Today I thought I’d highlight a really cool tool online that lets you enter a phrase and it will find relevant samples of it said in films and TV.

If you are a producer looking for some cool vocal shots or (dank) references in your live DJ set, then this tool – named Yarn – could be very handy for you.

One thing that might be worth highlighting is the legal aspect of using copyrighted samples. The best advice is to simply steer clear of anything you don’t have permission to use.

SEE ALSO: Brilliant FREE key finding software

That said, if you do want to continue forward with this tool, then make sure to be transformative in your use, and be ready to lose profits from your track.

I tested the tool myself and it works really well, not just finding exact matches, but also similar phrases that you could use.

One test involved finding the phrase “I wish you hadn’t done that”, perhaps a sample to trigger when you trainwreck a DJ set.

The results were great:

The site gives you plenty of content to work with and you can simply save the short <5-second clip and take the audio from it.

I also looked for a sample that could be used before the bass kicks in, and again, it delivered:

The post Awesome tool lets you type phrase and find samples of it said from films and TV appeared first on Audio Ordeal.

Controllers vs CDJs in 2019

What is the difference between Controllers and CDJs?

It would seem that while this debate raged furiously in previous years, things are starting to mellow out a lot more now. There have been some key developments in the industry recently that have thrown a spanner in the works. One of the biggest being the huge rise in Denon DJ which has dealt a blow to Pioneer’s dominance as the main CDJ brand.

There is now a solid third category, which has been around for some time, but 2019 will definitely be the “year of the standalone”. Expect this third type to hybridise controllers and CDJs and eventually become the norm.

Controllers

Controllers are getting more advanced. Expect even the cheapest controllers to typically offer features that were premium 5-10 years ago. All controllers worth buying have built-in sound cards now, something which never used to be the case until the past few years. 

While there is a broad range of software, most work with Serato and Traktor, with Rekordbox still growing as a market contender. Controllers are still cheaper than CDJs and allow much more advanced mixing potential – generally with better effects and performance pads/controls. 

Most beginners will choose controllers simply due to price. A basic controller will do almost everything a CDJ can do at a fraction of the price. Whereas a controller in the $1000 and higher range will far exceed a most club CDJ setups in performance capability.

You won’t see as much hate for using controllers anymore, especially as many of them are hardcore pro gear, but you may find that trying to set everything up in a club could cause annoyance. 

This means that controller DJs should still be ready to perform on CDJs more than their home setup.

CDJs/Players

It is worth noting that a lot of “CDJs” don’t use disc drives anymore, instead loading their music from USBs and SD cards, or over Ethernet. This is why they are often now called media players. I shall continue to refer to them as CDJs as despite this technicality they are of the same family.

CDJs used to be black and white. You go to the club and there was a Pioneer setup. Most clubs wouldn’t have the very latest models, but they weren’t too far behind the industry either. 

You used to prepare your tracks in Rekordbox and just rock up to the club. Now this is slightly different. While most clubs will hold onto Pioneer, some are moving to Denon’s Prime series which offers more advanced features at a much lower price. This market is the most exciting at the moment.

CDJs are still seen as the “pro” setup. This is partly because a venue can have them and DJs only need USB sticks, they require much less setup than a controller and you can switch DJs quickly. 

The latest Prime series from Denon is the first time “controller” features have been seen on a CDJ.

Standalone

Standalone units have long been a thing, with controller-style decks fitted with CD/USB drives and a mixer built into the middle.

It would seem a bit late for me to say 2019 may be “the year of the standalone” gear but the big change now is that screens and built-in computers are advanced enough to really offer something special.

Previously, a laptop with Serato or Traktor could always offer more advanced features, but now the brains in the latest standalone controllers are built to match the power of an external computer. 

Standalone units are also growing in popularity in the production world with Akai launching Force, a standalone unit that works much like Ableton Push and a laptop running Ableton combine. This is a big thing for DJs to as it means more live elements can be incorporated into sets.

Expect the latest standalone units to be able to do pretty much everything that a DJ software could do, minus the laptop. 

Standalones also may mark the eventual downfall of CDJs. They not only offer the same features (and normally more) they tend to be cheaper and just as convenient. Instead of having a permanent CDJ setup in a club, you could have a standalone controller instead. 

