There are many great benefits to iPod DJing, when you consider the way that DJing and the music industry is taking advantage of Technology and the affordability of iPods there is really no barrier to entry when it comes to iPod DJing, for any beginner this is the best way to get on to the DJing ladder as, chances are, you already own an iPod. so lets break it down, why is iPod DJing sooo much better than Turntables or `CD DJing?
1. Vinyl is very fragile and expensive, iPods, use MP3 even if you lost an iPod your laptop will have a back up, and whislt there is an argument about quality of sound, this has been answered simply by the fact that modern day studios use MP3 and other digital formats for recording. If anything the ‘vinyl sound’ is caused by damage to the vinyl.
2. CD’s Scratch - and guess what iPods contain the music digitally so you don’t have to worry about that.
3. iPods are small - small enough to fit in to your pocket, they can carry an entire catalogue of music, try squeeze your vinyl or CD collection into the same space…not going to happen
4. iPods can be used with any normal mixer and can work in almost the same way as turntables, and eventhe cost of buying two is comparable to how much you’d have to spend on a pair of decks anyways.
5. iPods can accomodate video as well so if you want to give video DJing a go you can also do this.
6. all those previous problems with altering pitch have pretty much been resolved meaning you can now bet match with an iPod just like CD and vinyl DJing
7. iPod DJing equipment is more affordable, easier to setup and more portable than vinyl and CD DJign equipment
8. its darn cool
9. there is a strong community spirit and a sense of DIY when it comes to iPod DJing, something now lost in vinyl and CD DJing.
10. becasue iPod Djing is still in its infancy there is loads of opportunity to expand and innovate and the digital format means there is a better opportunity for creativity.
Beatmatching or Beatmixing is an intergral part of modern DJing, and for iPod DJing has always presented a challenge due to the lack of pitch control, there have been DIY solutions to help iPod DJs to Beatmach but they talke longer to setup and are not an ideal solution to beatmatching, you can find out more about Beatmatching with an iPod here, this DIY technique allos iPod DJs to beatmatch using some of the most simple and basic iPod DJing setups, however for a professional sound and mix, an iPod DJ would be better off with the Numark IDJ2 or the Cortex Dmix-300.
Beat matching on the Numark IDJ2 or the Cortex Dmix-300 is identical to beatmatching on vinyl or CD DJing setup, and as both units have pitch control, you can alter the pitch of the track mid mix, giving you more functionality and freedom as a DJ. So how do you beatmatch on the umark IDJ2 or the Cortex Dmix-300?
3. put a track on the second channel, and adjust the BPM to match the first channel
4. play the second track an try and line up the beats, using the pitch fader to control the tempo/pitch of the second track
5. once the two tracks are beatmatched, take the second track back to where you want to play from and wait for the first track to get to the point where you want to drop in the second track.
6. use the crossfader to bring in the second track
7. use the high, mid, low knobs to bring in and excentuate elements of either track to make you mix more interesting.
The Numark IDJ2 is one of the most revolutionary iPod DJing mixers out there, and essentially represents the third generation of iPod DJing technology. The Numark IDJ2 is essentially the predecessor of the The Numark IDJ, and as such fulfills most of the sort comings presented by second generation iPod DJing mixers, such as the need for two iPods, the lack of pitch control and so forth. The Numark IDJ2 is also the main competitor to the Cortex Dmix-300, whilst the Cortex Dmix-300 was launched in 2006/7 the The Numark IDJ2 was launched almost a year later, and with some fantastic publicity, heralding a new generation of DJing, where it was not only possible to DJ on an iPod, but it was also possible to DJ with the same amount of easy and flexibility as with normal vinyl and CD setups.
The first thing that hits you about the The Numark IDJ2 is the look, its clean, modern and retains that iPod-esq feel that made the iPod such a cult icon. Next thing to hit you about the The Numark IDJ2 is the colour screen that sites in the center of the unit, its big, easy to read and full colour, showing that the The Numark IDJ2 is capable of handing video as well as music. Whilst the finish of the The Numark IDJ2 is really good, its doesn’t have the sturdyness you get with the Cortex Dmix-300, and it would seem that the Cortex Dmix-300 is more of a club oriented iPod mixer when compared to the Numark IDJ2, the main thing in this regards that the Numark IDJ2 is missing is those sweet Jog wheels you get on the Cortex Dmix-300 with the Numark IDJ2, all you have are grooved rubber job wheels, which whilst sensitive, lack in both looks and feel, they just don’t feel right, in general this seems to be try of the finish on the Numark IDJ2, all the knobs, faders and switches seem to lack the robustness and professional feel you get with the Cortex Dmix-300, which gives the impression Numark still look at iPod DJing as more of a hobby and not something they are taking too seriously.
