Serato Scratch LIVE[Rane] VS Traktor scratch live[native instruments]

[johnjogurt]

you opinion : which is better???, why...

[PHR]

In my opinion Serato is the best.

Serato=the Technics of digital-dj systems. Small footprint and it just works. Don`t require a beast to run.

NI Scratch=the Vestax of the digital-dj systems. Lots of bells and whistles, but bloated and unstable. Traktor 2.6 is still the best and most stable version of everything NI have put out in the Traktor-series.

[theoryinmotion]

I use Serator and love...wouldn't go any other way. It has never crashed, let alone glitched while playing out. All around the best in timecoded spinning.

[lu432]

NI SUCKS! YES I SAID IT AND HOPE THEY READ THIS!!! THEIR TECH SUPPORT SUCKS AND THEY ARE TOO CHEAP TO HAVE PHONE SUPPORT! And then they release tracktor scratch and ask for $300+ dollar upgrad to tracktor scatch if you own the old version of tacktor with the old unit, which they don't support anymore, your SOL.

Oh and so you know they suck at releasing software also, since they release software and its buggy right out of the box. Do your home work guys. One or two buggs cool, but your last release was ridiculously full of bugs.


Serato all the way . Tech support was cool , bought it once and there hasn't been a need to upgrade, doesn't crash, and has been easy to buy replacement CD's and Viynl. My other friend bought it as well and he has also not had any problems. So far we are about 6 dj's that have been very happy down here with Serato Scratch and we are encouraging everyone to go that way so as to create a standard. Kinda like the pioneers have become with the CDJ's.thumbsup

[1979]

I'm not a DJ, and I can not compare it to any product like it. But I have the misfortune of having to close out many nights of FOH work listening to serrato through the PA, while I'm babysitting a DJ until 2:30 am. Has to be one of the worst harshest sounding pieces of shit I have heard in my life. Can you use better converters with seratto? The other stupid thing about Serrato is that it makes it easy for DJ's to get paid good money to play "stolen music"...Bullshit!

[jimdon]

the dj might be using really badly encoded mp3s he got off limewire

[Chris G]

check out M-audio Torq Connective.... It has more features that serato and very cool effects and VST support on each channel.

Don't get me wrong, I still love Serato because it's light on the processing and feels like just playing wax, but Torq is half the price and just has more.

[Strobian]

I've got traktor scratch currently, and have no problems with it. I haven't used it extensively yet, but so far its quite good, and the vinyl control is real solid. I run it on a Macbook. Chris Liebeng, Dubfire, Grand Master Flash, Stryke use traktor and these guys play every week, multiple times, so I think there is some exageration going on. I've got nothing but good to say about Seratos stability, but I like the idea of being able to go with a controller on traktor 3 if in fact I want to go that route down the road.
I think if you are looking for just a typical mixing DJ set up serato probably wins, but if you are looking for more modern options and expandability traktor wins.

I agree with the NI customer support comment. I bought traktor scratch during the free upgrade period for traktor 3.3, they are not in a hurry to make sure I get my upgrade.

The other stupid thing about Serrato is that it makes it easy for DJ's to get paid good money to play "stolen music"

Digital is the way forward, most distribution places are out of business already. Buying the tracks from online sites is defo the right way, but you are always going to have a few dishonest people out there who are trying to take shortcuts. Don't assume everyone is a thief, I buy my music.

[sardi]

I got to demo Serato heavily a few weeks back and was quite impressed with it. Have always been a hevay vinyl user up til the last 2 years where I have been playing mainly off CD using CDJ1000's.

There is one major issue I have with Seratto (and from what I have read this applies to all the vinyl emulation units) and that is the pitch resolution. It works in 0.1% increments. This is definitely NOT fine enough if you are holding your mixes for a long time. After about the 16 bar mark, I noticed the mixes were starting to slide. With a CDJ1000 it moves in 0.05% when you have your pitch controls set to +/- 10%. This is better, althoug I would be even happier at 0.02%.

Im really surprised I don't hear much about this from most of the DJ's using it. There is a bit of talk about it on the Serato forums, but thats about it.

This is the one thing taht stops it being exactly like vinyl. Vinyl will lock and hold much better as the pitch resolution is much finer.

If they can fix this issue, then it will be close to perfect - well aside from the fact taht you ned to calibrate your system just before you play. Time consuming but a neccessity I suppose.

[nonstatic]

Originally Posted by sardi

There is one major issue I have with Seratto (and from what I have read this applies to all the vinyl emulation units) and that is the pitch resolution. It works in 0.1% increments.

not true. i saw this discussed in the TS forums. the 0.1% is merely the display they give you in the UI. the actual measurement for vinyl control is more like .001 (don't remember the exact figure but it's much more finite than, say, a CDJ). besides, would you want figures like that on your screen? frankly, i don't want to see the BPM at all.

there's no way serato could have come out on top if they only had that small of a pitch resolution. i've played on digital turntables with an actual increment of 0.1% and they are totally useless for real dj's who make long mixes. this is definitely not the case with any DVS i've come in contact with. i've been able to sustain mixes for 5+ minutes on both competing systems. currently a TS user, playing every weekend. but i do agree with previous posters, NI's support blows. serato seems much more friendly and responsive to their customers.

