“Where’s the innovation?” is a phrase often bandied around in comments when a manufacturer dares to release something fresh without creating a fundamental change in the DJ game. You can sense the collective disappointment that their hefty investment in hardware is safe because the game changing update isn’t enough to warrant selling their first-born to finance a lump of gear with yet more features that won’t get used either.
WHAT IS INNOVATION?
The word itself has a broad meaning in different contexts. But I feel relatively safe in saying that in DJ technology terms, innovation means a major leap forward is required i.e significantly better than before or just plain new but importantly valid.
The last decade or so has seen quantum leaps in DJ technology innovation. From CDJs to DVS to controllers to mobile devices, the game has been changed many time over. And along with the way music is distributed and played, we’ve gorged on every course at the digital DJ table, and kept going back for more.
But there is no more. The cupboard is bare. And we are still ravenous.
We are at peak DJ, where every avenue of software, hardware, and music for DJs has been exhausted. New product is little more than a remix of something before it — everyone is copying everyone else, because in the strictest DJ sense, there’s only so many ways to play tracks from one to another. And the reality is that the core process was nailed decades ago with the humble turntable and basic mixer. It took the digital age to make loops, hot cues, and samples a practical reality. The other scary reality is that it can all be done on a smart phone, which in itself gives context to just how much evolution we have witnessed.
WHEN INNOVATION HAPPENS
When the industry doesn’t innovate, the community complains. But when it tries, the same community views them with suspicion or plain savages them for trying. Native Instruments dared to be different when they introduced Remix Decks. To this day, I’m not sure it really took off. Be it a lack of explanation, of just being too niche, it hasn’t changed the game, but merely added a little something for a small sector of the market.
Stems is another technology that is slow in gaining traction. Personally, I believe this is a genuine game changer, but for whatever reason NI has still not released the SDK, a vital element in making Stems into a widely supported reality. And no Gabor, reverse engineering isn’t the same ;). Perhaps they’re once bitten twice shy. Or maybe they’re holding it back for themselves to make it a key element of whatever is coming next, whenever that might be.
Another example — Serato Flips arrived with a fanfare, and on paper had the potential to be big. I’m sure that some people are using Flips to death in their sets, but as a feature it seems to have gained little support.
So damned if they do, and damned if they don’t. But perhaps these genuine innovations ably demonstrate that the vast majority of people just want the core features of DJing and nothing more. Anything new is likely to have niche rather than mass appeal. And mass means money.
BOLD CLAIMS
At DJWORX, we have the role of sanitising the fantastic claims from the marketing blurb into a more honest version for you to understand. We make a point of publishing the whole press release because we feel it’s important to see both sides of the announcement. And with increasing regularity, those press releases are exercises in fanciful hyperbole. They build up incremental updates into being more than they are. Littered with “the first” (but probably not), “game changer” (please stop using this), “revolutionary” (evolutionary at best) and other grandiose words, every fresh lump of new tech seems to be the second coming of DJ gear.
And this in part is why the lack of innovation is underlined. The new thing is built up to the point of inducing geargasm, only to be brought crashing down to earth when DJs get their hands on it. But I guess it’s too much to hope for a realistic description of the new product from the industry. That’s where we come in, and we’re just not buying it anymore. Expect to be called out if your claims get too exotic.
COLD TURKEY
The lull in innovation is not the fault of the manufacturers — they have done the best they can with each wave of genuine change. And some have had their fingers burned when they have tried to push boundaries too, But the fact remains that the process of playing one track to another until silly O’clock in the morning has been done and nailed before many of us were born. The digital age brought some new tools, but there really are no new ways to play floor fillers back to back in a DJ format. Sure, they can make iterative improvements, and cram more producer-like features into the workflow. But the chances of genuine game changers for the DJ masses any time soon are very slim indeed.
Looks like you’re going to be hungry for a while. Get used to dieting rather than all you eat feasts. Perhaps you should learn to love what you’ve already got, and not lament what has yet to be.
OVER TO YOU
Are you one of those people who usually responds with epic fail, yawn, or express disappointment at a lack of innovation? If so, what exactly are you looking for from the DJ industry? Is your expectation realistic? When you want more, is it features or quality?
