Luke Butzen
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October 5, 2015 at 2:10 am in reply to: DJ Controller (Replace Numark 4Trak) – Serato VS. Traktor #2266061
Luke Butzen
ParticipantParticipantSX2 by far. The RX is locked into Rekordbox and the SX2 at least lets you have options in case you decide to switch software down the line. That way you’re just buying upgrades for everything else and still rocking the same controller.
October 5, 2015 at 1:08 am in reply to: DJ Controller (Replace Numark 4Trak) – Serato VS. Traktor #2266021ParticipantYeah, but a new one is outside his budget unless he can find one used. Which considering it hasn’t had really any time in the market, I wouldn’t hold my breath for a while.
Basically, if you love Traktor, get an S4 mk2 if you need a new controller now and want to stick with 4 decks. (Dj Tech tools does a great deal of an S4 mk2 with free Chromacaps, a “Nice-to-Have” addition to a controller) Otherwise, you’ll be hard pressed to find a true 4 deck controller for Serato for less than 700.
I can think of a few off the top of my head, but a lot of them are old and discontinued, out of that 700 price point, (Assuming you’re using USD) or almost look like a toy and will probably leave you wanting more.
ParticipantYeah, if you’re wanting to stick with Traktor, get an S4 and move on with your day. If you’re wanting/willing to switch software, then any of the higher Pioneer models will suit you quite nicely and should work with most softwares. The higher end models such as the SX/SX2 and the SZ function as independent 2 channel mixer in case you decide to spend the money for CDJs or Turntables. Same for the RX & RZ if you want to get into rekordbox but I don’t think you will since one of their biggest selling points is Studio to club compatibility.
ParticipantYou can download it from Serato site for free. They give you the last release of itch which I think was 2.2.2 for Windows and possibly Mac. https://serato.com/itch
ParticipantI know how it works. Hence why I said it’s like the VCI 100 which did the same thing just with a switch.
I also feel like I need to clear a few things up. I’m not really looking to make a career out of this in any fashion. It’s a hobby & passion of mine to do this. I am Bi-polar like Benga, so I know I couldn’t do this as a career as I know I have a propensity for addiction & already have trouble telling what’s real & what’s not when I don’t get a minimum of 6 hours of sleep every day.
Also, I MIGHT take this controller to a show as the crews I promote & work for have 2 CDJ/ 4 Channel Mixer setups as standard wherever we go unless the headliner requests turntables. In which case the set up is the same as before just with two Techs on the other two channels. So I really just want to have a controller to practice on & do mixes with at home & maybe take to a show if I wasn’t playing for my regular crews & don’t know what they have. That’s it.
So, paying 1-2K for a controller when I know that if I dig around and such, could come up with an all used CDJ/mixer/Serato box set up at home for that price point makes the controller market really unappealing at that point because then I could add tables & do a DVS system as well in the future.
Hopefully this helps as I want everyone to understand my situation a bit better so we can hopefully hone in on better recommendations.
September 22, 2015 at 7:02 am in reply to: Pls advice on DJing Headphone for a loud Club/Pub #2258461ParticipantYeah, I’d say just dig around Ebay and look up reviews on websites. (Preferably this one 😉 ) I bought a pair of brand new AIAIAI TMA 1s for 100$USD and other than the dreaded headband issue, (Which AIAIAI replaced with barely any questions) I’ve been more than happy with. The fact they’re tuned for Electronic music has also stopped me from wearing them full time which is probably a good thing as I’m rough on headphones. Otherwise, I get to keep using my pads & cord if I decide to do the TMA 2 to save me some $ while I buy ’em piece by piece.
Best of luck though with whatever you find that works though!
ParticipantThe Techtools article would be a great read. In fact: http://djtechtools.com/2015/01/11/digital-crates-what-are-the-best-flash-drives-for-djs/
They recommend some pricey drives, but just keep an eye on any store that sells this kind of item. I found a deal on a 3 pack of Sandisk Cruzer U USB drives (Each for the major softwares) and just bought another for pure mp3s so I can play on any computer/CDJ I might come across along my DJ journey. That doesn’t mean I won’t be on the lookout though in case I come across a sale of any from the article. (All are 16gb, USB 2.0)
One thing I will echo from the article is to NOT BUY GENERIC DRIVES! I ignored this as the price and form factor was great, but the read times were deplorable. Sometimes a track would take 10-30 secs to load which is unacceptable for DJ purposes. So in short, spend the extra dollar(s) and get drives from a brand name. It’s worth it.
