DJing by LapTop - Fantastic or Fad?

dahooligan

Just wanna know if we all think that DJing by laptop is good, bad or indifferent? I'm thinking of something like the external Hercules system cos it looks nifty, but if anyone has anyother suggestions?? I'm basically tired of draggin loads of cds around and I'm sick of not being able to find them on demand etc

jimi_t

A) Wrong forum - should be posted in Music - Dance/Electronic
Several posts already on the topic- check the proper forum (Music - Dance/Electronic)

base2

Its a fad. Buying vinyl for €12 a pop is the only way to go.

Helix

anyone who thinks its a fad clearly doesnt understand the possibilities it brings to djing

Cake Fiend

A fad is something that stagnates and people get bored with. Laptop production/mixing is only going to progress, bringing DJing in new directions all the time. I'm personally far more excited by the possibilities afforded by the likes of Traktor, Ableton, Reason etc than some dude standing there playing records all night.

deisedevil

I agree with ya there sico, it'll go from strength to strength. have used Tractor myself and am getting reason soon.

drunkenfool

Thinking of buying some dj software, any recommendations?

Rollo Tamasi

drunkenfool wrote:

Thinking of buying some dj software, any recommendations?

I've used Albelton once or twice and i've found it very user friendly. Tracktor is also a good place to start, its a fairly cheap program as well. www.NativeInstruments.de

Seanie M

Depending on the cost of a Hercules+laptop hardware setup, as well as the software e.g. Traktor DJ, consider the benefit of a set of MP3 playing cd decks. I can't vouch for any, but a set of Pioneer CDJ 200's (see here) are very portable, and can cut your cd collection by perhaps 1/8th its audio counterpart size.

Seanie.

Wertz

Sico wrote:

A fad is something that stagnates and people get bored with. Laptop production/mixing is only going to progress, bringing DJing in new directions all the time. I'm personally far more excited by the possibilities afforded by the likes of Traktor, Ableton, Reason etc than some dude standing there playing records all night.

Agreed.
I've never even laid my hands on a set of turntables and own very, very few vinyls.

DJing by laptop is a logical next step....it increases portability dramatically, the s/w is now good enough (or arguably better) to enable proper mixing and effects in digital format, you can carry maybe 10 flight cases of vinyl on a single DVDR at a decent bitrate, and it allows what used to be a very expensive profession to filter down to the masses (some might say that's a bad thing lol; look what it did to the trance scene).
The technology is getting cheaper and cheaper every few months....it's going to give the talent that might otherwise not have a chance of affording a set of decks, a mixer and a hefty collection of 12"s, to emerge.

Seanie M

Sico wrote:

A fad is something that stagnates and people get bored with. Laptop production/mixing is only going to progress, bringing DJing in new directions all the time. I'm personally far more excited by the possibilities afforded by the likes of Traktor, Ableton, Reason etc than some dude standing there playing records all night.

I don't entirely agree, though you do have a point. The reason I don't agree is that the general crowd in a club don't know, or care, what media the DJ is playing. For Example, a pair of CDJ-1000's in the right hands WILL convince the crowd its all been done on vinyl on a night out.

Seanie.

Helix

it doesnt matter a jot what media is being used

rabbitinlights

dahooligan wrote:

I'm basically tired of draggin loads of cds around

Ha Ha Ha........ try lugging vinyl!

I love vinyl and I dont think Id ever get rid of my decks for a laptop, What has caught my eye though is using ableton/tracktor with a controller, such as this:

Link

Or even this:

Link


My Ideal setup would be using a controller with vinyl decks aswell such as my dream piece of equipment

The Allen & Heath Xone 3D

Link

The center piece is a "standard" 4 channel mixer and the two side parts are Midi Controllers for ableton/Tracktor.

While im dreaming id also like a year off work to get to grips with ableton!
Using Laptops is not a fad, its just beginning, with people intergrating controllers into their sets it can only mean one thing, better music and better nights out. and lets face it, thats all that matters.

Sean.

PS. Did anyone see that video of Hawtin using ableton in a club, some guy stood beside him for ages and recorded him, its very impressive!

Selik

drunkenfool wrote:

Thinking of buying some dj software, any recommendations?

Virtual DJ is the way to go for me personally although the new edition of Traktor due out at the end of the month with 4 virtual decks & loads of other new features looks excellent...

If you do a search there's a thread from a few months back on this forum with me spouting on about how good VDJ is etc... Too lazy to look it up for ya now sorry!

spyro_2001ie

A pure laptop set can be kinda un-inspiring, I work in a internet cafe, and i watch people do that all the time anyways. When combined with midi and drum machines, it can be very exciting, Did any of you go to the Tim Exile gig in the Belvdere last Thursday, Now that guy made laptop djing a performance. He'd record a sample of the crowd, process it on his laptop(live) and then filter and edit them back into to the song and roll them into basslines and breaks, it was a joy to watch. Crowd were going mental (moshing) So in short no laptop djing is not a fad, Its a tool for new ways to make music live and the more inventive you can be using it the better.

smeggle

Laptop+2 vinyl decks+2 cd decks - interesting combination ..