Still waiting for a SDJ version of the S8. Something that doesn’t require toggling between decks too please.
Love this! I started on CD players for mobile gigs, moved to Kontrol S4 with traktor. Now I have ditched the controllers and find it much more enjoyable to DJ with my Xone 43c and turntables. The gear is merely a tool and ultimately it will always be about the music we play. 2 decks and a mixer, that’s all we really need.
I must say I could do most of my mixing needs with Traktor and Reloop Mixtour, small and neat. Plus I could spend more time on the main part DJ:ing, selecting tracks into an interesting flow. I really don’t need more gimmick features — just more time to learn more about music, artists and bands.
I think we have a core problem with the definition of innovation. I don’t think that most instances of innovation were giant leaps forward. They were made up of incremental changes until something finally comes into its own. Marketing PR is one thing, and is generally 100% bullshit, but let’s be honest: all of the changes we look at as innovative happened over years.
DVS didn’t just drop. It was unreliable at best when it first appeared, and took years and years to get better. Arguably, not until SSL and Traktor 3.4 did it become something that resembled reliable universally. But in the beginning it wasn’t all that great. Same with CDJs. And controllers. Hell, digital music distribution took a long time to become ubiquitous.
My point is that we need to look at these things in context. Innovation isn’t dead. And we definitely aren’t at Peak DJ, or whatever. Jog wheels still need to be improved. DVS still needs to be improved. Response time, audio interfaces, build quality, better hardware/software integration, touch screens, motion control, AR (as it becomes more consumer facing), reliable cloud service streaming, better analysis, more stable software, better design, better mobile functionality. Yes, these are all improvements on what already exists, but realistically that’s what all innovation is. It takes what we have and makes it better.
It isn’t about features. It’s about how we USE those features. That’s why Flips never took off (I’m assuming). Because using it was TERRIBLE. It’s why Remix Decks never took off. Using them, building them and all was awful.
I don’t think we are anywhere near peak DJ. I think what we have is good enough, and has been for a long time.
I don’t understand why everybody is bashing flip, it’s an awesome feature to make edit without having to import into a daw, edit, then export, then refresh into your dj app.
I use it a lot when a track have good parts but not well sequenced, simply swapping blocks on the audio in a non-destructive way is a dream for anyone that have played with Sound Forge into the 90s.
BUT I don’t make a flip live, those are prepared before gig, end at the event I simply play/follow the flip sequence.
Oh, I think Flips is a fantastic idea. I would love to have it in Traktor.
My complaints are pretty basic. First, it’s a terrible name. Like, absolutely awful. I don’t know what it should be called, but it should at least make me think of what it does. and Flips does not do that.
And second, being able to set them up in a live environment would be killer. Especially if I could then write them to the track and review them later, after the gig, to see if it’s something I want to clean up and have permanent. The implementation in hardware was an afterthought, which is never a good sign.
But to reiterate, the idea is great.
I guess that’s one of the strengths of NI’s hardware/software strategy.
It’s also the strength of their design. They rarely implement features if their hardware can’t support it. The Loop Recorder is an exception to that, though the original S4 did have controls for it. And the F1 had a mode for it as well, but that was just for loading the recording into a cell.
Serato made that feature as a software feature and put very little thought, it seemed, into integrating it into hardware. Or didn’t work with manufacturers to make it compelling.
It could be the Flip future. In fact the Jazzy Jeff scratch presets are one step further into that: ttm recording…
IDK if we see it happen someday, meanwhile Traktor added pad recording too into the new s4mk3 amd step sequencer.
The worst part is how all of this could have done years ago and how solutions like scratch track plugin are still out of most users interest. You can do what you described but probably you will not enjoy it due it isn’t delivered by trakor or serato (and maybe being glitchy).
I still have some dreams in my mind but none at my heart.
Great post @DJWORX:disqus , and I agree, everything has been done – however, not always well!
The only thing, for me at least, that hasn’t been nailed yet is a digital replacement for the turntable. Numark have been the only company to come close; the CDX/HDX was way ahead of it’s time, the X2 (remember the X2!) was an interesting concept, and the V7s were great – albeit with small platters. (The Denon SC3900 was another good attempt, but suffered badly with cue drift in my experience).