The layout of controls for the Numark IDJ2 is also a little unconventional, and doesn’t lend itself naturally to DJing, with cue play and stop buttons located where they could be accidentally pressed and with high, mid, low knobs placed horizontally above the jog wheel, meaning you could accidentally brush against the job wheel whilst you alter these controls, not good when you’re mid mix and the entire record goes off kilter. The Numark IDJ2 cross fader also seems a little…how should I put it, under achieved? it simply seems less than impressive and unlike the Cortex Dmix-300 cross fader, it isn’t replaceable.
The whole Numark IDJ2 setup just reeks of amateur finish so, whilst it looks great, it’s never going to be a Farrari, more of a Fiat Punto. This being said, the Numark IDJ2 is a Trojan horse the user interface which allows you to control te music on your iPod is fantastic and a great deal more usable than the Cortex Dmix-300, the best of both world would ideally be the Cortex Dmix-300 physical controls with the Numark IDJ2 digital/virtual controls. Regardless, for any iPod DJ, this is a fantastic product.
You find that the size of the Numark IDJ2 is also comparatively smaller than the Cortex Dmix-300, with its plastic finish its also a lot lighter, but its still not exactly portable, with the Numark IDJ2 needing mains power supply, this being said, if you’re a student or a mobile DJ then the Numark IDJ2 is a good and more pratical ption when compared to the Cortex Dmix-300.
All in all the Numark IDJ2 is a fantastic product, despite its finishing flaws its easy to use, looks reasonable and allows you to pitch control your iPod music all without breaking the bank.
Here’s a video of the Numark IDJ2 as part of a console, which adds more casing for the unit and an additional keyboard.
The Cortex Dmix-300 is one of the turning points in DJing technology, and the first real iPod DJing dual deck platform, whilst previous iPod Djing platforms needed you to have two iPods and wouldnt allow you to beatmatch with the Cortex Dmix-300 all these iPod DJing problems such as pitch bending, beat matching and using just one iPod are resolved, whilst the Cortex Dmix-300 allows you to do all these great things working just off a single iPod, it does come at a price, first, the Cortex Dmix-300 is expesive though with the release of the Numark ID2 the price has come down a great deal, second the Cortex Dmix-300 weighs a ton, literally, its not exactly portable, so whilst your iPod is tiny and fits in your pocket, with the Cortex Dmix-300 you are going to struggle fitting it into a bag, and its a gas guzzler too, you’ll need access to a power supply, so definately for the indoors only.
The Cortex Dmix-300 comes well packaged with all the usual padding so its well protected when you pick it up, you’ll find the usual manuals and how to guides and really you’ll want to read these, the user interface on the Cortex Dmix-300 does take some getting used to and if you use an iPod with a Mac, you’ll need to do all sorts of things in iTunes to get it to work properly.
Looking at the Cortex Dmix-300 its super sturdy, with a cool black casing its well build and oozes quality and durability. The first thing you’ll notice is the two circular ‘turntables’, these are totally free rotating and make scratching, cueing up and ultimately mixing possible, the surface attempts to mimic the vinyl feel, but as you’d expect this is only a passing similarity, although the gooves on these turntables does allow a certain degree of grip. the edge of the turn table platter is rubberised and help with certain turntablist tricks as well as savingg you from cutting your hand up on any sharp edges. Bearing in mind that the Cortex Dmix-300 is meant to be an all-in-one iPod DJing platform, between the two turntables sits the built in mixer, this is basic with your usual volume fader for each channel, Gain, high, mid and low knobs, master and booth output volume, fader curve switch, its also in the mmixer section that you find the Cortex Dmix-300’s iPod Dock, the Cortex Dmix-300 is made for iPod approved so the majority of iPods work with the dock and if not they are also supported by inputs at the back that allow you to rig up USB sticks and any other digital media, not just other iPods. The action on the cross fader is easy and fast, being very responsive to control, whilst the volume controls are a little more sticky, as to be expected. by each volume fader is a gradiating light that allows you to get a feel for the volume level of each channel, under normal light this isn’t all that useful, but in darker conditions this is useful as a guide but not exactly critical to being a good DJ. The Knobs for each of the various variables are cased in plasting and stiffer to rotate, however they are very sensitive and allow for a fairly decent creativity when your DJing, but they are a tad bit close to each other. The iPod Dock itself is well built and comes with various size adopters which you put in place to match the type and size of the iPod you are Djing with. For those of you with iPod Shuffles, you’ll have to plug the iPod in at the back. The iPod adopters however are a bit of a pain, being totally free of the Cortex Dmix-300 unit it’s clear they are really easy to loose, something that puts the Numark IDJ2 in another class (god is in the detail after all)
