NEW USER: The Pros of Transitioning to Engine DJ?

General Area DJ Lounge
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I have been a long time user of Traktor and RekordBox, but recently i have started looking at Engine 4.0 which looks really good and professional, specially with some of the Denon DJ gear which i may purchase, anything I should look out for (pros vs cons) when transitioning?

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Hi MAGI welcome to the world of Denon :grin:

  • Pros: Cheaper than Pioneer. Feature packed. Regular updates.
  • Cons: Some long awaited/requested features still not implemented
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Thanks, you mentioned " Cons: Some long awaited/requested features still not implemented" what has been the biggest request in your opinion :+1:

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I think a lot of us would like to see the streaming services integrated into the desktop software, so we can prep with mouse and keyboard on a large screen.

The sampler needs some love. It was requested, we eventually got it - but it’s B.A.S.I.C.

Some folks though, want “better” effects because they’re not identical to Pioneer, and RGB waveforms because that’s what Pioneer has (etc etc). :smile:

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Have a browse through the feature request part of this forum.

Ill add long loading times over the network if you have a large collection (40 seconds for 20.000 tracks). But to be honest, I dont know how rekordbox performs with such collections. In contrast, Traktor was always snappy.

But, you get more browse information on the screen with denon if you ask me, Pioneer only shows 2 columns, and you can edit playlists (altough syncing deletes doesnt happen).

Its really weighing the pros and the cons. Engine is not perfect, but neither is Rekordbox… Traktor was actually, but I got tired of the laptop in the booth :wink:

PS: the dual layer on SC6000s, and the loop knob, are a huge plus compared to Pioneer CDJ3000s….

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Pros: much better product than Pioneer (IMO) and at a much more reasonable price. Double the amount of pitch precision (down to 0.01% rather than 0.02%) was definitely something I enjoyed right away, as well as the nudge sensitivity options, for really precise bends. Way better looking GUI too IMO.

Only con I can think of is that it’s not in the clubs already, so I have to bring my own Prime Go in order to play on Denon gear. Hasn’t been too big of an issue for me though :blush:

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Yes prepping on a desktop is quicker, maybe adding a Bluetooth mouse compatibility to Engine DJ might speed things up, or does it have that already?

I agree, having the same look and effects as pioneer is not the right path for Denon, integrating a third party company for effects would be a better approach, a company like Eventide, with the option to update new effects and algorithms within Engine DJ

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Thanks, On load time, If all tracks are analysed from an SSD before playing, will the tracks load instantly when playing live?

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Thanks, I didn’t know that Engine DJ pitch precision was 0.01% in movements of the pitch, interesting, thats a big plus for me, as most of my mixing is 2 to 3 minutes long with sync off. I find its OK to match the BPMs with the sync button quickly, but then to knock it off straight away before mixing. I find its nicer as the beats come in and out of phase, so having 0.01% pitch precision is essential.

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Yeah, it’s amazing for longer transitions. Mine are generally 90-120 seconds, and I only ever have to nudge the track a very few times - super precise stuff :blush:

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Akai allow users to buy additional effects for their MPCs, so Denon could adopt that approach. The effects are already written, and the system runs on the same CPU.

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In that case they will load instantly, but that was not what I was saying. What I meant is, when you first select a remote USB drive, the first time you’ll be browsing its playlists, it takes longer to load those playlists, depending on database size (ie, number of tracks on the stick).

If you only select one USB drive, and leave it there for the rest of your set, or don’t regularly switch drives, this is not the biggest issue. In my use case however, I do want to switch USB drives frequently during my set, and thats a problem over the network.

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OK, I understand, Thanks Johan

NOTED!

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I transitioned from the world of DVS back in 2017 when the SC5000s came out and as long as the hardware and software continues to be rock solid, I am team Denon all the way.

Even with all of the issues they have, the SC6000M’s are my favorite DJ player of all time.

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I have never own anything from Denon, but I know their a serious company, and I am definitely going to purchase something from them.

I learnt to play on a set of 1210s and a Numark DM 1100 SE for 15yrs and then transitioned in 2010 to digital, much easier to carry around. :laughing: :laughing:

Still love vinyl

Numark
Numark720Ă—960 64.3 KB

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Well, Denon today is a different company than back in the days… But hey, so is Pioneer :wink:

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  1. Pros
    • Solid and capable hardware
    • Four decks at a reasonable price (ie: Prime 4+)
    • SoundSwitch is pretty cool to tie in.
    • Smart Playlists are pretty cool.
  2. Cons
    • I wish I could see and sort my tracks by Play Count within Engine DJ OS
    • I wish I could edit my tracks’ Rating within Engine DJ OS as I mix and discover new tracks.
    • SoundSwitch exporting takes way too long (Exporting 1.5G project can take 30-60m making it impractical to use, especially when you only add a few tracks). I can copy a 1.5G file to the drive in seconds, I don’t understand why SoundSwitch exporting takes so long.
    • Smart Playlists lack any real logic customization. It’s either AND or OR on one level/dimension of conditions.
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I have been a Denon customer for around 4 or so years now I have stuck with Denon as they have provided what i needed for my work flow it is not perfect but it works for me, of course stems is a missing feature at present my Serato and VDJ friends continue to make jokes as Denon/Engine have not released their own version and at this point who knows when that will happen.

In terms of software aside from stems it is a big plus, regular updates and improvements.

My biggest issues have been with the x1850 mixer which is fine when it works but I have to be honest I would rather have the Pioneer club mixer (it’s just too expensive).

The pads of the sc live 4 (as much as I love it) are not very responsive compared to the pads on the Go and Sc6000, on the sc live 4 I really have to press the pads, and in some cases when wanting to jump to different parts of a track the pads just do not respond which when djing live can be worrying.

For now I think I will continue with Denon I do not see that the competition is offering anything that Denon/Engine could not do themselves. Pioneer are supposedly brining out a possible XZ replacement good for them but that is in effect going to compete with the Prime 4 + which is already arguably the best stand alone on the market.

In my opinion if you put Pioneers market share to one side and just go by features Denon has the better products. There is of course the ongoing debate about Denon’s quality and reliability in terms of hardware, I have only had issues with x1850 mixer which were repaired by Denon.

Oh and Denon has not (and hopefully will not) adopt the subscription model like pioneer so for me that is a pro.

Stems is needed and there are other tweaks and refinements to be made to OS and Desktop software, but all things considered you can’t really go wrong with the current crop of Denon products which does bode well when the next generation of devices come around i would guess that will be from 2025 and those devices are going to be beastly which should worry the competition.

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