Laptop DJing

It's all about the equipment

Moderators: Mr Awesomer, JesseMiner, CafeSavoy

Message
Author
User avatar
dana
Posts: 42
Joined: Fri Jul 04, 2003 11:13 am
Location: Calgary AB

#46 Post by dana » Sat Sep 06, 2003 3:07 pm

JohnDyer wrote:2. With Winamp previewing through the internal soundcard/drivers, I can't seem to adjust the external (to Winamp) volume because the Extigy seems to have taken it over. Is there a way to get around this? Basically I can't get enough volume going to the headphones.
If you're running Winamp 2x (which you should be - 3 is a big nasty mess that'll eat up all your system resources), try this:

http://classic.winamp.com/download/faq/ ... out=normal

"Why doesn't the volume control work on my system?

Your sound card's driver is broken. You could talk to your hardware vendor about having them fix it, but because we're so nice, we've provided a way for you to skirt this problem by having Winamp scale up or down the volume of its output directly instead of having the sound card do it.

Open the Preferences window and select Plug-ins/Output. Select "Nullsoft WaveOut Plug-in" and click 'Configure'. Look for a little checkbox labeled "Alt setting mode". Check it, click 'OK', and then close the Preferences window. Voila! Play some music and try out your new volume control. "

That may or may not work. It worked on my machine at work where I can't upgrade the drivers, but it didn't work for my coworker.

If you're running winamp 3, you may be able to find an answer somewhere on the winamp page.

d.

User avatar
CafeSavoy
Posts: 1138
Joined: Mon Nov 18, 2002 6:25 pm
Location: Mobtown
Contact:

#47 Post by CafeSavoy » Tue Sep 09, 2003 12:23 am

A few of the available DJ software packages:


DSS DJ http://www.myxoft.com/
OtsDJ http://otsdj.com/
PCDJ http://www.visiosonic.com/
MegaSeg(Mac) http://www.megaseg.com/
DJ1800 (Mac) http://www.dj1800.com/
XMMS (linux) http://www.xmms.org/


http://www.griffintechnology.com/produc ... index.html (external sound card for the Mac)

Toon Town Dave
Posts: 661
Joined: Wed Nov 20, 2002 2:52 pm
Location: Saskatoon, Canada

#48 Post by Toon Town Dave » Thu Sep 11, 2003 6:29 pm

Has anyone had any experience with the Mac software? It looks pretty but is it stable and user friendly?

User avatar
GemZombie
Posts: 772
Joined: Wed Nov 20, 2002 2:46 pm
Location: Alpharetta, GA (Formerly SLO, CA)
Contact:

#49 Post by GemZombie » Thu Sep 18, 2003 1:18 pm

CafeSavoy wrote:A few of the available DJ software packages:


DSS DJ http://www.myxoft.com/
OtsDJ http://otsdj.com/
PCDJ http://www.visiosonic.com/
MegaSeg(Mac) http://www.megaseg.com/
DJ1800 (Mac) http://www.dj1800.com/
XMMS (linux) http://www.xmms.org/


http://www.griffintechnology.com/produc ... index.html (external sound card for the Mac)
BPM Studio http://www.bpmstudio.com -- still the best in my opinion

User avatar
yedancer
Posts: 417
Joined: Wed Nov 20, 2002 8:08 pm
Location: San Diego
Contact:

#50 Post by yedancer » Sat Oct 04, 2003 1:41 am

KevinSchaper wrote:
JohnDyer wrote: Did you ever get your Extigy to work with previewing without having to buy the expensive BPM Pro software? I'd be interested on info about this as well. Thanks.
You can run two copies of winamp at the same time set to output to different sound devices.
I now have winamp set up so that I can preview and play at the same time. It's pretty awesome. I've been using EAC with the LAME encoder to rip my music, as suggested by Jesse. I don't think it's possible to tell the difference between what's coming off of my laptop and what's coming out of the CD player.
-Jeremy

It's easy to sit there and say you'd like to have more money. And I guess that's what I like about it. It's easy. Just sitting there, rocking back and forth, wanting that money.

JohnDyer
Posts: 87
Joined: Wed Nov 20, 2002 2:52 pm
Location: Denver CO

#51 Post by JohnDyer » Tue Oct 07, 2003 9:58 pm

I ended up buying PCDJ Red for $80 new off ebay (retail is $200). I'm still evaluating it, but it has a lot of very nice features so far that I like: mainly support for more than one soundcard and the ability to preview any song at any time without having it affect the main output. It also saves BPMs that you enter yourself or have it "try" to do for you. I believe it also will save cuepoints for any individual song so that you never have to manually cue a song after the first time.
John Dyer, Denver CO

User avatar
lindyholic
Posts: 215
Joined: Wed Nov 20, 2002 2:51 pm
Location: Victoria, B.C., Canada
Contact:

#52 Post by lindyholic » Tue Oct 07, 2003 11:06 pm

Well, I have tried the laptop thing...

and very recently, I have just realized how great it is to have cds and to shop for cds. There's something that's not quite there by DJing off a laptop, so I'm gonna stick with CDs now permanently.

Harrison
www.lindyhopper.ca, Canada's Swing Site.

User avatar
yedancer
Posts: 417
Joined: Wed Nov 20, 2002 8:08 pm
Location: San Diego
Contact:

#53 Post by yedancer » Wed Oct 08, 2003 6:36 am

lindyholic wrote:Well, I have tried the laptop thing...

and very recently, I have just realized how great it is to have cds and to shop for cds. There's something that's not quite there by DJing off a laptop, so I'm gonna stick with CDs now permanently.

