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Is the £225 Omnitronic PM-404F the best four-channel DJ mixer on the market?
£225 (street price)
Whether you’re looking to layer techno tools, double up on double drops, or just want to keep all of your decks plugged in at once, sometimes a two-channel DJ mixer won’t cut it. But stepping up to four channels can be an expensive prospect.
Enter the Omnitronic PM-404F. The German brand has made a name for itself with its TRM series of affordable rotary and fader mixers. With the PM-404F, Omnitronic seeks to continue its success with a compact four-channel mixer, at a much lower price than its major competitors.
At just £225, the PM-404F is one of the most affordable four-channel DJ mixers on the market. The PM-404F offers two phono/line channels, two line/line channels, per-channel filters, an independent mic channel, and Bluetooth capability.
For comparison, AlphaTheta’s cheapest four-channel mixer is the Pioneer DJ DJM-750mk2, which retails at a cool £1,099, while analogue enthusiasts can get the Allen & Heath Xone 43 for around £590. But Omnitronic isn’t just competing with the big brands — the PM-404F is sure to draw comparisons to its predecessors and other budget four-channel options. I took it into the booth to find out more.
Design and I/O
In typical German design fashion, the Omnitronic PM-404F is sleek, stylish, and dressed in all-black. It’s a remarkably compact unit and is only 12 per cent larger than the Pioneer DJ DJM-250mk2 two-channel mixer.
At 2.85 kg, the PM-404F is fairly lightweight, despite its properly tanky metal chassis. The fader caps and chic paddle switches are its only obviously plastic components, but the fader stems themselves are metal and feel pretty sturdy. The removable crossfader is also simply superb for the price – it’s no Innofader, but has an adjustable curve, reverse switch, and tiny cut-in distance.
Omnitronic has been efficient with the front panel, which is busy but not crowded. The four channels take up the middle, each with a source switch, volume meter, gain, EQ and filter knobs, and fader. To the left are the mic, headphone, and crossfader controls, while the right side has the Bluetooth pairing button, master volume meter, and independent volume controls for the master, booth, and record outputs.
I’m less of a fan of the cue buttons, which are made of a tacky rubber and wobble around their central point of contact.
Omnitronic scores another huge win with the PM-404F’s input and output roster. Users should have no trouble getting connected at home or in the booth, as the mixer offers master and booth output via balanced XLR and RCA (though 6.3mm jacks, the standard for booth outputs, are missing). The front panel has 6.3mm and 3.5mm headphone jacks and an XLR dynamic mic input.
For your main inputs, there are two line/phono channels and two channels with alternating line inputs. All four channels have the option to use the built-in Bluetooth receiver as a source — a win for everyday home listening and DJs that deal with a lot of requests.
Sound quality, EQ, and filters
PM-404F’s line inputs are phenomenally loud. With the master volume and my studio monitors both set to 12 o’clock, the PM-404F is louder than any mixer or controller I’ve ever used. Disappointingly, the two phono inputs are both rather quiet and are attached to channels one and two — meaning you’re stuck on the two leftmost channels if you want to mix on wax.
I also test the PM-404F on the main sound system at a South London nightclub, AAJA. Here, the mixer really surprises me. Its impressive line-level volume and headroom pay off on a properly loud system, and the additional power gives the mixer’s aggressive EQ more breathing room (more on that in a moment). Its sound profile is a bit flat, but tracks sum well enough, and while the low-end doesn’t have half as much attack as more expensive mixers, I can see the PM-404F being a solid pick for use at smaller venues.
The PM-404F has a two-band EQ, the same as Omnitronic’s rotary TRM-202, but without its cousin’s three-band isolator, meaning frequency sculpting is much less flexible.
The low EQ is one of the greediest I’ve ever used on a DJ mixer, eating up all of the bass and a fair bit of the mid-range at full reduction. I am a fan of the high EQ, though, which gives nice shine to percussion or older records.
A two-band EQ isn’t the end of the world, but the PM-404F is a budget mixer that will be bought by those looking to get comfortable with club-style workflows. Omnitronic’s previous four-channel fader mixer, the PM-422P, had three-band EQ but no filter, which I ultimately think is the better setup for beginners. With that said, the PM-404F’s per-channel, bipolar filters are a big plus at this price point; they’re more of an effect than a sculpting tool, with a fixed resonance that adds a noticeable boost, but can still be used for subtler blending.
Who is the PM-404F for?
If all you care about is getting four channels as cheaply as possible, the Omnitronic PM-404F could be the DJ mixer for you—but I reckon most people who care enough about DJing to need four channels will also care about what the rest of the mixer can offer. And while the PM-404F is a solid purchase in some regards, and holds its own sound-wise, limited EQ and weak phono preamps leave me confused about this mixer’s place in the market.
The previous generation PM-422P is, to my eye, a better option for complete beginners thanks to its more versatile EQ. Behringer’s DJX900USB comes in even cheaper at under £200 and has a suite of sound effects, though online commenters complain about its build and sound. Those willing to spend a little more can get per-channel filters and three-band EQ with the Reloop RMX44BT, which can be had for around £270.
Still, if your only concern is the number of channels on offer, then fantastic I/O, surprisingly good sound quality, per-channel filters, and a handy Bluetooth feature make the PM-404F a solid value buy.
Key features
- 4-channel DJ mixer
- 6 line inputs
- 2 phono inputs
- Bluetooth receiver
- XLR Mic input
- Balanced XLR and unbalanced RCA stereo master and booth outputs
- Unbalanced RCA stereo record outputs
- 6.3mm and 3.5mm headphone outputs
- Crossfader with adjustable curve and reverse switch
- 2-band per-channel EQ
- Per-channel bipolar filters with fixed resonance
- All-metal chassis
- Dimensions: 240 x 110 x 338 mm
- Weight: 2.85 kg
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