I have a gig I do maybe every few weeks and don’t want to play the same tracks (apart from the popular ones) at the following gig.
In VDJ I go to the history file for the previous gig, colour all the files green so they highlight then I know when I load my venue playlist not to play them this time round.
Is there an equivalent feature in Engine so tracks can be coloured on the PC then they show the same colour on the hardware browser?
There isn’t, but there is a very popular feature request for additional options like tagging, colour etc. Let me find it.
Edit:
Color / Colour tag column - Feature Requests / New/Open Requests - Engine DJ Community
Thank you. Voted!
Another very basic thing missing in Engine compared to VDJ.
Yes, you probably don’t need to be making the comment every single time you find something else though.
Just as an aside, and maybe providing some context:
“The first version of VirtualDJ appeared on 1 July 2003. VirtualDJ is the successor to AtomixMP3, the first version of which dates from September 2000.”
That is extremely well established software in comparison to the Engine offering, which only recently migrated to its current guise of ‘Engine Desktop’. You can head to this link below to read through the release notes of what has been added to the desktop software over time, this will show that they are commited to making steady improvements to the desktop software, which we all agree could and should be accelerated.
Well I do actually. If Denon want people to change their rider from “established” software and invest in their standalone products, they should at least offer a comparable feature set.
Imagine going to buy a new car and the dealer saying “sorry, this 2024 model has only been in production for a few months so we’ve not developed ABS brakes or indicators for it yet”.
Chinese EV manufacturers are all comparitively new and have managed to knock out fully featured cars to meet EU regulations in no time at all.
That’s my point and sums the whole situation up.
You’re not comparing like with like though. The OS on many standalone devices (not just DJ kit) usually is more limited than any computer software version.
Prime’s OS is more limited than DJ software, in many ways.
Pioneer’s standalone OS is more limited than Rekordbox.
Akai’s standalone MPCs are more limited than the desktop MPC software.
Ableton’s standalones (Push and Move) are more limited than Ableton Live.
Native Instruments standalone Maschine+ is more limited than Maschine software.
This is the case across the board. Denon are not falling behind here.
Maybe my expectations are just too high then.
Guess I’m just frustrated with Engine because when I go to do something that has been routine in VDJ for years it’s not there.
Bit like going from a Rolls Royce to a Fiat.
I’m a VDJ user myself, but I still love my Prime 4. If necessary I can connect it to my computer and use it as a controller for VDJ.
VDJ does many things that even other software doesn’t, let alone dedicated hardware.
They’ve just enhanced the sampler in the latest EA build, yet Prime kit (despite being the only standalone DJ kit with a sampler) still can’t do even basic sample looping or sync.
As PK said, computer performance software and the Engine desktop app are vastly different. Engine is just a library management tool and nothing more, and one in its infancy.
My whole point was 24yr old software is extremely mature, its had countless updates and improvements. It would be extremely unrealistic for a company that are fairly new to this type of game to be up to speed from day one onwards, your car analogy isnt really helpful there as you’re comparing standard safety features that are legally required against quality of life features on DJ software…perhaps compare the cars GUI, or the DSG gearbox from say an Audi to the Chinese company, and then you’ll see what the years of extra development get you.
As i said, we all know Engine Desktop needs improvment, ive called it out lots of times on here that we need some desktop only updates, but as the link above proves, since 2021 they have made significant strides and added some very good features. To the point where Mojaxx has changed his opinion from ‘its a weak point’ to ‘its now well established and capable for most DJs’
Using the likes of VDJ as a benchmark for everything else is always going to end in tears, because nobody is close to them with regards to what it can do.
Thanks for the information. I haven’t updated VDJ for a month or so so haven’t seen the new sampler. My DJ laptop does not get early access (for obvious reasons) so I’ve not seen the recent changes.
If you’re familiar with the Groove Circuit that Pioneer recently introduced, Atomix have made it easy to do with their sampler now, by adding a couple of tags to the sample editor…
So for each sample now, you can set it to replace a particular stem (i.e. vocal sample replaces vocal stem) and set the key (if it’s a pitched sound) then when you play that sample it replaces the stem you want it to replace, and it’s in key.
I got mine in sets so I can play the list over and over and every new gig they are white when I have done them they are green. Just make a playlist or a smartlist drag the songs in and your good to go.
I have done that but I’m trying to highlight what I played at the previous gig.
Comparing a DJ software in particular VDJ to any embedded software of a standalone hardware is illusory.
VDJ is probably the most powerful software of all software because you can configure everything yourself, any function can be scripted on any button, including complex macros like “I want that when I cut the vocal stem of deck 2 with an echo out on 1 beat, with a feedback of 60% it activates at the same time the vocal stem of deck 1”.
No DJ software is close to that and even less an embedded software on a standalone hardware. So you can find hundreds of possible features in VDJ that do not exist in Engine or in any other software for that matter.
VDJ is a real geek thing for those who like to tweak their workflow.