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The dj world is a fast moving industry. I personally have been
making the transition towards new technology of late, the recent
addition of disc jockey cd and mp3 players that emulate vinyl I find
incredibly efficient and useful.
In previous years djs have been restricted to having to press their
own vinyl records to play un-released music, but now there are
several options. CD based vinyl emulators such as the excellent
numark cdx & cdj800 by pioneer enable djs to play their own music or
any un-released tracks and still have the full control offered by
vinyl and more.
Some digital software and hardware combination packages are used to
play mp3s straight from a computer, such as final scratch by stanton
or serato scratch by rane and are extremely useful.
Often I see club djs using such software, the advantages are so
great that many people are switching over from classic vinyl. What
does this mean for the average clubber? Well expect to hear more
variation in music selection across all fields of music.
I upgraded my dj Gear about 6 months ago and haven never looked
back. Whereas in the past I was using just a pair of technics sl1210
decks and a two-channel dj mixer a djm400, now I have implemented
much more into my set-up, at a very affordable price. Now I have
several choices on how I wish to play.
I have serato scratch which enables me to play and mix any mp3 file
I want as vinyl. I also bought a korg kaos pad 3 for advanced
effects. For nightclub use I always carry my numark axis 9 cd player
so I can play my own productions, but for a more live feel I use the
amazing new ableton live software. This powerful new tool enables
producers and djs to remix, loop and generally modify their tracks
on-the-fly for a complete new music experience.
As opposed to the old way of having to carry large amounts of vinyl
in your swan flight record cases to a club (or paying someone to
carry it for you!) nowadays a cd wallet or even a usb memory stick
enables your entire music collection to be easily carried and played
as vinyl.
One of the most recent additions to this world is mixing in a pure
digital way with ipod music players. New hardware such as the numark
idj2 mixing console looks like it will end up being a extremely
popular method for djs. The capacity of some ipods is absolutely
enormous, no longer is there a need to carry 100 vinyl records
around everywhere, now I can carry 100 times as much music in my
pocket!
Another great addition are digital audio recorders such as the ikey
and ikey plus. Rather than having to record directly to pc or using
cassette tapes, audio runs directly into the unit and can be saved
as mp3 or WAV files. These are amazingly useful to record live sets
and are a very welcome addition indeed.
written by Shaun Parker
Expert disc jockey and distributor of numark, pioneer and technics
dj equipment Shaun Parker has been involved in the music scene for
many years. To see more of his product visit
http://www.getinthemix.co.uk
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