[nonstatic]

Originally Posted by 1979

I'm not a DJ, and I can not compare it to any product like it. But I have the misfortune of having to close out many nights of FOH work listening to serrato through the PA, while I'm babysitting a DJ until 2:30 am. Has to be one of the worst harshest sounding pieces of shit I have heard in my life. Can you use better converters with seratto? The other stupid thing about Serrato is that it makes it easy for DJ's to get paid good money to play "stolen music"...Bullshit!

unfortunately a lot of dj's (including the "big and famous" ones) are playing lower bitrate mp3's and giving the whole technology a bad name. even 320kb mp3's can sound assy when used with a poor encoder.

LAME-encoded 320kb mp3's sound quite good indeed, and it's unlikely the problems you have with listening to them have to do with the DA converters. but that's a whole other discussion really.

[simeonrw]

Currently a TS user and I can tell you this, it sounds way better than serato because of the Audio 8 converter. I think its a product that is definitely heading in the right direction and is a step ahead of Serato. Stability wise Serato wins hands down, it seems to work with whatever OS update that comes out and Serato tech support is very fast on updating their software. I use a mac and although its not stable with Leopard, TS is very stable on Tiger. The software also offers a lot more features than Serato. If NI can keep up with their updates, TS will be incredible.

[danasti]

Originally Posted by johnjogurt

you opinion : which is better???, why...

Serato sounds very good. It's not the 2buss from Pro tools coming out of my rosetta but it still sounds very, very good. The most important aspect to good sound is a good recording, encoding and track. On a good sound system like Pacha or Duvet Serato and sounds fantastic. It sounds fantastic on my PMC AML1s too. But a crap quality mp3 ,a crappy playback system, crap needles/cartridges, or a crappy dj pinning the mixer into the red will make Serato sound bad.

Serato is also installed in alot of clubs and venues. Audio 8 dj - native instruments, or whatever it's going to be called in 6 months, isn't really installed anywhere I know of.

Personally, I don't need any bpm or sync crap. I like using the pitch control on the turntable to make adjustment throughout the mix. I really only need to be seeing and finding the tracks I want and seeing what is playing on each turntable. I want something great for mixing two pieces of music together, sometimes scratching or chopping up tones and voices and Serato kills at doing this like vinyl. It does the basics the right way, like they should be.

Good Luck with your choice!

[kennyb]

It Really annoys me when people use the term 'a proper DJing tool' for Serato which has no onboard effects and no autosync....

Guess what people I like having BPM sync!! i learnt to beat mix when I was 16 years old and now I'm 30 and been DJing for best part of 15 years Its a nice feature to have, it's not because us Traktor users cant do it, so please get that into your heads rr

I used to DJ pubs and clubs playing a mixture of Dance/Hiphop mainstream club music I guess, I only used Vinyl and mixed just about every that would go together nicely without horrid clashing vocals etc.

I got a bit bored of djing the same places every week and I've turned into a bit of a grandad mobile dj lol, I need to have a large library of music to do this and I have found Traktor to be the best Software out there.

If your doing a private function and the guest wants background music for an hour you can select your own playlist and the program will blend the tracks for you, yes I understand this is cheating but the only mug here in my oppinion is the DJ that stands there playing live when knowone is listening.

Traktor will Sync two tracks for you that you want to mix to SAVE TIME!! leaving you to experiment with the newer more modern features of DJing, such as VCF/LFO Filters using different effects to make tracks and mixes sound completely unique.

If you ask me I think Traktor software wins hands down, I agree with the tech support and stability issues compared to Serato, although having said that I've never had Traktor crash on me once, at home or during a gig.

[d1rtynyc]

Welcome kennyb.

I use Serato. I have the older version & like it quite a bit. The only issue I ever had was one night my last record started to glitch slightly while the next dj was mixing out. Did not cause a fuss. I was probably the only one who noticed. Serato has a simple interface & is a just what you need. Coming from a vinyl only backround that is what I wanted.

That being said I am going to get NI Scratch Live when I get a new laptop, my current laptop does not have the power for it. I want the FX & xtras that it has. Untill then I am more than happy with what I have.

[merveilleux]

Is it possible to use Traktor Scratch together with the NI Audio Kontrol 1 soundcard?

[andrew upstairs]

Originally Posted by merveilleux

Is it possible to use Traktor Scratch together with the NI Audio Kontrol 1 soundcard?

No. It requires the Audio 4 DJ or Audio 8 DJ.

[ekwipt]

You can use Traktor and Traktor Pro but not Traktor Scratch

[merveilleux]

Originally Posted by andrew upstairs

No. It requires the Audio 4 DJ or Audio 8 DJ.

Ok Thanks..