A product taking the best parts of the ones mentioned above would get my money.
– 12″ motorised platter (like the CDX/HDX).
– Linkable via ethernet and connect via a single USB port (like the V7s).
or
– Able to generate a control signal so a USB connection wouldn’t even be required (like the SC3900 but include the absolute position data to prevent the cue drift).
– Possibly a tonearm to also play vinyl (like the X2, although part of me thinks that would be defeating the point a little).
I’m not sure I’d go as far to call that product innovative or revolutionary, if it was ever produced, but is evolutionary so bad? You could argue, as @Jared Helfer:disqus mentions, that most of what we consider as innovation in the DJ industry is just the result of evolutionary, incremental changes over a number of years.
erm, I have basically learned all my turntablism skills (well, still mediocre at best but) on a SC3900 before moving on to an analog TT. There is absolutely zero sticker drift when not using DVS. As for cue drift, not sure what you mean?
Sorry, I should have made that clear; the sticker/cue drift was with DVS.
I have most of the parts and knowledge to do it by myself. Not a coincidence but I’m in th 5 point of the list above… And happy about it. If you are near barcelona I give you these parts…
I live in Igualada!
I sent you a pm.
Everyone keeps forgetting the Stanton scs.1d which was by far the best digital replacement for the turntable
The SCS.1D was a goo idea mired by some terrible design choices. Like slapping an audio interface in it, the MIDI translator and Firewire. I loved the concept, and really wish a MK2 came out that was more logical.
The audio interface was in the SCS.1m which was the mixer/controller. What was terrible was Stanton’s attitude towards this product, absolutely no support.
I had a unit that wouldn’t even accept a firmware update and couldn’t see the agent, expensive paper stone…
I didn’t forget about it, it was a non-starter for me (and a lot of other people) because it used a firewire connection! Not to mention it had issues at launch, and the update came too late.
It was buggy as hell and only had 0.1% pitch. I had one, sold it pretty quickly.
3700 had drift. 3900 fix it.
Great post, i feel like almost the same.
Mark, i’m not sure about your comment regarding Stems though. If my Superpowered SDK provides exactly the same sound (it implements the required compressor and limiter with the same characteristics as well), then how is it not the same?
It’s just a joke based on how we always leave you out when we talk about stems.
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7umOPf4ghv0/VeAzCp52PGI/AAAAAAAATd4/enHxftq7RRI/s1600/who.gif
The reborn technics 1200 is the most important dj gear news of the last 5 (10?) years.
I think this explains it all.
It really isn’t. The 1200GAE/G aren’t for DJs. The £2700 price tag proves that.
I see the relevance from the point of view of a discontinued turntable coming back as commentary on the state of technology. But this has nothing to do with DJs whatsoever. At 5-6 times the price they were, this as yet totally unproven turntable is not for DJs.
We still don’t know the final street price, and their rumored price is not far from the CDJ2000 NXS2 Nexus.
Plus they are here to stay because they won’t need firmware updates or have any kind of software compatibility problem in future years.
So imho the comeback is and will actually be a big event in the DJ gear world.
Only real problem is that those damn old 1200 are still running perfectly, so most don’t really need a replacement.
http://www.thevinylfactory.com/vinyl-factory-news/uk-price-new-technics-sl-1200gae/ – £2799.
And our story from earlier has Panasonic reps claiming then if they release more after the limited run, they still be this price too.
http://djworx.com/technics-update-ces-confirmed-price-ouch/
Still not far from the ultimate CDJ and less than a Rane rotary, so with due respect I don’t get your point.
Aren’t these DJ products?
I think it’s just old school heads not adapting/refusing to change, or young folks starting to collect records from Whole Foods, or something.
I have my 1200s. I only use it when I play records, and I only play records when I have stuff that’s rare. I wouldn’t use turntables to play DVS unless someone else brought them. I would never personally bring out turntables for my own gigs. That’s what controllers are for.
Dude It’s about 30 years that I keep hearing that turntables are old and dead, it’s 2016 and they are still here.
