With the #ChangeYourRider hashtag, Denon DJ rather brazenly planted its flag squarely on Pioneer DJ’s doorstep. What it neglected to offer however was an easy way to transfer finely tuned rekordbox collections right into Engine Prime’s own library format. Rekord Buddy is getting there, and the more maverick DeCU does a similar thing too. But Denon DJ has finally addressed this terrible shortcoming in fine style by releasing a firmware update that lets you read and convert a rekordbox library right on the SC5000 Prime.
As ever, the Denon DJ PR machine has a prepared missive:
FIRMWARE FOR GROUND-BREAKING SC5000 PRIME™ MEDIA PLAYER UPGRADED TO ENGINE PRIME VERSION 1.0.3
Direct import of rekordbox® database highlights the new firmware’s greater functionality.
Cumberland RI, USA (November 2, 2017)—Denon DJ (www.denondj.com), a leading manufacturer of premium DJ products and solutions, today announced that their revolutionary SC5000 Prime media player has received a significant upgrade with new Engine Prime v1.0.3 firmware. The new firmware will give DJs performance enhancing pitch resolution, and most importantly, will now import rekordbox® files and database content directly into the SC5000.
A quick re-cap of the stunning Denon DJ SC5000 Prime media player: Winner of two DJ Mag Tech Awards for ‘Innovative New Product’ and ‘Ultimate Club Deck,’ the SC5000 Prime sets a new standard for ease of use and comprehensive creative features. It is a professional unit with 7-inch multi-touch display that enables gestures and swiping for the ultimate DJ expression and immediacy of interaction. Adding dual-layer playback on a single unit, making it possible to mix a full DJ set on just one player, plus on-board trigger pads for expressive live performance, the SC5000 represents the future of professional DJ performance, right here, right now.
The new 1.0.3 firmware delivers two important upgrades, which significantly improve the SC5000’s operational effectiveness:
• Direct import of rekordbox® database — automatically and elegantly converts hot-cues, saved loops and playlists into Engine format, directly within the SC5000 player
• Adjusted pitch resolution for more accurate BPM setting during DJ performance
The new 1.0.3 firmware is a solid indication of Denon DJ’s commitment to continuous improvement for their revolutionary Prime Series equipment.
Digital DJ Tips says, “This [the SC5000] is the singularly most impressive piece of DJ technology we’ve ever reviewed and ushers in a new era of DJing.”
The 1.0.3 firmware will be part of SC5000 Prime media players starting in November 2017.
U.S. retail pricing for the SC5000 Prime is $1899. It is available globally now.
CAT AND MOUSE
Finally. This should have been ready on day one. I’ve had explanations as to why it wasn’t, and the absence of it doesn’t seem to have slowed down progress. But now this is available, it should set a few minds at rest and see more triggers being pulled on purchases.
My biggest question is how Pioneer DJ will react to this, if at all. A few people have now worked out how to convert the rekordbox library format, but not Pioneer DJ’s mortal enemy up to this point. This does change things somewhat, and I wonder if Pioneer DJ will do anything to throw a spanner in the conversion works. Encrypting the database adds a layer to the playing process and means firmware updates to every single rekordbox unit whenever changes are made. Nightmare. It might be best for Pioneer DJ to just suck it up and not make things messy for themselves. After all, if they respond, it’s acknowledging Denon DJ as a real threat.
I’m not in The Worxlab this afternoon so I can’t give the firmware a quick bash. But the above video from DJ TLM answers my one big question — the SC5000 Prime does a complete conversion of the rekordbox library right back to the original USB drive, importantly leaving the original rekordbox library untouched. I’m looking forward to seeing how easy that will be to roll back into Engine Prime desktop too.
This update amongst other things will be incorporated into revising the pretty much finished reviews of the Prime suite. There’s little point putting out reviews next week that are immediately out of date. Prime Week will now start 13th November, and will be the most complete and detailed set of opinion filled reviews you’ll ever read about the Denon Prime range. Obviously.