For those of you who DJ with a normal non iPod setup, and are considering transitioning to incorporating an iPod into you DJing setup you’ll find the ICDS- 190 iPod DJ CD player to be a good addition, by being able to play both CDs and iPods, it opens up opportunities for the DJ who is only touch on iPod DJing or for the club which wants to allow a wider variety of DJing equipment that incorporates iPod DJing technology, the ICDS-190 iPod DJ CD Player is the mastermind of Kool sound, which are one of the lesser know DJing brand, however, despite this the ICDS-190 iPod DJ CD Player does benefit from some pretty awesome DJing features,and for iPod DJs this allows the iPod to be treated as a deck or digital turn table and the ICDS-190 iPod DJ CD Player allows you to manipulate the MP3s on the iPod in the same way as a normal DJ would manipulate vinyl, this means the ICDS-190 iPod DJ CD Player is the ideal for beginner iPod DJs or DJs who have had prior experience with other DJing equipment.
critically for iPod DJing the ICDS-190 iPod DJ CD Player has +/-12, 16% variable pitch range, that pitch control in layman’s terms, another massive bonus for the iPod DJ. The ICDS-190 iPod DJ CD Player can be use with any variety of DJ mixer which means you can customize your iPod DJing setup with more freedom…at the compromise of portability. An additional video output means that this could also be compatible with an iPod with video capabilities making its future proof for iPod DJs looking to get in to video DJing of VDJing.
Features:
- Front loading single cd deck with ipod / mp3 player / usb inputs
- Cd/cdr/cdrw cd deck compatability
- Play and control audio from mp3 players, ipod, memory sticks and hard drives via usb input or ipod dock
- +/-12, 16% variable pitch range
- Large backlit lcd display for system information and folder / file search
- Mulit-function jog wheel
- Seamless looping (for cd/mp3 only)
- Usb port for connecting mass storage class ipods, hard drives and memory sticks
- Rca output
- Video output
- 10 second anti-shock
Weight: 5.0kg (including packaging)
Height: 26.0cm x Width: 21.7cm x Depth: 12.0cm
Sometimes there are things that are just too cool, things that you really, really want. The iPod was one of thse things that really captured the attention with that xfactor, and the iPod continues to impress, the latest version the iPod touch is fantast, offering a whole host of added funtions in addition to being an MP3 player, such as wifi and almost PDA functionality, the only thing the iPod touch is missing is a camera, surfing the web I found the below, which looks like a new version of the iPod, probably an artists impression, but never the less it simply looks cool. One of the key things that will benefit iPod DJing is the multitouch screen that is large enough to allow you to control a DJing software on some sort on an iPod touch, add this with the storage capacity of the iPod touch, and wifi web browsing, and really you have a portable versatile and high quality DJing device, and naturally this proves how great the iPod really is.
The iPod is an MP3 player, so its not designed to work as a DJ unit, and as such there are limitations. Now many of the new DJ units that take advantage of the iPod such as the Cortex D-mix 300 or the Numark iDJ2 address the shortcomings presented by the iPod.
The main two limitations to the iPod from a DJing perspective are:
1. a lack of pitch altering- this means that track pitch can’t be altered, meaning that on an iPod the speed of a music track can’t be edited, which for a DJ means that you can’t beatmatch accurately.
2. there is no way to scratch music tracks on an iPod, something some DJs see as a necessity.
These flaws greatly affect the performance and usability of the iPod as a DJ tool, in reality its shows that iPod DJing is merely at the beginning stages, just like CD players once were, and natrually as the attraction of DJing with an iPod grows so will the functionality provided by the iPod and its software, indeed this is already happening when you consider the Pacemaker, and if that proves to be popular, it will only be a matter of time before the iPod becomes a truly portable Dj unit. In the mean time there are work arounds to allow you to DJ with an iPod now, check them out here and here.
iPod DJing is still very new to the world of DJing, and certainly the potential of using an iPod for DJing hasn’t been fully explored by DJs most people still see the iPod as an MP3 player, but when you consider an iPod is a small ’simple’ computer then you can begin to see why a device as small and portable as an iPod could be a real asset for DJing, point to note, the Pacemaker is the next step in iPod DJing, and whilst its great, its expensive and a totally different machine, this is really about exploring the iPod as a product range and its function in DJing.
Capabilities: the iPod can play, fast forward, rewind and pause music, as you would expect from any music or MP3 player. The jog wheel is fantastic and one of the control features that sets the iPod apart from other MP3 music players. The iPod software and computer software iTunes are both also very strong in their offering, certainly from a Programming and set planning perspective, and really for any iPod DJ, this is the key focus, after all the iPod isn’t a DJ tool, not, at least, in its current state. Another key strength of the software and one that supports the art of programming a DJ set is the ability to create playlists.