You all were just wrong deal with it.
I think one part of the problem is that all the “you can be a producer/remixer too!!1” hype is starting to sound false.
Remixing and producing isn’t all that fun when you realize you suck at it, as 99% of the people do, including myself.
“Just” selecting and mixing songs is way more satisfying for both the dj and the public, period.
That’s why my post is about pure DJing. There seems to be a perceived need to add some more performer features to DJ gear, when really all we want to do is mix music.
Exactly, adding so many niche features to expand a little bit your market share is not a long term strategy. Everybody get boring by the product at the end…
Still no serious controller emulating a turntable with or without out timecode. The V7s & ns7s etc. are a joke. Completely ridiculous situation imo. Denon c3900 comes the closest but has its own issues… To say there’s nothing left to do is stupid.
I owned a pair of Denon3900, and now I have a N7III. If the NS7III’s are a joke then the Denon3900’s are a joke. There isn’t any advantage that the 3900’s have over the NS7 III. Maybe the slightly bigger platter, but I can do scribble scratches better with the smaller numark platters. Could you tell us why the NS7’s are a joke?
size does matter when it comes to scratching, it looks straight up silly when i see someone trying to cut with it, like a Rockstar going on stage with a mini childrens guitar.
So scratching on 45 RPM record looks silly? When folks started scratching they used 45’s and 33’s, Didn’t look silly then. I actually think a 12″ looks silly and every time I’ve seen someone use a 12″ DVS system, the needle arm is way up on the record to where a 45rpm record would be anyway. So you are calling the NS7 silly because they use a 45 rpm record as the platter? Actual vinyl? Silly? Wow!!
i was talking about the size of the platter, not the size of the vinyl.
Now he’s a size queen… hah!
I’ve seen guitarists walk on stage with a Ukelele (met with laughter) and rock the shit out of their crowd (to which they cheered wildly when they were done). If you own the moment, the gear you have has no bearing on your reception.
Maybe you missed Ean Gold’s Guitar Hero controller plugged into his DJ gear?
what you were seeing was a gimmick, imagine all rockbands suddenly switching to Ukeleles and never getting back to normal guitars then eventually the crowd is gonna complain
but funny story there
Again, this speaks to what the crowd wants. I imagine many people complained when Les Paul came out with the electric guitar and the “traditionalists” said “it’s just a phase.” Well, they’re not a phase, and nor are controllers.
No crowd is interested in a controller, however every time when i see a DJ rocking 2 turntables i notice people are watching and recording.
Guitars are guitars, nothing simulated, controllers are just controllers, nobody cares about them with the exception of the user.
Yeah, I see exactly the opposite in San Francisco and Oakland. When I’ve visited other cities, I’ve seen that people who do crazy stuff, are usually doing it with controllers and occasionally scratching with their DVS. That’s not turntablism, that’ Controllerism, and the turntables just happen to look like the old school way of playing music.
One more thing is that I see one bad behavior turntablists are using a lot of and that’s unnecessary scratching that actually interrupts (disrupts?) the flow of the groove. It’s one thing to punctuate a phrase or chorus with a scratch, but it’s completely shit when the DJ scratches a vocal solo to the point where the vocals aren’t pleasant to hear… not at the natural beat of the voice (diphthongs).
Please just stop doing that! Baby scratches aren’t necessary just to show someone you have “the real deal” turntable. It actually works against you.
I had a pair of v7s. I hate the size, feels nothing like a turntable or vinyl imho.
The benefit of a 3900 over the NS7 is that you can choose your own mixer. I’d prefer a rotary, or a Xone 92 or 43C, and modular controls of a Traktor X1 or Xone K2, over the NS7’s mixer controls.
What is a joke is their price tag, lack of HID, and the difference between the NS7 MK2 and MK3 (screens hardly make a difference to justify price…).
Also, homegirl had a NS7 MK1. Toured with it in NY with the official NS7 case and everything. Like many have complained, platters decided to stop spinning.
Spinning platters just means more issues to fix when they break down. I’d prefer non-moving platters, any day. It doesn’t change how I scratch because I practice and adapt.
