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DJ Tech Reviews

Pioneer DJ DDJ-SB3

A compact two-channel Serato DJ Lite controller for beginners, now discontinued; its pitch faders are short.

Pioneer DJ DDJ-SB3 at an angle

Photos: Pioneer DJ / AlphaTheta Corporation

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100%

of 8 reviews recommend it4.5/5 from 40 Guitar Center owners

See reviews
Best for
Beginners learning on Serato DJ Lite who want a light, used first controller.
Skip it if
You need line inputs, long pitch faders or a quarter-inch headphone jack.

The Internet’s Opinion

From 8 professional reviews and 16 owner reviews: a fair amount of evidence.

Reviewers and owners recommend it as an easy, good-value first controller for Serato DJ Lite, with Pad Scratch and FX Fade as useful learning aids. The common reservations are short pitch faders, basic connections and features locked behind the paid Serato DJ Pro upgrade.

8 recommend0 mixed0 avoid

What people praise

  • Easy to set up and learn on as a first controller
  • Pad Scratch and FX Fade help beginners with scratching and transitions
  • Layout borrowed from Pioneer DJ's bigger controllers, with separate play, cue and loop buttons
Show 3 more
  • Good value for a beginner controller
  • Light and compact enough to carry to small gigs
  • Solid build with responsive aluminium jog wheels

What to know first

  • Serato DJ Lite is limited; the full feature set needs a paid Serato DJ Pro upgrade
  • Short pitch faders make manual beatmatching fiddly
  • Basic connections: 3.5 mm headphone jack only, no line inputs, unbalanced mic input
Show 3 more
  • No cue/master mix control for the headphones
  • Limited hardware control over effects
  • No master level meter

Owner ratings, as the retailers publish them

See the 8 reviews behind this

8 professional reviews (8 recommend, 0 mixed, 0 avoid); 16 owner reviews read at Guitar Center (Thomann no longer lists the DDJ-SB3)Compiled 2026-10-12How this is compiled

Video reviews

  • DJ BarrDec 2020Recommends

    Pioneer DDJ-SB3 Review: The Best DJ Controller for New DJs

    Pioneer DDJ-SB3 Review: The Best DJ Controller for New DJs

    DJ BarrDec 2020Recommends

Plays from YouTube when you press play. Picked from the reviews counted above, including one that disagrees where there is one.

Prices

Before you buy

Released
March 2018
Status
Discontinued
Replaced by
Pioneer DJ DDJ-REV1

Works with

  • Serato DJ LiteFree unlock

    The DDJ-SB3 unlocks Serato DJ Lite free when plugged in; it has a built-in sound card and is USB powered. Manufacturer spec sheet (Serato), checked 2026-10-12

  • Serato DJ ProPaid upgrade

    Pioneer DJ lists Serato DJ Pro as a paid upgrade that adds control of dedicated FX buttons, Beat Jump, Slip mode, 8 Hot Cues and 8 Sample buttons. Manufacturer spec sheet (Pioneer DJ), checked 2026-10-12

  • Serato StudioSupported

    Serato lists the DDJ-SB3 as working with Serato Studio, its beat-making DAW. Manufacturer spec sheet (Serato), checked 2026-10-12

  • VirtualDJPaid licence

    Needs a Pro Infinity, Subscriber or PLUS licence; without one the controller works for 10 minutes each time VirtualDJ restarts. The unit is USB class compliant, so no driver is needed. Manufacturer spec sheet (VirtualDJ), checked 2026-10-12

You’ll also need

  • A computer (PC/Mac)Not standalone

    It is a USB bus-powered controller that runs DJ software on a PC/Mac, connected directly with the supplied USB cable; a USB hub cannot be used. Manufacturer spec sheet (Pioneer DJ (quick start guide)), checked 2026-10-12

  • Powered speakers and an RCA cableNot in the box

    The master output is one RCA pair, and the quick start guide says an RCA audio cable is not included. The box holds the controller, a USB cable and paperwork. Manufacturer spec sheet (Pioneer DJ (quick start guide)), checked 2026-10-12

  • Headphones with a 3.5 mm plugMini jack only

    The only headphone output is a 3.5 mm stereo mini jack on the front. Manufacturer spec sheet (Pioneer DJ (quick start guide)), checked 2026-10-12

  • A microphone (optional)Unbalanced quarter-inch

    The mic input is a quarter-inch TS jack that supports unbalanced input only. Manufacturer spec sheet (Pioneer DJ (quick start guide)), checked 2026-10-12

Key specs

Channels
2
Decks
4 (2-channel/4-deck controller)
Software
Serato DJ Lite (unlocked free); Serato DJ Pro as a paid upgrade
Standalone
No (USB bus-powered controller for a PC/Mac)
Outputs
Master (RCA), headphones (3.5 mm mini jack)
Weight
2.1 kg (4.6 lb)
All 12 specifications
Power
USB bus power, DC 5 V, 500 mA
Inputs
1 x mic (1/4" TS, unbalanced only)
Audio interface
24-bit D/A, 44.1 kHz; S/N 103 dB, THD 0.005 % (USB)
Frequency response
20 Hz – 20 kHz (USB)
USB
1 x USB Type-B
Dimensions (W x H x D)
482.6 x 58.5 x 272.4 mm (19.0 x 2.3 x 10.7 in)

12 of 12 figures sourced; hover one for its source

Our take

Tony AllenWritten from the sources on this page, not from a loan unit.

All eight professional reviews recommend it as a first controller, and five of the 16 Guitar Center owners read call it easy to set up or learn on. Pad Scratch and FX Fade are praised as learning aids. Four reviews find the pitch faders short, and six reviews and owners note that Serato DJ Lite holds features back until the paid Pro upgrade. Pioneer DJ has archived it: buy one used, or look at the DDJ-REV1, its named next-generation model.

What it is

Status, October 2026: discontinued. Pioneer DJ's archived DDJ-SB3 page names the DDJ-REV1 as its next-generation model.

What it is

The DDJ-SB3 is a two-channel DJ controller for Serato DJ Lite, which Pioneer DJ launched on 1 March 2018 as an upgrade of the DDJ-SB2 (Pioneer DJ product page). It unlocks Serato DJ Lite free when plugged in, and Serato describes it as a 2-channel, 4-deck controller. Serato DJ Pro is a paid upgrade that adds control of the dedicated FX buttons, Beat Jump, Slip mode, 8 Hot Cues and 8 Sample buttons.

Its layout borrows from Pioneer DJ's DDJ-S controllers: aluminium jog wheels, Performance Pads, separate play and cue buttons and an independent Auto Loop section. Pad Scratch, co-developed with DJ Jazzy Jeff, plays eight of his scratch recordings over the cued or playing track, matched to its tempo. FX Fade lowers the volume while applying one of eight combinations of high-pass filter, low-pass filter, loop playback and back spin. A gold DDJ-SB3-N followed in September 2019 and a silver DDJ-SB3-S in July 2020.

It is powered over USB and has a built-in sound card. Connections are basic: one RCA master output, a 3.5 mm headphone jack and a quarter-inch mic input for unbalanced microphones, with no line or phono inputs. It measures 482.6 x 58.5 x 272.4 mm and weighs 2.1 kg. The box holds the controller, a USB cable, the quick start guide and the warranty; an RCA cable is not included.

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