseas. I’m happy to report mine are still in great shape!

Get A Rane One, Like Yesterday

I can’t say it’s praises enough. It’s not a perfect device. The soundcard could be a little louder, the pitch faders could be orientated battle style, channel faders could be mag faders. But it’s just a damn good controller. Even with the Pioneer Rev7 on the market now, and some personal testing, I still think the Rane One is the champion of the DJ controller.