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Algoriddim's djay iOS app uses Shazam to recognize and sync with live music
Algoriddim is integrating Shazam into its latest iOS djay app with the release of iOS 15.
Numark's DJ2GO2 Touch is made for aspiring DJs
Numark's controllers are ubiquitous in the world of professional DJing, and the company is hoping to get more amateurs in on the action with its DJ2GO2 Touch. The device easily fits in a backpack alongside a laptop, but it still packs cueing, looping, sampling and scratching functions. The Touch is an upgrade from 2017's DJ2GO2, with the biggest update being its capacitive jog wheels. These are the same type of touch sensitive wheels that are found on most professional DJ units, but in a much smaller package.
Harmonix and Hasbro's new card game mashes up hit music
The heyday of music games may have passed, but that hasn't stopped Harmonix from experimenting with new ways for you to experience your favorite tunes. Sure, there's a new Rock Band coming to VR, but for those who prefer something a bit more old school, the company's developing a new card game with toy company Hasbro. Dropmix is a music-mixing game about outscoring your opponent, building an awesome song collection and creating the dopest beats.
Thud Rumble's Intel-powered DJ mixer has a PC inside
Roughly four years ago, Thud Rumble -- a company that's the brainchild of legendary DJ QBert (Richard Quitevis) and Yogafrog (Ritche Desuasido) -- was having an open house. Developer and DJ Rich Johnson (aka DJ Hard Rich) wandered in to talk to the co-founders. During a conversation with Quitevis, Johnson said, "I want to make a mixer for you guys." Quitevis had long wanted a mixer with an embedded computer so he wouldn't have to drag a laptop and mixer to gigs. "Can you make something like this?" he asked. Johnson said he could. Finally they're showing it off.
The DJs of Silicon Valley who are changing music
Before Silicon Valley had an app for everything, and before the halcyon years preceding the dot-com bubble, Richard Quitevis and Ritche Desuasido were teaming up and making waves in the DJ industry. Disrupting, even. As DJs QBert and Yogafrog, respectively, both came up in the Bay Area mobile DJ scene of the early '80s. In 1996, they formed their own company, Thud Rumble, to help drive their craft forward with affordable gear created by and for DJs. From the early days launching cutting-edge records, to designing mixers for some of the biggest names in music and teaming up with Intel to create low-cost, low-latency instruments, Thud Rumble has had a huge impact on the technology used in the DJ world, all while living in the shadow of larger Silicon Valley companies.
Ion outs its Lightning-compatible iDJ 2 Go Plus, we take a close look
Cupertino's Lightning connector has put a few DJ peripherals out of the running for new iOS devices, but Ion's iDJ 2 Go Plus is up to the task. The portable rig supports Apple's new connector, features two scratch wheels, a crossfader, a handful of backlit buttons and a collection of knobs for music junkies to do their thing. As for software, the hardware can take advantage of the firm's free iDJ 2 Go app or other software, such as Algoriddim's Djay. As of now, details on price and availability are scarce. Minimalist DJs can mix with the outfit's Scratch 2 Go: a collection of knobs, two turntables and a crossfader that attach to an iPad via suction cups. According to Ion, the low-key kit also functions with popular DJ apps in addition to their own offering. Price and availability details are nowhere in sight, but you can catch a hands-on with both setups in the bordering galleries. Update: We've gone hands-on with the iDJ 2 Go Plus and, as you'd expect, it resembles its predecessor -- except for the 30-pin connection being swapped for Lightning. As we took it for a spin, the turntables, crossfaders and knobs were responsive and up for the task -- even though this editor's DJing skills may not have been. The board is being readied for a June release with a $99 price tag. Scratch 2 Go was paired up with Ion's app when we took it for a spin and it did a fair job of responding to our twists and turns. The tiny suction cups that affix the rigs pieces to the iPad's screen did their job, but we did notice one loose turntable. Ion's minimalist kit will launch in April for $19.99. Follow all the latest CES 2013 news at our event hub. Edgar Alvarez contributed to this report.
IK Multimedia iRig MIX review: a mobile mixer built for iDevices
Accessories, iOS has them. Not many devices can boast the same rich and dazzling array of add-ons that the iPhone or iPad enjoy -- from keyboards to docks, arcade cabinets to battery packs. Today's offering? A mobile mixer. The iRig MIX from IK Multimedia, to be precise. It's essentially a mini DJ tool, designed to work with such iGadgets, and brought to you by the same serial audio-accessorizers behind the iRig MIC Cast and AmpliTube. If you think you've seen this fella before, then you likely have, as this got its first glimpse of sunlight back at CES. Now it's here for real, auditioning for your affections as if it were on "American Idol." While it's easy to dismiss some of the more ambitious accessories as as trying to push the limits of iPad / iPhone functionality to the extreme, it's also worth remembering that accessory X isn't always about replacing object Y. No one ever bought a USB webcam thinking it'd turn them into Spielberg, now did they? But, they might have gotten one thinking it would give their PC some skills it never had before. So it's with this short, preemptive missive in mind that we turn on the iRig MIX, plug in and rock out. Hopefully.%Gallery-158921%
If God is a DJ, these are his decks (video)
Not getting the kind of attention you feel a DJ deserves? Then maybe it's because your decks are Plain Janes of spinning black nothingness when they could be so much more. You need projectors up there on the ceiling, creating light shows mapped to the rotation and beat of your records and simultaneously overlaying your software -- so you won't have to keep staring subserviently at a laptop. The next step? Using Wii controllers and motion capture for even stranger effects, plus whatever else your imagination conjures after seeing the video below. Soon this technology will be everywhere, from hospital radio DJs right down to that little pretender who does discos on the pier, so get in there quick to beat the curve.
Novation outs Dicer controller for the digital DJ
Novation's just announced the USB Dicer controllers for all you digital DJs. The backlit devices -- which are sold in pairs -- can be mounted to the corners of turntables for easy access, and they're compatible with Scratch Live DJ. You can control Serato Cue-Point, Loop Roll and Auto-Loop all from the Dicers, without having to touch your laptop (which means you'll look a lot cooler, right?). The Novation Dicer will be available starting in late June or early July, and they'll run you $99. The full press release follows.
Ableton, Serato announce 'The Bridge,' cause DJs to faint en masse
Ableton and Serato -- two of the biggest names in live music production -- have been working in stealth mode over the past year to create what they've been billing as "the future of digital DJing," and today that new product has been revealed as The Bridge. Basically, you've got a thin layer of software that sits between full versions of both Serato Live (or Itch) and Ableton Live that allows output from both products to flow into the other -- DJ sets can be imported into Ableton with full control over effect parameters, tempo, pitch, and so on, and Ableton instruments can sit inside a Serato session. It's an interesting advancement, and the way the companies are talking, this is just the first in a string of products of the partnership; the good news is that The Bridge will be free to owners of both products, but unfortunately there's no release date yet, so raves are going to have to soldier on using last year's technology for at least a while longer. Hang tight, we're told it's "coming soon."
Scratching the surface: DJ'ing with your Mac
It's Saturday night and you're out and about painting the town red, or whatever color it is that towns are painted these days. Whether you end up at a night club, a lounge or a bar, there's a good chance there's going to be a DJ spinning up some tunes at the venue. And there's a good chance that you'll see a glowing Apple in front of the DJ, as said DJ may be accompanied by a MacBook or MacBook Pro. If you've ever looked into doubling your Mac as a virtual turntable, then this post may help you scratch the surface -- err, vinyl.