This option would provide the ability for DJs to rock up with USBs like they did with CDJs, but also allow them to control software too. Even if DJs wanted to use it with a laptop, the controller is already there so they only need to bring their computer. 

It will also make changeovers easy. Dual soundcards have been around for a while now meaning that if they are added to new standalone units, a laptop could provide music to one channel while the next DJ takes over from USBs. This means there would be no silence as the music gets changed over.

What are the latest DJ developments?

It would be wise to follow the trends across the whole DJ gear scene, many of which end up being featured on controllers eventually (if not initially). The scene has been quite dynamic recently with releases from companies such as Native Instruments, who launch new gear infrequently, and Denon, who have really been knocking dents into Pioneer’s throne as the “industry standard”.

Screens are in vogue.

The beauty of tech becoming more accessible is that it gets adopted into all industries. Screens went from being a very exclusive feature of the top end controllers to being available in the mid-range.

Screens are great because they prevent the dreaded “laptop stare” that no audience wants to see. They also allow you to have lots of useful information of the controller as you mix.

Some controllers are have screens at the top, some have one on each deck, and some have them in the platters. What is worth considering, should you want a screen, is what you want displayed. 

Different controllers offer different levels of detail, and while some allow you to hide your laptop away completely, others are really just additional visual feedback.

Standalone systems threaten laptops.

Standalone systems have been around for a long time now, most of which are able to double up as a software controller when needed. The NAMM 2019 announcement by Denon gave the world its first 4-channel standalone DJ system. 

These systems are increasingly welcome as they are cheaper than buying a controller, laptop, and software separately. They are also easy to set up in a club – where the DJs are only required to bring their USB sticks. 

One of the challenges we now face as DJs is that there are multiple brands which offer standalone systems, each with their own software.

It is now not as simple as setting up tracks in Rekordbox for the guaranteed presence of Pioneer CDJs, because Engine (by Denon DJ) is now a major contender on the market. 

This means that DJs must now be aware of the different options they might face in the club.

Motorised platters may soon emerge as standard.

With the recently upgraded hardware from Native Instruments (the Traktor Kontrol S4 MkIII), we have seen motorised platters on controllers. The patented “Haptic Drive” is used on the Kontrol S4 and is a jogwheel which is powered – like traditional vinyl.

The Numark NS7 range (several years dated now) had motorised platters with “real” vinyl on them, but this is a much more cutting-edge implementation. 

It also has enhanced feel to it, such as “clicks” where there are cue points so the DJ can feel their set. This is a really significant development, and will likely be rolled out by other manufacturers in the coming years. 

It would be especially great to see this feature on the largest controllers, which is a niche that Native Instruments have not exploited.

What is the Best Beginner DJ Controller?

Coming in at the low end, this range is for people on a tight budget looking for a controller for parties and small events. They are great to learn on but do remember that the feature-set will not be as extensive as inmore expensive setups. The second thing to remember is that the connections available on low-end gear are generally limited so make sure you have a selection of adapters if you need to use different wires for a setup.

Numark Mixtrack Pro 3

What is the Best Lower-Intermediate DJ Controller?

This stage is where you can comfortable start performing and feel safe that you have the right inputs and outputs. You are paying a bit extra compared to the previous tier, but money is still a factor that you want at the forefront of your decision. Intermediate is a tricky tier in 2019 because it includes both 2 and 4-channel mixers. At the lower price point, however, it is worth mentioning that you’ll likely get a high-quality 2-channel controller, or a lower quality 4-channel one, for similar price.

Denon MC4000

What is the Best Upper-Intermediate DJ Controller?

I added another level to the intermediate stage because this group is generally around the £1000/$1000 mark, but still not the top level. Here you will see 4-channels as default and advanced I/O, but these won’t be the most expensive options. Most DJs who have their own gear for performing will want to be in this level unless they are making serious cash and can afford the bonus extra features.

Denon MC7000

What is the Best Advanced DJ Controller?

This is a really tricky tier to decide on for the reason that there are super expensive options that have everything, but their price-per-feature value is not that great (looking at Pioneer DJ). I am going to assume therefore that if you are at this stage, money isn’t a problem and that you are looking for the best gear on the  market. 

Pioneer DJ DDJ-RZX

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Over the past few years, standalone DJ systems have moved closer to the forefront of digital DJing.

