The team at Serato has been working with pioneer to fully integrate their CDJ-400 Dj player with Scratch live. This means full control over Scratch live’s features by a CDJ-400 through a USB connection. Currently any CD player can be used to control scratch live with a control CD but allowing direct digital control offers the following benefits according to a press release sent to us yesterday.
I know, I know- there have been a lot of posts on the vci-300 lately. Some of you are probably wondering if you should be thinking about selling the vci-100. Don’t worry, there is a video on the way that will break down the real differences between the 2 in a clear manner. Here is a new video that demonstrates a cool tempo trick that anyone can use but is easy to perform out of the box with a vci-300.
Continue reading ‘VCI-300 in Action- Tempo Trick’
For those that avoid acronyms like Perez Hilton’s blog, DVS stands for Digital Vinyl System. Aka Final Scratch, Serato Scratch, Traktor Scratch, Butt Scratch, Back Scratch and anything else that ends in Scratch that may interface with a computer. Mr. Kirn of CDM has unearthed this very interesting story about our friends at NI who apparently settled a law suit in favor of the reported owners of one type of digital scratch technology. Wait a moment, I thought Riz invented that? Well apparently not according to this article in Create Digital Music:
Native Instruments acknowledges the validity of patents held by N2IT, and has now fully licensed their usage worldwide for its TRAKTOR SCRATCH digital DJ system and related products.
The patents held by N2IT relate to general principles of digital music playback using time-code records, which are being utilized in TRAKTOR SCRATCH as well as in other manufacturers’ digital DJ systems with time-code control
Let’s take a brief departure from the norm here in digital-DJ land and look at a very talented turntablist and a few of the techniques that make him great. The man I want to reintroduce to you is DJ Kentaro. Earning one of the highest scores in DMC history, Kentaro stole the show in 2002 with a creative musical take on turntablism. The previous year’s third-place performance included a trademark routine he calls “Jah-Jaka,” which can almost be described as heavy-metal turntablism. Creative use of tape to add rhythm to tone, meaty filter tricks with EQs and guitar riff-like playing of the record all contributed to a compelling musical performance that we will break down. Continue reading ‘How to scratch like a DMC champ’
No matter what DJ software you use, there is one common variable that vinyl-emulation systems all rely on: needles. Normally, needles are the last things on your mind. Fidelity and cartridge specs are sometimes thought to be a trivial factor in the performance of the software. The common opinion is that, “As long as you have a good strong signal, then it does not matter what needle you use.” Although that is partially true, any regular user of multiple DJ carts will tell you that they all seem to feel or respond differently. That is, of course, a subjective observation and is dependent on a lot of variables that are hard to nail down. Now to further confuse the ranks of DJs, Ortofon has released a new DJ cartridge specifically aimed at the digital DJ market called the DigiTrack, which Ortofon claims to be a superior cartridge designed specifically for the digital realm. But what exactly makes one DJ cartridge better than the other? And how can we get optimal performance out of the needles we already have? Continue reading ‘How to pick a dj needle for Serato’
The new remix article talks about techniques and possibilites using foot switches but I did not have the space to really go into detail. Here are some direct links and thoughts on some of the options you have for foot switches.
Continue reading ‘What foot switches should you buy for Serato?’
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