SLAB is an ambitious leap into Serato Studio hardware — and it deftly sticks the landing£259 / $299 / €277.70, serato.com
A name once associated primarily with DJs, Serato has been quietly building its reputation in the production world. It launched Studio, its unique DAW, in 2019, but it’s only now that the software has received dedicated hardware, created in collaboration with DJ equipment titan — and parent company — AlphaTheta.

READ MORE: I swapped Ableton Live for Renoise 3.5 — here’s what I learned

SLAB is a compact pad-based controller designed to escape the tedium of the mouse and keyboard, offering tight integration with Serato Studio for hands-on beatmaking.
With its easy-to-grasp approach, SLAB is well poised to help first-timers make the intimidating jump from decks to DAW — but its simplicity cuts both ways. I check out a test unit to find out whether SLAB is the bedrock for budding producers, or merely a stepping stone that you’ll soon outgrow.
Image: Press
Is Serato SLAB well built?
Straight away, Serato gets kudos for SLAB’s design, its minimalist aesthetic finished in a stony grey that contrasts beautifully with its pastel-hued backlights.
Its controls feel premium, particularly for a device costing $299. SLAB’s pads are effortlessly playable, and its touch strip is responsive, while soft-touch clicky buttons provide just enough haptic feedback to know they’ve done their job.
I’m using a 13-inch MacBook — SLAB is a little smaller but twice as thick. Serious points for portability, considering it only weighs 1kg. Nonetheless, the unit feels solid on the desk and doesn’t move around, even when you’re frenetically freestyling like Fred Again.
SLAB’s face is slightly tilted as well, a subtle touch that makes the device feel remarkably ergonomic to use while sitting. I’m caught off guard by how perfectly everything seems to have been considered from a physical standpoint.
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Programming drums with SLAB
To begin, I configure the large left-hand dial to Library mode and rifle through various drum kits and instruments, although my own samples and Serato DJ library are also accessible. It feels much like selecting tracks on a CDJ system, which isn’t surprising given AlphaTheta’s pedigree.
Once I’ve loaded a kit, I use the Auto-Set button to instantly populate the sequencer with a new drum part based on a selected genre. The patterns are fairly unremarkable, but they do provide a quick way to get going.
I throw out the preprogrammed beat and punch in something vaguely Kaytranada-esque with swing. The combination of live recording and SLAB’s 16th-note step sequencer mode feels fluid, and it doesn’t take long to build up a dense drum arrangement — and I’m yet to lay a finger on the mouse or keyboard.

I’m curious to see how SLAB handles the more intricate details. It’s relatively easy to adjust micro timing with the dial for a more human feel, but I trip a couple of times with note velocities. These can be quickly changed using the touch strip, but the strip’s lighting doesn’t immediately reflect a note’s velocity on selection, so I’m left guessing at its current value.
And, once I extend the loop beyond four beats, keeping track of which bar I’m editing demands some back-and-forth between SLAB and the laptop. An indicator on the device screen would work wonders. Maybe Serato can address these quirks in a future firmware update.
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Developing a loop with SLAB
With my percussion in place, I flick through the browser once more, auditioning longer samples that I can chop up, MPC-style. The Auto-Set button makes this incredibly swift, intelligently placing slice markers that are automatically mapped to the drum pads.
Selected slices can be locked down with the Favourite button, while the remainder are refreshed with new options on the next Auto-Set command. It’s a lightly addictive gamble, and I get caught in ‘just one more’ mode at the prospect of discovering a magical snippet of audio on my next roll of the dice.
I add a bass sound to a new Deck, the pads conveniently mapped to a scale that matches my previous key. Clearly, Serato has done its best to eliminate menial tasks from beatmaking, and the result is an incredibly immediate process where everything ‘just works’.
This simplicity does come with trade-offs. The instruments in Studio have relatively few parameters to adjust, and while that might suit beginners, it fast becomes frustrating for more advanced sound design.
Studio’s quantisation also leaves me wanting. It only applies to note start, not note end, and there’s no manual quantisation option after recording. I find no way to change note length within SLAB’s step sequencer mode either, and have to swap to the laptop to finish the job.
Remixing with SLAB
SLAB’s workflow has been rock-solid so far, but nothing extraordinary. That all changes with Studio’s genuinely impressive stem separation.
I load a full stereo bounce from my music library and use SLAB’s four parameter knobs to isolate the vocals — in real time and with remarkable clarity — as if I’m mixing a multitrack.
I use Auto-Set to find some chops and finish off my loop:

I also play around with the project’s tempo and key, and Studio dynamically repitches each Deck as I go. This is a useful utility for working material into DJ sets, but it’s also a fun creative tool that can drastically change the feel of your idea.
Arrangement and mixing with SLAB
Arranging parts into a full track is where Serato Studio’s limitations become most apparent. Deck-level patterns are stored in abstractions called Scenes, which can be chained together in Song View to create structure.
I start a new project with a relaxed electro feel and build out a simple track:

SLAB can’t yet be used to sequence Scenes in Song View, but doing so directly on the laptop is straightforward. However, you can’t mix and match individual Deck sequences across Scenes like you would in Ableton Live’s Session View. Another bugbear is deck-level automation, which has to be done within the corresponding Scene and can’t be drawn directly into Song View’s timeline.
Fortunately, Studio’s mixer is pretty capable. SLAB puts Deck volume, three-band EQ, effects, and stem separation at your fingertips via its touch-sensitive knobs, and I regularly find myself making speedy on-the-fly tweaks.
An effects roster rounds things out alongside Studio’s third-party plugin support. While SLAB is connected to Studio, users also unlock four exclusive Pad FX, including Pitch Looper and Inverse Reverb, though these are fairly rudimentary with a single controllable ‘amount’ parameter.
Elsewhere, I drop the Sidechain effect onto an Instrument Deck, and it automatically pipes in the kick from my drums — a nifty touch.
Image: Press
Alternatives to Serato SLAB
SLAB’s arch-nemesis is likely Native Instruments’ Maschine Mikro, with the MK3 being slightly cheaper than SLAB at £219. The two are broadly similar controllers, but NI’s ecosystem is a decade more mature than Serato’s.
For the self-contained route, Akai’s MPC One+ is a complete beatmaking workstation, albeit with a steeper learning curve. It’s more expensive at £555, but that may work out cheaper for some since there’s no need for a production-grade laptop.
A third choice is a traditional DAW. Logic Pro costs £199, and various capable controllers can be found for under £100. There’s more to set up and learn, but that initial investment will later pay off for those who want to grow beyond the relatively simple productions possible with Serato Studio.

Should I buy Serato SLAB?
Serato’s SLAB-and-Studio pairing deftly bridges the gap from DJ to beatmaker without technical know-how, and its feature set robustly handles the main building blocks of music production.
The stem separation is an impressive, indispensable tool for remix addicts. I can also see the ecosystem working well for producers who need a rapid way to prototype ideas when collaborating with vocalists and rappers.
The controller is fantastic — well-built, sensibly laid out, and pleasing to look at — but its functionality is intrinsically tied to Serato Studio, which ultimately lacks the sound-sculpting horsepower of the major DAWs. I also dislike the need for a separate Studio licence ($238 including VAT) if you want to run the full version without SLAB plugged in.
Most of SLAB and Studio’s stumbles are minor. If this is your first foray into music production or you simply want a distilled package for crafting loops and beats, SLAB delivers exactly that — at a price that’s as beginner-friendly as its workflow.
Key Features

Bus-powered USB-C controller (cable included in box)
16 RGB LED velocity-sensitive performance pads
4 touch-sensitive endless encoders for parameter adjustment
Multi-function dial for browsing, sample scrubbing, Focus Control, and more
Touch strip for expressions like pitch bending, velocity, filtering, Note
Repeat, and effects control
OLED screen
Transport buttons
Native integration with latest versions of Serato Studio, Sample, and DJ Pro
Unlocks Serato Studio full version and Core Library when plugged in
Dimensions: 284 mm x 209 mm x 45 mm
Weight: 1kg

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