I had a set of 3900’s, a Denon X1700 Mixer, Traktor X1 MKII, and a traktor F1. What I didn’t like about the modular setup was the workflow. Everything was all over the place. For instance the que points for both decks were controlled on the X1, while the NS7 III has the que points under the respective Jog wheel. You could control the que points on the 3900’s but even with that placement (upper left hand corner), it isn’t the best place for it, and about as far away from the mixer as you can get. Nothing is placed efficiently with the separate setup imo. You have to control the que points/samples from a central location rather than on the decks them selves.
I don’t consider the price to be a joke when we have non-moving platter, 2-channel, single screen controllers from pioneer that cost the same.
Spinning platters might be something else to break. But I never had an issue with the platters on the 3900’s in almost 3 years of use and the NS7III hasn’t failed me in over 7 months. Strangely enough, it was my Reloop TM8’s static platter that wouldn’t work and I had to send it in for repairs. I’m cool with static or spinning platters. If the New Poineer controller had a needle indicator, I’d get it.
Yeah, I wouldn’t use the cue points on the 3900. 3900 didn’t have the best layout, but it was the closest you could get to spinning platters with mixer of your choice. Not to mention, you’d be permanently be stuck with a “coffin-lugging” lifestyle with an NS7, but if you don’t mind the weight and cumbersome size, I guess it all works out. I mean, it’s probably as big as a SX2, yet I think both controllers are monstrously “coffin large.” But for cue points, I think using X1 is the best bet.
Yeah, I agree about CDJs being completely overpriced, compared to rotating platters. Although, I’m believe it’s because that Pioneer holds the standard for venues, and chooses to overprice their equipment.
I’m glad you haven’t had any issues with spinning platters. But I still fear that they could be one extra thing to break down on me, as I’ve seen on 1200s, NS7 MK1, etc…
I love the NS7 family. By far my favourite controllers.
you must have a very high level of skillz because for a lot of turntablist, NS7/V7 and 3900 are the best possible thing today.
But may be it is just a matter of size ? Some say, size matter…
SCS1D, CDX, HDX, SLDZ1200 already did this, but where are they now ? Why theirs makers didn’t give them any follow up ?
SCS1D, CDX, HDX, SLDZ1200. All of them were pathetic and had bugs and technical issues. Granted, from what I’ve heard the 3900 pulled it off and I will be getting a pair in the near future but why not just bring it out in a base controller form? Get rid of the latency associated with timecode as well.
Buggy?, Yes
Pathetic?,no
The 1d gets first place for design, aethetics, layout, but even when you had FireWire ports, it was still exhausting to just get the shit on
The cdx get first place for most nearly brand new devices yo have problrms on top of problems, but the feel of the audio whrn scratching was excellent.
And the sldz was on the right track with removable media.
They all had some good and some bad; just getting it to work in the first place could have been one problem eith all of yhem that, if solved, could have changed the whole story of digital djing.
The price of innovation and thinking differently than your competitors.
And more recently there have been other tries : DNHS5500, Novation Twitch, SCS4D was also very different than the others.
Even if all of those devices weren’t succesful they have shown the way to something you can’t deny it.
Pathetic ? in this era and this context ? No, they were way ahead the game…
I think innovation is not just a matter of new gear. Check out how moldover is using the S4 in the NI promo video for example. How many djs build 4 part vocal harmonies on the fly etc? The people using the gear need to catch up with the new possibilities, and this will require new skills and new perspectives on what playing that gear can accomplish. If all you want to do is mix other people’s music, most of the “innovative” new stuff will just become ephemeral gimmicks, and sure enough, nothing substantially new will come out of it.
“we expect more from our gizmos than from each other”? Something like that was a title of this one book.. The gear alone will not level up anything if all it does is make us lazier.. We have so many options on gear now that even committing to learn to use something that doesn’t instantly click with us (remix decks/flips) is considered “a waste of time” by some – surely the next version will be just the way I want my workflow to be, with all the features I want, this version is fail?