Harrison
I must be missing something, because I'm DJing off a laptop, yet I still have CDs and shop for CDs.
-Jeremy

It's easy to sit there and say you'd like to have more money. And I guess that's what I like about it. It's easy. Just sitting there, rocking back and forth, wanting that money.

User avatar
lindyholic
Posts: 215
Joined: Wed Nov 20, 2002 2:51 pm
Location: Victoria, B.C., Canada
Contact:

#54 Post by lindyholic » Wed Oct 08, 2003 9:05 am

I just find it more enjoyable to DJ with the cds instead of off the laptop. To each their own I guess.

Harrison
www.lindyhopper.ca, Canada's Swing Site.

User avatar
CafeSavoy
Posts: 1138
Joined: Mon Nov 18, 2002 6:25 pm
Location: Mobtown
Contact:

#55 Post by CafeSavoy » Wed Oct 08, 2003 2:46 pm

I think this is clearly an issue governed by personal preference. For example, at SFLX there were quite a few djs who spun from their computer so i don't think there is really a consensus yet on cds versus computer.

ScottieK
Posts: 55
Joined: Sun Dec 15, 2002 2:56 pm
Location: Sacramento, Ca
Contact:

#56 Post by ScottieK » Wed Oct 08, 2003 3:07 pm

I use both my CDs and my computer. Depends on my mood and the venue's system. Lately, I've been all about spinning from my CDs, it just makes things more interesting.

User avatar
CafeSavoy
Posts: 1138
Joined: Mon Nov 18, 2002 6:25 pm
Location: Mobtown
Contact:

#57 Post by CafeSavoy » Wed Oct 08, 2003 3:16 pm

ScottieK wrote:I use both my CDs and my computer. Depends on my mood and the venue's system. Lately, I've been all about spinning from my CDs, it just makes things more interesting.
I use both too. But i agree that in some venues it's easier to just use cds.

User avatar
yedancer
Posts: 417
Joined: Wed Nov 20, 2002 8:08 pm
Location: San Diego
Contact:

#58 Post by yedancer » Wed Oct 08, 2003 6:04 pm

For me so far, a major consideration is the nature of the DJing. If it's just band breaks, I don't feel like going through the trouble of plugging everything together and hooking everything up. If it's a full night of DJing, I'm much more likely to use the laptop.
-Jeremy

It's easy to sit there and say you'd like to have more money. And I guess that's what I like about it. It's easy. Just sitting there, rocking back and forth, wanting that money.

User avatar
(geek)
Posts: 32
Joined: Wed Aug 13, 2003 1:23 am
Location: Vancouver, BC
Contact:

#59 Post by (geek) » Sat Oct 11, 2003 10:42 am

I finally picked up (125 USD) an Echo Indigo pcmcia sound card for my tibook yesterday. FINALLY I have a dual-output machine for proper cueing.

I've downloaded and purchased (40 USD) the DJ-1800 software, which uses CoreAudio to support multiple output channels. I use the on-board for cue output w/headphones and the Indigo for Master out.

There is also a mode for using an external mixer, just having the software emulate a pair of cd decks. Each deck is assigned an output (on-board or Echo Indigo) which can then be mixed on the physical board. This looks especially slick while spinning.

So far I'm very pleased.

Sound quality is excellent, very low sound floor, zero latency.. even though the tibook's built-in sound hardware is quite good, this Indigo rocks.

The developer of DJ1800 is very accessible and there are message forums well read by other users, who also seem to be fairly knowledgeable folks. The suggestions I have for added functionality have, for the most part, already been hashed over and are planned for the next software release, a free upgrade from the current version. The only thing I'm pestering them about is playlist cueing. The way it works now is perfectly acceptable, as it replicates the use of a CD deck exactly.. but because it's software, why not make it even more useful?

I don't find setting up a laptop dj kit at any venue a problem. I have 1/8" outputs, so I have all manner of output options based on these plugs. Normally I start with a 1/8" KOSS extension cable (8m or so) that can get me anywhere in a dj booth. Almost all boards have at least two channels of RCA input, so I carry a 1/8" to stereo RCA adapter. For boards that don't have RCA inputs, I pack a pair of RCA -> 1/4" adapters. All of the above are available at Rat Shack or your favourite audio store.

As someone who uses computers extensively in real life, DJ'ing from one is a no-brainer. It certainly beats lugging around cases of CDs. YMMV, and I bow to those who still cart vinyl around.

ScottieK
Posts: 55
Joined: Sun Dec 15, 2002 2:56 pm
Location: Sacramento, Ca
Contact:

#60 Post by ScottieK » Sat Oct 11, 2003 12:33 pm

(geek) wrote: I don't find setting up a laptop dj kit at any venue a problem. I have 1/8" outputs, so I have all manner of output options based on these plugs. Normally I start with a 1/8" KOSS extension cable (8m or so) that can get me anywhere in a dj booth. Almost all boards have at least two channels of RCA input, so I carry a 1/8" to stereo RCA adapter. For boards that don't have RCA inputs, I pack a pair of RCA -> 1/4" adapters. All of the above are available at Rat Shack or your favourite audio store.
Not all systems have easily accessible RCA ports. It wasn't until I took out the tape deck (It was rarely used) on the ok of the owner that I had a place to hook up my notebook.

Locked