5 iOS DJ App Updates You May Have Missed

With many of the big boys now releasing hardware that works with iOS devices, like Pioneer with the XDJ-Aero and Rekordbox, Denon with its Engine iOS app for SC2900 and SC3900, and Numark with its surely-ready-by-now iDJ Pro among others, slowly but surely Apple’s mobile operating system (and the DJ software that runs on it) is becoming a mainstay in digital DJing.

From the start we’ve covered all the apps that matter most to DJs on iOS (let’s face it; there’s not much to talk about on Android at the moment). But some of these apps are well established now, and as it’s currently not possible for app developers to charge for upgrades, that means any improvements made to apps you currently own are yours for free. Hence it’s definitely worth keeping an eye on what goodies the makers of any iOS DJ apps you may own have added recently…

Likewise, if you’ve been holding off on the purchase of an app based on a missing feature, again the following recent updates may be of interest to you. So with that in mind, let’s take a look at how some of the most exciting DJ apps have been moving on…

5 iOS DJ apps, updated…

djay for iPhone v1.5

This update of the popular djay for iPhone app provides iPhone/iPod Touch users with some of the functionality previously only available on the iPad version of this popular software, as well as a few fixes and tweaks. The main features of note are:

• Auto Gain – (iPhone 4s and above – although I can see the setting on my iPod Touch 4th Generation)
• Automix Queue – access this via the “Automix” button above the crossfader. From there you can add items to the queue. It’s useful to bulk add “All items” on the screen to the queue, however there’s no easy way of clearing down the automix queue in the same way – a “Remove All” would be a good improvement here
• Library improvements – DRM-protected or tracks not downloaded from iCloud appear greyed out in the library, so you now have a more accurate representation of what’s available to play (and what isn’t)

These updates along with the silly low price, make djay for iPhone should be an instant purchase for any iPhone-owning DJ.

Price: US$0.99
Download from: App Store

DJ Player 4.8 For iPad

The development team behind DJ Player and Red Bull BPM DJ don’t sleep it seems! Shortly after we reviewed DJ Player v4.5, another update arrived in July (4.7) which was aimed at improving the cue/loop workflow, adding manual beatgrid adjustment, tweaks around the deck screen to hide all “non-performance” controls under the pitch slider (accessible using the “Shift” button), and the ability to clear out the cache (via the “Manage Tracks” screen).

But there’s more! 4.8 (currently in beta) makes some major improvements to the FX section of the app:

• The FX have been reorganised into three groups; filter, colour (flanger, lo-fi) and space (echo, reverb)
• All the effects now have the same configuration: dry in the lower right position, and hottest on the upper left
• You can now apply up to three FX per deck
• Flanger now has BPM-based rates (1/4, ½, 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 or 64) and a mono/stereo switch
• LoFi effect is now stereo
• Reverb has a Damp control setting (0.0 through to 1.0)
• There’s a new settings to reset effects on load of the next track

The FX screen also now features pitch bend buttons as well, always handy to ensure your mix is tight as you’re effectin’ your way from one track to the next.

No other DJ app gives you the ability to apply up to three different FX and control each one via an X-Y pad, per deck, and it will be interesting to see where the development team will take this app next (trust me on this one…).

Price: US$47.99
Download from: App Store

djay for iPad v1.5.1

Our djay version 1.4 review highlighted the introduction of FX and iCloud integration, among other features.

Since then, the app has been revised to bring in the same features mentioned in v1.5 of the iPhone version above, and to add compatibility for the Numark iDJ Pro iPad controller due out later this year. It’s worth noting that djay for iPad now supports the iON Audio iDJ2Go, Numark iDJ Live, Numark iDJ Pro and Numark MixDeck Quad (full review coming soon).

Price: US$19.99
Download from: App Store

vjay for iPad v1.0.1

Algoriddim has been busy with its app updates, with vjay still a relatively new app it is good to see some feedback being translated into feature development. As well as performance and bug fix changes the latest version now has:

• Support for 1080p videos (up to 30fps) – originally the support was for a much lower resolution of video (640×480) based on the iTunes music video standard
• Play Automatically setting – personally I was always getting annoyed when the video played immediately on loading, so this is a welcome addition for me!
• Auto Repeat setting – useful if you’re working with small video loops rather than full length music videos
• Support for two new Midi controllers – vjay now supports the iON Audio iDJ2Go, Numark iDJ Live and Numark MixDeck Quad. I would expect an update in the future to provide support for the iDJ Pro toom to bring vjay in line with the same controller support offered by djay

As is always the case, the more you use an app the more things you would like to see change. I’d like to see better resolution for in-app recording (at the moment the resolution is 640×480 which looks OK on the iPad but less so when you view it on a larger screen), and an improved strobe; at the moment the strobe effect flashes white,but I thing it would be more effective to flash to black instead.

Price: US$9.99
Download from: App Store

CrossDJ for iPad v 1.0.1

While this update does not bring a stack of new features above what we reviewed with the first version, or even anything that you can visually see a difference with, it does address a number of bugs to make the app more stable and reliable.

It’s good to see an update to this app and I’m sure that we’ll see more in the future bringing perhaps some support for Midi controllers too.

Price: US$9.99
Download from: App Store

Conclusion

With the rapidly developing market, all updates currently being free, and things showing no sign of slowing, it’s certainly an exciting time to be involved in iOS DJing.

And because the new version of iOS is coming later this year, we can expect to see another wave of app updates, hopefully making full use of available functionality (multi-route audio?). Yup, 2012 is shaping up to be a good year for DJing on iOS devices – and we’ve still got four months left!

Have you dabbled with iOS DJing on your iPhone or iPad recently? What do you use? Are you looking forward to integrating your iOS device with some of the new hardware coming out? Please share your thoughts in the comments.