Eventually DJing and performing/making music (whatever you want to call it) will fuse together more and more. But things change slowly, right until the point where they’ve already changed.
thanks for the wine, sorry for the rant. peas out
Let not only talk about gear. In the software arena and compatibility between IOS PC and MAC. Perhaps only Rekordbox and I heard Traktor too, but we should be able to prepare tracks in a mobile device and then transfer the curated track with all the information to a laptop or desktop. perhaps the up-coming version of Recorbuddy got that cover. Also the ability to switch track collection (back and forward and on the fly) between the major software platforms. The all elusive standard track database.
on the hardware side I am waiting for a 4 channel controller with integrated screen in the center. Pioneer got the idea (DDJ-RX) no screen In the center, the NS7 is way too bulky. You can argue about adding a Dashboard to a controller but it is limited to Serato. The MC8000 close but no screens in the center. I want a DDJ-SX type or MC8000 with 4 parallel waveforms displayed in a screen locate in the middle of the controller. Right above the Mixer.
Yes, I think part of the problem is that programmers are creating the easiest way for them to bring something new to the table, but they don’t care about how it’s used so the tech gets left sitting idle while people do A-to-B mixing.
Maybe these programmers don’t get that most things a DJ does is “in the moment, on a whim.” Acapellas are fun to use over instrumental tracks, but they’re a bitch to search for while you’ve got this ticking clock telling you “you’re running out of time.” I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to abort the cool thing I wanted to do because I ran out of time, and had to fall back on A-to-B mixing. Even using some effects takes preparation and that’s something I can’t do when I get the inspiration to play this awesome song next… with 90 seconds left to play.
Of course, a lot of this prep stuff can be done ahead of time but cross-platform portability seems to be non-existent, and every time I upgrade software, it seems I have to start all over with settings and such (not cool, DJ companies).
Things like Remix Decks and Slicer mode are gimmicks that a DJ might use a few times during their set, but the controls take up a bit of real estate, with not much more than a light to indicate which mode the buttons are in. Quite honestly, I think users don’t use these “enhancements” because they’re poorly implemented, and have a distinct lack of user control (meaning: No, the engineers didn’t think of everything).
Again and again I find myself cursing the controller software for “not letting me do what I want to do.” I bet hundreds of other people in in the same boat, so here’s a suggestion to DJ hardware companies: Instead of trying to make new stuff, how about getting the stuff you already made to work right/better? All the low-hanging fruit has already been picked.
Agree and this is why I have decided to stop running on the newest-new-latest shiny stuff and bought second hand quality older gear.
Older hardware glory that still work can do wonder in some good hands, so better craft your skill with whatever previous gen hardware you have.
Yuppp
Yup. Still rockin’ a VMS4 from ’09, and still rockin’ a S4 MK2.
In fact with new gear coming out, it’s making excellent used gear cheaper.
Are clubs and dance floors less packed? Club goers could care less. Even with all the innovation in the world, people aren’t going to dance with anymore vigor than they already do. This article is what happens when an IT guy starts to get into dejaying. Dejaying and DJ equipment isn’t the same as IT equipment and computers.
Let’s face it. In many ways the DJ software/hardware companies are like car companies. There is a constant need to release a new model and sell stuff to previous customers. Both have business models dependent on selling products that often don’t change that much from year to year. Both have product development teams that constantly need to be working on something. Not releasing a new product is essentially abandoning the market.
Sometimes there are major technology shifts that compel customers to upgrade when they don’t necessarily need to. In the DJ realm, the introduction of MP3 for DJing enabled all kinds of new functionality and convenience that made it worth replacing your gear. In the car world, the move to electric engines has people ditching their gas powered models for less expensive and cleaner operation.
I don’t fault the DJ manufacturers for lack of innovation. They really only have a few viable options:
1) Expand the definition of DJing through new approaches, like stems, sampling, etc. History shows this is really difficult.
2) Take advantage of some meta trend. Past examples including MP3, DVS, Hardware Controllers, Internet Streaming, and Mobile. Of these, only DVS was spearheaded by the DJ manufacturers.
3) Update their gear with new colors, aesthetics, or workflow improvements.
4) Compete on price, brand, distribution, or some other dimension.
5) Exit the business.
Said another way, when there isn’t a meta trend to exploit, the market gets stagnant and boring. Look at the tablet/iPad market. Today, there is a model at practically every size and price point. This market is mature like the DJ market currently is.
