If you are a digital DJ, or aspiring to become one, you must have noticed that MIDI controllers are big business. From simple facsimiles of analogue setups to slabs of lights and buttons that wouldn't look out of place on the Starship Enterprise, they’re everywhere.

Head down to your local DJ store and you will see that in practice, most of the controllers aimed at DJs are largely in the same vein: two jog wheels, some transport controls and a mixer section. Sure, this makes sense, but it's not in keeping with the new age of digital DJing. Advances in DJ software mean that the old 'ones and twos' model is outdated, and conventional controllers are a poor fit for the modern DJ’s demands.

Fortunately, we've compiled a list of ten controllers that defy convention. They either forge their own unique path or are primarily designed for a purpose other than DJing. From the cool to the completely bonkers, these devices fly in the face of their 'me too' counterparts. Some might not seem that unusual at first, but you may not have thought about them as candidates for your mixing setup in the past

We'll ease in gently with some purpose built but none the less different devices and finish up somewhere completely off the DJ map.

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