Limitations: The iPod whilst being fantastic with heaps of storage, is first and foremost an MP3 music player, so to Dj on an iPod requires a degree of playing around and working around these limitations, hopefully these will get addressed as the appeal and attraction of DJing grows and a big enough market devlops for DJing on an iPod to justify Apple making a DJ compatible DJ iPod. Another iPod limitation is that there is only one output, so there’s no way to use your headphones to adjust your track whilst another is playing out, for DJing this also a bit of a downer. But lets be realistic, the iPod is an MP3 player, in the same way that a CD player, cassette player or Turntable are music players, basically, despite all their functionality, the iPod is a player, and to use it for DJing, you need to give it some leeway.
Benefits: DJing with an iPod has massive advantages, for one, you can you entire DJ music collection in your pocket, its also fantastic for DJing on the go, and for mobile DJs, its a great backup, saving you space and the curse of the DJ back (backpain from carrying vinyl), if you add to this that DJing on an iPod is still in its infancy, and really the full potential of DJing on an iPod is still being developed, you’ll be ahead of the game. On top of all this, as the iPod is digital, it means you can broadcast your music quickly and easily accross the web and with certain iPod accessories, you can record sounds and music to your iPod, and potentially use them in set literally straight away. All this means that despite some serious limitations, there are solutions to over come them, and the full potential of DJing on an iPod is still yet to come.
Now there are two ways to approach iPod DJing, depending on your budget and how flexible or innovative you want to be. 1. if you have some budget, the easiest and most conventional way to get into iPod DJing, is to get an iPod DJ unit, you can find units like the Cortex Dmix-300 for pretty good prices, and these iPod DJ units are literally like DJing with two decks and a mixer, with jog wheels that control each channel from a single iPod. alternatively 2. you can get two iPods, setup the music with the BPM format mentioned here and get a mixer, if your looking for portability you could look at a micro mixer.
Essentially, DJing on an iPod is fantastic fun, it allows you just as much if not more flexibility as any other form of DJing and allows you to carry your entire collection of music in a unit the size of a cigarette box.
The iPod was invented launched in 2001 October by Apple. Whilst there were alternative MP3s and music was available online, what the iPod achieved was a success in branding and marketing experience. Essentially the iPod was the turning point in music, allowing whole libraries of music to be contained in a single pocket sized device. The iPod is essentially a mini computer, not to dissimilar to early computers, at the same time the iPod was launched Apple launched iTunes, a software that manages and plays back MP3 music.
As the technology evolved the iPod has gotten smaller and more flexible, paving way for opportunities to DJ and use the iPod as a DJ tool and DJ device that is far more flexible and easy to learn than conventional DJ equipment. As DJing become more and accessible, more and more people are keen to learn how to DJ with out having to spend a fortune on DJ equipment or spend ages having to learn how to use DJ equipment, making the iPod and DJ equipment for the iPod an ideal entry point and starting point for those looking to learn how to DJ.
The Pacemaker is fantastic, really the DJs iPod, essentially you’re taking an iPod, throwing in two channels a cross fader and a touch pad, with the additional controls on the Pacemaker, it makes the iPod look a little plain. The Pacemaker is the worlds first portable DJing device.
The Pacemaker is about the size of a PSP2, with a 120 GB hard drive, a full colour screen, head phone and speaker out puts, and a touch sensative cross fader and track pad. Its designed for DJing in mind and a lot of though has clearly been put in to the finish and working mechanics (you get that same iPod feel for the Pacemaker), in addition the Pacemaker comes with free DJing software that can be installed and used for DJing as well.
Whilst the iPod is fantastic and flexible, it does need additional equpment to allow you to Dj with it, whether this is as simple as an iPod micro mixer or as complex as the Cortex D-mix, the very fact that the iPod is an MP3 player and not a Mixer is what sets the Pacemaker apart from the iPod, and considering your looking at a DJ product that costs £500, if you travel a lot or if you’re looking for an MP3 DJ solution where you can use the same tunes you had on your iPod to mix with without having additional gear, then the Pacemaker is a fantastic alternative for iPod DJs, and really proves where things are going to progress in terms of iPod DJing and DJ equipment and technology. Check out the Pacemaker here.
So whats under the hood of the Pacemaker that sets itself apart for an iPod, and why as a DJ would you value this beyond an iPod? Lets have a closer look at the detail, with the Pacemaker, you can mix virtually anywhere, with two outputs, you can cue up a track whilst a live one is playing out, further to this, you can beatmatch, this was one feature that has always been a challenge for DJs DJing with iPods, and adjusting the Pitch of the music is one of the key parts of being able to DJ, the Pacemaker solves this for the iPod, you can also adjust the equalization of the high, mid and low ranges of the music of each channel, and add a variety of effects, additionally you have a cue button and the ability to temporarily store loops. Add to this that, like, the iPod the Pacemaker has its own software, one key difference is that in addition to allowing you to play back your music on the Pacemaker editor, it allows you to mix your own mixes…looks like this could be the one MP3 player that the iPod can’t live up to.