I think most markets are like this… It’s just how sales and marketing works. But I think most people forget that DJing is still an art form, and that the artist needs to perfect how do they and what they do, and make it new (ways of mixing, effects, new music) every time they do it still.
Honestly, I’m most interested in the new not-Vestax approach (or what I perceive that to be) of improving audio quality. I (and I imagine I don’t speak for many others) would personally love to see a move towards tube pre-amps in mixers and that kind of thing. Improvements in audio fidelity – quality analogue components and features as opposed to an increase in digital bells and whistles. Like I said, though – I imagine I’m in the very definite minority
Tube pre amps in no way add ‘improvements to audio fidelity”
In fact its the opposite. Tube pre amps introduce noise and saturation. If you find that pleasing then thats a personal choice, but it is mathematically and measureably less accurate than digital audio.
To say that I find it pleasing is a massive understatement :)
Tube pre amps in no way add ‘improvements to audio fidelity”
In fact its the opposite. Tube pre amps introduce noise and saturation. If you find that pleasing then thats a personal choice, but it is mathematically and measureably less accurate than digital audio.
Mix in a computer with the help of a controller, output it through a great sound card.
Yeah, that’s where I’m at currently, but it’s lacking (for me personally). I have a Focusrite 6i6 which has excellent preamp and was using an APC 40 with Ableton, but I’m an external hardware kind of dude so I sold it to a friend who will get much more use out of it.
The Focusrite Scarletts sound pretty damn good for the price. I’d love to do A/B comparisons between the 2i4 and the sound cards built into common DJ controllers.
I agree. I switched my NI Audio6 for a Scarlett 6i6 and to me the difference is quite clear to hear
The truth is that Djs do not need all that bell and whistles industry tried hard to choke down our throats. Most Djs are lazy bastards, lets face it. They only want to mix a pair of tracks and thats it.
And that is what (most of) the crowd also wants, they just want to hear “good” music, nothing else.
Pioneer nailed it with their CDJ that allowed to use small memory units instead of vinyls nor even CDs to make Djs life easier. The only thing left is to finally get rid of laptops on dj booths.
XDJ RX has been the latter best technology improvement in this direction. And this direction is the right one: All in one controllers that are suited for professional use.
Stability and simplicity (ease of use) are the most important features; the rest are secondary.
Pretty subjective. I’ve been in crowds where people are like “Is this guy just A-B mixing? !” and left because of it.
I bet the music was not good. Music quality is the most important thing.
the most important feature is soundquality, Ranes are known for good sound quality, the Z-2 is known for cheap sound
Are you referring to the Traktor Z2? I beg to differ. I owned one and it has superb sound quality. Better than anything from Pioneer save for the latest DJM-900NXS2. The Z2 is a solid piece of hardware.
try playing real vinyl with the Z2, then you hear how low the quality is, also Pioneer mixers are not that good in terms of sound, the DJM909 was great but that was analog and made 10+ years ago
Most DJs, especially hip hop, edm, and top 40, are very lazy DJs that lack-programming and new music. I also think that’s why there’s no innovation in new DJ gear anymore.
But I’m good. I use Traktor. I map my modulars. I’m not lazy. I’m always studying, and I’m always digging. I could careless for all those other DJs.
For me…DJ inspiration came from hands and minds bending the sound on any type of equipment and creating cutting edge youth culture…
Great article as always Mark, and you make a very valid point how many ways can you do the basics of ding?.
I for one successfully gig all over the place with an iPad and an kontrol s2. I don’t tend to use fx, or hot cues but sometimes use the loops but that’s it.It’s a nice simple way for me to dj how I like with minimum fuss. Only thing I’d like to see is traktor for the iPad show what I’ve played without me switching to my history tab all the time (damn my age and short term memory issues). Now that would be revolutionary.
Although the companies are so busy with adding more buttons and niche functions, they make no effort to improve the general user experience. Usable track search? Fiction! Pad-fx select? If you can hack it in Traktor… Touch-screen support (for Win8+ tablets)? Helooo!