ParticipantGoogle it. More often then not, it’ll find what you’re looking for. I saw a friend play his first battle format show on his 300 and killed it. So I know there’s bound to be something out there for Serato at least as that’s what he uses.
September 6, 2015 at 11:49 pm in reply to: a Digital DJ controller all in one? (with mixer) #2249951ParticipantA brand that might have what you’re looking for is American Audio. Again, dated looking but will serve your purposes if you are set on having/using CDs.
ParticipantThat’s basically it unless you go Numark & do the Mixdeck Express & Quad. They look dated but will serve your purpose. Otherwise, I think most people who want what your asking for go CDJ route with a Serato Box. Really, if you can ditch the CD part, you can just do controller & laptop and get along just fine. But your call. If you are willing to spend the time, just look up all the major “DJ” brand websites and see what you can find. You might find what you’re looking for from someone most people wouldn’t think about.
ParticipantWow, this route again? Honestly, you can tell a difference. I saw two friends spin right after each other (One a producer with a semblance of success, and the other a career dj.) The producer friend used WAVs that either he made or got from his label mates, and the dj used 320 mp3’s. The difference in overall volume alone ON THE DANCE FLOOR was SHOCKING.
I’ve also talked to guys who own sound systems, sound engineers who work in the house booth in massive clubs, all kinds of places (since I’ve been involved with music for years and it’s a great way to kill time before a show) and most of them can’t understand why DJ’s don’t use WAVs or flac. More so if it’s their career. (The engineers and system owners are the ones who will really HATE you if you use aac, but are generally accepting of 320 mp3’s)
To most of the general public, aac is fine as they just want to hear music. To those of us who love music and have been listening for years, we can tell and it makes you look bad in our eyes. If you also want to not piss off everybody else whose job it is to monitor sound quality, just buy a 320 mp3 or wav and move on with your life.
As always, it’s YOUR choice what file type to use. Just be aware that there’s other voices at the table who have a say in how good you sound besides yourself
ParticipantOnce again, Vintage dropping knowledge.
If you keep an eye on Serato’s social media pages or their email list, they announce great deals sometimes. I bought Serato for 69$ during an X-mas sale and keep an eye on your local guitar Center and check ebay for deals on controllers.
I know you just bought the S2, and if you’re really set on learning Traktor, then all we can do is wish you the best of luck.
Otherwise, get a smallish controller for Serato and pay for the Digital DJ fast course. I’ve just started and learned a lot of the basic stuff I was tripping over during Mixing 1 and am about to started Mixing 2 which was the main reason why I bought the course access.
ParticipantActually, here’s a statement for Serato themselves concerning AMD processors: “Some users have reported problems with Serato software running on machines with AMD processors. Our in-house testing has also shown that AMD equipped PCs can, in some cases cause serious performance problems.
Due to the number of reports we have had of this problem we do not support machines with AMD processors for use with Serato software.” This was taken directly from the support site.
Stazbumpa has it down somewhat:
i5 CPU
4Gb RAM should be fine, 8Gb for safety though.An SSD is a pricey thing and at that size, unless you find a good deal, not worth it. I found a 15.4″ with an i5, 6gb of ram, and a 250 gb HDD with Windows 8.1 for less than 200$ USD on Ebay, so it might be worth it to surf around in there for a week or so and see what you can find.
To sum up,
Intel i3-5 core (i5 if you want to future proof for the foreseeable future.)
4-8 GB of ram
and unless you can find a good deal on an SSD, or you’re using this to tour, a small ish HDD (250) should suit you fine.A dope idea that would be pricey is to have a dual HD set up with a SSD to hold your tunes & serato files with the HDD holding whatever but again, pricey and a little redundant.
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