As computing power increases, we are likely to continue seeing more an more features added to standalone units.

This year is especially promising for standalone – just look at the Denon Prime 4.

The Prime 4 is a standalone unit which completely blows both laptop DJing, and CDJ/Vinyl DJing out of the water.

The beastly unit is a 4-channel king in the current market.

Not only does it have pretty much every standard feature you’d expect on a controller with Serato or Rekordbox, but it also integrates it all into a unit with extra outputs, and even streaming capability.

The death of tablet/phone DJing?

Over the past decade, as computers have got more powerful, controllers started using iPads and phones as the “laptop” for the controller.

These devices were more convenient, and in some cases, cheaper than using a laptop.

While they never really made it into the pro DJ booths, they were a handy tool for many DJs.

The shift to standalone seems to be the direct successor to this type of DJing., as well as a possible replacement for CDJs.

Here’s why:

Since we started using digital systems, we had two options: simplicity or power.

If we wanted simplicity, a CDJ would do the job.

It could mix, beatmatch, loop, and that was it.

This is where laptops came in. They allowed for more complex controllers and software, which meant that a DJ could perform more complicated sets.

Laptops were also a big plus for the manufacturers because the computing power was the user’s issue, not the manufacturer.

It is a lot cheaper to outsource the processing to the user’s computer than to try and integrate a small computer in a controller.

The option of phones was a logical step and meant that DJing could be done on even cheaper computers.

Now though, computing power is not so much of an issue, and if a manufacturer can cheaply add a “brain” to a controller and keep it as powerful as one hooked up to a laptop, then that is a win.

In the club

If you are a controller DJ that can’t use CDJs, you are in for some trouble.

Many clubs only have CDJs, and the hassle of getting a controller that works with any laptop and software is not worth it.

This is one of the reasons that CDJs reign supreme to this day.

Now though, a standalone controller has the same convenience factor as a CDJ – where you arrive with USBs and get going, but with the added features that a controller has.

This is why 2019 and 2020 will be crucial for the DJ industry.

It will only take a few of the bigger clubs and festivals to decide to refit the booth with a standalone controller, and all of a sudden, the industry could shift.

Conversely, if the venues don’t adopt the standalone movement, then it may end up as just another brief controller phase.

Who next?

We are now 6 months into 2019, and 3 from the release of the Prime 4.

While we haven’t seen any major competition crop up yet, we can make a fair guess that it is coming, the question is, from whom?

Pioneer DJ have gone through some big shifts recently, and will no doubt want to hang onto their throne as the main DJ hardware company.

But, equally, they have seen their products undercut and beaten by Denon several times now, and have struggled to respond with an equally devastating comeback.

That said, their XDJ-RX range is doing very well for itself, despite being significantly less kitted out than the Prime 4.

So this could mean that the next big releases could come from elsewhere.

There are a few considerations which will need to be made if a company wants to make a new standalone unit.

Firstly, the brains of the unit needs to be powerful enough.

This seems to be a less pressing issue nowadays, but the price/power ratio will still be a defining factor if a company wants to take on Denon.

Secondly, and perhaps more crucially, standalone systems need to run on software.

Denon uses Engine in their gear, other companies which don’t already have a competing software solution will have to design one.

This doesn’t leave many companies.

Pioneer, in this case remain on the table, so does Native Instruments.

Akai have delved into the standalone producer gear with their Force controller, and they have previously made some smaller DJ controllers.

While Serato is a major DJ software, it doesn’t have any dedicated hardware, with it instead, allowing controller manufacturers to be built for Serato.

As of yet, we just don’t know.

The bottom line

Standalone is here to stay, and will continue to straddle the line between controller and CDJ. Whether it succeeds and becomes the replacement of the long-reigning CDJ, I’m not sure.

The post Is standalone the future for DJs? appeared first on Audio Ordeal.

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The post What’s Type of DJ Are You? [QUIZ] appeared first on Audio Ordeal.

 

 

 

The other reason to have more hours of music than you need is because not every song will be appropriate for the night. If the crowd isn’t ready for some of the harder dance songs, you will be able to go with their mood, instead of forcing a BPM and energy increase on them. 

2. Try Finding Extended Mixes

 

 

3. If You Can’t Find One, Make it Instead!

 

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