Back to the turntables, we now turn to the iPod controls,along the top edge of the entire Cortex Dmix-300 unit are a stack of controls that essentially allow you to control your music between the iPod and each turntable channel. first thing you notice here is a blue screen you’ll probably be able to tell its not exactly plasma TV here, essentially this screen that its above each turntable channel serves as view of your playlist, your track length and your control view, all that is abstract on only primative, its like looking at ms-dos, back in the early days, again something the IDJ2 beats the Cortex Dmix-300 on. to the side of this screen are three plastic buttons, and beneath the screen is a directional input, buy using these buttons the idea is that you can control the music for each channel on each turntable without having to touch the iPod, works great in theory, in pratice it takes a bit of time to get used to and you’ll have to be a bit fiddly. On the right you can see the pitch fader, which is the real life saver for any iPod DJ or for anyone looking to pitch control with an iPod, the pitch control is fantatic and performs as you would expect and at the top of each pitch fade are two buttons, essentially allowing you to sharply bend the pitch of the track. Above the turntable platter you’ll notice a small button, this button allows you to select the control of the platter, as a fas forward tool, pitch control or scratch platter, the idea behind each of the two turntable channels is that they work independently of each other, but off the same iPod allowing you the typical range of flexibility that any conventional DJ would have, including, volume control, pitch control, fast forward and rewind, and cue, loop and track menipulation.
At the back of the Cortex Dmix-300 you find all the useful connections, you can find 2 sets of booth outputs and one master output, a firewire connector, usb input, and 2 phono inputs. And at the front you get a mic input with master high and low EQ the on and off switch and a monitor output, with channel fader and volume, really useful for when you’re trying to beat match.
All in all the Cortex Dmix-300 is darn good, there are a few snags, as to be expected but a second generation iPod DJing platform, and a first generation single iPod DJing platform. if you’re looking for a reasonably priced and marginally portable iPod DJing setup, you really can’t go wrong with the Cortex Dmix-300, certainly if you want to be beatmatching and altering pitch of each track using only one iPod the Cortex Dmix-300 would be your iPod mixer of choice, and whilst the Numark IDJ2 is good, the drop in price of the Cortex Dmix-300 should, in theory make it a more attractive choice.
Bird Electron are a fantastic Japanese company that produce some really innovative and minimalistic iPod accessories and electronics, they are also the first retailer to take iPod DJing seriously, and have 4 iPod DJing mixers as well as a collection of special iPod speakers and iPod docks, to add to this they also have iPod accessories such as iPod cases and other useful electronic items.
the simplest iPod DJing Mixer Bird Electron make is the DJ7, the DJ7 essentially allows two iPod outputs to be combined into a single output, giving you two decks and allowing you to mix using the volume control on each iPod. Like most iPod DJing solutions its still lacks that one critical point, it doesn’t allow you to control pitch, so you’ll have to organize your music like this.
This being said the quality of the cables is fantastic, and the idea is superbly simple, and the size and portability make this a fantastic solution for any DJ on the go..with two identical iPods.
Whist the iPod and iTunes are fantastic in their own right and offer tons of functionality, they have a major short coming, you can’t alter pitch on the iPod, or iTunes, to alter pitch you need DJ specific equipment to do this, which can be costly. However, as mentioned here, there are solutions to this iPod short coming.
Why is altering pitch so important for DJing? simply because of Beatmatching. Beats are matched from one channel to the other altering the pitch has the effect of altering the BPM (beats per minute) of the track. Assuming you’ve organized your music in the format shown here, you’ll be able to DJ music within the same BPM group, this will allows you to bypass the inherent flaw in DJing on the iPod.
BPM is calculated using various software that you can find free online, here are a few that you might be interested in:
Alternatively youc an calculate BPM by counting the number of beats in 15 seconds, then multiply that by 4.
You want to make sure you calculate BPM consistently on the most stable beat, so if your doing breakbeat you might find counting the cymbals more effective than the kick drum or snare for example.
Once you’ve got the BPM for a track it will make DJing with that track on an iPod a lot easier, and a lot more fun.
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.