I have tractordj on my desktop and it's a nice bit of kit for messing around with mixes. Mate of mine used a laptop with it on at a gig the other week along with my cd decks and the difference if any was minimal.

I'd see it probably becoming more used as an auto play feature between sets myself but it's potential especially if you take into account you can also open say Fruity Loops and add in effects or such like could see it becoming a unique tool for a dj.

I definately see a future for them in the dj world..I intend to get a new laptop soon and it will be configured for music only for that reason....especially considering I just picked up a second hand Stanton RM Three week before last. It's been well looked after with only a cross fader replacement and has made a definate improvement to my equipment line - now just a 2k amp/ a set of Pioneer CDJX's and I'll be happy

penexpers

spyro_2001ie wrote:

A pure laptop set can be kinda un-inspiring, I work in a internet cafe, and i watch people do that all the time anyways. When combined with midi and drum machines, it can be very exciting, Did any of you go to the Tim Exile gig in the Belvdere last Thursday, Now that guy made laptop djing a performance. He'd record a sample of the crowd, process it on his laptop(live) and then filter and edit them back into to the song and roll them into basslines and breaks, it was a joy to watch. Crowd were going mental (moshing) So in short no laptop djing is not a fad, Its a tool for new ways to make music live and the more inventive you can be using it the better.

Tim Exile works for Native Instruments and wrote the software to do his live set himself. I got a peek at him from just behind the stage and it looks like he built his own midi controller.

Helix

he didnt write reaktor lol

he made some ensembles for it tho that he uses for his live gigs

penexpers

Yeh that's what I meant.

cormie

Is there any good free software or do you have to pay for the good stuff? I've always wanted to give this a go but have never had the cash to risk it.

Anima

There are a few worth while free software programs but most of the good stuff costs a **** load of money.

cormie

What kind of money are we talking about? Any names worth mentioning?

spyro_2001ie

I suppose Traktor would be a good as start as any. Its a mp3 mixing program, with all the bells and whistles you'd get with cd decks. Although you'll need a second sound card (unless you got 2 already) to monitor pre mix. With Traktor 3 coming out there should be a price drop in the previous version. 2.6 afaik. I have no idea of the price but check www.nativeinstruments.com. Otherwise reach deep down into the warez monkey within.

eyedrenalin

Anybody that has beef with progress is a luddite. End Of Discussion.

Have we already forgotten the lesson learnt during the "Real Instruments Vs. DJing" battles?

Let it go, it's the music that matters, the process is only a curiosity; something to impress the ladies and discuss at length on nerdy threads.

penexpers

spyro_2001ie wrote:

I suppose Traktor would be a good as start as any. Its a mp3 mixing program, with all the bells and whistles you'd get with cd decks. Although you'll need a second sound card (unless you got 2 already) to monitor pre mix. With Traktor 3 coming out there should be a price drop in the previous version. 2.6 afaik. I have no idea of the price but check www.nativeinstruments.com. Otherwise reach deep down into the warez monkey within.

I think that once they start selling 3.0 that 2.6 will be removed from sale completely.

Zascar

Vinyl is never going to die, but Digital DJ'ing is going to get bigger and bigger from here on in. There are currently only a few USB/MP3 mixers on the market, but give it a while and every manufacturere will be on the band wagon, and the software is getting better all the time, giving DJ's far more flexability and abilities that Vinly simply cannot do. Most Dj's are very snobby about it, but this will change.Most of the software will help you with the beatmatching - many dj's find this pathetic. Personally I think that you can teach a monky to beatmatch, but the real skills that make a DJ is in mixing, forming a set, reading the crowd etc. That is what makes a decent DJ. Read some of the posts at www.virtualdj.com/forum and you will see loads fo posts about people who were snobbed by dj;s when they arrived into a club with a laptop, but after they playes their set the same guys were asking them how to get started.

I use the Hercules DJ consule with Virtual DJ - I've tried loads of them and find this one the best. Traktor is good but a little over complicated in my opinion, but if you are mad into loops and effects I believe it is amazing.

Virtual DJ has a free download, i recommend you try it: http://www.virtualdj.com/download.html
Its fully skinnable and has many plugins and effects, You can even make your own if you have the skills. I used this for ages quite successfuly, however when I bought the Hercules DJ Consule it made it ten times more fun! Its not the easiest to do smooth mixing using just a mouse...

Review 1
Review 2
Review 3
Official Site

Personally I think it looks a bit "Fisher Price" - but nearly everyone that sees in it my house thinks its pretty cool.

I bought it from Pixmania - best €200 I ever spent.

base2

Vinyl is never going to die,

In a few years it is. Officially due to lack of actual vinyl.