I think some companies care about innovation — look at Rane, they don’t release a new product every year, could be 2-3 — they make sure and get it right and have enough new features to make people really appreciate their work and advances.
Where as some other manufacturers feel the need to just pump out products with enough changes so that they appear “NEW” but hardly innovative. It’s becoming quite boring actually. Profit and sales volume has become more important to some companies than going out there.
The former Denon DJ brand (not the new InMusic one) used to take chances and push out new innovative features. Alpha track, DUMP, spinning platters on a cd player. These were things that were outside the box.
Launchpad, Maschine, and Push are a few other products that were really innovative and took a chance and have really changed the industry for DJ’ing and production.
The “older” manufacturers are just re-releasing the same stuff with a few new bells and whistles and are hoping for brand loyalty to push out new sales.
But that’s just what I think about all of it.
Rane making things right ?
– don’t you remember the low standard quality audio outputs of the 57/Sl1 ?
– didn’t you laught when you have seen the 57mk2 ?
– what about those big Sixty something mixer that fall into pieces ? (buttons mainly, crossfader sparsely).
I agree with everything you said but Rane even if Serato was and is still the more popular DVS solution, they weren’t the first and not the best at that time on the market (2004 and before). it was just an american company that have a huge market (usa) to blow numbers.
Regarding the 57SL, during the time it came out, I don’t think there were any other mixers with built in audio interface. I agree, the outputs, USB 1.1, were all horrendous, and still cause issues for me to this day. But I think the 57SL, with internal and customizable effects, USB interface, was pretty innovative beyond all the other mixers I’ve seen.
After the 57SL, I think all the Rane mixers were mediocre, especially 6X’s. The MP2015 and MP2014 aren’t entirely innovative as isolators and rotary mixers have been done, but if they’re strong, durable, and long lasting, I would think their structure and build are legendary.
Denon DJ (before InMusic) was definitely innovative. Although, I think they spread themselves too thin, as they attempted to do everything hardware: CDJs, rotating platters, mixers with DVS, controllers, etc. I think things would have worked out if they really focused on Denon Engine, and help that take off, before pumping all that hardware…
Now, Pioneer DJ is doing exactly what Denon DJ was doing (minus rotating controller platters), but I also think it’s a bad move. Too many controllers coming out that are practically doing the same as their previous models with a little bit of upgrades. I’ve never seen a PLX used in an actual venue, nor a SX, SX2, SZ, SB, etc. In venues, I just see 1200’s, CDJs, RMXs, Traktor X1’s, and sometimes Maschine or Ableton.
I’m also in belief that most young DJs who say they DJ these days, are just bedroom DJs with these controllers. Perhaps that’s today’s market… bedroom DJs…
Scs12d
A massive touch surface digital player; audio out, no laptop.
12 preset configs; half scratch half cues, half scratch half mixer, all loops and jumps, etc
https://smithsonmartin.com/
Oh no, not a touch screen.
A giant scs3d.
Apart from a touch strip for scrubbing and suchlike, touch controls have proved unpopular. Most people prefer physical controls. Touch was a great innovation, but it proved unpopular because hardware controls work better.
Yes, touchscreens are inferior to physical devices.
Well as a software developer I can say that we want evolution in tech in live entertainment. People and club owners want more from live entertainers and streaming apps are replacing the rookie DJs in places that used to be a starting point. Add to that, festivals and high end venues and labels endorse and praise the Producer-DJ.
So in response to the article, with all do respect to the traditional DJ, change has come. More is expected from us, so ours tools have to meet the need to push us forward. Yet, a large group of us don’t want change because nothing is easier than playing records A to B. Well here we are with tools that are quite amazing but the learning curve is steep and no one is stepping forward to show the way.
Traktors Remix decks and STEMS are awesome, but require you to think like a producer. MIDI and video are bringing more to the stage at a rapid rate. I say embrace the change and try to innovate and change with the times. I guarantee your bookings will increase if you do. Honestly, the post is correct. In some cases, apps can replace you now, so what are you going to do, keep asking for better ways to crossfade mixes??
It’s missing something that I would suggest to Pioneer and Serato for DDJ-SX; RX, RX, RZ:
dj microphone input to add effects and be sampled.